"I'm not entirely sure of the specifics," Koker said. "Back then, I was just a minor figure on the fringes of the family. Gaunt had already joined the main branch. Years have passed, and I've only heard fragmented rumors."
Jiang Ye listened intently. Gaunt was his primary opponent, and he wanted to learn more about him.
"Gaunt was only in his early twenties then, and he was already building his empire, focusing on interstellar mining. It's said he colluded with some shady tourism companies, kidnapping people on cheap interstellar tours and sending them in shiploads to his barren planet's mines. They confiscated communication devices like phones, jammed signals at the mine, and used machine gun turrets to maintain order, forcing the kidnapped people to mine."
"The conditions for the forced laborers there were truly miserable. They were originally just looking for a bargain, signing up for a cheap tour to visit an alien planet, only to inexplicably become indentured miners, confined to the mines like prisoners. They were fed slop fit for pigs and dogs. If their work progress wasn't satisfactory, they'd be hung up and whipped mercilessly. For illnesses, they were given only two anti-inflammatory pills. It was sink or swim; if they died, their organs would be harvested."
"Many of the old, weak, women, and children died from exhaustion. The mining equipment was poor, and cave-ins were common. The young and strong miners buried within couldn't even be dug out. There were also gas explosions, toxic gas backflows, mine shaft fires, and underground water accidents. Gaunt's mine was on a lawless, frontier planet, so he operated with impunity. The mine was a mountain of corpses," Koker said, his brow furrowed, his expression one of deep regret.
"One of my cousins was the first to discover this. My cousin said that when he went to the mine for a surprise undercover investigation, a mine shaft four hundred meters underground accidentally broke through an underground river. It was a very deep underground river, and due to high pressure and magma, it was in a boiling state, completely filled with scalding water. Such underground rivers would surface as hot springs, but underground, they were boiling rivers."
"My cousin witnessed the tragedy firsthand. Boiling water erupted from that mine shaft, and within half a minute, the water level rose to four meters. There was also high-pressure steam, invisible, spewing into the mine like a hurricane. Even a live duck thrown in would be roasted. The people in that mine couldn't escape. Their bodies were slowly pulled out, bloated and white, many with bones scalded out."
"My cousin immediately returned to the family and sought out the elders to impeach Gaunt, stating that Gaunt had violated family rules, disregarded human life, and should be executed according to family law. My cousin himself was in the mining business and understood mining operations well. For underground water accidents like this, it would only cost ten million to buy a machine to prevent them. But Gaunt refused. Gaunt felt it was better to trade a hundred lives for ten million than to buy a machine. My cousin was furious, saying ten thousand per life was an outrage against heaven."
"Our family's laws are quite severe. They might not be as thick as a law book, but they are more stringent than the laws of most planets. In Gaunt's case, if proven, he would certainly be executed by family law, and it would be a torturous execution, slowly killed by bone-dissolving acid over three to four days, a very painful process," Koker said.
"Then why wasn't he executed?" Jiang Ye asked urgently.
If such a venomous dragon were dealt with earlier, would Wheeler Star be this troublesome today?
"It takes a long time to ascertain the facts, requiring irrefutable evidence," Koker said. "The investigation period gave Gaunt an opportunity. A person like Gaunt would certainly not surrender meekly, nor would he simply flee. He wanted revenge."
"Revenge on your cousin?" Jiang Ye blinked in surprise.
"Yes, he intended to kill my cousin, but my cousin was abroad on business at the time and not at home," Koker said. "Gaunt is indeed quite resourceful. He managed to find my cousin's home. My cousin's wife was at home then."
"Holy hell," Cen Yemeng's face turned pale.
"My cousin's wife is named Kroning Priscilla. She's an interstellar supermodel, a renowned black pearl. My cousin's wife was startled when she saw Gaunt. She knew he was likely there with ill intentions, but she forced a smile and said, 'You're here, dear. What would you like to eat? I'll make you dinner.' Gaunt said he wanted pizza. My cousin's wife's legs trembled as she went downstairs to the kitchen. Upon reaching the kitchen doorway, she found the corpse of a household servant, blood pooling on the floor. My cousin's wife knew that everyone in the villa had likely already been killed by Gaunt."
"My cousin's wife's composure broke at that moment. Her legs were shaking uncontrollably. As she entered the kitchen, she stepped on the blood on the floor and accidentally slipped. After slipping, she couldn't get up, still trembling. Gaunt said nothing, just followed her silently, closing in. My cousin's wife started crying, crawling into the kitchen, weeping and repeating, 'Gaunt, I'll make you pizza. You won't kill me, right? You won't kill me, right?'"
"Stop, stop," Jiang Ye frowned. "It's too brutal. Don't describe it so vividly; it's unbearable to hear."
"What a pervert," Cen Yemeng's face was ashen. "Gaunt is a complete pervert, a demonic personality. Did your cousin's wife end up being killed?"
"Yes, Gaunt stabbed her more than a dozen times in the kitchen," Koker sighed. "Gaunt even dipped his hand in my cousin's wife's blood and wrote a large character for 'injustice' on the tiled wall, with smaller characters next to it, saying my cousin framed him, that he was innocent, and now that he was desperate, he would go into exile and make my cousin pay."
"From then on, our family struck Gaunt from the rolls," Koker said. "The interstellar police put out a warrant for Gaunt, with a reward of eighty million, dead or alive. Our family added another two hundred million, for his death. But Gaunt disappeared for a while, and no one could find him. The next time we heard about him was when he declared himself king on Wheeler Star. But he had already established himself, and our family couldn't do anything about him. The interstellar police went to Wheeler Star several times but couldn't find him. With too many cases, they gave up, but the bounty remained."
Jiang Ye blinked. "So, if I eliminate Gaunt, I can collect a bounty?"
"Yes," Koker nodded. "And you will also gain the friendship of our family, not just any friendship, but a heartfelt one."
"But..." Jiang Ye hesitated. "Blood-wise, Gaunt is somewhat related to you. If I kill him..."
"In powerful families, there is no kinship. In a family of over a hundred thousand people, with continuous marriages, the bloodline similarity has long since diminished. Gaunt is a persistent problem for our family. The more he commits evil outside, the more he tarnishes our family's reputation. For old families like ours, reputation is paramount. We despise scoundrels." Koker said, "I can even say that if you can resolve Gaunt, our family elders might even gift you a small planet."
Jiang Ye was astonished. "A bounty of two hundred million to a small planet, that's quite a leap!"
"If it were an ordinary person who happened to encounter Gaunt and killed him, they might receive two hundred million as a thank-you fee. But your status is different. Based on my understanding of the family elders, they would use such a generous reward to establish a connection with you, deepen cooperation in the future, and forge friendship," Koker explained. "I can't be certain, this is just a guess. I can inquire about the elders' intentions later."