Star Odyssey

Chapter 1589: Confrontation

Shamrock Enterprise had never even considered that Qiong Xi'er might already be on guard against them. Ever since she had first joined the Great Eastern Alliance, she had been secretly buying up and acquiring both large and small pharmaceutical companies. So, when Shamrock Enterprise finally bared their fangs against the alliance, Qiong Xi'er was already in control of hundreds of pharmaceutical companies that directly supplied their to the Great Eastern Alliance, while simultaneously cutting off their raw materials supply for Shamrock Enterprise.

No matter how powerful Shamrock Enterprise might be, they were unable to survive on their own. They needed to constantly buy all kinds of raw materials, whether it was for their pharmaceuticals or for their equipment, and these were the goods that Qiong Xi'er had deprived them of.

After losing their supply chain, Shamrock Enterprise's production was abruptly sliced in half, though they were able to maintain production at 50%.

A pharmaceutical trade war had started in the Outerverse, and it was already starting to spread into the Innerverse.

…

There was a calm expression on Qiong Xi'er's face. She kept her gadget open and activated as she spoke to someone.

Her maid, Nana, sent out various orders according to Qiong Xi'er's instructions.

"Young Master, 27 companies of ours have already been paralyzed. Most of their raw materials for pharmaceutical production were being purchased from Shamrock Enterprise, and Shamrock Enterprise has stopped supplying raw materials to outside companies," Xiao Nan reported.

Qiong Xi'er did not care. "As expected, though Shamrock Enterprise moved later than I expected. It looks like they're quite cautious of Lu Yin."

"Young Master, the number's already increased to 40 companies. Estimates are showing that all of the pharmaceutical companies under our control will be paralyzed within the next two days, and our losses will be astronomical. On the other hand, Shamrock Enterprise will only lose a batch of their drugs at worst."

"One batch? Wrong, They lose at least half. Shamrock Enterprise has built up a strong monopoly over the pharmaceutical industry after all these years. These hundreds of companies failing right now are used to cut off their supplies," Qiong Xi'er said.

Any behemoth company that held a monopoly would be secretly resisted by others in the same industry, and Shamrock Enterprise was no exception.

However, they had never cared. Without the Great Eastern Alliance, they would have maintained their monopoly over the pharmaceutical industry and remained a hegemon. Qiong Xi'er had noticed all of this, and she had spent years preparing for this scenario.

The Great Eastern Alliance would not be strangled by others.

"That part of their production only applies to the Outerverse. Their Innerverse holdings have not been badly affected," Nana muttered.

Just as Qiong Xi'er was about to respond, her gadget beeped, causing her to glance over. "Now he finally calls me."

The call connected, and Lu Yin's voice was heard. "I heard that things have become quite exciting in the Outerverse."

Qiong Xi'er smiled. "Alliance Leader Lu, what are your instructions?"

"I don't have any. I just called to ask if you needed anything." Lu Yin replied. He had only recently learned about the Outerverse's situation, but going all-out against Shamrock Enterprise was certainly a major event. Although Shamrock Enterprise was not as powerful as the Daynight clan, the company was still an absolute monster.

Without the various powerhouses supporting him, Shamrock Enterprise would have had no issue suppressing the Great Eastern Alliance on their own. People from the Outerverse were too weak to be worthy of notice, including even the people from the Sea King's Dome and Elder He.

"Things are different for now, and I have the means to deal with them. However, even if I win, it won't be a real victory. They have a firm foundation, and while I can stop and frustrate them, they've already estimated their potential losses and have found them acceptable," Qiong Xi'er explained.

Lu Yin snorted. "Then what are you going to do next?"

He was genuinely curious. What would Qiong Xi'er do against Shamrock Enterprise if he didn't take taking action?

Qiong Xi'er smiled. "I always act like I'm facing a human enemy. Resources, background, and strength all build upon, but in the end, we just need to deal with people."

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"What do you mean?" Lu Yin was caught off guard. Next to him, Luo Shen was also listening to this conversation, and she was quite curious.

Qiong Xi'er replied, "People always need to eat to live, and they have their own desires as well. How many people does Shamrock Enterprise employ? What are their living expenses?"

