Heroes Return

A blood-red spear flew past Lin Jie's body.

"Hey! I didn't even blame you for suddenly attacking me earlier, why are you still here?" Lin Jie said, looking at the woman in front of him.

"Just because of what you just said!" Anya glared coldly at Lin Jie: "You might as well die a hundred times!"

As she spoke, Anya rushed to Lin Jie's side, and at the same time, hundreds of blood-red short swords floated around her and flew towards Lin Jie.

"How come I don't remember having such a beautiful, brainless fan?" Lin Jie couldn't help but recall in his mind. However, at this moment, he had a spiked club in his hand. Facing Anya's dense and wide-range attacks, Lin Jie simply swept the club forward.

The powerful gust of wind generated by the spiked club instantly blew all the blood-red longswords away. Anya, who was charging towards Lin Jie, couldn't help but jump back a step and land on a wall.

"This kind of power?" Anya looked at Lin Jie with some surprise: "It seems that we will need to use even stronger power to kill this insect."

Thinking of this, a blood-red magic circle appeared before Anya's god, but at that moment, Anya suddenly felt a heartbeat.

"What's causing this heart palpitation?" Anya was surprised by the sudden reaction in her body. "Is it the force of that blow from earlier that's affecting me?"

Lin Jie then noticed the blood-red magic circle in front of Anya: "It looks really familiar."

But then the magic vanished, and the beautiful woman in front of Lin Jie blushed to his incomprehension before she fell back onto the ground in the alley.

"Hey, are you alright?" Lin Jie asked as he looked at the beautiful woman.

"I...I'm fine!" Anya's words sounded strange at this moment, and her heart was pounding wildly.

Thump! Thump! This feeling made Anya feel a little strange. What's wrong with me? Thump! ...Why is the reaction from the Stigmata so strong? Thump! ...Who exactly is he? Thump! ...Why is the Stigmata reacting so strongly?

"Hey? Are you really okay?" Lin Jie looked at the beautiful woman in front of him with a puzzled expression. One second they were fighting and killing each other, but for some reason the next second she suddenly seemed to be having a heart attack: "Do you need me to take you to the hospital?"

“I’m fine…” Anya said to Lin Jie, her face as red as an apple.

"Don't come near me!" Anya shouted as Lin Jie was about to approach.

"Okay, okay!" Lin Jie quickly took a few steps back: "If any illness flares up, it's better to go to the hospital as soon as possible. Also, I'm not the kind of person who would take advantage of someone else's situation. Really, I'm just fantasizing at most."

As Lin Jie retreated, Anya suddenly felt her reaction become much weaker. She gritted her teeth, took a few steps, and flipped onto the top of a building before disappearing into the night sky.

"What a strange woman," Lin Jie said, watching Anya leave.

....

Chapter 15

The following day, 'Zero' appeared in H City multiple times and gave numerous interviews. However, he only said one sentence during each interview.

"I want justice for the heroes who have been wanted and persecuted because of the Superhero Registration Act. I hope the world government will repeal the act and lift all arrest warrants for superheroes."

His statement undoubtedly caused a huge uproar around the world, and for several days afterward, the whole world began to debate the concept of zero.

The World Government maintains that this person's identity is not truly Zero and has issued a warrant for his arrest. This action, however, has sparked widespread discontent.

Meanwhile, many people who believed he was the real Zero began large-scale marches and protests. Many heroes who were already dissatisfied with the bill also joined in at this moment. At the same time, evidence of inhumane government experiments and evidence that some heroes' information had been sold to criminal forces by high-ranking government officials were also exposed around the world.

In an instant, the trust level of world governments plummeted to its lowest point.

Similarly, the completely locked-down city of H became the center of the entire incident at this time.

'Zero' appeared several times, but disappeared before any SS-level characters appeared. Even most of the superheroes in H City adopted a passive-aggressive attitude, as they basically believed that 'Zero' was real.

The Hero Association is currently surrounded by large numbers of citizens almost daily, for two reasons. First, there's discontent with the lockdown of H City. Second, certain individuals are stirring up trouble. Many heroes of the H City Hero Association have even directly expressed their support for Zero's decision and joined the crowds surrounding the association.

The person most affected by this incident was undoubtedly Dong Xiaoye. Having encountered such a major event on her very first day in office, she was completely overwhelmed.

……

In a luxury hotel in H City, Anya sat quietly. She was supposed to be out hunting down the fake Zero these past two days, but due to some problems with her condition, she had fallen into a state of chaos.

At that moment, the image of Lin Jie reaching out to him flashed through Anya's mind again: "Are you alright? Do you need to go to the hospital?"

Anya's face flushed instantly: "How is this possible? He was just a random passerby, so why can't I get his image out of my mind?"

Anya forcefully shook off the images in her mind. She took a big gulp of coffee, and the next moment, the image of Lin Jie reaching out to her reappeared in her mind, this time with a touch of romance.

"Could it be that I've fallen in love with this guy at first sight?" Thinking this terrifying thought, Anya began banging her head against the wall of the room with all her might: "Distractions, distractions! Aaaaaah! My mind and body belong to Lord Zero! That's right, my mind and body belong to Lord Zero! I love Lord Zero! Aaaaah! How could I possibly have feelings for this piece of trash I just met?! Distractions, distractions!!"

