Chapter 266: with translation of chapter title

"This is a gift for you." Xiao Qidi said, taking out one of them and stuffing it into the collar of the Wasteland Nation's king, then he flung the rest all at once at the feet of the nobles and royalty.

The Wasteland Nation's king felt that this strange little object, about one and a half times smaller than a fist, was icy and hard, and it felt extremely uncomfortable on his belly.

But his hands were tied to the throne, so he couldn't pull it out himself.

Others also had their attention drawn to the peculiar little object that had rolled to their feet.

This object, with its neat, exquisite shape and uniformly dark-gray metallic texture, was truly unprecedented.

While the crowd stared at these things in bewilderment, Ning Jinli had already slipped out through the roof gap she had entered by, along the beam.

Xiao Qidi grabbed the rope she had lowered, used it to propel himself upward, and also left the hall in the blink of an eye.

The two then moved to the roof of a nearby palace.

Thanks to a series of steady operations beforehand, the imperial guards never spotted the two from start to finish, nor did they notice anything abnormal happening inside the hall.

Only after the two left did the Wasteland Nation's king and the palace nobles shout at the top of their lungs for the guards, while palace maids and eunuchs yelled and tried to open several doors of the hall.

Soon, both sides inside and outside discovered that all the doors of the hall were difficult to push open.

The commander of the imperial guards hurriedly mustered as many guards as possible, tightly surrounding the hall in layer after layer, then launched violent assaults from all sides.

The four sturdy gates were forcibly split by the guards' weapons, after which they surged into the hall.

The originally very spacious hall instantly became packed to the point of being airtight.

Inside, people panicked and tried to flee outward; outside, the guards were anxious to protect the king, the scene grew ever more chaotic and out of control, and even some palace maids and eunuchs were trampled to death by the guards.

On a distant rooftop, Xiao Qidi coldly muttered, "It's possible that without even triggering the bombs, the Wasteland Nation's king and those nobles could be crushed to death."

Idle chatter aside, he would not miss the chance to ensure that lot was wiped out.

Seeing the moment ripe, Xiao Qidi pressed the detonator.

Boom—

Dozens of high-explosive lethal bombs inside the hall detonated simultaneously!

Xiao Qidi and Ning Jinli quickly lowered their heads, circulating internal strength to shield their bodies.

Although they were several hundred meters away, a few seconds later a strong shockwave still swept over, shattering and lifting the tiles on the roof where they stood.

After the shockwave passed, the two lifted their heads.

All that could be seen was that the grand hall, which normally could hold over a thousand people without feeling crowded, had vanished.

In its place was a wide and deep pit, its interior and surroundings completely scorched, with ruined walls and blazing flames shooting into the sky, illuminating a mushroom-shaped cloud of smoke that had not yet dispersed.

Ning Jinli clicked her tongue and said, "Tsk… the new miniature bombs Yingjie gave me, when detonated together, have far more power than I expected; the people packed inside the hall are probably all blown to bits."

Roughly speaking, the hall that normally could hold up to a thousand people likely had at least three thousand forced inside when the guards rushed in frantically to break down the doors.

This further compressed the hall's internal space.

Moreover, the hall's exterior was heavily surrounded by layers of guards.

All these factors combined actually amplified the blast's power, resulting in a destructive effect far beyond what Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi had anticipated.

Not only were the Wasteland Nation's king and the nobles wiped out, but also about half of the ten thousand guards stationed around the hall were killed or wounded, and the remainder could not form an effective fighting force in the short term.

The violent explosion's roar nearly spread throughout the entire royal city; even soldiers stationed in the Daxuan camp dozens of miles away could feel the ground tremble and hear the dull thud.

Soon, flames spread outward from the blast point in all directions, lighting up the night sky above the palace.

Many guards who had been knocked unconscious by the blast were consumed by the fire; when they woke in pain they screamed, scrambled up, and fled in all directions, continually trampling each other and even helping the fire spread.

Such a scene was like a hell on earth.

Previously, the guards drawn away to the rear palace by Ning Jinli's two small-scale explosions were now rushing toward the hall, but faced with this situation they were powerless.

Ning Jinli and Xiao Qidi were not idle.

The two moved to an open area, where Ning Jinli opened a Time-Space Gate, linking the Spacetime Portal to another Time-Space Gate in the Daxuan camp, continuously sending batches of the fully prepared Xuanjia Armor Armor Armor Armor Army from the camp over.

In a short time, nearly a thousand Xuanjia Armor Armor Armor Armor Soldiers had gathered.

