41. The Children of Hell

Merlin sent Clark home, who was recovering, and he didn't disturb Clark's reunion with his girlfriend who was about to get off work.

He doesn't like being fed dog food very much.

He went to the Baxter Building. After Dum's energy extraction was over, the condition of Dr. Reed and his friends had improved too much. The energy from cosmic rays no longer infected their bodies, but they Still needs to be placed in the bio-chamber.

They have no signs of awakening yet, and Icarus guessed that it may be necessary to wait for the residual energy to be completely absorbed by them before these four people will wake up from a deep dormancy state.

There was no rush, and forcing them to wake up might lead to a worse situation.

After leaving the Baxter Building, Merlin went to the headquarters of the New York Association of Heroes, met with Luke Cage, and listened to the report of the non-staff agent.

The development of the Heroes Association is not bad. This non-governmental organization is currently very dynamic. It has absorbed almost all the superheroes around New York, or street heroes.

The internally established "hero code" was just a customary rule at the beginning, but now it has become the action program of the heroes within the association.

Acting according to the rules not only makes the heroes more efficient in fighting for justice, but also makes their impression in the minds of the people very good.

Although 90% of all the incidents they deal with are trivial things like stopping a theft, stopping a robbery, or stopping the drug trade, there are very few opportunities to encounter super criminals ravaging the city.

But for ordinary people, stopping these small-scale crimes is actually more useful than saving entire cities.

This is also the original intention of the establishment of the Heroes Association. As a supplement to the existing security system of the social order, rather than completely replacing the role of the police, this strategy set by Merlin and Fury seems to be very successful so far.

In the few years since the establishment of the New York Heroes Association, the security situation in this city has improved significantly. Of course, neighborhoods like Hell's Kitchen still exist, and the social environment there is still complicated.

But this is more of an economic and social problem, and it is difficult for superheroes to solve.

"You guys are doing a great job, Cage."

With the help of Icarus, Merlin checked the current internal data of the association, and he said to Luke Cage standing in front of his eyes:

"Continue with the current situation. Those members who strictly abide by the 'Heroes' Code' and have a strong sense of social responsibility have proved with their own actions that they can take on more social obligations. You should pay more attention to them."

"Material subsidies are one aspect, but we also need to set up reward programs that better meet the needs of heroes."

In the divine man's office, Merlin rubbed his chin and said to the non-staff agent who was performing a long-term mission in front of him:

"I plan to use the "Deep Strengthening" project designed by Dr. Moira as the internal reward mechanism of the Heroes Association after a while. You can make a list according to the performance of the heroes over the past few years, as the first batch to receive deep strengthening. Being a street hero is also a kind of recognition."

"It will tell the members of the association to be strict with themselves and to be rewarded for doing good deeds. Of course, you can't say it outright. After all, there are still many smart people."

"I understand, and I will do well."

Luke Cage has been presiding over the affairs of the New York Heroes Association for the past few years, and he has more or less the temperament that a leader should have. He nodded to Merlin, and he said calmly:

"Speaking of which, sir, there is one more thing I need to ask for your opinion."

The divine man took out a letter from his desk, put it in front of Merlin's eyes, and said:

"This is an invitation from the Detroit City Hall. They invited the Association of Heroes to establish a branch in Detroit. You know, the city's economic situation has been very poor in recent years, so the law and order is very bad. There are also some street heroes who stand up spontaneously. Fighting crime, but they don’t have a well-organized system, so the efficiency of their actions is very poor, and they are not understood by the public.”

"That's why the Detroit officials hope that we can establish a branch there like New York. While improving law and order, we can also restrain the 'wild' colleagues there."

"Oh? Is the demonstration effect so obvious?"

Merlin picked up the letter in surprise, he read it, then thought for a moment, and said to Cage:

"You can decide for yourself on this matter. Maybe you can seek the opinions of the members of the association. You are now considered as a whole, and the sense of collective honor should be publicized."