When obvious cracks appeared in the walls inside the room, Anya finally managed to clear the image of Lin Jie from his mind, but the scene immediately reappeared in his mind. However, the character had changed from Lin Jie to Zero.

"Ah! Lord Zero..."

But then the scene changed again. Zero in her mind removed his disguise, and Lin Jie's face appeared in Anya's mind once more...

"Ugh! Why is it that persistent bastard again!" Anya started banging her head against the wall again. "Why did I even imagine that scumbag as Lord Zero?! How could that scumbag possibly compare to Lord Zero?! They have absolutely nothing in common!!!! I deserve to die for thinking like that!!! Distracted thoughts, begone!!"

For the past two days, this sound of banging against the wall has been heard every day on this floor of the apartment building.

……

At the same time, in the largest high-rise building in H City, Young Master Long stared expressionlessly at the two men in front of him. Bai Hao beside him maintained a wary gaze.

"As expected of Young Master Long, your aura is truly overwhelming, ahahaha! Should I bow down to your domineering presence? Ahahaha! I personally quite like the way they call a 'turtle' in Section C." Ivan said, looking at Young Master Long in front of him, "Speaking of which, your place is really big! You know, I spent five years in prison because of housing shortages. Ahahaha! Rich guy, are you hiring? Can I find someone to lean on? Ahahahaha!! Just kidding."

"State your purpose." Long Shao's face was not very pleasant at this moment. No matter who killed his employee and then barged into his office to make sarcastic remarks, he would not give them a good look. Especially for someone like Long Shao, who was known for his cold face, his face was extremely gloomy at this moment.

Seeing Long Shao's expression, Ivan exaggeratedly hid behind Dave and said, "Did you see that, Dave? This guy's face is terrifying! Ahahahaha!! I'm so scared! Ahahahahaha!"

"What exactly do you want?" Long Shao stood up and looked at Evan and Dave.

“Actually, I’m here to discuss cooperation with you,” Ivan said. “If we succeed, you can become the number one power in District C, as long as you cooperate with me.”

“None of those who have worked with you have had a good ending,” Bai Hao said. “The whole world knows you’re a madman who’s capable of anything, so we have no reason to trust you.”

"Don't say that, are you Young Master Long's lackey?" Ivan looked at Bai Hao: "I wonder what it would taste like if it were dried and made into cured meat? Hahahaha!!! Maybe I could consider adding some chocolate and trying it. Hahahaha!!"

Although Bai Hao possessed S-rank strength while Ivan only had D-rank combat power, Bai Hao still couldn't help but feel a little uneasy after hearing Ivan's words. After all, Ivan was a well-known SS-rank criminal, and a super dangerous criminal capable of anything.

"What exactly do you want?" Young Master Long asked coldly.

“Keep smiling,” Ivan said. “My plans are very exciting.”

Evan pulled out a 3D video: "This is the water supply system for the entire C District, and the purification and conversion center is right in the basement of your building, isn't it? I've prepared a viral stock solution called the T-virus. We just need to set it in the water supply center and set an explosion time. Ahahahaha!! Then we can challenge Zero. Ahahahaha!! Then we'll take down Zero, and then the stock solution will explode! The entire C District will experience a large-scale biohazard and water crisis, ahahahaha!!! With your prior preparations, Young Master Long, you'll become the most sought-after person in the C District, won't you? Ahahahaha!! How about it? You know, the C District is one of the most densely populated places in the world. Doesn't it get exciting just thinking about it? We can even play a real-life Resident Evil together! Ahahahaha!!"

"Are you crazy?" Bai Hao couldn't help but say.

"Yes, how did you know? Actually, a while ago, a professor named Smith tried to treat my mental illness. Hahahaha!! But unfortunately, this excellent professor died young... Well, actually, I killed him." Evan looked at Young Master Long and said, "So? Would you like to cooperate with me?"

"Impossible! And you're not leaving here unscathed today!" Long Shao said, clenching his fist.

“It’s such a pity,” Ivan said. As soon as he finished speaking, Long Shao and Bai Hao collapsed to the ground. “So you really didn’t want to cooperate? But luckily I had already guessed this outcome, so I hid that packet of virus in the purification reservoir in advance.”

"What did you do?" Bai Hao asked, kneeling on one knee with difficulty.

“Nothing much? Just some nanobots.” Ivan said, looking at the two of them. “They entered your room a few days ago, and even went into the Coke you were drinking. Hahahaha! Negotiating with an S-class is still very risky.”

As soon as Ivan finished speaking, Dave took out a small flowerpot from his pocket and planted a seed in it. A vine began to grow rapidly and quickly wrapped around the two of them.

Having just circulated their true energy to crush the nanobots inside their bodies and expel them through their pores, Long Shao and his companion lost control of their bodies once again after being entangled by the plants.

"I witnessed your Chinese internal energy cultivation a few times five years ago, you know?" Ivan smiled at the two of them and said, "In my opinion, it's definitely a magical power no less than magic, so I took double precautions, ahahahaha!! I heard you're quite influential in H City, aren't you? So I've decided that you'll help me with some things, ahahahahaha!!

