Still in the conference room of the "Eye of Wealth" headquarters building.

The atmosphere was oppressive, the air heavy, and even the whale oil candles on the walls appeared especially dim.

"Let's vote!"

The deep voice of Chairman William Orange echoed continuously in the spacious conference room.

However.

Every Frisian present was very aware of the immense importance of [Credit] to themselves, to major institutions, and even to the entire fledgling "Lowland Republic."

For over a hundred years, the prosperity of Frisian Kingdom's commerce and the development of maritime transport relied precisely on the reliable image that Frisian merchants had built, which was as valuable as gold!

All of this originated from a true story from the Age of Navigation.

A Frisian captain named Barents and 17 sailors, driving a merchant vessel laden with a client's cargo, were trapped by the frozen sea on an island in the northern Iceland National.

They waited in isolation for a full eight months.

During this period.

They dismantled the deck of the ship for fuel to maintain their body temperature in the severe cold of minus 40 degrees, and they survived by hunting to barely sustain themselves with fur and food.

In such an extremely harsh situation, eight of them gradually died.

But these Frisians did something unimaginable to outsiders; they did not touch any of the goods entrusted to them, even though these goods included clothes and medicine that could have saved their lives!

As winter turned to spring, the surviving crew, after tremendous effort, finally delivered the cargo intact to the client.

They paid the price with their lives, upheld their belief, and created a business principle passed down through generations, a precious legacy for their descendants.

At the time, such actions clearly brought tangible benefits to them and all Frisians, which was winning the global maritime trade market.

Obviously, no one can easily achieve success.

For businessmen from all countries, who would not want to entrust their goods to a group of people willing to protect it with their lives?

This is a story known to every Frisian child, even an essential part of the soul-shaping process.

[Credit] is more important than gold!

If [Credit] is lost, what will remain for the Lowlands, with its small land area, scarce resources, and inadequate population?

Therefore, although the tone was somber, the resolution passed without any surprises.

"Pay the contract!"

"Seconded!"

"Seconded!"

Of course, the pursuit of profit is the nature and original sin of capital.

Even if they agreed to pay the contract, it did not stop the important people present from secretly planning to strike against those flower farmers and plantation owners.

Now, at this crucial moment watched by all, it was not appropriate to act.

But as soon as this period passed, they had countless "legal" ways to make those lucky nouveau riches cough up everything they had taken in!

...

The farce lasted just over a year.

Although the "Eye of Wealth" drew funds from its branches across nations and even liquidated high-quality assets worldwide to cash in, biting the bullet to fulfill the futures contract, the chapter was thoroughly closed.

However, this unprecedented bubble also left many bank groups and investment institutions deeply wounded, and some more aggressive institutions even declared bankruptcy.

Yet the subsequent impact was far from over.

When private capital was completely harvested, upper institutions were also severely strained.

Real cash flowed out of the country in large quantities, forcing the major bank groups to tighten the credit supply within the "Lowland Republic."

[Credit supply: reflects the funds supply situation. If there are more borrowers than lenders, market funds supply is less than demand, known as "tight credit supply."]

Even the supply of precious metal currency needed for the daily lives of the people was affected.

Naturally, the economic revitalization policies introduced by Prime Minister Constance Harlan at the start of his tenure instantly turned into a mere scrap of paper.

This time, the "Tulip Bubble" inevitably exceeded the financial realm, transforming into an impact on the real economy!

Those workshop owners, farmers, and small factory owners who had once received low-interest loans from banks could not repay their debts when they came due and could not borrow new ones to repay the old.

A massive wave of bankruptcies swept across the production sector.

The economy of the "Lowland Republic," just newly independent and poised for vigorous development, was dealt a heavy blow.

Factories were abandoned, people's livelihoods withered, inevitably leading to a prolonged Great Depression.

Most importantly...

In the secular world, bleak and desolate, even the Extraordinary World could not remain untouched.

Click... click...

With a series of crisp sounds.

Two deep cracks suddenly appeared on the cheeks of the glittering golden "Angel of Prosperity" statue in the Wealth Cathedral, as if it were weeping.

Even the gold paint on its body became mottled, exuding undeniable decay.

"God!"

"Almighty God!"

"Angel of Prosperity, Master of Gold, Ruler of Capital..."

A large group of Holy Professionals knelt on the ground, mourning as if they had lost their parents, wailing and crying.

Compared to the high spirits of a few days ago, their situation was like heaven and hell.

Clearly, after the capital's pathway moved, the "God of Capital and Wealth" whose Capital Divine Position became the Main Divine Position could not escape the fate of being backfired by Capital itself due to the severe domestic capital losses.

The backlash came from the Capital Divine Position and also from the resentment of all the grievously suffering believers!

Archbishop Barrett's body trembled slightly; he wasn't quite sure of his own Main God's current true condition.

