Chapter 39: Action Stations!

[March, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: The Combat Group Administration, seeing that you still haven't filed an application, pays you another visit.]

[Seeming to sense your apprehension, they explain the reason for the recent issuance of combat group qualifications.]

[Six months ago, the frequency of Abyss Tides surged dramatically, increasing the pressure on the frontline combat groups.]

[Consequently, under orders from the Federal General Office, they have begun issuing additional combat group qualifications across the entire Federation.]

[You remain highly vigilant regarding this matter.]

[Thus, you begin negotiating with the Combat Group Administration, testing whether they can offer some preferential policies.]

[The Combat Group Administration is stunned by your words.]

[From the very moment the concept of "combat groups" was created, everyone seeking such status has had to pull strings and offer bribes to the authorities.]

[Your behavior now is completely upside down, defying all norms!]

[However, for reasons unknown, the other party agrees to your terms, promising that once the Red Heart Combat Group completes its application, the Federal General Office—acting through the Military—will provide the Red Heart Combat Group with a subsidy worth five billion.]

[Though the sum is not massive, you can sense the urgency driving the Combat Group Administration.]

[May, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: After using the combat group's name to fleece investors one last time, you follow the Principal's advice and submit the formal application. In the Principal's words, the Administration is growing impatient. If the Red Heart Combat Group continues to be uncooperative, those who show up next time will not be such polite officials. The Military has strict mandatory quotas for the deployment of combat teams and groups. It is best not to let things escalate to that point, as it would be difficult to resolve.]

[June, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: The Red Heart Combat Group successfully passes the audit and becomes a Federation-recognized Tier C combat group.]

[July, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: The Administration issues an order requiring the Red Heart Combat Group to arrive in Ning City within three months to take up defensive positions. Observing this hurried maneuver, you realize the situation is becoming quite serious.]

[Therefore, you summon all members of the Red Heart Combat Group that night, deciding to embark on your long-planned path of capital accumulation.]

[You fully leverage the value of the Red Heart Combat Group and the creditworthiness of all its personnel.]

[Following this, you take the gathered funds to mass-purchase equipment and skill cards for your members, then use that equipment as collateral for further loans.]

[In short, you use every possible means to consolidate every bit of capital.]

[Now!]

[You are the combat group with the greatest influence in this world!]

[You have desperately developed the Red Heart team, pouring all the profits from your stock and futures trading into the expansion of the Red Heart Society—was this not exactly what you were aiming for?]

[With this violent organization in your hands, you dare to take any loan.]

[As long as they are willing to lend, you are willing to take!]

[Let them come to the front lines to collect their debts if they have the nerve!]

[You still remember being besieged by a debt-collection squad in your previous simulation.]

[If these collectors dare to come, you guarantee they will never return.]

[Of course, you doubt any debt-collection team is foolish enough to try and collect from a combat group; that would be suicide.]

[This is the difference between using money to build an army versus using it for personal consumption. In the latter case, one has to run from violent debt collectors, only to be hunted down and have their organs and souls harvested. But in the former case, when a collection squad arrives, they are merely delivering supplies and equipment.]

[If anyone dares to have an opinion, you simply have your members wear their combat group uniforms and "suicide" the collectors while they are forced to smile.]

[August, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: Leveraging its exceptional revenue-generating capabilities and pristine credit rating, the Red Heart Combat Group secures a massive loan from two of the Federation's major lending institutions: Grace Loans and Soul Loans.]

[For individual professionals, such loans come with many restrictions, such as prohibitions on purchasing Divine Gift Crystals, trading stocks, or acquiring strategic equipment. But for a violent organization like a combat group, once the money is in hand, you can do whatever you want!]

[To put it bluntly, even if you distributed the money for the brothers to go out and enjoy themselves, it wouldn't matter.]

[As the Group Leader, your authority over the funds supersedes that of the lending institutions.]

[However, you do not squander the money. Instead, you use the massive capital to provide all three thousand members of the Red Heart Combat Group with new equipment.]

[Those with Rare-tier sets are upgraded to Elite sets!]

[For those who already had Elite sets, you give them a choice: either sell their old gear and switch to Elite sets with better attributes and perfect affixes, or use the group's assistance to purchase Rare-tier accessories to wear.]

[The members know the money is borrowed, but their thinking has undergone a seismic shift under your tutelage.]

[Why should they pay back money they borrowed by their own skill?]

[They are about to head to the front lines to fight monsters from the Abyss; surely they are entitled to decent equipment?]

[Coupled with the ideas of freedom and rebellion you have instilled, they wonder why children of noble families are born with endless transcendental resources, while they must crawl in the dirt and exhaust their lives just to scrape together a pittance of fuel to climb higher.]

[How do the noble families harvest the lower classes?]

[Who exactly stands behind these lending institutions?]

[Exploitation!]

[Exploitation!!]

[It is nothing but exploitation!!!]

[If not for their current lack of power, they would gladly follow you in a grand, earth-shaking endeavor.]

[Most importantly, if they were borrowing and failing to repay on their own, the pressure and threats from these institutions—combined with the panic induced by the Intelligence Network's reports on personal credit—would likely terrify them into accepting the usurious interest, turning them into gold-farming hyenas kept by financial dynasties.]

[But when the entire combat group treats loans as their personal ATMs, and even the leader they revere and worship does the same, what do they have to fear?]

[With conviction in their hearts, they are completely unafraid!]

[Especially under your command, the overall strength of the Red Heart Combat Group has increased by more than thirty percent.]

[September, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: You begin leading your people through the black markets of various cities, focusing on illegal lending operations like Black-Heart Loans and Yama Loans.]

[Leave none behind; take them all!]

[Perhaps for a single institution, these amounts aren't significant. But when the black markets of a dozen cities are combined, it represents a massive fortune.]

[October, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: You reach Level 22.]

[At the same time, using this massive capital, you go through the Combat Group Administration's channels to acquire a Level 20 Epic set: Wrath of Thunder.]

[Although this Epic set is ranked at the very lowest tier in the attribute window, the "Epic" classification alone means it is far superior to any Elite gear!]

[After equipping it, you feel a surge of power from within and wear a wide smile.]

[November, 130th Year of the Transcendental Era: A Black-Heart Loan operation in Jiang City, after conducting an investigation, discovers that all of their capital has flowed into the Red Heart Combat Group.]

[They realize this was a premeditated scam and capital-accumulation scheme; they have been played!]

[Consequently, after gathering evidence, the Jiang City Black-Heart Loan operation chooses to report the matter to the Jiang City Federal Enforcement Team, while strictly demanding that they investigate the Red Heart Combat Group.]

[Upon receiving this message, the Enforcement Team falls into a long, uncharacteristic silence.]

[Huh?]

[They want them to investigate a combat group?]

[What on earth are these people thinking?]