Forge a path to success

Chu Hengkong found it unbelievable: "Fu Guanglu's later promotions depend on getting promoted?"

Chapter 355 Plan B

"To be precise, a promotion in official rank can also lead to a leap in quality. For example, Captain Banningtik already had the ability to become a 6, and he could naturally be promoted after taking office as captain. Parriman was not originally a promoter, but he held a high position in the city-state. Therefore, the thorns bestowed upon him the 'rank' of quality 6 during his term of office, ensuring that he was qualified to serve as a symbol of power in the city-state system."

Vilbert looked at someone: "This system has its advantages and disadvantages. The advantage is that, with a sufficient talent pool, the city-state can quickly generate points through political means. The disadvantage is that if the upward mobility is blocked, even those with existing talent will not be able to advance further."

Trek stared silently at the water screen, now devoid of any image, completely oblivious to the murmurs around him. Lico couldn't take it anymore and slapped him, finally bringing him back to his senses.

“Ah… that’s true for the official Ascendants. Lone wolves who break away from the system don’t have this problem. They enjoy the conveniences the system provides, but they also have to accept the corresponding limitations.” He chuckled. “To put it bluntly, the fact that Jing Sha currently only has one official Rank 6 member, Banningtik, is also a result of internal factional struggles. Parriman’s power is too great, and if another high-ranking official from the Divine Guard is appointed, it’s highly likely that one of his confidants will be appointed. This would result in a staunchly independent captain… so it’s better to have Banningtik from the Judicial Department as the captain and rely on him to maintain the balance of power.”

Vilbert continued, "The cost of this move is that the highest official position in the Judiciary, the 'Chief Justice,' is currently held by a purely civilian official without the rank granted by the Divine Tree. This is because Banningtik holds both the identity of the Divine Guard and the Judiciary, and the system does not allow the Judiciary to become too powerful."

Ji Huaisu said indignantly, "How could such an absurd thing happen—to weaken the overall strength in order to maintain internal balance!"

"This is already the safest option right now. If a bill faction leader really comes along, we're already discussing how to forcefully kill Point 6," Vande said dryly. "So this is the state of things, right? Unless our people can turn things around and elect a high-ranking official within the next thirty days, we won't have anyone at the highest levels?"

"The Divine Tree is still on our side!" Lico said.

“The Thorn Tree is barely able to save itself; who knows what it will become in a few days?” Van der retorted. “Don’t forget the face on the back of its head!”

An indescribable sense of despondency spread. Everyone present possessed the courage to fight the enemy to the death, yet this time the "enemy" was an intangible system. The facts were clear: Parriman had spent 20 years creating this complex situation, which could not be easily shaken by force alone. Even if they were to recklessly kill Parriman, how could the established laws be altered?

Gulibo listened for a long time but still didn't understand, and only asked blankly, "Pariman has a lot of votes, can we go and campaign for him too?"

Van der retorted, "It's not that simple! By now, the votes have long since—"

“Absolutely,” Vilbert said. “Next, we’ll try to win votes.”

Everyone stared at her blankly. Wilbert found a copy of the Constitution of Thorns on the first-floor bookshelf and turned to the last page.

"The Thorn Robe Constitution contains a clause proposed by the Thorn Robe Divine Tree itself. This clause has remained unchanged through hundreds of revisions over thousands of years, always situated at the very end of the constitution, like an unchanging bottom line. The wording of the clause is rather complex, but its core idea is as follows:"

To ensure that the democratic political system does not make grave errors that violate justice, morality, and love due to collective misjudgment, if a large number of citizens of the city initiate petitions, the Divine Tree of the Forest may initiate a second review of implemented policies affecting citizens' livelihoods, hold revotes on passed governing bills, and re-examine the judgments of major cases and the above-mentioned cases. Other popular political decisions that have a significant impact on the city-state may be handled in accordance with this provision.

It took everyone a few seconds to process the information, and then Lico was the first to jump up: "So, is there still a chance for us to vote again? As long as we collect enough petitions!!"

“But this law has never been enforced!” said the editor of Poison Otter. “Law school interpretations all suggest that it was established as a symbolic law to represent the status of the sacred tree, because its enforcement conditions are too stringent!”

"The 'large number of citizens in thorns' mentioned in this article is determined by a combination of the current total number of citizens with voting rights and the results of the democratic vote..." Trek calculated, "This number is different in normal times and in wartime emergencies; the latter requires nearly twice the number of the former. Let's assume normal times; overturning implemented policies and adjudicating major cases would require approximately 2000 million votes... and the number of votes needed for a bill to pass is calculated by subtracting the difference in votes between the two sides from the number of citizens who did not vote, and that is..."

Hill pushed a whiteboard over, and Wilbert took out a pen to check the calculations on the spot, writing a long line of numbers below the whiteboard.

