Chapter 7: The Black Contract, Section 9

Koko was truly a talent—just a few words and she had already touched Hei Fa’s heart.
What’s most important for achieving great things?
Money!!
Hei Fa wasn’t a fool. Though he possessed a rare mechanical talent in this world, it was far from enough to achieve his goals. Military strength, networks, information channels—everything required a solid financial foundation. Without money as a backing, no matter how capable Hei Fa was, he couldn’t build a powerful army out of thin air, let alone compete with massive national forces boasting thousands of mechs and warships.
Yet he found it strange that despite the Gan Luostar people having such vast financial resources, they still remained isolated and destitute. Though they had a few weaklings under them, in Hei Fa and Xue Tong’s eyes, they probably didn’t even qualify as sparring partners.
“Just five minutes,” Xue Tong said, looking at the mech warehouse and mercenary records Koko had shown them.
“No, three minutes and forty seconds,” Hei Fa replied.
The small Koko blinked rapidly, glancing between Xue Tong and Hei Fa. Her face showed shock, hesitation, and relief.
Look at this level of capability. All the efforts she had taken pride in—someone could handle them in just a short time. Koko began to doubt whether her past efforts had been nothing but child’s play.
But she really had no other choice. Although the Gan Luostar people had abundant funds, their inherent limitations in nature and ability meant they never earned respect or recognition from any race. In Koko’s words, even if you were a hen that laid golden eggs every day, at most you were still just a hen—lacking courage, spirit, and capability. No matter how much money was given to them, they couldn’t ensure their safety. Any race with even a hint of fighting talent was far stronger than the Gan Luostar people. Basically, anything they wanted could be given to them. Why give them any respect at all?
If it weren’t for the clear trade protection laws in the thirty-plus star systems near Bai Yinstar, the Gan Luostar people would likely still be living in slavery like their ancestors.
So Koko was grateful to have seized this opportunity to tie such fierce warriors to her own interests. Though the warrior’s demand was a little, just a little, too high.

At the thought of this, Kokko’s mind conjured up the image of that girl with a noble demeanor, like a princess. By the gods of Ganluo, Kokko had never seen such terrifying negotiation skills in this world. Although his own race was renowned for its business acumen, he was utterly outmatched by this girl when it came to bargaining. Her elegant and noble bearing, subtle smile, accurate and sensitive intuition, and precise pricing—all of these left Kokko utterly convinced. In the end, he reluctantly agreed to all the demands put forward by the girl named Sulei.

The equipment cost was 150,000 crystal coins, the cooperation fee was 67,000 crystal coins, plus a regular salary of 20,000 per month, not to mention expenses for carrying out missions, maintaining equipment, and taking care of injured members, and so on. In total, it was almost equal to all the profits Kokko could earn from a single interstellar deal. And that didn’t even include ongoing expenses in the future.

Yet it was all worth it. After being invited to tour some of Li Feng’s military installations, Kokko was deeply satisfied. With his extensive experience and broad perspective, such a heavily armed warship was equivalent to an entire regular small army. On the eve of making a big move on Silver Star, it was truly priceless.

In the starry sky, two massive warships raced side by side at high speed. Finally, Kokko gave a brief introduction of his purpose and Hei Fa.

“I assume you’re already aware of the situation on Silver Star. I’m going there to establish a real branch of our merchant guild and also hope to secure a share of the market,” Kokko said slowly, leaning against the elf girl’s passionate embrace.

“For this purpose, I’ve brought 1,500 tons of high-density earth element ore on this Basket Angel. If it can be released into the market, it will surely create a huge impact. Unfortunately, it was targeted by scavengers along the way. If it weren’t for you, I’m afraid…”

“Stop talking nonsense. Our mission,” Hei Fa waved his hand to stop Kokko from continuing his lengthy thanks. He reached into his pocket, took out a cigarette, and lit it. Then, with smoke curling around him, he narrowed his eyes.

“Ah, yes, Mr. Hei Fa.” Kokko was momentarily stunned, clearly not yet used to Hei Fa’s direct style. But he quickly understood.

