Chapter 421: Plotting with a Tiger
"Please continue. I'll just stand and listen." Xia Fei purposely showed weakness, revealing a harmless smile.
Halleh frowned, glancing darkly at Furball in Xia Fei's arms. He did not recognize this exotic beast, but it gave him a very strange feeling. It was extremely dangerous, yet it did not lack the demeanor of a king.
"I believe that you should know that the insectoids have undergone earth-shattering changes in the last few thousand years," Xia Fei said after some thought.
"Now, you have many intellectuals and experts. You're no longer a barbaric race and are advancing in the direction of outstanding intelligent lifeforms."
Halleh bitterly smiled. "That's right. The insectoids are indeed rapidly evolving, producing more and more high-level intelligent lifeforms. Unfortunately, we're still unable to shake off our barbaric and low-class tastes."
Xia Fei frowned. Halleh's tone was very deep, like a philosopher rather than a warrior. In this aspect, he was different from all the insectoid warriors Xia Fei had met before. Though Halleh was also very crazy when he fought, he had an additional air of elegance about him. This could be seen from his attire and meticulous hairstyle. He had received good education in terms of attire and speech, and this education was very likely due to the influence of humans.
"In our insectoid race, evolution has produced two extremes. One is extremely intelligent but has no martial prowess, while the other is powerful but has a personality similar to our ancestors who ate raw meat and drank blood, barbaric and ignorant. There are very few warriors who have both intelligence and martial prowess, and even if there are, they're mostly perverted fellows.
"As the race continues to evolve, this contradiction becomes more and more prominent. In the insectoid race, which revered martial prowess, only intelligence and no martial prowess will be valued, so the position of the intellectuals is even lower than those warriors who know nothing and only know how to kill for fun.
"The intellectuals yearn for civilization. They like the music, opera, art, literature of the Pan-human Alliance, and they enjoy a rich and peaceful life. Meanwhile, the experts do not care about these things. In their eyes, technology is only for the sake of producing more powerful warships, for the sake of war. As for those cultural things, they are extremely disdainful.
"Therefore, in the insectoid race, the conflict between the wise and the strong has always existed. Both sides have been wrestling since the day the race evolved, and it has always been the strong who have the upper hand. They force the insectoids to develop according to their will, recruiting troops on a large scale and preparing for war at any time.
"Of course, this is what the wise ones don't want to see. They want the insectoids to develop a truly diverse civilization instead of blindly emphasizing military force. Thus, the wise ones of the insectoids gradually joined forces and relied on their intelligence to fight against those idiots who only know how to kill."
"Unfortunately, this kind of resistance is very feeble. In the face of powerful martial prowess, intelligence is so insignificant. A single warrior can easily kill thousands of intellectuals, and the intellectuals have no way to resist. The pain continues, and more and more intellectuals choose to submit. Until not long ago, a super-intelligent insectoid with the demeanor of a true king was born."
Xia Fei smiled when he heard this, casually saying, "You must be talking about Uti, the strongest intellectual in the history of the insectoid race."
Halleh replied, "That's right, it's him. Under his leadership, the insectoid intellectuals reunited and did their best to send him to the throne of the Golden Tent, hoping that he could lead the insectoids to establish their own civilization, an intelligent insectoid race that can truly look down on the universe in all aspects.
"But he betrayed us!" Halleh heavily slapped his thigh, unable to restrain his anger. "Before ascending to the throne, Uti vowed that he would develop technology and culture, allowing the insectoids to become more diverse, but the first thing he did after ascending to the throne was to continue developing his military, even waging war against you humans! He completely ignored the sincere advice of the wise ones, stubbornly going his own way. If this isn't betrayal, then what is?! "
Xia Fei was amused when he heard this. The story of the insectoid intellectuals and the strong was a joke to him. They had no martial prowess but only ideals. These insectoid intellectuals were so naive that they were almost adorable. They had all their intelligence, but they had forgotten the ironclad law of the universe: whoever's fist was harder would be the one in the right!
"Thus, you and the intellectual faction you belong to must think of a way to eliminate this traitor and then elect a new king. As for me, I was chosen by you to be the executor of this assassination because I'm a human. No matter how you look at it, it's most reasonable for me to do it. It won't cause a civil war among the insectoids, and it won't expose the existence of the intellectuals."
Halleh firmly nodded. "That's right. It's said that humans are a highly intelligent race, and your performance today proves that to be the case."
Xia Fei lit a cigarette and chuckled. "If you elect another king, can you guarantee that he won't betray you like Uti?"
Halleh was silent. No one could guarantee this, and Uti was the best example.
"There's nothing wrong with your thinking, but it's a pity that you're too reliant on others and don't have the strength yourselves. Forget it. I don't want to know too much about the insectoids. As long as I can kill Uti and end this war, I've already achieved my goal. If I work with you, how can you guarantee that I'll have a chance to get close to Uti?"
