Have you ever thought of a world where the greatest heroes in History would one day banned together which will start the new era of future heroes? Well if you have great if not then start. This is a story about how the MARVEL Universe and the DC Universe got combined together creating the Merge. Madelyn Brooks and her brother Sebastian are the next coming. They will go through tough challenges, disaster situations, and lose a lot more on the process of understanding what it means to be a hero.

Orion means female warrior..
this story have some volume with suspense...

Earth; Country J, Afternoon
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I mean, I've been mainly doing it during the weekends, when I have more free time. Not much really, just some light jogging.'

Ryan was doing his best not to stop himself from sweating, or else he'd give it away. Hopefully, he could curve her interest by lying.

"Ahh, I see. So what route do you usually take?"

Jannette asked, as she reached for her bag and took out her signature yellow notebook and black pen. Quickly flipping it to an empty page, she started writing things down.

"Well, come on, or are you nervous. You shouldn't be, I'm just asking what jogging route you take, you see I've been thinking of going out and doing some jogging myself. I figured since you have already started, you could give me some tips. What do you find are the best routes."

'Well, I've only just started, so I don't have any set routes. I'm not even sure whether I am going to keep at it for much longer, so I really can't help you that much.'

Ryan sincerely hoped he managed to end the questioning. The longer Jannette talks to you the more likely she is to lead you into a trap.

"Ahh, I see. Well then, not much to do there. But still, what does exercise have to do with better grades?"

Samuel responded to her.

"It's a proven fact that physical activities such as jogging help send blood to the brain, which in turn helps you think more clearly and improve your mood so that probably has something to do with it. Actually, I'd love to go jogging myself but I'm too frail to do so."

"Ah, thanks, Sam. Couldn't have said any better myself."

Samual gave Ryan a look which quite clearly implied: 'You owe me one'. No one here trusted the other, at least not to Ryan's knowledge, but that didn't mean they wouldn't help each other.

Anyway, that officially cleared up the whole mess.

"So anyway, are you done picking on Ryan, Janette, because if so I want to hear more about those Private Soldiers you were talking about earlier. Right, Nathan."

Amelia asked.

"Sorry, what's going on? I can't keep up."

Nathan responded with another question, genuinely confused.

"Janette should stop picking on Ryan and I was asking about those Private Soldiers she mentioned earlier. Come on, Nathan, are you really THAT slow? Geez."

Yep, a classic example of Amelia not mincing her words in the slightest. Actually, she may have put some effort into it this time, since her insult was slightly softer than normal. Just slightly.

Some people are probably wondering why Ryan hangs out with these people. Well, Amelia is a member of the student council. The most reliable member to be exact. Still, she's rude and blunt, so most people have trouble getting along with her. The people who do hang around here are the people who were put into her care by the principle for one reason or another, or the people who are there for those above-mentioned people. The earlier sentence also perfectly describes the composition of the people of the table. 

For example, Tyrone and Janette are known to bother people, Tyrone with his high volume, and Jannette with her excessive prying, meanwhile Emily and Samuel are in danger of bullying since they are both really weak, Emily mentally and Samuel physically. So they were put in Amelia's care, Janette and Tyrone to prevent them from bothering others, and Emly and Samual to prevent them from being bothered by others. And don't forget Nathan, who is in constant danger of failing. Actually most of the kids in school are failing, but they don't care. Nathan is one of the few who tries to keep his grades up, which his why he was paired with Amelia to help him keep up.

Then come Ryan and Oscar. You see, Janette, being the gossip freak she is, is basically considered the school's living newspaper. She will happily tell you about anything and everything going on at the time, which is why those who value that information tend to hang around her, since that way they can better maintain their safety. Samuel, on the other hand, with the highest grades in the entire school, is considered the school's walking library, and will gladly help tutor anyone who comes to him, which for those who value them is crucial for keeping their grades up to standard.

As for the people who don't stick around them, well they either don't care about their services or are deterred by the reputation of the people who surround said services, in this case, Tyrone's noise, Janette's prying, Nathan's paranoia and fighting prowess, and Amelia's uncontained rudeness. The hurdle may not seem high, but in a school where most people don't feel like they need those services that much, or simply don't care about them at all, it's high enough.

Actually, all things considered, the entire group basically revolves around Amelia. It should also be mentioned that all things considered, no one in the table, apart from Oscar, can be considered normal.

"Oh yeah. Now I remember, you were talking about it yesterday but got cut off by the bell."

Nathan finally responded after some thought, referring to Janette as he did.

"That does sound interesting."

"Yeah, I hear about it too."

"Me too ..."

The attention of everyone on the table immediately changed to the current topic. Ryan pitched in as well in order to get attention pointed away from his changes. Besides, Private Soldiers were rare and expensive, so only rich families had them. For them to be in a small city like this means that there is something here to draw their attention. That also means there is a good chance of the city being torn apart by the competition. After all, if one family finds it worth it to mobilize their troops, then other families definitely will as well, so there is a high chance of this resulting in a lot of conflicts, which made it important to know the details in order to avoid being a casualty of said conflicts. After all, no one wants to die just because they walked into the wrong place got shot with a stray bullet.

Also, Ryan has powers now, so he has to be extra cautious. After all, what if they are looking for The Book or something and he is in danger and has to run away. Better to know as soon as possible than at the last moment

"Ah right. Well, according to my sources, some idiot found an ore vein filled with precious metals, and reported it to the government. The big families found out and quickly bought up as much land in the city as they could. Now they're trying to find the mine."

"Find it? Didn't that guy already find it? Just capture and interrogate him."

"They tried that apparently, but too many people were after him and he got a stray bullet to his skull before anyone could get the exact location. All they know it's that it's in Eastside so somewhere around districts 12 through 17."

This is why information is important. You see, the city is generally divided into 7 zones. Northside, Eastside, Westside, City Center, The Gate, The Market, and The Towers. 

The first four are pretty obvious, Eastside is the eastern part of the city, City Central is literally the center of the city. Each is known for their own thing. 

Northside is a ton of factories and dumps and is, of course, the poorest part of the city, but surprisingly not the most dangerous. Rumor has it a force called 'The Resistance' has a base hidden there, but even Janette doesn't have any info on that. At least not to Ryan's knowledge. 

Eastside is where most of the City's people live, and it's a mix of low-cost apartments, hotels, and stores, both big and small. Westside is a bunch of normal neighborhoods with its fair share of brand stores and small businesses, and it's where Ryan lives, works, and goes to school. 

City Center is basically the government area and it's full of government-run facilities, such as parks, hospitals, firehouses, and police stations, making it the safest part of the city. The few who live there are either in penthouses or apartments. 

The Gate is the second most prosperous section of the city, and it's basically a ton of luxury stores, condos, and mansions. It's called the Gate because of the highway that runs through it and straight toward the Towers. The Towers is a business zone of office buildings and casinos, and its called the tower for its abundance of skyscrapers, not to mention where most of the city's money distribution happens. 

