Chapter 127: Second World

Chapter 127 -111: Second World

In Magita Port City, while Chen Qi was busy researching a B3-level Biological Gene Module, Leiteri had already led the Hummingbird Squad into hiding here.

Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals was located in this port city, one of its ten most important companies.

Of course, this was a recent development, having only occurred within the past six months.

Previously, Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals had been a ghost town, and the municipal government constantly wondered if the foreign company would even survive.

But against all expectations, Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals managed to create a miracle.

In just six months, its export revenue reached one billion, a cause for celebration for all involved.

“Captain, we have a complete lock on Ma Qi’s movements. Should we make our move now?”

Ma Qi was the vice general manager of Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals, an absolute confidant whom General Manager Binks had brought with him from abroad.

After the Hummingbird Squad arrived in Magita Port City, they received a detailed intelligence file on him from CIA agents.

Unlike the low-profile General Manager Binks, who almost never made public appearances, Ma Qi was thriving in Magita Port City and took full charge of nearly all of Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals’ business operations.

He seemed more like the company’s general manager than Binks himself.

If the CIA’s intelligence hadn’t indicated that Binks was the true decision-maker—that he had personally orchestrated the creation of Blood Salt—Leiteri would have assumed that capturing Ma Qi would be enough to uncover the truth.

“According to the CIA’s intel, tomorrow is the next Blood Salt concoction day.”

“Unfortunately, Binks has always handled this process himself, purely by hand. The guy is ruthlessly meticulous. His security is watertight; he’s definitely no ordinary person.”

“We’ll make our move tonight. We’ll get the intel from Ma Qi first, then decide whether to infiltrate Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals.”

To earn more of his boss’s trust and be given greater responsibilities, Leiteri wanted to do more than just capture Ma Qi.

Upon learning that the Blood Salt concoction day was tomorrow, a bold idea formed in his mind.

He would infiltrate Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals and secretly film Binks manufacturing Blood Salt.

Espionage and intelligence gathering were, after all, the Hummingbird Squad’s specialty.

To pull it off without a sound, all they had to do was persuade Ma Qi to be their inside man.

And as for how to persuade him… well, Leiteri and his team were professionals.

So, the key to the entire operation was still Ma Qi.

And the Hummingbird Squad had already written the script for him.

······

At Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals, Ma Qi felt his eyelid twitching all day.

‘I’ve had a string of good luck lately. Is something else good about to happen?’

As if on cue, just a few minutes later, Ma Qi received a call from Binks, summoning him to the office.

“Boss, you wanted to see me?”

Although Ma Qi seemed to be riding high, he knew very well who the company’s true master was.

The identity of this “young master,” Binks, was far more than just the general manager of a mere branch office.

“Ma Qi, what do you think of the Lanyu Kingdom?”

Binks pulled his gaze from the window and turned to face Ma Qi.

Very strangely, Binks was wearing a futuristic-looking helmet, which was emblazoned with the large logo of a gaming company.

The look really didn’t suit his status as general manager.

However, Ma Qi was no longer surprised by this. Ever since the young master had been kicked off the board of directors, he had become engrossed in virtual games to escape reality.

After being exiled to the Lanyu Kingdom, he had sunk even deeper, spending all day immersed in games and almost never taking off his helmet.

This was why Ma Qi was able to take charge of all the company’s business and attend all its functions.

It was simply because Binks’s appearance wasn’t suitable for going out, and the young master himself almost never left the company headquarters anyway.

“Boss, I think the Lanyu Kingdom is quite nice.”

“The people are simple and honest, and the society is stable.”

“If you hadn’t developed Blood Salt, this place really wouldn’t be suitable for our company’s business.”

Ma Qi was speaking honestly. Compared to the chaos in other small nations, the Lanyu Kingdom was truly peaceful and comfortable.

To be honest, when he first arrived in the Lanyu Kingdom, he had carried an air of arrogance.

But after spending a long time here, he found he had actually grown to like the country.

‘Strange. Why is the young master asking this today?’

“Good. Very good. Since you like it here, I can entrust the company to you without any worries.”

“To be honest, I despise this place. I hate it with every fiber of my being.”

“From the day I arrived, I’ve wanted to leave every single moment.”

It seemed his emotions had been suppressed for too long; Binks was exceptionally agitated today.

His words sent a jolt of shock and joy through Ma Qi. ‘The young master is leaving?’

‘Doesn’t that mean I’ll be promoted to General Manager?’

“Boss, are you returning to the board of directors?”

“Then what will happen to the business here?”

Ma Qi asked cautiously, not daring to betray the elation he felt inside.

“Hahaha, that’s right! A whole year! I can finally leave this godforsaken place.”

“You can’t possibly understand my terror. I can finally be free!”

“As for what happens after I leave, the company is all yours.”

“I’ll have your back at corporate headquarters, so you just do a good job here.”

Binks tapped agitatedly at the helmet on his head. He reached to take it off several times, but his hand always recoiled.

Ma Qi looked on in confusion. He felt that Binks’s mental state wasn’t quite right today.

