With Harley's management experience, plus the bright future of this venture, it was certain to make a lot of money.
--------------------------------------------
Gordon Club, on the fighting arena.
Two figures were engaged in close combat. With a crisp thud against the ground, the sturdier figure was thrown down with a back shoulder slam, lying on the floor unable to move.
The instructor acting as referee stepped forward to announce the winner.
In the rest area, Hastur removed the tightly wrapped protective gear from his body.
He pulled over a towel to wipe off the sweat, then changed into a clean training robe.
Recently, as his combat skills improved, Instructor Hyman had him try real fights, which led to this arena battle.
Just now, he was clearly inferior in technique, but relying on sheer brute strength, he easily broke through the opponent's defense and slammed him to the ground.
As they say, great strength brings miracles.
His barbarian physique, after this period of training, had become more solid, powerful, and robust.
The slightly youthful and immature air he once carried was gradually fading through constant training, replaced with a more masculine presence.
Instructor Hyman praised him as a talent suited for combat, but Hastur only smiled in silence.
Comparing the physique of a Beyonder with that of an ordinary man was bullying from the start.
If it weren't to experience actual combat, he wouldn't have stepped onto the arena at all.
After a few matches, he realized it wasn't very meaningful, more a show than true fighting.
Fortunately, his Barbarian potion was fully digested today.
When he returned at night, he planned to advance to Sequence 7, Briber.
If not for targeting that troublemaker, the Son of Chaos, in the Hall of Stars, his Barbarian potion likely wouldn't have been digested so quickly.
While acting as a Barbarian, he always felt restrained, unable to disregard rules and order like a true barbarian.
Luckily, the Son of Chaos helped him once.
The Mother Tree of Desire should also be credited.
A Sequence 8 summoning two Outer Gods in the Hall of Stars for a meeting, that in itself broke all rules.
Not to mention, in the Hall of Stars, he even held the dominant position.
Yes, he truly should thank the Son of Chaos and the Mother Tree of Desire.
...
At night, in an empty room, Hastur carefully checked the Beyonder materials laid out on the table.
Main ingredients: 1 Weeping Infant Flower, Strange-faced Cannabis Crystal.
Auxiliary ingredients: 5 drops of Golden Jimsonweed Juice; 5 drops of Black Jimsonweed Juice; 4 drops of Fantasy Grass Essential Oil; 80 ml of Red Wine.
After checking several times and confirming there was no issue, Hastur finally relaxed.
For the other Beyonder materials, he had no objections. But the 80 ml of red wine made him pause for a moment.
He remembered that starting from Sequence 9 Lawyer, every potion formula required some kind of alcohol.
From beer at the beginning to wine now, the quality of the alcohol kept rising.
If he advanced to higher sequences, what kind of alcohol would be required then?
This Black Emperor pathway seemed filled with luxury, indulgence, and passionate frenzy.
Indeed, the pathway suited nobles. The greater the power, the more extravagant and decadent.
Later sequences such as Baron of Corruption, Mentor of Disorder, and Earl of the Fallen were also closely tied to alcohol.
"Alcohol can cloud reason", this saying truly fit here.
Hastur pondered for a while, then calmed his mind, adjusted his state, and began concocting.
Having experienced two prior concoctions, this time he was skillful and soon completed the Sequence 7 Briber potion.
It was again a somewhat turbid liquid, mainly dark red, looking much like red wine.
Its smell was rich and pungent, like strong alcohol.
Expressionless, Hastur picked up the bowl and drank it all in one gulp.
The thick, murky liquid slid down his throat, leaving a numb and dry sensation.
It was like swallowing paralyzing powder; even his tongue went numb and bitter.
Once in his stomach, a burning sensation spread, not like fire, but more like being enveloped in boiling steam.
Yet instead of clarity, it brought doubled intoxication and chaos.
Not only his head spun, but even his organs felt disordered.
Up became down, left became right, he lost all sense of direction.
He tried to stay awake, but his reason wavered, on the verge of drifting away.
The faint whispers he used to sense now grew sharp and clear.
Each murmur seemed to burrow into his ears, into his mind.
In the haze, he seemed to hear the whispers of terrifying beings from the depths of the stars.
The voices were like incantations, incomprehensible yet filled with maddening, terrifying power.
They were also like a summons, some unknown existence calling from the starry abyss.
With each call, his reason faded toward nothing.
His soul, under the call of the incantations, left his body and drifted upward.
Drifting toward the starry abyss.
Higher than the mountains, up to the clouds, through piercing gales, as though breaking through some barrier.
At that moment, the stars above flickered brightly.
The starlight was dazzling, yet carried a warmth that restored reason.
Gradually, his soul returned to his body, and his reason slowly revived.
When Hastur regained control of his body, he was already lying on the ground, two hours having passed.
"That feeling... was it really just a side effect from drinking the potion?"
"Or did my soul truly leave my body, drifting into the starry abyss?"
"Whispers of Outer Gods?"
Hastur muttered softly, but no one could answer.
Lying there for a long time, he finally felt alive again. As for what new Beyonder abilities he had gained, he had no mood to check.
All he wanted was a bath and a good sleep.
...
After bathing and sleeping, Hastur got up and slowly experienced the Beyonder abilities he gained as Sequence 7 Briber.
Sequence 7 Briber: Problems that cannot be solved by law or force can be solved by bribery.
Bribery means finding the other party's weakness, and through money, words, or other means, forming an improper relationship of interests.
Hastur understood this quickly.
The Beyonder abilities of Sequence 7 Briber were fivefold:
Bribe-Weaken: Temporarily weaken the target's attack, defense, or control against oneself.
Bribe-Charm: By giving actual or symbolic bribery, make the target strongly favor you, dissolve hostility, even abandon battle. If conditions allow, the bribed may become an ally, obeying commands.
Bribe-Arrogance: With appropriate bribery, affect the target's reason, inducing arrogance, pride, mental decline, misjudgment, and other negative states.
Bribe-Connection: Once bribery succeeds, a bond forms between briber and bribed. Both will share fortune and misfortune, akin to a damage-link.
Bribe-Nullify: With successful bribery, both sides hold each other's secrets, creating a chance to nullify the target's attacks.
Hastur quietly felt these five abilities.
Once bribery succeeded, the powers greatly strengthened.
Especially the fifth, nullifying attacks, was a life-saving divine skill.
As for the so-called "chance," since he walked half the path of Fate, enhancing luck and raising probability was simple.
The third ability, Bribe-Arrogance, seemed like a passive debuff, imposing negative states on enemies to aid himself.
As for how to bribe and role-play, Hastur felt it wasn't difficult, far simpler than acting a barbarian.
In almost every place, bribery had always appeared in the annals and continued in real life.
At a child's birth, parents might bribe for a better hospital.
Growing up, from kindergarten to university, bribery permeated everywhere.
Later, whether in business or politics, mastering bribes was the key to success.
Beyond those, bribes touched every aspect of daily life.
For instance, when shopping, flattering a shopkeeper might make him sell cheaper, that too was bribes, through words.
Between men and women, courtship could also be seen as a kind of bribe.
Before love, learning the other's preferences and catering to them to gain affection was a form of bribe. The "bribe" being feelings.
On a broader scale, any intelligent being fell into bribery's scope, even pets like cats and dogs.
A master feeding and caring for them to win loyalty, that was also bribery.
In his view, the essence of bribe was simply: an exchange of interests!