The Market is just what you would expect. A hodgepodge for small businesses, illegal deals, and cheap housing. It's the second poorest area and overall the most dangerous place.

The city structure is pretty simple. City Center and The Towers in the middle, with The Market surrounding them on the three sides, the fourth side being covered by The Gate, which then extends further south until city limits.  Northside, Eastside, and Westside take up the other three cardinal directions, starting from the Market and extending until city limits. Of course, none of these zones was officially recognized, but they were widely accepted by the city's residents. 

The city was however officially divided into 32 districts. District 1 through 3 makes up the City Center, while Districts 4 through 6 are The Towers. District 7 through 11 covers The Market area. Districts 12 through 17 are Eastside, Districts 18 through 24 are Northside, and Districts 25 through 28 cover Westside. Districts 29 through 32 form The Gate. 

Ryan lives in District 26, and 9th High School is in District 27.

Ryan is your average kid, except for his unstoppable imagination and perception. He isn't a genius by any regard, just very imaginative and wise beyond his years.

One day he found a book. It had no name and no words. Just 1 page with 2 different symbols.

Thus began the tale of a god and his creations.

Thus began the Atheron Cosmos.

[The cover is not mine although I did edit it for my purposes. A large part of Vol 1. is world-building (literally).]

Common people were taken by surprise by the overwhelming advertising, the franchise stores that sprouted like bamboos after the rain, the giant posters in all municipalities, and all the news reported by the fashion media.
The L’Oréal agencies in South Korea, Japan, Hong Kong and Singapore were ordered to expand as soon as possible. They were determined to get a share of the large Chinese market, which was their final destination in Asia.
After his harsh previous presence in China, Qin Guan returned to his home country with L’Oréal like a king.
There were overwhelming advertisements of L’Oréal on TV, which made Chinese men survey themselves carefully. They had been taught that gentlemen should also pay attention to their appearance. Large pores, blackheads and oily skin were not a symbol of masculinity, but a skin problem.
More and more men felt compelled to buy professional cleansing lotion. They didn’t want to share their products with their wives anymore.
Even the fragrance of cologne could result in more invitations from their female colleagues. Everyone had the same reaction to the advertisement.
We could date foreign girls if we looked neat enough. Men also have the right to be beauty-conscious.
The counters at shopping malls couldn’t meet the demands of ordinary people, while the cosmetics shelves at large chain supermarkets like Carrefour and Wal-mart were decorated. 
Smaller shelves were filled with household products. The familiar foreign brand had conquered them.
To satisfy Chinese customers, they developed more and more products targeted at Asian women. As the trend spread, people remembered Qin Guan.
"He is Xuzhu, I remember him! He is still as handsome as ever!"
"It's said that he is studying abroad."
"He has captivated foreigners! He is an honor to us all. I’ll buy something to support him!"
Although L’Oréal products were much more expensive than domestic products, some people still felt inclined to buy them.
After advertising non-stop for one month, the sales report finally reached the L’Oréal headquarters in China.
With 853 million RMB, the Chinese market had achieved the second highest L’Oréal sales all over the world. The consuming potential of the Chinese market was terrifying!
The sales of a single product for men ranked eighth in the total sales volume, which took the management team by surprise.
"The person in charge of the advertisement should be rewarded for their good vision!"
"It was wise to choose Gong Li and Qin Guan as the brand ambassadors. Ask the PR Department to pay more attention to local Chinese actors."
"Yes, the market is large enough, so we can just focus on Chinese stars when choosing representatives in Asia."
"Agreed!"
Their objective for choosing Asian ambassadors had been achieved after that shocking sales report. If other Asian stars found out about this, they would get annoyed. This could be just blamed on the other countries’ smaller population though.
Unlike L’Oréal’s mass-oriented promotion, Tiffany adopted a more royal style. By cooperating with the Chinese Jewellery Association, the Chinese Brand Development Promotion Organization and a local diamond tycoon, it began its business in China in a very high-end manner. They only opened flagship stores in a few big cities in China.
 They opened luxury stores in the most prosperous shopping centers. The glass walls, uniform decorating style, large halls and considerate assistants of the stores showed the company’s determination to take over the Chinese market.
As the economic center of China, Shanghai became the first choice of the high-end jewellery brand. They opened six stores there and five stores in Beijing, which had a very large population. The fact that it was a political and cultural center also played a role.
Two stores opened in Tianjin, the port city in Northern China, which enjoyed a remarkable geographic location.
Guangzhou and Shenzhen got a store each. The two neighboring cities were in the lead when it came to rising trends in Southern China.
There were also stores in Chongqing, Shenyang, Chengdu, Hangzhou, Zhengzhou, Wuhan, Nanjing, Xi’an, Qingdao, Jinan, Harbin and Kunming, which were all important provincial capitals.
This was the first time Chinese people were getting in touch with foreign jewellery and concepts, such as miniature limited designer jewellery.
This amused the jade-carving masters, as well as traditional jade accessory brands. In their opinion, this was the trite expression of Chinese ancestors. In ancient China, people strived to turn waste into treasure.
It was such a stereotype!


Qin Guan was reborn and sent back to his final semester in High School 18 years ago. Getting a second chance at life, he works hard to turn things around and eventually become a Prince Charming. What will his life be like the second time around? What will he have to go through? How will he succeed in turning from a loser into a Prince Charming? Read this story carefully and find out!

