On the airship.

The Gluttonous Duke sat by the window, gazing down at the ground a thousand meters below.

Unlike the traditional Dead Sea that surrounded his own territory, the Development Alliance had completely cleared the Dead Sea on their side, dispersing the sediment and light mist, gaining usable land over tens of times more than in the past.

The once isolated five regions were now completely connected, forming one complete continent that only existed in the old human era.

It was clearly visible from the air.

Many tracks had already been laid on the ground, with shuttles constantly navigating them, forming an initial transportation network that directly linked dozens of towns.

The increase in land area brought more operational space, vast farmlands were being cultivated by agricultural machinery, and the centralized factory clusters were being established like mushrooms after rain.

Huge hyperboloid cooling towers were scattered everywhere, spewing large amounts of white mist. They were standard features of power plants.

As the number of power plants continued to grow, the power facilities were expanding at a crazy high speed. There were artificial street lamps erected around vehicle tracks and roads, with lights everywhere.

Along the way, there were also some large black projection walls, showing dynamic maps, marking distances to various cities, and providing emergency measures for accidents encountered.

The Gluttonous Duke watched with a calm demeanor.

If the opponent is slightly stronger than oneself, they are a potential competitor. But if the gap is too large, they do not belong to the same ecological niche, and there are no conflicts of interest; it's better to learn from them.

The Mountain Dog, Nubeer, beside him said gravely, "The Wasteland Development Company intends to completely clear the Dead Sea and rebuild the world order from the root."

It sighed, "From now on, I'm afraid there's no force that can oppose the company. Even under pure power suppression, there will still be weak resistance, but pushed by such huge interests, no one can resist them, which is becoming an actual rule. Control over land has been monopolized by them."

The Gluttonous Duke smiled slightly, "Since someone is bound to monopolize power, it's always better to find someone who won't act recklessly, can control their desires, and is willing to let others have a taste."

"That makes sense."

Nubeer nodded, "If it were still the time when the Black Emperor and Warlord were active, they would surely utilize such power to rally and promote all kinds of life forms to join the war against the Heavenly People. Compared to them, the company is much smarter and more rational."

"Otherwise, we wouldn't have reached an agreement to come here for negotiations."

The Gluttonous Duke picked up a piece of sausage from his plate and chewed it slowly.

"Unexpected, truly unexpected."

Across from the Mountain Dog, there was a hint of melancholy in its deity, "In the end, we, the agents of the Heavenly People, must also bow to the rising power. We still need to go and beg them to include us, who would have thought this day would come?"

"The times have changed, my friend."

The Gluttonous Duke nonchalantly wiped the corner of his mouth with a napkin, "In the beginning, the rulers were old humans; they were wiped out, then became Concept Life forms ascended, later Heavenly People emerged, becoming the rule of the Heavenly People. The world is like this, there's never an eternal master, always one finishes while another takes the stage."

"We, those agents, to put it nicely, are proxies of the Heavenly People; to put it bluntly, we are the servants of the Heavenly People."

"The strength of the Heavenly People is undeniable, yet they don't care about us, life and death are up to ourselves, so we have to figure it out ourselves, don't we?"

"Anyway, there's no rule saying agents can't do business, can't mix with other organizations. Black Emperor II saw this clearly, revealing his identity early on, directly cooperating with the company early on, and now Mars Base has obtained one of the three major areas. At this point, with the demolition and renovation of the Dead Sea, the Heavenly Kingdom was the first to follow suit on a large scale, and four states have completed the Dead Sea demolition."

"More importantly, now the Dead Sea Park after this demolition and renovation... is no longer just a mere residential area."

Speaking of which.

The Gluttonous Duke looked down from the wide window of the airship.

There were Dead Sea Parks surrounded by high walls of Light Soot, there a layer of dark mist for viewing blocking swirled around, resembling artificial black holes wrapped by infrastructure.

It said softly, "The Dead Sea Park has retained existing features of the Dead Sea and upgraded on this basis, increasing the maximum Death Light density to 80 times that of the past, providing directional energy infusion, and even custom strategy guidance for life evolution."

"Any Guangna Species who still wants to progress further will want to live in such a place to improve their growth and evolution efficiency."

"This has already become an unstoppable trend."

"If we don't keep up, we won't even have the soup to drink, my friend."

Nubeer looked out the window, silent for a long time, "Originally, we Guangna Species agents banded together, and aside from the Dream Demon Clan, at least on this ground, there seemed to be no enemy capable of matching us. Who knew it would come to this... I just feel a bit unwilling."

"It feels like suddenly growing old, being kicked out of the game."

The Gluttonous Duke took a sip of sweet wine, "Well, you're wrong there, my friend."

"There are those older than us, not to mention the Concept Life forms, there are the old kings and the Warlord. The old kings have already lived out a second life, reaching an unprecedented peak, the standard-bearer of extraterrestrial expansion. Though the Warlord rarely leaves the Forbidden Continent, I've heard a bit about him, that one has always been attempting to develop Light Core Level Weapons..."

