I Forged the Myth of the Ancient Overlords
Chapter 416 - 416 415. An Offer You Cant Refuse_1

Chapter 416: 415. An Offer You Can’t Refuse_1 Chapter 416: 415. An Offer You Can’t Refuse_1 Abandoned Capital, Shangcheng Area.

The area where wealthy people live, with clean air and tidy streets. One could see rich people dressed in expensive clothes walking their dogs. Most of these residents hardly need to work, living off investment income and rent that could sustain several generations. For them, life had been reduced to mere enjoyment. In the Abandoned Capital, the greatest daily entertainment for such people had become various parties; after the prohibition was announced, drinking alone at home also became trendy.

In front of an imposing courtyard, several black luxury cars were parked, and guards armed with guns were stationed at every position in the yard, making it impenetrable, not even a mosquito could fly in.

Inside the building of the courtyard, on the first floor, in a room filled with bookshelves, “Godfather” Corleone Cattaneo was reading a book about philosophy.

The culture of the Abandoned Capital had suffered many disruptions, yet there were always some individuals who could transcend the era, conceiving thoughts that amazed others. Corleone enjoyed such ideas, believing they could guide his life and career.

After reading for a while, he picked up the glass on his desk, which contained self-brewed, high-purity alcohol with ice cubes, refreshing and invigorating.

After taking a sip of alcohol, as he set down the glass, a person had appeared in the room.

“They know most of the details,” Stone said, standing there with his golden retriever by his side, its tongue hanging out as if it were exhausted.

“Not dead?”

Corleone closed the book and asked.

“As I have told you, they are Transcendents with power beyond imagination. I have witnessed those powers; you cannot understand,” Stone said, containing his emotions.

“Their existence will cause a lot of trouble. If you can’t get the job done, I will send others.”

Corleone’s voice was steady, unaffected by Stone’s emotions. It was like the tolling of a church bell, always ringing at that exact moment, always the same number of times.

“I will kill them,” Stone answered, the golden retriever’s tail wagging by his side.

“Have you begun to doubt? Do you think I’m merely using you, and once the family takes over the entire underground world of the Abandoned Capital, you’ll be cast aside by me?”

Suddenly, Corleone spoke, and the atmosphere in the room instantly grew tense.

“They have said something similar to me. I did not believe them,” Stone said, as his golden retriever suddenly stood up; he took hold of the leash.

“My children are no good. If I let them inherit the family, either it will be nibbled away in fierce and rash confrontations by those above us, or it will decay in obsolescence, stubborn and closed off. Only the right person can lead the family towards true prosperity,” Corleone said gravely, his tone sincere, as if sharing his deepest confidence with someone.

“Or do you believe yourself unable to control the family to the point where you expect to be eliminated by me?”

“No, Father. I have not,” Stone felt the strong authority.

He could command the monster beside him to kill the man in front of him right now, but that would be a momentary satisfaction. To kill Corleone now would plunge the Catania Family into strife and chaos, and as an adopted son, he had no way to carve out a path through Corleone’s legitimate children.

The words of Lu Ban were crystal clear to Stone.

He knew very well that Corleone would never truly hand over the family to an outsider. This Godfather’s actions were all about using him.

In fact, Stone was also using Corleone’s little schemes.

As the Godfather himself had said, none of Corleone’s children were up to snuff. The eldest brother was a complete spendthrift, lacking any sense of cunning or strategic acumen; the second brother was reckless and violent, prone to extreme impulsivity; the eldest daughter had left the family, content with teaching; the second daughter was shrewd but lacked decisiveness; the third daughter indulged in pleasures, becoming one of the earliest sacrifices.

That Corleone could unhesitatingly give his youngest daughter to Stone to be killed showed that to this man, utility far outweighed kinship.

Therefore, as long as Stone remained of use, in other words, as long as the Catania Family had not unified the underground world of the Abandoned Capital, he would not be disposed of.

And by the time that happened, Stone would already be at the helm of the family, the real decision-maker.

As long as he eliminated all members of the Catania family ahead of time, he could become the new Godfather.

All of this, of course, was crystal clear to Corleone as well.

Gang strategy is not about conspiracy and deceit, but about laying everything out in the open and offering a condition the opponent cannot refuse—a scheme as clear as day.

Certainly, on the surface, the two also had to put on a show.

One could say it was an act of filial piety.

At that moment, there was a knock on the door.

“Sir, someone is here to see you, Detective Tryst and his two assistants,”

someone reported.

“Coming to my door, this is the result of not taking care of things properly,”

Mr. Corleone remarked to Stone, as if educating him.

“Go and wait in the next room, I’ll handle this.”

He instructed Stone to leave.

Stone merely nodded his head, and the golden fur instantly transformed into sludge, enveloping him and then disappearing into the ground.

Seeing this, Mr. Corleone responded to the person at the door.

“Let them wait in the drawing room, and say that I will be there shortly.”

After the person outside left, Mr. Corleone rose from his seat, exited the study, and summoned his trusted men.

“Arrange for a quiet encirclement of the drawing-room. Once those three enter, take care of them. I want to confirm the bodies,”

Mr. Corleone ordered.

He certainly wouldn’t be foolish enough to confront those people in person; the best approach in such a situation is to offer them some terms they can’t refuse, compelling their silence.

“And yes, have Clydeman and Charles also go to the drawing room, as a backup.”

He added another instruction.

These two were former Bounty Hunters, surviving in the wild and possessing a certain level of transcendental combat ability.

After giving his orders, Mr. Corleone returned to the study.

He reopened the book he was reading before and continued, while taking another sip of his drink.

The cold liquor flowed down his throat, and Mr. Corleone seemed to return to the days of yore when he first witnessed the Transcendent.

From that moment, Mr. Corleone’s ambitions had already surpassed the Gang.

And now…

Gunshots echoed in the courtyard, followed by the sound of shattering glass and a commotion.

Then, silence fell.

It was over.

Mr. Corleone sighed and set down the glass.

The next moment, there was a noise at the door.

“What are you doing, no, wait!”

Boom—

Before Mr. Corleone could react, a deafening roar came from the doorway, and the high-quality wooden door was brutally smashed open, along with the wall, leaving behind only a large hole.

Standing on the other side of the gaping hole was a detective in a long coat and deerstalker cap, with a briar-root pipe in his mouth, accompanied by his two assistants.

“Good evening, Mr. Corleone.”