Chapter 473: Take off! Destination: Terminus Star Region

The Sun family, of course, had plenty of hushed words to share with one another. Xia Fei and Yuchi Dao took the lead, while Sun Zhan helped support his injured father as they followed behind.

Yuchi Dao appeared to be very dejected, looking at Xia Fei with much discomfort. Xia Fei, in contrast, appeared to be completely nonchalant and at ease, strolling as if he was not bothered by everything around him. He chatted freely with Yuchi Dao, sharing some interesting things he had come across in the insectoid territory while also mentioning his development plan for Terminus.

Xia Fei animatedly spoke of the Terminus Star Region. Earthlings finally had a vast space to call theirs, no longer confined to the small Earth, and Xia Fei had successfully become the ruler of a star region.

Though it looked like Terminus was truly too large and that, even if all seven billion Earthlings were to immigrate there, they would just be but a drop in the ocean, who could guarantee that their population would stagnate at that number? There would surely come a day when Earthlings could be considered existences that should not be underestimated in the Panhuman Alliance, and this was something Xia Fei was very certain of.

“Xia Fei, aren’t you curious about that move I did over by the black pool?” Yuchi Dao could finally not resist it and asked.

Xia Fei smiled. “You mean your Dark Fire ability?”

“Precisely.”

“Of course, I’m curious.”

“Then why aren’t you asking me how I was able to use Dark Fire despite having the magnetic force ability?” Yuchi Dao gave Xia Fei a side-eye, as if he were eyeing a monster.

Xia Fei laughed. “Your Dark Fire is a pseudo-ability, most likely a special item that you own which enhances the effect.”

Yuchi Dao felt very awkward; he had originally wanted to show off in front of Xia Fei, only for the lad to have seen through his tricks.

He brushed his finger across his spatial ring and Yuchi Dao pulled out an ore which was engulfed in blue flames. The ore was a transparent crystal, and the flame it was giving off had no temperature, though it looked nice.

“This here is called a Dark Blue Core Crystal. With it, you’ll be able to release a dark fire when attacking. Are you interested in swapping this for your Golden Jasper Spirit? I’ll also teach you how to use it.”

Xia Fei waved his hand dismissively and rejected the offer resolutely. “It’s not bad, but I won’t exchange it for my Golden Jasper Spirit.”

“I’ll give you two pieces of the ore.”

“I refuse.”

“Three!”

Xia Fei began to somewhat regret using the Immortal-grade plane, Golden Jasper Spirit, in front of Yuchi Dao. He ended up being pestered endlessly by this old man the entire way. The Dark Blue Core Crystal was but a little gimmick which would allow one’s attack to have an additional fire attribute, completely outclassed by what the Golden Jasper Spirit offered.

They got busy when they returned to Nanming Association, burying the hundreds of disciples, and the originally small and weak association looked even worse after this incident, with Sun Guang’s face displaying a veritable look of great sorrow.

“This fruit here is called Carmine, with great physical supplementary effect for the body. It’s the greatest thing here in the entire Evernight Forest, only bearing five to six hundred of these fruits in the hundreds of years of our association’s existence. I’m giving them all to Master Xia Fei now.” Sun Guang presented a storage container.

Xia Fei did not reject the offer, taking the container with a word of thanks. Beside him, Yuchi Dao glanced at that container several times, saying, “That’s some really good stuff there. It’s not just the most precious product here in the Evernight Forest but also the best in the entire Alliance.”

Xia Fei had also studied a bit about pharmacology, so of course he knew that Carmine contained eighty times the energy count of a White Dew, forty-five times that of a Snake Eye Berry, and was considered a top-grade rarity. This was not mentioning the fact that this was an organic produce, meaning that its effect would be even better, making it most suitable for him to use given his current rank.

Time waited for no man, and Quantum Holdings’ immigration plan was still in its intensive preparation phase. Xia Fei did not wish to stay here too long, so he found an excuse to get ready to leave.

The Sun family had just survived a great tragedy, so they were in a terrible mood and did not try to make him remain. Instead, it was Yuchi Dao who casually said that he would stay to help Sun Guang rebuild his Nanming Association. Given his style of constantly being late to everything, Xia Fei simply found it hard to believe what use this offer could do.

…

Seven days later, Sido City, The Red Crab House restaurant.

In a room on the forty-seventh floor, Xia Fei greeted the chairwoman Nicole Sawyer.

She had clearly dressed to the nines for today, wearing an attractive black short skirt, revealing her shapely thighs underneath. Her tall stilettos rang crisply as she walked, her silvery pearl studded earrings looking simple and unassuming. She recently got her hair done, too, and an alluring fragrance permeated her.

With a smile, Xia Fei pulled out a chair and invited Nicole to take a seat.

“Seeing you walk with your stilettos, I can’t help but recall the first time we met. I see that you’ve grown very accustomed to it by now,” Xia Fei said with a chuckle.

Nicole spread the napkin over her legs and softly said, “Unfortunately, while I may have conquered wearing high heels, I have yet to do the same for someone’s heart.”

Xia Fei pretended not to hear what she said, pulling out an expensive white wine bottle from an ice bucket and pouring a glass for Nicole.

“Looks like you still mind a lot.” Nicole took a sip of wine.

“What do you mean by that?”

“There are only the two of us, yet you invited me here to this private room. This means you’re afraid of rumors flying, afraid of letting Avril know.”

