Heroes Return

“Zero, the hero of humanity, the root cause of all chaos.” Seeing Lin Jie appear, the Awakening Master’s expression finally turned serious: “The plan to deal with you is still in progress, but your appearance here now is a problem.”

"The Council of Truth? What's that? By the way, you summoned me here just to deal with this chuunibyou idiot?" Hearing the other party's words, Lin Jie simply turned to Solomon and said, "I remember we had a deal, didn't we? You haven't paid off your debt yet, have you?"

“You have to come this time! Hehe, if you don’t, humanity might be in big trouble!” Solomon just chuckled and said, “Theoretically speaking, you should be thanking me this time.”

Just as Lin Jie and Solomon were talking, the Awakening Master spoke up again: "Do you understand what the appearance of the Staff of Truth truly represents? Its appearance signifies that the Truth Council's plan is inevitable! Do you really intend to stop it?"

"I don't care what kind of Staff of Truth or Truth Delusion you have in your hand. But one thing is very clear to me. The fate of humanity is not for you to decide." As Lin Jie spoke, he walked towards the Awakening Master.

……

Imagine the sheer spectacle of 200,000 spectators cheering and waving flags around the stage at a concert somewhere. And the reason so many people gathered in the world's largest theater was simply to hear a young girl's voice.

In order to hear the voice of Chloe, the world's number one idol.

However, just as Chrollo was about to step onto the stage, the girl involuntarily clutched her chest. Her body began to tremble.

"What's wrong with me... I..." Chrollo's expression was somewhat panicked, but something within her seemed to be constantly calling out to her, and the girl's body trembled involuntarily. Almost as soon as all the spectators were wondering, a pair of enormous wings suddenly unfurled from Chrollo's back. Instantly, the surroundings were enveloped in a soft light. Feathers drifted outwards.

"What...what's wrong with me...?"

As wings appeared, Chrollo's eyes transformed into the vertical pupils characteristic of a snake!

Chapter two

Along with the changes in Chrollo's body, her eyes also transformed into vertical pupils resembling those of a dragon or a snake. However, she exuded no ominous aura; instead, she radiated a more sacred aura that inspired awe and reverence. This power completely surpassed everyone's understanding.

The hundreds of thousands of spectators present almost all wore expressions of rapture. Then came even louder cheers and applause.

After all, in their view, this should be part of the special effects for Kuroru's performance this time. No one would have thought that this change was not a performance effect on stage.

"Sister, is there really such a performance?" Justin asked, a look of confusion on his face as he witnessed the scene before him. Because his sister was Kuror's manager, Justin naturally had the opportunity to attend this concert up close. In fact, during rehearsals, Justin had been instructed by his sister to help him quite a bit. However, he had no idea that there would be such a stage effect today.

"Is it some kind of hidden program?" Justin looked at his sister with suspicion.

"I don't know. Logically speaking, if there were any hidden programs, the organizers should at least have told me, right?" Justin's sister, Mary, also looked puzzled.

At that moment, Chloe, who was on the stage, slowly raised her head and looked at the audience.

'What...what's happening to me?' An ancient scene flashed through Kuror's mind. In the scene, she seemed to be steadily falling into the ground...

As this scene unfolded, the girl's face regained its composure. Looking at the cheering crowd around her, she resumed her performance. Although she didn't know why her body had undergone such a change, it couldn't stop the performance.

Singing was one of her greatest pleasures. Although she knew her identity and seemed quite special, the girl didn't want to delve too deeply into it now. Besides, even if she were to investigate, she hoped that person would come and explore it all with her.

Unfortunately, she had sent him concert tickets for today, but that big bad guy didn't show up. Looking at the empty seat in the front row, the girl's expression turned slightly sullen. In that instant, she instinctively spread her wings. Almost instantly, the girl was surprised to find herself flying.

This was the first time the girl had flown since she sang with Lin Jie in the city's night sky. After that, for some unknown reason, the awakened power vanished into thin air, but now it had unexpectedly reappeared within her.

The singing voice and the image of the young girl above the stage inspired everyone to sing enthusiastically.

