Heroes Return

"You'd better give me a proper answer on what's going on! Otherwise, I can't guarantee what will happen to you next!" Torus roared angrily at Ivan. After meeting Ivan a few times, Torus was certain of the matter. There was absolutely no need to be merciful to someone like Ivan.

"Hahaha! Are you threatening me? Does the Hero Association also intend to use violence to force surrendered prisoners? Hahahaha!"

“Even if I killed someone like you, I wouldn’t feel guilty!” Torus said coldly.

"Hahahaha! Since you've put it that way, then to suffer less, I'll tell you what I know! Hahahaha!" Ivan deliberately feigned fear, but his face still wore a twisted smile: "Just like what this machine shows, I am Ivan myself! Hahahaha!! I really am Ivan! But the Ivan who was killed by Zero is also Ivan! Hahahaha!! Also, the two hundred and ninety-nine in the Holy City are also Ivan! Hahahaha!"

"What are you talking about!" Even Captain Justice couldn't stand it anymore.

"As expected, apart from Zero, the other heroes are all pretty boring! Ugh!" Seeing Captain Justice's expression, Ivan even made a disgusted face, then looked at Lin Jie: "But you're quite interesting. Although I don't know how you managed to find me, whom even thousands of people couldn't find, your bread attack really exceeded my expectations. Ahahahaha!!"

“My patience is limited. I expect you to explain yourself clearly right now.” Leng Yan looked at Ivan with icy eyes.

"Okay, isn't the answer already quite simple? Clones! Hahahaha! We are all clones of Ivan with Ivan's memories! To be precise, we are all copies of Ivan. Hahahaha!"

"You're saying you're all clones?" Captain Justice's expression turned more serious than ever before. If what this Ivan said was true, then all the Ivans in the Holy City would be no different from the real Ivan! You know, one Ivan is already enough to cause chaos for them, imagine three hundred of them! To be honest, Captain Justice had a bad feeling.

"Then where is the real Ivan?" Leng Yan suddenly asked, looking at these Ivans.

“Who knows! Maybe the real Ivan is among those Ivans in the Holy City, or maybe he’s hiding somewhere else, who knows?” Ivan smiled as he looked at all the heroes present.

"No matter how many Ivans there are, I will crush them," Leng Yan said calmly. "Next, prepare to face the World Government's newest prison."

Then Leng Yan looked at one of the psychic superheroes present: "Is what he said true?"

“That’s right, what he said is true,” the young psychic said.

chapter Five

"Alright, now we can prepare to head to Sector O." Captain Justice said directly into the communicator, "Everyone, get to the vehicles and wait."

"Don't you think I confessed too readily? Hahaha!" Ivan suddenly said, "Actually, before you tour the new rooms, there's something I want to tell you. Do you really think I haven't done anything at the base during this time? Hahaha!"

“Of course we knew you would try something,” Leng Yan said calmly. “But so what? We’re leaving this base soon. This base will soon be destroyed and replaced, and whatever plans you have for this base will be a joke.”

"Oh? You mean this base is about to be abandoned? So everything I set up here is useless?" Ivan said, somewhat dejected, but his expression immediately returned to its original mocking smile: "Luckily, I didn't put my toys here! Ahahahaha!!!"

A series of wild laughs from Ivan were accompanied by an urgent communication.

"Something's wrong! The solar ship outside is emitting terrifyingly high temperatures! And it looks extremely unstable!"

"What!" Upon hearing this, the Son of God's expression immediately changed: "Damn it! Do you want to blow up an entire state in District M? You're a madman!"

"No time for this!" the Master of Miracles said, his staff forming a circle in the air. With that circle, a spatial portal opened easily, revealing the enormous solar ship on the other side.

By this time, the ice covering the solar ship had completely melted, and the entire ship was radiating intense heat. Even its originally golden exterior had turned red under the extreme heat.

