The Cross Clan had changed!

Before, Ves and the Larkinsons looked down on the Crossers. The latter were a bunch of washed-up warriors who lost their foundation.

Ves even concocted some plans to assimilate the refugees into the Larkinsons. No matter their deficiencies, the refugee fleet largely consisted of bona-fide second-class soldiers. Their martial prowess exceeded that of the Hexers.

This was because unlike Hexadric Hegemony, the Garlen Empire constantly engaged in war!

Even though the scale of wars in the Vicious Mountain Star Sector was not very large, the fact that many Garlaners fought in their lifetimes was undeniable!

Only true war produced true warriors. Ves had already observed many deficiencies from both sides of the Komodo War. In particular, the insular Hexers made many assumptions that turned out to be different from reality.

The tribes of the Garlen Empire would never make so many fundamental mistakes! Their enthusiasm for battle meant they were very motivated in increasing their effective battle strength.

Each time the Larkinsons saw the Crosser mechs performing live exercises, the disparity in martial tradition became very clear.

The Cross Clan were consummate soldiers and warriors!

The precision of their formations, their controlled aggression, the versatility and utilization of their powerful second-class mechs and more completely transcended everything Ves had witnessed!

Even if the Larkinson Clan's mech forces possessed a strong core of battle-hardened veterans, their foundation was still too shallow. Surviving a few desperate battles in the Nyxian Gap did not make the Larkinsons qualified to take part in proper conflicts between second-class powers.

"We still have much to go to complete our transition from a third-class to a second-class power." Ves sighed as his shuttle departed the grand flagship of the Cross Clan.

In terms of military development, the Cross clan possessed an undeniable edge.

The reason why the Larkinson Clan still kept its head high was because of its superior industrial and financial strength.

This went beyond just having a pair of Journeyman. The LMC was a rising mech company that had long exceeded the scale of other typical mech companies. The great attraction of glows caused its products to have a very wide appeal in many different markets.

The revenue earned by the company was astronomical! Though the low value of third-class mechs and the large number of middlemen involved meant that the per-unit profit was fairly low, the quantity of sales was terrifying!

Across the surrounding star sectors, LMC mechs became increasingly more ubiquitous.

The current commercial mech models offered by the LMC all provided a lot of value, making them a good fit for many customers in almost every state.

The Komodo War also showed the great promise of employing LMC mechs on a much greater scale. This meant that customers were ordering the LMC's products in greater batches than before!

These trends showed no signs of abating. In fact, the LMC's growth jumped yet again as the publicity of the Miracle Couple's wedding enabled the LMC to reach out to even further markets!

Money was the foundation of success in human space.

The Larkinson Clan only needed a little time to convert its earnings into additional battle power.

"It's too bad I can't take advantage of the Crossers anymore." Ves regretfully sighed.

Now that the Cross Clan gained the support of the Skull Architect, their industrial and financial prowess would likely surge again. It would take time, but the prospect of bankruptcy no longer loomed over their heads.

The only advantage the Larkinson Clan possessed was that its scale and foundation was hard to match by most competitors.

The Skull Architect did not possess as great of a business foundation as the Miracle Couple. He essentially had to start from scratch, whether it was designing a set of suitable mechs for the Crossers to acquiring the industrial capacity needed to produce his mechs.

He did not possess the cluster-wide production, distribution and sales networks that the LMC painstakingly built.

His current cover identity wasn't famous enough. Almost no one had heard of 'Professor Benedict Cortez'. It would take years of hard work to build up a reputation that was somewhat comparable to recently-advanced Seniors. Without the brand recognition of an established mech company, the Skull Architect wouldn't be able to achieve a lot of sales at the start.

"It's doubtful whether he will even invest in a fixed industry."

There wasn't enough time. The Red Ocean beckoned. The Larkinson Clan was almost ready to embark on its grand expedition. Once it departed, the LMC operations it left behind wouldn't become abandoned goods.

The LMC already made adequate preparations to keep its local operations going. With the help of prior accumulation, business alliances, government support and the Larkinson Loyalty Medallions, it was no problem to maintain their current level of productivity and profitability.

For at least a decade, the LMC's operations in the Yeina Star Sector would continue to supply a steady stream of cash to the Larkinson Clan.

This was vitally important because it was not easy for the Larkinson Clan to earn a sufficient amount of money on the move. Its expanding fleet and mech roster meant that its expenses were ballooning rapidly.

There was no choice. The current Larkinson Clan had to invest enormous sums in almost every aspect. The current development for the clan called for the acquisition of lots of capital ships, sub-capital ships, mechs, supplies and augmentations.

Even with the astounding success of the LMC, Ves still needed to work hard to expand its income.

This was something the Cross Clan and its new guest would never be able to accomplish in a short time.

"It seems the problem is not as bad as I feared. The Larkinson Clan should still possess a strong financial edge.

It was just that the Cross Clan was no longer in such a desperate position as before. Senior Mech Designers had many ways to earn money aside from running their own mech companies.

