Chapter 262: The Navigator

The last person Li Mochen met in his study was Carl Holton.

“From the end of yesterday’s match until nine this morning, our sales in the Southeast Region alone have exceeded 6.3 billion gold shields. Over 170,000 customers have already received the lucky ring identical to yours.”

“170,000?”

Li Mochen asked curiously: “What’s the threshold?”

“As long as total spending at our stores reaches 30,000 gold shields within a month.”

Carl Holton beamed: “That’s quite fair, A-Mo. We’ve already taken care of customers who previously bought lucky bracelets from us.”

Li Mochen thought to himself that the Nathan Sports Group was truly ruthless. With just these 170,000 people, that’s already 5.1 billion gold shields in sales. How much money had they made off his fans? And the key was, he didn’t get a cut.

“As for the lucky bracelets, they were completely sold out by eight last night. The previous inventory of 150,000 pieces, plus the 7,000 rush-produced over the past few days, all sold out.”

“That’s good news. Looks like I’ve made another pile of money and won’t have to worry about repaying the loan, right?”

Li Mochen’s expression eased slightly: “This sales figure does surprise me. I thought defeating Kadio Rhodes would spark widespread skepticism among the audience.”

From the talk shows and programs he’d just watched on two TV stations, he could already gauge the general direction of public opinion.

The key was that Kadio Rhodes had indeed cheated, which inevitably led people to question the fairness of the match. Unless he had a record that could convince people, it would be hard to quell public doubts.

Carl was touched, thinking: So you actually have that awareness?

“That trend does exist. You won too cleanly, A-Mo. The Arcadis company is also doing their best to muddy the waters. To claw their way out of the mire, they can only sling mud at you and Kadio Rhodes.”

“But many media outlets are speaking up for you too. And your female fans, A-Mo—they’re irrational and the most fanatical. They don’t care what the professional critics say. Many veterans in the fighting world are also on your side. The way you threw Kadio Rhodes out of the ring twice was very concise, very dashing. I must remind you, this is your foundation, your base—”

“So winning or losing doesn’t matter; what matters is being cool and dashing, right?”

“EMMM~ You still need to mind the time. You should at least go a few rounds with your opponent, or the advertisers won’t have time to insert commercials. But at the professional level, it’ll be much better.”

Carl felt he was getting off track and stopped himself: “Anyway, about the lucky bracelets: there are two opinions within the company. One is to suspend sales temporarily to create a scarcity effect; the other is to have the factory rush production and release the second batch to the market soon. Do you have a preference, A-Mo? This is your endorsed product, so we need your input.”

“The first option.”

Li Mochen was thick-skinned and black-hearted, with a long-term vision. He unhesitatingly chose the plan that maximized profit.

“But I hope products like the lucky bracelet will only happen once during my sponsorship contract.”

After all, this was exploiting his fans. Li Mochen considered it a repayment of favors. If not for the Nathan Sports Group and Dwight Payton backing him, Antonio wouldn’t have been so constrained in his war against him.

“Of course. The East has a saying: ‘Rarity makes things precious.’”

Carl gave his promise readily: “Oh, one more thing. The people from Dream City Fight Club asked when you’d come to the club. They’ve already recruited the students for the advanced training class and are waiting for you to start teaching.”

Li Mochen suddenly remembered this deal, which he had negotiated to a daily rate of 500,000 gold shields, and he gritted his teeth: “I’ll head over shortly. It’s best if the class starts this afternoon.”

There was no help for it. Though he now controlled over a hundred million gold shields, most of it couldn’t be exposed to sunlight.

Li Mochen decided to hire an agent as soon as possible to sign a few big endorsement deals. But at the same time, the three-month coaching contract he’d signed with Dream City still had to be fulfilled.

And he was a man who valued his promises. Since he’d taken their money, he absolutely couldn’t stand them up.

…

William Jacques had come to Unicorn Apartment to use Li Mochen’s equipment for physical training and to ask for fighting tips.

Angela had come to bring Li Mochen breakfast. The young lady also wanted to check on Hazel, but unfortunately, the latter was still unconscious.

Li Mochen had taken Hazel’s pulse and knew she was fine, but she wouldn’t wake up anytime soon. The power preserved in her body still exceeded the limit her soul could bear, and she needed time to sleep and adapt.

So he left with peace of mind and headed alone to Dream City Fight Club. Perhaps due to his current high popularity, the club treated him with great courtesy; the general manager even came out personally to receive him, showing exceptional respect.

What surprised Li Mochen was that another man came out with the club’s general manager. He was about 1.9 meters tall, with a thin build like a bamboo pole, around sixty-something years old, with a full head of silver hair.

“Hello, Mr. Wiltonshire.”

The man shook hands with Li Mochen with a smile: “I think you’ve heard of me, right? Edward Jeffries, from NTA (Navigator Talent Agency).”

“I know you.”

Li Mochen blinked: “The founder of NTA, a big name active in both Hollywood and the sports world. Not long ago, you helped Chandler of the Sharks sign a super contract worth 1.59 billion gold shields over five years, right?”

That story had been all over the TV news for a while, and William had mentioned it to him many times, so Li Mochen remembered the key figure from the news.

He could guess why this man had come, but the club entrance was hardly the place for a chat. So after a few exchanges, they moved to the general manager’s office.

“I originally planned to visit your apartment in person, but my friend Tonier said you’d be coming to the club today as a coach, so I came here early to wait for you.”

Once they were seated, Tonier Terry—the general manager of Dream City Club—found an excuse to leave, giving them space to talk alone.

Edward Jeffries got straight to the point: “Mr. Wiltonshire, you should have guessed why I’m here. Our Navigator Talent Agency wants to sign you—very much, and we’re determined to succeed. I came all the way from Los Angeles in person to show how much we value you and our sincerity. Boy, in the future, you will be a very important piece in our company’s blueprint.”