Halleh replied, "You don't have to worry about that. We have Deepthroat by Uti's side, and we know every move he makes. As long as you join our side, I guarantee that you'll have a chance to take down Uti in one fell swoop!
"Uti has been living in seclusion recently, often away from the Golden Tent. If you can't grasp his exact whereabouts, it'll be pointless even if you have the power to destroy half a star system. After all, the capital itself is the greatest secret of our insectoid race, and there's no way we can destroy it with pure martial prowess."
Halleh spoke with great sincerity. Xia Fei's performance had left a good impression on him. He was an expert, and at the same time, he was a wise man among the insectoids. He knew that with Xia Fei's help, his chances of success would greatly increase. Disregarding everything else, just the power of the Star of Ruin in Xia Fei's hands was enough to make him speechless.
Xia Fei's greatest advantage was his identity. For a public figure like Halleh to negotiate with Xia Fei was already taking a huge risk, let alone assassinating Uti.
Once the news got out, the entire insectoid race would band together to deal with this group of wise men, and the safest way was to push Uti's death onto someone unrelated.
Xia Fei nodded. "Honestly, I'm tempted by the conditions you've proposed. If I can't kill Uti, I won't be able to rest easy for the rest of my life, but I have my own conditions."
"What conditions?"
"I need to exist as an independent entity, and I won't accept your orders. Even if you say that I can make my move at a certain time and place, I'll have to weigh the pros and cons, and I'll only execute it when I'm confident."
Halleh pondered for a moment. "You mean to cooperate?"
"That's right!" Xia Fei firmly nodded. "Our relationship is one of cooperation, not employment. Unless that's the case, I'll never agree. Since killing Uti benefits both of us, we have a basis for cooperation, but I'll be the one to decide when and what method to use. "
With that, Xia Fei took two steps back and crossed his arms in front of his chest, assuming a stance that brooked no room for negotiation.
Halleh was somewhat troubled. Their original plan was to convince Xia Fei to become their hired assassin, and if Xia Fei did not agree, they would immediately get rid of him. However, Xia Fei was willing to cooperate now, but he was unwilling to give up his initiative, requesting to retain the right to make his own decisions and judgments. This was very different from the terms Qingliu had previously set down.
"Give me a moment."
Halleh stood up and took two steps to the side. Darkness suddenly rose up and enveloped his entire body, making it impossible to hear anything from the outside or see what he was doing.
"The darkness ability is truly powerful. Whether it's offense, defense, or concealment, it's practically omnipotent," Phantom praised.
Xia Fei replied, "That's indeed the case. Compared to the darkness ability, those abilities that control ice and fire are practically child's play."
Phantom frowned. "Are you really planning on cooperating with these insectoids? That's like pulling chestnuts out of the fire. In any case, I find it very hard to trust these fellows. "
Xia Fei smiled. "It's not just that. I'm practically dancing with wolves. If my guess is correct, these people's plan is real, but they still have a backup plan."
"Backup plan?"
"They'll do everything in their power to help me kill Uti, and then they'll kill me. Only the dead can keep secrets, and they must've thought of this. Thus, for their safety, I can't live.
"After that, I'll be labeled as a human assassin, and all the blame will be pushed onto me and the Alliance. Hatred will blind the eyes of the populace, and they can use the agitation of the insectoids to rise to power. After that, they can slowly eradicate the remnants of Uti and truly control the entire insectoid race."
Phantom exclaimed. "This plan is truly sinister and ruthless. Every step is flawless. Since you know that they won't let you go no matter what, how can you still act so indifferent? Cooperating with them is tantamount to suicide! "
Xia Fei replied, "Risk and profit always go hand in hand. If I don't take any risks, my chances of killing Uti aren't high. Rather than recklessly charging around, I might as well cooperate with them. When the time comes, we'll see who's more skillful."
"Are you confident that you can escape death?"
"No."
"Then you're going to rely on luck?"
"You don't really think that I've relied on luck to get here, do you? The crux of this move lies in whether or not I can cooperate with them. I can't lose my autonomy. Only then will I have a chance at survival."
…
In the darkness, Qingliu, who was far away in the imperial capital, seemed to be standing right in front of Halleh, though his feet were somewhat unsteady. It was obvious that this was a product of some sort of virtual signal.
"He's asking to cooperate?" Qingliu stroked his beard and asked.
"That's right. We'll provide the information, but when and how to attack is up to him."
Qingliu thought for a moment before saying, "This way, it'll be very difficult for us to control him, which is very detrimental to our plan. Is this risk worth it?"
Halleh sternly replied, "We're already taking a lot of risk. I can tell that this human Xia Fei is very scheming. Perhaps he really will succeed."
Qingliu's eyes brightened. "You think so highly of him?"
Halleh firmly replied, "Yes, I think very highly of him."
Qingliu chuckled. "There aren't many people that you think highly of, old pal. How about this? Just agree to all of his requests and then bring him to Black Peak Ridge."
"Black Peak Ridge!" Halleh exclaimed in shock. "Bring him there for what?"
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