Chapter 169: The People Who Hate Irving to the Core
While Irving and Wendy were preparing to enter the Shelter Game, Irving's enemies were also discussing their next steps. The high-ranking members of the Night Blades convened another emergency meeting. This time, the atmosphere was even more tense than the last meeting.
"Elders, our operations in the City of Warding and Starling City have completely failed. Moreover, Elder Seville, who was in charge of this mission, has been killed by Irving. For the foreseeable future, our Night Blades can't take any action in the City of Warding or Starling City. Perhaps we should send a new elder to the City of Warding."
In a corner, a young member of the Night Blades spoke nervously. He had been a follower of Elder Seville. When Elder Seville was killed by Irving, he was in charge of the operation in Starling City. Upon learning of Elder Seville's death, he immediately led his men back to a secret base. This made him and his subordinates one of the few survivors of this failed mission.
The high-ranking members attending the emergency meeting were extremely furious about the failure of the mission. One of the elders spoke bluntly.
"I warned Elder Seville before! I believed his plan was highly flawed. Even with Joseph's help, it was doomed to fail. But he didn't listen to my advice. If he had, we wouldn't have suffered such a devastating defeat."
"What's the use of complaining now? For us, the Night Blades, the most important thing is to quickly consider our next course of action. Are we really going to abandon the City of Warding and Starling City? Shouldn't we take some action against Irving? He has disrupted our operations multiple times. We must make Irving pay."
Another elder spoke with slight impatience. In his view, since Elder Seville had already failed, there was no point in dwelling on it. They should now focus on what actions to take next. The emergency meeting of the Night Blades' high-ranking members was convened precisely for this purpose.
After the two elders expressed their opinions, no one else spoke. The situation was dire for the Night Blades, and they couldn't think of a quick solution to their predicament.
"Regardless, we cannot abandon the City of Warding and Starling City. Moreover, although this mission failed, we also dealt a heavy blow to the Angel Guild. In our upcoming actions, the Angel Guild should no longer be able to exert significant pressure on us."
The elder sitting at the highest position slowly shared his perspective. When he spoke, all the Night Blades' elders turned their eyes towards him.
"You will be the new leader of the Night Blades in Starling City. Although you have not yet become one of our elders, I will appoint you as a provisional elder of the Night Blades."
The young Night Blades member was visibly excited upon hearing this.
He hurriedly stood up and said, "Thank you so much for your support, Your Eminence. I will not disappoint you. I will swiftly reorganize the Night Blades' forces in Starling City. Although we've faced some setbacks in our previous actions, there are still many families within the Night Blades willing to collaborate with us."
"Alright, you don't need to attend the rest of this meeting. Go and start with your tasks immediately," a distant voice echoed from the corner.
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The young Night Blades member had no choice but to exit the emergency meeting of the Night Blades' high-ranking members.
After the young member left, as expected, the elders who remained in the emergency meeting began to argue fiercely. Some believed they should target Irving first, while others thought they should focus on expanding the power of the Night Blades.
Amidst the heated arguments, the highest-ranking elder slipped away under the cover of shadows.
"We don't need to continue this argument; His Eminence has already left. Even if we argue, we won't reach any conclusion," one of the elders stated bluntly to the others.
In this situation, the other elders of the Night Blades saw no reason to stay any longer. Thus, they each departed.
The high-ranking members of the Night Blades were filled with deep hatred for Irving. Every elder was plotting to take action against Irving. However, none of them wanted to be the first to launch an attack. They all knew they were no match for Irving.
They hoped that someone else would severely injure Irving first, leaving them to deliver the final blow. This was the lowest-risk, highest-reward strategy.
Aside from the members of the Night Blades, there were others who harbored deep resentment towards Irving. These were the individuals who had suffered significant losses due to Irving's previous actions. They too were secretly plotting against Irving.
Leading this group was none other than the head of the Taylor family. The Taylor family had not suffered major losses during the Night Blades' operations and maintained a good relationship with them. The head of the Taylor family was even contemplating whether to collaborate with the Night Blades.
