Chapter 1473 - 668: Stuck? I’m Way Ahead!

The entire "First Empire of the Sun Never Sets" began to stir with the break of dawn.

However, the geographical barriers spanning nearly the entire material world prevented the various nations and major powers from immediately realizing what had happened.

It wasn’t until an oceanic trade fleet from the Silver Continent, after passing the Southern Continent and drifting in the Second Circulation Belt for over a month, finally arrived at the largest port of the Desert Empire, Alexandria Port, on October 13th.

Just by looking at the flags on those large merchant ships, one could tell they came from the economic and military alliance organization consisting of 160 cities in the northern Holy Silver Empire—the Rhein Alliance.

Recently, with the delineation of the Church Meridian, the entire material world had been artificially divided into two major camps: the East Hemisphere and the West Hemisphere.

The East Hemisphere camp belonged to the Protestant Doctrine, led by the North Sea Empire, while the West Hemisphere camp belonged to the Orthodox Church, led by the Pyrenees Empire.

All the countries on the continent knew full well that the Pope intended to use the living forces of the Protestant Doctrine to exhaust the Kin entrenched in the Eastern Continent, in order to win development space for the Orthodox Church.

So even though merchants from the North Sea Empire had already set an example by completing a lucrative triangular trade, those countries and forces not in the Protestant Alliance were still hesitant, wanting to wait and see.

Not only fearing that their investments might go to waste, but also fearing the Tribunal might send them to the stake.

But the Rhein Alliance, located in the northern Holy Silver Empire and bordering the North Sea Empire’s Eternal Night Peninsula, naturally found itself caught in a bind with numerous Protestant Princes gathered within its sphere of influence.

Yet they also possessed vast commercial assets in the Orthodox Alliance-controlled areas, and had no choice but to bow to the Orthodox Church.

Before the situation became clear, they could only hedge their bets and reluctantly sit on the fence.

Bong!

A large merchant ship docked, and a well-dressed young man accompanied by several capable clerks jumped off the ship.

Gazing at the exotic architecture of the Desert Empire, he let out a sigh:

"Unlucky! The family assigned tasks, and I ended up being sent to the Eastern Continent.

Just because my mother died early, and my brother’s mother is young, beautiful, attractive, and more favored by the old man?

Is my life bound to this route and this land from now on?

Sigh!"

Heinrich hailed from the most powerful faction in the Rhein Alliance: the Lvbeck International Trade Company, holding significant influence within the alliance.

Remembering his father, who was unwilling to take risks and saw more promise in the Orthodox Alliance, and himself being completely sidelined from the family’s core power, forced to come to the Eastern Continent to venture and establish a trade post.

He couldn’t help but feel dejected and see a bleak future.

At this time, the chief clerk following behind him had already coordinated with the port staff reserved by Byron, starting to unload cargo for customs inspection.

Hearing Heinrich’s sigh, he stepped forward to console him:

"Sir, think positively.

At least the profits from triangular trade are considerable; our follow-up with the North Sea Empire is rapid enough, and the earliest pioneers often make the most gains, don’t they?"

The young man didn’t feel relieved at all, shaking his head:

"Is it really so simple?

The goods must be shipped back for the company to sell, but the local connections and real estate require us to independently fund and establish from scratch.

But didn’t you notice that each [Lighthouse Matrix] along the line requires Silver Law support? Without legal support, how can we ensure the safety of settlements and colonies?

Our task is to choose the right location for establishing trade posts, and even private trade ports; if we can’t guarantee safety, who dares to heavily invest in the long-term return cycle of large infrastructure?"

"Triangular trade is doing well now because it’s still small in scale; locals can meet the requirements through barter with stockpiled goods from previous years.

But such sporadic transactions won’t last long; developing these valuable lands requires ongoing investment to unveil their potential value.

The Orthodox Church has already tightly controlled the most vulnerable neck of overseas colonies!

The formal hot war between the two sides hasn’t started yet, but covert maneuvers are already underway, marking the current stage as a cold war between the two camps.

How do you know His Holiness the Pope won’t strike now to fatten the pig before slaughtering?

Even if they can’t absorb it all, they can sell the land to the Ancient God’s Chosen Races and the Bizarre, exploiting the North Sea Empire.

You think they can’t do such a thing?

Even though His Majesty Saint Byron is a formidable warrior, it’s [Silver Law] that has ruled the Old Continent for over a thousand years, irreplaceable.

We might have to accompany this land into the grave at any time.

In contrast, the South Continent developed by the Orthodox Alliance is not only relatively safe but also has..."

Bong!

At this moment, a thud sounded from behind as a long wooden crate fell onto the wooden boardwalk.

Heinrich turned around to see the crate had dropped, with nails popped out and the box nearly falling apart, exposing the contents.

It was a beautiful "girl" with fair skin, wearing a white lady’s dress and radiant golden hair.

He couldn’t help but fly into a rage, shoving the sailor who carried the crate aside, and gingerly lifting the "girl" out of the box, carefully checking for any damage.

His face was full of concern: