A vice commander of a military district was involved... Liu Hui was stunned. He never expected even high-ranking military officials had been among those coveting Yao Yao’s beauty.

"Yes, it truly was the deputy commander of the military region," Desheng said. "Yao Yao used a feint to strike at the most heavily guarded target—the vice commander of the military district. This made the police effort to protect the organization minister look absurdly foolish. Just when authorities believed they'd been tricked and relaxed security around the official, Yao Yao returned with the same method to assassinate this other high-ranking party member."

"What happened next?" Liu Hui asked again.

"After these three leaders were killed, Wenshi police finally uncovered Yao Yao's identity and issued a warrant for her arrest. The accomplices who'd committed atrocities against her became terrified of revenge, living in constant dread and seeking police protection," Desheng continued. "The military was furious over their commander's death and joined forces with the police to safeguard these people. But Yao Yao's mastery of power had reached legendary levels—she single-handedly breached the joint security perimeter, castrated every accomplice, then vanished into thin air. The authorities could only watch helplessly as this woman disappeared."

Liu Hui exhaled in relief once he learned justice had been served. As a tragic heroine with such righteous vengeance, her story aligned perfectly with traditional Chinese morality about karma.

"What happened to Yao Yao afterward?" Liu Hui asked.

"After exacting revenge, she vanished just as mysteriously as she'd disappeared four months earlier," Desheng replied. "The state issued an elite-level warrant for her capture—offering a five-million-yuan bounty. They accused her of colluding with foreign enemies to assassinate party and military leaders in hopes of creating social chaos."

Liu Hui chuckled coldly, "Hehe... While domestic authorities have many flaws, they're quite skilled at public relations. Labeling someone an enemy of the state is a masterstroke of propaganda. I'd wager most citizens now see her as a deranged killer rather than the actual victim."

"Exactly," Desheng agreed. "Through media sensationalism, Yao Yao became demonized while those who destroyed her family were portrayed as martyrs—a tragic irony indeed."

"Do you know where she is now?" Liu Hui asked.

"None of us do," Desheng admitted. "After seeking vengeance, she simply disappeared without a trace."

"I understand. Notify me immediately if any news surfaces about her whereabouts," Liu Hui ordered.

"Yes sir, I will," Desheng said respectfully.

Three months later, through the oil operation team's efforts, Starlight Group finally sold all oil from its deep-sea fields. The company accelerated drilling operations to fulfill delivery schedules and prevent renegotiation by buyers.

Meanwhile global oil futures had crashed below ten dollars per barrel—now hovering at nine dollars.

This rock-bottom price forced major oil-producing nations worldwide into production shutdowns as the cost of extraction far exceeded earnings. Even if they continued drilling, there would be no markets willing to purchase their output.

When Starlight Group flooded the market with its massive reserves, not only did prices collapse back into single digits but entire petroleum-dependent economies suffered severe losses. These nations uniformly cursed Starlight's name.

Most global consumers welcomed the low prices as gasoline costs plummeted dramatically, lowering transportation expenses and driving down inflation rates across industries. Consumer price index (CPI) levels worldwide began to decline sharply.

Contrastingly, a very different scenario played out in China where car owners faced exorbitant fuel costs despite the global slump. When citizens questioned these high domestic prices, state oil giants claimed they were merely absorbing previous century-high costs from a period when crude reached $100 per barrel. They warned against price reductions lest losses impair their ability to maintain international operations and jeopardize national energy security.

When people pointed out Starlight's own low-cost crude was being used by these monopolies, the oil companies shifted blame to regulatory constraints. Yet even after conditions supposedly justified price adjustments, no changes materialized despite public outcry. Prices remained stubbornly high with no signs of abatement.

While China's petroleum profits made international traders envious, they now saw an opportunity worth equal excitement. When oil speculators discovered all futures contracts had vanished from the market—realizing Starlight had absorbed every available futures position—they began preparing to reinflate prices back toward $100 per barrel for exponential gains.

Just as these speculators were about to execute their schemes, Starlight dropped a bombshell announcement: they'd developed practical high-energy battery technology and planned to revolutionize the automotive industry by transitioning vehicles from petroleum-powered to electric propulsion systems. Alongside this revelation came technical specifications showing these batteries could power high-capacity motors while storing massive energy reserves—allowing cars to travel over 1,000 kilometers on a single charge completed in just ten minutes at highway service stations.