With that thought, everyone was full of anticipation.
However, after waiting for two days, the stock graph was still completely normal, so they were a little disappointed.
It was a coincidence that the stock index was undergoing a 4,500 point correction those two days. The stock market plunged. On the first day, it took a sharp dive of 4%, dozens of stocks hit bottom and a large number of stocks fell 7%-8%. Everyone panicked. It was especially bad in the afternoon. The stock market had opened high and everyone was cheering as it seemed to be finally picking up, but it started dropping rapidly again.
Countless stocks plunged, and after the dive from the previous day, panic had gained a foothold. The individual investors began to dump their stocks in an attempt to get out. Countless stockholders began clearing out all their stocks, declaring that the bull market had peaked. The people who had bought Thunder Shares were just there to join in the excitement. Hence, they did not sell but instead held on to their shares.
At 1:15 PM, when most of the other stocks in the market began to plummet, something amazing happened—
First, someone realized that Thunder Shares had mysteriously recovered to the opening price somehow. It was rare for one stock to do so well compared to the others. Hence, they entered Thunder Shares' main page and were completely stunned after just one glance…
"Everyone, quick look. The Thunder Shares' banker is making a move again! God, it's going straight up, completely against the market trend!"
"Look, quickly. The mysterious Thunder Shares' banker really likes to do strange things. The stock market has fallen so much, but Thunder Shares is skyrocketing. It has gone back to its opening price from -5 from before!"
The speed of information dissemination in the stock market was extremely fast. Within ten minutes, Thunder Shares had attracted the attention of countless people.
At this time, the stock market had already dived down by 56 points, and a large number of stocks had plummeted. While everyone watched, Thunder Shares showed a sideways trend. It really was sideways. Despite the fluctuations in the market, it remained stable! Then, the line started to rise straight up like a chive in spring!
A single red flower in the midst of the thick foliage had erupted!
Everyone was stunned! The stock market took a dive and yet Thunder Shares went against all trends and rose instead?! What was this?!
This was disaster avoidance! Many people began to test buying Thunder Shares. It was strange. Typically, when the number of people buying a stock increased, the shares would rapidly inflate. Thunder Shares was like a sponge. Regardless of how many people bought in, the trend graph continued rising steadily. Furthermore, it was a beautiful and smooth curve!
This was definitely the work of the mysterious banker!
Everyone had learned their lesson this time. This was pushing people into being buffers, they must not be fooled!
Then, everyone saw an amazing scene—after the curve continued for about a quarter of a circle, it shot straight up!
What the heck? They were going against the trend and hitting the daily limit up! The stock market had dropped by 75 points and this share was going to hit limit up, they had to go after it!
This time, the crowd was not as calm. They started buying in. As a result, after the straight line rose by about two points, it turned and moved sideways…
What was going on? First a quarter of a circle, then straight up, and then across…
Just when everyone was still trying to figure out what it was, the line went straight and started moving downward again!
Damn! The investors could not remain calm this time…
"What the hell is this banker thinking? What is he drawing this time?! Why can't I figure out what it is?"
"Yes, this banker is really weird. The last time it was an ECG. What is it this time?"
Then, everyone saw the line curve into a quadrant again after it had gone straight down. This time, the curve was downward…
The eyes of the onlookers almost popped out. "What the heck? That's impossible. The banker is drawing… big boobs?!" "Insanity, this is insanity! The stock market is plunging and he is drawing big boobs… is he trying to tell us something?!"
Sure enough, after this curve was done, it really was a drawing of big boobs. Not only that, but it also had two "raisins"…
Everyone was ecstatic. To a shareholder, a dive following a market adjustment was something they feared. Tens of thousands to hundreds of thousands could be lost in an instant. At times like this, everyone would be really down. However, this set of boobs made by Thunder Shares' curve amused everyone and cheered them up—
"Damn, only this banker has the ability and creativity to go against the trend. I'm buying into this stock!" "This is fun. Anyway, I have already lost hundreds of thousands, I'm not afraid to lose tens of thousands more. I'm going to buy-in for the fun of it!" "Same here. It's such a major adjustment and yet this banker dared play the market like that. There will definitely be more fun to be had in the future. I'm buying some too."
Just like that, the trading volume of Thunder Shares began to increase. Most people bought at least a few hundred lots just so they could join in the fun…
Today's stockholders had experienced two extremes. They met the market adjustment and dropped a few points. They also hit the limit up after numerous people bought into Thunder Shares following the drawing of the big boobs…
"Eh? Dali, these two big buns are quite worth drawing." Gu Feifei looked at the curve which rose quickly to limit up and laughed out loud. "The two big buns caused a big influx of funds and we actually hit limit up. You should have earned at least 20 million from this!"
Hong Dali bought hundreds of millions worth of Thunder Shares previously. This limit up earned him 10%. After deducting the money spent drawing the lines, he still made more than 20 million…
"Oh, I made a profit. Not bad." Hong Dali went back to his room and took out his mobile phone, then started checking to see if there were any news in the past two days. As he looked, he said, "Twenty million, let's go out and spend it tonight. See if there's anything interesting happening. Speaking of which, it's really inconvenient not having everyone around. This is a bit depressing." Hong Dali had always been responsible only for spending money. Ling Xiaoyi was responsible for all other things.
But now, everyone else was not here. It was very troublesome. However, this world was where he had originated from. He was hesitant to let Tang Muxin and the others know about his transmigration.
By right, such a good Enjoyment Dimension that was free of all worries should be enjoyed by everyone. But if they knew that he was a transmigrant…
"System." Hong Dali thought for a while. After all, they were all his close friends. It would not be fun for him to be here alone. He decided to ask the System for assistance. "I want to bring my lackeys here. However, they will then find out about my identity as a transmigrant. Is there a good solution to that?" Well, it would be a pity if he did not ask the System for help with problems like this.
Sure enough, the System quickly gave an answer. "Given the host's transmigrant identity, when bringing lackeys here, you can adjust their memories appropriately. This way, there will not be much resistance to the identity of the transmigrant. That means, they might be curious after they encounter something, but they will not question the existence of the Host."
Hong Dali took a deep breath, relieved—as long as the others did not care about his identity as a transmigrant, nothing else mattered. As to the questions they might have about this parallel world, that was easy…
"Alright, trading has stopped." At this time, Gu Feifei threw away the mouse, satisfied with the result. "Dali, what shall we do next?"
With help from the System, it was a load off Hong Dali's chest. He smiled. "Ah, don't be anxious. Let me see if anything fun is going on. En, let's go see what Han Songyang and the others are up to later."
When people feel relaxed, the next thing to do was go out and have a good time. Hong Dali looked at his phone—18 missed calls, more than 60 new messages on Weixin…
Woah, did something big happen? 
He looked at the messages on Weixin first—
Han Songyang: "Dali, the big baldy from Black Dragon Hall has been convicted. He is being closely watched in prison. I heard that the people at Black Dragon are very concerned about this matter. I found out from gossip that Black Dragon Hall has sent someone over to assassinate you. Don't go out alone."
Han Songyang: "Dali, the news is confirmed. Black Dragon Hall sent out a total of eight top fighters to look for you. Don't stay at the villa for now, in case they attack at night."
There were several more such messages, then there was one from the gorgeous Qiao Suyu— 
"Dali, the mother of that child has come to the hospital. She has been crying and saying that she wants to thank you. She was due and getting ready to go to the hospital when the big baldy barged into her house. He punched her, causing the baby to be birthed before it was ready, then he threw the baby away once it was born. At that time, she had fainted from crying too much." 
"It seems she's very fond of the child. Although the father was a bad person, she said that she did not want her child to know about it. Right now, the child has regained consciousness and everyone likes him. He is really cute."
After that were some miscellaneous messages— 
Qiao Mingfeng: "Brother Dali, are you free these few days? Ask your bodyguards to teach me…" 
He was a martial arts fanatic. If there was a chance, he could have Feifei or Cutie give him some pointers.
Ye Xuanxuan: "Brother Dali, are you free to meet up? My family is in the hotel business. There are many rooms for you to choose from…"
Sweat gathered on Hong Dali's forehead. He quickly deleted the chat log. If his Xinxin saw this, she would definitely kick up a big fuss… 
Anyway, there were two things that were most important at present. One was that Black Dragon Hall was preparing to get even with him. However, Gu Feifei and Cutie Ke were with him, and they could simply kill whoever they sent, regardless of the number.
The other was that the child had woken up. Although his father was not a good person, the child was innocent. Well, he would go to the hospital to see him first!


