Taking Advantage of a Burning House
Early in the morning, Xia Fei followed Yawei to the secret communications room. There would be a conference call soon to decide how the tycoons of the Black Abyss Star Region would exchange for the ten thousand energy-shield boosters in Xia Fei's hands.
Xia Fei had both hands in his pockets, a Hongtashan cigarette dangling from his mouth. He did not seem to be nervous at all. After all, he was now an A-list supplier to the military, and the energy-shield boosters had already been recognized by the Alliance military, which had always been very strict.
The tycoons of the Black Abyss were already on the verge of collapse and were eager to turn the situation around. This new equipment was undoubtedly a timely help.
As the saying went, 'Take advantage of your weakness'. Xia Fei was determined to take advantage of this opportunity to extort a fortune from them, never ever doubting Xia Fei's potential as an unscrupulous businessman. Timely help? What was sent over was carbon, and what was returned would be gold.
Turning a corner, Xia Fei and Yawei walked into a building that looked very much like an astronomical observatory. A huge metal antenna towered into the clouds, used to transmit ancient communication waves. In the Black Abyss Star Region, which was far from the Alliance, there were times when such ancient communication devices were more useful than the interplanetary internet because the internet was not stable.
The military had already left for the frontlines, so there were not many people in the barracks. Just as Xia Fei walked past the corner, a mustached man wearing a black cloak suddenly appeared.
"What are you waiting for?" the mustached man asked.
There was no one in the empty space, but a weak voice could be heard. "There's no rush. They'll be coming back the way they came. I'll set up the Butterfly Ten-step Formation on the way back and complete the mission."
The mustached man nodded, disappearing from the corner in a flash. Clean Knife also turned into a breeze and drifted to the center of the path.
…
Though the old-fashioned communication device was stable, it was extremely cumbersome to operate. The communications officer kept busy, and Xia Fei felt very bored, so he went to the corridor alone to wait.
Standing by the window, he could clearly see the path filled with fallen leaves below. Xia Fei had no idea that the path he had just taken had now changed direction, and his destination was death.
Xia Fei lit another cigarette. He always liked to smoke whenever he was thinking. Nicotine could make a person calm down, but it would inevitably take away some of his life force. People who thought they were smart would rarely smoke, but Xia Fei did not think so. Although smoking would take away some of his life force, it could be exchanged for a moment of peace. This was already an equivalent exchange, and to Xia Fei, who believed in the theory of price, it was very worth it.
The butterfly killer Clean Knife was sitting in the middle of the street below, looking up at Xia Fei as he whistled. Due to his Fine Dust ability, no one could see or sense his presence.
Even now, Xia Fei had no idea what kind of danger he was about to face.
No one knew Clean Knife's background, and very few people truly understood his strength, either. What was certain was that Xia Fei's strength had increased by leaps and bounds after his trip to Heritage Planet, and Clean Knife, who had also been to Heritage Planet, was no ordinary individual, either!
This was a battle of the unknown. Two warriors who had both been to Heritage Planet would meet in the desolate Black Abyss Star Region!
This was a battle between Sly Thrust and Ten Butterfly Steps! Who was stronger, Xia Fei's Celestial Moon or Clean Knife's Butterfly Reaper Blade?
"It's connected!" The communications soldier got up and reported.
Yawei nodded and ushered Xia Fei into the conference room. There was a person on each of the four screens. Including Yawei, who was beside Xia Fei, the Five Permanent Councilors of the Black Abyss Star Region were all present.
Five people, five faces, all of them different shapes and sizes, but their expressions were very similar. They all had worried looks on their faces, and their eyes were filled with anxiety and unease.
The Five Permanent Councilors were the abbreviation for the five most powerful tycoons in the Black Abyss Star Region. The five of them made up approximately sixty percent of the military force in this newly formed coalition army, and their strength was evident. As long as these five could be convinced, the rest of the smaller warlords and tycoons would naturally not be a problem.
Yawei first gave a simple introduction. Everyone already knew who Xia Fei was and why he was here, so they got right to the point and talked about the contract. In the face of danger, every second of delay would mean an additional minute of danger.
On the screen, a fat old man who looked to be in his seventies was the first to ask, "Can these energy-shield boosters really greatly increase the combat power of the military?"
Xia Fei had already learned from Yawei's introduction that this man was called M 'vila, the number one landlord of Black Abyss as well as the number one warlord. His strength ranked first among the Five Permanent Councilors, so his words were very important to this group of five.
Smiling, Xia Fei said in a clear voice, "The energy-shield boosters have already been adopted by the military, and they'll be equipping the entire military in the next few days. I believe that none of you have any doubts about the military's choice, yes?"
Everyone was silent. This matter had long been made known to everyone. The tiny Quantum Holdings becoming an A-list supplier for the military could be said to be the first collaboration between the military and a small business. No one had ever succeeded before.
Xia Fei paused for a moment before continuing. "My Quantum Holdings is very small. Do you know why the military agreed to let Quantum Holdings become an A-list supplier?"
