Second Elder Shen Kun was the only person in the clan he might be able to win over.
During the meeting in the Main Hall, when Shen Hong mentioned the Dark Guild's strength, Shen Kun had agreed aloud, but his brow had creased for a moment. Sitting in the lowest-ranking seat, Shen Fei had seen that subtle change in expression perfectly clearly.
Shen Kun had been stuck at the peak of three-star Black Gold Rank for nearly ten years. There was no way he was not anxious. As Shen Kun saw it, attaching themselves to the Dark Guild was not the family's only path forward; he simply lacked the confidence to oppose Shen Hong.
This man had selfish desires, weaknesses, and cracks into which a lever could be wedged.
But Shen Fei knew perfectly well that he could not simply tell Shen Kun, "I want you to oppose my father's cooperation with the Dark Guild."
Shen Kun had spent decades in the clan and had always favored caution. Without complete confidence, he would not readily choose a side.
If Shen Fei declared from the outset that he intended to oppose Shen Hong's fundamental course, Shen Kun would only think this young man had no idea how high the heavens were or how deep the earth ran. Not only would he refuse, he might even carry those words to Shen Hong's ears that very night.
So he could not put it that way. He needed another approach, one Shen Kun could accept and understand, one he might even find entirely reasonable.
Competing for the position of family head.
Not opposing the Sacred Family, not fighting the Dark Guild, simply, "I want to take the position of family head."
Such a claim was all too common within great families. Brothers fighting for