"And this official invitation will also be a booster, telling members that what they have done has been recognized. For a group that needs ideal support, a sense of recognition is very important."

"OK, all right."

Cage nodded, but then he said with some distress:

"But recently, there is a small group in the association that is very active. It's not normal to be active. A rich lady named Ash has linked up with a group of fringe heroes and formed a small association called the 'Dead End Gang'."

"I'm not saying that they didn't do a good job. In fact, their rules of conduct are completely within the scope of the association's requirements. Occasionally they will play around the corner, but it's not harmful. The main reason is that their leader, Miss Ash, is very scheming. She hired several media companies to publicize their actions."

"Does this bother you, Cage."

Merlin blinked and said:

"Do you think they're a threat?"

"Threats are out of the question."

After all, the divine man is not that kind of intelligent character. Even with the assistance of the female knight Jessica, he is still not very comfortable with these matters of calculation.

He said to Merlin calmly:

"I just feel that the goal of the Deadlock Gang should not just become a famous hero group. Miss Ash seems to have some interest in the leadership of the association"

"Then why not give her a chance, the facts will prove whether Ash's ability is worthy of her ambition."

Merlin tapped his finger on the invitation letter of the Detroit City Hall, and he said softly:

"Look at the long term, Cage, when I invited you to establish the Heroes Association, I didn't intend to let you make trouble in New York. I really hope that one day in the future you will become the leader of the "North American Heroes Association""

"Do you get me?"

Cage's eyes fell on the envelope, a gleam flashed in his eyes, and he nodded immediately:

"Well, I see, sir. I will assign Miss Ash to be the leader of the Detroit branch of the Heroes' Association, and she will prove herself in that city."

"Um."

Merlin nodded in satisfaction, Cage is not stupid after all, he is the kind of character who is wise and foolish.

"One more thing, Cage."

Merlin says:

"Regarding the "Superhero Registration Act", although in the Heroes Association, this bill is not enforced, but I hope you can properly promote its progress."

"It is not reliable to rely on personal moral standards and collective conventions to restrain the behavior of heroes. There will always be some uncontrollable accidents. After all, this society still relies on the rules set by the law to operate."

He said:

"When the time is right, the registration bill will be promoted to become an official legal text. At that time, for those rebellious people who wantonly violate the rules and don't take their own and other people's lives seriously, nothing but media condemnation and We'll have the real tools to punish them beyond the public's scorn."

Merlin spread his hands and said to Luke Cage:

"One hand with a sweet date, one hand with a big stick, and punishment together, the Heroes Association can go further and become the organization that represents justice that you and I imagined. Cage, your cause is to serve the needs and justice of the majority of people. Always keep that in mind.”

"Um."

Although the divine man hesitated, he still nodded and agreed to Merlin's request.

"That's the quarter's campaign money."

Merlin took out a bank card from his pocket and handed it to Cage. He urged:

"Don't let your woman touch financial power, Jessica has a record in this area"

"I don't want to see the Heroes' Association disband due to financial difficulties. But speaking of it, you have been talking for several years, and your relationship has always been stable. When will you get married? Do you have any ideas?"

"Uh, not yet."

Cage scratched his big bald head, he said to Merlin with some embarrassment:

"Jessica is a hopelessly single person, and I have a hard time persuading her about that."

"Oh, woman."

Merlin shook his head, he took out his pocket watch to check the time, and said to Cage:

"There is my nephew's birthday party tonight, so I won't chat with you. Protect yourself, Cage, and see you next month."

"Oh, I almost forgot, just sign this toy and forget about it, pack it up and come with me. My nephew is a big fan of the great hero Superman, he will be happy to invite the idol to the birthday party jumped up."

Twenty minutes later, Uncle Merlin brought the famous hero Luke Cage to the scene of Little Peter's birthday party. Just as Uncle Merlin expected, Little Peter jumped up happily and almost fell to the ground.

This made Uncle Merlin unexpectedly jealous~

Half a month later, Liana, Queen of the Frontier, asked Merlin to send a rally message through housekeeper Xuanlan.

