Chapter 989: Chapter 762: If You Can’t Buy It, Snatch It!
“What’s the matter?”
“The races are too chaotic. In this universe, the number of biological races you can encounter might be even more than you imagine. Remember, never mock others’ appearances. The foundation of the Hinchlo Business Alliance is a massive community built on commerce, and everything here serves money.”
“So, if you provoke a counterattack due to mockery, whether it leads to injury or death, under the unique rules of the Hinchlo Business Alliance, it might ultimately be just coldly dealt with.”
A chubby guy, looking like a tribal chieftain, said with a sacred face, “So if you’re killed because you can’t shut your mouth, in the end, no one will stand up for you?”
“Yes.” White Hair snapped his fingers, satisfied with the guy’s understanding.
Mu Fan nodded, absorbing the lesson, “Understood.”
Every word White Hair said was invaluable experience for Mu Fan, who had never been to the Hinchlo Business Alliance.
…
The Hinchlo Business Alliance is the result of numerous business alliances and large financial groups continuously gathering.
Countless brilliant talents have forged large enterprises in the interstellar realm. For these interstellar merchants, who have no foundations in their homeland, wealth was just for others to benefit from.
Therefore, since the alliance’s establishment, Hinchlo has never given up on building its military strength.
After successfully confronting attacks from significant forces of the Federation and the Empire, this legendary source of cosmic wealth has finally secured its footing in the universe.
For Mu Fan, the most direct impression was that two-thirds through the journey, through the bright space glass, you could clearly see the interstellar route leading to Yunmei Star was bustling with ships of all shapes and sizes, with diverse colors and bizarre appearances.
This spectacle is something you definitely won’t see on Blue Capital Star.
The number of ships in the near-Earth orbit of Blue Capital Star doesn’t even come close to one-third of this route.
As Mu Fan was watching, a red ship with a giant bullhead emblem on its bow appeared. Its finely crafted scale-like outer armor almost made it look like a new type of warship.
However, Mu Fan’s extraordinary eyesight noticed a four-tier observation deck with transparent glass embedded in the center of the ship, filled with crowds peering out.
Such a finely crafted ship wasn’t a warship? It seemed nearly half as luxurious as the interstellar cruise they were on.
“Perhaps this is what a true cruise should be like.”
Mu Fan remarked.
“The Hinchlo Bullhead Ship, it’s a merchant vessel.”
“It’s not a cruise, but a cargo ship?” Mu Fan turned his head in surprise.
“More precisely, a slave transport ship,” White Hair said plainly, “Those observation decks hold high-grade slaves, whereas low-grade slaves aren’t privileged to enjoy the cosmic views. Here, as long as you have money, you can buy almost anything.”
Seeing is always more direct and shocking than hearing.
Trading in people is legal here, and the sophistication of a slave transport ship even surpasses the cruise ships of the Galaxy Federation.
In Mu Fan’s past perception, such a thing was impossible, yet now it stood in front of him.
His preparation was still far from sufficient.
“Once we arrive, our destination is New Moon City, the second-largest city on Yunmei Star. There is an auction house where something I wish to purchase will appear. I must acquire that item, and considering the potential obstacles in the process, I will need your help.”
“New Moon City? You mean the New Moon Auction?”
White Hair exclaimed in surprise.
“What, you’ve heard of it?” The chieftain-like chubby guy looked over curiously.
Mu Fan nodded, a bit puzzled, “Yes, is there a problem?”
Black had indeed told him about this auction house, but the distance between Blue Capital Star and the Hinchlo Business Alliance was too great. Black hadn’t had the capacity to conduct detailed data retrieval directly across tens of light-years in a yet-unconnected other nation.
At the time, it was only through the government’s public information that he learned about the auction. Mu Fan was rushing to Yunmei Star before the auction began.
Even with just a one percent chance, Mu Fan wanted to try.
It was a promise to his Fighter Instructor, and moreover, the key to the instructor’s awakening.
