He changed his character in a more menacing direction on the November 27 episode of "SmackDown", when he revealed that he had converted Luke Gallows, who had the former gimmick of the mentally incompetent wrestler Festus, to the straight-edge lifestyle which had got rid of his mental problems. He continued to support his straight-edge philosophy, he began to present himself as a cult-like savior to the crowd. He also grew out the hair on his head, face and chest in an allusion to Jesus. Through the month of January, he began to convert planted members of the audience to the straight-edge lifestyle by making them take a pledge of allegiance to him and then shaving their head as a sign of renewal and devotion. After he converted multiple people who were not seen again, one of the converts Serena began accompanying Punk and Gallows and they later formed the Straight Edge Society. While leading the stable, he was also the mentor of "WWE NXT" rookie Darren Young. At one point, Young was going to join the Straight Edge Society but he chose not to join before he was about to have his head shaved.