"I have to squander; otherwise, won't it be a waste of my parent's talent at earning money?" Hong Dali answers a reporter's question matter-of-factly. 

Just after the interview ends, Hong Dali opens the Great Prodigal System's interface and looks at the various good stuff displayed in it. Stroking his chin, he mumbles to himself, "I just need to squander 200 billion yuan more to exchange for the blueprint of the core technology, Engine Destruction, found in the strongest humanoid mecha weapon, Neo Granzon. Looks like I'll have to work harder!"

"I want to splurge! I want to squander!"


The pile of gold bars was a monument on its own, creating a stunning sight as it shone and shimmered in the sun. Except for the pirates tasked with moving the gold bars, Zhang Heng gathered everyone from his ship and distributed weapons to them. They needed them to maintain order at the harbor in case of untoward incidents. That said, after Zhang Heng annihilated the Skeleton, everyone knew it best not to mess with Jackdaw. Unsurprisingly, no one lost their minds when they saw the gold bars coming out from the ship.
Afterward, Zhang Heng sent someone to contact Carina, asking her to empty one of her warehouses. He would use it as temporary storage for the gold. The Jackdaw had an overwhelming yield this trip, and if Zhang Heng distributed the gold to his men right now, safety would be a primary concern. On the surface, no one seemed to dare go against Jackdaw's pirates but in actual fact, multitudes of thieves and robbers were waiting to get their hands on all those precious gold bars.
Other than that, the group of pirates who had previously gambled away twenty gold coins in a single night received a stark warning from Zhang Heng. Though the captain had no intention to poke around everyone's spending habits, he knew his men would become moving targets the moment he gave them their share of the money.
So, he decided to only give them a portion of their share first. He would help them to keep the rest for now. He came up with a ledger to keep track of all the gold that he gave his men. Anyone could ask for more whenever they needed it. After a while, Carina and her men came to the pier.
It was then Zhang Heng noticed that Carina didn't look too good. Since there were outsiders around him, he figured it was a bad time to talk about it. Only after reaching the warehouse and seeing that all the gold bars were safe did he talk to her in a quiet place.
"How's everything? Has it all been good throughout my absence?"
"The situation… is not looking good," replied Carina as she tried squeezing a smile.
"Huh?"
When Zhang Heng left Nassau two months ago, Carina's problem was solved because the Skeleton was no longer a threat to her. Along with the rise of Jackdaw, her trading business flourished in Nassau as well. Not only did she enjoy repeat business with the captains she used to deal with, but some pirate ships even left the black market alliance hoping to build a long term partnership with her. All the while, Malcolm had been trying to dominate the black markets of Nassau. Naturally, Carina's growth had become a huge threat to him. More and more traders were increasingly interested in trading with Carina instead of the black market alliance.
This was indeed great news for Carina since the black market alliance had been retarding her growth for a very long time. When she saw hope in defeating Malcolm and the black-market alliance, she instantly signed every contract of the captains who wished to trade with her. To take control of a broader market share, she purchased another ship to help her move the increasing amount of items moving through her warehouse. Right now, she was the proud owner of three cargo ships. Of course, the expansion required an increase in hiring as well. With the large acquisitions, she literally invested everything that she earned back into her business.
Unfortunately, whatever happened after that was out of her control. Carina's biggest problem was her lack of shrewdness as a black-market merchant. The black market alliance was newly formed when she first came to Nassau. All her father's trading partners had left to work with them when he got incarcerated. In the end, Jackdaw was the first and only ship willing to trade with her. Owing to that, she managed to survive in Nassau. However, although sleeping on a bed of roses, sharp thorns were present as well. She had to face perpetual harassment and pressure by the black-market alliance, which just wouldn't let her off the hook.
That was why Carina differed from all the other black-market merchants. She never trusted anyone aside from Zhang Heng. Of course, she traded with many different captains under the radar of the alliance, but those were just one-off trades. The real situation, however, was way more complicated than that. Although Carina had a natural flair for business, she sorely lacked experience, not to mention needing a lot more time. All that in a place she was unfamiliar with. If Malcolm wasn't after her, she would have had sufficient space to grow like a potato seedling. Right now, Malcolm was akin to a giant stone pinning her down. She had waste precious energy to squirm and crawl underneath its weight. In other words, he had severely stunted her growth.
Malone's betrayal had also slowly affected Carina. After all, he used to be her father's most trusted partner. He was also the only one familiar with his trading techniques. Without Malone's guidance, Carina had to rely on herself to do business in a world filled with hounds and sharks. From that time on, one problem after another began to plague her.
For instance, she had supposedly set her buying price at 5% higher than the black market alliance, a rate Carina and the captains both agreed with. However, the black-market alliance offered different prices to captains from different tiers. Some pirates eventually discovered that they had been offered different rates compared to some others although the items they sold were similar.
It was hardly surprising then, how some pirates felt increasingly displeased with the double-standards. During that time, Carina was busy discussing partnerships with the merchants, worried that the bad reputation of the alliance would spill over to her. Ultimately, she was forced to cap her prices at the highest possible rate. That would mean she would be getting significantly less profit from all her trades.
The low-profit margins were just the beginning. Along with the increase in her cargo volume, the customs officers demanded an increase in bribes as well. This would all translate to higher costs, and subsequently, the retail price for the items would increase as well. Such a situation would only spell fewer buyers in the end. Initially, Carina thought that Malcolm must have been messing with her. Shockingly, she attempted a different port but found the same thing happening to her again. It was then when she realized that this was an unspoken rule for all black market merchants.
As if to worsen the situation, she had troubles at her business spot as well. The local traders were unhappy after seeing Carina dealing on a large scale on their turf. Two lawsuits were filed against her thanks to the jealous and disgruntled lot. The matter had to be settled regardless, and she was forced to spend a considerable sum to settle the case outside court. The detour eventually incurred huge losses for her.
All the above led to only one conclusion: the financial pit, the worst of her woes. Before Zhang Heng left, he gave Carina the Skeleton. Although it was supposed to be her third cargo ship, she would still need to pay for its refit and the manpower required. During that time, she had just spent a large sum of money to expand her warehouse by opening a grocery store. When the time came for her to purchase loot, she was so cash strapped that she was forced to mortgage her father's property just to have enough.
The entire process of purchasing the goods from the pirate ships, finding prospective buyers, and shipping them to various colonies usually required a set amount of time. It was a well-established system that most traders were familiar with. Unfortunately, the situation didn't always go as planned. The time the ships would return to port remained an uncontrollable factor. At times, a few pirate ships would all return to Nassau at once, and she would need a tremendous amount of money at hand to purchase their loot.
A week before Zhang Heng's return to Nassau, Carina was already on the verge of financial collapse. As of now, she still owed two captains a large sum of money. Then, this morning, she was trying her hardest to calm her increasingly disguntled partners who had not received their payment on time.
Unfortunately, the heightened emotions caused some pirates to lose all patience and they proceeded to ransack her grocery store.


