This is really not mechanical ascension
Chapter 433 - 230: Dividing the Spoils on the Spot, The Mighty Duke Bloodthorn_2

Chapter 433: Chapter 230: Dividing the Spoils on the Spot, The Mighty Duke Bloodthorn_2

"Now is the time to figure things out, will there still be a chance after we get to the Torch Organization?"

He also felt some regret. Cassis left too early, and now there were no trustworthy people around who could ensure the safety of the cargo.

Couldn’t just let Theo’s men take the stuff away.

"Ten billion, sell the materials to me," Theo spoke up timely, which caused Ulrich to darken in the face, while Sandro lost his patience, waving his hands repeatedly, "Not selling, not selling, can’t even ensure the safety of this box of materials now, can I."

The spoils were divided evenly, with the four metal boxes each holding an equal share of the materials, distributed evenly into four portions at the strong insistence of Li Ming.

"Just coming and going it’s over ten billion," Sandro calculated, a clear joy on his face.

When he robbed, it also sounded like billions and billions of Star Coins, and sometimes he would even stumble upon a particularly lucrative deal.

Like that time with Atom, nearly ten billion Star Coins worth of materials, which was the largest batch from the Sela Civilization in recent years, yet it ended up intercepted by them.

But just because it’s valuable, that doesn’t mean the profits will be as much. Whether selling to the Black Hole Network or at black market rates, the price would at least be cut in half.

Moreover, those profits also had to be shared with the crew, so what eventually ended up in his own hands wasn’t actually that much.

And now with this effortlessly done job, he raked in profits he wouldn’t see in a year or even several years.

"Actually, our cooperation isn’t too bad," Sandro was quite excited.

"If we can unite, others can unite too," Ulrich shook his head, "Doing this once is fine, but do it too much and it will arouse public anger."

"Alright, the division is over, remember to notify me when it’s time to leave," Li Ming said, picking up his share of metal materials, ready to find a place to absorb them.

"Wait..." Ulrich stopped him, his expression solemn, "You still haven’t explained the matter about the son of Duke Bloodthorn."

"The son of Duke Bloodthorn?" both Theo and Sandro were startled, looking over in confusion.

Theo arrived late and didn’t hear about the earlier matters, while Sandro knew nothing at all.

Ulrich snorted coldly, took out the smart terminal, pinched out a virtual screen, and replayed the scene of the Steel Fortress’s explosion.

"This is your den? It blew up?" Sandro was astonished.

Theo’s expression flickered.

"Correct, at that time Asimara and Prince Bai Jiang should have both been there, and among them was another person, the second son of Duke Bloodthorn from the Star Abyss Empire," Ulrich said gravely.

"The son of Duke Bloodthorn?" Sandro gasped, recognizing the significance of the name.

The color drained from Theo’s face.

"Are you sure?" Sandro pressed on.

Ulrich tossed out the information that seemed to have leaked from within the Star Abyss Empire.

"Presumed dead or missing?" Sandro seemed even more astonished, then looked at Ulrich with admiration in his eyes, "I never saw it before, but you’re actually quite bold."

Ulrich’s expression turned ugly, he said gravely, "It has nothing to do with me, ask him."

"Azure Dragon?" Sandro was perplexed, "Isn’t this your den? What does this have to do with the Azure Dragon?"

Ulrich’s originally red skin appeared to turn black as a pot bottom, he took a deep breath, "Blowing up the den, that suggestion, it was his idea."

Li Ming looked innocent, "I merely asked if you had the means, you even seemed to approve of it at the time."

"How would I know the son of Duke Bloodthorn was inside!" Ulrich rarely got angry, and even panic-mixed.

"This Duke Bloodthorn, is he that formidable?" Li Ming pondered, stroking his chin. He had searched online for this name when he first heard it from Feder, and all he found were positive reports.

He knew only that he was a Duke of the Star Abyss Empire, along with a string of titles and honors.

"You don’t know?" Sandro was surprised and couldn’t help asking, "Where exactly are you from?"

Li Ming shrugged, "Does it matter?"

Sandro didn’t care and said, "Duke Bloodthorn, he is one of the more powerful Dukes within the Empire Family structure, in command of territories that span across more than five Star Clusters."

