Bronya's words were filled with genuine gratitude toward Pei Guang, and he could feel the sincerity in her emotions.
"Hiss… If you're going to put it like that, then I'll take care of things. We need to prepare before those company troublemakers show up. First off, let's talk about debt—how much do you owe?"
Bronya immediately sent Pei Guang the financial statement. As he looked at the numbers, he fell into deep thought. "This amount… it's enough to build an entire Luofu Celestial Pavilion. But it's not a big deal—it's not so much that I can't pay it off. I'll go to Luofu and get an advance on the next few years of profits. I'll cover it first, and you guys can slowly pay me back later."
Pei Guang still remembered that the Echo of War slots he had been selling were already booked three years in advance. To avoid complications, he hadn't oversold them too far ahead. Jing Yuan's plan was to release them in batches and let the system stabilize before pushing further.
The buyers had already paid, but since they hadn't yet used the service, Jing Yuan hadn't distributed the revenue to Bailu and Seele. However, Jing Yuan had specifically told him that if Pei Guang needed it, he could withdraw those resources at any time.
Even with just two years of Seele's profit share, they could pay off Belobog's debt in a single year. If Pei Guang withdrew four years' worth in advance, not only could he cover Belobog's entire debt, but he'd also have extra resources to set aside for Earth's future needs. There was no rush on that front.
Hearing this, Topaz was a bit stunned. "You're this rich?"
March 7th looked at Topaz and smirked. "Of course! Ah Guang is super rich. According to General Jing Yuan, the things Pei Guang has created could buy entire planets. Even Asta would have to pay an entire resource-rich star system to buy them… though that system turned out to be a bit of a scam."
Pei Guang shook his head. "How is that a scam? That's Earth's solar system—the origin of all life! How could that be a scam? Honestly, I should be thanking Asta. As for the Antimatter Legion, dealing with them is no big deal—they're just tutorial-level mobs. I figure by the time today ends, the people in the accelerated space will have unlocked the Gray Wind Battleship, right? Once Gray Wind is operational, we can start reclaiming the solar system from the Legion."
Due to the time ratio difference, a single day for Pei Guang was equivalent to several months on Earth. On top of that, Earth itself had an accelerated time function—one day on Earth equaled an entire year in accelerated space. Unfortunately, they couldn't layer the acceleration effect indefinitely. If they could, Pei Guang figured he could just take a nap and wake up to find Earth had already flown out of the solar system.
At this moment, Topaz's brain was buzzing.
What the hell?
The Luofu's General Jing Yuan was working with Pei Guang?
And it looked like they had deep collaboration?
Asta gave Pei Guang an entire star system?
Wait—she had heard about a resource-rich star system recently being transferred to new ownership… Was that given to Pei Guang?
Topaz felt relieved—relieved that she had gotten out early. Even though she was one of the company's strategic investment directors and managed several planets under her jurisdiction, the Xianzhou Alliance was no small force.
They had actual support from an Aeon, and each of their generals was an official Hunt Emanator.
The company had indeed been backing the Amber Lord in the rankings, and there were Preservation Emanators within the company, but Qlipoth would never directly assist the company.
Yet here was Pei Guang, casually chatting with a Xianzhou general? And from the looks of it… the Asta family seemed to be backing him as well? The Masked Fool were also moving fast. Looking at it now, there were already three factions taking action regarding Pei Guang?
Who was this guy? Why had she never heard of him before?
Someone at this level, even if they were keeping their identity hidden, should have at least some kind of legend attached to them. How had she never heard even a whisper?
Of course, the reason was simple—Pei Guang had only been active for less than a month.
And while Topaz was having an existential crisis, March 7th's next words made her entire expression freeze.
March 7th: "Ah Guang, do you think Garden of Recollection can help us out? I remember you worked with them before, right?"
Pei Guang: "Huh? I didn't work with Garden of Recollection; I worked with Fuli. Though, yeah, they do follow Fuli, but I'm not too familiar with them."
Topaz: "?"
Now, Topaz was sure of one thing—Pei Guang wasn't connected to just three factions. It was four.
And he could make deals with the Aeon of Remembrance? What kind of memories did he have?
At that moment, Topaz's hand trembled slightly. Even her partner, Numby, had a fleeting thought:
"Am I even supposed to be hearing this?"