Evan happily lifted Long Shao up, then pointed at Bai Hao and said to Dave, "Let's hang him on the lightning rod. After he's dried, I'm going to try using chocolate on him."

Dave nodded without saying a word, then carried Bai Hao out of the office.

After leaving the office, Bai Hao was shocked to find the corridor littered with corpses. Not only that, but strange plants were also growing there. They hadn't even realized that everyone in the building was dead…

Chapter 16

On the tallest building in H City, a man suddenly appeared on a giant screen.

"Hello everyone, I'm your good neighbor, Spider... no, I'm your good friend Evan. It's nice to see you all here, but I bet you don't like seeing me, hahaha!! But I'm here anyway."

When he said, "I've come after all," Ivan's face appeared on the large screens and 3D images throughout H City.

"You've been watching, haven't you, Zero! I'm here to play a new game with you, ahahaha!! Aren't you excited? Actually, I'm already on fire, though I can't breathe fire. I have good news for everyone, the game has begun! I'm going to spread a T-virus serum throughout Area C before sunset this afternoon, so you absolutely must defeat me before the sun goes down, ahahaha!! Otherwise, H City will be the first to suffer a biohazard. Of course, if you like playing a real-life Resident Evil, you can ignore me."

Oh, by the way, I'd like to introduce a friend to everyone here.

As he spoke, Ivan pulled a handsome man with a cold face, dressed in baby clothes, closer to the screen.

"I heard he's the most handsome and richest tycoon in the entire H city, so I decided to invite him as a special guest to participate in this game today, hahaha!! But his appearance doesn't seem to complement my dashing good looks at all."

As he spoke, Ivan took out a pen and drew a pair of glasses and a mustache on Long Shao's face. Then he took out a lipstick and drew two red patches on both sides of Long Shao's face, and finally drew a huge lip on him.

"Doesn't it make me look much more handsome now? Hahaha! My friends and I are waiting for you here, so please come over! Hahaha! Hey? The sky's getting overcast, Dave, it's going to rain. Take the cured meat I hung on the lightning rod down... Wait, don't take it yet. Getting struck by lightning a few times might give it a unique flavor. Hahaha!! Oh, and one last thing, I hope this zero is a real zero. If it isn't, I'll just spread the virus! Hahahaha!..."

From the moment Evan's face was seen, the entire city of H was thrown into panic. Large numbers of people drove out of the city, but unfortunately, they were all stopped outside.

……

In the Hero Association of H City.

"Do you want to lift the lockdown on H City?" Dong Xiaoye asked the three SS-class heroes in front of her.

"Release the order and allow everyone to evacuate."

"No, this is a good opportunity."

Two completely different voices rang out, and Dong Xiaoye suddenly felt immense pressure.

"Do you know what you're saying? The people of H City could be in danger!" Torus said angrily to the Son of God.

“I’ve said it before, God has already arranged everything, hasn’t he?” The Son of God said, looking at Torus. “This will be our best chance to capture Zero. He will definitely go to Ivan.”

“Then let the crowd take refuge first, and then we can go there,” Torus said.

“No, maintaining the blockade is actually a double insurance. If it fails, we also have the opportunity to discredit this person, which will at least reduce his influence,” the Son of God said calmly.

"You mean we have to sacrifice those citizens if necessary?" The veins on Torus's forehead bulged.

"The Chinese are the most populous ethnic group in the world. Even if we sacrifice a little, it shouldn't matter. Besides, necessary sacrifices can be considered to prevent even greater sacrifices." God's Hand said calmly, "God has already arranged everything. He has also arranged everyone's position. Now, the appearance of this Ivan is the best opportunity for us to capture Zero. For the sake of his image among the masses, he will definitely challenge Ivan. Then we can take the opportunity to capture him and Rocky and the others."

"So, after we arrest them, we just stand there and watch that madman Ivan release the virus into H City, right? We wait until it causes massive casualties before arresting him? Then, because of the large number of deaths he caused, we can use this opportunity to publicize it widely, questioning his reputation, and then expose him as a fake Zero! And that'll quell this whole incident, right?" Torus directly finished what the Son of God hadn't finished saying: "We are heroes! We are not those politicians in the World Government who only think about their own interests!"

"Calm down, Torus," Captain Justice advised.

"Do you agree with what they're saying?" Torus asked Captain Justice in disbelief.

“I’m sorry, Torus, I just received a request from the World Government. They agree to the Son of God’s approach,” Captain Justice said. “As you know, the entire Hero Association is supported by them. And this is indeed the only way to minimize the harm.”

"To solve the crisis of those politicians by sacrificing a large number of citizens?" Torus said disdainfully.

“This was all caused by that damn Zero. None of this would have happened if it weren’t for him!” Captain Justice said to Torus. “I also feel sorry for him, but this is not our fault at all.”

"You're shirking responsibility!" Torus said to the man, suddenly feeling that his comrade-in-arms, with whom he had fought for so many years, seemed so unfamiliar: "Do you even deserve the name Captain Justice?"