Growing up with eccentric materialist parents who left him in the care of his grandfather for a job overseas, Zhang Heng had learned to adapt and be unfettered by the oddities and challenges in life. But he would soon learn the baffling truth about the world he thought he knew when one day at midnight time froze and he found himself in a world so quiet and still it was deafening. That night, he discovered that he had 24 hours more than everybody else and thus, marked the beginning of his adventures. The mysteries surrounding his newfound ability only deepened when a strange old man claimed to have given Zhang Heng that ‘gift of time’ and recruited the young man to participate in a cryptic ‘life-changing’ game on his behalf. Little did Zhang Heng know that accepting those terms meant embroiling himself in many versions of reality and exposing himself to the hidden secrets of the world—a decision he could never undo.

If you're in a hurry, read the last line.
This is just a heads up. Don't want to leave you guys hanging. Making guesses as to why I won't post for a while. Before that, I want to give a shoutout to these beautiful people:
the silent reader Mrganja,
my fellow Filipino Author, xlntz (Check out his work here on WebNovel: Magical Academy: Rise of the Supreme Magic Craftsman)
and, of course, the one who was there from the start, Pale444.
Thank you so much, you guys. 
I've only recently gotten back to the groove and things will pick up from here on out. I've been editing Volume 1 chapters while also writing, outlining and editing Volume 2 chapters. That's why I've been taking my time, as well as not posting as much as I used to. 
To those who just started reading, I hope you stick around. I swear that the quality of my work will get better from now on. If you don't want to though, that's fine. Thank you for your time, I appreciate it a lot. Really, I do. If you do leave, please tell me what turned you off from the story. I want to know which parts of my writing can be improved, just, please be civil when you do. 
The rest of the chapters for this week, Tues - Sat, will be posted on Sunday. All at the same time. I'm sorry if I once again tweaked my schedule, but life has been... hard for a while now.
I won't get much into it but I'm losing motivation to live. So I want to go on a relaxing writing spree. I love writing, and that's the only thing that keeps me alive right now. But starting this novel meant posting everyday, because I don't want to let the loyal readers down. 
For me, daily posts consist of writing, editing and publishing the chapter in just an hour or less. I'm a graduating Civil Engineering student, I can only give so much free time to writing. This 'habit' really stops writing from being fun, because I lose my view of the story.
That's exactly what happened with Volume 1. If you are looking closely, you'd find that I wrote about 54 chapters plus 9 side story chapters (that I removed temporarily, sorry Rodrigo_Miyasaka). That means writing 63 chapters in the span of around a month. That's another novel's four months of work since most of my chapters then were averaging around 2300. Some around 3000+ while a few around 2000. That's more than a hundred and forty thousand words, which most original novels divide into at least a hundred chapters.
I'm not saying that I'm better than those authors. I'm absolutely NOT in the level where I can be proud enough of my novel to share it with my loved on-, I mean, relatives. This is my first novel, I make mistakes, feel regrets at decisions I made and even want to scrap everything and do it all over again. But I won't, because I want to finish my first novel. I want to know if I can do this right, If I can really be someone who writes web novels.
Now that we talked about how many words Volume 1 has, I want to just share that I just edited all those chapters recently. I rewrote, expanded and reformatted all those chapters. I also added four more chapters in Volume 1. There would have been more if I wasn't rushing it. 
Only reason Volume 1 didn't become 100 chapters was because I wanted to go back to focusing on writing Volume 2. Re-editing those in four days really got to me. It also stacked with my personal problems, so I just feel tired.
I've started exercising again, which is a good start to going back to normalcy. I used to weigh around 70 kg, which was lean for my age and height, but now I'm bordering on 100 kg. I want to go back to my old self, and bring back with it my motivation to live again.
After this Sunday, I'll see what I feel is better for me as a writer. I can, for sure, write daily chapters. There's proof for that. But if I feel that the quality of my work will be better by doing things another way, then I'll make that clear by then. Rest assured that I will be finishing this novel with no cheap, rushed ending.  The reason for that is because I love this novel. This novel is about me, and I want to share that with you guys.
See you guys on Sunday, I guess.
TLDR: No chapters until Sunday, will post 'a minimum' of 5 chapters on Dec. 1, 2019.


(Author's note:

Story will be updated on August 3, 2020. I'm having my last semester in college so I'll focus on that for a while. Also, a remake will be done so reading this version would still be worth it. 

For those who were looking forward to more content, sorry but you'll have to wait longer. But my personal life has to come first, and this hobby can wait. If you're willing to wait, I'll give you your due reward, but not for a while. Thank you, and hope you like what you'll see.)

The world as we know it is about to end. Billions of lives will be lost, countries devastated and society left in ruins. But if you have the power to save it, would you?

Zel Huertazuela has had a life that's full of let downs. His mother was a debt-ridden mess, his father was an abusive angry bull while he gets nothing but insults when trying to fix them. He doesn't even know how to move forward with his life.

“Never mind, I don’t really know what I want, why not just do what people tell me to? Money is needed you say? I’ll be an engineer then, those pay well right?”

“Get a work that you would do even if you don’t get paid for it? What the hell kind of fantasy is that?”

But that would have been it if it weren't for his sudden ability to live a lifetime in the span of a dream that lasts a night.

"Wait, this isn't the hospital?!"

"Where's my wife!"

"Now that I'm back, I'll be rich!"

"I'll fix the mistakes I made, there won't be any more regrets for this guy!"

"Monsters?! No problem!"

"We won in the dream, why can't we win in reality?"

"What do you mean it changed?"

"Help! How do I fix this?!"

If you were given a second chance, would you take it? Even if you have to lose everything you built up today?

Find out how a man finds himself saving the world by being the man who rules it!

(The first volume is basically a very long prologue. The 'Battle of the Beginning' chapters will be more representative of what to expect from future volumes. 

This story is something I had in mind for a long time now so many of the ideas and scenarios can be seen in my other works but they are only similar, not literal copies. Enjoy!)

