Chapter 340 - 237: Summit (3)
"Mm," Lin Qi nodded.
The plans were in place. Whether they succeeded or not, all they could do was their best.
It wasn’t just Lin Qi and Liu Xuan talking; everyone was discussing this fourth scoring category.
Among the four major established pharmaceutical companies, the representatives of all but General Biological looked rather displeased.
The representatives of the smaller companies, however, looked as if they had just seen a glimmer of hope.
This fourth scoring category, it seemed, had some flexibility.
Although they represented small businesses, many of them didn’t believe their own commercial operations were any worse than those of the large corporations.
The only area where they couldn’t compare to the large corporations was the strength of their backing.
They lacked the support of High Level entities, so their companies struggled to navigate the commercial world.
Not to mention that in this day and age, nearly every Cyber City was already claimed.
A single large corporation dominating over fifty percent of a Cyber City’s economy was practically the king of that city.
"We don’t have to think about the top five, but we can still fight for the spots that come after."
"So this summit is actually fair, then?"
"Fair? A lot of the time, that’s the greatest unfairness of all."
As the murmurs of discussion grew, Qiao Xi silently observed the reactions of the corporate representatives.
She gave them a moment for discussion.
"We will now announce the two categories that have been scored, including each company’s rank and score. The scores for the top three ranks will be temporarily redacted."
Qiao Xi announced the summit’s procedure in a matter-of-fact tone, showing no intention of creating suspense.
This was an arena of clashing interests, a negotiating table—not a television program.
In front of every corporate representative, the equipment in the circular chamber projected an image.
Two lists appeared before everyone’s eyes.
[Company: United Pharmaceutical]
[Scoring Category: Market Share (Asian Administrative Region)]
[Score: 69 (out of 100)]
[Rank: 5]
...
[Company: United Pharmaceutical]
[Scoring Category: Channel Distribution (Asian Administrative Region)]
[Score: Redacted]
[Rank: 1]
...
The scores and ranks for both categories were entirely within Lin Qi and Liu Xuan’s expectations.
Securing a top-five spot in one and striving for first place in the other—this was the result of pooling the entire Medical Small Business Alliance’s strength.
A single small business was no match for a large corporation in terms of overall strength, but by integrating their power, United Pharmaceutical had made a huge impact in certain specific scoring categories.
United Pharmaceutical, true to its name, had united many different forces.
Using his Spiritual Vision, Lin Qi observed the expressions on the faces of the representatives from the four major established pharmaceutical companies.
Kudou Human Body Engineering Company was ranked second in market share and third in channel distribution.
Dawn Pharmacy was ranked first in market share and fourth in channel distribution.
Moore Potion was ranked third in market share and second in channel distribution.
General Biological was ranked fourth in market share and fifth in channel distribution.
However, in terms of overall strength, General Biological was actually the weakest of the four.
If they hadn’t pulled some strings, General Biological wouldn’t have even been qualified to compete for the top spot.
As for the remaining three, their overall strength was roughly equal, and all were qualified to compete.
Of course, besides these four established pharmaceutical giants, United Pharmaceutical now also possessed considerable competitive strength.
With a first and a fifth place, if they performed well in the remaining two categories, it would be enough to pose a threat to the four established giants.
Lin Qi could see the representatives from these four companies occasionally glancing in United Pharmaceutical’s direction.
"United Pharmaceutical... to think they’ve actually made it this far. The Liu Clan’s ambitions run deep."
"I regret it. I should have taken the gamble yesterday."
"Who knew United Pharmaceutical actually had a real shot? Besides, nobody could have predicted they’d get Director Qiao Xi to preside over this. The moderator’s identity has a huge impact on the summit’s outcome."
No one who made it to the summit was a fool.
They all understood the current situation.
One of the five major established pharmaceutical companies was gone, and the one that fell had become meat on the chopping block for the others.
But the number of competitors hadn’t changed; there were still five.
Furthermore, each of these five had their own strengths, and it was still impossible to tell who would ultimately emerge victorious.
Qiao Xi glanced at the five corporate representatives in the front row, then continued her announcement.
"All commercial representatives are to remain in the circular chamber and prepare to enter the Alliance network for a simulated competition to be scored. Academic representatives will follow the Alliance network’s guidance to leave the circular chamber and proceed to the venue’s exhibition module."
From this point on, the two representatives from each company would have to split up.
Each would be fighting for a final scoring category.
Lin Qi’s Intelligent Brain connected to the Alliance network, projecting a guidance display onto his retina via the electrode behind his ear.
Following the highlighted route, Lin Qi arrived at the destination along with the academic representatives from all the other companies.
"Are these... Extraordinary Materials?"
"No, these are all Extraordinary Items!"
"Isn’t the academic assessment supposed to be some kind of written test? Why are there so many Extraordinary Items here?"
"Could it be... No, that’s impossible. How could they possibly do something like that?"
Upon arriving at the exhibition module, Lin Qi saw row after row of individual display pedestals.
There were about three hundred of them, and on every single pedestal, without exception, sat an Extraordinary Item.
Although they were all just Tier One Extraordinary Items, the sight was still stunning.
This was enough to make any Wizard Professional weep!
This was the first time Lin Qi had ever seen such a wide variety of Extraordinary Items gathered in one place.
Truly an impressive display, just as one would expect from the Big Business Alliance.
"For the academic ability scoring method, the Big Business Alliance sent a formal request for assistance to the Eastern Alliance’s Nanyun Potion, which resulted in the current plan."