Gu Yechen’s face was less than three inches from Bill Rocks’s. He chuckled softly, “Still the Hercules Armament project?” And all sorts of other research, whatever you fancy… Hmm, do you even look at the Federal News? These past two days have been filled with non-stop coverage, all about my exploits. Didn’t you hear that I brought back a brand new metal formula from Paradise Star?

“Federal News?” Bill Rocks scoffed, curling his lip. “We have no interest in that drivel… Uh, actually, I think I have heard of Paradise Star?”

“The federal hero who blew up sixty-plus of the Roman people’s first-class warships, annihilated tens of thousands of their elite fighters, and obtained that marvelous metal formula from the ancient ruins on Paradise Star? My two kids mentioned it during their guided meal, saying you… saying you defeated the Roman fleet single-handedly and protected the resources on Paradise Star!” Bill Rocks’s eyes were wide with shock. Gu Yechen scratched his nose shyly, managing a dry laugh. “Oh, I’m actually preparing to contest a vacant seat on the Federal Council, so some friends and elders of mine are working hard to build up my profile. Truthfully, the deeds they recount are a bit exaggerated—well, quite exaggerated—so I don't even read the news myself.”

Bill Rocks gripped Gu Yechen’s arm tightly, the pressure so intense that Gu Yechen felt a sharp sting in his flesh.

“Legend says you obtained a brand new metal formula from Paradise Star?” “Yes! Absolutely!” “Lighter metal?” “Yes.” “Tougher metal?” “Yes, indeed.” “More flexible metal?” “Mmm, yes, extremely pliable; even artillery shells can’t shatter it.” “A new alloy where all physical metrics are more than double what we get from our current Type-VV alloy?” “Well, look here!” Gu Yechen raised his left hand and casually brought his palm down across a small birch tree beside him— a novel from the xiaoshuozhuan website. It looked like a steel blade slicing tofu; the birch tree cleanly separated into two halves, the cross-section shining like a mirror.

Gu Yechen focused his spirit, and the Ruyi Gauntlets on his hands slowly began to ripple with faint distortions, gradually coalescing into a bead of silvery metal in his palm.

“See? The gauntlets on my hands are forged from a marvelous alloy using certain miraculous methods; their power is exceptional.”

Bill Rocks’s eyes were glowing, and he groaned almost involuntarily. “Lighter, tougher, more flexible metal… my latest generation of engines… Oh, we’ll have to revise all the parameters for the Hercules Armament. If those alloys you brought back can meet the ideal specifications I dream of, our micro-power combat armor could boost a soldier’s strength, speed, and reaction time by more than twenty times. They would become human-shaped weapon emplacements; their destructive power would be incalculable!”

With a restrained gesture, he patted Bill Rocks’s shoulder, and the Ruyi Gauntlets settled firmly back onto his hands. Gu Yechen smiled faintly. “All the alloys will surpass anything you’ve ever imagined.”

“Then let’s start work immediately!” Bill Rocks’s bald head seemed to gleam, and his nose was so red it looked ready to drip blood. “Mr. Gu, let’s begin research right now. Uh, first we’ll wake up that bunch of drunks like Alexander, then summon all our partners, and then, we’ll start researching immediately. All the data is in our heads—ha, we can start right now!”

Shaking his head, Gu Yechen helplessly slapped his own forehead. He forced a bitter smile. “Alright, Bill Rocks, your wife, your son, and your Poppy… and Alexander’s relatives, including yourselves, must all leave the territory controlled by the Gu Group. Listen carefully: act now. I have people here to cooperate with your evacuation. You draw up the list of those leaving. In two hours, everyone trustworthy—everyone suppressed by Gu Juechen—must be gone. Can you manage that?”

“Of course!” Bill Rocks surged with inexhaustible energy, laughing heartily. “My God, I’ve been dreaming of this day! Outside the research lab, I’m nothing. If you let me return to the lab, no matter where we go, I’ll follow you!”

“Excellent!” Gu Yechen dialed his communicator and spoke a few low words. Soon, several lean men in black suits hurried over. Bill Rocks didn't waste a single extra syllable; he quickly called back Poppy, who was currently fawning over the lap of some blonde woman, and cheerfully drove off toward home.

Two hours later, over three thousand researchers from the nine research institutes Gu Yechen once managed, along with the families of more than twenty thousand researchers in total, boarded high-speed assault ships emblazoned with the insignia of the Earth Federation’s Pan-Pacific Military Region. These ships landed directly at their doorsteps, brazenly carrying them away from the North American continent.

Four hours later, Gu Juechen, who had almost vomited blood upon receiving the initial news, got another piece of terrible tidings. Gu Yechen had once been in charge of the Gu Group’s Commercial Investigation Department—which was, in reality, its commercial espionage division. After Gu Juechen purged the Gu Group, the dozens of elite intelligence officers under Gu Yechen’s command were all banished to the sidelines by him. But almost simultaneously, those very individuals and their families vanished. All they left behind in their homes was a strongly worded letter of resignation.

Six hours later, the stream of bad news continued unabated. Department heads and supervisors from various divisions who had once worked under Gu Yechen but were all dismissed when Gu Juechen seized absolute power over the Gu Group—they were all resigning from their current companies, and no one knew where they and their families had gone.

Gu Juechen finally failed to hold back a mouthful of blood—a splash of crimson as brilliant as cherry blossoms blooming in his office.

Three thousand researchers could rapidly assemble a comprehensive military equipment research institute, possessing sufficient capability to develop certain cutting-edge technologies. Twenty-odd elite intelligence officers could, in a short time, organize a powerful and efficient intelligence network for Gu Yechen. Were these intelligence officers not all veterans with vast networks and countless eyes and ears? Their tentacles spanned every sector of the Federation! These researchers and intelligence officers were top-tier talents whom even Gu Juechen had been reluctant to let go, preferring to keep them on the payroll, paying them massive salaries just to keep them idle—his intention was only to deploy them after he had completely eradicated Gu Yechen’s lingering influence! These individuals were all golden nuggets, truly priceless talents! The hundreds of mid-to-senior level managers and professional executives from the departments that disappeared alongside them, armed with their specialized skills, could set up the administrative framework for a highly efficient, multinational enterprise within days. Human resources, accounting, general administration—these were the core of the former Gu Group!

“I should have killed them all long ago!” Gu Juechen’s regret was more boundless than the surging waters of the Yellow River.

Regretting it now? Regretting it now? But even the most ruthless individual would hesitate to kill off a large contingent of their elite subordinates, wouldn’t they?