This performance ignited the local audience, and even when it was shared online, the number of concurrent viewers reached the total of all other live streams combined.

After the first half of the performance ended, Chloe returned to her backstage area once again.

Almost simultaneously with the end of the first half of the performance, Mary appeared backstage without a word. She immediately and sternly asked Kuror, "What's wrong with you? A performance where you fly on stage? I don't recall your costume having anything like that, and it definitely couldn't be 3D technology! Are you feeling unwell? If I'm not mistaken, you have superpowers, right? Has your superpower gone berserk?"

"I don't know either! But it doesn't seem like a too bad change." As Kuroru spoke, the enormous wings behind her had disappeared without her noticing. However, her pupils, those snake-like pupils, remained. The once innocent girl now appeared even more alluring.

"..." Although it was just an unintentional expression, it made Mary momentarily stunned. But subconsciously, Mary couldn't help but say, "You should still go to the superpower testing department for a checkup. After all, such a sudden increase in your abilities might bring some unstable consequences."

“But the performance isn’t over yet. Even if I want to go, I should wait until my performance is over.” Kuroru looked at the crowd outside calling her name, and a hesitant expression appeared on her face.

“It’s just a stage performance. If something really happens to your body, you’ll never have another chance to perform!” Mary immediately grabbed Kuror’s hand in response to Kuror’s words.

At that very moment, Justin appeared beside them: "Something's wrong. Sis, I saw a lot of suspicious people backstage! They've taken down all the guards!!"

Justin had gone backstage with his sister, but Mary wanted to speak with Chloe alone, so Justin was left behind. It was at that moment that Justin heard a man's voice.

“We have come to welcome the great goddess,” a man’s voice rang in Justin’s ear.

"Another brainless fan? Sorry, this is the backstage area, you can't go in! If you want to see Miss Kuroru, you'd better go back to the club and wait..." a security guard said to the approaching crowd. But the next second, a large hole was pierced through his body.

The bodyguards who witnessed this immediately rushed over. Justin also saw what was happening, but just as he was about to step forward to help, something unexpected happened. All the security personnel were instantly pierced through the chest.

"..." Seeing such a bloody scene, Justin's legs trembled involuntarily. When he saw the leader, a look of shock appeared on Justin's face. He had thought the leader was actually an A-rank hero!!!

That's right, an A-class hero from the Hero Association was leading a massacre of the security guards responsible for the security protocols backstage at Chrollo's concert. Realizing something was wrong, Justin immediately dialed the Hero Association's communication hotline. But this time, after connecting, all he saw was the head of the Hero Association's president, and someone he didn't recognize.

"Heroes, you shouldn't be using law and morality to constrain humanity." The man calmly said this to Justin the instant he saw the communication, and then, to Justin's shock, he stomped his foot on the camera.

Communication was then interrupted.

Upon witnessing this, Justin immediately ran to Kuror and Mary's side. He knew he had to protect them now. After all, one of them was his older sister. As for the other, although she was his idol, there was another crucial reason why he needed to protect her: if he failed to protect her, his teacher would kill him—at least, that was Justin's thought. He was afraid of the A-rank heroes outside.

After all, although these students have the corresponding level of ability, they have never truly defeated an A-level hero. Their combat experience, age, and mental maturity are still very different from those of these seasoned A-level veterans.

Where are the security guards outside?

"They're all dead!!" Justin said, then punched the wall not far away. "Sisters, you have to get out of here immediately. The attackers were A-rank heroes from the Hero Association!!"

"A-rank hero?" Both Kuroru and Mary showed shocked expressions upon hearing Justin's words.

"I didn't commit a crime, why did you attack me..." Kuror's face showed a puzzled expression upon hearing Justin's words. However, her reaction was not slow at all. As soon as Justin punched open the surrounding wall, she and Mary ran outside immediately.

“I don’t know why, but one thing is clear: he’s no longer a hero! He’s just a nuisance now!” Justin said to them in a horrified tone, “The chairman of the Hero Association has also been killed! I just saw this when I contacted the Hero Association, so we have to hide well before anyone finds out and comes to our rescue.”