Even without producing a single mech, Professor Cortez could leverage his formidable design skills to design excellent mechs and simply put them up for licensing or outright sell them like a design studio.

He could even accept commissions from wealthy clients. Just like how Ves initially accepted a commission from DIVA, it was no problem for a Senior to solve the problem of individual clients for a rich reward.

Aside from that, there were other ways that the Skull Architect could earn money. He could tutor mech designers over the galactic net. He could leverage his formidable science and engineering knowledge to assist in the research and development of mech components.

In short, Seniors were never destitute!

"There are limits, though."

Why did so many mech designers dream of running their own mech company?

It was because selling mechs was the most lucrative choice out of all of their options!

While the Skull Architect would doubtlessly work hard to earn money in his own way, Ves was pretty certain that he held an advantage in this area.

There was only so much a single person could achieve. The time of a Senior was very valuable, but without the backing of an entire mech company, Professor Cortez shouldn't be able to reverse the fortunes of the Cross Clan single-handedly.

"The situation will only change once we reach the Red Ocean." Ves guessed.

The Red Ocean would be their new base of operations. It was not unthinkable for the Cross Clan to establish a fixed presence on some planets in order to get the Skull Architect's mech company up and running.

In fact, with his strength as a Senior, Professor Cortez's business operations in the dwarf galaxy might surpass that of his own ventures!

"It depends on how I plan to conduct business in the new galaxy." Ves hummed.

He held many discussions on this topic with the likes of Gavin and Raymond. Ves was inclined to rely primarily on his upcoming factory ship to produce high-end mechs, but most of the executives of his mech company wanted to establish a stronger presence at fixed settlements.

Regardless of the choice, Ves believed that the Cross Clan might rise up rapidly once it established a firm foundation in the Red Ocean.

That did not spell good news to the Larkinsons. Once the Crossers grew stronger, they would definitely want more say in their partnership.

"How troublesome."

Their partnership might dissolve or at least diminish to a lower level of cooperation.

Ves shrugged. "That won't happen for at least a decade. At that time, our Larkinson Clan should have caught up to the military development of the Cross Clan. Perhaps we don't need to rely on any close alliances to survive in the Red Ocean."

Aside from sharing the cost of a beyonder ticket, the principal motivation to band together was because the Red Ocean was too dangerous.

In the first ten years of their stay in the dwarf galaxy, none of the pioneers could guarantee their safety. As long as any of them stepped outside of the protected star system, it was open season!

Partnering up with the Cross Clan still made sense.

Besides, the addition of the Skull Architect brought a lot of benefits in this critical early period. The offers he made showed that the former fugitive was not domineering and knew how to act according to his current position.

Ves was no longer the weak Apprentice Mech Designer of before, while the Skull Architect had long left behind his identity as one of the most formidable pirate mech designers of the Faris Star Region.

Despite the gap in age, experience and rank, the two of them were actually quite close in status. They also needed each other to complete their own goals, and this caused Ves to feel at ease.

There were no inherent conflicts between them. There was no logical reason for the Skull Architect to go against the mech designer who might possibly play a key role in helping him advance to Master!

"I should stop referring him to his old moniker."

Professor Cortez seemed determined enough to leave his old life and habits behind. As long as he did not engage in any crazy experiments, he shouldn't be a liability.

While his shuttle was still on its way to its next destination, Ves briefly conferred with Calabast, Major Verle and some other people about the changes to the Cross Clan.

"Our bargaining position has weakened." Calabast frowned.

"We haven't lost out that much. The Cross Clan is able to provide more benefits now. Besides, the amount of MTA merits is the most important factor. Our superiority in this aspect will ensure we retain enough dominance."

"That is true, thankfully."

Once Ves dealt with these matters, his shuttle finally arrived next to a civilian passenger ship.

This was not a regular ship. She hailed from the Harmony Association of Majestic Teal.

Ves passed through the hatch and stepped onto the deck of the foreign ship with Lucky and Nitaa. Two people along with some perfunctory guards awaited his arrival.

"Patriarch Larkinson! Welcome aboard our ship." Erander Tsai called.

Ves shook hands with the senior shipwright.

"Thank you. Is this…"

"This is my daughter, Vivian Tsai."

A woman in her thirties with straight black hair and a professional outfit stepped forward and bowed. "Hello."

Ves sensed that the younger ship designer was feeling rather mixed.

She never expected her father to recommend her to the Larkinson Clan all of a sudden. She was doing fairly well in the Harmony Association. Why should she leave behind her friends and family and travel hundreds of thousands of light-years away?

Vivian didn't know what to make of her current situation!

This was one of the reasons why Ves visited in person. He did not want to delay her recruitment and integration into the Larkinson Clan. With the impending arrival of his factory ship, it became more important than ever to gain an expert who understood ship construction at a deeper level.

If he waited, who knew whether she would leave. He needed to take matters into his own hands and convince this young but promising shipwright to work on his behalf!