Chapter 753: Evolution Paths

"Sorry." An Daoqing looked at Li Xiaofei and apologized loudly.

"You came a bit late," Li Xiaofei spoke indifferently.

An Daoqing's gaze toward Li Xiaofei carried unwillingness, but even more fear.

"It was my fault," he said, raising his voice again.

There was no other way. He had to let everyone know that he had come to offer a humble apology, bearing thorns on his back.

Li Xiaofei looked at him, a trace of mockery appearing on his face. He pulled off the thorned branch from An Daoqing's back and, without hesitation, raised it high.

Pa! Pa! Pa!

Three crisp sounds echoed. Beads of blood splattered and flew. Three deeply sunken, bloody welts appeared on An Daoqing’s back. Yet, his expression did not change much.

This kind of physical pain meant nothing to him. What truly made him feel ashamed and humiliated was the disgrace he had to bear in spirit. To apologize with thorns in front of the crowd, and to do so on his knees. This would be an immense humiliation even for an ordinary person. Let alone for someone like him, who prided himself on being one of the top elites in Chongque City.

"Get lost." Li Xiaofei threw the thorned branch aside and said, "But before that, clean up the mess you made."

An Daoqing remained silent and slowly stood up. He glanced at Captain Zhou and Captain Wei. The two of them kept their heads lowered, not daring to meet his gaze.

Witnessing their direct superior at his most humiliating moment was enough to bring about their own downfall. But the only silver lining was that they weren’t the only ones. Thousands of eyes at the scene had seen everything.

"Withdraw," An Daoqing said. His voice was calm, and far from the panicked tone everyone had expected.

"Yes, sir." The two captains hurriedly bowed, then quickly left with the armored soldiers of the Internal Affairs Bureau.

An Daoqing once again saluted Li Xiaofei before turning and departing as well. The crowd of onlookers, who had come merely for gossip, remained shocked. A massive question mark hovered in everyone's mind, refusing to fade.

Li Qingchen... just how did he do it?

How did he make a Deputy Director, a man of such power and status, kneel in public and apologize?

Such ability was simply beyond comprehension. At this moment, the one in the most pitiful state was Joel Pedro, who had previously stepped forward to kick a man while he was down.

As a cosmic lifeform, Pedro’s injuries had already recovered. But now he lay on the ground like a dead dog with his eyes wide open. He watched as An Daoqing and the others left and did not dare to make a sound. All he could do was pretend to be dead, hoping not to draw Li Xiaofei’s attention.

But Li Xiaofei had no intention of letting him go. When Li Xiaofei's gaze landed on him, Pedro realized that playing dead was useless.

He immediately rolled over, knelt on the ground, and pleaded, "I was wrong, I..."

Li Xiaofei couldn’t even be bothered to waste words with him. He stepped forward and began a merciless beating. Right in front of countless spectators, he turned this ungrateful, backstabbing scoundrel into a bloody mess.

Pedro's shrill and miserable screams made everyone's hearts tremble. Finally, Li Xiaofei delivered a fierce kick.

Whoosh.

Joel Pedro shot into the sky, disappearing completely from sight.

Li Xiaofei casually wiped his hands and spoke in a calm, detached voice, "This is the consequence of being ungrateful and betraying the Fengyu Merchant Guild."

Many faces in the crowd suddenly turned pale. They were the very ones who had betrayed the Fengyu Merchant Guild, the hyenas who had come hoping to feast on its ‘fat meat.’

They had thought they could enjoy a mouthful of riches but now... They hurriedly dispersed, their hearts filled with dread, anxiously wondering how they could mend their relationship with the Fengyu Merchant Guild. After all, the information revealed through everything that had just occurred was far too terrifying.

"Let’s go back and have lunch," said Li Xiaofei as he turned to gently take Si Kongxue’s soft, fair hand.

The two of them turned and began walking toward the Fengyu Merchant Guild headquarters. Kong Xue and Si Xingyun, unable to contain their joy, followed closely behind.