Lu Yin instantly understood; Qiong Xi'er was going to target the company's bottom-level employees. He had to admit that the woman was quite sharp. Shamrock Enterprise could likely make counterplans against the Great Eastern Alliance moving against them, and they had likely even taken Leon's Armada into account. However, the pharmaceutical giant had almost definitely neglected their lowest level, but that was also their very foundation.

"Basic necessities and transportation are things that ordinary people need, as well as cultivators," Lu Yin murmured to himself.

After ending the call, Lu Yin looked over and saw the surprise in Luo Shen's eyes, and it caused him to laugh. "What are you thinking about?"

Luo Shen admiringly said, "She's so smart!"

"The higher you rise, the further you can see. It's common to overlook what's underfoot, so the higher ups may not take the issues faced by those far beneath them into account. To be exact, this isn't exactly her being smart, but rather taking a different perspective."

"Oh."

Lu Yin was more than happy to sit back and watch the fun since there was no need for him to make a move. He wanted to see how long Qiong Xi'er would be able to frustrate Shamrock Enterprise for.

***

The emptiness of outer space was dark, but it was accompanied by gorgeous and colorful planets and stars.

A spaceship flew away from a planet and made its way towards the Innerverse.

The emblem of Shamrock Enterprise was on the side of the ship, marking it as a transport vessel that had just left a planet that grew raw materials for pharmaceutical manufacturing.

"Captain, we have more than half a month left before we reach the Astral River Ark. You should rest for now," said a woman in the vessel's control center. She was holding a drink in one hand as she gazed at the man in front of her in an admiring manner.

This man was the captain of the ship and a Cruiser. He had worked for Shamrock Enterprise for a hundred years, and not once had he made a single mistake. People said that he would soon become a Hunter, and once that happened, his status would transform as he would be able to relocate to the Innerverse.

"Rest? There's no time to rest. Carelessness can't be allowed," the captain retorted in a heavy tone.

The woman was confused by his words. "We've been transporting materials for so many years, and not once has anyone dared to touch Shamrock Enterprise's materials. What is Captain so worried about?"

A bitter smile appeared on the captain's face. "That's because we had no enemies in the past. However, we are currently enemies with the largest power in the entire Outerverse."

Right as he finished speaking, a beam of light shot by in front of them, and an alarm blared out within the ship.

"Captain, the vessel has been damaged! The enemy is attacking!" someone exclaimed in a panicked voice.

The captain's eyes went wide, and he stared off into the distance where a man was standing. His clothes made him look like an interstellar pirate.

The captain quickly broadcast, "This vessel belongs to Shamrock Enterprise! Do you want to become enemies with my Shamrock Enterprise?"

The man held a large knife, and a cruel smile spread across his face. "Leave the goods behind, and you can go."

"Arrogant!" the captain shouted, but laser beams shot out from the spacecraft towards the man in response. Naturally, since Shamrock Enterprise was transporting valuable medicinal materials, the ships were armed and armored to deal with ordinary attacks. However, a Hunter was a major powerhouse in the Outerverse, and Shamrock Enterprise had not prepared their Outerverse vessels to deal with such a foe.

It was not long before the ship was plundered, and the captain and crew from Shamrock Enterprise could only leave on a small spacecraft.

"Captain, how dare these pirates be bold enough to rob our Shamrock Enterprise!? They're overstepping themselves!" Inside the small vessel, the woman was furious.

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The captain asked in a bitter tone, "Do you really think that that man's a pirate?"

The woman was confused.

The captain looked towards the east. The confrontation between the Great Eastern Alliance and Shamrock Enterprise was intensifying quickly if even these sorts of tactics were being used now. It looked like Shamrock Enterprise would not be able to take away any of the materials that they had cultivated in the Outerverse.

"We'll head to the Innervese first," the captain said decisively. At this moment, it would be useless for him to return to the planet and try to bring out another shipment of raw materials. They would not be allowed to complete any transportation missions.

The captain wanted to return to the Innerverse for new orders, but even though he was trying to be smart, he had forgotten that the Astral River Ark was in the Great Eastern Alliance's control.

Even though the alliance had abandoned Blazing Mist Flowzone, leaving it to the Ross Empire and the sylvan dragon clan, they had never abandoned the Astral River Ark. It was impossible for them to give that up.

