ACC Chapter 38 Gold and Ice

"How much of the population have me managed to save so far?"

"30%, madam President." Spoke the AI, standing at my side on the head of a long table, occupied with others, coursing through data, or communicating with others.

"How long until general communication is restored?"

"3 hours, 20 minutes, 34 seconds."

I resisted the urge to sigh. This abrupt evolution had caught all of us with our pants down.

I tried to ignore the increasingly growing pile of virtual documentation only I could see, but perusing it was needed. The sounds of white paper that I looked through were increasingly dampening my mood.

The Federation's money reserves were getting increasingly low as we paid for many things. And it wasn't just related to raw credits, but even spiritual stones. Arrays that had been capable of concentrating spiritual energy had been compromised because it had become chaotic. And all predictions pointed to a 2 week timeframe before the chaos could settle down.

"Madam President, another shipment of spirit stones has arrived from space."

"Distribute everything wherever they are needed urgently... And warn anyone that tries to skim something off. If I catch them, its their heads that will roll. Make sure to send me the detailed budget on how everything was spent without any falsehood."

"How goes our attempt at expanding the city borders?" I directed a question at another person, a woman I didn't have the time to try and recall the names of. My brain was already dealing with the documentation, which was accumulating at an average of 1000 documents a minute.

"Ma'am! The sand spirit in the North is resisting with all its might... And its core hasn't been located yet."

"I assigned three Nascent Souls to the problem. Why haven't they driven it off then?" The way she shrunk into her seat made me tone down on my intense aura. The poor woman who was still just a Core Formation cultivator wasn't the one clearly at fault.

With me dialling down, she regained her wits, "The 'sand spirit' has become even more intelligent."

At least they were preventing it from attacking anything else. But that wouldn't be enough in the long run. If I wasn't the one in charge of maintaining this entire Federation machine, I would have gone down there myself. We had to expand the border is Defiant or else we wouldn't be able to handle the rise in population.

"What of the river monster in the east?"

"Mr. Qin Wentian is on the verge of defeating it. And he has specially requested that he doesn't want anyone butting in."

Before I could continue the inquiries, the doors burst open, swinging with such force that for a moment I wondered whether they would hold. It was good that they weren't the sliding type because the rage of the person who had pushed them open would have destroyed those.

An aura, one of divine sense pulsed over the entire room. And though my back was to the door, a seating arrangement I was now regretting the choice of, I could see the paling of all those that were occupying the long table.

"Let's use our words, Mr. Golden Merchant."

Even as I spoke, one of my legs was alighting from the top of the other one. I stood up and pushed away my chair with as much poise as I could. After all most of the divine sense was concentrated on me, pressuring mine into my skull. But I couldn't falter here.

The chair dissolved into particles which merged back into the table as I turned towards the offending person, who had an assistant, Mr. Hans, standing beside him with just the difference of a step.

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If I were to be honest with myself, the man titled the Golden Merchant was attractive. This was the first time we were meeting in person, though I had interacted with his thought constructs within the virtual world.

He was large, his six pack alone giving off golden light. Apparently, he had chosen to simply have the black long sleeved shirt that was supposed to be worn, draped across his shoulders. Then there was the pair of jeans that covered his probably perfect thighs, plus the belt that held them to his waist.

His squared jawline was stressed, probably the result of grit teeth. And there was the frown, plus the small opening of his eyes giving me a glimpse of golden pupils, with a dark cross in their midst.

His billowing aura was causing his golden hair with a white minority to rise upwards.

"Did you know it was going to happen, girl?"

The question jolted me from my thoughts, almost causing an instinctual warming of my cheeks, which I suppressed because of the unsightliness it would have made me seem.

My mind span as I thought about what the question was really about, figuring it out in under a second.

"No." I answered firmly. This man was dangerous. He had seen through my ambitions and instantly came to the conclusion that I might have known beforehand of the planet's evolution. After all, I was going to be the biggest winner.

"Come now, Gild, there is no reason to scare a young lady like that."

With those words, the room dropped in temperature as a woman, no less endowed as me, popped out from behind the Golden Merchant. And the way that Mr. Hans twitched, as if he had been about to jump out of his skin signified that at least I wasn't the only one who hadn't sensed her.

She was clad in a long white skirt patterned with black snowflakes, and it reached her ankles. A pink blouse clothed her upper body. She had raven black hair which was a match with her pupils. And an oval face, one which would make many women jealous. All her features made me feel as if she was the most beautiful woman I had ever met.

Her skin was a light pink in contrast to the tanned brown of the Golden Merchant. She was petit, not as imposing as the man, but when they stood side by side, she didn't lose out in terms of presence.

"There is a planet that made me lose a lot of coin. Marie, since you love chatting, you can stay here to entertain yourself. Let's see if these so-called spirits can handle the weight of money."

And with that, the man turned on his heel, vanishing within my senses in a mere instant. Though, without that omnipresent pressure of his, I and my staff were allowed the chance to breathe.

"Madam Marie, have you come to satisfy your curiosity too?"

Though my voice was calm, inwardly, I was fuming. He had been easy on the eyes, but that blatant disregard of my current authority...and Girl!

The fluctuations in the photons around me brought my attention back to reality. And I caught the small smile Marie directed my way, probably having figured out my thoughts.

With a deep breath, I waited for her to speak, which was proving to be lengthy endeavor because of how fast my brain neurons were firing, thereby making everything within my cognitive and divine sensory range, slow.

"I come here bearing a message..." She started, before walking over and seating herself at the table on a seat right beside the head.

As I turned, I noticed snowflake patterns wherever her feet had stepped, and it made me wonder what the purpose of showing off her power was?

My seat once again materialised behind me while she continued.

"The large sects and some clans won't be relocating here. They have decided that its better they choose their own tuffs and method of governance."

"Oh!"

"You don't seem surprised. It seems like you had expected it already." Her gaze searched mine.

"They have had problems acclimating to the Federation. It would have been more of a surprise if they had agreed to relocate here..."

"...Madam Marie! Qin Wentian. Will he join them?" I had only known the man for a short time. Though, I could read people, the man was at the peak of the realm, two stages stronger than me. There was a chance that what I had gleaned had been purposefully doctored.

"Nah! That man is different. He never really cared much for the sects. And since this world has changed, he won't be a problem. After all many opponents that could give him a run for his money have just appeared. Now that I have delivered what was asked of me, its time I left. Just like Gild, I still have to move some of my bases into the city from whatever place they are stuck into."

As she stood up, I posed a question, "Will you still be attending the summit? It has been postponed indefinitely, but I plan to get around to setting a date after the new satellite array has been set up."

"Of course I will. The world has changed. All the more reason to work together."

As she headed out the room, a figure appeared within the doorway, Reed.

"Madam Marie. Its a pleasure seeing you again." He stopped to greet the woman, who returned a nod before making a turn and vanishing into the corridor.

"How many of my factories have managed to make it into orbit?" Even as he asked, there was a grimace on his face, probably because this information wasn't supposed to be held by me, but him. The transfer had been recent, and he probably hadn't gotten around to perusing everything related to his extensive enterprise.