Xia Fei poured himself a glass of wine and laughed. “I’ll just laugh off whatever rumor that comes my way, but it’s not the same for you. After all, you’ll still be marrying someone in the future.”

Nicole leaned forward, her two hands propping up her chin as she smiled radiantly. “Who I marry is my business, and I’ve never cared about what others will say about me.”

This was some spicy flirtation on her end, and Xia Fei had no choice but to pretend not to have heard her speak once more, pulling out a packed necklace from his pocket and handing it to her.

“This necklace is something I inadvertently found while in the insectoid territory, so I’ll give it to you as a birthday gift.”

“My birthday’s still two months away.” Nicole frowned.

“I know that, but I’ll be heading straight to Terminus right away and will rarely ever return to the Alliance. You’ve been a great help this time, so I feel obliged to show my gratitude.”

Nicole tightened her grip on that necklace as she reluctantly said her thanks.

Sighing, a smile reappeared on her face once again as she asked, “Have you decided what type and how many warships you’re planning to purchase this time?”

Xia Fei handed Nicole a list. “For battleships, I’ll still be getting a combination of your company’s Dominix-class and the Amarrian’s Abaddon-class, their numbers are the same as we previously discussed. Plus, I want a hundred of your Ishtar-class and a hundred of Amarrian Zealot-class heavy-assault cruisers. I also want a hundred of your Ares-class Interceptors.”

“So many?” Nicole furrowed her brows. “The Ishtar and Zealots are both T2 warships, and their price will at least go for twelve billion star coins. As for the Ares, I can give you a straight price, selling it to you for 2.5 billion star coins.”

Xia Fei replied, “Cost isn’t the biggest problem right now, as long as it’s being spent on things that are worthwhile. The heavy-assault cruisers possess the firepower of a battleship and the speed of a cruiser, making it perfectly suitable for a quick response fleet, while the Ares is the number-one choice for a reconnaissance team.”

Nicole nodded. “I understand now. You’re planning to replace all other T1 warships aside from the battleships. As for the Amarr company, I’ll do my best to convince them. After all, this is the first time in Alliance history that a fleet will forgo any T1 warship, making it a great experiment. The Amarr company will surely be interested in such a study.”

Delicious red crabs were sent to the dinner table, and Nicole and Xia Fei enjoyed the crustacean meat as they discussed their warship purchase plan. Nicole would also stare blankly at Xia Fei from time to time, her heart thumping affectionately. Meanwhile, Xia Fei continued to show her a harmless smile, pretending to be clueless of her feelings.

“One last thing.” Xia Fei set aside his utensils and seriously addressed Nicole.

She sat upright. Her eyes shone when she saw Xia Fei turning serious. It was just as Avril said, Xia Fei’s usually smiling expression was very warm and inviting, but what moved her greatly was when Xia Fei’s eyebrows knitted, being all solemn while dealing with work.

“I know that Gaian Industries is capable of producing supercarriers, and how to build such supersized shipyards is no doubt a closely guarded secret of the company, but I do have a gratuitous request.”

“Speak.” Nicole stared right at Xia Fei, not once looking away from the man.

“If possible, I want a supersize shipyard built in Terminus.”

Nicole was stunned, abruptly waking up from a dream.

“A supersize shipyard? How large are we talking about?”

“Very large. Much bigger than the shipyards that you have to build the Nyx-class supercarriers.”

Nicole’s expression changed immensely when she heard this. “Even larger than the current supersize shipyard? Are you thinking of building a supercarrier of your own?”

Xia Fei responded, “If possible, I indeed want to try.”

Nicole saw the extremely serious look on his face and suddenly felt this inexplicable feeling surge inside her, moving her greatly.

“You want to acquire Gaian Industries’ super shipyard technology?”

Xia Fei nodded decisively. “It sounds a little too much when you put it like that, but that’s indeed my goal. Aside from the technical data, the usage experience is also precious.”

Without a doubt, Xia Fei’s request here was for the sake of building the Titan superwarship, and though the building of such a legendary massive warship would be a great risk, Xia Fei was still determined to give it a shot.

Nicole picked up her wine glass and finished it.

“Similarly, I have a request.”

“Speak freely.”

Nicole blushed fiercely as she said each word calmly, “I want you to marry me.”

Having a woman speak these words was hardly a simple matter, not to mention that it was coming from the ever headstrong Nicole Sawyer.

However, what she had not expected was for Xia Fei to burst into laughter.

“Actually, I am only very curious after seeing the supercarriers, which is why I casually asked about this. How could Quantum Holdings even have the capabilities of building our own supercarrier? Even giving me the shipyard for real will be no more than mere decoration.

“Come, let me toast to you. I hope we’ll have a pleasant cooperation this time,” Xia Fei raised his glass.

Nicole bit her lower lip as her face vacillated between green and pale.

Beside him, Phantom was irate as he complained, “What’s wrong with Nicole? Acquiring such a babe and the super shipyard technology will enable you to produce the Titan superwarship; isn’t that killing two birds with one stone?”

Xia Fei ignored him. “Given the technology the Alliance currently is at, building a Titan superwarship will be too much a task. A Titan is much larger than a supercarrier, and I only want the data from Gaian Industries so that I can have some reference. Besides, this isn’t a transaction.”

…

Two months later.

A huge fleet set sail from the Panhuman Alliance, heading to the distant Terminus Star Region.

After so much intense preparatory work, Xia Fei’s most important plan before he left the Alliance, the development of Terminus, had begun step by step.