“Kuro, let’s run into the crowd!” Mary’s expression turned serious upon hearing Justin’s words: “You have hundreds of thousands of fans here, you’ll be fine.”

“No!” Upon hearing this, Kuror sternly rejected Mary’s suggestion: “This would put ordinary people in danger. They came here because they like me, and I can’t let them be in danger.”

“You’re right! Don’t worry, I’ll protect you all!” Justin said, taking a deep drag on his Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor). “We have to find a way to escape from here now. That A-level hero’s abilities are terrifying.”

“Perhaps I have a way.” Hearing Justin’s words, Kuroru, who was running, suddenly closed her eyes slightly. Then, right in front of them, wings reappeared on Kuroru’s body. Before Justin and Mary could react, she had already pulled Mary and Justin into the air. After flying out of the passage Justin had created, she flew at an extremely fast speed towards a building in the distance.

When the three of them landed on the building, the girl looked somewhat tired.

"Alright, we've escaped." Kurol smiled and said to Justin and the others, "Now I just need to fly to another place, and you should be safe. After all, those who attacked us were probably looking for me, weren't they?"

"Wait! This is dangerous!!" Justin couldn't help but speak up immediately upon hearing Kuror's words.

“There will be no danger at all, because we will not harm Lord Kuror. What right do mortals have to harm a god?” Just as Justin was about to retort, a voice suddenly rang out.

Immediately afterward, a man appeared before everyone. Behind him were many others dressed similarly, and almost all of them knelt down the moment they reached Kuror.

"Great Goddess, we sincerely invite you to lead us!!!"

third chapter

"Huh?" Hearing the words of these people and seeing them kneeling before him, even Kuror couldn't help but show a surprised expression. This was the first time he had ever seen so many people kneeling before him at the same time.

"Now that you have awakened, please come to us! We are willing to fight for you as your knights, and we will accomplish new feats under your glory and blessing!" The former A-rank hero in the lead said to Kuror.

"I...I don't need knights, and I don't need fighting." Upon hearing the other party's words, Kuroro replied without hesitation, "I refuse!! Besides, you just killed a lot of people, didn't you? I will never associate with people like you!"

“Those are nothing but a bunch of lowly mortals,” the man continued. “Don’t you know what a lofty status you truly hold? Please hate us and leave! Humanity in the new era needs your guidance!”

"A new era? What new era?" Upon hearing the other party's words, Kuror couldn't help but show a puzzled expression, but there was one thing Kuror was certain of: the person in front of her was definitely not a good person.

"Are you really unwilling?" Looking at Kuror's words, the man couldn't help but sigh: "In that case, don't blame us for being unreasonable! After all, you are too important to us, so we have to take you back."

As the man spoke, two steel balls flew towards Chrollo, landing between them on a string. Chrollo was indeed extremely important to them. She was the only reincarnated god, possessing divine power, yet difficult to wield herself. Her combat abilities were not particularly strong; she was a god they could completely control. Moreover, Chrollo possessed indescribable popularity and influence!

Of course, they wouldn't tell Kuror that.

"Who...who are you people?" Just as the steel ball and string were about to reach Kuror, Justin appeared in front of her, his fist striking a steel ball directly. The steel ball vanished into thin air instantly. Almost simultaneously, Justin downed his bottle of Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor) in one gulp.

"I don't know what cult you're all from, but if you don't get out of here now! Believe me, I'll strip you all naked right now and then kick your asses hard!!!"

"It's you? Justin? The Association's highly anticipated newcomer!" Upon seeing Justin, the man merely smiled and spoke. Almost simultaneously, numerous steel balls floated around him: "Do you really think you, a student from a hero academy, can defeat me, a former A-class hero of the Hero Association?"

As the man spoke, a barrage of steel balls was fired at Justin simultaneously. Even more terrifying, these balls came from almost all different directions. Justin's fists barely managed to block a few; the rest struck his entire body almost instantly. In a short time, numerous bloody holes appeared all over Justin's body.

"Who exactly are you people?"

