Sun Jack sat in the conference room, looking at the representative of the Himalayas Holy Grail Person.
"After such lengthy negotiations, let's drop the pretense and cut to the chase, are you saying that if we treat you the same as X, you'll leave the Himalayas?"
Not only had others arrived, but even X was present as a hologram.
"Exactly," said the hologram in front of him, a person with an explosive hairdo smeared with purple lipstick. "We need to take away everything, with all our capital."
Clearly, releasing X had its effects; they, at least, were willing to negotiate upon seeing how the tide had turned.
After pondering for a while, Sun Jack did not immediately agree but instead said, "Are you sure you want to leave the city of the Himalayas? What use is taking your companies? Without the market, you can only sit and consume your resources, leaving the Himalayas is a dead end."
If all these Holy Grail People left, taking all their companies with them, then the Himalayas would be left as nothing but an empty shell. His goal was not just the entire floating city but also its various abundant resources.
Upon hearing this, X's hologram next to him slammed the table fiercely. "This damn phrase is mine!"
Tapai immediately muted X's voice, "Shut up, whoever says it owns it."
However, faced with Sun Jack's persuasion, the woman with the explosive hairdo said, "Mister Sun, there's no need for pretense at this point. What can we do if we do not leave? You've taken over the Himalayas, even if we stay, could you really give it back to us?"
"Of course not. The Himalayas I fought for with my life, how could I possibly give back all the good things inside it? I mean for us to develop together."
"Start by developing together, then slowly boil us like frogs and gradually steal our money? That trick won't work anymore!"
"Fine, if that approach doesn't work, I'll just change my rhetoric! Leave half of everything for me, honestly, you no longer have a chance at winning." Sun Jack stood up and lit a cigarette, taking a puff.
"That's impossible!"
"Impossible? Then let's keep at it! Let's see who wins and who loses!"
Sun Jack slammed the table hard, "You really think if you're not hiding behind the artificial sun I won't be able to find you? The entire Himalayas is surrounded by my spacecraft carrier! Try not to get caught by me! If I catch you, I'll crush each of you one by one!"
Though Sun Jack spoke harshly, he did not intend to utterly annihilate these people, his purpose being the same as when he freed X.
Eventually, after a tug-of-war, the resisting Holy Grail People agreed to Sun Jack's terms. As all the outer gates of the Himalayas opened amidst the snowstorm, the great exodus began.
All sorts of transport ships surged through the sky like a flood, carrying their Holy Grail resources as they started leaving the Himalayas.
Naturally, those who could leave with their hover cars were valuable, while those less valuable, or not valuable enough, were directly abandoned. Every now and then, one could even see people being kicked off cargo ships and hover cars, forming a striking visual streak in the sky.
This situation persisted for a long time until the doors of the Himalayas were closed again. The artificial sun once again slowly rotated mid-air, the unbalanced temperature began to rise and the warm sunlight illuminated the entire Himalayas.
Sun Jack looked up at the massive East City District hanging on the wall in front of him, slowly exhaling a puff of smoke, as camera after camera gradually connected to his system, displaying the entire Himalayas without any blind spots right before him.
With full control over both the network and physically, this giant floating refuge from The Previous Era, the entire Himalayas was firmly under his control.
Previously installed on the spacecraft carrier, all the production lines began to be gradually moved to the Himalayas, filling the vacancies left by the Holy Grail People,
As the natives of Metropolis gradually infiltrated, his control over the entire city further strengthened.
"Tapai, grant me the authorization."
Moreover, with the city's authorization granted, Sun Jack became the 001 administrator of this large mechanical construct, and he thoroughly controlled the entire city.
"Finally... I have a base," Sun Jack looked around at all that awaited revitalization and remarked sentimentally.
With the Himalayas, he finally had a chance to breathe; facing FFP, he could now attack or defend as necessary.
"I think you don't have time for your sentiments," Tapai interjected.
"What's the matter now?" Sun Jack asked.
"The president of XMPD wants to see you."
"To see me? Haven't they gone?"
No sooner had Sun Jack spoken than a drone flew down from the sky to him, projecting the hologram of a blue-skinned man, whose tattoos indicated he was probably a follower of Satan's Church.
"XMPD is your eternally steadfast ally." Accompanying this statement was an electronic contract for the transfer of XMPD shares.
Sun Jack smiled at this; he was no longer surprised. There were many others who also shifted allegiances depending on the situation. After all, XMPD wasn't a law enforcement agency; they were a corporation who pledged loyalty to the victor, stabilizing the upper echelons. As long as there were security needs, they wouldn't starve.
Soon, XMPD agents began their work, swiftly clearing their own dead comrades they recently fought against and began serving Sun Jack wholeheartedly.
Ordinary agents did this, as did the Special Mobile Forces and other departments, except for Section 3.
Sun Jack initially didn't wish to deal with these individuals focusing on the Smart Coalition crisis, but unexpectedly, they approached him.
The Hover Car with flashing red police lights opened its hatch, and out stepped a man in a blue XMPD uniform with a scarred face and a mouth full of metal teeth.
"Sun Jack, we are from Section 3. We normally don't get involved in political conflicts, whether it's your feud with the FFP or your conquest of the Himalayas, Section 3 didn't interfere."
"I know, that's why I treated you as non-existent," Sun Jack spread his hands.
"But we received a report stating that you were able to seize the Himalayas because you accepted help from a group of rogue AIs?" As he spoke, his face turned menacing.
"Is that so?" Sun Jack frowned. It seemed that collaborating with UO saved him a lot of trouble, but also brought its fair share of complications.
"From which party is the report?"
"We absolutely will not disclose the informant's details. Please answer my question seriously; note, I am not representing the attitude of Section 3 of the Himalayas, I represent the headquarters' stance. Our inaction does not mean we lack the right to intervene!"
"Alright, you want to talk? Then let's go; let's find a place to talk properly." Accompanying this, Sun Jack's thrusters emitted flames, and he took off into the sky.