The message was passed down through layers of communication. The farther away a power was from the center of the war, the longer it took to receive the intelligence. Wandering warlords, whose intelligence channels were limited, were among those who learned of the information very late. Overmela was one of them.
As partners of Terilous, the Ofmera Family did not directly participate in the war, but was responsible for maintaining stability in the North Continent, which was also an opportunity for Overmela to develop. The Sanctuary Plan of the Dark Net Organization inspired many warlords, and some warlord forces began to try to build similar things. Their initial intention was not to shelter living beings like Bennett, but to benefit from it and obtain more labor.
Now, the Ofmera Family is led by Xiao Faction. Xiao Jin seized the opportunity of Black Phantom's visit and manipulated events at will. Xiao Hai greatly admires his father's methods. Although sometimes the thought of Black Phantom becoming his godfather makes him feel disgusted, like swallowing a pile of shit, Black Phantom hasn't appeared for a long time, which makes Xiao Hai feel much better.
In the study of the mansion, after reporting on recent matters, Xiao Hai noticed Xiao Jin frowning in thought and couldn't help but ask, "Father, you seem dissatisfied with the current situation?"
Xiao Jin glanced at him. "I haven't established myself yet; I'm still at the mercy of others."
"You mean Black Phantom?" Xiao Hai asked, puzzled. "Although your position is partly due to Black Phantom, the power belongs to us. He's not here, so he can't exert too much influence on us."
"This is precisely my weakness. Black Phantom gave me the position of family head, but his influence is ultimately limited. He can't control our internal decisions. Other factions outwardly respect me, but in reality, they are two-faced. Our position is not stable. We can only mobilize the power of our Xiao Faction. Other factions keep making excuses and refusing to contribute, making it difficult to make any decisions."
Xiao Jin then thought of Han Xiao's threat and added, "Besides, Black Phantom isn't someone to be trifled with either; I paid the price."
As he spoke, Xiao Jin stood up, took out wine glasses and a bottle of precious Red Maple Golden Leaf Wine from the wine cabinet, poured two glasses, handed one to Xiao Hai, and took a sip of the other himself, slowly saying, "Let's leave these aside. Right now, there's still a thorn in the side of our Xiao Faction. Your brother, Xiao Han, is a wanted criminal by the Germinal. This matter is fraught with hidden dangers. The people of Terilous come to our door more than once to collect relevant information. Now that the war is at its most intense, all forces are trying their best to clear themselves of any connection with the Germinal, but we can't extricate ourselves from the situation unless we find him and hand him over to the Six Nations for punishment."
Xiao Hai's expression turned unnatural at the mention of his younger brother. Ever since he learned that Xiao Han, whom he had tricked, was still alive, he had been vaguely worried.
"I heard that Zero and Germinal's current situation are intricately related..." Xiao Hai's feelings were complicated. He was the last person who wanted to see Xiao Han succeed, fearing retaliation. Although he prided himself on growing up with his younger brother and understanding his brother's weak character, he couldn't help but worry about the possibility that his brother's personality might change drastically due to the upheaval.
Zero's actions were clearly beyond the capabilities of his cowardly younger brother. Thinking about this, Xiao Hai was worried about retaliation, even though he didn't yet know what kind of person his brother had become.
"Knock knock." There was a knock on the door, and the assistant poked his head in cautiously, saying, "Master, Saqi has come to visit."
Saqi is the leader of the Overmela Red Isle Faction and has always been dissatisfied with Xiao Jin's appointment as the head of the family.
"Please invite him in." Xiao Jin frowned, put down his wine glass, and said slowly, "He hasn't visited me since I was elected leader. His sudden visit must be strange."
Xiao Hai nodded and stood aside to wait.
After waiting a while, Saqi strode in, a hearty smile on his face, and called out loudly as soon as he entered, "Chief!"
Xiao Jin nodded calmly and invited Saqi to sit down. Xiao Hai, who was standing next to him, secretly observed Serge and found it strange that there was a hint of ingratiation on Saqi's face. This natural and enthusiastic manner did not seem like the way Serge and his father were at odds.
Saqi produced a plan, an action plan from Xiao Jin that required the use of the Red Isle Faction's resources. Saqi had been declining to participate, but now he presented it, saying with a shameless grin, "I've been thinking about this for a while, and this plan is very useful. I'm willing to contribute my strength. I'm here today to discuss the specific details. Don't worry, I'll definitely provide manpower and effort."
Xiao Hai was overjoyed, thinking to himself, "The Red Isle Faction has yielded and officially acknowledged the status of our Xiao Faction!"
