A few days after the misunderstanding was cleared up, the two of them, mainly Xing Chen, chatted with the Cattus and Zalak residents of the town about the specific details of establishing a company.
Xing Chen indeed lacked management experience, but his studies required him to frequently interact with mining companies, often large ones, and he had many intersections. He only needed to adopt some of their advanced practices, make it a bit more people-oriented than traditional local mining companies, and earn a little more, which would be enough to establish themselves.
As for non-technical and management aspects, he could only rely on the methods of the local people; he genuinely couldn't help with that.
"Charlotte, I'd like to talk to you about something privately, if that's alright?" After the last meeting concluded, Xing Chen, pulling Theresa along, stopped Charlotte, who was preparing to leave.
"No problem, please go ahead, but there are many procedures for opening a mining company, so I need to go deal with them quickly." Charlotte nodded, smiling as she spoke to the two.
"We're truly grateful." Theresa shook Charlotte's hand, and then the three returned to the tin house together.
Actually, the so-called goal of helping the Sarkaz of Kazdel make a living was only Xing Chen's secondary objective. What he truly cared about were the Pre-civilization facilities buried deep beneath Leimbieta.
His emotional connection to Terra's civilization wasn't as strong as one might imagine, but his country meant far more to him than a group of people he could only see in dreams.
Whether it was research facilities or weaponry, even if they were too advanced to replicate, they could provide invaluable insights for his own country in reality, which was far more meaningful to him than leaving them on this land.
"Pre-civilization ruins? Beneath Leimbieta?"
"Exactly. Look, wasn't Rhodes Island excavated in Leimbieta?" Xing Chen said to Charlotte, "You've probably figured it out to some extent; I'm not a Sarkaz, and I don't even belong to any known race—have you ever heard of a race whose blood can cure Oripathy? So, I want to find answers from these older ruins."
Charlotte scratched her head, her expression one of surprise, while Theresa covered her mouth, laughing. It seemed Xing Chen had guessed wrong on that point.
In any case, Charlotte accepted the commission to help Xing Chen search for Pre-civilization artifacts. As for where these excavated items would be sent, Theresa stated that she would arrange it... After seeing Charlotte off, the two picked up their packages and went to the outskirts of town to meet the other two.
Xing Chen hadn't yet decided where to go next, while the other two already had their missions.
"Xiao Pa Cai, take this letter to the River Valley of the Banshees. I'll mark the entrance to the River Valley on the map," Theresa said, taking out a red parcel she had sewn herself and handing it to the Blood Demon, instructing her on how to approach the Death Knell Court, who had gone into seclusion. "Do not attempt to force your way into their territory. Use the Originium Arts I gave you, and they will send out an envoy. When you meet Lama Lien, do not speak much; just give her my letter. Do not listen to anything she says, especially her singing."
The Blood Demon nodded. Theresa smiled, then took out the cloak she had worn when she arrived. By now, the tattered cloak had been restored to new by Theresa. "Here, this is your cloak. I didn't touch your mark. I added my Originium Arts to it to help you resist some fatal damage. There are also other Originium Arts that will facilitate your communication with the Banshees."
"Thank you, Your Highness." "No thanks needed, be safe."
After the Blood Demon bowed to Theresa, she turned and embarked on her journey. Immediately after, the Demon King turned her gaze to the Assassin who had once tried to assassinate her.
"Here, this is your package." The Camel knelt on one knee, holding both hands above his hornless head to receive the black cloth bag. "Your physique is better than Xiao Pa Cai's, so you have two letters to deliver. One is for Kal'tsit, that green Feline, and the other is for my brother, Theresis, your former master."
"Rhodes Island is missing, but I believe you have your own way of finding it. Also, I don't want you to harm anyone on it; they are no longer people of Babel. As for my brother, you might not necessarily see him. Just give it to someone who can deliver the message, such as Manfred, or other trustworthy individuals."
The Camel remained silent, just listening intently, committing the Demon King's words to heart. Seeing this, Theresa didn't say much more, taking another piece of clothing from her bag and handing it to the Camel. Xing Chen glanced at it; its material... seemed to be the wrapping cloth he had found.
"I modified it to look as it did two hundred years ago when you first came before me, and I added a sorcery to it—it can make other Sarkaz mistake you for a Blood Demon, but as for your skin, you'll have to deal with that yourself."
"Thank you, Your Highness. I guarantee the mission will be completed." Donning the new clothes, the Camel also went to complete his mission, and soon, his figure disappeared from their sight.
Now, beneath the swirling dust, only Xing Chen and Theresa remained.
"Xing Chen, where are we going next?"
"I don't know, Theresa, there are quite a few places I want to go," Xing Chen honestly told Theresa. "Let's head north first, and we'll decide after we leave here."
"Mm, alright."
And so, the two people who should not have existed on this land silently trekked through the wasteland.
Xing Chen needed to think, while Theresa was responsible for preventing the small creatures of the wasteland from disturbing him.
Finally, as midnight approached, the two arrived beneath a massive Originium crystal cluster, and Xing Chen had decided what he and Theresa needed to do.
"We're going to Columbia next," Xing Chen said. "It's a newly developed land where the old world's constraints are far weaker than elsewhere. We will establish a new organization there, an institution dedicated to the fate of all Terra people. Not just the Sarkaz, and not just Oripathy, but the development of the entire world."
Theresa listened, nodding gently, then posed her question, "What you say makes sense, but that's just the general direction. What are we actually going to do next?"
Upon hearing this, Xing Chen pointed to the Originium crystal cluster behind them, "Do you see those sharp Originium crystals?"
"I see them." Theresa looked up, seeing countless Originium spikes towering above them.
These were Originium crystal clusters formed after a Catastrophe, with a purity far exceeding that of Originium mined underground. However, due to their high activity, virtually no country would use them directly, except for the poverty-stricken Sarkaz who weren't afraid of Oripathy.
"Good, pull one out and stab me to death."
"Huh?" "It's getting late! If you don't get up now, this morning will be wasted!"