Chapter 222 – Sophia's Expansion

On Blue Star, after more than a month, Mu Yuan once again stepped out the villa’s front door.

He still returned to the Blue Star world from time to time, glancing at his phone messages and checking the forums, but there was no need to actually leave the house. Whether it was going to the Player Association to handle procedures, picking up or sending traded goods, or conducting business with other merchant companies, Sophia handled everything in an orderly manner, saving Mu Yuan a great deal of trouble.

The last time he went out to the White River Association was to bring Sophia to register a player company.

Today, with some free time on his hands after the selection battles, Mu Someone wanted to take a break and decided to visit his own company.

He had never been there even once.

“According to the address, it’s right next to the Player Association, in White River’s landmark commercial building.”

“However, since the appearance of the Crimson Mist omen and the emergence of the Border Zone, commerce across Blue Star has declined significantly. Many merchants are trying to establish industries in the Eternal World, and Blue Star’s real estate market has plummeted.”

Places like White River’s landmark building now had very cheap rents. Sophia probably chose this location because it was adjacent to the Player Association, making related activities much easier.

But Mu Yuan didn’t have high expectations for the company’s scale.

After all, the company he established was almost a shell entity, primarily to enjoy some policy benefits and facilitate the acquisition of Remnant Souls, with no plans to expand or strengthen it.

…Not that he could even if he wanted to.

How could one expand without money?

Although the top-tier combat power of his Tianyuan Territory wasn’t much inferior to that of the Clairvoyant Lord or the Limitless Lord, Mu Yuan was certain that in terms of wealth, he would be dozens of streets behind these two.

This was the confidence of a poor man.

Currently, his purchases of non-supernatural items on Blue Star still relied on the 10,000 yuan monthly subsidy from the Association. He was reluctant to sell precious Soul Sand for Xuan Nation currency.

He walked out of the residential area on foot, waited for a while for the app to update, then opened the ride-hailing app.

After several dozen seconds, no driver had accepted the ride.

He looked over a hundred meters away, across a cross street, at the rows of blue bicycles parked by the roadside. Many shared bicycles had thick layers of dust, fallen leaves, and bird-dropping-like paste on their seats, clearly showing they were rarely used anymore.

Mu Yuan’s lips twitched.

“Forget it, I’ll just walk… or run there. It’s definitely faster than biking or taking a car.”

He could always load the Rakshasa Template, transforming into a wisp of brown mist to drift along, or load the Dolai Template, changing into a unique bird capable of wind-riding flight, reaching the city center in the blink of an eye.

But that would be too shocking.

Although there was no longer a “ban on players using supernatural powers in the Real World or in front of ordinary people,” disturbing public order was still not allowed. Besides, he was a low-key person.

Mu Yuan stretched his arms and legs, then began running at Professional Tier peak speed.

He stopped at red lights.

Politely yielded to cars and pedestrians.

He became like a gust of wind, racing swiftly along the sidewalk.

Suddenly, an older brother overtook him at an even faster speed, superhumanly swift. This guy wore windproof goggles, a simple tracksuit, and held a phone that was narrating navigation distance updates, looking every bit the seasoned running enthusiast.Before long, Mu Yuan arrived at the address Sophia had provided.

The area was adjacent to the Player Association and currently quite bustling and prosperous. Many people had robust, muscular builds, with faint energy fluctuations radiating from them—clearly, they were players.

Some more flamboyant players even had two Lancers accompanying them.

Mu Yuan observed for a while before entering the building.

Soon,

“We’re here.”

There was a faint contractual bond between a Lord and their troops, and Mu Yuan had also performed an evolution baptism on Sophia. Now, he could clearly sense that Sophia was just ahead.

The elevator doors slowly opened.

“Welcome, Boss, to the company.”

Not far away, Sophia was dressed in a black blazer with a white inner layer, paired with black pencil pants and a delicate belt cinched at her waist, accentuating her graceful figure.

She wore black knee-high boots, her long hair neatly tied up in a bun. Her face was exquisitely flawless, needing no makeup. Her eyes were bright and profound, radiating an intense Aura.

She didn’t seem like a powerhouse from the Eternal World but rather like a business Elite who had struggled for years in the Blue Star world, achieving remarkable success—a formidable CEO.

To be honest, Sophia’s attire and Aura were quite different from her usual self; he almost didn’t recognize her.

However, what surprised Mu Yuan the most wasn’t Sophia’s outfit but the large group of people standing between him and Sophia, arranged left and right, shouting in unison.

On the left were ten burly men in black suits, their hair neatly combed and wearing black sunglasses.

On the right were ten women in black professional attire, paired with black stockings and high heels, exuding both graceful figures and a sharp, efficient Aura.

They all bowed in unison, “Welcome, Boss, to the company.”

Mu Yuan: “…”

Where did Sophia find these extras?