"Jinli, go back to the camp to rest first; I will lead the troops to take full control of the royal city, wait for my good news!" Xiao Qidi said, then led the Xuanjia Armor Armor Armor Armor Army into action.

The Wasteland Nation's royal clan was annihilated, the palace's twenty thousand guards suffered heavy losses, morale was severely damaged, while tens of thousands of the city's garrison troops were still drunk and asleep, and the commanders of the garrison stationed at various posts had already been taken out by the forty Xuanjia Armor Armor Armor Armor Soldiers led by Mu Cheng.

The situation later that night had already become settled.

Ning Jinli naturally had nothing to worry about, so she stepped into the Time-Space Gate and instantly returned to the Daxuan military camp.

One night passed.

At dawn, the gates of the Wasteland Nation's royal city opened.

About twenty thousand Daxuan troops entered the city in good order; one part, under Xiao Qidi's leadership, continued to eradicate the remaining Wasteland Nation guards and garrison, while another part, led by Mu Cheng, pacified the city's populace.

Additionally, several batches of Daxuan troops kept watch around the city's outskirts to prevent any lucky escapees from slipping out.

Ning Jinli slept until afternoon; when she woke, Xiao Qidi had already fully taken control of the Wasteland Nation's royal city, with many townspeople even helping the Daxuan army clear corpses.

Thus, the Wasteland Nation was completely destroyed.

Under Xiao Qidi's command and with the efficient coordination of the Daxuan army, this royal city will soon return to normal and will eventually be completely renewed.

Three days later, Mu Cheng mobilized part of the Daxuan troops to march on An Country, coordinating with the strike force led by Qi Zhan, and formally launched the full-scale offensive against An Country……

……

Time quickly arrived at the day before New Year's Day.

Black Water Bay had already been built into a Moth Wing Grass supply base, composed mainly of the original Black Water Stronghold members, and under the management of Hei Da and Hei Er siblings, it had formed an efficient and stable system for gathering, cleaning, packaging, etc.

The amount of Moth Wing Grass supplied was already sufficient to meet production needs.

All Ning Jinli needed to do was transmit the packaged Moth Wing Grass to her pharmaceutical warehouse, after which automated mass production of the Bis sustained-release agent could begin, with nationwide distribution expected on New Year's Day.

Behind this, state resources were cooperating, enabling a seamless transition to replace imported stockpiles before they were exhausted.

Regarding this situation, Shanbota Guo was completely unaware.

But as the date demanded by Shanbota for a price increase approached, Huaxia Guo had yet to give a response, and some senior officials of Shanbota Guo could not sit still.

Although they believed they firmly controlled the main raw material of the Bis sustained-release agent and thought no other country could produce a substitute, the calmness of Huaxia Guo, the largest importer of the Bis sustained-release agent, really made them feel uneasy.

When there were only twenty hours left until Huaxia's New Year's Day, they could no longer hold back and called the person in charge of handling the import of Bisi sustained‑release agents for Huaxia.

The moment the call connected.

The person in charge of Shanbota, speaking fluent Mandarin, said arrogantly, "Mr. Yan, my dear partner, haven't you decided to accept our revised pricing? Isn't your efficiency too low?"

At that moment, the domestic officials were in Ning Jingli's pharmaceutical factory office, double‑checking with Ning Jingli every link of the upcoming nationwide distribution to ensure that people in the country who need the drug won't be unable to purchase it.

The domestic official was in a great mood, but when the Shanbota manager's call came through, the familiar and unpleasant tone made them feel nauseated, so they simply hung up and continued the verification with Ning Jingli.

On the Shanbota side, the manager heard the call‑ended tone in the handset and was left staring in disbelief.

A few nearby staff saw this and hurriedly asked what was wrong.

He made a ghost‑seeing face and exclaimed incredulously, "They actually hung up on me! Have they gone mad?!"

It should be noted that every previous call, no matter when he dialed, was answered within seconds, 24 hours a day, and the other side was very courteous.

This was the first time such a situation occurred.

He even wondered whether the international line had a signal problem.

The people beside him also thought it must have been an accidental disconnection, since Huaxia needs to ensure that millions can use the Bisi sustained‑release agent each year.

So they suggested he try calling again.

He slapped the phone onto the desk, lit a cigar, exhaled a smoke ring, and said leisurely, "No need for me to call; within ten seconds they'll call back and apologize. Watch, 10, 9, 8…"

In the luxurious conference hall, his countdown echoed, and the other Shanbota staff stared at his phone.

