310: Chapter 310 The Establishment of the New Era Joint Development Company

The day after Golden Abacus agreed to cooperate, the central square of the Dead Silence Star Domain was packed with people.

Representatives from the myriad worlds of the heavens filled three hundred rows. At the very front was the executive team from the Universe Bank, with Golden Abacus sitting right in the center, wearing his signature golden robe and sporting an old fox-like smile.

Behind them were the special envoys of major civilizations—the Nascent Soul Patriarchs of the Cultivation Alliance, elders of the Council of Awakened Sentients, representatives of the Data Civilization, and survivor leaders from the Icebound Star Domain. Further back were the observers sent by the creditors, each dressed in formal suits with serious expressions.

Even further back were the 'long guns and short cannons' of the media. At least three thousand media outlets had applied for on-site reporting, and countless livestream channels were broadcasting simultaneously.

On the periphery of the square, 4.7 billion survivors of the Dead Silence Star Domain watched the press conference through various means. To them, today was more important than a victory banquet—because today decided the fate of their savior.

Zhang Hao stood at the entrance in a newly tailored black suit, a badge reading 'Governor's First Assistant' pinned to his chest. Every time a heavyweight figure entered, he would announce their name loudly and personally lead the way. His face had already stiffened from smiling, but his professional training kept that standard smile in place.

Arrogant Dragon stood at the side of the high platform, hand on his sword hilt, eyes scanning the entire venue. Although he knew no one would dare cause trouble on such an occasion, he was used to it—what if someone couldn't see reason?

The young girl Morgana sat in the third row, wearing her ice-blue long dress. Beside her was Alpha's holographic projection. Alpha was still in dormancy but could attend the meeting via projection. Seeing Morgana, its data form fluctuated slightly: "Your aura is more stable than last time."

Morgana nodded: "The fusion of the inheritance fragments is almost complete."

Alpha was silent for a second, then said: "Thank you."

"For what?"

"For being willing to come. You are the reincarnation of the Frost Supreme; sitting in the third row is an attitude in itself."

Morgana paused for a moment, then smiled.

"I am now the Frost Culture Promotion Ambassador. It's only right for me to attend the Boss's press conference."

At exactly nine in the morning, Lin Chen stepped onto the high platform.

He wore a well-tailored black suit without a tie, with two buttons undone at the shirt collar. This was specially prepared by Zhang Hao—who said it made him look 'both formal and casual, both majestic and approachable.'

The entire venue instantly fell silent.

Three thousand lenses were aimed at him simultaneously, countless eyes stared at him, and innumerable livestream channels began their synchronous broadcast.

Lin Chen stood on the stage and looked around.

The creditors' eyes were complex—filled with expectation, doubt, and wariness. The media representatives were restless, itching to raise their hands and ask questions. The survivors held their breath, afraid to miss a single word.

Lin Chen spoke, his voice spreading through the myriad worlds via the system:

"Everyone, I have called you here today to announce one thing."

He raised his hand, unfolding a document in the holographic projection.

The title of the document was: 'Announcement of the Establishment of New Era Joint Development Company'

Below it was a line of small text: 'Let all creditors become shareholders. Let all shackles become capital.'

The venue instantly exploded.

Journalists raised their hands frantically, creditors looked at each other in bewilderment, and the livestream comments scrolled so fast they were unreadable.

"Debt-to-equity swap? What does that mean?"

"Make us go from creditors to shareholders? Isn't that just defaulting on the debt?"

"But if he can't pay it back, we won't even get our principal back..."

A journalist finally grabbed the right to ask a question and stood up, asking: "Governor Lin Chen! What is the meaning of this new company? What does it have to do with our debt?"

Lin Chen looked at him and smiled.

"Good question."

He opened another projection, displaying that familiar string of numbers before the entire audience—

967 trillion.

Daily interest of 773 trillion.

The entire audience gasped.

The faces of the small creditors changed. They knew Lin Chen owed a lot of money, but they hadn't expected it to be to this extent.

The journalist's voice trembled: "Governor Lin Chen, you... you owe this much money?"

Lin Chen nodded.

"Yes. This money was borrowed during the Zeroing Storm. It was used to buy traffic redirection services, to buy concept reinforcement, to save the Dead Silence Star Domain, the Spiritual Energy Star Domain, the Icebound Star Domain, and the Data Star Domain."

"Now, the storm has passed, and everyone has survived. But the money must be repaid."

He paused and looked around the venue.

"But, how to repay it?"

"According to current interest rates, I have to repay 773 trillion every day. Even if I spend my whole life slaying monsters, I couldn't even pay back one day's worth of interest."

The entire venue fell silent.

The creditors finally realized the gravity of the problem—if Lin Chen couldn't pay, their money would truly go down the drain.

A burly middle-aged man with a fleshy face stood up and said crudely: "Lin Chen, what do you mean? You want to default?"

Lin Chen looked at him and said slowly:

"Default? No, I'm here to give you money."

The middle-aged man was stunned.

Lin Chen unfolded the debt-to-equity swap plan, projecting the core terms into the air:

[New Era Joint Development Company · Debt-to-Equity Swap Plan]

1. Establish the 'New Era Joint Development Company' (referred to as New Era Development), with Lin Chen as Chairman and CEO.

2. All 967 trillion in debt will be converted into shares of New Era Development. Creditors will become shareholders according to their debt ratio.

