Chapter 901 - SUCCESSOR (5)
Chapter 901: SUCCESSOR (5)
Phil was in the perfect position: the position of an outsider.
That was because he had no interests with the superheroes. He was giving directions with the perspective of God, so Phil himself had no flaws. The people were very supportive and encouraged his behavior. The other superheroes had to worry about the public’s influence even if they were unhappy and wanted to teach Phil a lesson.
Ten months passed just like that.
The fans that Phil had accumulated as a mentor in the “Successor” program had been perfectly converted into his personal fans. A large number of people really believed that Phil was a person with genuine talent.
Everyone knew that Phil had assistants but which superhero did not have assistants and managers? It was very normal to have assistants. Most people still believed in Phil’s personal abilities.
Ten months later, Phil finally found another opportunity.
This time, the black apprentice in ‘Successor’ was severely injured and made unconscious by a super criminal who was stronger than him because of his misjudgment of the criminal’s strength.
Phil, who was this black apprentice mentor, could be said to be the guide of this apprentice. His evaluation of this matter naturally had a weight in the public’s mind.
Phil first went to the hospital to visit this black apprentice. His sad expression was moving. At that moment, the barrier between white people and black people, rich people and commoners seemed to have been broken. Everyone only saw the sincere feelings between a mentor and his apprentice.
Phil met the girlfriend of this black apprentice and gave her many precious gifts as condolences. He also very generously expressed that he would pay for all the medical expenses of this black apprentice.
The black apprentice’s girlfriend was deeply moved. She talked about her daily life with the black apprentice in front of the camera.
The black apprentice respected Phil very much. He felt that Phil had been kind to him. He would ask himself before each mission: What would Mentor Phil do if he encountered such a situation? No matter whether the missions he completed were successful or not, he would always reflect upon the situation: Would there have been a better way to deal with such a situation if Mentor Phil was the one who encountered it?
In the end, the black apprentice’s girlfriend repeated the famous words of a superhero senior: With great power comes great responsibility. She hoped that Phil could become a superhero and really contribute to changing the world.
Phil was silent for a long time, but he did not give an immediate answer. Instead, he said that he would consider it and then announced his decision on Twitter.
Two days later, Phil posted an inspiring tweet.
He said that his current life was relaxed and comfortable, and he had a career that he was willing to fight for. Becoming a superhero meant that he had to give up his media company and his current free life. This was a huge sacrifice for him.
However, his words took an immediate turn.
The successors of Captain World had become pedantic. The superhero system that the people were proud of was gradually going downhill.
Superheroes who had been famous for a long time were obsessed with fame and fortune. They were increasingly less concerned about the lives of ordinary people. They held high positions but did not do anything. They had completely broken away from the people at the lower ranks of society.
The Superhero Association had obtained a huge amount of commercial value from the superheroes. They were increasingly passionate about creating stars, packaging, and eliminating negative news. They often lied to the people when their stupid arrangements caused many ordinary people to be hurt from crimes;
There were also ordinary people like this black guy who were filled with passion to become superheroes. They had passion but did not have enough strength to change the situation.
Phil said on Twitter that even though becoming a superhero would be a huge sacrifice for himself, he had enough of the superheroes’ inaction and the suffering that the problems that crime brought to this city. He decided to stand up and become a superhero to change the situation.
He hoped that all the citizens would support him and recreate the spirit of Captain World with him. He wanted to reduce the crime rate and save the tragedies that might happen in the future so that superheroes could return to the right track.
This tweet immediately received a warm response, and he skipped the first stage to directly obtain the power of a superhero.
Phil’s actions had alerted the Superhero Association. Phil was an uncertain factor to the association. They were worried that Phil would cause greater damage to the existing system after entering the association. Therefore, they did not invite Phil but used the ‘association rules’ to reject him.
Phil was more than happy for that to have happened.
Joining the Superhero Association was ordinary superheroes’ only choice. Not joining meant that they had no reputation, no exposure, and would not be able to accept missions. At the same time, it would be difficult to contact their sponsors to provide them with the next stage of the campaign funds.
However, Phil did not need these. Joining the Superhero Association would instead become a kind of restraint on him.
Thus, Phil chose to become a ‘lone ranger’. He wandered outside the entire superhero system. He would only personally take action if he encountered something that would 100% become successful.
On top of that, Phil continued to bribe the criminals through a middleman. He knew the criminal’s plan in advance and stopped the crime perfectly.
That was because most of the missions that had to be carried out were not dangerous. A small portion of them had been arranged. There were no unknown missions that were forcibly assigned by the association like other heroes. Therefore, Phil’s success rate in carrying out missions was especially high.
Phil would arrange for his media company and the television stations that he was on good terms with to report on it every time he had successfully carried out a mission. He would also disclose some details of the operation to his fans on Twitter.
Moreover, Phil had made a huge fuss about the fact that he had not joined the Superhero Association. There were three benefits to this:
First of all, it could give all the fans a feeling of ‘volunteer work’. Phil would appear more noble and independent compared to those who became superheroes for fame and profit.
Second, he did not need to participate in missions that were difficult, had low success rate, and missions which he was unwilling to take action. Furthermore, his fans could not question his every move. He could not obtain detailed information about various missions without being in the Superhero Association after all. Phil could say that it was too late when he got to know of the situations;
Finally, he could continue to objectively evaluate missions that he had not participated in. At the same time, he could complete missions with his free will. This way, he could shut the mouths of those who said “do it if you can”. He would not be afraid to participate in missions that he could not control.
Thus, Phil continued to accumulate fame through this method. In the hearts of his fans, he was a true superhero with ability, faith, and emotions. The only problem was that he did not have enough supporters. Thus, Phil’s superpower was limited and he could not complete bigger things.
On the other hand, the Superhero Association’s’ jealousy, suppression, and obstruction’ of Phil made him suffer unfair treatment. Many fans also felt indignant for him. The fans were becoming more and more extreme in their unity.
However, Phil knew very well that such a state could not last forever.
He would one day arouse the disgust of the superheroes if he continued to make digs at the Superhero Associations. He had to enter the next stage as soon as possible and obtain more power.
Thus, he entered the third stage and prepared the agenda for himself to be a superhero and also for his participation in the Superhero election.
Many superheroes scoffed after Phil released the news because his qualifications were not enough to participate in such a level of campaign.
Other superheroes often had to accumulate for two to three years before they could start preparing for the superhero election. However, Phil was obviously advancing too fast and his foundation was not firm.
Phil had three very difficult problems to solve from the perspective of the other superheroes in order to participate in the election. He had to obtain more support, and more powerful superpowers.
First of all, no large financial group would provide him with campaign funds. Of course, Phil could use his own money as campaign funds. That was relatively easy to resolve.
Second, Phil could not give a public speech or debate in the venue where the Superhero Association was located because he had not joined the Association. His name would be nominated, but this nomination would only be symbolic. It was difficult for him to obtain votes because there was no opportunity for him to appear.
Finally, Phil did not have a very clear representation group. The minority, transgender, foreign immigrants, and other groups already had their own heroes. Phil’s image was incompatible with the appeal of these groups. It would only be one vote per person with just his fans, no matter how strong they were. He would be eliminated after one round at best.
Therefore, most superheroes, even the official members of the association who organized the Superhero election, felt that this was another performance of Phil’s. They did not take this matter to heart at all.
However, they soon realized that they were wrong: Phil had obviously thought about these problems beforehand.