Foreign Land Reclamation By a Vegetable-growing Skeleton
Chapter 1566 - 1127: So What If You’re Rich

Chapter 1566: Chapter 1127: So What If You’re Rich

Couldn’t even remember a name properly—Tianya, just a first name, not the full surname, yet even such a short two-syllable name the other party either couldn’t recall or simply couldn’t be bothered to remember. And to reduce the academy to being called a mere training class? Utterly insulting.

However, Roger’s words garnered a wave of agreement. Some present Alliance members issued synchronized boos, while others, participating remotely via the Teleportation Array, cast their votes to support Roger’s questioning.

After all, Tianya was merely an unknown dean of an astrology academy, and a freshly chosen one at that, who was once just a student—her name entirely unfamiliar to everyone. The other person, however, was the renowned Roger.

Not long ago, during a meeting of the Association of Sages, Roger had sworn allegiance on behalf of the Astrologers’ Alliance—he was undeniably a major figure representing the Alliance of Astrologers.

Moreover, many inherently despised meetings, particularly ones that required everyone’s participation. Firstly, they were time-consuming; secondly, matters often didn’t concern them. For beneficial decisions like disbursing funds, there’d surely be no meetings. But for agenda-pushing, pipe-dream discussions? Cue mandatory gatherings.

Over time, meetings became a source of disdain. And for someone like Tianya, a newcomer with zero prestige, excitement was even scarcer.

Amidst the chaotic and clamorous scene, Tianya, though visibly nervous, firmly declared: "The Star Astrology Academy will donate two hundred thousand Demon Crystals to the Astrology Alliance."

The room fell abruptly silent, an almost unnatural quiet descending instantaneously.

Simply one sentence silenced the entire hall. This gave Tianya an immediate, exhilarating sense of satisfaction. She continued, loudly proclaiming, "I, Tianya, Dean of the Star Astrology Academy, represent the academy in donating two hundred thousand Demon Crystals to the Alliance and request the initiation of an emergency all-member meeting. Who’s in favor? Who’s against?"

The assembly was stunned. The Teleportation Array-enabled voting system paused briefly. The towering numbers of votes backing Roger’s inquiry began quietly declining. After a short while, scattered murmurs replaced the boos once heard.

"If Dean Tianya is calling for a full-member conference, she probably has something urgent to address, right? In principle, I agree. Let’s listen to what the dean’s new discovery might be."

"Dean Tianya is a young leader, full of energy and vitality. Her involvement could bring fresh vibrancy into our Alliance. In principle, I’m not opposed. It’s been ages since we last had an all-member meeting anyway—why not convene one?"

"Dean Tianya... isn’t she a disciple of Master XXX? A very promising student, it seems. Excellent! Seeing the pupil of an old friend, of course I support this."

These early endorsements seemed to come from respected figures in the Astrology Alliance. Once they spoke up, others swiftly chimed in to follow suit: "Indeed, Dean Tianya is full of vitality."

"Dean Tianya brings a refreshing energy to the table."

"Dean Tianya is truly beautiful."

"Dean Tianya is astonishingly wealthy!"

The last remark resonated with everyone’s sentiments. For Ange, two hundred thousand Demon Crystals was mere pocket change. But for these financially struggling astrologers, it was practically a godsend.

Astrologers, as a profession, felt like guardians of mountains of treasure yet remained impoverished. Practicing astrology burned immense capital; even basic equipment cost tens or hundreds of thousands of Demon Crystals. Building an Astrology Tower? Billions vanished in an instant. Yet astrologers themselves lived in relative poverty.

Without resorting to less-than-legitimate income sources, a regular astrologer’s income was just enough to support a small family of three—nothing beyond that. The job’s perks? Leisure and stability. Star charts changed once in a blue moon—often, astrologers could simply edit yesterday’s records to label them as today’s findings.