3. Universe Bank will hold 47%, becoming the second-largest shareholder. Other creditors will be allocated the remaining shares proportionally. Lin Chen retains a 51% controlling stake.

4. Core business: Post-disaster reconstruction, cross-star domain trade, rule trading, civilization resurrection, tourism development... Any business that can make money, we will do.

5. For the next ten years, 30% of the company's profits will be used for dividends. shareholders will share earnings according to their holdings.

6. shareholders have the right to participate in major company decisions, but daily operations are the sole responsibility of Lin Chen.

After reading, the middle-aged man's brow furrowed: "Lin Chen, isn't this just making us swap debt for stock? If your company loses money, we won't even get our principal back!"

Lin Chen looked at him and smiled.

"You are right. So you have two choices."

"First, refuse the debt-to-equity swap. Then I will declare personal bankruptcy. According to the Narrative Layer bankruptcy law, after personal bankruptcy assets are liquidated, priority is given to major creditors like the Universe Bank. For small creditors like you, you'd be lucky to get back 10%."

The middle-aged man's face turned pale.

Lin Chen continued: "Second, agree to the debt-to-equity swap. You become shareholders of New Era Development. New Era Development will use future profits to give you dividends. If the company grows, the shares will appreciate. How much you earn depends on the company's development."

"Choose."

Dead silence filled the venue.

The small creditors looked at each other; no one dared to be the first to speak up.

At this moment, one person stood up.

Golden Abacus.

He wore his golden robe and slowly walked toward the high platform. His steps were steady and his gaze was sharp; every step seemed to tread upon the hearts of the small creditors.

The eyes of the entire venue focused on him.

Golden Abacus walked to Lin Chen's side, faced everyone, and spoke slowly:

"Universe Bank agrees to the debt-to-equity swap."

"We accept the 47% stake."

The crowd broke into an uproar once again.

The small creditors were completely dumbfounded—the largest creditor had agreed, so what did they have to hesitate about?

"I agree!"

"I agree too!"

"Count me in!"

Voices rose one after another as more and more people raised their hands. Three minutes later, the statistical results came out—

Percentage agreeing to the debt-to-equity swap: 97.3%.

Another 2.7% were still hesitating, but it no longer affected the overall situation.

Lin Chen looked at the number and smiled.

"Good. New Era Development is officially established."

He raised his hand, and a golden contract was generated in the void.

The contract was composed of pure rule power, three thousand zhang long, floating above the entire square. It was densely packed with New Era Development's articles of association, shareholder agreements, and profit distribution plans.

Everyone in the venue looked up at the contract, their eyes full of shock.

Lin Chen spoke: "All those who agree to the debt-to-equity swap can sign now."

Golden light showered down from the contract, turning into countless small contracts that drifted toward every person.

Golden Abacus was the first to sign his name.

His signature turned into a beam of golden light, merging into the main contract.

Then the small creditors, one by one, signed their names.

Three minutes later, the last person finished signing.

The main contract suddenly brightened, then turned into countless points of light, dissipating into the void.

The system notification sounded in Lin Chen's mind:

[Congratulations! 'New Era Joint Development Company' has been officially established!]

[Company Valuation: Approximately 3,000 trillion dimension points (including debt conversion)]

[shareholder Structure: Lin Chen 51%, Universe Bank 47%, Other Creditors 2%]

[First Chairman: Lin Chen]

[First CEO: Lin Chen (Concurrent)]

[Company Goal: Reconstruct civilizations damaged by the Zeroing Storm, expand cross-dimensional business, and maximize shareholder interests]

Lin Chen closed the notification and looked down from the stage.

The creditors who had been hesitating just moments ago now had smiles on their faces. They whispered to each other, discussing how much money the new company could make in the future and how much their shares would be worth.

Journalists took photos frantically, and the livestream comments were flying by.

Golden Abacus walked to Lin Chen's side and whispered:

"Lin Chen, this move of yours is truly brilliant."

"Turning debt into shares and creditors into shareholders. From now on, not only will they not press you for debt, but they'll also be hoping you make money."

Lin Chen smiled.

"So, a pleasure doing business with you?"

Golden Abacus reached out his hand.

"A pleasure doing business with you."

The moment their hands met, the cheers of the crowd reached a crescendo.

But just then, Lin Chen's communicator suddenly vibrated.

It was an encrypted message from Alpha.

The message had only one line:

['Boss, abnormal data flow detected. Source: Epoch Administration Bureau. Target: New Era Development shareholding structure. Suspected... someone is attempting to tamper with the shareholder register.']

Lin Chen's smile froze for a second.

He looked up at the sky.

There, a faint, ethereal light was flickering.

Yuanshi.

He really wouldn't just sit idly by.

Lin Chen withdrew his gaze and said in a low voice to Golden Abacus:

"There might be a problem with the equity. I need to deal with it immediately."

Golden Abacus's brow furrowed.

"Yuanshi?"

Lin Chen nodded.

Golden Abacus was silent for a second, then said:

"Speak up if you need help. I'm a shareholder now; if something happens to the company, I lose money too."

Lin Chen smiled.

"Don't worry. Your dividends won't be short by a single cent."

He turned and quickly walked down the platform.

Behind him, the creditors were still cheering, the journalists were still taking photos, and the survivors were still celebrating.

But they didn't know—

A new war had just begun.