In downtown New York, the city lights were just beginning to glow.
A giant cylindrical building, five hundred meters tall, towered over the city center, its top illuminated with a white "VOUGHT" logo.
Below Vought Tower, the plaza was already under martial law, and a long line of vehicles moved forward slowly.
As far as the eye could see, there were nothing but gleaming luxury cars and limousines; the attendees were either political bigwigs or business elites.
Wade and his group of five sat inside a stretched Hummer arranged by the school.
Luke adjusted his tie: "Hey, do you guys think I should mention Homelander and the others saving us from the sky during the interview later?"
Jordan Li rolled his eyes and teased, "Give it a rest. The point is that we temporarily held off the drug dealers and created an opportunity for The Seven, not to steal the spotlight."
Andre put on a transparent mourning brooch and said with a relaxed expression, "Appearing at an event of this caliber will be very helpful for our future development."
Wade and Kate, who was wearing a black formal mini-dress, sat opposite them, both staring silently out the window.
The innocent and excited discussion inside the car was in stark contrast to the scene outside the window.
The streets along the way were separated by metal fences, behind which was a tide-like crowd of protesters.
They held up signs saying "Vought = Fascist," "Stop Human Trafficking," and "Truth for Translucent's Death." The thunderous roar was faintly audible even through the soundproof car windows.
"Vought! Murderers!"
"They're treating us like fools! Look at those videos! Look at those files!"
"Superheroes? Pfft! They're a bunch of executioners in spandex!"
Fully armed riot police formed a black wall of people, swinging batons and shields to maintain order, and an invisible scent of Gunpowder permeated the air.
A policeman shouted sternly through a megaphone: "Get back! Everyone get back!"
He was answered by an even more violent surge from the protesters.
"Why are you stopping us! You Vought watchdogs!" A young man with a face full of blood tried to break through the line and was immediately knocked to the ground by two or three policemen with their shields.
"Ah—why are you hitting people! We just want the truth!"
The girls' screams rang out repeatedly: "You fascist police! Let him go!"
"Maintain order, use necessary force!" An order came through the megaphone, and batons fell mercilessly with dull thuds.
The pungent smell of pepper spray filled the air, triggering a fit of violent coughing and cursing.
Protest and suppression, shouting and cries of pain—under the brilliant lights of Vought Tower, a primitive conflict was playing out.
'Fighting together in perfect harmony,' Wade observed calmly.
He knew better than anyone the strength of the behemoth that was Vought International.
With total assets in the trillions and roots deeply embedded in every corner of politics and business, the massive tax revenue and hundreds of thousands of jobs it provided every year were its strongest shield.
Those politicians, even if they knew Homelander's hands were stained with the blood of their colleagues, would never completely break ties with this cash cow unless they were driven to a dead end.
'The public opinion offensive I've been carefully orchestrating for the past month is probably just a small fire to them that requires a little extra PR spending to put out.'
A loss of hundreds of billions in stock price sounds like a lot, but in reality, it hasn't even hurt their foundation. Once the public outcry passes, Vought's powerful capital will quickly find a way to repair its image and regain its reputation.
Even if public opinion is unfavorable, Vought can find temporary workers to take the fall, and superhero idols can be replaced at any time.
In comparison, Nexus Company, which Wade secretly co-founded with the military, is just a small workshop in front of Vought International, even though its budget has now been increased to twenty billion.
Unless he can make the political and military sectors see Vought as a fatal threat, causing cracks in their close cooperation and leading them to increase investment in his own company instead.
'Once suspicion is born, it can never be uprooted...'
Thinking of this, he rubbed the ground with the sole of his shoe.
Hidden in the groove close to the sole of his leather shoe was a mobile hacking device wrapped in Translucent's skin plating and injected with compound v to maintain a brief invisibility effect.
This was the hacking relay protocol device provided by Hughie, which could use the network within range as a data relay for data reading and transmission operations.
Wade's mission today was to bring this thing into the fortress of Vought Tower, which had its own independent firewall, and find an opportunity for it to work.
He didn't want to expose his identity; all he could do was bring it in... the rest would depend on Hughie's skills.
The limousine slowly stopped at the Vought Tower plaza, and everyone stepped out one after another. Wade withdrew his thoughts and hid all his calculations behind a proper smile.
Professor Brink's voice came from the side as he buttoned his suit: "Kids, stay close to me. You are representing Godolkin students now, so watch your words and actions."
Wade and the other four immediately focused their minds and followed behind him, only to be submerged by the silver wave of flashbulbs and the dense sound of shutters from both sides.
"Look over here! The young heroes of Godolkin!"
"Jordan Li! Please look at the camera! Can you change into a different form?"
"Golden Boy, please show us your thermonuclear ability."
"Cyclone! Please condense your signature air bullet!"
The reporters' excited shouts rose and fell, as if they were photographing a pile of exhibits.
Dean Shetty stood in front of them, turned her head, and showed a formulaic toothy smile: "Smile and wave. Don't mention a single word that shouldn't be said."
Professor Sela, standing beside Shetty, couldn't help but let her gaze drift toward Wade.
Ever since she was frightened in class that time, she had been deliberately avoiding this troublesome student on campus. Meeting him again now, that unpleasant memory caused her a wave of physical discomfort, and her breathing slowed down.
Wade caught Sela's thoughts and smiled at her: "Ma'am, your dress is very beautiful today."
"Thank you." Sela's heart skipped a beat, and she walked quickly down the red carpet.
The appearance phase finally ended, and they followed the flow of people toward the entrance of Vought Tower, which was decorated with grey standees of Translucent.
Behind the door, several massive security gates stood like silent beasts, waiting to swallow every visitor.
Uniformed Vought security personnel armed with live ammunition scanned the line with serious expressions, as if reminding everyone to follow the rules.
The line moved forward slowly.
Wade watched the security gate getting closer and closer, his brain working rapidly: 'How can I get the electronic device through security without a sound?'
With a thought, he controlled the airflow under his feet and temporarily moved the small invisible disk out from the sole of his shoe.
After passing under the soles of countless people, the small disk stopped at the position where the security guard was standing next to the security gate, ready to be retrieved after he passed through himself.
Wade looked at the line ahead, his gaze inadvertently sweeping over the ubiquitous, slowly rotating advanced cameras, feeling the risk of the plan rise sharply.
Just then, a figure with slicked-back hair and a flamboyant posture walked past the line—it was the Fire Dragon "Chance," who was extremely at odds with him.
A better and safer plan formed in Wade's mind: 'These cameras have a lot of technology; it's impossible for them not to be on guard against supes. It would be troublesome if I were caught making a small move.'
He watched Chance's expensive-looking brown leather shoes out of the corner of his eye: 'He's always been targeting me, so just as well... if this gets exposed, I'll use him as a scapegoat; if not, consider it his good luck.'
With a slight movement of his mind, an invisible current of air followed the cold air from the air conditioner and quietly attached itself to the hem of Chance's clothes, who had just passed through the security gate.
Having completed all this, Wade handed over his phone and other luggage, stepped through the security gate, and naturally cooperated with the inspection.
'First step, success!'
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