The Game of Global Mining

Accompanied respectfully by the chubby official, Chun and his group arrived at the plaza’s Teleportation Array, ready to teleport to the second location.

Chun looked at the map showing Blood Sand City, White Sand City, Yellow Sand City, and Cold Sand City—all border cities of the red and blue hemisphere.

Let’s head to the nearby Blood Sand City. The reputation I’ve built should spread there first.

But suddenly, Chun felt something was off!

First, spreading my reputation might not be a good thing; gangs might hide and not come out to fight, making it impossible to take action, which is annoying. Just now, Hathaway reminded her classmates to keep the stock issue confidential and not publicize it among classmates. My actions are too ostentatious and inconvenient for getting things done.

Secondly, with the commotion in Red Sand City, the Ten Lords might come to investigate, right? I didn’t want to meet them in the first place, and with such a huge issue as buying stocks, I definitely don’t want to run into them!

So, I should skip the closer one and head to the northernmost Cold Sand City!

But then again, if the Ten Lords find out about me taking shares from the Red Sand City gang, their first reaction would also be to search these four cities! I’d still run into them early.

Chun felt conflicted and turned back to ask the official, "Would the news of me buying shares be known outside immediately?"

The official whispered hurriedly, "Sir, news about joining a gang’s shares isn’t usually talked about openly. As long as nobody says anything, it’s hard for outsiders to know immediately."

Chun exclaimed, "Could they guess?"

The chubby official laughed, "This kind of thing..."

So it’s unspoken, right?

Chun still confirmed one thing first, "Will everyone know about me defeating the Red Sand Gang?"

The chubby official said nervously, "Yes, but we will try to downplay such things."

Hathaway laughed, "In the Empire, many things are done but not spoken about."

The chubby official sweated, "The lady is right!"

Chun suddenly had an idea, to use a time lag!

Hoping the Ten Lords might currently be investigating in the Marquis City where the incident happened, and the news from Red Sand City hasn’t reached them yet—after all, in this single-player world without player messages, how could news from the border spread so fast? Besides, they’re from an enemy faction. The most crucial point, what I did in Red Sand City was neat and swift, all within half an hour.

So, my second stop should be next to Saint Gando City... Saint George City it is!

As long as I continue making a fuss in Saint George City, their focus will be drawn. They might naturally think I’m just wandering around nearby and might not even know I went to Red Sand City?

But it’s still not right, as the Ten Lords could just kill their way over when they find me in the nearby city!

Thinking about it gave Chun a splitting headache; he truly felt his biggest pain was overthinking everything! On the bright side, it’s called strategic planning like Zhuge Liang; on the downside, it’s indecisive like Yuan Shao.

If I really were Yuan Shao... hmm?

Looking at the chubby guy’s face eager to send them off, Chun suddenly had an idea: why not bribe him?

Chun made a swift decision, "Officer, actually, I don’t want much commotion in the remaining four cities either. Can you run ahead for me, communicate and convey my willingness to buy shares, and I’ll cover the expenses!"

As soon as he said this, the four ladies immediately agreed, "Yes, those gang members were just too bloody and barbaric, making us lose face. Officer, you go first and talk to them. If they agree, it’s easy to negotiate; if not, we’ll fight our way through!"

Chun suddenly became delighted, as the four NPCs were backing him up, which was certainly triggering an event!

The chubby official trembled with his fat shaking, stuttering, "It’s possible, but the expenses..."

As he spoke, he held out one finger!

Chun was shocked, "A hundred thousand?"

The chubby official mustered his courage, "O-one million!!"

Holy Shit!

The four ladies yelled angrily, "Running an errand and passing a message costs a million? Even if we buy shares, how long would it take to earn back that million?"

But if he’s naming a price, it means it’s doable!

The official trembled, "I’m risking being killed on the spot to negotiate. The ladies know how barbaric they are."

The four ladies retorted, "We’re investing; what reason do they have to kill people?"

The official sweated, "They might think it’s invading their turf!"

Chun, having money in excess, made an immediate decision, "Alright, one million it is!"

The four ladies were shocked, "You!!!"

The official was trembling almost to the point of kneeling to lick Chun’s wheelchair, "Rest assured, sir and ladies, I will mobilize all my connections to get it done! Then the best situation would be you just come over and sign directly, with immediate approval!"

That’s the effect I wanted! The decaying Empire is damn sweet! Just like the neglected Black Iron Shipyard.

Chun directly traded with him, and indeed a trade window popped up! He hadn’t even asked his name all along and found out it’s Fubole.

Hearing that big figures handle things with generous money, Chun added another 200,000!

—System Prompt: You successfully bribed Blood Sand City’s Police Chief Fubole with 1.2 million. Fubole’s favorability towards you increased to "Appreciative"!

Holy Shit, so he really is the chief! Considering the scale of this small city, it’s like a county-level city, yet he’s quite a lowly figure.

Fubole immediately stood tall, speaking loudly, "Sir, I am going to Blood Sand City on business right away, excuse me!"

Looking at the remaining 5 million, Chun felt a bit relieved of his burden, "Go ahead."

Then, continuing with the plan thought out earlier, Chun said, "We are going to Saint George City!"

Scene waiting, switch, to Saint George City.

Chun decided to keep making a big scene, specifically heading to the busiest area where law enforcement is strong, just to see if the Ten Lords have the guts to come after him!

And after the previous battle showing off the Divine Artisan’s abilities and further bribery to demonstrate wealth, the attitude of these four ladies, especially the three young noble ladies, turned significantly for the better towards him!

Chun felt quite gratified; women are actually quite simple, aren’t they?

...

Ten Lords Chat Group.

Ever since Samuel reported this event, he’s been regretting it, feeling anxious and restless.

The group members, out of boredom, occasionally asked, "How’s Chun doing?"

Samuel really didn’t want to answer anymore.

Then Michael indeed also received the news and logged in, asking again. Fortunately, the leader could control his emotions, not acting like Sariel who would recklessly demand death, but pondering why Chun was with Libnahi, the maid he fancied...

Finally, Samuel provided the latest info, "Chun appeared in the nearby Saint George City, continuing to swagger and provoke, with four female followers, one being the eldest daughter of the Hathaway Race."

Michael paused for a moment, "Is this his strategy?"

Gabriel looked puzzled, "But there’s an intent to promote himself, elevate his reputation?"

Sariel dismissed, "How could this possibly boost reputation? If it worked, every player would be carrying a flag boasting ’I’m No.1.’"

Michael helpless, "The Demon Servant’s perspective is inconvenient. Samuel, why don’t you transform and sneak over to take a look?"

Samuel was on the brink of madness, "Boss, I need missions to level up... "

"What level are you as a Sage aiming for?"

"To upgrade faster!"