“Seizing the market will definitely draw the attention and scrutiny of the local forces on Silver Star. Especially if it threatens their interests. If I’m guessing correctly, they’ll surely resort to illegal tactics.” Koko shook her big head, her face filled with worry. “In the past, it was precisely because we were afraid of them using force that we, the people of Ganluo Star, never dared to sell large quantities of goods. We suffered incalculable losses every month, and we didn’t even dare to establish trade associations.”

“Oh?” Blackhair smiled and exhaled a ring of smoke. “Do you want us to protect you, or eliminate them? I don’t mind washing my hands a few more times.”

Bloodpupil and Baroka beside him immediately laughed knowingly.

Huh? Koko was utterly confused. What kind of people were these? They wanted to attack others without even knowing who they were. Their arrogance seemed to suggest they already considered themselves to have them in their grasp, acting as if it were entirely natural. They were truly lawless to the extreme!!

It was absolutely crazy… Koko forced a wry smile.

“Mr. Blackhair, I’m afraid you can’t eliminate them just yet.” Koko’s expression turned serious. As a merchant, maintaining a proper attitude in matters of business was an innate strength of the people of Ganluo Star.

“Although I can’t yet determine exactly how many forces will be affected, one thing is certain: they must all be extremely powerful and formidable. They’ve managed to secure a foothold in the chaotic yet highly profitable world of Silver Star. You should understand their strength without me having to explain. So, if possible, I hope you and your men won’t take the initiative to contact them. Protecting me and my trade association is enough.”

“I see…” Blackhair replied indifferently before turning to Sulei.

“How about it?”

Behind him, Sulei, wearing a mental network connector and resting with her eyes closed, immediately opened them upon hearing Blackhair’s question.

“There are 367 major and minor forces on Silver Star in total. Among them, 120 are involved in the legitimate trade market. Another 240 are involved in the arms market, mineral market, and the black market. The remaining seven are powerful, comprehensive forces. If Mr. Koko only aims to seize a portion of the black market, we won’t have too many enemies. As long as we pay attention to their complex networks of alliances and eliminate some of the smaller forces, it’s theoretically entirely feasible.” Taking a breath, a hint of regret appeared on Sulei’s delicate face.

“The information on the smaller forces isn’t detailed online. I need some more time.”

“That’s enough; you’ve done very well,” the black-haired man nodded in satisfaction. The two of them exchanged words as if it were natural, while Coco’s expression changed completely. What a joke? In just a few words, these people had already figured out the power distribution on Silver Star. What kind of method was this? It was even more efficient than the official intelligence agencies. Compared to them, his own subordinates were completely useless. Shocked by the efficiency of the black-haired group, Coco naturally didn’t know that long before meeting him, the black-haired man had already ordered Sulei to gather information about Silver Star. Even without Coco’s involvement, his goal of infiltrating Silver Star’s underground forces wouldn’t have changed. With Coco now, it was just an added bonus. The universe was always so quiet and peaceful. But under human desires, criminal dramas played out moment by moment. On the journey to Silver Star, Coco encountered several pirate groups again. But this time, he didn’t need to worry or be afraid. Under Li Feng’s powerful firepower, the only things he could observe were the wreckage floating in the void and the bloody scenes of battles. After about a week, the massive silhouette of Silver Star gradually appeared on the screens of the warships. It was a highly developed planet. As a hub for goods in over thirty nearby star systems, its prosperity was beyond doubt. At least that’s what the black-haired man thought when he saw what was there. The entire planet was covered with countless buildings of various sizes. Cities were connected by high-speed tracks. The green vegetation had been almost completely destroyed. At first glance, all that could be seen were the colors of metal and the glow of magic lights. Not a trace of the planet’s original appearance remained. In space, countless uniquely shaped floating vehicles formed streams, just like modern cities in science fiction movies. Of course, on this huge planet, the most prominent structure was undoubtedly the massive airport. Unlike the city airports on Xieke Planet, Silver Star’s airport was simply a towering structure made entirely of metal and magic elements, stretching from the ground all the way into outer space. Its grand scale was clearly visible even in space. Around it, countless floating ships moved in and out like hardworking ants, creating a bustling scene.

Faced with such massive throughput, the two ships, Li Feng and Lan Tian Shi, seemed utterly insignificant. No one paid attention to them at all. As a result, their procedures went smoothly. In just two hours, they arrived at the temporary base that Ke Ke had arranged on this planet.