"Xiao Chen, school's out?" Raine asked with a warm smile. His sunny air was naturally comforting, but his high position and approachable attitude toward those beneath him made people feel even more flattered and at ease.
Yet the boy called Xiao Chen still wore an icy expression!
He was Xi Ye's third child—Chen Ye.Aierdia!
Seeing Chen Ye ignore Raine so rudely that he did not even answer, everyone around them immediately showed displeasure. Just as they were about to reprimand him, Raine waved them off indifferently. The people around them secretly sighed. As expected of Big Brother Raine—he was magnanimous.
The man who had led the provocation earlier now said respectfully, "Big Brother Raine, why have you returned? Aren't you currently on military duty?"
Raine smiled. "I'm on my way to the Governing Star to hand over my military duties. I heard Xi Ye had come back, so I decided to stop by. The first god in our family has returned—that's a major family event. We have to celebrate properly!"
Chen Ye raised his head slightly and looked at this eldest cousin, who wore a hearty smile. His expression was sincere, without the slightest flaw, as though he really was happy about his brother's return. Even Chen Ye, who had always been wary of him, felt faintly infected by it.
The people around them were secretly indignant. With the new patriarch's position still undecided, it had originally been certain to go to Raine. But with Xi Ye suddenly appearing, the situation might change. Everyone could not help lamenting that their eldest cousin was far too careless.
Perhaps he had never cared about the position of patriarch at all?
Since their eldest cousin had no defenses against him, they, as his younger cousins, would certainly keep a close eye on that fellow for him. It would be fine if he wanted nothing, but if he dared shamelessly compete with Big Brother for the position of patriarch, they would absolutely make that wastrel regret it!
"Xiao Chen, do you want to go see your brother?" Raine asked with a beaming smile, seemingly not minding his earlier rudeness at all.
"Xi Ye has a loan of ten billion and is wasting it on Proxima Star. I happen to be passing by there later. Shall we go fleece that tycoon?"
Faced with his intimate tone, Xiao Chen suddenly raised his head. "My brother only returned yesterday, yet Big Brother seems to be watching his movements very closely. You even know how much he borrowed."
Raine's bold expression stiffened slightly, but he immediately responded naturally. "You child, that's just how my people reported it. Besides, our family's only god has returned. Can't I, as his big brother, show a little concern? Oh, right—we should set out early and pick a good gift for your brother, so that fellow won't accuse me of being stingy again."
"Is that so?" A trace of a smile finally appeared on Chen Ye's perpetually cold face. "Father went to receive Brother as soon as he got the news yesterday. After not seeing him for so long, Father must have prepared many things to entertain him. If Cousin also wants to give Brother a surprise, you'd better coordinate with Father, so you don't give him the same gift."
This boy...
Raine's pupils constricted slightly. How could someone so young have such a calculating mind?
Just as he was about to say something, a deep voice suddenly came from ahead. "When did you return?"
Raine's expression froze when he heard the voice. He quickly straightened and said respectfully, "Father!"
The newcomer was Raine's father and Xi Ye's uncle: Gang Shi.Aierdia!
"Mm. Come with me. I have something to discuss with you." Gang Shi strode toward the inner hall as he spoke.
Raine nodded. He warmly greeted everyone before following his father into the inner hall.
The two walked one in front of the other, even their footsteps strikingly similar. They looked every bit like father and son.
After entering the inner hall, Raine set up a protective barrier and said solemnly, "Father, did you summon me back because of Xi Ye?"
Once the barrier was erected, Old Gang Shi's face immediately darkened. "Tell those people under you to stop at once!"
Raine was startled. This time, he had hired the Level 9 Dark Web. How had Father received the information so quickly?
"You don't need to guess!" Gang Shi glared at him. "I didn't investigate which organization you hired, but I knew you would make a move. Do you know that assassinating a god is a grave offense in the Federation?"
"Father!" Raine said gravely as well. "Xi Ye's situation really can't be underestimated. According to the information I obtained from the Financial Club, that boy not only has a Level 8 Planet containing abundant Grade D Energy Mine, but also a group of indigenous people with excellent potential. Their compatibility is at least three percent. With a starting point like this..."
"So what?" Old Gang Shi impatiently cut him off. "He's still nothing more than a lord who has just begun. Does a good start guarantee that he'll rise? You possess our Old Ancestor's genes, and you have Lord Boton's favor. In ten thousand years at most, you'll become the first Dragon-level Lifeform in our Eldia Family and bring the family into the ranks of the nobility. What is Xi Ye? Is he worth you taking such a risk? What waves can he make in this short time? Once the time comes, won't you be able to deal with him however you please?"
Raine opened his mouth, then finally lowered his head and admitted his mistake. "Father is right. I was too hasty!"
"I know you're unwilling to let this go, but I still advise you not to entertain any more crooked ideas!" Gang Shi continued. "You heard that boy just now. Your second uncle rushed off to protect his cub long ago. With the people you hired, it's fundamentally impossible to succeed!"
"Even the Level 9 Dark Web won't do?" Raine could not help asking.
"Hmph, what the hell is the Dark Web? Unless you can hire a Dragon-level Assassin, there's no way you can kill the person you want dead right under your second uncle's nose!"
"Uh... Is Second Uncle really that formidable?"
Seeing the disbelief on his son's face, Gang Shi sneered. "Why do you think he became patriarch back then? The old master valued him precisely because he could fight. Ask those old fossils in the family who were from the same generation as the old master—who among them could beat your second uncle?"
"If he's so powerful, why didn't Grandpa pass the genes on to Second Uncle?"
"He was injured. He had no chance of reaching the Dragon level in this lifetime, so your grandfather naturally wouldn't waste the genes on him."
"Injured? What kind of injury?"
"I don't know either. The old master has always seemed very wary of the matter, so I never asked further."
"Then are we really just going to watch that boy return and develop in peace?"
Seeing that his child still looked unwilling, Gang Shi sighed faintly. His boy was excellent in both talent and temperament, but whenever Xi Ye was involved, he became unusually impatient, as if he had developed a Heart Demon.
But he understood. From childhood to adulthood, this child had always been crushed completely by Xi Ye, just as Xi Ye's father had suppressed him for his entire life back then. He understood that feeling.
Thus, after sighing, he softened his tone slightly. "If you truly can't accept this, your father will resolve it for you."
Raine was stunned, then hurriedly asked, "Father, what are you planning to do?"
Gang Shi said, "I know a Dragon-level Analyst. At worst, we can pay a price and ask him to calculate that boy Xi Ye's location. Since you investigated the Financial Club he borrowed from, you should have obtained his data as well, right?"
"I did obtain it..." Raine hesitated before saying, "But Father, doesn't the Federation grant newly registered lords a ten-thousand-year protection period? Even if we know his location, what can we do?"
"The Federation's protection period exists to prevent upper-level lords from squeezing the living space of new forces too severely. It only restricts lords. But what if he's attacked by a Cosmic Beast or pirates? Aren't there plenty of new forces destroyed like that every year?"
Raine immediately understood. This method was indeed much more reliable than assassination. He hurriedly said with delight, "Father truly has thought this through!"
Gang Shi watched his child's delighted expression, his heart conflicted. Hopefully, once Xi Ye is dealt with, my child will be free of his Heart Demon and eventually abandon this childish obsession.
Before you continue