Chapter 246: The Balancing Act 27
Scalpel was stunned.
Was it an illusion? He claimed to be a Remover with combat abilities and received little attention, but when he described himself as a small business owner of a startup, he was taken seriously. Wasn’t The Shadowless Organization supposed to be the type that had many members who followed their leader into danger, with blood on their blades?
“Uh, what talents do you see in me?” Scalpel asked uncertainly.
The mysterious interviewer from The Shadowless Organization replied, “Of course, it’s your management skills.”
Kui Xin’s words confirmed Scalpel’s suspicions, and he fell silent.
“Is the organization looking for me to start a business?” Scalpel pondered for a moment and asked, “This is a player organization, and the first batch of beta testers has only been here for a few days. We have no roots in this world, and The Shadowless Organization has only been publicly recruiting for the past two weeks. So, you must not be asking me to manage existing assets, but rather to create something new.”
Kui Xin nodded in agreement, “Exactly, you are very perceptive.”
“I see, I understand now.” Scalpel nodded, “We are in the foundation-laying phase, aren’t we?”
“Correct.” Kui Xin said, “The Shadowless Organization needs a legitimate company that can operate on the surface, one that can continuously provide financial support, act as a bridge between the organization and various social tiers in the Second World, and also be responsible for filtering talent.”
It was apparent that Scalpel was cautious and steady in nature, and he exhibited some traits of a businessman, such as seizing opportunities and taking risks.
“Then we must do thorough preparations for establishing such a company. We need to prepare a lot of things.” Scalpel said thoughtfully, “First, a legitimate company requires a legal representative. To become a legal representative, one must have a legitimate identity. I can change my face to resemble many people, but I can’t fabricate a legitimate ID for myself. Second, we need to clarify the company’s development direction. If we want to establish a technology-based company, what will serve as our technological support? Do we have technically skilled personnel? If we’re to create a trading company, do we have proper supply and sales channels? Do we have connections? And most importantly, the third point, we need startup capital.”
“The third point isn’t a problem.” Kui Xin said, “The first point is a concern, but it’s not a major one.”
Scalpel responded, “Then let’s focus on the second point… Does the organization have any ideas?”
Kui Xin: …Good question, I know nothing about business.
“A technological barrier can’t be broken overnight. Behind a successful research project is always a mature research team, which can’t be compensated by just one or two technical individuals. At this stage, developing a technology-based company is unrealistic, but it may be feasible later on.” Kui Xin analyzed the situation, “As for connections… you are aware of the survival status of players, so let’s not harbor unrealistic expectations in that area. Let’s shift our focus to other fields, such as advertising marketing or media operations…”
“Good idea, there is a lot of potential there.” Scalpel mused, “Coincidentally, my college major is related to this, so I can apply my knowledge. In fact, this world has a lot of overlap with ours… Many people in both worlds are living in a state of entertainment-induced apathy, caught up in public opinion, trapped in information silos, self-deceived, and indulging their emotions… It’s just that the sense of ‘entertainment-induced apathy’ is stronger in the Second World. Purely from a business perspective, the Second World is very suitable for media industry development; as long as what we release is eye-catching enough to attract traffic, we will get returns.”
“It seems you have good ideas,” Kui Xin said, “Hurry up and draft a business plan to submit.”
After hearing this, Scalpel’s expression froze. In that brief moment, he experienced a flashback, hazily believing he had returned to his college graduation job search, when an affable interviewer told him, “Come write a proposal; this is a test of your abilities.”
So, the naive Scalpel had diligently submitted a proposal back then… only for the interview company to exploit it for free.
In the end, Scalpel was frustrated and went into business, successfully becoming a small boss.
Now, time had passed, and surprisingly, the upgraded boss needed to write a plan again, starting from scratch in another world, retracing an entrepreneurial path.
“How much startup capital do you estimate you will need?” Kui Xin asked.
“The registered capital for a company here starts at one million. Adding initial advertising investments and costs for labor and facilities, we will need at least two million for startup capital… and we can’t guarantee profits during the initial phase…” Scalpel said cautiously.
“Okay.” Kui Xin’s tone remained unchanged.
At this moment, Scalpel began to catch on. The interviewer’s willingness to agree so readily didn’t seem like The Shadowless Organization was lacking funds… He clearly remembered that not long ago, The Shadowless had just kidnapped a member of the Popov Clan, advertising heavily and igniting public opinion.
“Maotoufu.” Scalpel looked expectantly, “Isn’t our organization quite wealthy? Loans in this world aren’t cheap, and if we can’t secure funds, we’ll need to borrow; it might take hundreds of years to pay back…”
Kui Xin glanced back coolly, “There is indeed money; it’s enough for your entrepreneurial needs, so no loans are necessary.”
Scalpel’s heart instantly calmed, and he felt elated.
When he started his business back then, he spent a tremendous amount of time securing various guarantees, only to eventually obtain a couple hundred thousand for startup capital. Now the situation was much better; millions were seemingly within easy reach! With such favorable conditions, Scalpel’s confidence ignited.
