This middle-aged man was neither a member of the Wendong Society nor the Hongmen; instead, he worked directly for William Carter.

His name was Daniel Bolton. He was quick-witted and skilled in business, investment, and financial management. After catching the eye of William Carter, he was brought to Australia to help manage his enterprises.

Daniel Bolton truly did not disappoint William Carter.

Originally, William Carter had no business operations in Darwin, but after Daniel Bolton arrived, in just a few short months, he helped establish Dongxing Huanhai Real Estate and Dongxing Financial Investment, two companies. Most recently, he was preparing to acquire a four-star hotel. Because of Daniel Bolton's strong momentum, he quickly became a well-known figure in Darwin's business circles.

Although the real boss behind the scenes was William Carter, outsiders had no idea about this. In people's eyes, Daniel Bolton was a shrewd and reputable Chinese businessman.

Local officials also welcomed him, as he seemed to have an endless supply of money in his pocket.

The reason William Carter was able to quickly establish connections with local officials was largely thanks to Daniel Bolton, as many of those officials were introduced to William Carter by him.

Beneath the surface of these legitimate companies, there was, of course, a large group of Wendong Society members.

On the surface, they were all employees of Daniel Bolton's companies, scattered throughout Darwin. This time, William Carter happened to need them, so he had them investigate the whereabouts of the man named Mark.

Their ability to gather information wasn't as strong as the Dark Group's, but since they had lived locally for some time and were familiar with the area, it was much easier for them to gather intel.

In just one day, they relayed the information back to William Carter. It turned out that Mark was a member of the Menghu Gang.

William Carter was both surprised and understanding at this result. His feud with the Menghu Gang went back a long way. In fact, William Carter's rise to power was thanks to the Menghu Gang—except that time, the Menghu Gang lost five million worth of arms in one blow.

After that, the vendetta between the Wendong Society and the Menghu Gang never ceased, until William Carter finally drove them out of H City, bringing things to a close.

The Menghu Gang never managed to gain a foothold in China, suffering heavy losses, and its leadership regarded William Carter as a thorn in their side. So, their support of the Soul Group and their attempts to assassinate him were completely understandable to William Carter. What surprised him, however, was that the Menghu Gang had been hiding right under his nose all this time, and he hadn't noticed. If it weren't for the Soul Group incident, who knew how much longer they would have remained hidden, or what kind of threat they might have posed to him?!

He had already made up his mind before coming: the Menghu Gang must be completely cleared out of Darwin, or else Jile Island would no longer be safe.

Hearing William Carter's teasing, Daniel Bolton's tense nerves relaxed considerably. He laughed and said, "I've had a lot of social engagements lately, so I've been putting on weight fast! Dong-ge, I've already arranged a room for you. Please, come in!"

Led by Daniel Bolton, William Carter and his group descended from the platform and entered the hotel. While taking the elevator, William Carter asked, "How's the hotel acquisition going?"

When it came to business, Daniel Bolton's face lit up with a smile, his spirits high. He said, "We're in the final stages of the handover. The paperwork is almost done. As long as nothing goes wrong, we'll be able to take over completely by the end of the month."

"That fast!" William Carter shook his head with a smile.

Chapter 6

Daniel Bolton arranged a luxurious suite for William Carter, with a bedroom, study, and reception room. The space was enormous, and the interior was lavishly decorated, with exquisite furnishings exuding an air of nobility.

After sitting in the room for a while, Daniel Bolton tactfully excused himself. Although he had always managed William Carter's business affairs and stayed out of gang matters, that didn't mean he was unaware of who William Carter was. He understood that this trip to Darwin wasn't just for business—there were other reasons. He didn't want to get too involved in underworld affairs, knowing that the more he learned, the deeper he'd be drawn in. He was a smart man.

After Daniel Bolton left, the people who had come with him remained. They were all brothers from the Wendong Society.

William Carter sat on the sofa, lighting a cigarette, and didn't speak right away. Henry Bennett, sitting nearby, asked, "How many Menghu Gang members are there here?"

A young man with glasses replied, "More than thirty. They have bars and inns in the eastern district, and they also run a company that rents out yachts. The Soul Group's speedboats were all rented from them. This time, after the Soul Group's assassination attempt failed, it seems the Menghu Gang caught wind of it too. They probably already know their cover is blown. These past few days, they've been busy selling off their bars and inns. Looks like they're preparing to pull out!"

"Trying to leave?" Henry Bennett sneered. "Hmph, I'm afraid it won't be that easy." As he spoke, he turned to William Carter and said, "Dong-ge, leave them to me!"

William Carter took a drag on his cigarette, rubbed his chin, thought it over carefully, and shook his head. "No. We've only been in Darwin for a few months and haven't established a firm foothold yet. If we start a bloodbath, the good impression we've made on the local officials will be completely ruined. The local residents will become hostile, and the police will be on our backs all the time. The trouble would far outweigh the gains."

He had thought it through thoroughly. If the local officials found out that William Carter was stirring up violence in the city, it would become extremely difficult for him to enter the country in the future. Darwin might no longer be a viable transit point, and the losses for William Carter would be far too great.