In his view, although the Night Blades' previous operation had failed, it didn't mean they couldn't still pose a threat to Irving. With the Angel Guild, Ocean Group, and the Green Ivy Group now supporting Irving, the Taylor family would have no chance of exacting revenge on Irving without collaborating with the Night Blades.
In his frustration and inner turmoil, the head of the Taylor family became increasingly irritable, often lashing out unexpectedly.
"The tea you brought me is cold! Don't you know to warm it up before serving?" the head of the Taylor family shouted, pushing the teacup onto the floor.
The servant who had just brought the tea immediately knelt down in panic, pleading for forgiveness.
"Master, I truly didn't mean it. I'll bring you a hot cup right away."
With that, the servant hurriedly retreated.
"It seems your mood has been quite foul lately. From what I remember, you were never this irritable," Joseph's voice came from nearby.
With a look of displeasure, the head of the Taylor family turned towards the source of the voice.
"How can you still find the mood to mock me? Haven't you been disowned by your father? Not only are you no longer the chairman of Ocean Group, but you can't even set foot inside their doors now."
Ocean Group has already fallen into the hands of your niece, who happens to be Irving's girlfriend. Your foolish actions have made the chances of my success increasingly slim."
The head of the Taylor family was acquainted with Joseph. They had even discussed joining forces against Irving before. The reason they hadn't taken any action was that their plans weren't fully formed before Irving emerged victorious.
Joseph's expression remained unchanged as he listened to this. He merely walked up to the head of the Taylor family and asked coldly, "Are you really not planning on revenge? Are you really going to let your son's death go unavenged?"
Joseph's words infuriated the head of the Taylor family. "Of course, I won't let my son's death go unavenged! Irving killed my son, and I will make him pay!" he roared angrily.
However, after shouting, a look of despondency appeared on the head of the Taylor family's face. "Even if I want to make him pay, I can't. Irving's power is too great. Even the Night Blades lost to him. You previously collaborated with the Night Blades, didn't you? Are you here to tell me that if we join forces with them, we can succeed?
I absolutely do not believe that."
Joseph chuckled upon hearing this. He was well aware that his and the Night Blades' actions had ended in complete failure. However, this was not a significant concern for him. After all, the Night Blades had suffered the greatest losses in this operation. Although Joseph had lost a few subordinates, they were not crucial to him. He still had some aces up his sleeve elsewhere.
Moreover, Joseph had served as the chairman of Ocean Group for several years. His understanding of Ocean Group was profound.
"In our next move, we certainly can't target Irving directly. His power is simply too overwhelming. However, not targeting Irving doesn't mean we can't make him pay. We can go after Irving's friends, like Vicky and Sophia from Starling City. Remember, the Fox family in Starling City hasn't been completely wiped out yet.
If we target Sophia, the Fox family will undoubtedly lend their support. With the three of us joining forces, our chances of success will be significantly higher."
Joseph's words caused the expression on the head of the Taylor family's face to shift continuously. After some contemplation, he asked in a low voice, "Do you have a concrete plan of action? If you don't, I won't risk it lightly."
A confident smile appeared on Joseph's face upon hearing this. The fact that the head of the Taylor family had asked this question indicated that he was more or less on board with Joseph's plan. All Joseph needed to do now was to spell out the details.
"Of course, I have a specific plan," Joseph said, taking out a document from his briefcase. "Irving is about to enter the Shelter Game. From what I know, a new crisis is about to emerge in the game, and there's a high chance Irving will be trapped there.
During the time Irving is stuck, we can go after Vicky and Sophia. There's no way they can effectively counter our actions. Without Irving, they're just two pretty faces."
Joseph spoke with unwavering confidence. The head of the Taylor family took the document from Joseph and scrutinized its contents. After a few moments of thoughtful consideration, he said bluntly, "Although your plan involves some risks, I'm willing to take that chance!"