At the same time—
After seeing off Senior Sister Lily's grateful parents, Linen returned to his apartment, turned on the system, and began working on a new video.
Since Steve Rogers had already been thawed from the ice,
the next video might as well start with him.
After sorting through his ideas for the new project, Linen opened the second text file.
Text 2 was about himself.
Both the Avengers and Nick Fury were investigating his past and the source of his powers.
So naturally, Linen had to think carefully about how to strengthen his "character."
Thinking about how he obtained his power, Linen recalled the scene that afternoon — when Senior Sister Lily had been dragged into an alley by three thugs from the Blood Parrot Gang.
His eyes lit up as he began typing more details.
Nine o'clock in the evening.
After stretching, Linen noticed that the coffee on the table had gone cold.
He raised his hand, and in the next second, a black soul engulfed in flames appeared before him, wailing in torment.
With a slight wave, he pulled the burning soul closer — within a meter of himself.
He picked up the cold coffee pot on the table and slowly heated it with the flames emanating from the suffering soul.
When white steam began to rise from the pot, Linen smiled in satisfaction and poured himself another cup.
"Let's talk about the Blood Parrot Gang."
Looking at the shrieking soul, Linen said calmly,
"If you don't want to keep burning like this, then you'd better start talking."
The blackened spirit glared at him, filled with hatred.
It was Linen who had ordered the skeleton warriors to kill him in that alley — and now even his soul was being tortured.
"Oh? Still stubborn?" Linen tilted his head. "Maybe I should encourage you a little."
Hearing that, the black soul trembled in fear.
"I'll talk! I'll talk! The Blood Parrot Gang—"
"Who said you could talk standing up? Kneel."
Linen's sharp tone cracked like thunder. A powerful spiritual pressure slammed down on the soul, forcing it to its knees with a thud.
The soul shivered under his cold, emotionless stare.
"The Blood Parrot Gang was founded by Collins Myers," the soul stammered. "There are currently 28 members."
"On the surface, it looks like an ordinary gang, but in truth, it handles human trafficking for Collins Myers."
"After we kidnap women and children, Collins arranges for smugglers to send them to Eastern Europe."
"The younger and prettier the girls, the more they're sought after by powerful men there. I've heard that once those men are done with them, the girls get sold into the red-light districts…"
"Besides that, Collins Myers also has ties to the dark web and organ-trafficking organizations. They find matching organs for patients in major hospitals!"
As the spirit spoke, Linen set down his coffee cup.
"I remember," he said, "that it's not just New York. Many cities have 'free physical examination' centers — especially in slums and homeless areas. Are those connected to Collins' operation too?"
"Some are, some aren't!" the soul blurted out. "For organ matching — bone marrow, kidneys, whatever — people disappear from those areas all the time. The police and FBI barely notice."
"No one investigates you?"
"Of course some do! But Mr. Collins has bribed plenty of important people. His organ network has helped many wealthy clients."
"So even when the FBI tries to investigate, they get blocked at every level!"
Linen narrowed his eyes. "List every name you know who's working with Collins Myers."
The soul quivered. "Alex — deputy director of the NYPD, Congressman Donald Jackson, Eddie Buckley…"
As the names piled up, Linen's frown deepened.
"Tsk. Really the upper class…"
After extracting the Blood Parrot Gang's hideout and personnel list, Linen released the summoning spell, dispersing the soul.
He then took out the Judge's Mask.
Just as he was about to put it on, he paused.
"System," he asked, "when you say 'eliminate the Blood Parrot Gang,' does that include these so-called dignitaries?"
The system's mechanical voice replied:
"Main target: Blood Parrot Gang."
"Note: The more related individuals punished, the higher the mission completion rate."
"Hidden Reward: Ego Gem."
Linen's eyes widened.
A hidden reward? This was the first time he'd seen that from a side quest.
"Damn… I must've missed out on a lot of hidden rewards before."
But then he froze. "Wait — the Ego Gem?"
If he remembered correctly, the Ego Gem belonged to Nemesis, the Goddess of Vengeance.
According to the comics, once the Ego Gem was combined with the other six Infinity Gems, Nemesis could be resurrected.
He hissed softly.
"If even the Ego Gem exists… then does Tony Stark also have a hidden Wisdom Gem in his head?"
When Linen asked the system about it, the mechanical voice responded:
"Tony Stark does not possess a Wisdom Gem. The Ego Gem is from another multiverse."
"Even if you gather the other six Infinity Gems, whether Nemesis is resurrected depends solely on your own will."
Hearing that, Linen nodded slowly.
"Good. Otherwise, if the Goddess of Vengeance came back and decided to destroy this universe… that would be fun."
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