Chapter 560 - 544: The Price of the New Target

Chapter 560: Chapter 544: The Price of the New Target

At a berth in the Seventh Cross-Realm Transfer Port, the residual heat from the engines of the Ten Thousand Miles of Sunshine had not yet dissipated. The deck still emitted faint shrinking sounds as it cooled, like a Giant Beast that had just caught its breath.

Allen and Hercules walked out of the bridge, one after the other.

"Sir, when will the Ministerial Conference roughly take place?" Allen asked.

"In three months." Hercules did not stop walking. "The exact time depends on when the Gate of Truth finishes the handover process. Why? Are you really interested?"

He said it casually, but Hercules was secretly weighing the matter in his mind.

How long had it been since the young man before him advanced to Morning Star? Five years? Ten years? In the Wizarding World, this little amount of time was not even enough for a single deep slumber. Yet, he was already unabashedly setting his sights on the ownership of an independent Plane.

"To an Alchemy Wizard, the value of a stable rear base is immeasurable," Allen admitted frankly.

Under his rule, Cybertron was practically a perfect war fortress and logistics base. However, the nature of a Half-Plane determined its upper limit: its Laws were incomplete, and its carrying capacity had an insurmountable physical threshold. As a mobile base, it was flawless, but its dimensional potential could never compare to that of a true Material Plane.

"It is good to have ambition." Hercules stopped and turned sideways. "But ambition needs to be realized with heavy bags of Magic Stones. You had better be mentally prepared."

"Please enlighten me, Minister."

Hercules held up two fingers. "At the very least, twenty billion. Twenty billion Low-Level Magic Stones is the admission ticket to bid for the ownership of a medium-sized Plane. As for the final transaction price, it depends on the intensity of the competition, but it generally will not exceed thirty billion."

Despite how majestic Hercules had looked commanding the "Zero" main cannon to fire twice in a row just now, he was merely using someone else’s resources. If he had to pay out of his own pocket, he would never be able to produce that much liquid capital on the spot.

Hercules gave him a deep look. His Rune Eye seemed to want to read something from the young man’s face, but in the end, it only saw utter calmness.

"Go and collect your mission reward. You put a lot of effort into this operation." He waved his hand, turning into a streak of light and disappearing into the sky above the port. "I hope you get your wish at the next conference."

Allen watched Hercules leave. He stood in place for a moment before turning and walking toward the Association’s administration building.

Twenty billion... This number would not be easy to raise.

At the financial settlement center of the Association’s administration building.

"Vice Minister Allen Wesren, you have a pending reward from an A-rank support mission."

"Confirm collection."

An apprentice’s fingers flew across a light screen. Soon, a detailed settlement list was projected in front of Allen.

[Mission ID: A-0170, Support Plane Z-019]

[Mission Initiator: Kaspar Murphy]

[Total Mission Payment: 10 billion Low-Level Magic Stones]

[Association Platform Commission (20%): 2 billion Low-Level Magic Stones]

[Remaining Distributable Amount: 8 billion Low-Level Magic Stones]

[Distribution Plan: Hercules von Older (50%), Allen Wesren (50%)]

[Your Reward for This Mission: 4 billion Low-Level Magic Stones]

When he saw the number "4 billion," the apprentice’s fingers noticeably paused on the light screen. He swallowed hard. Four billion for a single mission?! Did they slaughter an entire Plane or rob a deity’s vault? If he had this kind of money, maybe he would also have a chance to become a Morning Star Wizard.

"Confirm," Allen’s cool voice rang out at just the right time, interrupting the apprentice’s unrealistic daydreaming.

"Y-Yes! Sir!" The apprentice jolted, frantically completing the final authorization. "The reward has been transferred to your exclusive personal account. T-Thank you for your outstanding contribution to the Association!"

Allen gave a slight nod and turned to leave the hall.

Four billion Magic Stones. This was the largest single sum of money he had received since stepping into the Wizarding World. However, it did not stir up much emotion in his heart. Compared to the twenty-billion admission ticket, this staggering number merely filled one-fifth of the hole.

Moreover, one might not even come across an A-rank Plane war mission like this in years. War had always been a money-burning business with massive sunk-cost risks. It was impossible to count on taking more missions to scrape together enough money to buy a Plane.

