In the Underworld, under Svarog's guidance, Pei Guang and March 7th arrived at a hidden weapons testing facility.
This place had previously been eroded by the Fragmentum, though the overall damage was not severe. With the Stellaron now removed, most of the corruption had receded.
Standing atop the highest viewing platform, Svarog pointed toward a towering rock wall in the distance and spoke. "This is the place. The mechs are buried within the cliffs."
"Cool~ Looks like we've secured a location for our event. But seriously, why did Belobog just leave all these machines here unused?"
Hearing Pei Guang's question, Svarog responded, "Seven hundred years ago, the company built this weapons factory for Belobog. However, after the company's personnel evacuated the planet, no one remained who knew how to activate these mechs. The current mechs in use are merely imitations built by the city's constructors based on blueprints left behind by the company."
Svarog didn't elaborate further, as this information wasn't crucial to Pei Guang's interests.
Pei Guang nodded in understanding. "So that's how it is. This company sure is irresponsible—leaving behind weapons without explaining how to use them is as good as not leaving anything at all."
March 7th, now fully embodying her inner detective, thoughtfully speculated, "Ah Guang! What if the company is like those evil corporations in some novels—selling weapons to this planet, then running off and demanding extra payment just to unlock their full functionality?"
Svarog responded, "According to records, these mechs were indeed purchased on credit by Alisa Rand from the company. In addition to these mechs, a large portion of Belobog's original construction materials were also bought from the company."
Neither Pei Guang nor March 7th had any prior knowledge of this historical detail, yet their casual guess turned out to be remarkably close to the truth.
Pei Guang clicked his tongue. "Tch, sounds like a classic case of product quality issues. What a scam. Too bad it's been too long—these machines are probably way past their warranty period. Otherwise, we could demand tenfold compensation or something."
March 7th then turned to Pei Guang with an even wilder thought. "Hey, do you think there's a chance that one day, the company might come back to collect on Belobog's debt? What if they decide Belobog can't pay up and force everyone to work off their debt instead?"
Pei Guang: "Hiss! Is this company really that ruthless? I doubt it… but we'll see how Bronya and the company handle it. If they're willing to negotiate, we can help Bronya farm some money. If not, then maybe it's time for me to try out 'Let My Scorched Body Become a Blazing Flame.'"
Owing money? For a player, that's never really a problem!
As long as a game has an economy system, there will always be a way to farm money. Since he's practically stitched into every possible method, Pei Guang figured he could easily come up with a money-farming strategy. From single-player RPGs to mobile games and MMOs, finding ways to farm currency had always been a fundamental skill.
If a game didn't have money-farming exploits, then clearly, the devs didn't "stitch" it together well enough.
March 7th: "Farming money, I get, but that last part…"
For some reason, when March 7th heard "Let My Scorched Body Become a Blazing Flame," she suddenly felt a moment of silence was warranted… for the company.
Pei Guang: "Oh? It's an achievement from a game I played once. The background was a corporate-controlled dystopia, and after going through a whole chain of quests, Johnny Silverhand and I agreed—screw the company, just blow it up. Then we fought through the entire corporate headquarters, wiped out everyone blocking our way, and the mission title was 'Let My Scorched Body Become a Blazing Flame.'"
(TL Note: This translation from chinese sounded better compared to leaving the official english name 'Firestarter')
As Pei Guang explained, March 7th's eyes glowed with realization. She knew that sometimes Pei Guang liked to talk big, but there were other times when he sounded like he was just joking around, yet he was actually stating a real possibility.
She could tell that, in Pei Guang's eyes, paying off a debt and outright destroying the company were two equally viable options.
March 7th: "But… blowing up a corporate headquarters? Even in their main base, that's not possible, right?"
Pei Guang: "Why not? If I can't win in a straight fight, I'll just turn on the cheats. Besides, we're Trailblazers—our job is to pave new roads for the universe! Blowing up the Interastral Peace Corporation's headquarters sounds exactly like the kind of road we should be blazing."
That's right! As Trailblazers, it was their duty to forge paths where none existed before.
If no one had ever dared to bomb a megacorporation's HQ, then Pei Guang doing so would technically be a pioneering achievement!
March 7th sucked in a sharp breath at Pei Guang's logic, and even Svarog's mechanical head seemed like it was about to overheat.
They had started off talking about history and the origins of these weapons—how did the conversation suddenly jump to blowing up a corporate headquarters?
Even March 7th, who knew Pei Guang well, would normally dismiss such a statement as a joke. But when he said it, she had an eerie feeling… that he might actually do it.
After all, this was the same guy who once pulled a planet-destroying starship out of a trash can. Compared to that, single-handedly blowing up a corporation didn't seem all that impossible.
March 7th reacted quickly and tried to steer the conversation away. "Alright, alright~ That's a discussion for later. Ah Guang, didn't you say you wanted to take all this stuff with you? Let's get to work!"
Compared to blowing up a company, looting this factory actually seemed like the more peaceful approach.
Pei Guang: "You're right. With so much stuff here, not taking it would be a waste. But let me check with Bronya first. I may like to 'collect' things, but I only take unowned items. Since this stuff belongs to someone, I should at least ask."