My friend runs an online manipulation network, and I have no idea what to do
I have no idea how to even start with this. I have a relatively close online friend. We occasionally play various video games together and mostly communicate via Discord. A few days ago, I received a message from a female friend of his warning me to watch out for him, as he is extremely dangerous and not the person he appears to be.
I ignored the whole thing because I know that he has a lot of friends online and there is constant drama there. She and I have gotten a bit closer over the past few days, and she told me that my friend is the leader of his own network,that he controls. She said that he had manipulated her for two years, and that it was only recently, through a friend, that she understood what had actually been done to her.
Apparently, she, along with many other members of this network, was manipulated by him for years. As far as I have been able to determine, he maintains a tight inner circle that he controls. Then there are the friends of the inner-circle members, who are likewise controlled by him and his closest followers.
The girl was a member of his inner circle; she was, it seems, under a great deal of pressure from him. She told me that she always felt terrible whenever he was having a bad day, and that she constantly tried to outdo the other friends, wich are the other members of his circle, in order to remain in his good graces. Apparently, there were small, unofficial competitions among them to see who could be of the most assistance to him, for instance, by providing him with the most information about other people for example.
I definitely don't know what to do. I constantly find myself wondering whether I am being manipulated right now, too. I don't know if I should take action against it, because I'm afraid of coming under fire from his group myself. All I know is that I think it's wrong.
If anyone has any advice or questions, feel free to tell me in the comments