Despite being covered in bloody holes and looking horribly gruesome, Justin, under the influence of alcohol, still managed to ask the question he wanted to ask.

“Justin!!” Mary’s voice rang out from behind Justin, and almost at the same time, a worried expression appeared on Kuror’s face.

As Kuror clenched his fists, Justin's wounds began to heal rapidly before everyone's eyes.

“That’s right, this is the power. This is the power we need, the power of the goddess.” The man’s face lit up with excitement as he saw this: “Let me tell you, we are members of the Church of the Gods! The gods will eventually return, and what we need to do is welcome their return and help everyone take over humanity again. Miss Chlor’s past life was undoubtedly one of the gods.”

"What a joke!!" Justin couldn't help but exclaim upon hearing the other's words, "Humans are doing just fine now, they don't need gods to rule them!!"

As soon as he finished speaking, Justin's fist hurtled towards the A-rank hero in front of him. It didn't touch the hero, but the force of his punch solidly struck the air. In the blink of an eye, everything in front of his fist vanished. And in that instant, a brief vacuum suddenly formed on the other side.

Although it was only a short period of time, those involved were definitely not having an easy time.

"I told you, no matter how strong your attacks are, they're useless if you can't hit me." Seeing the effect of Justin's punch, the man couldn't help but show a mocking expression: "A baby, even with a gun, is still just a baby."

"Is that so?" Justin said, his fists suddenly increasing in speed as he began to relentlessly hurl punches at the man in front of him. Justin unleashed over a dozen punches, forcing not only the man in front of him but also his heavily armed men in black to scavenge for cover.

A series of attacks turned a large area in front of Justin into a vacuum.

Almost simultaneously, Justin had already rushed towards the middle of the top floor at top speed.

"You think you can defeat me with just this?" Seeing the scene before him, the man's face still held a mocking expression. Almost simultaneously, dozens of small steel balls surrounded Justin: "Since you're determined to stop me, then die!"

As the man spoke, he fired steel balls directly at Justin's entire body. It seemed like they would turn Justin into a plug in the next second. However, almost simultaneously, Justin's fist struck the ground.

A large area of ​​space beneath his feet vanished instantly. Almost simultaneously, the top floor of the building finally succumbed to the pressure and collapsed to the side, centered on Justin's location.

Justin himself fell downwards, and that's how he avoided the fatal attack of the small steel ball.

Just as the ground collapsed, Justin landed on the next floor. Looking at the crumbling ceiling, Justin aimed his fist straight at his head, and also at the spot where the man had been standing. He punched the man, knowing that in his memory, the man had no ability to fly. In such a sudden floor collapse, he should have simply fallen downwards. Almost simultaneously, except for the direction from which Kuroru and Mary were located, almost all other places where a person could stand collapsed.

Instantly, everyone fell to the next level.

Having found the opening, Justin finally smiled as he unleashed a punch. After all, dodging in a collapsing building wasn't easy. The surrounding rubble would also hinder the opponent's movement. Now, all Justin needed to do was throw a punch.

Using the lower walls and the collapsed ceiling, Justin now had perfect cover and could dodge the man's steel balls, but his attacks were not something the cover could withstand.

Even if his well-timed strike had missed the man, the terrain had become more favorable to him. However, reality slapped him hard in the face.

"You want to lure us all down to the lower level, then use the walls and collapsed buildings to fight us in close combat? That's a good idea, but you're mistaken about one thing. I can fly." The man's voice rang out directly above Justin's head.

The moment Justin looked up in surprise, he was shocked to discover that the man from before hadn't fallen to the next level, but was floating in mid-air, stepping on small steel balls. Almost simultaneously, a large number of small steel balls appeared above his head.

"Then goodbye, newcomer to the Hero Association." As the man spoke, all the steel balls rained down on Justin's head!

"Then goodbye, what will the gods do next?" Just as Justin was about to be blown to the head by the steel balls, a man's voice suddenly rang out. Immediately afterward, a huge spiked club appeared in front of Justin. Almost instantly, all the steel balls the man had fired were deflected back.

Dozens of steel balls struck the man in one go, knocking him straight down from the sky.