‘Did something happen in his game? Or is he just overexcited about returning to the board?’

Ma Qi could actually sympathize with the young master’s plight. He had been born with everything and was the designated heir to the corporation.

But then a younger brother suddenly appeared and kicked him right off the board.

The worst part was, that younger brother was a good-for-nothing who knew nothing about running a business.

Ma Qi’s impression of the second young master was that he was arrogant, domineering, and did whatever he pleased. He was the type to look down his nose at everyone, treating them like dirt beneath his feet.

Aside from being a good gamer, he didn’t seem to have a single redeeming quality.

For the longest time, Ma Qi had never believed the second young master could pose a threat to the first’s position.

But alas, fate is fickle. The board of directors decided to pivot the corporation’s business and go all-in on *Second World*.

Ma Qi couldn’t say whether this major strategic shift was right or wrong.

The company’s Blood Mining Industry had indeed been struggling in recent years, even shrinking year by year.

The root cause was that the middle-tier powers no longer seemed interested in these profits. Without their patronage, companies like theirs naturally found it difficult to operate.

Unlike the decline of the Blood Mining Industry, the *Second World* project had the support of numerous nations. After 200 years of accumulation and development, it was poised to take the entire human world by storm.

It was touted as the biggest opportunity for the next several centuries. It wasn’t just the Comir corporation; basically, any company head with half a brain was starting to place their bets on it.

It was just that the Comir corporation, facing a shrinking industry outlook, had placed a bigger bet and pivoted more decisively.

For better or for worse, the second young master’s luck turned around; he found his calling in *Second World*.

The result? A triumphant second young master stormed a board meeting and kicked his own brother out.

That was how the rumors Ma Qi heard described it. It was incredible, but it seemed plausible that a person like the second young master wouldn’t need conspiracies or schemes to seize power.

In any case, the final result was that the corporate heir was replaced. The first young master became obsessed with virtual games, apparently planning to have a showdown with his brother in *Second World*.

Then he was exiled to the Lanyu Kingdom, because the Lanyu Kingdom had not joined the *Second World* project, and there was no way to connect to it from here.

So even though Binks wore the gaming helmet all day, he was most likely just playing single-player games.

Ma Qi figured this was probably why he was so desperate to leave, which was something he could understand.

······

“Boss, rest assured, I will definitely handle the business here well!”

“I, Ma Qi, will forever be your most loyal subordinate!”

At a critical moment like this, Ma Qi knew that declaring his allegiance was paramount.

Sure enough, his firm declaration earned Binks’s approval.

“As expected of the man I chose!”

“Ma Qi, I have the Longevity Hormone to thank for my return to the board of directors.”

“The reason I chose you over anyone else is that you’re more familiar with our business in the Lanyu Kingdom.”

“After I leave, there can be absolutely no problems with the Longevity Hormone!”

“Otherwise… hmph. I’ve heard you bought a new villa in the Lanyu Kingdom, are keeping a few young mistresses, and even have children now.”

“You’ve really made yourself at home in the Lanyu Kingdom, haven’t you.”

Binks’s last words were heavy with meaning, but all of Ma Qi’s attention was focused on the Longevity Hormone.

The Longevity Hormone was a newly discovered hormone from the Lanyu Kingdom.

When injected into an ordinary person, it could slow cellular aging without any negative side effects.

If that was all it did, it wouldn’t be considered particularly valuable. There were many similar drugs, some even more miraculous.

The parent corporation had initially treated it as just another specialty drug, until its true effect was discovered.

Throughout history, ordinary people—especially the elderly approaching the end of their lives—have all longed to return to their youth and reverse the aging process.

In this day and age, any bio-pharmaceutical company of significant size has dabbled in this field of research.

There were, of course, many results. The most famous was the [Life No. 1] serum, which could return a human to the age of sixteen with no side effects.

However, its cost was so exorbitant that even billionaires with wealth comparable to nations couldn’t afford it.

After all, nobody wanted to return to being sixteen only to find themselves buried in debt and penniless.

Thus, less expensive drugs with similar effects became the preferred choice.

The only problem was that while they could also reverse youth, the cells would then age at an accelerated rate, rapidly running through the rest of a person’s life.

Generally, this rate of aging was five to ten times faster than normal.

The effect of the Longevity Hormone was that it could slow this accelerated aging, and it worked even on those who had used such youth-reversing drugs.

While the effect wasn’t dramatic, it was enough to make it a hot commodity.

This was why Comir Bio-Pharmaceuticals had managed to reach one billion in exports in just six months.

As for the source of the Longevity Hormone, it was, of course, extracted from the blood of the Lanyu Kingdom’s citizens.

Ma Qi’s worry was also about this. ‘After Binks leaves, will Blood Salt still exist?’

If Blood Salt was gone… he had experienced the days when Comir was a ghost town. How could he possibly guarantee a stable supply of the Longevity Hormone?

As for minor things like embezzling company funds and keeping mistresses, Ma Qi knew that as long as he did the job his boss gave him, none of that would be an issue.

Binks had only brought those things up to keep him in line.