In the study of the Deep Blue Residence.

In the quiet environment, Allen swiped his fingertip through the air, bringing up his personal terminal’s light screen. "Jarvis, perform a complete income and expenditure audit for this ’Crystal Crown’ operation."

On the faint blue light screen, lines of data flow refreshed like a waterfall.

[Total Expenditure List:]

1. Soul Coins Production Cost: 15 million standard Soul Coins. Equivalent cost in Low-Level Magic Stones: 375 million.

2. Battle Damage Repair and Replenishment Budget: The Ten Thousand Miles of Sunshine’s main cannon repair, Golem Legion maintenance, and replenishment. Estimated cost: 360 million.

[Total Income List:]

1. "Zero" Main Cannon Firing Service Fee (Paid by Kaspar Murphy): 2 billion retained.

2. Association A-Rank Support Mission Reward: 4 billion.

Net Profit of this Operation: 5.265 billion Low-Level Magic Stones.

[Strategic Gains: The Mechanical Gears Commerce Association’s core material production site, the ’Crystal Crown’ Plane, has been heavily damaged. This is projected to cause them over 40 billion Low-Level Magic Stones in losses over the next millennium. They have been removed from the list of Wesren Heavy Industry’s main competitors.]

An orchestrated scheme of "contract killing" and "cross-realm rescue", entirely masterminded by him, not only bankrupted Kaspar Murphy but also allowed Allen to rake in over 5.2 billion Magic Stones in just a few days. More importantly, the Mechanical Gears Commerce Association’s vitality was severely drained. They would not be able to pose any threat to his businesses for at least the next century. From a strategic perspective, this could be considered a perfect double kill.

However, not a trace of joy could be seen on Allen’s face.

"Jarvis, update my total personal assets."

[Updating Liquid Assets...]

[Original Deposit: 1.8 billion Low-Level Magic Stones.]

[Net Profit of this Operation: 5.26 billion Low-Level Magic Stones.]

[Credit Points Asset: 61,250 points. (Approximately equal to 610 million Low-Level Magic Stones)]

[Current Total Available Liquid Capital: Approximately 7.67 billion Low-Level Magic Stones.]

7.67 billion. It was still over 12 billion short of the 20-billion minimum threshold. Moreover, this was just the baseline; once a bidding war broke out at the table, he would only need more chips.

Allen leaned back into his chair. His fingertips lightly flicked through the air, dragging the string of red numbers representing his funding gap right to the center of his vision. The gap was too vast. After all, he was still a newcomer who had only recently advanced; his foundation was still a bit too thin.

If he bundled and sold off Wesren Heavy Industry, he might just about be able to fill this hole. But that was obviously a tremendously foolish option. Wesren Heavy Industry was his capital for establishing a foothold in the Wizarding World. It brought him steady revenue every year and had immense potential for future growth. Touching it was absolutely out of the question.

Then, should he give up? Wait for the next one, wait another few decades or even a century, and slowly accumulate his wealth?

No. Passive waiting did not exist in Allen’s mindset.

Plane G-771 was rich in mineral resources, perfectly matching his current development needs. Furthermore, its so-called "anomalies" had deterred most competitors, inadvertently lowering the intensity of the competition. An opportunity like this could only be stumbled upon, not sought. Once missed, there was no telling if he would have to wait an eternity for the next one.

The window of opportunity had quietly opened; entering the game now was the wisest choice. He had to secure it.

Since he did not have enough liquid capital on hand, he could only resort to financial means—borrowing.

Allen’s train of thought ran at high speed, as familiar and unfamiliar names surfaced in his mind one after another.

Hercules? Although this immediate superior of his had shown an intention to rope him in, their relationship was still shallow; it felt more like a political investment. Asking to borrow over ten billion? Highly unlikely.

The Association? Even more impossible. He had thoroughly investigated the process of applying for large loans on his first day on the job. Not only was the process tedious, but it also inevitably came with various restrictive clauses, and might even require mortgaging a portion of the Plane’s own equity. That wouldn’t be borrowing; that would be inviting a wolf into the house.

Then... who else could there be? Who had such vast financial resources and the possibility of lending him this sum of money?