Xiao Jin was also somewhat surprised, and slowly nodded, discussing it with Saqi.
A few minutes later, the assistant suddenly opened the door again and said, "Boss, Mr. Todd has come to visit as well."
Todd, the current leader of the Main Family Faction, was even less likely to respect Xiao Jin, yet he and Saqi visited one after the other.
Suppressing his surprise, Xiao Jin had his assistant invite Todd in.
"Hehe, Chief Xiao, this time I want to discuss the plan from last time..." As soon as he entered, Todd saw Saqi. He pretended to be nonchalant, took out the plan, and his purpose was exactly the same as Saqi's: to surrender.
With the two largest factions backing down, the Xiao Faction can officially take control of Overmela. Happiness came too suddenly, and Xiao Jin was a little stunned, while Xiao Hai next to him was extremely excited.
Before he could speak, his assistant said that someone had come to visit. This seemed to be the beginning. Before long, more than a dozen high-ranking officials from various factions gathered together and all came to surrender.
Xiao Jin was completely bewildered. How did his position suddenly become secure? What was going on?!
Seeing Xiao Jin's puzzled expression, Todd laughed and said, "It seems that Chief Xiao hasn't received the news yet. Take a look at this document..." As he spoke, he pushed a document off the table toward Xiao Jin. It contained information about Han Xiao's true identity. As Main Family Faction, he had better intelligence channels and obtained first-hand information, which he actively disseminated to other factions, thus leading to the current situation.
The true identity of Black Phantom was actually Xiao Jin's second son, Xiao Han. When Todd received the information, he was so frightened that he hid under the table. He immediately felt that he understood everything.
No wonder Black Phantom came to visit Overmela and even spoke up for the Xiao Faction at a crucial moment; he was clearly protecting his own!
With the added advantage of his dual identities as Zero and Black Phantom, and now playing a crucial role in the war, it's foreseeable that his influence will be astonishing after the war ends. And this legendary figure actually comes from a warlord faction, specifically the Xiao Faction.
Seeing the Black Phantom's protective behavior, the various factions in Overmela couldn't sit still any longer. They dared not show any more disrespect to the Xiao Faction. Out of respect for the Xiao Faction, they all came to surrender, leaving Xiao Jin as the last person kept in the dark.
"What?!" Xiao Jin froze on the spot, while Xiao Hai felt as if a hammer had shattered his worldview, his head buzzing.
"He's actually my brother?!" Xiao Hai's vision blurred, and he almost lost his balance.
Xiao Hai couldn't imagine that his good-for-nothing younger brother had become such a powerful figure, influencing the course of the world. In comparison, his own vision had always been limited to small warlord forces, making them completely incomparable. The thought that he had always been the most outstanding among his siblings, with Xiao Han only able to look up to him, and now the situation was reversed, filled Xiao Hai with a nameless jealousy. He gritted his teeth, his eyes turning red.
Moreover, the thought of Black Phantom inexplicably becoming his godfather made Xiao Hai so angry that his nails dug into his flesh.
My brother became my godfather?! What the hell is this?!
"He didn't refuse then, just to see me make a fool of myself!" Xiao Hai was so angry he felt dizzy.
Xiao Jin's face was ashen, but he couldn't lash out. It was he who had decided to win over Black Phantom, but who knew that Xiao Han, whom he had been searching for, was right under his nose. Thinking about how interesting Han Xiao's expression must have been when he proposed this deal, Xiao Jin felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. The indescribable embarrassment made him feel extremely uncomfortable.
Saqi, Todd, and their group harbored sarcasm in their eyes. Their son had inexplicably become an equal, all because of Xiao Jin's influence. It was dramatic and a joke. However, no matter how much they despised Xiao Jin, they could not ignore Han Xiao's influence. So, despite their private laughter, the various factions in Overmela still came to pledge allegiance, putting an end to their fighting.
With Han Xiao around, the Xiao Faction's position is secure. Even if the two are shocked and ashamed, they cannot deny that their current status is due to Han Xiao.
After his anger subsided, Xiao Hai was overwhelmed by a sense of powerlessness.
He realized that no matter how angry he got, he couldn't change the fact that he couldn't even see Han Xiao's the Sight of Father's Back anymore.
The factional struggles that had been troubling them were resolved so easily simply because of Han Xiao's reputation, with each faction taking the initiative to back down. This influence was astonishing, making him an undisputed big shot on this planet.
Xiao Hai's expression suddenly froze, and a great fear suddenly surged into his heart.
My younger brother is like a completely different person now; he's become a very difficult guy to mess with... Will I go after him?