CHAPTER 427: CHAPTER 427: PEOPLE’S HEARTS ARE HIDDEN

The four major leaders of the Lone Wolf Mercenary Corps were wiped out, and their numerous members were scattered, leaving Asia’s highest-ranked force in the underworld behind. This news thoroughly shocked everyone, heralding a reshuffle in the underworld. Naturally, the top spot would now fall to the second-ranked power.

The underground world across Asia was the same, with various forces turning their attention to the situation in Ba Country. One by one, spies infiltrated Ba Country, trying to figure out who had such immense power to shake the foundation of the Lone Wolf Mercenary Corps.

Indeed, many forces considered Ba Country a forbidden place, not daring to extend their influence into Ba Country because such a formidable person had appeared there, instilling fear in countless people. To avoid entanglement in conflicts of interest, many chose to evade.

Of course, Ye Fan’s role in this was unknown to many; the only information that could be gathered was the word Chu Group, and the rest of the details were unknown.

Even so, it did not affect the fear in people’s hearts. Resolving the Lone Wolf Mercenary Corps was no ordinary feat. People would rather avoid such an existence, and naturally, nobody rushed to Ba Country to claim their interests, fearing an unforeseen disaster that would outweigh the gains.

Apart from the external noise, there was a turbulent storm within Ba Country as well. Ye Fan kept a low profile, not claiming credit for his role, while various parties ceaselessly speculated and mobilized their forces for more accurate intelligence.

Thus, the collapse of the Lone Wolf Mercenary Corps shocked both inside and outside Ba Country, drawing the attention of leading figures from all sides.

Kasam hosted a meeting with great enthusiasm, focusing on future policies towards Chu Group.

Farhadi gathered several key members for a discussion, and Lani was obviously in attendance.

"It is truly hateful; on Kasam’s side, there’s the aid of the Chu Group. Whether in terms of financial or human resources, Chu Group is no longer what it was initially. It now possesses formidable power and is absolutely capable of ranking among the top ten forces within Ba Country," Farhadi said, tugging at his beard, his time-weathered face etched with traces of age, expressing his extreme unwillingness: "If only Chu Group could develop its business in my domain and establish good partnerships, it would be so much better."

"At this point, saying such things is useless. In my opinion, although Chu Group is large, it is not enough to compare with us. While Chu Group offers significant support, losing them is not regrettable," Lani said confidently. "I believe Chu Group, being businessmen, will not act hostile towards us or stand in the same camp as Kasam against us. Knowing this is enough. In the future, we should take measures to befriend Chu Group and avoid completely offending them."

"While that’s true, if Chu Group’s interests become more entangled with Kasam’s, eventually, their relationship will further strengthen. This means, once in conflict with Kasam, Chu Group’s interests would inevitably be harmed," Farhadi said unwillingly. "Given that, any of our actions must be meticulously planned; we can’t afford to be as reckless as before. Directly harming Chu Group’s interests would be making a formidable enemy."

"For now, we can only befriend Chu Group and try to avoid becoming enemies. Do our best and leave the rest to fate. As for the remaining matters, overthinking won’t help us," Lani said straightforwardly, then suggested, "We now have a perfect opportunity. We should seek any chance at all costs to assassinate Kasam. This way, the cooperation between Chu Group and Kasam will naturally end, and then our chance will come. We can seize the opportunity to win over Chu Group."

"Assassinating Kasam is incredibly difficult; if it could be done, the situation would have been different long ago," Farhadi said calmly. "There have been numerous assassination plans before, yet none have succeeded."

"Don’t we have people planted around Kasam? With some extra effort, we could bribe key figures and might just manage to assassinate Kasam. If the plan succeeds, we could take over Kasam’s forces," Lani asserted confidently. "As long as the plan succeeds, all efforts would be worthwhile."

"This is very risky; if not done carefully, years of effort could be wasted," Farhadi cautiously replied.

"Sometimes, risks have to be taken," Lani was resolute in her intention.

"We’ll discuss further later; for now, let’s shelve this matter," Farhadi said meaningfully as he glanced at Lani, shifting the topic. With people everywhere, the fewer who knew, the better, lest walls have ears.

Nevertheless, Lani understood Farhadi’s intent: the assassination of Kasam was necessary.

In fact, this plan had long been brewing in Farhadi’s mind. However, with Chu Group and Kasam getting close, he needed to advance some plans to quickly complete a unified Ba Country burden.

"What a pity, if we had known sooner that the Lone Wolf Mercenary Corps had trapped Ye Fan and Chu Mengyao in the Primitive Forest for so long, upon knowing that information, we would have surely dispatched forces at all costs to eliminate them, directly removing this potential enemy threat. Missing such a great opportunity is truly regrettable," Farhadi lamented.

"Indeed, a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity was thus missed," others echoed in agreement.

Just as Ye Fan had considered, he had not leaked the situation of him and Mengyao being hunted in the Primitive Forest, ensuring that his confidants kept silent as well. Consequently, even Nami did not report this to Kasam until Mengyao was safe, at which point Nami reported the situation to Kasam immediately.

Ye Fan did this precisely because he was aware of the situation, hence being cautious; otherwise, more enemies could have been attracted.

"This opportunity has passed, and such a good opportunity will never come again," Lani deeply regretted.

Farhadi and others had no intimate relationship with Chu Group, but out of apprehension, they had to extend an olive branch. Yet, if there was a chance to eliminate the enemy, they would definitely send assassins while hiding their identities.

Yahward’s side was similarly discussing matters of their concern.

His intentions and plans towards Chu Group aligned with Farhadi’s.

However, the difference between Yahward and Farhadi was that Farhadi decided to assassinate Kasam.

Meanwhile, Taimei Company and Wanpu Company directors aimed their aggression directly at Ye Fan and Chu Mengyao.