And this only applied to astrologers with formal positions. Free agents, like Emery, often had to settle for setting up stands in public markets, offering fortune readings, or gradually building a reputation to secure contracts with prominent clients seeking star-chart adjustments. The pinnacle for freelance astrologers? Achieving the illustrious title of Royal Astrologer, divining the fate of an entire nation.

Yet such individuals were rare exceptions. The vast majority of astrologers were just poor. Those unable to tolerate financial strain often shifted careers to become Star Observers, working with pioneering mercenary groups or adventure squads, though this path carried significant dangers.

Recently, astrology had enjoyed a brief spike in popularity. Astrology academies were overflowing with students, all thanks to a unique astrological anomaly—Light Point Fortress.

At the edge of the Boundless Space Hole, the largest astrological phenomenon in millennia had always been the Hole itself. But approximately three years ago, a Light Point Fortress had appeared deep inside the Hole, hurtling at high speed towards their location. The magnitude of this discovery left everyone stunned.

Astrologers were uniquely equipped to observe the fortress or deploy specialized equipment to study it. The profession experienced a surge in demand; astrologers became hot commodities. Many rushed to enroll in astrology programs.

Then, the Light Point Fortress vanished...

The fervor vanished almost as quickly as it had arisen. Students who had just enrolled and hadn’t even graduated faced bleak job prospects. The influx of people crowding into the profession led to fierce competition that pushed entry-level salaries even lower.

Only states had the finances to construct massive Astrology Towers or afford to employ astrologers en masse; even then, the pay wasn’t generous.

Tianya’s two hundred thousand Demon Crystal donation stood as an astronomical figure. Divide that equally among all astrologers, and they’d still be receiving annual salaries’ worth of crystals each. For the entire Alliance—which boasted nowhere near twenty thousand astrologers? That could translate into ten crystals per person.

Kvada... If someone offered you one to ten years’ salary just to attend a meeting, would you decline? Not only would you agree, anyone opposing it might risk getting beaten up.

The attendees unanimously signaled agreement. Tianya turned her gaze toward the meeting’s moderator, then shifted to the voting board, all without a word.

Cold sweat trickled down the moderator’s brow as he hastily said, "To those attending remotely: Do you support Dean Tianya’s proposal? If so, cast your vote for support. No more quietly withdrawing votes! The agenda has changed—vote in favor now!"

Previously, the votes supported Roger’s inquiry, but Tianya’s stunning pledge had caused many to quietly withdraw their ballots. Now, switching to a vote on her proposal caught the remote participants off guard, leading to a board flooded with abstentions.

More than fifty percent abstentions effectively counted as rejection, meaning the meeting wouldn’t proceed—and the two hundred thousand would disappear. Panicking, the moderator broke protocol by actively urging support votes. In a moment like this, though, no one cared.

Finally realizing the stakes at hand, the remote attendees began furiously casting votes of support. In their haste, any attempts at appearing reserved completely vanished.

Observing this shift, Roger bitterly muttered under his breath, "So what if you have money? Hmph." All the while, he discreetly pressed the support button himself.

The outcome was sealed. The moderator announced the meeting’s initiation, immediately granting speaking privileges to Tianya. As the one who had called for the emergency gathering, she naturally became the meeting’s lead speaker.

Ascending the podium, Tianya politely bowed in all four directions before she began. "I do apologize for imposing on everyone’s work and schedules. Normally, I wouldn’t disturb you all. However, an urgent matter has arisen, one that requires your assistance."

"Thanks to sponsorship from the Omniscient Commerce Guild, our Star Astrology Academy now has access to their newly constructed eight-meter diameter, large-aperture reflective Stargazing Mirror. It’s equipped with a red-blue deviation correction system and an automatic Star-searching Demon Spirit. Using this, we discovered this object."

As she spoke, Tianya activated the Magic Imaging Amplifier, which projected an image onto the screen.

A collective gasp erupted across the venue. The image revealed a massive and remarkably clear Light Point Fortress, where faint glimpses of its buildings and greenery could be discerned.