Chapter 164: Chapter 163: Antisocial Scum
Arthur Seldon was taken aback and asked,
"Who are you? Is this some kind of damn prank? Or is some heartless bastard just calling to mock my failure? You just wait, my experiment is about to succeed, just wait..."
Before he could finish, the person on the other end cut him off:
"You misunderstand. I’m from Truth Technology, and I’m prepared to invest in and acquire your Azure Sky Technology, even if it’s just a garage company right now. To show my sincerity, I’ll send you a portion of the deposit right now..."
Arthur Seldon felt his phone suddenly vibrate as a notification appeared.
He glanced at it, and his whole body trembled. He stood frozen on the spot.
Then, he rubbed his eyes hard, looked at the notification again, and then slapped himself across the face, making sure he wasn’t seeing things.
One, two, three, four, five, six, seven.
One million US Dollars!
The other party had wired him one million US Dollars!
Just a few days ago, he had tried to sell his company for a hundred thousand dollars for an emergency, only to be ridiculed, especially since he was already millions of dollars in debt.
And now, this person had just casually given him a million!
This was unconditional trust! That was even more exciting than the million itself!
The voice on the other end was steady and gentle, a pleasant sound that put one at ease:
"Mr. Arthur, I have great faith in your technology and your abilities. Your Nanomechanical Cluster technology represents a new direction for the development of human civilization. Therefore, after the full acquisition of Azure Sky Technology, I will still give you ten percent of the equity and hire you as CEO of Azure Sky Technology. What do you think? This one million is just an initial deposit. The total amount is about a ’small goal.’"
’Jesus Christ! God! My luck has finally turned! I’m finally getting recognition!’
Arthur Seldon’s whole body trembled, his eyes welling up with tears. He said in a quavering voice:
"My esteemed Mr. Investor, please forgive my ignorance, but a ’small goal’... is... how much money is that?"
’Three million?’
’Five million?’
’Or maybe ten million?’
It was like a spring of fresh water reviving a fish that was about to die of thirst.
The kind voice on the other end of the line chuckled. "Not much. Just a hundred million."
’God!’
Arthur Seldon felt his heart clench, then begin to race. His body temperature rose, and he felt as if a gust of wind had swept him up into the clouds. Nothing felt real.
One hundred million USD!
’This would not only allow him to completely pay off his debts, but it would also make all his current difficulties trivial. He could continue to immerse himself in his research!’
The voice came through the phone again, and this time, to Arthur, it sounded like a divine proclamation from God himself:
"Mr. Arthur, my man is on his way now. I trust you’ll meet him soon. I hope we can have a pleasant partnership. Welcome to Truth Technology. The name Azure Sky Technology will soon be a thing of the past."
Arthur clutched his phone, nodding desperately as he spoke:
"Please, rest assured! I’ll treat Truth Technology as my own home. To be honest, I still feel like I’m in a dream. You know, just... just yesterday... I was rejected by the very last investor... To be honest, I was on the verge of a breakdown, I even wanted... wanted to kill myself... Your call... Oh God... your call was like a voice from Heaven..."
The man on the other end of the line said slowly,
"Mr. Arthur, for the sake of everything we love, we should never give up hope, should we?"
Arthur was now overcome with gratitude, shedding tears of emotion as he said,
"Yes, yes, you’re so right..."
"Alright, Mr. Arthur. We’ll be partners soon enough, and we’ll have plenty of time to talk later. I won’t disturb you any further." With that, the person on the other end hung up.
Arthur held the phone in his hand, staring at the one-million-dollar sum. An unprecedented sense of security and happiness washed over him.
It wasn’t just about the money. The person’s validation and their comforting words moved him even more.
’This person... must be an Angel...’
Just then, his phone vibrated again. A call was coming in from a number that was just a string of asterisks.
Slightly puzzled, Arthur answered the call and put the phone to his ear.
In the next instant, a low sound like white noise came through, mixed with intermittent high-frequency signals. Then, a low, hoarse voice began to speak:
"...No one recognizes you... you hate this world... humans are all vile creatures... they don’t deserve to live in this world... you want to make them all pay the pri..."
Before the voice could finish a single sentence, Arthur was already shouting curses:
"Some piece of trash with an antisocial personality disorder? Let me tell you, if you ever show your face in front of me, I’ll blow your brains out! If you dare harass me again, I’m calling the cops! Get lost! Fuck you!"
He then hung up and rubbed his throbbing, dizzy head. He muttered to himself,
"There are just too many narrow-minded scumbags in this world... Could it be a competitor who caught wind of the news? Thank god there are plenty of good people, too..."
At this thought, Arthur immediately dialed the number labeled "Sweetheart" on his phone. As soon as the call connected, he said excitedly,
"Amy, honey, where are you right now? Clayton Clinic? What are you doing there? You just arrived? Never mind that for now, I have the most amazing news! I got the investment! One hundred million dollars! Oh my God! My research has finally been recognized! I’ve already received one million. Our little angel Lisa is saved! I’m going to get her the best medical care. It’s not too late, it’s not too late... Don’t cry, honey, our good times are here... *sob*... Our good times are finally here... I just want to hold you both... *sob*... I just want to hold you and Lisa..."
...