But what he did know was that unless the essence of this incident could be discerned, randomly allowing financial markets to explode could eventually drag down not just the Divine King of this era but also possibly dethrone a True God.

...

Contrasting the scene of desolation across from them was the port of the Phaletis Kingdom filled with cheerful laughter.

Dong——!

A large merchant ship slowly docked, with the overt winners of the "Tulip Bubble" honking along under the escort of Phaletis naval forces, openly joining the alliance.

Nobody was a fool; the moment plantation owners and flower farmers received their final payments, they boarded ships bound for the Tulip Alliance, rendering all the subsequent strategies of the big capitalists fruitless.

The exact number of these people who had been replaced by the Faceless Man at the early stage of the "Tulip Frenzy" was something only Aiven knew.

Clap! Clap! Clap!...

Sitting at St. James's Palace, the vested person clapped lightly, smiling at the admiring Liweina beside him:

"Beautiful Your Majesty, since the Frisians are so steadfast in their contracts, why not bottom-fish the quality assets of the Lowland Republic? Even if it's not a zero-cost acquisition, it's a clearance-level sell-off.

This is a good opportunity to get involved in the economic lifeline of the Lowlands."

"Hee hee hee... then I won't hold back."

Hearing that Aiven was willing to take her along, Liweina beamed with delight.

Suddenly, she remembered something and reminded him:

"By the way, Aiven, Mennon Watt just sent a message, saying he wants to choose the Kingdom as the location for the promotion of the Truth Embodiment.

Manually bringing the Steam Industrial Revolution to perfection, gaining proximity to harness the World's Favor.

I remember you promised me that when the Kingdom has enough material reserves, as the price for that batch of Treasure Trees for the Jade Coronet, you'd help the Kingdom build a new Legendary Battleship for free, right (Chapter 619)?"

Seeing Liweina's expectant look, Aiven felt a stirring in his heart and understood what Watt was planning.

'Build a crystallization of the Steam Industry era?'

He agreed right away: 𝐟𝕣𝕖𝐞𝐰𝕖𝚋𝐧𝗼𝚟𝐞𝕝.𝗰𝐨𝐦

"Alright, no problem; I also want to witness the birth of a Truth Embodiment firsthand."

...

White Swan Castle.

The warm spring water introduced from "Pamukkale" flowed abundantly, and the semi-transparent fish-like Water Elemental Spirits frolicked freely in the air.

Four smooth marble pillars supported an exquisitely ascending dome; the gilded floor mirrors, swan-shaped brass faucets, and lotus showers—all these details expressed indescribable luxury.

Another winter season had arrived.

Ever the ones to enjoy, Aiven and Olivia soaked leisurely in a circular bath made of warm yellow marble, enjoying the springs.

"Aiven, I've never understood why everyone in this bubble is willing to pay for items that obviously deviate from their value?"

Taking a grape delicately handed to his mouth by Olivia's slender hand, Aiven was unreserved in sharing a possible secret that even the Gods might temporarily not understand:

"Heh heh, the answer is public expectation!

Whether one is a big capitalist or a proletarian.

The two major weaknesses of human nature are greed and fear; the former refers to blind bullish expectations, while the latter refers to blind bearish expectations...."

"Tulip" itself is just a symbol; it carries the confidence of speculators in the market, which can also be called 'greedy expectations'.

It's not just tulips; many other underlying objects can be substituted.

Speculators all hope that outrageous high prices will have the next trader take over; most traders, in a "rising environment," lose the ability to objectively evaluate value and are willing to play the fool.

One can describe it with a simple "wave theory": in a series of musical chairs, the fear is not about being a fool but about being the last fool, also known as 'greater fool theory'.

"This is just the beginning; I dare say history will repeat itself again and again, and no one will learn from it.

When the next game of musical chairs starts, those 'smart people' will not avoid it, but instead will look for ways not to be the last fool.

I'll make a special course on this 'Tulip Bubble' and take it to the National University for lectures, and you can go listen then."

Some things, even if you don't do them, others will, so having the right talent reserve is certainly necessary.

This round was practically a winner-takes-all.

Even if he couldn't yet achieve the complete freedom of the Libra Balance Holy Sword, it's no longer necessary to be stingy; a decisive move can be made when needed.

And with a substantial reserve of gold and silver, many things can be done, but Aiven now had more important matters at hand.

"By the way, my Little Hesi, I remember we made a bet, didn't we?"

Gently embracing his beloved wife, allowing her smooth white back to press against his solid chest, he kissed her swan-like graceful nape and crystal-clear earlobe.

With a voice laced with a dangerous hoarseness:

"I want to see you wear..."

The girl's jade-like face flushed bright red, yet she didn't renegotiate, quietly uttering a soft murmur of consent.