"Oh no! It's too late!" The Child of God understood immediately upon seeing this scene; the self-destruction of the Sun Ship was irreversible! He also understood why Ivan had been stalling for time inside the base—to distract them. Once the ship exploded, most of the Hero Association's elites gathered there, with only a few exceptions, would be killed.

"Don't worry, the timing is perfect," Leng Yan said calmly.

Time seemed to slow down at that moment. Everyone saw Leng Yan slowly wave to the sun boat in front of him, and a crystal-clear snowflake flew out of Leng Yan's hand little by little.

Just then, the solar ship unleashed a powerful burst of energy, with terrifying heat and flames strong enough to scorch the earth erupting from it. As the shockwave from the explosion and flames began to spread outwards, the tiny snowflake collided directly with the blast wave.

Then the blue power quickly enveloped the entire sunship and the flames that were about to erupt outwards from within it.

In less than a second, the solar ship that had just exploded was frozen in the shape it had just created, right before the eyes of all the heroes.

"Humph!"

After letting out a cold snort, Leng Yan simply snapped his fingers. The Solar Ship, one of the world's ten most ancient wonders, vanished before everyone's eyes, turning into a shower of snowflakes that drifted away in the wind.

"Is this your plan?" Leng Yan's gaze turned coldly to Ivan beside him: "No matter what tricks you use, they are not worth mentioning in front of me."

At this moment, however, Ivan showed an expression of great interest.

"What a powerful man! I surrender! Please, great hero, spare my life! I'll confess everything. Actually, I tampered with this base too; what I said earlier was just a lie. Hahahaha!!!"

"What did you say!" Upon hearing Ivan's words, everyone had a bad feeling.

"Speaking of which, the food here is really awful. Otherwise, I would have just poisoned it, and we wouldn't have had to go through all this trouble. Hahahaha!!" Ivan still looked at everyone present with an expression that made you want to punch him. Those who heard his words showed uneasy expressions.

"He's lying to you!" The psychic next to Leng Yan suddenly said to everyone, "What he just said was a lie! He didn't do anything to the base!"

"Oh! I've been exposed! I just wanted to scare you all. Hahaha!! Speaking of which, your expressions just now were really funny! I've already had the cameras here take pictures! Hahahaha!" Ivan still looked at all the heroes present with a grin, and when everyone showed a hostile expression, he said to everyone present with a very serious expression: "Okay, I'm not joking anymore. Actually, I was sent here to inform you because of the draw! The game has already started!"

"You've already started a war! And you still talk about games?" At this moment, Torus grabbed Ivan's hair and lifted Ivan's face, which seemed to be mocking them, in front of him with one hand.

"How long has it been since you brushed your teeth?" Ivan showed no sign of pain as he was lifted up. "I suggest you try this new, ridiculous toothpaste. I've heard it's great for getting rid of bad breath! Hahahaha!"

"I'm not in the mood for jokes! If you have something to say, say it now! Otherwise, I can't guarantee what will happen next." Torus was completely in no mood to argue with this damned Ivan. This guy had already wasted a lot of their time.

"Alright, let me get to the point," Ivan said with a laugh. "I think you already know, we've taken over some awful place in some city. And we've effectively improved the atmosphere there, cracking down on those lunatics who spout nonsense in God's name all day long. Under our rule, those creatures that used to swarm like flies have disappeared. Ahahahaha!!"

Ivan's voice trailed off as he finished speaking. At that moment, a fist landed squarely on Ivan's face. But the one who struck him wasn't Torus, but the Son of God.

"You damned sinner! The priests there are the most compassionate and devout people in the world!" The Son of God could no longer tolerate Ivan's taunts.

"Since you don't like it, I'll move on to the next thing." Even with his face slightly distorted from the punch, Evan still wore a smile. "We've established a nation! The name is the Evan Alliance! Ahahahaha! Also, I have good news for you: we've completely taken control of that city! And we even found an interesting cup there! I heard that cup helps create Heroic Spirits! But thinking about it, we should have all the relics needed to summon Heroic Spirits by now! Ahahahaha! That means our Evan Alliance now has at least three hundred ancient heroes waiting for you there! Ahahahaha!! Speaking of which, this should be called the Holy Grail War, right? And I've come here to formally declare war on you. We're ready to play this game with you in the Holy Capital, ahahahaha!! Oh, and some of your opponents might be your childhood idols."