Everyone expressed their confusion. M 'vila furrowed his eyebrows and asked in a deep voice, "I'm very puzzled, too. The military has always been very strict with their suppliers, and no matter how you look at it, Quantum Holdings doesn't have the strength to become an A-list supplier. Of course, I'm just stating the facts; I don't mean to belittle you."
Xia Fei said with a straight face, "You're right. Quantum Holdings doesn't have the qualifications, but our product does. That's because the energy-shield booster has passed the military's secret laboratory's level 5 stress test."
"What? Level 5 stress test?! "
"The energy-shield booster really passed the level 5 stress test? That's unbelievable! "
Xia Fei calmly observed the expressions on everyone's faces. It was obvious that they were not just tempted but extremely shocked!
Actually, Xia Fei could be suspected of exaggerating. After all, it was not a single energy-shield booster that had passed the level 5 stress test but a shield defense array that was formed by combining all of them together.
Though he had not been a profiteer for long, this did not affect Xia Fei's potential as a profiteer. Using the tiger's skin as a banner and exaggerating the publicity was something that Xia Fei was already very familiar with. Even if these people knew the truth, they could not blame Xia Fei, for he did not specify whether it was a single product or a defense array that had passed the level 5 stress test. In any case, it was all Quantum Holdings' products, so there was nothing wrong with it.
"Since that's the case, why don't you state your conditions?" M 'vila asked straightforwardly.
Xia Fei nodded. He turned on his microcomputer and unfolded a star map of the Death Trio Star Region. There was a red circle marked on the map, and there was a yellow circle around it.
Pointing with one finger, Xia Fei said, "I'll give you ten thousand energy-shield boosters. If we win this war, I want this place to be completely autonomous, be it military or civil affairs. The yellow zone doesn't have any habitable planets, so it'll be used as a military buffer zone, and no one's military will be allowed to enter."
"With how big this area is, there are probably hundreds of habitable planets," an old man with a protruding mouth and cheeks exclaimed after looking at the star map.
Xia Fei laughed. "Not that many. Though this place is big, it's all wilderness, with only six habitable planets."
The thin old man nodded, one hand stroking the few strands of beard on his chin. A habitable planet, as the name suggested, was a planet that humans could live on. It had oxygen, water, and other necessities that humans needed to survive. In the barren Death Trio Star Region, every habitable planet was extremely precious. This was because a planet without any life had no value other than mining. The necessary labor and food had to be maintained by a habitable planet.
Everyone could not help but feel their hearts skip a beat when they saw the large area that Xia Fei had marked out, but they could not help but heave a sigh of relief when they learned that there were only six habitable planets.
The least valuable thing in the Death Trio Star Region were planets, and the least valuable planets were also planets. There were plenty of planets that could not sustain life, and no one cared about them at all.
M 'vila carefully looked at the area that Xia Fei had marked out before saying in a deep voice, "To be honest, the place you've picked doesn't seem to be very good. It's far away, but from what I know, there's an A-grade planet that's very suitable for humans and animals to live on, two B-grade planets, and three C-grade planets. Furthermore, five of these six habitable planets are in the same star system. It's a very good place to be.
"Moreover, this area is rich in minerals, and almost all of them have huge reserves. Furthermore, there are mineral planets that have yet to be explored. Aren't you asking for too much in exchange for ten thousand energy-shield boosters with such a high price?"
The area that Xia Fei had picked was in the periphery of the Terminus Star System, not in the Black Abyss, so the tycoons of the Black Abyss did not know much about it.
With M 'vila's reminder, everyone hurriedly opened their star maps to check, and they could not help but look troubled when they learned about the richness of this area.
There was probably only one such special place in the entire Death Trio Star Region. First of all, there were five high-grade habitable planets in the same star system, which was practically a blessing from God. The closer the habitable planets were, the easier it was to develop trade, and it was more convenient to travel between them, which would greatly promote the prosperity of the entire star system.
Not to mention the precious A-grade habitable planets. The higher the grade of a planet, the more beautiful the scenery, making it suitable for humans to live in. The reason why the Black Abyss, Terminus, and the Evil Gulfstream warlords were locked in a fierce battle was all because of a few A-grade habitable planets.
If a B-grade habitable planet could be exchanged for an equivalent amount of gold, then an A-grade habitable planet could be exchanged for an equivalent amount of diamonds.
This was the barren Death Trio Star Region, and the value of an A-grade habitable planet was simply immeasurable.
As for the B-grade habitable planet on the edge, it was responsible for Xia Fei's important plan to build a Titan. It was already at the border, far away from the hustle and bustle of the world, making it the perfect place to set up a secret factory.
Xia Fei's price tag was not just a matter of how high it was; it was extremely high.
The blade was still dripping with fresh blood when it was slashed down!
The five council members hesitated. Xia Fei had just bitten off one of their arms. They had all seen unscrupulous businessmen before, but they had never heard of one as ruthless as Xia Fei.
"You guys discuss first. I'm going to the bathroom." Xia Fei smiled and left after saying that, leaving the five of them behind in the conference room.
"Too ruthless! Too ruthless! " The moment Xia Fei left, M 'vila could not help but say in annoyance, "How is this business? He's practically robbing us while we're in trouble."
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