Meanwhile, Chief Steward Zheng San and the other employees of the Fengyu Merchant Guild were ecstatic. They had realized that the dark cloud that had loomed over the Fengyu Merchant Guild had finally dissipated.

Good fortune lies within misfortune, and misfortune hides within good fortune. Perhaps, from this day forward, the Fengyu Merchant Guild was about to enter a new era of explosive brilliance.

***

The crisis facing the Fengyu Merchant Guild had been resolved. At the same time, the election for Chief Evolution Officer of Earth No. 1818 had also come to an end.

The sole contender, An Daoqing, had withdrawn from the race. Thanks to the strong backing from Director Hu, the Exploding Star Gang, and other influential forces behind the scenes, Li Xiaofei ultimately secured the position without shedding a single drop of blood.

Moreover, to match this new role, Li Xiaofei was also granted the qualifications of a district councilor in the Council. This was equivalent to adding an extra layer of protection to his identity.

Councilors possessed an exalted political status. With the exception of the Dark Division, the other three major divisions were not permitted to take action against a councilor without submitting prior applications and strategic plans. Sudden arrests and assassinations were strictly forbidden.

"Congratulations." Hu Shuo wore a broad smile as he warmly embraced Li Xiaofei. "From now on, you've completely shaken off your background in the lower-tier gangs. You already have one foot in the upper circles of Chongque City’s elite society."

Though Li Xiaofei wasn’t sure if it was just his imagination or something else, he couldn’t help but feel that Hu Shuo's attitude toward him had grown noticeably warmer after this whole incident. There was more equality in his tone and gestures, as though they were long-time friends, rather than maintaining the distant air of superior and subordinate that had lingered during past collaborations.

Wei Xiaotian was also present in the office. The leader of the Exploding Star Gang had been a staunch supporter of Li Xiaofei throughout the recent turmoil. During the most intense forty-eight hours before An Daoqing’s public apology, when internal powerbrokers within the gang had repeatedly pushed him to abandon Li Xiaofei, and external partners exerted immense pressure on him, it was Wei Xiaotian who had held the line.

His support for Li Xiaofei had not wavered in the slightest even at the most perilous moment. Now, he wore a sly smile, as charming and dangerous as a seductive male fox in a court drama.

"I’ve already made a public announcement," Wei Xiaotian said. "You’re officially removed from the Exploding Star Gang. From today onward, you no longer serve as the Hall Master of Red Shield Hall. You’ll retain only an honorary guest position. This way, there won’t be any obstacles to your advancement within Chongque City's political sphere."

Li Xiaofei expressed his gratitude. True friendship between men didn’t require many words. It was enough when someone reached out in a time of true need. There was a phrase, ‘A man of gallant heart and warm guts’. It meant that no matter how tough, strong, or cold a man might appear, deep down, his core was warm.

Master Wei was exactly such a man, one of gallant heart and warm guts. After some casual conversation, they got down to business.

Hu Shuo said, “The Military Guard Bureau will issue your transfer order tomorrow, and you’ll officially take up your post. Your first task will be to select an appropriate evolution path for Earth No. 1818. This is a matter of great importance, you must consider it carefully.”

“Hm?” Li Xiaofei raised his brows in surprise and asked, “What do you mean? You’re saying there are actually options when it comes to evolution paths?”

“Of course,” Hu Shuo replied. “Chongque City controls the core technologies, and depending on the era and condition of a base planet, there are different evolutionary routes available. As of now, there are a total of twenty-four options, including, superpowers, martial arts, cultivation, beast taming, mechanical technology, biological science, spiritualization, collective consciousness, and so on. As the Chief Evolution Officer, it falls to you to make the final decision on which path Earth No. 1818 will follow.”

Li Xiaofei was deeply shaken by what he heard. He realized that he was finally stepping into the inner core of Chongque City’s power structure. Many secrets would soon unfold before him, awaiting exploration.