I have to get lucky right away.

Chapter 398 Feng Xue has gone mad! He's going to create a new Rhône!

After a moment's thought, Feng Xue decided to follow the locals' advice and abandon the idea of ​​directly storming into the ruins. Instead, she and Fina headed towards the camp.

Just as he was pondering when the other party would ask about his territory, and if not, how he should coax the other party to open up, he suddenly realized that something was wrong.

Swish!
With the sound of a folding knife unfolding, Feng Xue narrowed her eyes and entered battle mode, her Ghost Control Technique ready to be unleashed, prepared to use her Teleportation Technique to escape at the slightest sign of trouble.

However, this vigilance did not last long. Soon, an authentication message popped up on the family terminal, and a man in a gray robe with a serious face appeared not far from the two.

"The gray robe signifies that the other party worships the god of unity." Fina's voice reached Feng Xue's ears through the nanomembrane. Before he could speak, the man said in a somewhat heavy tone:
"I am aware of your mission details, but unfortunately, now is not the time to discuss rewards. I have to convey some sad news to you both at this time."

Upon hearing the man's words, Feng Xue's heart skipped a beat, but the man continued without pausing:
"Not long ago, the head of our Abilat Island was assassinated."

The term "parent" or "head of the family" is used within the twelve families (the prototype is the family-based mafia). In Chinese gang terms, it is roughly equivalent to a hall master or incense master, who is the main person in charge of a region. They are high-ranking cadres who are only responsible to the family. Regardless of their beliefs, their status is second only to the godfather (family head). In their respective regions, their voice is even more powerful than that of the elders (Note ①).

A parent being stabbed is no small matter. Feng Xue kept a straight face and frowned as she said:
"How's the injury?"

"They're still trying to save him, but the situation isn't optimistic." The gray-robed man's tone was rather pessimistic, but that was normal. After all, given the physical condition of Super Terrans (especially those with high combat power), non-fatal injuries would heal themselves with bandages. Those who needed to be rushed to the hospital were basically beyond the help of the symbiotic nanomachines. If even the legacy of the previous civilization couldn't solve the problem, then the medical level of the post-apocalyptic era would naturally find it difficult to resolve.

Although she might have been saved if she hadn't died on the spot, it's unfortunate that none of the Twelve Wolf Gods are medical professionals, and Feng Xue naturally wouldn't expose her medical abilities for someone she didn't even know.

"So, why did you inform us of this?"

Just as Feng Xue was feigning surprise and thinking about how to respond, Fina asked in a very straightforward tone.

Upon hearing this, Feng Xue almost thought that this guy had relapsed, but to her surprise, the gray-robed man seemed to be in a "finally, there's a way out" state. He immediately opened his arms and showed Feng Xue and the other person two runes made of gray willpower, while explaining:
“According to the family rules, if the head of the family dies from an assassination, the revenge phase will begin, and the enemy will be retaliated against at any cost. Although you two only arrived in Abilath today, you meet the conditions for participation. As the priest of the God of Unity, I am responsible for granting you the ‘qualification’.”

Feng Xue didn't know much about this thing and was about to ask it telepathically when Fina put on a silly face and said loudly, "He's my older brother, so we both owe him."

“That’s certainly possible.” The man said, placing the rune from his left hand in Fina’s palm, breaking off a corner, and handing it to Feng Xue along with the rune from his right hand.

Although she didn't know the underlying meaning of the twelve families' revenge, Feng Xue was able to decipher the meaning of the rune using her knowledge of the shamanic system.

"Statistics, identification, judgment... Hmm, something like enemy-or-foe identification? And it seems to have a recording function too." Feng Xue thought to herself, and then reached out to take the runes. At the same moment of contact, the two runes merged into the palms of Feng Xue and Fina respectively.

"I have other people to convey my message to, and I'm sure you two are already very tired, so I won't bother you any longer."

After speaking, the man didn't give Feng Xue a chance to say anything more and quickly left. Feng Xue frowned and then turned her gaze to Fina.

"It's a very ancient custom, originating in the early days of the Great Cataclysm, when families didn't have as much pre-civilization technology as they do now, and each island was basically an autonomous fiefdom."

"If the head of a local family has an accident, it is difficult to send a new head of family in time and it is also difficult to convince the people. So a 'revenge rule' was created, which means that as long as the same revenge can be achieved, the head of family can inherit the position of the head of family."

"Don't think it's outrageous. It's a very smart approach. First of all, revenge at any cost helps to deter the enemy. Only when the enemy understands that assassinating a parent is not worth the effort will such assassinations decrease."

"Secondly, as I said, the patriarchs of local islands are actually quite independent. This kind of revenge action can effectively divide and weaken the local factions, making it easier for the main family to take over when they send people over later."

"Of course, this only applies to the core members of the family. However, the revenge of ordinary members can also enhance their status. Later, it became a point-based activity, where only qualified people take action. In the end, even if no one can achieve reciprocal revenge, the person with the highest score can become the next head of the family."

"But as you know, there are always people who try to exploit loopholes in this system. Eventually, it became a project that had to be certified by the God of Unity's chosen ones. So, although the God of Unity's divine arts are mediocre, all twelve families worship him."

"Wow, doesn't that mean we have a chance to infiltrate the family and become the head of the family?" Feng Xue's eyes lit up, and a line suddenly popped into her head—

"Feng Xue has gone mad! He's going to create a new Reid!"

“That’s how it is in theory, but we’re new here and don’t have many resources. Look at that priest’s expression; it’s obvious that everyone else has already started taking action.”

Fina didn't have much hope for this, and she even considered whether she should take advantage of this downtime to try and open the ruins.

But Feng Xue clearly didn't see it that way; he squinted and said:

"Ultimately, the points system for revenge operations is just a stopgap measure because we can't achieve reciprocal revenge, just like boxing scores only apply to situations where a knockout isn't possible. Conversely, if we take out all the other families' leaders, wouldn't we be guaranteed to take over?"

If it were just a rule, Feng Xue definitely wouldn't have thought of it this way, because even if she really won the "competition," she would only be a figurehead leader, and the people below might not be convinced, which would be troublesome enough.

But with divine witness, it's different. Accepting the runes is essentially acknowledging the competition, like signing a contract witnessed by the gods. In other places, one can simply endure divine punishment, but the God of Unity, as a deity worshipped by the family, is a different matter altogether.

If you swear by an external god, you can simply say "I don't believe in this god," but if you swear by your ancestors... then you should consider whether you'll be expelled from your family.

(End of this chapter)