Days passed and we were engrossed in preparation. To us, dormitory was were we can be at peace. But this preparation or study time made me realize one thing a lot.
Never ever think of staying for study period if you need solitude for your preparation.
Even though we were only ten girls, it almost had fish market effect. Everyone blabbering om their own with no consideration of others. Even sometimes it felt like they were fighting to show how high their volume can rise when reciting.
A total headache. I really never know how I managed to overcome that. I am someone when I study people will not even know i was there. A complete silence freak. And i won't get distracted if they called me with bit lesser volume.
This way of reading was developed due to my hobby of reading novels.
Right from my middle school till date. That is how I have always been. But the situation that i got caught up was extremely unlikeable to me. A sense of deep irritation was always there. And i never told anyone. I too understand that they might not be able to concentrate if few spoke out loud and others not.
It was their guarded way of getting back their concentration.
I tried isolating myself far away mostly as possible as i could. And the fun part was the reactions of girls when we face each other.
The most crucial difference between boys and girls:
Boys even if they cover few question they would brag about it(to be noted as their open minded way)
Girls even if they start revising them for few times even then they would never accept the fact. And would always say they haven't completed anything.
At dinner mostly it would be fun watching them discussing as though they never touched books and showing their dull faces to each other.
During the ten days of study period, i earnestly told of what I studied. But seeing their odd reactions i started observing how they actually replied to each other.
I started ignoring such prep talks directly from then on. But sneakily listened and observed those funny ways they reacted and handled those situations.
No wonder i felt odd before. During my first semester i studied at home since there were options that we can go home as regular classes would not be conducted at those times.
Since it was second semester i decided to stay and familiarize myself with people here and if possible can avoid traveling to and fro very often. And can visit home at leisure times when I won't have exam pressure or other.
Even study materials would be a big issue. Girls won't share the easier stuff that willingly. But fortunately for me Mahi had already prepared books lended from her usual second hand book store, with the reference to the others and papers that I told.
Since the books were already in bad shape i was bit worried to share and discussed the details with Genni at class when we decided to do a combined study.
Our class representative Ansh was there that day and hearing on the details he requested to make copies through Xerox. And few others showed their interest too.
 By the end of that day the copies got circulated. But then came the obvious problem that I overlooked.
During our discussion few girls from dormitory were also there. among them only two were from our department, and rest from other departments.
Even though our syllabus was different, there were few paper that were same for all.
But they never showed any interest during our discussion. I didn't pay attention as well since they didn't ask for any copies and i considered they didn't need it or might be having similar books of other authors.
But soon after reaching dormitory i understood the negligence that I made. And blamed myself for being this dumb. I doubted myself on my IQ level whether it went that down for me not to realize or think of the situation in hand.
I instantly regretted for thinking about sharing the details in the first place at that very evening.

Sometimes your sister might become your mom in  raising you up.
And when she enters her own family, the distance and vacant place left by her makes you realise how big was that place in your heart and life.

Mahi was such a sister to Samyu and Sunny.

Especially when Samyu started realising the times she might have hurt her dear sister knowingly or unknowingly, and the realisation that she might not be able to have that person beside her from then on.

She must have cherished Mahi more when she was near. 

But not too late either.

When Xie Yuansheng left for the office, all he could think of was the look of excitement Feng Xinying's face. He knew that it was the look when she was into preparing dishes in the kitchen. He didn't know what else to think all the way to the office.
After he had left, Feng Xinying switched on the TV again to see the business news. Although Xie Yuansheng had assured her that it wouldn't make a difference to the Feng Conglomerate, she was anxious. She was anxious because after Xie Weihui's experience, she had come to know one thing, and that was that for hostile takeovers, people could go to any length. Lim Chuen was one such man. 
When the market opened, the price of the share had fallen down by 0.5 Yuan but it had stayed at that value for an hour before it started rising. Feng Xinying was seeing the reverse of what she had imagined. She was looking at the news biting her finger nails. All her manicured hands were looking like a mess by the end of two hours. She had become very tired watching the news and so she left the TV room and went to take a bath. When she returned she saw that the share price had risen by four percent. 
Based on the company's performance, the stock exchange had decided to give Feng Conglomerate a price band of twenty percent, which means that beyond a specific limit, the share price of the company cannot rise or fall. This price band was based on the previous day closing price. 
When Feng Xinying stitched the TV, she saw that the company had already gained four percent. She felt very positive but anxious at the same time. She switched the channels where they were talking about her return to the company and how the major share market players looked at it. One of them said that it was an excellent indicator. Since the company was always under the able leadership of Mr. Xie Yuansheng, it has been doing well, but the return of its heir kind of a fairytale. Hence the people like that factor. According to him the value would increase and so would the image of the company.
Chang Ling had managed to talk to two TV channels and after giving them lots of money, she had asked them to bring as much negative vibes about Feng Xinying as possible. So in those two news channels, the news anchors were only trying to dig all things negative about the company. One of them said, "Feng Xinying was a model before coming back to the company. Since when do the models have high IQ? All they have is their body to show off. If Miss Xinying can, she should return to the world of modeling or better go back to America."
Feng Xinying was very appalled by him and so she changed the news channel. She regretted not being able to do her college. She wanted all those years back… 
Chang Ling watched those two channels and was happy that this would bring the share price down. She reassured Lim Chuen who was sitting in front of his computer screen ready to buy at the slightest dip now. 
Feng Xinying started watching another news channel and suddenly she saw that the share price had gone up by ten percent. All the news channels had started talking about Feng Conglomerate. Some of them talked about its history also. One of them stated that they had been trying to contact the officials at Feng Conglomerate but couldn't. All of them were unavailable for comments. 
Ever since Xie Yuansheng had heard that the company share price was rising in the stock exchange, he had instructed all his people not to talk to the media. He was into taking meetings and there was not an iota of emotion on his face regarding the share price. He wanted this to be as low key as possible. 
It was in the next hour that Feng Xinying looked at the news with her hands on her mouth. The share trading for Feng Conglomerate was suspended. She called Xie Yuansheng but his phone went unanswered. 
She was stunned. She didn't know that the market would go that way. She felt dizzy and went to the bathroom to throw up. 
The Feng Conglomerate stock had hit its upper circuit and its trading was suspended for the day until the share price came below its circuit range, which was highly unlikely. 
When Feng Xinying came back and looked at the news regarding stock exchange, there was a huge positive market sentiment. People were talking about how rarely they saw such excellent vibes in the market. Feng Xinying's return was seen in an optimistic way. She was very emotional. She took her hands to her tummy and stroked it fondly. She whispered to her baby, "See you are so lucky for mommy." 
She was so emotional that tears of joy came out of her eyes.
Suddenly she saw a major TV news channel was interviewing Xie Yuansheng in his office. 
"Good afternoon, Sir, thank you for giving us this rare opportunity to talk to you." he said and continued, "Today we see a very rare occurrence in the stock exchange. Your company's share trading had to be suspended for the rest of the day. Were you anticipating it?" 
Xie Yuansheng looked very calm and said, "We were not expecting it at all. No one can predict market sentiments."
Anchor asked, "After it was announced to the world that Miss Feng Xinying is none other than the daughter of Feng Zhantian, weren't you afraid that people are going to see your wife in a different way."
Xie Yuansheng looked at the anchor coldly and said, "The market sentiment has proved that they had taken the news positively. What else can I say?" 
The anchor got the hint that the CEO didn't want to talk about his wife, so the next few questions that he asked were mostly about Feng Conglomerate and its future. When the interview ended, Feng Xinying had a huge smile on her face. She switched off the TV and went downstairs. It was afternoon now and it was time for surprise.