Industry experts were stunned as they realized the imminent arrival of an electric vehicle era. The petroleum age's dominance was crumbling rapidly, and crude oil itself would soon become replaceable. While still crucial for chemical manufacturing, its strategic importance had been irrevocably diminished by this revolutionary battery technology.

The euphoric oil speculators suddenly found themselves facing disaster as they realized Starlight's inexplicably low oil prices might have been part of an elaborate plan. When confronted with the possibility of falling into a trap set by the company, these traders quickly began forming alliances to discuss countermeasures.

As Starlight declared its electric vehicle initiative, major automakers immediately recognized the technology's potential and dispatched delegations to "Star City" seeking collaboration agreements on battery production. Without specific authorization from Liu Hui, Starlight's negotiators adopted a passive stance—providing vague responses while testing their counterparts' resolve without making any commitments.

Even this cautious approach nearly caused internal panic when they heard the proposed cooperation terms. The automakers demanded not only access to the battery manufacturing blueprints but also required Starlight to contribute half of the capital for new joint ventures in exchange for no more than 40% equity stakes. They assumed their existing dominance (holding over 50% global market share) would allow them to leverage Starlight's technology while maintaining brand supremacy.

Liu Hui merely shook his head at these arrogant conditions. With such clear technological advantages, did these automakers still believe petroleum-based vehicles could remain viable forever? If they failed to seize this final opportunity...

These major manufacturers assumed their established market presence gave them leverage in negotiations with Starlight—their iconic brands supposedly guaranteeing immediate success should the company partner with them.

But when Starlight abruptly terminated all discussions and announced pre-existing partnerships with five second-tier automakers who had already delineated market territories, these industry giants realized they'd missed their golden opportunity. Without access to battery technology, they remained stuck producing petroleum-based vehicles—unable to match electric models in efficiency or environmental benefits.

When the companies' short-sighted executives finally grasped this critical error, several immediately resigned under public pressure for jeopardizing future markets through myopic decision-making.

Meanwhile international oil speculators became increasingly certain they'd been ensnared by Starlight's strategy. They began consolidating forces to counteract the inevitable price collapse that would render their massive oil investments worthless.

Their coalition soon expanded as petroleum-hyping nations and struggling automakers joined together—united by a shared goal: resisting Starlight's battery technology and electric vehicles at all costs before these innovations became market standard. If they failed, not only would speculative capital vanish but entire industries and governments reliant on crude exports would face extinction.

Starlight had anticipated this reaction since planning its strategy, having already prepared countermasures against resistance. With growing global dominance and strategic foresight, the company was fully equipped to handle any challenges.

Liu Hui had maintained close communication with Lu Tianmin regarding domestic implications of these developments. Under strict directives from Lu, major state-owned enterprises were prohibited from participating in oil speculation—mitigating potential economic damage caused by collapsing prices.

However neither Liu nor Lu anticipated how two powerful state energy giants would secretly violate regulations. While publicly complying, they covertly pledged overseas assets to foreign banks securing massive capital for speculative bets—exposing themselves to over $10 billion in losses when market conditions shifted. Only after realizing their precarious position did these companies finally report the situation.

Enraged by this revelation, Lu Tianmin used the scandal as an opportunity to purge top executives from both energy firms while simultaneously weakening rival central authorities responsible for oversight failures. With this decisive move against management incompetence, Lu further solidified his political control at the national level.

Despite domestic complications involving these rogue energy companies, Starlight's electric vehicle collaboration with five second-tier automakers proceeded smoothly—especially since one of these partners happened to be a Chinese state-owned enterprise benefiting from high-level government support. When Starlight officially entered the automotive industry, production immediately began on its first practical electric vehicles.

With Lu Tianmin's backing, China became the birthplace of the world's first mass-produced electric vehicle manufacturing line. However entrenched petroleum interests continued opposing this technological shift through media campaigns denouncing electric cars as inferior alternatives.

Liu Hui responded aggressively by collaborating with meteorological departments to publicly disclose PM2.5 pollution levels in Chinese cities. When citizens saw these alarming readings far exceeding safe thresholds, they suddenly understood why respiratory and cardiovascular diseases had skyrocketed among families—realizing their entire environment was toxic from vehicle emissions.

With over half of PM2.5 pollution traced back directly to petroleum combustion, public sentiment shifted decisively toward electric vehicles once people experienced firsthand the health risks posed by traditional gasoline-powered transportation. The environmental and noise advantages of electric cars made them an obvious choice despite initial skepticism from established industries.