“Of course, there’s a problem…” Young Master Yin’s brows unusually furrowed together at this moment.
“Back on Beifeng Star, our family’s financial group had ongoing business with Hinchlo, so we have some understanding of certain notable forces or businesses within the Hinchlo Business Alliance.”
“Do you mean the New Moon Auction is among those you’ve mentioned?” Mu Fan moved his gaze from the various incoming ships to his companion.
Because he seemed to have a premonition that White Hair was about to tell him something important, something that perhaps couldn’t currently be found online.
White Hair didn’t know what Mu Fan was thinking. He just spoke bit by bit, immersed in his own thoughts:
“Yes! Although the New Moon Auction isn’t considered large-scale in the Hinchlo Business Alliance, it has a unique position. The auction items there tend to be niche yet costly, and the most crucial point is that the New Moon Auction operates on a membership invitation basis.”
Invitation-only? Mu Fan raised an eyebrow, half-relieved. He immediately signaled with a tooth tap, a gesture Black naturally understood.
That meant once they infiltrated the New Moon City’s network on Yunmei Star, they could forge an invitation list in the database on the other side.
For Black, this task would definitely not be difficult.
However, White Hair, feeling a bit of dental pain, continued, “This membership invitation system is potentially different from what we’ve learned before. It’s handwritten by the auction house’s governor. How about that? Pretty willful, right? I think so too.”
“So, it’s impossible to predict how many people this niche auction might attract each time or the status of those attendees, because it all depends on the whims of that unknown manager.”
After speaking, White Hair looked at Mu Fan with a strange expression, “Don’t tell me you’ve already received their invitation?”
Mu Fan was dumbfounded.
Even Lord Black, who was frantically collecting data in the virtual space, suddenly stopped.
Black puzzled over why there was so little information available when attempting to search online for this auction house; turns out, it operated under this cursed auction system.
“I haven’t… I thought it was like the Star Curtain Auction before.” Mu Fan felt a toothache too. After managing to lose the trackers from various forces and almost reaching Yunmei Star, they now faced this situation.
“…” White Hair admired Mu Fan, giving a thumbs-up.
“Are the three of us here to tour Yunmei Star?” A resentful look aimed at a certain enthusiastic young man.
Mu Fan stared blankly at White Hair.
“Is that item very important?” the chubby guy hesitantly asked.
Mu Fan gritted his teeth, “Very important, I must buy it.”
“What if you can’t purchase it?” White Hair added another blow, speaking gloomily.
“I might have to steal it.” With a serious face, Mu Fan looked at White Hair and the chubby guy, his determination evident to anyone.
“Bro, serious?” the chubby guy asked, dumbfounded.
“Serious!”
White Hair sighed painfully, then rubbed his face sorrowfully.
“The Hinchlo Business Alliance’s territory is not even one percent that of the Galaxy Federation, but… it’s not without reason they’ve withstood multiple attacks from both the Federation and the Empire. Did you bring the Thunderhawk?”
“No.” Mu Fan answered very earnestly, but the intent to rob shone unmoved in his eyes.
“… Then let’s change our approach, get there first, and see if we can grab onto a bigwig when we arrive.”
White Hair leaned despondently on the sofa, suddenly feeling that he’d exert effort and even financially contribute in the end.
This is basically a full-time support role, damn it.
“Do you perhaps know a bigwig?” The chubby guy’s small green bean-like eyes began to gleam.
“No, but with enough money and losing face, it’s worth a try.”
White Hair replied frankly.
Caring about face in critical moments is something that can be thrown aside.
“So basically being shameless….” With a wooden expression, the chubby guy looked at Mu Fan and White Hair.
Mu Fan pondered deeply, nodding with difficulty.
In the virtual space, Lord Black was already laughing wildly.
That’s why, perhaps for the first time seeing Mu Fan this way, it just couldn’t help but laugh.