Of course, every game has a penalty game. Actually, we found the legendary Necronomicon of the Undead King underground there! If you lose this game, I'll activate the Necronomicon's power and resurrect all the undead in the world. Ahahahaha! Actually, I really want to play Resident Evil! But I heard there's a fundamental difference between magic-based zombies and virus-based zombies, ahahahaha!! I can't tell the difference! Ahahahaha!

"This is impossible! How could you possibly have obtained the Necronomicon! With your sinful souls! How could you possibly gain the approval of the Divine Seal and open the seal of the Gate of Truth!" Upon hearing Ivan's words, the Son of God felt a sense of unreality. It was known that only those possessing extremely strong divine faith and great wisdom could open the Gate of Truth.

"Actually, it's not that difficult. Just brainwash or hypnotize a few popes or priests and make them open that place unconsciously. By the way, the so-called Gate of Truth there no longer exists, ahahahaha!"

"What did you say! Do you know what you're doing? Do you know how evil things are sealed inside?" the Son of God said angrily.

"Of course I know what I'm doing! What I'm doing is just adding a bit of color to the world, hahaha!!"

"You madman! Your actions will only bring you destruction." The Son of God's expression had become extremely ugly. Others didn't know the uses of the items within the Gate of Truth, and many present didn't even know what the Gate of Truth was. But the Son of God knew! It contained only demonic artifacts, each capable of granting ordinary people immense power, but correspondingly, those artifacts would cause them to lose their souls.

"Don't worry, we've already sold those things all over the world through online shopping, hahaha! Interesting things are better taken out and played with! Hahahaha!!"

"Damn it!" Even the usually holy and solemn Son of God lost his composure when he saw Ivan's smiling face: "You bastard who deserves to go to hell."

"Since you want me to die, then I'll do as you say, ahahahaha! Well then, goodbye everyone. Ahahahaha!!"

"Ah! His last words were true! He really intended to say goodbye to us!" a psychic suddenly shouted.

"Oh no! He's definitely going to do something! Quick, find a way to stop him!" Captain Justice reacted immediately. But the very next second after he finished speaking, the entire base's defense system began to attack everyone present with a frenzied assault.

Just as everyone was preparing to defend against these attacks, a huge amount of energy suddenly erupted from Ivan's body, which had been frozen in ice.

Ivan's body exploded unexpectedly, and not only Ivan's body exploded, but also the entire Hero Association base.

Chapter Six

At the very moment the Hero Association exploded, just like the Sun Ship before, the entire Hero Association was frozen in its exploded form.

Then, to the astonishment of all the superheroes, all the buildings turned into a flurry of snowflakes.

"We must head to Area O immediately," Leng Yan said to the heroes around him.

“You’re right. Our opponent this time is definitely not a simple character. And this time we also have to face 299 Ivans.” Captain Justice looked at the heroes present with a serious expression: “The people in Sector O are probably no match for those lunatics.”

"I don't care how many people he has, they are no threat to me."

After uttering those words coldly, Leng Yan's body suddenly transformed into a ball of blue flame, and then he soared into the sky and disappeared. At that moment, Captain Justice also took to the air and vanished behind Leng Yan.

As for the others who could fly quickly, they all took to the air and flew away. The other heroes all boarded the shuttles that were parked on the outskirts of the Hero Association and were unaffected by the attack.

You seem very anxious.

Captain Justice in the sky has caught up with Cold Flame, who is flying in the air.

“If we arrive too late, who knows what other trouble they might cause in District O.” Leng Yan’s voice was completely devoid of emotion: “It would be troublesome if a large number of people were killed.”

"Hopefully they'll only target the Holy City." Captain Justice felt a growing unease, especially after seeing Ivan. His instincts, honed from years of walking the line between life and death, told him this would likely be an extremely difficult battle: "If only Zero would show up."