"The Warlord has a close relationship with Zhou Yi, and it's said they've secretly developed a new type of Weapon Princess in Golden Elephant Valley, one might say it's uncertain when he will resurface."

"Life has its ups and downs, that's just how it is, we're far from reaching that point."

It pointed to the Panda Man beside them meditating.

"Look at Yongli, that's what it means to see through the reality of the world, still maintaining focus and tranquility."

"Compared to him, we're sometimes too caught up in fame and resources, which can lead to losing our way."

Nubeer looked at the Panda Man wearing patient clothes beside them.

Seeing this companion, its expression relaxed greatly, "I can't compare to him. This one is focused on Longevity, calculating back to the old human era, he'd belong to the Longevity Cultivators..."

"Yongli, do you want to introduce and recommend the Longevity cultivation to that person this time? He might find it very promising."

"..."

The Panda Man remained silent with closed eyes.

At this moment, the Gluttonous Duke resumed a serious tone, "That's enough of jokes. Friends, we are here today for the Dead Sea Park, so let's all remain highly focused."

"I've dealt with Zhou Yi before, he's a difficult person to figure out. But in external affairs, he has a clear pattern, which is the principle of reciprocity; if the other party provides enough support and power, he will respond with resources and opportunities not less than the partner's. In collaboration, he's quite particular and exhibits a distinct strong demeanor."

"But the premise is that he likes the things."

"Of course, I believe the items we've offered are rare for the company, considering we hold some unique monopolistic resources."

He solemnly said, "Regardless of the outcome, we must remain humble as we need his favor."

"Certainly."

Nubeer nodded, "If I didn't understand this, I wouldn't have come."

Panda Man: "…"

With guidance from the ground, the dirigible slowly docked at the top floor of Sand Port's Jade City, a privilege reserved for the company's highest-profile guests.

The Gluttonous Duke felt a sense of relief.

Zhou Yi was very accommodating.

This was a good sign.

…

At the Chairman Residence, No. 3101.

Upon meeting Zhou Yi again, the Gluttonous Duke noticed he had officially transformed into a Light Core Body, yet without revealing any sharpness, more composed and restrained than before.

"Welcome, welcome, you three representatives."

Zhou Yi smiled, "Yuan Xiao, serve the tea."

The girl beside him, Angel of Death, began asking everyone what they would like to drink.

The Gluttonous Duke said, "Had a meal on the dirigible; some red tea would help with the richness."

Nubeer: "If you have beer, please offer me a glass."

Yongli: "Tea is fine."

The three representatives sat on the sofa.

The Gluttonous Duke bluntly stated the purpose of their visit.

Zhou Yi wasn't surprised at all: "Your area wants to build a Dead Sea Park as well? Are you certain? Although this project seems appealing, it actually has quite a few challenges."

"Like park entry and exit management, residential registration system and temporary entry permits, strong radiation shielding around it—all tiny yet troublesome issues. Moreover, within the park, due to high density of Death Light, some strong consciousness interferences occur, sourced from the Sun or even universal consciousness, posing certain risks..."

He was candid, first acknowledging the issues and flaws involved.

Both practical and confident.

These drawbacks did not affect the park's allure, as it is a unique facility in the world, aiding Guangna Species to grow rapidly.

The Gluttonous Duke laughed, "Any new entity inevitably carries numerous associated issues, and we will seek solutions. But timing is more crucial; we all hope to establish the park soon."

"Certainly, we have gathered some resources hoping to secure this opportunity."

"Firstly, I am willing to co-own my factory specializing in unique food processing with the company—a device crafted using Heavenly People Gem that imparts special 'enchantments' onto food. It is also my primary income source."

Nubeer said, "I am willing to connect and share the 'solar time' from Greenwich here."

The Gluttonous Duke was mentally taken aback.

Even Nubeer is making significant concessions!

The solar time only has two connection slots, leaving only one potential link. Previously, no efforts succeeded in trading it; this time, Nubeer proactively offered it.

Yongli said, "I'll teach you how to achieve immortality."

This was expected; still indulging in his immortality research.

But across from him, Zhou Yi didn't seem pleased, his face showing dissatisfaction.

This left the Gluttonous Duke rather uneasy.

After a long silence.

The other party suddenly snapped out of it, "Ah? Sorry, what did you say?"

"..."

The three representatives were somewhat speechless.

But since they were asking for help, the Gluttonous Duke forced a smile and repeated the offer.

"Oh, this we can discuss."

"There was just a small incident with an Artificial Sun; sorry."

So that's the case.

The Gluttonous Duke casually asked, "May I ask what happened? Can we assist?"

"It somehow absorbed a Supervisor; do any of you have any leads?"

"..."

The Gluttonous Duke's face stiffened.

I have no clue about this.