「The airport.」
Hearing the sounds of Arthur Seldon and his wife crying with joy through his Consciousness Antennae, Shen Feng couldn’t help but reveal a gratified smile.
Just after he finished talking about the partnership with Arthur Seldon, there was a period of less than a minute where his Consciousness Antennae were interfered with by some kind of force, preventing him from listening in.
But judging from Arthur Seldon’s reaction, it must have been the Whisperer up to its old tricks, only to be utterly defeated by the almighty dollar.
’Tsk, tsk, that’s the magic of money for you.’
’It can make good people greedy and mad, and it can also restore sanity to someone on the brink of madness.’
’What can dispel one’s sorrows?’
’Only sudden wealth.’
’The ancients truly did not deceive me.’
From the very beginning, Shen Feng had never intended to just kill this world’s Arthur Seldon.
After all, the current Arthur Seldon was just a pitiful, bankrupt man obsessed with his research, with his wife and daughter as his emotional anchor. He hadn’t yet become the madman bent on revenge against the world.
Arthur Seldon himself was extremely capable; otherwise, his counterpart in the Gray Tide World would not have succeeded in destroying the world.
Therefore, as a subordinate, he was far more useful than a dead man.
The emergence of Gray Tide Technology in this world also needed a cover.
Shen Feng also wanted to see if he could snatch those seemingly fated individuals from the Whisperer’s grasp.
It seemed he had succeeded.
If the Whisperer was a person, or a conscious entity, it was likely seething with rage right now.
The thought of frustrating the Whisperer made Shen Feng laugh heartily once again.
’Having money is great.’
He now not only had the billion-plus he’d acquired from the pig-butchering scams in Southeast Asia, but also the entire New York Emperor Gang’s enterprise. The cash alone that Mike had stashed away from years of smuggling, drug trafficking, and other illegal businesses amounted to several billion US dollars, and it all belonged to Shen Feng now.
’Truly, crime pays. Working hard for money is nowhere near as fast as just taking it.’
As Shen Feng mused, he arrived at the security checkpoint.
His backpack was mostly empty, containing only a few paintings he had brought back from the Gray Tide apocalypse, which had been simply framed.
Looking at the famous paintings like the *Mona Lisa*, *Sunflower*, and others, the security officer couldn’t help but laugh and ask:
"Souvenirs? Don’t they have replicas of these paintings in Hua Country?"
He naturally didn’t think these were the real paintings.
Shen Feng returned the smile and said sincerely,
"These are all authentic. I’m taking them back for my personal collection. I can always sell them if I’m in a pinch."
His words immediately drew a roar of laughter from the surrounding security officers and travelers, who all praised Shen Feng’s sense of humor.
Shen Feng, also grinning, nodded to the crowd and passed through security.
Meanwhile, on the ceiling, unnoticed by anyone, a flowing Nanomechanical Cluster that constantly changed colors to match its surroundings followed closely behind Shen Feng.
When he reached the boarding gate and opened his backpack, the Nanomechanical Cluster, unnoticed, dropped swiftly from the air, entered his backpack, and mimicked the shape of a divider panel inside.
Soon, Shen Feng was seated on the plane, and the Nanomechanical Cluster silently crept out to quickly inspect the entire aircraft’s condition.
Although Jingwei had been constantly helping him alter the traces he left on various surveillance devices and registration systems, he still couldn’t be sure if the Whisperer would be able to find him.
Flying was a rather risky affair. If the Whisperer or someone from the Purification Society went crazy and blew up the plane, it would be all over.
Fortunately, the inspection revealed nothing out of the ordinary.
After more than ten hours of flying, several hours on a high-speed train, and another half-hour taxi ride, Shen Feng was finally back at his small courtyard house in the suburbs of Tai City.
He checked the basement door; it was still welded shut. Xiaoguai had indeed returned to the inside, but the nuke it had been carrying was gone.
Even without the nuke, a heavy-duty truck like that would surely be useful later.
Entering the house, Shen Feng plopped down on the sofa and let out a long sigh of relief.
’It’s still most comfortable at home.’
’Be it ever so humble, there’s no place like home.’
Speaking of which, he had been away from home for a long time on this Gray Tide apocalypse mission.
Just the week-plus spent in the Endless Corridor during the Gray Tide apocalypse was enough to nearly drive a person mad.
Shen Feng clicked his tongue. ’I need to do some self-counseling as soon as possible.’
Experiencing that feeling of absolute control in the Gray Tide apocalypse was very helpful for strengthening his willpower, but it also had some negative side effects.
He had no desire to become a monster that destroyed everything.
’If I devoured everything and merged with it all, would I still be me?’
’As for how to counsel myself...’
’Hmm...’
’First, I’ll eat a few plates of dumplings...’
’Then there’s some real business to attend to...’
Shen Feng’s Consciousness Antennae entered the network once again, sending a mission notification to all players of the True Apocalypse Game worldwide.
"True Apocalypse Game, Gray Tide apocalypse mission, is about to begin!"
~
(I’ve been burying my head in writing lately and haven’t paid much attention to the numbers. I saw today that they’re a bit low... I hope all my friends reading this book can subscribe to the official version to show your support. The author is working really hard. Thank you all!)
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