"We can't always pin our hopes on that guy whose true identity is unknown," Leng Yan said calmly. "Didn't you already see Zero last time? Can someone who can't even have an equal conversation with you really be a guardian of humanity forever?"

“But he is indeed a guardian of humanity.” Captain Justice had a different opinion on Leng Yan’s point of view: “Don’t forget that he is a hero who has saved the whole world. Almost everyone in this world owes him a debt of gratitude.”

"But I heard that your last meeting wasn't pleasant," Leng Yan said calmly. "I heard that person only said one sentence to you before leaving, didn't they?"

"That's true, but we must acknowledge his achievements."

"I'm not denying his achievements," Leng Yan said calmly. "I just want to say that times have changed. Zero's era ended five years ago when the Hero Association was founded. Now it's our era! So don't think of Zero every time you encounter a dangerous guy like Ivan."

Based on his five-year disappearance and his condition during your last meeting, don't you understand? We shouldn't be relying on that guy for everything right now.

“I know, but historically, there has only been zero successes in defeating Ivan,” Captain Justice said.

"That's why our operation this time is so significant. If we can take down a few hundred or three hundred Ivans at once, we can announce to the world that our capabilities have surpassed zero."

"Are you determined to surpass zero?"

"Anyone who doesn't want to be at the top is just a piece of trash."

“Your thinking might get you killed.” Captain Justice looked at Leng Yan with some concern: “I admit that you have become the second only to the No.1 timeline, but you are becoming more and more arrogant.”

"I simply have absolute confidence in my own power." Leng Yan revealed a completely emotionless smile: "Just watch, Captain! Sooner or later, I will even surpass time and space."

"I just wanted to remind you that I have a feeling you might suffer a serious setback in this battle."

"Hmph! I'd like to see what kind of setback it is." Leng Yan still sneered.

Just as everyone was crossing the ocean towards Zone O, an ancient and powerful organization in Zone O had just suffered a horrific baptism.

"Kuhuhu! This is getting more and more interesting!" Alice sat at a desk in a quaint European-style study. She smiled at the little girl in a green dress beside her, who was staring intently at a peculiar plant. "Kuhuhu, we're still a step too late, Alice."

"nothing."

After giving a brief reply, Delis continued to intently examine the plant before her. Then, she uprooted it. A cry loud enough to make a normal person faint rang out at that moment.

However, the crying had no effect on the little girl in front of him.

“Good child, good child…” Daisy gently stroked the plant roots in front of her a few times, and the plant root that had been crying out calmed down and even showed a human-like peaceful expression.

"Kuhuhu, you really like these strange and unusual plants now."

Alice then picked up the head on the left and examined it closely. The head clearly belonged to an elderly man with a long white beard. If he were alive, he would probably be a very wise old man, right? But at this moment, his death was quite gruesome.

A headless corpse lay sprawled on the ground, and the eyes of the severed head in Alice's hand had been sewn shut with wire. Not only that, but the head's mouth had been slashed open, revealing a horrifying grin.

"Kuhuhu, speaking of which, this guy is the legendary Great Sage, isn't he? He's also the president of this magic academy and the entire O District Magic Research Association. I can't believe he couldn't even last thirty minutes before he died."

Alice blushed slightly as she spoke: "As expected, all SS-rank beings except Zero are trash! The only person in this world who can play games with me properly, besides myself, is Zero! Only terrifying beings who are outrageously powerful and can be easily defeated by any scheme or trickery are worth challenging! It's true that the most exciting thing is to play a life-or-death game with those abnormal guys!! Don't you think so?"

“I don’t think so,” Daisy said simply, and then continued to play with the plant with human-shaped roots in our hands.

"Ugh! Delis, you really can't understand the fun of games!" Alice tossed the dead man's head aside in boredom and jumped off the desk. "Kuhuhu, come to think of it, I've never won even once! Ugh!! That's probably why I'm so obsessed with that guy!"