No one from Shamrock Enterprise was allowed to leave the Outerverse. Qiong Xi'er intended to stop all of the company's normal operations in the Outerverse, and she also wanted to make it very difficult for them to return to the Innerverse.

Similar scenes played out throughout the entire Outerverse, and even in the Innerverse, Continental Shipping and various pirates in different flowzones made life difficult for Shamrock Enterprise.

Given the situation, Shamrock Enterprise mobilized all of their seeds.

Shamrock Enterprise's seeds were not ordinary people. They were specifically chosen and raised by the company. For example, Darkvoid, who had once been Lu Yin's classmate, possessed an innate gift of exploding the void.

The moment the company sent out their seeds was the moment Shamrock Enterprise revealed their fangs. This corporate giant that had spread across the entire Fifth Mainland unleashed a terrifying strength. Every seed that the company had cultivated was a powerhouse, and they caused the pirates to suffer heavy losses. There were also seeds within the Great Eastern Alliance itself, and others who had snuck onto the Astral River Ark. In fact, they almost seized control of the ark.

The Great Eastern Alliance treated the matter as declaring war, so the alliance's experts were naturally sent out in turn. The conflict with Shamrock Enterprise was picking up.

***

Far away from the Astral River Ark, in Darkmist Weave, a figure fled towards the north, chased by experts from the Great Eastern Alliance. They came from all different individual powers, including the Nine Allied Nations, Evenground Palace, and Aegis.

Suddenly, the fleeing figure was wrapped up in black mist as they instantly died. Topmist suddenly appeared, and he looked genuinely surprised. "Was that one of Shamrock Enterprise's seeds? What a powerful innate gift! Only a Cruiser, and yet he almost escaped."

"He's the same one who nearly took control of the Astral River Ark. If that attempt had succeeded, no one would have been able to endure His Highness's rage." A spectacled woman spoke up from near Topmist. She was the same woman who had once been the Melder realm Mistchild, but she was already an Explorer. Her cultivation had risen very quickly.

"A single person can't take control of the ark, but Shamrock Enterprise's seeds are really powerful. If all their Innerverse seeds attacked, the Great Eastern Alliance would be in a great deal of trouble," Topmist commented.

The Explorer Mistchild gazed to the south. Your Highness, when will you return?

She desperately wanted more of Lu Yin's poisons, as only Lu Yin could give her strong enough poison to improve her strength.

***

Back in the Honor Zone, there was an ugly expression on Yan's face. He had grossly underestimated the Great Eastern Alliance's preparations. Judging from the current situation, the Great Eastern Alliance had seemingly long since made preparations to move against Shamrock Enterprise, or at least contemplated the possibility of them falling out.

At the moment, Shamrock Enterprise had been crippled in the Outerverse. Not to mention supplying raw materials to other places, Yu Mu was unable to even return to the Innerverse. The company's seeds who had been sent to the Outerverse had also suffered heavy losses. Even if Shamrock Enterprise wanted to gain the Innerverse's support, doing so would require them to gather potential allies to fight against the entire Great Eastern Alliance.

Yan had not expected the conflict with the Great Eastern Alliance to develop in this direction. He seemed unable to stop the matter from devolving into all-out war, which could not be allowed to happen. Even though the Great Eastern Alliance had not been around for very long, it was very stable and profitable due to the aligned interests of its various members. The alliance was ready for a war of contrition, so Shamrock Enterprise could not afford to openly fight against the alliance.

This was not only because of the many resources being lost, but also because of a classified project. That particular project required far too many resources, and their delivery could not be delayed.

After thinking about it, Yan contacted Yu Mu. "Leaf King is about to leave seclusion. I'm going to be placed in a difficult position once this matter is resolved, but you're going to be even worse off. This whole thing was triggered by your stupidity."

Yu Mu hung up, his eyes darting about as he started to panic. While Shamrock Enterprise was not afraid of the Great Eastern Alliance, the losses that they had suffered were far too much for Yu Mu to take responsibility for. The Great Eastern Alliance had prepared far too well, and they had completely exceeded his expectations.

With no other choice, Yu Mu finally reached out to Lu Yin.