Mr. Pato didn’t quite understand what Lynch was saying, and he didn’t ask.

His pride and dignity didn’t allow him to say "I don’t understand" and then plead for an answer. He wasn’t that kind of person.

In fact, what Lynch referred to as the "future" was the deindustrialization trend in capital development.

This is also an inevitable trend in the development of capitalist countries!

Nagariel’s entry into the Federation’s ecosystem actually accelerated this process, causing deindustrialization, which was supposed to occur decades later, to appear prematurely in the Federation’s environment.

What is deindustrialization?

This question is simple yet somewhat complex. Simply put, it is about capital seeking greater profits by compressing all kinds of costs.

Labor, land, the use of basic resources including transportation, have always been the largest costs in industry. Previously, the people of the Federation didn’t have many choices, so the level of deindustrialization was always zero.

It was quietly waiting for a suitable time to emerge.

After Nagariel was controlled by the United Development Company, the local cheap labor force, low land usage fees, cheaper waste disposal methods like sewage discharge, and nearly costless basic resource expenses.

This led some factories to relocate from the Federation to Nagariel, building plants there, allowing capitalists to save a lot of money, and this trend is gradually spreading from a few people to many.

If deeper reasons and other factors are not considered, this is "deindustrialization."

Deindustrialization is a manifestation of capital pursuing profits. Every progress in a capitalist society is aligned with the pursuit of greater interests!

However, this is just a budding tendency. It will take a long time for it to become a social trend.

It will also take a long time for the negative effects brought by this trend to manifest.

After having lunch with Mr. Pato, Lynch returned to his home. Mr. Pato might initiate a round of reform in the Consortium due to this conversation, but that’s only a possibility.

The turmoil of the silver case gradually subsided, with large amounts of gold being transported from the International Port to the Federation after the delivery date and stored in banks designated by Lynch.

On such a day, Lynch sought out the High Priest.

The High Priest looked a bit younger than before, although he still had many wrinkles.

When he saw Lynch, he actively hugged him, exuding a kind of "Federation confidence" all over, perhaps this is the greatest facet of the Bail Federal.

It can rapidly assimilate every ethnicity, regardless of where these people came from, what language they spoke, or what beliefs and living habits they had.

As long as they came to the Federation and lived here for a period, they would be assimilated into "Federation citizens."

Federation citizens could even be described as a nation transcending ethnic definitions, which is also the most formidable aspect of the Federation—it never fears enemies, for as long as the enemies give it a chance, it can assimilate everyone!

"I’ve been waiting for you, Lynch!" The High Priest said, pulling Lynch into his villa—it’s normal for a millionaire to own a villa in Bupen.

The fan was on in the room, and the breeze made everything feel delightful, Bupen’s temperature was just around twenty-five or six degrees, coupled with a gentle breeze, everything was just right.

The maid brought them drinks and some pastries, along with fresh fruit.

The High Priest held the maid’s hand, looking at her, "Bring them down, along with my children."

The maid left, and the High Priest turned to Lynch, "I’ve always wanted to reach out to you, to thank you for all you’ve done for me, Lynch, you are a good person!"

The High Priest spoke sincerely, as the religious customs in Nagariel are quite... peculiar.

Anyone can have numerous fathers since nobody knows if they were born from the temple’s water and their own mother.

Even by counting the days, most Saintesses touched by the divine receive an abundance of Divine Power injections daily.

So nobody can distinguish who their father is or who the children are.

The High Priest simply believed those children might be his, and thus became a father to them, guiding them to become new Priests.

He never thought of having his own true child, for within their entire religious organization, nobody minds about these things.

It wasn’t until he came to the Federation that, after a great disappointment, an impulse inexplicably arose in his deepest heart!

He wanted a child of his own, a true child!

He used to see Rica as a reflection of his younger self, and during that time, he liked Rica very much.

But now, he saw Rica becoming less like himself.

Fortunately, everything got resolved.

The Federation is truly a magical place. With money, it can indeed surpass all religious descriptions of the Divine Kingdom!

The image of young, fertile girls lying in bed for money gave him a feeling he never had before, making him feel like a god.

