Dual wielding volcanoes, killing through the west

The girl returned home bewildered. Not long after, the next thing to emerge from the darkness was a pair of heterochromatic eyes gleaming with an unusual light. The angel eyes did not approach actively, but stood at a relatively far distance, silent, simply gazing at Zhang Renfeng in the darkness.

"Come to think of it, it seems like it's been a long time since we've had a conversation like this." Zhang Renfeng noticed his presence but wasn't surprised. He continued gulping down his strong liquor as he said, "Are you disappointed in me?"

"What makes you say that?" Angel Eyes asked with a smile.

“I, and my team, will soon no longer be pure.” Zhang Renfeng laughed self-deprecatingly. “I will also be like them, starting a company, borrowing money from the bank, living in a luxurious mansion, and rolling around in the mud with them.”

"Back then, you came here wanting to become human... How have you felt these past few days? Have you felt like you've become human?"

“No, I am still me, and I still can’t feel anything.” Angel Eyes shook his head, but a strange smile appeared on his face. “However, during the time I’ve been with you, I’ve come to understand a lot of things. Some things that seemed inconsistent have gradually come together.”

"As for your worries, there's no need to worry."

"Isn't that necessary?" Zhang Renfeng's eyebrows furrowed slightly. "The Lamon Raiders keep talking about punishing corporate dogs. If they partner with a big bank and start a company, what am I then?"

“Zhang Renfeng, you said…” Angel Eyes suddenly changed the subject and said, “Does a butterfly remember when it was a caterpillar?”

"..."

Zhang Renfeng was taken aback. The question, while seemingly childlike, contained a touch of philosophical thought, making it difficult for him to answer for a moment.

"Humans are inherently fickle creatures. Because of their short lifespans, they are adept at change. Even the same person's thoughts a year ago and a year later can be completely different." Angel Eyes' voice was very calm, seemingly possessing a unique magic that could turn dreams upside down, making the listener unable to help but take his words to heart. "A caterpillar becomes a butterfly. It is the same species before and after, but in the cocoon, it undergoes a violent struggle and change."

"Finally, it emerged from its cocoon in the most perfect form."

"In my opinion, you are currently in that stage."

"...Me?" Since falling into confusion, this was the first time Zhang Renfeng had heard such a direct affirmation, and he was somewhat surprised.

“You,” Angel Eyes chuckled, “as a gang leader, you are already the first of your kind. Think about it, what other gang in the world can take over an entire state's territory in a year with absolute force? What other gang can defeat the combined forces of Pinkerton detectives and bounty hunters head-on, and wipe out those tycoons one by one, turning their bones to dust?”

"No, most gangs are at best at the level of the Wolf Shepherd Gang. They just rob passersby and take their wealth, that's about it. They don't even need bounty hunters to catch them. In a few years, the gangs can't survive and will naturally disband."

"As a gang, the Red Center Gang can challenge the Illuminati, which is unprecedented. But from another perspective, a gang has already done everything it can, and the Caterpillar's path has come to an end."

"If you want to go toe-to-toe with them again..."

Angel Eyes lowered his voice, his divine eyes shining brightly, "Then go and become a butterfly!"

Chapter 584: The Secret Records of the Illuminati

For three whole days, Zhang Renfeng made no move, simply waiting silently. But unlike the first night, he was no longer full of anxiety. He ate and drank as usual, went fishing with Mike, and went hunting in the mountains with the chief, as if he had truly retired from the military and returned to his hometown, making up for all the fun and games he had enjoyed before.

But he didn't simply let the transformation from caterpillar to butterfly pass by; on the contrary, he had already made his decision quietly. A caterpillar turning into a butterfly doesn't necessarily have to cause a cataclysmic event or be known to everyone; he still managed to accomplish it quietly.

He was simply waiting, waiting for the last trump card at hand to be fully integrated, before taking a broader perspective to accomplish this task.

Three days later, he returned to Tao and obtained his trump card, the final piece of the entire plan. However, the weight of this piece was far too great, far exceeding his expectations.

----

"ah---!!!"

As soon as he entered, a tall, disheveled female ghost shouted at Zhang Renfeng in a high-pitched voice that almost made him feel physically uncomfortable; he nearly punched her. Upon seeing her face clearly, Zhang Renfeng realized that this girl with disheveled hair, a gloomy face, a resentful expression, and dark circles under her eyes was none other than Tito.

After three days apart, I almost didn't recognize her.

"Tito, you..."

Without a word, Tito gritted his teeth, lunged forward, grabbed Zhang Renfeng by the collar, lifted him off the ground, and shook him violently while screaming, "You owe me compensation for mental distress!"

"W-what's wrong?" It was the first time Zhang Renfeng had been lifted up by a girl. He subconsciously looked at the wolf and asked for help.