Warning: The novel contains mature scenes. 

Feng Xinying was an heiress of a billion dollar empire. She was a model by profession, a celebrity hailed by all as a winner in life. 

Suddenly she found that all she had was but an illusion. Upon her father's death, her company fell into the hands of Xie Yuansheng, leaving her with nothing but a fiery anger and indignation. And Xie Yuansheng was no easy man to deal with. 

Forced to be his secretary, Feng Xinying was fuming mad, never wanting to compromise on her career. 

Unfortunately, things were not going as she planned, and while she was hostile towards Xie Yuansheng, he was eager to mark her as his. 

----------------------------

Before he was reborn, he loved Feng Xinying crazily and all he wanted was to make her his for the lifetime. But she hated him to the core because he mistreated her, caged her and didn’t let her go anywhere. He was suspicious of her movements. He knew that she hated him, and so he only tightened his control over her. 

After his rebirth, he looked differently at her. Xie Yuansheng was ready to make all amendments in this lifetime. 

From being the worst husband, he became the best that would dote on his wife. This is a story of how two people came to meet each other. She hated him first and then fell in love irrevocably. 

-------------------

The story will take you through the upheavals of emotions and situations that will make you cry, laugh and hate! Stay with me for this Sugar and Spice saga and you won't regret!

Discord - https://discord.gg/yqKgCvQ
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MishakWrites-111759630206886/

The cover is not mine. Please contact me if you want me to remove it. 

Other two novels by me:
Two Contracts: My Lover is a CEO
Feral Confessions: Adrianna and the Alpha