Stelle, deep in thought, chimed in: "No worries, but I remember you made a huge trade with Fuli, Ah Guang. How's that deal going now?"
Pei Guang recalled, "Still a long way to go. The Memory Court is still under construction. It'll take at least half a month before they can build a proper Memory Court based on my memories. Once it's ready, we'll be able to go inside and create great memories for them to collect.
Honestly, instead of calling them 'memories,' I'd say it's more like a CG archive—letting us relive our past experiences like cutscenes in a game. It's pretty interesting."
Pei Guang, Stelle, and March 7th chatted casually. To them, making deals with Fuli wasn't a big secret—after all, they were Trailblazers. Trading memories only made their future journeys smoother.
Especially for Pei Guang, a deal was just a deal. What was there to hide?
Besides, in every game he had played, it was tradition that if the protagonist claimed to be working with some major faction, nobody would believe them.
In countless games, no matter how friendly the player was with a faction leader, their underlings never believed it. Forget about respect—being thrown into prison or getting a bounty on your head was standard practice.
As she listened, a thought crept into Topaz's mind:
"Are these guys just making things up?"
And just as that thought formed, Pei Guang shifted the conversation and turned to Bronya.
"But Bronya, while I can advance some of my earnings to help Belobog pay off its debt, my gaming experience tells me that outright repaying the money isn't the best strategy. It's more of a last resort. I actually have an idea—why not use this as an opportunity to once again unite the people of Belobog?"
Pei Guang recalled, "Based on my previous assumptions, the company lackeys' first move will definitely be using your debt to threaten you. They think you won't be able to pay it back. When the time comes, they'll absolutely try to make you sign a contract with the company, essentially selling off Belobog's future to pay off the debt.
To make you trust them more, they might even claim they'll help restore Belobog's ecosystem or something like that. But in reality… well, we all know what's up. What is the company? Capitalists! Since when do capitalists ever help for free?"
Bronya was sharp—she instantly understood Pei Guang's point.
"I see now. Ah Guang, you want the people of Belobog to make a choice together and resist the company's coercion, right? If we fail, it will be a blow to Belobog, but if we succeed, the people will be more united than ever. With that unity, Belobog… can accomplish anything. And with you here, I believe we will succeed."
Pei Guang grinned. "Exactly~ No wonder you figured it out in one go. Let's make it happen! Let's turn Belobog into a true city of freedom, where everyone can decide their own future."
While Pei Guang and Bronya were deep in their planning, Topaz, who was listening in, widened her eyes. Pei Guang's prediction was almost identical to the plan she had initially been assigned to execute in Belobog.
But his countermeasure made Topaz feel powerless. It was as if Pei Guang could foresee every move the company would make and was setting up counterplays step by step.
The company never feared brute force, but Pei Guang—he was just devious. He could have simply paid the money, but instead, he was letting the company fall into a trap, gradually cornering them until he held absolute control. And he was doing it with a plan that seemed ridiculously simple.
But Topaz knew—simple didn't mean ineffective. In fact, the simpler a plan, the harder it was to counter.
What made it worse was that Pei Guang wasn't just the mastermind; he was also the executor. And not just the executor—he was making himself the third-party mediator.
Look at this: Belobog and the company are at odds, and the Trailblazer steps in as the neutral arbitrator.
Totally normal, right?
Normal, my ass! Topaz had never seen a "neutral third party" who was actively rallying other factions against the company. This was blatant targeting!
But should she report this? Topaz was certain—no, she shouldn't.
If she did, she'd be branded a traitor and would put the company at an even greater disadvantage. On the other hand, if she stuck by Pei Guang and focused on running a successful event, that would be the best outcome for the company.
From the way Pei Guang spoke, it was clear he had dealings with the higher-ups of the company, and there was internal competition among them. She just had to decide where her allegiance lay.
Did she want to sit safely in her chair, or end up hanging from a tree? Not a tough decision.
While Topaz was finalizing her thoughts, Pei Guang and Bronya had already wrapped up their discussion and finalized their course of action. Just as they finished, March 7th tugged on Pei Guang's sleeve.
"Ah Guang! You do realize Topaz has been listening to everything, right? She's with the company~"
Pei Guang shrugged. "Isn't that perfect? Hey, Topaz, what do you think of our plan? Any suggestions?"
Topaz: "…"