"Don't even mention it, senior brother. What are those seven big notebooks you brought back? I asked them, but Tao and Tito wouldn't tell me. They said the fewer people who know, the better." Wolf explained from the side, "The amount of content is really huge. Tito worked for three days to barely finish copying them all."

“Mr. Zhang, we really have to thank Miss Tito for this,” Tao added from the side. “Her calculation speed for numbers and codes is much faster than mine. On the contrary, I affected her deciphering efficiency. She did all the rest by herself.”

"Seven whole volumes! My wrists are practically ruined from writing!" Tito's eyes seemed to be spitting fire as he gritted his teeth. "What kind of compensation are you planning to give me for this kind of extremely high-intensity extra work?"

“I…I’ll ask Dunn to approve more funding for your lab, and then have Tao give it to you, is that alright…”

"Hmph, that's pretty much it."

Tito wasn't really after the money. Seeing Zhang Renfeng's attitude, he snorted and put Zhang Renfeng back on the ground. He touched his collar, still shaken, and secretly marveled at the girl's strength. There weren't many people who could lift him up like that.

While they were chatting, Aurora, carrying a stack of manuscripts taller than herself, swayed over. It was fortunate that they were involved in experimental research and development, so they had no shortage of draft paper; otherwise, they really wouldn't have had anywhere to copy all that stuff.

"Boom!"

It hit the ground with a resounding thud.

"You've worked hard, Aurora," Tao said in a deep voice. "Go out and rest for a while."

"..." He hesitated for a moment, considering the relationship between Wolf and Zhang Renfeng, and then asked with a hint of inquiry, "The following matters may involve many secret events. Should we also involve Ms. Nymeria...?"

“There’s no need for that.” Zhang Renfeng refused without hesitation.

“Alright, let’s get straight to the point. The contents of these seven books are all the same. After deciphering them, Tito has roughly sorted them out.” Tao said in a deep voice, “Based on our initial deductions, this is a list.”

"A list?" Zhang Renfeng frowned. "Another list? Could a list fill seven volumes?"

"Of course not. Although it's called a list, the information recorded on this list is quite detailed. It not only includes names, but also the members' family members, backgrounds, main businesses, and so on. Just think of it as a profile of the people."

"I roughly calculated that there are about 10,000 people listed on it. They are all people with a certain status and identity in society. In short, this is also the standard for the Illuminati to recruit members. They either have power, money, influence, or outstanding abilities in other fields. In short, ordinary people cannot get in."

"Ten thousand." Zhang Renfeng let out a long breath, his brows furrowing involuntarily. "Ten thousand..."

He himself had led troops; the Mountain Battalion had eight hundred men, and when they were arrayed, the visual effect was quite impressive.

If ten thousand people were lined up and stood together, the sheer size of the crowd would be overwhelming.

Wolf couldn't help but mutter, "Senior brother, you're such a troublemaker. How did you manage to offend so many people... What level would these ten thousand people be in that sect?"

"It's not explicitly stated in the minutes, but if you compare it with the later meeting minutes, these names didn't appear in the meetings either. This at least suggests that the people on this list are unlikely to be involved in the Illuminati's true core structure."

“We still need to eat separately, and we also need to handle things by different people.” Zhang Renfeng composed himself and forced himself to calm down from the chaos. “Istavo mentioned to me that if he can really take down ‘Red Center’ and return alive, the credit for this job will make him a member of the Night Hawk Minerva. They should be part of the Illuminati’s decision-making circle.”

"Above them should be their leader, the so-called 'Awakened One'."

“Never mentioned it.” Tito’s tone was very certain. He pointed to the pile of documents on the ground. “I typed out every single word in these. These are all meeting minutes from within the Illuminati. There is absolutely no mention of any Awakened One.”

"Meeting minutes?"

----

Document Number: E-1878-Ψ-9

Approver: MVC███

Manipulating the Argentine peso to depreciate by 47%, and harvesting ranchers' assets through London-Buenos Aires currency arbitrage (see details of the flow of funds in the ghost account G-22X).

The plan to trigger a bank run in North America targets 12 local banks, including First National Bank of Kansas City, in its first phase.

Arsenic-containing fertilizers have been distributed to plantation owners in Bluegrass states, Southern states, and other regions, while simultaneously stockpiling coffee beans in New York to artificially create a coffee bean shortage.

Chapter 7 of the Federal Reserve's initial proposal, the Aldridge Memorandum, has been revised.

Targeting the current Finance Minister of the United States of America, codename: Libra

Option A: Custom-made pocket watch-triggered ricin injector (disguised as a gift from a mistress)

Option B: Instigate an "accidental collapse" of the Swan Lake Opera House's vaulted ceiling (the building supervisor must be removed simultaneously).

