I Carry a Game World With Me

Nex was stunned for a moment by the young Governor of the Xuanfeng Alliance’s words.

’What does he mean?’

’He wants to recruit me?’

’Or to put it in Dragon Country terms, offer me amnesty?’

A look of bewilderment spread across Nex’s face.

He had considered countless possibilities before being brought here, even that they might want something from him.

But he had never imagined this would be their goal.

For a moment, he couldn’t process it at all.

Lu Feng looked at Nex and continued, "I know you’ve always wanted to retire. You want to stop being a pirate, take your men, and find some small country where you can live in obscurity as ordinary people."

Nex’s expression darkened.

This was something he had only ever told a few of his closest confidants. No one on the outside could possibly know.

Unless someone had betrayed him, there was no way Lu Feng could have known.

"Who betrayed me?" Nex sighed, asking the same question again.

"What makes you think someone betrayed you?" Lu Feng asked with a faint smile.

Nex frowned. "Without a traitor, it’s impossible for you to know these things."

Lu Feng said teasingly, "Forget about your little secrets. If I wanted to know, I could even find out whether the president of the Beautiful Country is sleeping with his secretary right now."

"..." Nex had no doubt the man was bluffing.

’How could he possibly know what the president of the Beautiful Country is doing?’

But then he remembered how Lu Feng knew his plans in perfect detail, and he felt a wave of resignation. If there truly was no traitor, then this man was terrifying indeed.

Lu Feng continued, "Nex, your goal is simply to retire from piracy and find a place to live a normal life. So, what do you think of our Xuanfeng Alliance?"

"The Xuanfeng Alliance was founded not long ago, and Boya has just joined us. Once New Seaport is built, we’ll need a proper Sea Mountain defense force."

"Boya’s head of maritime affairs is a complete hack. I threw your detailed plan in his face, and he still hesitated, unable to come up with a response right away."

"So, what do you say to joining the Xuanfeng Alliance? The position of Head of the Navy is yours. You’ll be a general. Your men can join the Xuanfeng Alliance as well."

"In a way, they’ll be retired, too. They can choose to become civilians or join the navy. How does that sound?"

It was impossible for Nex not to be moved by this offer.

He came from a naval background and had a deep, unspoken attachment to the service, to say nothing of the chance to be a general, the head of a nation’s navy.

Even though it was a small nation, when he thought about it, the Xuanfeng Alliance wasn’t poor. Its reputation was growing, especially with an entity like the Xuanfeng Bank.

"So, Nex? What do you think?" Lu Feng asked again.

Nex frowned and asked, "You’d just trust me? Aren’t you afraid I’ll rebel?"

Lu Feng laughed, not bothering to hide his thoughts. "If I’m making you this offer, it means I trust you. As for rebellion... don’t take this the wrong way, but if I want you dead, you won’t live to see a second day, no matter where you run."

"Alternatively, I could just press a button, and that thing on your neck would kill you in an instant."

"Don’t even think about taking it off. It’s impossible. If you don’t believe me, you’re welcome to try when you get back."

According to the data he’d collected from Xiaozhi, Nex’s character was fundamentally sound.

As for the risk of rebellion, that was nothing to worry about.

Nex could feel Lu Feng’s confidence and couldn’t help but sigh. ’He’s right. My life is in his hands. What’s the point of even thinking about rebellion?’

’The only way would be to capture him and use him as a hostage, preventing him from activating the device on my neck and forcing him to remove it.’

’That’s the only way it would be possible.’

’But then I think of those terrifying special soldiers... I don’t stand a chance.’

’Not unless I could somehow lure them away.’

’But that’s practically impossible.’

’They wouldn’t listen to me. And even if I managed all that, other complications could arise.’

So, he basically had no choice.

"Are you sure you’ll let my men go? They can really become civilians if they want? You won’t come after them later to settle old scores?" Nex finally asked.

Lu Feng nodded. "Of course. On the condition that they haven’t committed any crimes. Otherwise, we can’t show any mercy."

Nex nodded. That was a condition anyone would impose.

So, he added, "Can we deposit our money into Xuanfeng Bank? No questions asked about its origins, with a guarantee that the funds won’t be traced, even if someone comes investigating?"

Lu Feng laughed at the question. "Do you think just anyone can investigate Xuanfeng Bank? Now that we’ve taken the place of Rui Shi Bank, we have no intention of repeating their mistakes."

Lu Feng had no doubt this was dirty money. He knew that moving it wouldn’t just risk an investigation from some power—it would guarantee one.

That’s why Nex had asked.

’But if he deposits the money in Xuanfeng Bank, isn’t that even better? It’ll give me more control over them.’

’As for whatever power was monitoring this money, with Xiaozhi on the case, they wouldn’t find a single trace.’

Hearing Lu Feng’s guarantee, Nex finally gritted his teeth. "I can agree to join the Xuanfeng Alliance. It’s not like I have a choice. I can only hope you’ll do as you say, sir."

Lu Feng, however, didn’t seem to care in the slightest. Instead, he smiled and said, "Aren’t we going to get our General Nex a seat at the table?"

Baguda immediately took the cue, stepping forward and guiding Nex to the conference table with a broad smile. "General Nex, we’re all on the same team now. Come, let’s discuss the plans for New Seaport, especially regarding the navy. We need to build a naval base near New Seaport. Why don’t you take a look and tell us what location you think would be best?"

As Nex sat down, he saw a tablet already on the table, displaying a map.

The map showed the entire harbor, with the locations for a beach resort area and the New Seaport already marked.

The task was to find a suitable location for the naval base within the remaining areas.

Seeing this, Nex knew that the Xuanfeng Alliance was at least serious about building a navy. As for their true motives in recruiting him, he still couldn’t bring himself to fully trust them.

’These politicians are all black-hearted.’

’But he truly had no choice now. All his men had been captured, and his own life was in their hands.’

"General Nex, tell us your thoughts. Where should we build the naval base?" Baguda asked, still smiling faintly, his eyes seemingly full of anticipation.

Nex identified the most suitable location in the harbor at a glance. He pointed to a spot on the tablet’s map. "This is the best place to build the base. However, for a naval base, a single main base isn’t enough. You need at least two forward observation bases and more than ten lookout posts."

"For the forward observation bases, these two locations will suffice. As for the lookout posts, here, here, and here... these spots are suitable."

In quick succession, Nex drew one circle after another on the map, marking out each location.

Seeing this, Lu Feng immediately smiled. "Since General Nex has already drawn up the plan, we’ll give him full authority over this matter. Baguda, you handle the handover."

With that, he stood up and walked out.

He was a hands-off boss and couldn’t be bothered with these headaches. Besides, his main goal was to recruit Nex.

That goal was now achieved. As for what happened next, he would have to wait and see, leaving Xiaozhi to monitor Nex completely.

Besides, with the electronic shackle as an insurance policy, he wasn’t afraid of Nex trying any tricks. Sometimes, choosing to trust someone outright could yield surprisingly positive results.

Watching Lu Feng just walk out like that, Nex was clearly stunned. ’What does he mean? He’s entrusting such a huge matter entirely to me??’