He was able to control the emotions of these people, could let these people act according to his will!

Indeed, it’s a magical place!

Of course, he was especially grateful to Lynch, who brought him to the Federation.

The two talked about some very simple matters, and then two girls came downstairs, each holding a child.

The two girls seemed healthier, having gained some weight, as their post-natal life seemed to be doing well!

"Two boys!" the High Priest announced proudly.

He had the right to be proud. After all, he’s sixty and still able to impregnate two twenty-year-old girls, which he saw as a testament to his capability!

Looking at the two lively boys, Lynch nodded, interacted briefly with the children, and then deliberately shifted his gaze from them.

This situation was within his expectation. The two girls were carefully selected, having no negative emotions towards pregnancy and childbirth; as long as the money was in place, they didn’t mind who impregnated them or what they gave birth to.

The High Priest smiled and waved his hand, and the two girls left with the children.

After the children turned one year old, each girl would receive a fee of two hundred thousand.

To earn money in two years that many can’t in a lifetime, they found this not excessive at all.

After a few more exchanges, the High Priest smiled and said, "Lynch, my friend, is there anything I can do to help you?"

"I’m not accustomed to the occasional hypocrisy of Federation citizens, so I speak my mind."

"If it makes you uncomfortable, I apologize for that."

Lynch waved his hand, "No, it’s fine. I too dislike going around in circles on unrelated matters."

"The purpose of my visit is to hope I can continue acquiring gold from Nagariel. I know you have the means..."

If anyone else could hold a vast amount of gold, without a doubt it would be the High Priests and Priests of Nagariel.

Despite the progression of secularization and the weakening religious influence in many places, it doesn’t mean those within religion lack money.

These High Priests, with decades, even centuries of accumulation, each have immeasurable Wealth—Gold!

Religion centralized most of the country’s gold into the hands of a small group, and Lynch desired these gold reserves!

The High Priest had no qualms after hearing this. Now that he had become a Federation citizen, Nagariel was long gone in his mind.

"I’m not sure if I can help you; you know, now I’m just an ordinary old man."

"But I will write and mention this to those people. If they are smart, they’ll know what to do."

Lynch expressed his gratitude for the High Priest’s understanding and then asked, "I have one more question, how did previous High Priests usually handle their gold?"

The High Priest paused; he wasn’t expecting... no, he should have anticipated it, but he overlooked it.

After a brief silence, he explained, "Before we die, we would use gold and gems to construct a ship."

"And then we would travel aboard this ship, cross the endless sea abyss, to reach the Land of the Dead..."

In the native religion of Nagariel, High Priests were divine incarnations within the Human World, distinctly different from ordinary people.

They were allowed to reach the realm of death while alive; as long as they could reach the City of the Dead, they could access the Celestial Kingdom via the Heaven-Reaching Tower.

So almost all High Priests pursued eternity to enter the Celestial Kingdom, seeking Eternal Life, by the end.

They would create a very beautiful golden coffin, and then craft various utensils from the remaining gold; these were not for burial accompaniment, but as offerings to the deities in the Celestial Kingdom.

Once the time came, they would be sent to a designated place and then have the ships pierced so everything sank to the bottom...

Listening to the High Priest’s account, Lynch figured it must be a very bad experience, as most High Priests didn’t wait to die before heading to the world of the dead.

They were sealed in coffins while still alive and relatively healthy, before being submerged into the sea.

If the coffin was sealed tightly enough, they might endure a long, desperate stretch in the darkness.

If the coffin was insufficiently sealed, they must embrace death painfully.

Suffocation is the most painful way to die!

Madmen!

After the High Priest finished describing, Lynch asked, "You must know that place, don’t you?"

The High Priest was in a daze for a moment and nodded, "It’s at the location of the Eye of God..."

Lynch quickly acquired a detailed hand-drawn nautical chart and received a letter.

The High Priest, having put down his pen, seemed like he had more to say, appearing hesitant, but Lynch stored everything away and didn’t rush him, just waiting quietly.

After about half a minute, the High Priest looked up at Lynch and said, "..."