Morgan Group traitor purge list:

-Priority 1: Railroad tycoon ███ Bilt's personal physician (cardiac paralysis medication has been implanted in the medicine box compartment)

- Second priority: Wall Street Journal investigative reporter (arranged to commit suicide on the Brooklyn Bridge)

Additional clauses to the Meiji government loan agreement have taken effect, marking the Yokohama Specie Bank's transformation into a puppet entity more than halfway complete.

$2,75 million (in gold standard) was injected into the Western Railway Network through a bearer joint bill exchange, of which 47% was converted into political donations through East Glory Bank.

……

"It's over?" Zhang Renfeng felt a chill run down his spine.

"It's over."

“Just one page and… there are so many…” Zhang Renfeng wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. “None of them are trivial matters!”

“You should be glad, Zhang, that you came to America at just the right time.” Tao’s voice was calm and composed. Even now, he could still look at this matter from the most detached perspective, which, in a sense, was a special talent.

"At this rate, if you had come five years later, by the time they had completely occupied the South and formed an impenetrable wall, it would have been impossible to overthrow them."

Chapter 585: I have a plan!!!

"However, on the bright side, senior brother, you have their list too, right? Even if they're not the core decision-makers, at least the middle management and the lower execution levels are already transparent to you!" Wolf's tone was matter-of-fact. "Just get rid of them."

"..."

If it were a few months ago, she wouldn't have needed to say anything; the moment Zhang Renfeng heard the list, he would have grabbed his Volcano Pistol and charged in.

With the list in hand, they can just come at them one by one; the Red Army is best at doing this kind of thing.

But now, after experiencing a series of events, Zhang Renfeng has also grown. Let's not say he's become incredibly intelligent, but at least his first reaction upon receiving this list is to think about it.

"It doesn't match up."

"Not right?"

“Istavo also gave me a list of several hundred members of the Illuminati who had expanded their influence in the south. Surprisingly, none of their names appeared on this list of twenty thousand people,” Zhang Renfeng said in a deep voice. “What does this mean?”

It is obvious.

The people on this list are all members of the Illuminati in northern America.

Istavo also mentioned that their power in the north was quite strong, while their foundation in the south was still shallow, which was Zhang Renfeng's only chance to turn the tide.

The question is, how do we turn things around?

The method my old friend suggested was actually quite similar to Igor's view: both involved starting a company. Relying on the old approach of aggressively conquering and using so-called personal charisma to win over subordinates was no longer viable; a different approach was necessary.

dollar, dollar, and fucking dollar!

He suggested starting with a timber company, gradually spreading the net, and simultaneously removing the hundreds of nails the Illuminati had planted in the south, one by one. After operating in this way for a few years, bringing the southern prefectures under his control, and then fighting the Illuminati in the north, the situation wouldn't be what it is today. At least it would be a stalemate, a contest of strength.

but……

After deciphering the contents of these seven ledgers, all course of action changed.

Is it possible that the Illuminati have dominated northern America and even put one foot in the government simply through commercial and economic means?

Judging from the last set of meeting minutes, this is clearly not the case. Their methods are quite radical. Even if someone holds a high position, if their opinions differ, ordinary bribery and threats will not work. They will then use means to physically silence the other party.

Now, he finally has a powerful card in his hand. When and how to play this card still requires careful consideration.

If used properly, it might completely turn the tide of the battle!

……

"I have to go!"

"So fast?" Wolf looked surprised and a little worried. "Senior brother, you're not really going to check off each person on the list one by one, are you?"

"How could that be? Even if I slaughtered ten thousand pigs one by one, it would take a long time. But I suddenly had an idea... a brilliant idea! But I need to go home and work it out with my strategist. Time is precious, so I won't bother you any longer."

Zhang Renfeng picked up the thick stack of paper manuscripts and lifted it up with ease, as if he were holding a pile of sponges.

"Oh, right, Tao..."

As he reached the door, he turned back and added, "Just let me know when you've run out of money, and I'll bring you more!"

……

"You're leaving already?" The wolf watched his hurried departure, her voice filled with worry. "Are you sure this will be alright?"

"Don't worry, Little Wolf, those nights you stayed up these past few days weren't for nothing." Titor turned to the side, as if letting out a sigh of relief, and looked out the window at the towering steel jungle, murmuring, "The future will definitely change because of this!"

----

"..."

Igor's expression was probably the most serious he had ever been since birth.

He was flipping through the deciphered manuscripts Zhang Renfeng had brought back from Tao, page by page. His lips were tightly pressed together, his eyebrows were raised, and his back, which had initially been leaning against the chair, gradually straightened up. Body language doesn't lie; the contents of this report had already shocked him beyond measure.

Circles within circles.

A conspiracy within a conspiracy.

"Heh..." Halfway through reading, Igor rubbed the acupoints on the bridge of his nose and couldn't help but laugh, "Compared to them, the commotion my father made when he fought for territory was like playing house."

"So?" Zhang Renfeng asked hesitantly. "Do you think my plan is feasible?"