Chapter 183: Subtle Shifts in the Situation
Clatter!
Ling Yunfeng finally snapped out of it. His hand jerked, accidentally knocking over the teacup and spilling tea all over himself. He hurriedly stood up to clean it off.
The slight trembling in his hands betrayed the unrest deep inside him.
“Don’t be nervous. Sit down, Mr. Ling.”
Roland smiled at him and gestured calmly toward the seat.
Ling Yunfeng took a deep breath, steadied himself, and sat back down across from Roland. True to his professionalism, he quickly brought his emotions under control.
“My apologies for that lapse just now. What we just witnessed was simply… too shocking.”
He spoke with a faintly apologetic expression.
“Perfectly understandable. That’s only natural.”
Roland nodded lightly and waited for Ling Yunfeng to continue.
Ling Yunfeng, meanwhile, carefully weighed his words and remained silent for a moment.
He had originally assumed that PROJECT’s trump card was merely a high-powered electromagnetic railgun. After all, various nations possessed similar weapons—PROJECT’s technology was just more refined—so it was still something he could accept.
What he hadn’t expected was that PROJECT would directly unveil a super–energy weapon that, until now, had existed only as a theoretical concept.
And judging from the power and results it displayed… there was no doubt about it. PROJECT Corporation had already mastered stable energy weapons and energy shield technology.
This was an earth-shaking breakthrough. Any force in the world would covet such technology. Yet the current situation was extremely delicate.
No one knew what other energy weapons PROJECT still had in reserve. If they possessed something even more devastating… no one wanted to be the mantis waiting for the oriole behind it.
Moreover, with the New United States’ mission having failed and PROJECT demonstrating such overwhelming force, it was unlikely that the New United States, the Free State Alliance, or even Arasaka would dare provoke them anytime soon.
“Mr. Vimers, may I ask… just how far along your technology actually is?”
Ling Yunfeng asked cautiously. He didn’t truly expect an answer—this was more to satisfy his own curiosity.
“It’s still in the experimental stage.”
Roland replied with a gentle smile.
Ling Yunfeng’s mouth twitched slightly. As if anyone would believe that.
“The biggest issue at the moment is still energy. If that can’t be solved, the upper limit of its power will remain restricted.”
Roland shook his head, looking somewhat helpless.
Ling Yunfeng nodded in understanding. That part, he believed. As for whether energy was really insufficient… Agas was practically becoming PROJECT’s private backyard. He strongly suspected their energy reserves were more than enough.
“Then this weapon…”
“Not for sale.”
Roland answered immediately, cutting him off.
Ling Yunfeng gave an awkward smile.
“However, we will be selling other energy weapons in the future. We can accept orders.”
Roland added with a smile, and Ling Yunfeng’s eyes lit up at once.
After further negotiations, Ling Yunfeng left PROJECT Corporation thoroughly satisfied.
Kang Tao was pleased—but the other factions were not.
The most displeased of all was the New United States. Myers’ expression was darker than the bottom of a pot. This was the first time in her life she had suffered such a massive setback, and there was nothing she could do about it.
Yes—nothing at all, in every sense of the word.
From a certain perspective, military force was the ultimate solution. But under the current circumstances, unless they were willing to pay any price and launch a nuclear strike, there was no way to eliminate PROJECT.
And even nuclear weapons might be intercepted mid-flight. On top of that, the Free State Alliance would never allow the New United States to do such a thing. No one wanted someone planting mushrooms on their doorstep.
Guardian Angel Corporation was the lone exception—but even they had strict rules. Such actions were only permitted far away from cities.
In the end, the New United States could only swallow the bitterness and endure it. There was no alternative but to temporarily avoid PROJECT’s edge—though a grudge had undoubtedly been formed.
The New United States soon settled on a new plan: temporarily shelve PROJECT’s sphere of influence and continue its own unification war. As for that troublesome former ally of theirs, PROJECT Corporation, they chose to ignore it for now.
While the New United States was unhappy, two members of the Free States were hardly any better off—Northern California and Nevada.
Northern California felt deeply unsettled by the power PROJECT had demonstrated. It was no longer a friendly animal companion, but a ferocious tiger that chose its prey.
As for why Nevada was unhappy…
Take a guess—was PROJECT’s current expansion direction Northern California, or Nevada?
The answer was Nevada. No helping it—while Northern California’s territory was tempting, Nevada was simply the softer target.
And there was no Arasaka influence there. Until the Mammoth was repaired—or rather, until enough Mammoths were built—Roland had no intention of provoking the major powers.
After all, the reason he had so much room to maneuver right now was precisely because they feared him.
As for the Free State Alliance… for the sake of overall stability, they likely wouldn’t intervene in Nevada’s situation.
Besides, Roland had no intention of occupying Nevada like a nation-state. His plan was to move in city by city.
Ideally, each PROJECT template would lead a small team to guard a city—an important one, at least.
Another development that pleased Roland was that satellite launches were now possible. As long as everything on his end was prepared, there would be no issues.
After reviewing the materials, Northern California cheerfully approved the application, claiming that the earlier delay had simply been a mistake and asking him not to take offense.
“If Northern California is being this cooperative, there’s no need to send Zed over again…”
Roland rubbed his chin and canceled the mission he had assigned to Zed. He instructed him to return to Pacifica in Night City and begin preparations there, forming an organization.
As for the organization’s name…
Shadow Stream.
The New United States’ feelings toward PROJECT’s actions were complicated. On one hand, PROJECT’s moves would undoubtedly ease their pressure. On the other, it also meant PROJECT would continue to grow stronger.
Then they realized something.
Nevada had never been part of their original plan to begin with.
And so, Myers came up with a new idea.
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