Chapter 192 Top Tier Circle
Outside the Luminous Nights Club.
A young man that was barely eighteen was standing with his head bowed, hair obscuring his eyes.
He nodded quietly, as if confirming something before walking straight into the club.
Inside, a dozen Black Fox members lounged around, but the young man paid them no mind. Head down, he made his way upstairs.
A few of the members frowned.
"Since when does anyone just waltz in and out of our headquarters?" one muttered.
"Yeah," another chimed in. "We might not be running the streets anymore, but we're still the top dogs!"
In a flash, they surrounded the young man. They studied him, familiarity dawning on their faces.
Silent, head down, cold, with a dangerous aura…
Shivers ran down their spines.
One of the sharper members quickly intervened. "Hold up, everyone, hold up!"
"Don't you get it? Look at him!"
The others stammered, "Yeah…?"
"He's just like Spring and Godlike!"
"Same age, same vibe… He's a walking weapon!"
A collective gasp filled the air. There couldn't possibly be another one like that in the entire world!
"Unless…"
"He's gotta be related to Mr. Paul Two! Maybe his brother!"
"Makes sense. Mr. Paul Two's whole family is Godlike!"
The crowd couldn't help but exclaim.
They parted, creating a path for the young man. They watched in silence as he continued his ascent.
Upstairs, Elbert sat in a private room with the Darkwood Three Brothers, their faces uncomfortable.
The metal door swung open, and the young man stepped inside.
"Bro, I got what you asked for." He handed Elbert a pen-sized device.
It was Summer.
After his first encounter with Vortex, Elbert had asked Robert to create a device at Lab Graveyard. Once it was ready, Summer was tasked with retrieving and delivering it.
"Good." Elbert took the device with a slight nod.
Summer's gaze swept across the room, completely ignoring the Darkwood Three Brothers. He turned to Spring, who stood behind Elbert. "Spring, did you cause trouble for him?"
Spring remained silent, head bowed with guilt.
"Summer, it's alright," Elbert said with a gentle smile. "Just take Spring back and let her recover."
Spring's lips trembled slightly, her guilt evident.
"We'll be going then, Bro." Summer took Spring's hand, turning to leave.
"Hold on," Elbert called after them, still smiling. "You're all skin and bones. Come over for a barbecue in a few days; everyone's invited."
The tension eased from Summer and Spring's shoulders. "Okay," they replied in unison.
With them gone, Elbert turned his attention to the device in his hand, gently turning it over.
"From a scientific standpoint," Robert began, "hypnosis is about effective guidance and suggestion. It relaxes the subject, bringing their brainwave frequency down to the alpha (8-12Hz) or theta (4-7Hz) range."
"Steven's brain erosion simply amplifies this hypnotic ability through a device, directly altering the target's brainwaves. Then, through verbal cues, thoughts are implanted. Your hypnosis skills, combined with my sound wave diffuser, should replicate this effect. I've studied it thoroughly. Impressive, right?"
"Very impressive," Elbert agreed, smiling a bit. He pressed a button on the device, and it hummed to life, a pulsating blue light emanating from within.
"Right, time to wake our guinea pig!" Robert declared.
As if on cue, the fire sprinkler above Vortex sputtered, showering him with water.
Vortex groaned, slowly regaining consciousness. Despite the beating Elbert had given him, he was still a cyborg. Aside from a useless arm, he was relatively unharmed.
"Where… where am I?" He looked around, his eyes widening as he registered his arm pain. "Paul Two! You broke my arm! I'll kill you!"
Elbert raised the device, positioning it near Vortex's face. "Vortex," he said softly.
Modified by the sound wave diffuser, his voice was deep and powerful, echoing through the room.
The enraged Vortex froze, his eyes glazing over as he stared blankly at Elbert.
He stood completely still.
"Vortex," Elbert continued, "have you ever met Steven?"
Vortex blinked, his eyes confused. "Steven…?"
Suddenly, his gaze focused on Elbert – his white shirt, the hair falling slightly over his forehead and eyes. In an instant, Vortex dropped to his knees.
"Black Net's Vortex pays his respects to the lord!" he cried.
"May you receive God's blessing! Your divine command is my will, to be fulfilled at any cost!"
Elbert was surprised, his mind racing.
'Steven.'
'The Northern Sea Pavilion.'
'My attire, my build… Vortex must have mistaken me for Steven!'
Elbert focused, searching for information on those three words; The Northern Sea Pavilion.
What little he found was fragmented; incomplete.
He gleaned that The Northern Sea Pavilion was a secretive religious organization, worshipping a mythical deity known as the Northern God.
The concept of "Godlike" also originated from their teachings.
'Interesting. So Steven created this bizarre, superstitious organization right under everyone's noses? It certainly fits his eccentric personality.' he thought.
Elbert recalled something;on the day of FutureTech Group's stock auction, Peter had said to Rex, "I'll report to the lord and let him reward you…"
"Robert," Elbert said, "cross-reference Vortex's movements with Owen's, the chairman of VitaCure Labs."
An image flickered into view; an ancient building, resembling a medieval church.
"Every five days, their paths intersect at this church," Robert confirmed.
Elbert nodded slowly.
He looked at Vortex's hand, specifically at a black ring adorning his finger. It looked familiar.
He pulled a similar ring from his pocket, spinning between his fingers. Jacob gave it to him after their battle over the Gemini APP and Meta Platforms Company. Defeated and humbled, Jacob had offered it as a gesture of goodwill.
"This," Jacob had said, "is the key to a higher circle."
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