But by the time he finished counting to ten, his phone remained silent.

The atmosphere grew awkward.

He was a bit stuck on the spot.

Just as everyone stared wide‑eyed at each other, the phone suddenly vibrated.

A smile spread across his face; without even looking, he answered quickly and sneered, "Mr. Yan, you should be grateful I'm a patient person, otherwise I wouldn't have answered your call."

The next second, an irritable voice came from the phone: "Pi Er Tuo! Today is already the last day! Why hasn't the new Huaxia Bisi sustained‑release agent procurement contract appeared on my desk? The M Guo commissioner is urging me! You need to give me an answer!"

The man called Pi Er Tuo was momentarily stunned, switched to his native language, and instantly adopted a respectful tone: "Honorable Senator, I… I am currently communicating with Huaxia's Mr. Yan; a result will come soon. Please rest assured, Senator and M Guo commissioner."

"I'll give you five more hours; if the new contract isn't signed within five hours, you and your team will no longer be responsible for Bisi sustained‑release agent export business!"

The senator on the other end finished angrily and slammed the phone down.

Pi Er Tuo's face turned extremely grim as he relayed the situation to a few subordinates nearby.

There was no other way; he could only call Mr. Yan again.

This time, the other side declined the call.

Pi Er Tuo could barely believe he was dreaming, checked in disbelief whether he had dialed the wrong number, and then called Mr. Yan again.

Again, the call was rejected.

Pi Er Tuo erupted in fury, smashed the phone to pieces on the spot, and ranted profanely.

But he quickly calmed down.

Time was pressing and the situation so abnormal that he had to swallow his pride, order a private jet, and head to Huaxia himself to see Mr. Yan.

Five hours later, Pi Er Tuo arrived in Huaxia with his secretary.

Just as he was about to try contacting Mr. Yan, the senator's video call came through.

He could only bite the bullet and answer.

On the screen appeared a grotesque, man‑eating old face.

"Pi Er Tuo! Where's the new contract? Where are you?"

The irritable voice made Pi Er Tuo break into a cold sweat.

He forced a calm tone: "Senator, there's a minor issue on the Huaxia side; you know their efficiency is poor and they're not as professional as us, so I'm meeting them in person now to ensure I can bring the contract back to Shanbota and present it to you and the M Guo commissioner."

The senator leaned close to the camera, his gray‑green eyes seeming to stare through the screen to kill Pi Er Tuo, and whispered, "In the second half of this year, our Shanbota's core raw material for Bisi sustained‑release agents had a bumper harvest. I already ordered the pharmaceutical plant to triple its output and allocated tens of billions of funds to expand the plant, add staff and equipment."

Pi Er Tuo asked in surprise, "Senator, Huaxia's annual demand hasn't changed much; what's the point of having the plant increase production? Won't it waste our money?"

The senator showed a cunning expression and said, "The Bisi sustained‑release agents produced from the second half of this year have only one‑third of the original efficacy."

"Ah, I see!" Pi Er Tuo realized, "Then patients will have to buy three times the dosage to achieve the original effect. We also raised the price per box from 500 to 1,500, meaning that after the new contract is signed, our export profit on Bisi sustained‑release agents will increase by nine hundred percent!"

After saying that, Pi Er Tuo trembled with excitement.

Originally, the production cost in Shanbota was only about eight yuan per box.

The selling price to Huaxia was as high as 500 per box, already a massive profit margin.

With the senator's maneuver, Huaxia is forced to increase its import of Bisi sustained‑release agents and pay a higher price, essentially moving money out of Huaxia's treasury.

"Senator, you are truly formidable!" Pi Er Tuo praised sincerely.

The senator's expression finally softened considerably; in a milder tone he earnestly reminded, "Tens of billions of funds have already been invested, and the new Bisi sustained‑release agents have been produced in sufficient quantity to supply Huaxia for three years; they're stored in the warehouse, so bring the contract back as soon as possible."

"Understood, Senator!" Pi Er Tuo replied excitedly.

After the video call ended.

Sitting in the office, the senator poured two glasses of champagne, holding one himself and handing the other to the suited M Guo commissioner opposite him, and said with a beaming smile, "Everything is proceeding according to M Guo's plan, Commissioner. Congratulations, our revenue can reach an unprecedented height again."

The M Guo commissioner took the champagne and mused, "In the past, whenever we raised the price, the relevant Huaxia officials would proactively sign a new contract with you a month before the required date. It has never been like this time, where, with less than …"