Yet the company’s scale was larger than Mu Yuan had imagined. These ten men in black suits and sunglasses and ten women in black stockings weren’t temporary extras but merely a part of the company’s employees.

“These are the employees of the security department.”

Sophia pointed to the left, where muscular men with slicked-back hair and bulging veins visible even through their black suits stood.

“This is Captain Luo Wei. Captain Luo holds the Imperial Guard class and commands several Elite warriors. He’s a rare talent among players.”

Sophia then introduced the woman at the front of the right queue, a short-haired, efficient-looking woman.

“This is Captain Lin Sushuang. Captain Lin holds the Night Elf class and is also proficient in computer information technology—another exceptionally rare talent.”

In truth, Mu Yuan didn’t need Sophia’s introduction. Based on their appearance, muscles, gait, and Qi, he could roughly gauge their strength and even their classes.

For instance, Captain Lin Sushuang had a somewhat cold and aloof temperament, with slightly pointed and elongated ears beneath her hair… Having encountered and even slain many Night Elf monsters, Mu Yuan could basically identify them at a glance.

But that wasn’t the issue. The issue was…

Where did you find employees of this caliber? No, how did you have the money to hire them?

“And this,” Sophia continued, “is the company’s behind-the-scenes Boss. Both of you have been wanting to meet the Boss in person, haven’t you?”

Luo Wei had indeed been speculating about the true identity of the company’s Boss.

They had imagined many possibilities.For example, the company didn’t actually have a big boss – Mu Fei (Sophia) had created that as a front. Another example was how the company appeared to be backed by some major conglomerate.

Yet the big boss looked younger than expected.

But upon reflection, this wasn’t really surprising since the president was also quite young.

However, after witnessing the tip of the iceberg of this young president’s power displayed during the recruitment fair, he no longer dared to look down on him. At that time, there had been an unruly elite player who spoke disrespectfully and ended up scared out of his wits.

President Mu Fei was undoubtedly a formidable figure.

And the big boss who could control such a formidable person must certainly be no ordinary character.

…

This no-ordinary-character big boss walked into the office Sophia had prepared for him.

The door closed, with excellent soundproofing.

Only then did Mu Yuan have the chance to ask, “What exactly is going on here?”

The Soul Crystal Coins he had given Sophia were only slightly more than what was needed to purchase Remnant Souls.

Additionally, since all the territory’s production and dropped Remnant Souls were transported to Stone Ridge Town for sale, Blue Star Company theoretically had no income sources – it should have just been an empty shell company used for acquiring Remnant Souls.

Yet the number of Remnant Souls Sophia sent back each period hadn’t decreased, but had actually been increasing.

Where was she getting the money? She couldn’t possibly be involved in some illegal activities, could she?

No, that couldn’t be it.

While this girl might have some madness in her bones, overall she was quite obedient. It would be more reasonable if Sophia had won the lottery jackpot.

…

Sophia’s eyes lit up.

Understood!

The boss finally wanted her work report!

Hadn’t she worked hard to build up the company precisely to proudly report her achievements? If she could receive a word of praise from the boss, that would be even more wonderful.

She began narrating the company’s development history, how it had grown step by step.

“Initially, funds were indeed quite tight. But relying on the channels you provided, plus the convenience of the Lord identity, I connected with some major commerce guilds and started engaging in supernatural material trading activities.”

“For example, when acquiring Remnant Souls, if we came across rare ones at suitable prices, we would purchase them and resell them at higher prices.”

“Additionally, we undertook group missions and transportation work for the Player Association, provided guarantees for transactions between smaller commerce guilds and groups, and so on.”

Mu Yuan nodded slightly.

That made sense… made sense my foot!

How did you manage to grow the company to its current scale in just one month?

“When you previously brought me to do business with First Hand Commerce, and later emphasized that I should trade with several major commerce guilds, weren’t you hinting at me?”

So that’s how it was solved?

Indeed, the Lord identity was prestigious and offered significant advantages over ordinary players. And how many Lords were there in the entire Baijiang City?

Most Lords’ procurement volumes from Blue Star were far less than his.

As expected, the impressive one was still him.

Truly worthy of himself.

Sophia said, “Now the company is almost on track, and we can soon enter the profit phase, able to provide the territory with more Remnant Souls and funds.”

“Good, you’ve done excellently.”

But Mu Yuan was still somewhat concerned – the company had developed too quickly, its Foundation was insufficient, and could Sophia handle everything alone?

The players she recruited weren’t core members after all, and the time had been short.

Moreover, the company’s rapid development would inevitably affect some players’ interests – might Sophia encounter danger?

Real business warfare was often simple, direct, and dangerous.Sophia reminisced.

The rival company’s boss sneaking into the office late at night to steal data; being intercepted by thugs in an alley; transport operations occasionally being sabotaged by players… and so on.

Were these dangers?

Of course not. They were merely a bit of excitement and fun added to an otherwise uneventful daily life.

She enjoyed such amusement.

First update…

(End of chapter)