“Approximately 47 million votes,” Wilbert said. “If we can secure the signatures of 47 million citizens, the Sacred Tree can hold a re-election on the Independence Act.”

Chu Hengkong clapped his hands and laughed, "That was your original plan, wasn't it?"

Wilbert did not deny: "It is pointless to directly confront Parriman's bill on his home turf, because Parriman will inevitably use all his means before the vote, and his momentum is difficult to resist. His reliance is the accumulated problems of the city-state over thousands of years. Before the vote is announced, the public cannot understand how important their choice is, and no matter who stands up to appeal, their voice will seem pale."

“But after the vote results are announced, public attitudes will change.” Vande followed her train of thought. “Citizens who initially supported the vote due to momentary emotions will start to reconsider, the mainstream public will change their minds due to the influence of their own interests, and there are also a huge number of people who did not participate in the vote, who are the most likely to be won over.”

"The independent faction—what to do?" Manager Carp discovered a new problem, "They always have more power! What if they still dominate after the re-entry..."

Ji Huaisu said irritably, "If the city-state still insists on its own way by then, it means that Jing Sha deserves to be doomed!"

“It will never come to that,” Trek said. “The public may be misled, but they will never lose their conscience. If we can provide timely guidance, we will surely get back on the right track.”

His expression was unusually solemn: "Miss Vilbert, since you have a plan in mind, why not tell me about it? I believe everyone here will give you their full support!"

Vilbert nodded, flipped the whiteboard over, and marked out three areas: the enemy, the neutral, and our side.

“We analyze the situation from both internal and external perspectives. The core contradiction within Jingsa lies in whether or not to achieve independence. Those who support independence are our enemies, while those who uphold the alliance are our friends.”

Chu Hengkong found a pencil and quickly sketched Parriman's image, pinning it to the top of the enemy's territory. Below it, Wilbert circled the number 1: "Parriman and the First Order nobles who support him are the core force of the Independence Party. This portion of the votes involves their core interests and cannot be won over; therefore, they do not require much attention."

Below that, Wilbert wrote 4: "The Fourth Line of Harvest Fields is Parriman's main voting bloc, with the majority of its citizens supporting the bill. However, due to its large population, a significant portion of its citizens who are apolitical did not participate in the vote. This group of citizens is the main force we need to win over. What is the attitude of the Fourth Line captain?"

“Parriman is a staunch supporter,” Trek said. “But this is a political stance, not a moral one; she still fights for the thorns.”

“We can try to recruit the captain of the fourth team,” Wilbert confirmed. “Then there’s the neutral zone. Currently, the second order Ironthorn Crown and the first order Justice system led by Banningtik belong to the neutral zone.”

She wrote a 2 in the neutral zone and another circled 1. Ji Huaisu asked, "I understand Banningtik, but what about the second vein sequence? I remember it was a military camp, right?"

“The soldiers wounded in the war and the soldiers loyal to the cause are constantly arguing. There have been several armed conflicts in the Second Pulse this year, all of which have been suppressed by the Second Captain,” Trek said. “Let’s consider the Second Captain as a neutral party. He can only remain silent due to his duties, but he has considerable influence among the civilians. If we can get him to take a clear stand on one side, then the number of votes in the military will increase significantly.”

Vilbert highlighted point 2: "The second lineage represents the Thorn Army's military force, a force we must win over. As for the third and fifth linesages, they are the most steadfast opponents of the bill, and our attitude is to win over as much power as possible while preserving our base."

"Those people at the amusement park are actually against the bill?" Gulibo asked, puzzled.

“Businessmen are the best at weighing the pros and cons. The Fifth Lineage’s main revenue depends on tourism, and the independence of the Thorn Robe is a disaster for them,” Wilbert concluded. “In the next 15 days, we need to win over the Fourth Captain and gain the support of the Second Team. This is the first part of the plan.”

“Scrambling forty-seven million votes from two separate sequences—the first part already sounds challenging enough,” Van Der said. “I can’t even imagine how insane the second part will be.”

"After initiating a revote on the bill, we move on to the second part of the plan." Vilbert marked a large X on Parriman's portrait. "Assassinate Parriman, crush his power, and use the wartime provisions to elect a new speaker to eliminate any future threats."

The giant seal held up a sign and groaned: "You proposed assassinating the Speaker in front of so many citizens in thorns..."

"Great idea!" Lico exclaimed excitedly.

Captain Ji's thinking was more advanced: "Can we go straight to the second phase?"

“No, because of the Royal Power,” Chu Hengkong said. “Even if we successfully kill Parriman, the Royal Power will pretend to be Parriman and stage a ‘resurrection’ drama. This drama will actually make him a saint, and then no one will be on our side. So we must wait until the bill is re-voted and at least we have collected 47 million votes to have the initiative before we can take action against Parriman.”