"More than five Star Clusters?" Li Ming was surprised. It would take at least over a hundred Star Systems grouped together to form what could be called a Star Cluster.

Sandro nodded, "Exactly, more formidable than an Advanced Civilization."

Ulrich kneaded his brow, "Duke Bloodthorn and Duke Guya have been at odds for years, with several proxy conflicts erupting outside the Star Abyss Empire."

"Duke Guya?" Li Ming pondered, "The one who was assassinated a while ago?"

"Correct." Theo nodded, adding, "The Silver Star Cluster and several nearby star clusters have always been under the influence of Duke Guya."

"As far as I know, the recent disturbances within the Judger Civilization are related to Duke Guya."

"Ts..." Li Ming thought of Kay.

"You really should explain what’s going on." Theo stared at him, the sudden appearance of Duke Bloodthorn’s son in the Land of Stars made him uneasy.

The trouble this guy brought seemed to be getting bigger and bigger.

"Don’t worry, that guy should not be dead, he’s got an A-grade space ability Superpower User with him." Li Ming said.

"So you knew about his existence all along." Ulrich looked even more displeased.

"Space ability Superpower User?" Theo’s expression grew serious as he scrutinized Li Ming.

"It was also an accident." Li Ming said somewhat helplessly, "I’ve come into contact with them in the Land of Stars. Originally, I didn’t know their identities, but space ability users are indeed troublesome, I could only barely force them to leave."

The expressions on the three men’s faces subtly shifted; space ability Superpower Users were more than just troublesome, they almost had an overwhelming advantage against those of the same evolutionary level.

Yet Li Ming had driven them away like the Azure Dragon? For real?

"Since he’s with Duke Bloodthorn’s son, their survival would be the priority." Theo suddenly spoke up, and Ulrich’s expression lightened a bit.

"However, if that guy is alright, the reason why the Star Abyss Empire, or rather Duke Bloodthorn, spread this news becomes interesting."

"What do you mean?" Ulrich did not understand.

"Such information could not have been leaked without reason." Theo mused, "If Duke Bloodthorn’s son died here and with Duke Guya’s life or death unknown, then his meddling in this region would be unchallenged by others."

Ulrich’s face darkened, if Duke Bloodthorn really used this as a pretext to meddle in the affairs of Ascender Relics.

Then he would be the first scapegoat.

"Forget it, once the fleet is fully integrated, I’ll have my men take them away, and we should leave as quickly as possible." Theo only felt the situation growing more thorny, with a confusing sight that was unclear.

Li Ming had no objections, ignoring Ulrich’s scowling face, he took the metal materials and found a secluded place to start absorbing.

After three hours of toil, based on past experience, he extracted about 80%, maintaining the surface integrity of most of the metal materials.

He extracted over two and a half million units of metal energy in total, which would equate to over three million units of metal energy when extrapolated.

Then, he opened up the control page, switched to the [Soul Mask], and found the [Locator], took a round outside, and after locking onto Sandro’s location, promptly sent a message.

After waiting for a moment, Sandro came to Li Ming’s room, knocking on the door repeatedly.

"Where are they? Sends me a message to find him, but then he’s gone." Sandro grumbled to himself.

Meanwhile, in Sandro’s room, Li Ming dumped out all the metal materials, then poured his own share in.

When he returned, he bumped into Sandro right at the entrance.

"What did you call me here for? So secretive, and those two can’t know." Sandro looked around and leaned in to ask.

"It’s nothing now." Li Ming smiled.

"Is it a problem with the price of the metal materials?" Sandro asked slyly, "How about we still go with 1.2 billion, what do you say?"

Li Ming ignored him and walked past, leaving Sandro feeling puzzled.

After sending Sandro away, he took out the box from his [Personal Space] and began to slowly absorb.

Hours later, following the same process, he called over Ulrich, who was in a foul mood, repeatedly asking in the background what was going on, but Li Ming didn’t respond at all.

"Fuck!" Ulrich gritted his teeth, not wanting to deal with it but unable to sit still because of his suspicions, growing more agitated with the thought of Duke Bloodthorn’s actions.

What if there really was something wrong?