I Don't Agree to the Terms

Several years ago, that piece of news was purely plagiarized for the purpose of scamming funds, but they surely didn't manage to scam any.

At that time, the dissolution of the team was due to this very matter, it just didn't make the news; instead, it was all handled discreetly.

Of course, this handling didn't mean finishing off all the members of the team. Instead, following the dissolution, they were reassigned to various teams to continue making a difference.

A virtual reality technology with only ten percent completion could still be used, allowing a person to enter a space measuring only a hundred square meters and project their consciousness into it to perform some simple tasks. However, the signal was not very good, causing lag, and any tricky operation might result in bugs and other issues.

"Digital life, on the other hand, needs virtual reality technology as a foundation. Take it slow with that."

At this moment, Gu Shanhai arrived at the entrance of his estate, which was also the residence arranged for him by the Royal Family. In addition to this, he also had an apartment that was rented out and managed, yielding a handsome rental income each month.

The villa was fully equipped, from nannies to security guards, and even a dedicated butler to manage everything. Gu Shanhai simply had to enjoy life; the Royal Family took care of the rest, whether it was paying salaries or overseeing the staff. However, corresponding deductions were made from the monthly dividends to cover various expenses.

There was no need to worry about being swindled either, as the financial transactions of each Prince were overseen and audited by professional teams. These teams conducted cross-audits and mutual supervision to ensure maximum security.

"Prince Surth, welcome home." The meticulous butler, along with the nannies, security guards, gardeners, and others, was already at the entrance of the estate waiting to greet Gu Shanhai.

"Relax, what era are we living in? No need for all this formality." Gu Shanhai got out of his luxury car and, seeing the butler who looked to be in his fifties a bit tense, offered a comforting word.

The butler had an extensive background and was an employee hired by the Royal Family, not some sort of family servant. The nannies and security guards were the same; they were essentially just working for a wage.

But with their high salaries and various trainings, they were also professionals, and naturally, their abilities far surpassed those of their counterparts in the market.

"Of course, Prince, this way please. Let me introduce you to Rose Manor." The butler relaxed quite a bit upon sensing Gu Shanhai's attitude, thinking that he seemed to be one of the more amiable types.

"There's no need for introductions. I can have a look around when I have the time."

"I need your help with a small matter," Gu Shanhai turned down the offer to tour the estate. To him, it served no purpose; with a sweep of his Spiritual Sense, a three-dimensional structural map of the entire estate was stored in the Four Sacred Beasts System.

"Please tell me." The butler was somewhat helpless inside. This couldn't be someone who was just up for a bit of fun, or else he wouldn't start with these sorts of requests.

"I need you to help me set up a company. Let me think about the scope of its business..." Gu Shanhai pondered for a moment before detailing the intended business scope.

To the butler, this all sounded rather strange. What exactly was he trying to pull off...

"Also, I'll need some books; you can help me purchase them. I'll give you a list later." Gu Shanhai knew he certainly couldn't just dive in and had to prepare accordingly.

Otherwise, how could a long-sequestered, unfavored Prince suddenly exhibit such exquisite computer skills?

"No problem, I'll arrange for someone to make the purchases right away." The butler was actually somewhat speechless. He felt that Gu Shanhai was just looking for a temporary thrill. After all, if you wanted to set up some virtual game, why would you start learning about it now? Spur-of-the-moment studying wasn't even like this.

However, while he thought thus, he definitely couldn't say it out loud. After serving as a butler for so many years, if he already didn't have high EQ, he wouldn't have been able to reach this position.

"You have the authority to access the funds, don't you?" Gu Shanhai inquired.

In fact, he had brought along the documents for various assets, and a sum of one billion was stored in the bank.

"You'll need to sign and seal the documents to be able to use them." The butler indeed could help Gu Shanhai with the funds, but it would require Gu Shanhai's signature and the Prince's seal.

These assets and funds were ultimately managed by the Navia Empire, so the process was quite different from the usual procedures.

After all, each Prince represented a stake in Ghost Energy interests. It wouldn't make sense for anyone to deliberately give you a hard time. If someone tried to cause you trouble, you could, with a flip of your hand and using your connections, suppress them or even more bluntly, file a complaint. Even if you were in the right, you could end up as the sacrificial lamb used to pacify a Prince, resulting in reassignment or dismissal. Once the dust settled, they would find another way to compensate you.

Thankfully, the Navia Empire wasn't a feudal society but a modernized one, so there were no such things as murder out of anger.

Even if a Prince wanted to do so, he would be warned and stopped by the Royal Family because such actions, if truly exposed, would invariably become the center of public opinion.

All Princes couldn't afford to turn such trifles into whole new controversies over their Ghost Energy.

As for the notion that the death of a commoner wouldn't attract attention, that was indeed true, but why risk exposure when it was better to nip the risk in the bud from the beginning?

The Royal Family had always been limiting the Princes with Transcendent abilities, to stabilize the vigorous development of the entire empire.

Gu Shanhai guessed that there must be Princes who had transgressed this rule, and not all Princes could be so obedient.

But such Princes would definitely have been sanctioned and forced to fall in line.

And the only one who could sanction a Prince was undoubtedly Emperor Navia himself.

Moreover, such sanctions had to be of the sort that would deter the Princes from daring to repeat their offenses.

"Fine, then arrange it as soon as possible." Gu Shanhai didn't demand too much; after all, they were ordinary people, and being able to do this much was already commendable.

He then entered the Manor and, after sending everyone away, Gu Shanhai continued to research the two Ghost Energy Seeds.

'Indeed, a fallback was left.'

After he left, the Ghost Energy Seeds became inert, and the efficiency of their growth dropped by nearly fifty percent.

In contrast, Gu Shanhai had a better understanding of the Ghost Energy Seeds and quickly identified the issues with these two seeds.

They were inherently of a lower grade, and the fact that they could be split was the handiwork of Emperor Navia.

If one relied solely on single Ghost Energy for enhancement, no matter how powerful it was, one would be controlled by the source.

The end result is turning oneself into a fruit.

Fortunately, Gu Shanhai had both types of Ghost Energy Seeds on hand; all he needed to do was fuse them to reverse them into primal Ghost Energy.

Moreover, he was grateful he hadn't enlarged them to the sprouting stage; once they sprouted, it meant that the Ghost Energy couldn't be reversed, changing its nature completely. Perhaps Gu Shanhai could refine it further into a new form, but the development was still constrained in the end.

It was like grafting, where the root couldn't be changed.

'So, this Emperor Navia must be rather bored with life, constantly engaging in such bizarre operations...'

Gu Shanhai thought critically to himself, for sure boredom drove this rather than any real need to amuse oneself with such tasks.

Then again, if Gu Shanhai became Emperor Navia and was trapped in this world with nowhere further to progress, he too might seek amusement out of boredom.

And perhaps even more maliciously, he might directly masquerade as a rebel to topple his own rule.

The idea of ruling with vigor and intent wouldn't exist; he could play the wise sovereign for a year or two but not for a thousand—eight hundred years. Once everything had been tried and no interest remained, perhaps he'd be tempted to watch rivers run red with blood.

Emperor Navia hadn't gone to such extremes yet; he probably hadn't reached that stage.

Three to five thousand years from now—who knows? Maybe he would dare anything. If he lived another eighty to ninety thousand years, he might grow so tired of living that he would seek out a way to commit suicide, for boredom might slow down even his thoughts.