Brothers and sisters Damon and Satana, who had disappeared for a long time, came back, and the small group of children of hell decided to hold a meeting to share the information they had with each other.

Although Merlin is busy with work, he has not forgotten where his greatest threat comes from. As the power seed of the Sangong Demon in his body enters a new stage, Merlin will occasionally hear the call from hell.

The terrifying Sangong should still be sealed in its own hell, but there is no doubt that it yearns for freedom.

The only remaining sons of Sangong are Merlin and Ruiwen. Once Sangong is out of trouble, the great demon will probably try to create conflicts between Merlin and Ruiwen by manipulating the seeds of power to trigger the three. The Standard Fate of the Children of the Palace

Kill each other until there is only one person left.

Merlin did not allow that future to appear, so he had to prepare early.

"hum"

As the door of the living room of the Queen's castle on the edge of hell was pushed open, Merlin stepped into the hall. A huge round table decorated with various demon images was standing in the hall, and around the round table, the children of hell The members are already there.

Merlin was the last of the long overdue.

"It's rare that you're late."

Damon, who was sitting on the black velvet-decorated armchair, crossed his hands and placed them on the table. This handsome and gloomy guy looked at Merlin, and he said:

"Is it because you've been working on those stupid jobs again?"

"Protecting order is not stupid, Dimon, and I love this job."

Merlin pulled out the chair and sat beside Damon, he said:

"What have you been up to lately?"

"escape."

Damon pouted:

"My sister's father and I have gone crazy and must bring us back to its hell."

"Well, that sounds boring."

Merlin turned his eyes to the other side, the beautiful lady who was dozing on the table, Satana, this hell princess still kept her spiral devil horns, and waxed her own horns to look shiny of.

But her long white hair was a little messy, and it didn't look like it had been properly taken care of.

Merlin says:

"Satana seems to be very sleepy, she looks very tired. Is it also because of being hunted down?"

"No."

Damon glanced at his humiliated sister, and said:

"She spent 7 consecutive days in the nightclub in Sulfur Harbor, probably because she was crazy. Those vampires and monsters have managed the city well, and it is getting more and more prosperous."

"Oh, speaking of monsters"

Merlin suddenly remembered something, he said:

"I also promised them to help them find their highness the princess. You two have been running outside these years. Is there any news about this?"

"No."

Damon snorted and said casually:

"It's been too long since the monster's Xiakela Dynasty was destroyed. Those old stories about Chen Guzi's rotten sesame seeds are always true and false, and I'm not interested in finding a trace of the truth."

"Since you agreed to him, Merlin, you should be more attentive, instead of always expecting your companions to do the dirty work for you."

"You guys are well-informed."

Merlin shrugged. He looked at the other two people, but Liana didn't say anything. Her Majesty has been worrying about the reconnection of Limbo and other hell dimensions recently. She has no time to collect such information.

So Merlin set his sights on the last member, who was also the least existential member of Hell's Sons.

Being watched by Merlin, the red devil Asazo immediately showed an unhappy expression. The mutant demon patted the table and said:

"Don't look at me like that, Merlin, I'm not your servant!"

"Why are you yelling so loudly! Do you have a sense of public morality! Didn't you see that I was resting?"

Asazo's shout woke up the drowsy Satana. The bad-tempered daughter of Satan woke up very angry. She stood up and rolled up her sleeves to teach the ignorant devil mutants a lesson. He was stopped by his brother in his seat.

"So you actually have news?"

Merlin looked at Asazzo, who vented his long-neglected dissatisfaction, then cleared his throat, and said:

"Indeed, I found some interesting things in the library of the Hellfire Club some time ago, some legends about the monster dynasty"

The red devil rolled his eyes, he stretched out his hand, made a very philistine gesture, and said:

"But you have to do me something."

"Clang, clang, clang"

Three things were thrown on the table in front of Asazzo, and those gadgets made a crisp impact sound. Merlin looked at Asazzo and said:

"Is this enough?"