Nine Heavenly Thunder Manual

Lucas never thought Lei Yu would be such a tough nail. He swallowed hard before getting up in a hurry. “I apologize profusely Mr. Lei Yu. Mr. Hawes from the Burlinder family has the rank of a Bishop in the Vatican. His mother is someone that serves the Prophet of the Vatican. At first, our Dark Council used various methods to trap his mother in the Kou country, but our plans were foiled when you sent her back to the U.S. Originally our Dark Council saw you as the enemy, but since you’ve eradicated the Yamaguchi-gumi, you are now viewed as more of an ally.”

Lei Yu’s heart was beyond shocked. He had never expected that Mr. Hawes would be a person of the Vatican while the old woman served their Prophet. No wonder they knew so much about everything.

“Who is the Prophet of the Vatican?” Lei Yu asked.

“Kalchas.”

“What?!” Lei Yu was shocked. How could Kalchas still be alive? Was he some sort of old evil spirit? Then… then… what about Telephassa?

“But Kalchas has already died.”

Lei Yu finally sighed in relief, thinking he might be a bit too sensitive over this, but what’s so special about a person that serves a Prophet that’s already dead? Perhaps Lei Yu had to ask about this himself.

Lei Yu now understood why Dr. Tony would suddenly abandon his attempts at killing him. Mr. Hawes had intervened in this matter and his rank was that of a Bishop. A Parish Priest or a Pastor may be in charge of a large church, but a Bishop would be in charge of a certain district of Churches. Dr. Tony and the Vatican had a close working relationship and since they made a statement on it, it was natural that he wouldn’t dare to ignore it. One must know that no matter how big and strong Dr. Tony’s organization was, they were only seeking their own death if they went against the Vatican.

“I want to know what you’d like my assistance with.” Lei Yu asked.

“You only need to help us find Dr. Tony’s hideout and we will find a way to get rid of him.” Lucas replied.

“You guys can find the mutants that Dr. Tony has spread all over the city, but cannot find him? Isn’t he a mutant as well? Also you guys were able to pinpoint Hasegawa’s location while he was driving… yet you can’t find Dr. Tony. Don’t you feel this is a bit too ironic…?”

“I will consider the possibility of our cooperation. After I think things through, that will be the time for us to discuss the conditions. I will give you guys an answer in a month’s time, farewell for now.” Lei Yu turned and left. At least he had now gained knowledge of Mr. Hawes’s true identity.

Lei Yu didn’t want to immediately agree with cooperating with Lucas in haste. In his heart, he essentially didn’t want to associate with the people of the Dark Council. Once he made an agreement, he would probably be linked to them from then on and wouldn’t be able to extricate himself in the future. Lei Yu definitely wanted to gain some advantages out of this situation, but he didn’t really want to get too close to either opposing group.

Lei Yu didn’t know what matters the Dark Council was involved in, but one thing he was certain of was that this group of people, who lurked in the darkness, didn’t care for human beings. He considered these Dark Council members beneath even mutants so how could he cooperate with them?

As for the Vatican, Lei Yu wasn’t too interested in this huge organization that had followers throughout the entire world. He was already disgusted with them since they worked together with Dr. Tony. If the Vatican were to show up and discuss terms of cooperation, Lei Yu would also not agree with them. He had to maintain an attitude of not declaring himself attached to any powerful organization or offending anyone of them. Since he has just established himself in the U.S., it would do him no good to offend either one, so it was best for him to take the stance of wait and see.

Inside the hotel. Black Panther, Gray Bear, and Hu Jiong had been gathered by Lei Yu. Ai Er was also here but she sat to the side, not participating. Lei Yu looked at those gathered and said: “We have to speed up our plans because a show is about to start in the U.S., and those that remain will be considered the truly strong. We don’t have to participate, but we must survive it!”

Black Panther nodded. “There will be a match tomorrow night. After that, how about we advance our original plans?”

“That sounds good. Go ahead and arrange for the bounty hunters to step onto the stage. From now on, our matches will allow mutants to participate as well. As long as they aren’t being controlled by Dr. Tony, we will accept them all.”

“Understood.”

That night. Lei Yu saw a familiar face arriving at the nightclub – Mr. Hawes. Inside a black car was also an old woman, who was precisely Mr. Hawes’s mother. Lei Yu gently exhaled before smiling and greeting them: “Welcome Mr. Hawes and old madam!”

“Lei Yu, you’ve really surprised me. You are actually capable of owning such a nightclub in New York City? It’s really too shocking!” Mr. Hawes’s face was filled with praise as he looked at the huge building in front of him.

“You flatter me too much Mr. Hawes, please come in!”

The receptionist in the lobby was smart enough to organize a special private room. As Lei Yu and them went inside, the room didn’t have any loud music playing or any sexy ladies standing by to serve them. There was only Lei Yu, Mr. Hawes, and the old woman.

Ever since he found out Mr. Hawes and the old woman belonged to the Vatican, Lei Yu had felt awkward dealing with them. At first, the family treated him quite well, so he didn’t think this was all just a trap that he fell into. It looked like only after experiencing the labyrinth did all the pieces of the puzzles reveal itself.

“What’s the reason that Mr. Hawes and the old madam would come to visit me? It isn’t just for us to reminisce right?” Lei Yu faintly asked as he poured some of their finest red wine their club had.

Those two never thought Lei Yu would treat them so cold and distant, completely catching them off guard. It looks like things had progressed to a point where just a few words would not be able to explain their story clearly.

“Lei Yu, the reason why we’re here is to talk about the things that happened when you went to Greece with my mother.” Hawes politely smiled as he received the glass of wine.

Lei Yu silently said to himself: “I knew you guys were here for that.”

Lei Yu understood in his heart that even if Mr. Hawes didn’t care about what transpired in the labyrinth, what about the old woman? Could she not want to know what he had experienced inside there? Or what he attained? This would be illogical; therefore it’s time that things came to light.

Lei Yu casual took a sip of his red wine. “I want to know your true identities first.”

Hawes and the old woman looked at each other. They could truly feel that Lei Yu’s attitude towards them was completely different from before. Could it be that he found out something about them? The old woman hurriedly said: “Child, you need to understand that we do not have any malice towards you. Otherwise, why would I trust you to the point of bringing you along to Greece and revealing one of our deepest secrets?”

“Oh really?” Lei Yu’s eyebrow was slightly raised. “Perhaps the great Bishop was being cautious since he knew nothing about the labyrinth. Or else with his enormous strength, he could easily go inside the labyrinth and discover everything he wanted to know. Instead, why use me as cannon fodder?”

“This…” The old woman was suddenly speechless. Lei Yu had realized what was going on once he found out the true identities of Mr. Hawes and his family. Hawes and the old woman were well aware that Lei Yu’s appearance was merely a chess piece under their control. The Bishop was worried there would be unexpected accidents inside the labyrinth, so they put on a show and led Lei Yu inside it first.