Blackstone Code-Chapter 432: Energy Reserve

“There will be a surge in Valier later… hiss…” Lynch waved his hand and rolled down the window, letting the smoke he exhaled drift away.

He paid no attention to the outside world, focusing instead on organizing his thoughts while instructing Lime to prepare for the next phase of work.

It wasn’t that Lynch trusted Lime deeply, but he believed in human nature.

Human nature never changes much. Anyone living in this world—or any living creature, for that matter—will always have needs.

Survival itself is a need, along with hunger, physical growth, spiritual needs… many others.

Humans are among the most emotionally complex beings and have the most desires. No one can claim to fully understand another person; when people say they do, they usually mean they’ve discovered that person’s deepest desires.

Someone like Lime, who rose suddenly from the bottom, would find it hard to break away from Lynch quickly. In fact, at this point, he would see such thoughts as a terrible betrayal.

Plus, to earn more, Lime had to manage Lynch’s financial accounts well, or else he’d end up back at the bottom selling cheap tricks and deceiving clients.

Having seen the view from the mountain peak, how could he willingly return to the gutter?

So, Lynch trusted him for the time being—not the man himself, but the human nature and desires Lynch could see clearly in Lime at a glance.

Lime pulled out a notebook and pen, seriously recording everything. Lynch’s every prediction was like seeing the future firsthand—both fascinating and intimidating.

The best way to face fear isn’t to conquer it but to maintain reverence for it.

Lime’s attitude was one of respect for Lynch’s mysterious prophecies. To avoid confusion from memory, he prepared his notebook and pen carefully.

“Once a large number of orders flood in, Valier will definitely rise. I’m quite confident this surge is actually speculative.”

He smoked, his thoughts growing calmer and senses sharper. His eyes gleamed with an intelligence that was almost blinding. “Major financial institutions are focused on production recovery and rebuilding. Only the international speculative funds roaming like wild dogs are looking for opportunities everywhere.”

Lynch’s judgment was largely correct. Groups like him, Wadrick’s backers, and Patric’s consortium weren’t focusing on finance now. Instead, they were profiting massively from the global financial disaster.

They were buying land, merging factories and enterprises, and acquiring labs wherever possible without harming their main operations.

No one would lock huge sums of money in the financial market long-term. For ordinary people, this was a disaster; for these elites, it was a grand feast.

Only during stable periods, when they can’t expand recklessly, do they focus on capital operations. Not now.

Besides, Valier’s foreign exchange market record was poor. Just because it established relations with the Federation and got a big contract doesn’t mean it will suddenly change dramatically.

Valier’s real rise would come only after Nagaryll completed the first phase of construction and maintained enthusiasm and cohesion into the second phase.

“This surge will end soon. When international speculators realize there are no buyers fueling the frenzy, Valier’s price will gradually return to normal.”

Lime took notes earnestly. “Mr. Lynch, should we enter the market now?” His thought was that if Lynch knew the surge would end quickly, it might be best to wait.

Investing always carried risks—great risks. But he obviously underestimated Lynch’s boldness.

Lynch nodded slightly. “Of course. We won’t get the big institutions this time, but we can take advantage of those international speculators. They’re greedy—that’s their weakness and our opportunity.”

When the Federation’s economy grew rapidly a few years ago, international speculators treated it as a wealth incubator.

But once the war ended and post-war reconstruction and new market rules offered greater profits elsewhere, they ran.

The Federation’s financial crisis and economic collapse were directly tied to these speculators.

Now that reconstruction contracts are mostly settled and these speculators have had their fill, they’re poking around internationally again, looking for chances. Accustomed to feeding on bad money irresponsibly, they care only about profit, not ethics. ṜàΝΟ₿Ёs̈

So, create an opportunity where they see money, then swallow them whole.

“Tomorrow after I arrive in Nagaryll, I’ll meet some provincial governors and the central government of the Kingdom of Nagaryll. There may be some positive news. Before September 6, quietly enter the market and go all in on the rise…”

Lime froze. “All in, Mr. Lynch?”

He asked again, hoping for further confirmation because going all in was a lot.

Leverage is always a magical tool—it can multiply your earnings tenfold or more.

What you could earn one Sol on, with leverage, you might make a hundred or two hundred, while bearing what banks call insignificant risks.

Last time with the sniper’s pull and copper ore trades, Lynch made three million. Some capable people had entrusted their financial accounts to Lynch’s Blackstone Fund through connections.

These accounts signed agreements with Lynch. He’d try to ensure profit but would notify clients with a formal financial risk notice if losses approached the warning line.

Then the clients could choose to stop losses or continue until the next stop-loss line.

Usually, losses wouldn’t be too large. If clients were unreachable and stop-loss was triggered, the fund would liquidate positions.

This system made clients confident to entrust their accounts because losses were limited, but if the fund consistently failed to profit, the stakes would be far higher.

With over ten million in accounts combined with Lynch’s own, this would be a major move.

However, even tens of millions could cause storms within the Federation but might not be enough internationally. More help was needed.

“All in. I have a good relationship with Golden Exchange Bank; maybe they’ll give us higher leverage…” Lynch frowned. “I’ll tell you the result before I leave tomorrow morning.”

After giving some detailed instructions, the car soon stopped before a grand, glittering gate. A doorman waiting by the roadside opened the door once the car halted, bent slightly, and helped Lynch out, calling him “Mr. Lynch.”

This was Golden Exchange Bank. Lynch came to discuss leverage with the head of their financial business department. Last time he only got ten times leverage, or he wouldn’t have earned just over two million.

Though the bank profits no matter what, they still assess risks. No financial activity is risk-free.

High leverage funding can cause the bank to lose everything if things go wrong. Managers often boast about offering 100x leverage, but it’s mostly marketing.

Leverage is usually between 2x and 50x. With the current poor financial situation, banks are conservative.

Lynch had to negotiate in person for a higher leverage ratio.

He’d already contacted George, who reached out to Lynch’s connections at Eminence’s headquarters. They found it surprising that George had ties with a rising figure like Lynch.

Lynch’s good reputation in the circle paved the way for this negotiation with the bank.

This was Golden Exchange Bank’s headquarters in Eminence. Everything felt vulgar—gold everywhere—but it was this very vulgarity that drew people in deeply. Perhaps true elegance never existed in this world.

As Lynch entered the lobby, he noticed the transparent floor tiles beneath his feet. Underneath was a clock mechanism.

Yes, a golden mechanical movement lay beneath the floor. The floor wasn’t glass, but some other material—extremely clear and well maintained, without any scratches.

A giant golden gear the size of the entire lobby slowly turned, and every subtle movement of the hands seemed to convey a special power.

“The mechanism beneath your feet is pure gold. Time is money, and this perfectly embodies that,” said a sharply dressed man with the aura of a successful professional, greeting Lynch warmly. “Pleased to meet you, Mr. Lynch. I’m Karl, the head of the financial department.”