Photo taken on Dec. 30, 2018 shows the Euro sculpture in front of the Eurotower in Frankfurt, Germany. (Xinhua/Lu Yang)
FRANKFURT, Aug. 4 -- For market participants from the European Union (EU), "invest in China" is growing more diverse in form and richer in content, as the world's second-largest economy consistently advances comprehensive reforms and opening-up.
With a series of remarkable progress in opening up of China's capital market, also known as the world's second largest, the country's financial sector, in addition to manufacturing and innovation, has been playing an increasingly vigorous role for those in Europe who crave for a bite of China's economic growth dividends.
BOOMING CHANNELS
Chinese giant pandas, cute friendship ambassadors, are always greatly welcomed by the locals of European countries like Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, etc. Similarly, those "pandas" in the bonds market are gaining in popularity and remain attractive for European bond issuers.
Panda bonds, renminbi-denominated notes sold by a non-Chinese issuer within China, have been offering international borrowers a way to tap domestic renminbi investors.
As China improved policies to make it easier for overseas investors to issue panda bonds and invest in its bond market, European issuers, not only corporate but also sovereign issuers, become keen on this financing and investment tool connecting the world's second-largest bond market after the United States.
By raising 2 billion yuan (288 million U.S. dollars) in May, with a maturity of three years, Portugal became the first eurozone country, the third EU countries after Poland and Hungary, to issue sovereign panda bonds.
With this successful transaction, Portugal has accessed the Chinese bond market to further diversify its investor base, Portuguese Treasury and Public Debt Management Agency said in a statement.
"For us it means entry in the new and huge market", Fernanda Ilheu, a professor at Lisbon School of Economics and Management, told Xinhua, adding that "we believe in the internationalization of renminbi."
Austria and Italy, among others, have shown interest in issuing sovereign panda bonds as well.
A relevant memorandum of understanding was inked for the Austrian government in April, while Italy and China agreed on "the first Panda Bond to be issued by a qualified Italian financial institution," showed the joint declaration of the "First Italy-China Finance Dialogue" in July.
Moreover, thanks to the opening-up of China's capital market, channels for investing in Chinese equity market, apart from bond market, are booming as well.
For European investors particularly, the Shanghai-London Stock Connect mechanism launched in June, the first of its kind to directly link the Chinese and European markets, offers them access to China's A-shares, which have been included into key global benchmark indices.
"Shanghai-London Stock Connect brings together two of the world's largest capital markets, allowing established Chinese issuers to raise capital from London's global liquidity pool and global investors to access China A-share instruments from outside Greater China," said Don Robert, chairman of London Stock Exchange Group.
REAP BENEFITS
Pursuing sustained mutual benefits and win-win results, China's commitment to pushing forward opening-up of its capital market, is not only getting enthusiastic and encouraging response from European market participants, but also benefiting them substantially.
For foreign corporate issuers, selling a panda bond can diversify coffers, and provide funding for onshore businesses, as is the case with German automakers like BMW and Daimler. The previous issued its first panda bond in March, raising 3 billion yuan (432 million U.S. dollars), whereas the latter has been using panda bonds as a regular funding tool since 2014.
Daimler has tapped the market 14 times, raising a total of 47 billion yuan (677 million U.S. dollars) across 20 tranches, according to Euromoney and HSBC.
Norberto Rosa, secretary-general of the association of Portuguese banks, said issuing panda bonds might help overcome the lack of capital in Portugal.
In his view, there could be a good symbiosis between the Portuguese economy and the Chinese one, meanwhile Portugal could benefit from abundant capital in Chinese market.
Robert believes established London-listed issuers will benefit from access to China's deep capital markets through Shanghai-London Stock Connect.
"All parties see the long-term benefits for companies, investors and the global economy in establishing a trading link between our two markets," he said.
From the perspective of Catherine McGuinness, chair of the policy and resources committee at City of London Corporation, the new link between London and Shanghai stock markets means global investors can benefit from China's growth through London, while British listed companies are able to access Chinese investors directly.
PROMISING FUTURE
With China-EU economic and trade links further strengthening, it's widely believed that ample opportunities of financial cooperation between both sides will be exploited, at different levels and through more diversified channels.
Chinese financial institutions, for instance, which support European customers to issue panda bonds, keep on intensifying localization in Europe to meet growing demand of local customers to invest in China.
"More than half of Poland's top 30 large companies have established various forms of cooperation with us," said Xia Bin, president and general manager of Bank of China Poland Branch, which helped the Polish Finance Ministry issue panda bonds.
"For example, the leading companies in the telecommunications, super-commerce and e-commerce industries in Poland are our core customers, and we also provide them with all-round financial support." Xia told Xinhua.
Meanwhile, European experts are expecting more steady progress, step-by-step, of further opening up of Chinese capital market, believing that China is just heading in the right direction.
"You need this opening-up policy to continue to foster not only China-German relationship but financial relationships across the globe," said Jochen Metzger, director general of payments and settlement systems at the Deutsche Bundesbank.
Horst Loechel, a professor at Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, noted that China's latest announcement to further open up the country's financial sector to foreign investment is good news for both China and the rest of the world and it comes "quite at the right time."
Loechel sees great opportunities for financial cooperation between Germany and China, as the China Europe International Exchange, or CEINEX, a signature project of the German and Shanghai stock exchanges, has already launched some Chinese shares in Frankfurt very successfully.
"It is hoped from the Chinese side as well as the German side to continue with this development, especially also with regard to high-tech companies," he said.
Mao Xuxin, principal economist at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), a London-based economic think-tank, said nowadays China was aspiring to reach not just the local market, but was "aiming for the worldwide market access to that Chinese capital market and its financial center especially Shanghai to be internationally orie
Photo taken on Dec. 30, 2018 shows the Euro sculpture in front of the Eurotower in Frankfurt, Germany. (Xinhua/Lu Yang)
FRANKFURT, Aug. 4 -- For market participants from the European Union (EU), "invest in China" is growing more diverse in form and richer in content, as the world's second-largest economy consistently advances comprehensive reforms and opening-up.
With a series of remarkable progress in opening up of China's capital market, also known as the world's second largest, the country's financial sector, in addition to manufacturing and innovation, has been playing an increasingly vigorous role for those in Europe who crave for a bite of China's economic growth dividends.
BOOMING CHANNELS
Chinese giant pandas, cute friendship ambassadors, are always greatly welcomed by the locals of European countries like Germany, France, Spain, the Netherlands, Finland, Denmark, etc. Similarly, those "pandas" in the bonds market are gaining in popularity and remain attractive for European bond issuers.
Panda bonds, renminbi-denominated notes sold by a non-Chinese issuer within China, have been offering international borrowers a way to tap domestic renminbi investors.
As China improved policies to make it easier for overseas investors to issue panda bonds and invest in its bond market, European issuers, not only corporate but also sovereign issuers, become keen on this financing and investment tool connecting the world's second-largest bond market after the United States.
By raising 2 billion yuan (288 million U.S. dollars) in May, with a maturity of three years, Portugal became the first eurozone country, the third EU countries after Poland and Hungary, to issue sovereign panda bonds.
With this successful transaction, Portugal has accessed the Chinese bond market to further diversify its investor base, Portuguese Treasury and Public Debt Management Agency said in a statement.
"For us it means entry in the new and huge market", Fernanda Ilheu, a professor at Lisbon School of Economics and Management, told Xinhua, adding that "we believe in the internationalization of renminbi."
Austria and Italy, among others, have shown interest in issuing sovereign panda bonds as well.
A relevant memorandum of understanding was inked for the Austrian government in April, while Italy and China agreed on "the first Panda Bond to be issued by a qualified Italian financial institution," showed the joint declaration of the "First Italy-China Finance Dialogue" in July.
Moreover, thanks to the opening-up of China's capital market, channels for investing in Chinese equity market, apart from bond market, are booming as well.
For European investors particularly, the Shanghai-London Stock Connect mechanism launched in June, the first of its kind to directly link the Chinese and European markets, offers them access to China's A-shares, which have been included into key global benchmark indices.
"Shanghai-London Stock Connect brings together two of the world's largest capital markets, allowing established Chinese issuers to raise capital from London's global liquidity pool and global investors to access China A-share instruments from outside Greater China," said Don Robert, chairman of London Stock Exchange Group.
REAP BENEFITS
Pursuing sustained mutual benefits and win-win results, China's commitment to pushing forward opening-up of its capital market, is not only getting enthusiastic and encouraging response from European market participants, but also benefiting them substantially.
For foreign corporate issuers, selling a panda bond can diversify coffers, and provide funding for onshore businesses, as is the case with German automakers like BMW and Daimler. The previous issued its first panda bond in March, raising 3 billion yuan (432 million U.S. dollars), whereas the latter has been using panda bonds as a regular funding tool since 2014.
Daimler has tapped the market 14 times, raising a total of 47 billion yuan (677 million U.S. dollars) across 20 tranches, according to Euromoney and HSBC.
Norberto Rosa, secretary-general of the association of Portuguese banks, said issuing panda bonds might help overcome the lack of capital in Portugal.
In his view, there could be a good symbiosis between the Portuguese economy and the Chinese one, meanwhile Portugal could benefit from abundant capital in Chinese market.
Robert believes established London-listed issuers will benefit from access to China's deep capital markets through Shanghai-London Stock Connect.
"All parties see the long-term benefits for companies, investors and the global economy in establishing a trading link between our two markets," he said.
From the perspective of Catherine McGuinness, chair of the policy and resources committee at City of London Corporation, the new link between London and Shanghai stock markets means global investors can benefit from China's growth through London, while British listed companies are able to access Chinese investors directly.
PROMISING FUTURE
With China-EU economic and trade links further strengthening, it's widely believed that ample opportunities of financial cooperation between both sides will be exploited, at different levels and through more diversified channels.
Chinese financial institutions, for instance, which support European customers to issue panda bonds, keep on intensifying localization in Europe to meet growing demand of local customers to invest in China.
"More than half of Poland's top 30 large companies have established various forms of cooperation with us," said Xia Bin, president and general manager of Bank of China Poland Branch, which helped the Polish Finance Ministry issue panda bonds.
"For example, the leading companies in the telecommunications, super-commerce and e-commerce industries in Poland are our core customers, and we also provide them with all-round financial support." Xia told Xinhua.
Meanwhile, European experts are expecting more steady progress, step-by-step, of further opening up of Chinese capital market, believing that China is just heading in the right direction.
"You need this opening-up policy to continue to foster not only China-German relationship but financial relationships across the globe," said Jochen Metzger, director general of payments and settlement systems at the Deutsche Bundesbank.
Horst Loechel, a professor at Frankfurt School of Finance and Management, noted that China's latest announcement to further open up the country's financial sector to foreign investment is good news for both China and the rest of the world and it comes "quite at the right time."
Loechel sees great opportunities for financial cooperation between Germany and China, as the China Europe International Exchange, or CEINEX, a signature project of the German and Shanghai stock exchanges, has already launched some Chinese shares in Frankfurt very successfully.
"It is hoped from the Chinese side as well as the German side to continue with this development, especially also with regard to high-tech companies," he said.
Mao Xuxin, principal economist at the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR), a London-based economic think-tank, said nowadays China was aspiring to reach not just the local market, but was "aiming for the worldwide market access to that Chinese capital market and its financial center especially Shanghai to be internationally orie


volume in share market means

The Merge: Volume 1

ORION

The Ascension of the Sovereign Creator

Rebirth: How A Loser Became A Prince Charming

Rebirth of the Godly Prodigal

48 Hours a Day

What's A King Without A System?

My Dear Sister: I'm Sorry

Sugar and Spice: The CEO’s Feisty Wife

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