“I’ll go write the plan now.” Scalpel said.
“Good.” Kui Xin replied, “From now on, you can team up with Wei Li and Golden Ring; your abilities complement each other. Make sure to get to know them better, but don’t pry too much into their affairs, nor reveal too much about yourself.”
Scalpel responded, “Understood.”
The Spatial Vortex opened, and Scalpel stepped inside.
Now, only Kui Xin remained in the conference room.
She sat in her chair, contemplating for a while. Wei Li’s ability was to read minds; she could effortlessly catch the thoughts of ordinary people, which would be useful when Scalpel was making deals. Scalpel himself didn’t possess powerful attack capabilities, but Golden Ring’s extraordinary ability was quite robust, which could compensate for his weaknesses, serving as a bodyguard.
A small team of three, perfectly complementary.
Great, recruiting had still managed to yield useful people… Kui Xin was very satisfied with the results of this interview.
However, having only Scalpel to manage the company wasn’t enough; people with this skill set were hard to find.
Regarding technical talent, the only candidate Kui Xin had in mind was Xi Liang, who was far away in Hei Hai City. Due to technical barriers, The Shadowless wouldn’t be able to establish a tech company right now, but that didn’t mean it wouldn’t be possible in the future.
Everything requires accumulation, and everything requires time.
Establishing a media company was a good avenue; Kui Xin suggested this because she recognized certain traits of the Second World—entertainment-induced apathy.
Control the media, control entertainment, control public opinion, control the channels of speech… thereby controlling people’s thoughts, manipulating their reason, and influencing their behaviors.
It was terrifying.
From the uproar caused by the Popov Clan kidnapping case on the Second World’s internet, Kui Xin had already vaguely perceived this trait; in this incident, she herself had even completed several manipulations of public opinion.
“Still not enough people…” Kui Xin collected her thoughts and began to carefully recall the applications she had received to join the Black Snake faction from the First World players. Most of the information about these players she had browsed and confirmed roughly; some usable candidates she had paid closer attention to and recorded.
Management talent was in very short supply, but Kui Xin had a candidate in mind—Xie Gankqing from the hacker trio.
He was the son of Jingchu’s richest man, managing several companies under his name, and indeed had a wealth of management experience and some business acumen. Those who joined the Black Snake faction would inform Kui Xin about their activities in the Second World; she knew Xie Gankqing was currently in an inland city, living relatively stable.
There was an opportunity to recruit Xie Gankqing.
Additionally, the plan to recruit Xi Liang needed to be prioritized, though he was too far away in Hei Hai City…
Suddenly, an idea struck Kui Xin; she thought of a brilliant startup location—Hei Hai City.
She was very familiar with this city, and more importantly, due to the crackdown by the Investigation Bureau and TQC, the Headquarters of the Mechanical Dawn had already withdrawn from Hei Hai City. They had relocated, and the city’s greatest threat had disappeared!
The TQC only has its headquarters at the Federal Administrative Center, and department specialists wouldn’t stay long in one city.
Thus, the remaining threat in Hei Hai City was only the Investigation Bureau, which Adam could help circumvent; there was significant room for maneuver.
Moreover, Hei Hai City had unique geographical advantages; it was a port city with convenient transportation and located relatively close to the Federal Administrative Center, much better than the remote White Whale City.
“How do you feel about Hei Hai City, Adam?” Kui Xin asked, “I’d like to establish it as the business location.”
“Hei Hai City?” Adam analyzed for a few seconds, “Very reasonable and suitable. It meets your requirements on all fronts; there are several financial powers in Hei Hai City that cooperate and compete with each other, unlike the total control of the Popov Clan in White Whale City. Overall, this place is quite good.”
Kui Xin said with satisfaction, “Then let’s tentatively decide on Hei Hai City.”
“Hei Hai City is indeed a significant city.” Adam remarked, “It is the place you descended to, the starting point of everything, and also where I met you.”
“Yeah. Although I haven’t been gone long, looking back, it feels like ages ago.” Kui Xin said.
She got up from her chair, murmuring, “Two billion secured; I caused a bit of trouble for the Popov Clan, the Resistance Army, and TQC through Abrak. If all goes well, they’ll end up fighting amongst themselves, with no time to deal with me… The entrepreneurial team has been formed, and the foundation-laying location has been confirmed… Hmm, I’ve resolved the majority of the mess.”
Disorderly threads gradually untangled; initially, there were three pressing issues—demanding ransom, filtering members, and dealing with Remover 777. Now, only the last issue remained unsolved.
“Have you decided when to head to Fusgong City?” Adam inquired.
“There are still a few minor matters. I need to draw blood from two individuals: the interviewee who had a bomb installed in his heart and from Samantha.” Kui Xin stated, “Lastly, I need to confirm a few things…”
“Confirm what? Something related to the Federation?” Adam asked.
“No…” Kui Xin paused, a hint of cold killing intent in her voice, “I need to confirm whether Night Cicada is still in White Whale City…”