Why would the royal family get involved in this mess?

“Because Parriman was a man who employed the monarchy,” Wilbert said. “To be more precise, they were all people who wanted to see the thorns stand alone, and they would cooperate closely to achieve their own goals.”

Trek didn't react much: "I won't mention the evidence, after all, anyone with eyes can see what the Jinghua Festival's attack was intended to do. I only have one question: why would those assassins go to such lengths to help Parriman? What benefits could a figurehead like Parriman possibly offer them?"

“This question needs to be answered from two perspectives,” Vilbert said. “For all assassins below the royal authority, this is just a routine Blood Oath mission. The royal authority has absolute command over the Blood Oath, and they cannot defy the will of the royal authority.”

Trek pressed further: "And what about the monarchy itself?"

Vilbert didn't answer, but instead looked at Chu Hengkong. Chu Hengkong understood what she meant; she could deduce Wang Quan's strategies and abilities, but she didn't truly understand Wang Quan's character. Regarding deeper motivations, in the realm of thought, only he was qualified to provide an answer.

For a long time, the Dark Kingdom had been his best friend.

Chapter 356 A Friendship as Faint as a Phantom (1)

That happened not long after Chu Hengkong officially joined the company.

On a sweltering summer day, as he struggled with tedious family documents, hidden histories, and heraldry, his boss, unusually, took a day off from his classes to assign him a task. Walking into the office, he radiated an almost prison-release-like joy.

"Even if you asked me to assassinate the president, I would leave with a smile on my face."

“The first thing I need to tell you is to put away this careless attitude,” Wilbert told him.

Beside her desk sat a briefcase, its silver metal casing emblazoned with a bright red temple emblem—the seal of the Blood Oath. Chu Hengkong's interest was piqued by the briefcase, and before Vilbert could stop him, he had already crouched down and begun tapping and examining it.

"A miniature nuclear bomb?" he guessed as he tapped it. "A biological weapon? A strange little craft?"

Chu Heng could usually determine the contents of a suitcase by the echo; those with keen hearing could use this useful little trick. But this time, his hearing failed him. Perhaps it was because of the suitcase's special material; the vibrations from the taps seemed to disappear into a black hole, failing to elicit any response.

“Stop, Akong.” Vilbert pressed his hand down. “Secondly, don’t touch this box. This is a guard duty.”

"Where to send it?"

“A building in New Jersey.” Vilbert handed him a photo. “It’s a mission directly issued by the Blood Alliance. The building is full of Blood Alliance traitors.”

Since Violet said that, it meant she had personally investigated the situation. Chu Hengkong put away the photo and listened to her say, "The specific route is in your car. You need to arrive at your destination before 20:30 PM tonight."

"after?"

“Open the box at the building entrance,” Wilbert said. “Mission complete.”

Chu Hengkong weighed the box in his hand; it wasn't light, much heavier than he had estimated. This job was clearly suspicious, because the boss never gave such vague information. It was most likely a special mission assigned by the Blood Alliance's higher-ups, but the boss couldn't elaborate due to ancient covenants or similar reasons.

He waved to indicate that he understood, and as he walked out the door, he heard another instruction from Wilbert.

"If you find anything unusual, throw the box away and come back."

"I suspect the Blood Alliance didn't give that explanation."

"This is my request."

"Received, received, received!" Chu Hengkong casually lifted the box and carried it on his back with one hand, like a schoolbag.

The journey to his destination was incredibly tedious: drive, board a private jet, land, drive another car. This wasn't the era of rampant traitors anymore; they'd purged the entire family, and no one except the boss knew his whereabouts. He began to miss the days when he'd drive around with girls, engaging in gunfights—slightly thrilling but also quite fun, and he could occasionally crack a joke to amuse little Violet.

Now, Violet is a powerful underworld boss, able to walk onto the Blood Alliance's round table without batting an eye, even stepping over the faces of the dead. The missions assigned by the big boss are so boring and repetitive that they're not as fun as the Blood Alliance's missions to eliminate outcasts.

"Doesn't it feel like sitting in an office?" he said to the box. "Comfortable, peaceful, day after day."

I arrived at my destination at 20:25 PM. The logo at the building entrance contained suspicious symbols of a dark wizard. A crescent moon smeared with prison-like horizontal lines, or a half-drawn full moon—those dark wizards were always obsessed with moon worship.

This place is 100% hopeless. Chu Hengkong casually knocked out the guard on duty and laid his suitcase flat under the cover of night. He thought for a long time about an opening line that would never be used, and finally told a lame joke:

"Time to get to work."

He unlocked the combination lock.

The suitcase opened automatically, and moonlight shone into the dark velvet lining, illuminating a pair of slowly opening eyes.

