"Impossible!"
The hand remained steady and motionless; the raging fire that could instantly melt steel into molten iron felt as harmless as warm water. Luke found it unbelievable.
Pinching Luke's neck, Russell gave him a look of disgust, as his clothes were completely burned off.
Not wanting to hold a naked man who was on fire, he pinched him unconscious and casually threw him onto a nearby garbage heap.
"Don't… don't come over!"
The blonde girl Kate had already taken off her gloves, retreating in feigned fear as if facing a formidable enemy, appearing easily frightened and vulnerable.
"Your acting is too clumsy."
Russell knew she was waiting for him to step forward and grab her to use her mind control. He had no interest in testing the Soldier Boy template's resistance to mind control, and his figure flashed and disappeared.
"Where did he go?"
The alley was empty before her eyes, but Kate suddenly felt a chill down her spine, and a sense of insecurity washed over her. Her neck stiffened as she turned her head and saw a hand chop descending.
Bang!
Kate's eyes rolled back, and her body went limp, falling onto the alley floor.
[Kate Dunlap template collected]
The goal of this trip was achieved.
Russell withdrew his hand with satisfaction.
The three were characters from the Gen V derivative of The Boys, all excellent students at Godolkin University, a Superhero university owned by Vought.
One could manipulate magnetism but struggled to control even a helicopter, making him a budget version of Magneto.
The other, known as Golden Boy, possessed a powerful physique and the ability to control fire, and his teacher claimed he had the potential to replace Homelander.
But based on his performance just now, one could only say—he was a fraud.
Golden Boy might be among the strongest Supes below Homelander, Soldier Boy, Queen Maeve, and a few others, but he was still not impressive enough.
As for the last person, Kate Dunlap, she possessed a rare and noble psychic ability, able to mind control others through touch.
[Conquest Points: 11430]
[Solidifying the Kate Dunlap template requires 8900 Conquest Points. Solidify?]
[Yes.]
With the three lying defeated in the alley, Russell turned to leave with a smile on his face, choosing to solidify without hesitation, as this was related to his next plan.
Apart from Cyclops and flight speed, there was almost no aspect where he was inferior to Vought's most valuable product, Homelander.
If he were to apply to Vought and showcase his abilities slightly, joining The Seven would be effortless.
But Russell wouldn't do that; he would enter Vought as a Vought Superhero under a different identity.
For example—the actual controller of Vought?
...
At the mountain top Villa, Stan Edgar slowly opened his eyes in the faint light of five in the morning.
His sleep was always as precise as a clock, but a certain intuition pierced through the lingering sleepiness—someone was watching him.
In the shadow cast by the curtains, on a chair by the bed, sat a handsome young man in a gray hoodie, his hands clasped on his knees, his fingers long and clean. It was unknown how long he had been sitting there.
Edgar's fingertips silently reached for the warning button under the pillow, but his voice was even steadier than when he had just woken up: "Young man, I assume you're not here to deliver breakfast."
Russell smiled, not threateningly, but with a hint of appreciation: "As expected, you always maintain a calm and composed demeanor, as if you have everything under control, Mr. Edgar."
"It's a shame that only this appearance is somewhat intimidating."
Edgar was calm and composed, possessing a powerful aura that could even subdue Homelander, leading people to believe he had some incredible trump card to counterbalance Homelander.
It wasn't until he was removed from his CEO position by Homelander and the board, and thrown into prison, that people discovered he seemed to have nothing except a deep, inscrutable poker face.
"That's not the attitude one should have when coming to sell oneself."
"What, do you think I'm a Supe who came all the way to your heavily guarded Villa just to show off my abilities and earn myself a contract?"
"Isn't that so?" Edgar calmly retorted.
"No need to wait, all your bodyguards have been taken down."
Russell slowly stood up.
"Now, take me to see the Vought board members."
"You think you can threaten me?"
"It's not a threat, it's an order!" Russell grabbed Edgar by the neck, lifting him from the bed, a spectral light flashing in his eyes.
Edgar, who was then released, touched his neck and bowed respectfully.
"Yes, Master."
"Call me Mister, and tell me, what are Vought's trump cards to counterbalance Homelander?" From then on, every time he met a Vought board member and turned them into a puppet with his mind control ability, Russell asked the same question.
He had thought these guys might have some methods not revealed in the plot.
The answers, however, were surprisingly consistent.
"Mister, ever since Homelander was a child in the laboratory, we hired the world's best psychological expert team to specifically design his childhood and growth experiences.
Ensuring he is insecure, sensitive, and desperately needs attention and love, forever dependent on the company's spotlight and the fans attracted by the persona the company built for him.
He has god-like abilities, but in life, he is completely a giant baby, forever unable to escape the control and care of Vought, the patriarchal figure."
"What if Homelander loses control?"
"Homelander cannot lose control, Mister."
"I mean, what if!"
"Mister, Homelander won't lose control, when he was a child…" In a luxurious study, when asking the last Vought board member, the old, pot-bellied director, whose face was dark-circled from indulgence, showed confusion.
He seemed like a Robot about to repeat the words Russell had heard many times.
He seemed not to understand why his Master was asking such an impossible question.
"A bunch of idiots."
Russell couldn't stand it anymore, and casually threw a book heavily at his face, telling him to get out and not irritate him.
'They only try to control Homelander, but have no preparation for him losing control.
No wonder after Edgar was taken down, Vought became Homelander's personal domain, where he could do whatever he wanted!'
"You are right to scold them, Mister. These Vought directors are nothing but a group of ticks sucking blood from the company founded by Vought's founder."
Edgar stepped forward, sneering and bowing in agreement, as if this was also a thought he had long buried deep inside.
"The reason they are Vought's directors is simply because they are descendants of the Vought family bloodline, not because they are wise or talented."
"What about you? If Homelander loses control, what good method do you have?" Russell looked at him irritably.
Edgar was also a loser in the struggle against Homelander.
"The Vought laboratory has been developing Temporary Compound Five, which can grant people superpowers and can be injected into adults.
The estimated potency will only last for twenty-four hours, ensuring that a destructive failure product that could lose control is never created."
Mind control, except for matters concerning Russell, did not affect other aspects. Edgar still spoke with the same dismissive tone, viewing Homelander as a company product.
"Mister, as long as Temporary Compound Five is successfully developed and mass-produced, we can organize and select a group of people with powerful abilities after injection from all over the World to form a top Supe team.
If Homelander loses control, we can use this team to recover him."