Ye Zi sighed:

"That's most of my life savings."

"I know, but you can find a way to earn that money back, after all, you're still young," Sister Meng joked.

"Life is tough when you don't have money."

"Come on, don't think I don't know you still have at least two billion Chinese dollars in your hands."

Ye Zi made a face. Sister Meng was right; there were indeed more than 2 billion RMB in his account, which was no small sum.

But compared to the more than 30 billion that should have been in hand, it's far less.

A five-fold payout of one billion US dollars equals five billion US dollars. Converting five billion US dollars into Chinese yuan, that's four times three hundred billion.

"The final decision on this matter is still undecided; let's wait and see."

After listening to Sister Meng's words, Ye Zi could only continue to wait, because he couldn't make the decision. Even if he went to collect the debt, wouldn't he need the help of someone on the verge of death? It would be too difficult for him to do it on his own.

Having escaped death's door, I went home and continued to lie in bed.

Mengjie guessed right; this was indeed James's plan. After the game, on the plane back, he racked his brains trying to figure out a way to keep his job.

After the plane landed, he was completely clueless and was severely scolded. He went home with a suspension notice.

While feeling the pain of losing his gambling debts, he also checked the money that was about to arrive in his account. Indeed, he didn't have complete confidence in the experts he had recruited.

Although he bet on Steve to win, he also placed bets on Ye Zi, so even if he lost, he wouldn't lose much money.

It was this action that gave him hope of keeping his job.

Ye Zi is indeed powerful, but what good is power now? We live in the age of firearms; swords and knives have been phased out of battle. If it weren't for making money, this competition wouldn't even exist.

If a knife won't work, use a gun; if a pistol won't work, use a rifle; if a rifle won't work, use a machine gun; if a machine gun won't work, increase the bullet caliber.

If guns don't work, use cannons; if cannons don't work, use missiles.

What James needs to do now is not to recover the losses, but to eliminate Leaf. Only by eliminating Leaf can the situation be most favorable for him and the Bald Eagle government.

After removing the leaves, not only can I keep my job, but I can also continue to organize competitions and make money.

At the same time, it allows the people of the Bald Eagle to continue to dominate the underground fighting world, and it gives the Bald Eagle government face.

After finalizing the plan, James immediately notified the betting company to suspend payouts for the "Gate of Hell" bet, and also informed the higher-ups of his thoughts.

James was only suspended; he wasn't arrested to take the blame, so there shouldn't be any problems with his external communications.

Those who were paying out bets were willing to give James face until his final outcome was revealed, since paying out bets wasn't something that could be done in a day or two; it was just a matter of changing the order of payouts, a minor issue.

After learning of James's plan, the higher-ups immediately discussed it and concluded that it was highly feasible.

Although the Ghost Gate and James's department are fighting, it certainly won't lead to war. As two of the most powerful nations, neither dares to easily start a national war.

Moreover, their target is only Ye Zi. As long as Ye Zi appears in Bald Eagle territory, they can launch a raid to eliminate him, since people like Ye Zi have long been on the list of people prohibited from entering the country.

Just like Steve, he was also placed on China's entry ban list.

Their entry into the country means they're here to cause trouble, and nobody wants to gamble on what might happen.

Now, if they force Ye Zi to enter the country, they will have a reason to encircle and suppress her, and it would be reasonable for them to use firearms.

Once the crackdown begins, all external communication methods in the area will be blocked, and the money owed for the near-death experience will be paid immediately.

Once Ye Zi is killed, the matter will be closed on the grounds that she was killed accidentally due to illegal entry, language barrier, and her resistance and refusal to cooperate with deportation.

Furthermore, James contacted researchers from the Super Soldier program. If they could kill Leaf, they would obtain Leaf's body and then study Leaf's body structure.

The leaves' strength has exceeded human limits, and even surpasses Steve, whom these researchers are so proud of. If they could obtain a genetic sample from the leaves, it would be an absolute boon to their research.

Just as the higher-ups were discussing the feasibility of this matter, the researchers' requests became an important factor in the final decision.

To dominate the world, one needs not only high-tech weapons, but also sufficiently strong soldiers.

The Super Soldier program only succeeded with one Steve; having another genetic source would definitely be a great help.

Then the plan was officially approved, and although James was not reinstated, he was able to participate in the plan.

Meanwhile, the bald eagle assembled a force specifically to wait for leaves to take the bait.

The commander in charge of the operation was a major, whose soldiers came from diverse backgrounds, including the army, navy, and air force.

In the United States, the major is a very interesting military academy. Sometimes, he dares to confront even generals, and he is responsible for most of the strange and unusual missions.

Of course, after the incident, the major was the one who took the blame.

The position is not high, but the power is considerable, and the work is quite busy.

James received a clear answer: if the plan succeeds and Ye Zi dies on their turf, he can be reinstated and continue organizing the wilderness survival competition to make more money.

But if Ye Zi doesn't come, James can retire on the spot.

Moreover, in this operation, James was to provide the major with all the information about Ye Zi.

Not only James, but also Steve, who was recovering from injury, was brought up. As the only person who had fought Ye Zi twice and survived, no one knew Ye Zi's fighting strength better than Steve.

But Steve couldn't offer any useful advice either. He had indeed fought Ye Zi twice, but only with melee weapons.

However, Steve still spoke the truth, saying that he thought the pistol was useless because he knew that there was a kind of hard qigong in China that could stop pistol bullets without any problem.

Submachine guns are also not recommended. Steve's attacks are no less powerful than those of a submachine gun, but his attacks were ineffective against the leaves.

Steve's suggestion was to use a rifle directly, along with armor-piercing rounds.

Ye Zi did spare Steve's life, but it was a business deal. Steve traded his collection for his life, and the two had no personal relationship.

Business is business; personal feelings shouldn't be involved.

This phenomenon is very common in the United States, where everything is driven by profit.

Moreover, killing the leaves is also beneficial for Steve, because no one is pressing down on them.

Steve had held the top spot for years, but after Ye Zi appeared, he lost that title.

Not only did he lose his reputation, but he also lost his wealth and status. It wouldn't be accurate to call it kicking someone when they're down, but it certainly benefited him.

The payout staff also received a notice from higher-ups to delay paying out the money won at the brink of death, until the payout team came knocking.

Then when Sister Meng contacted them, she received a reply that they were raising funds.