Chu Hengkong subconsciously held his breath. He had imagined many possibilities along the way, but even the most absurd imagination paled in comparison to the reality before him. A slender girl was curled up in the box, her light white hair tinged with pale blue. She wore only a plain dress, her fair skin faintly visible beneath the thin fabric, her delicate features like a masterpiece of Pygmalion.

For a fleeting moment, Chu Hengkong thought he had brought over a doll, because the girl lacked any sense of realism; she seemed entirely fake. A living person couldn't possibly remain silent in a box for eight hours—even he couldn't do that.

But as he was thinking this, the girl stood up and took a few steps with her slender, delicate ankles. She walked barefoot into the building, and Chu Hengkong's gaze followed her. Soon after, he saw the brightly lit building gradually darken until the last light went out, and silence descended upon the darkness.

It felt like being swallowed whole by an unknown behemoth.

Three minutes later, the girl appeared under the streetlight, without a trace of blood on her. She nodded slightly.

"Mission complete," she said.

Where are the people in the building?

"They paid the price for betraying the Blood Oath."

Chu Hengkong raised an eyebrow: "With your skills, there's no need for me to make this trip alone."

“This is for observation,” the white-haired girl said. “There is controversy within the Blood Alliance regarding the new Velves. They acknowledge his talent but worry that he will repeat the mistakes of the past. But you are far more powerful than the previous Serpent of Life, so I can confidently hand over power to Velves.”

"Such an arrogant tone, as if you were the king of the Blood Alliance." Chu Hengkong laughed.

Do you think the King is the ruler of the Blood Alliance?

"Perhaps he'd be called Emperor? Consul?" Chu Hengkong shrugged. "There must be someone like that, otherwise who would be sending out tasks all the time?"

“Such people do exist, but they are meaningless in themselves. Because a king’s position comes from the scepter in his hand, and a king without power is just another mortal,” the girl said. “Just as Velbert Velus became queen because of you, she would have no power without you.”

Chu Hengkong suddenly reached out and pressed his fingertip against her nose. The girl stared at him silently.

“If you want to get along with me, learn to respect my boss in front of me,” Chu Hengkong told her. “Otherwise, I don’t mind teaching you what violence is stronger than power.”

The girl tilted her head and smiled.

"Very interesting. I look forward to your performance, Chu Hengkong."

She turned and picked up her suitcase, disappearing into the night. Chu Hengkong walked into the dark building, scanning the corpses on the ground floor by floor.

Not a single drop of blood could be seen in the building; everyone had died instantly from suffocation. He replayed the scene from minutes earlier in his mind: the girl darted behind her target, her delicate hand silently brushing across his neck, like a white grim reaper embracing him. And so, someone died silently, and she quietly departed to visit the next victim.

He finally squatted on the rooftop and made a phone call to his boss.

"Has a battle broken out?" Velbert asked.

“They didn’t fight,” he said. “I guess she’s the Dark Kingdom?”

·

The title "Dark Kingdom" does not exist in the surface world; it is a legend that circulates only among Blood Oath assassins.

Some swear that Wang Quan is an unparalleled beauty, captivating with every smile and gesture; others swear that Wang Quan is a disfigured woman who kills her targets in the most ruthless way because of her hatred for the world; retired veteran assassins say that Wang Quan is an invisible vengeful ghost; and old members of the underworld family swear that Wang Quan is an amorphous monster.

There are countless legends about the King's Power, but they all share one common thread: he is incredibly powerful, perhaps the strongest being on Earth. This is because the King's Power is an assassin who kills assassins; his opponents are battle-hardened individuals who attempt to betray the Blood Pact. These traitors often defect with great fanfare only to die silently, their gruesome corpses displayed to the various clan leaders as a demonstration of the consequences of betrayal.

That irresistible power is proof of authority.

"Brother Chu, who's more awesome, you or Wang Quan?"

The lackey, with a shifty look on his face, handed him a cigarette and obsequiously lit it for him. Chu Hengkong blew a smoke ring at him irritably: "Where the hell did you hear that from?"

"Everyone's talking about it!" the underling said, making it sound very convincing. "They say you fought Wang Quan for three hundred rounds in the traitor's headquarters, and after the fight, the whole building was gone."

"They even demolished it and put it upstairs, that's pure bullshit."

The younger brother's eyes lit up: "So you've really seen it? Is it amazing?"

"You can't catch up with me!" Chu Hengkong laughed.

He turned to buy a magazine, but saw another young man walk out of the convenience store, with the exact same face and expression. A voice, exactly as he remembered, echoed behind him: "That's not necessarily true."

The "little brother" was still smiling, no longer with its shifty eyes, but with a playful, cat-and-mouse attitude. Chu Hengkong wasn't buying it. He went up and pinched its face, but couldn't pull it off despite using some force.