Chapter 41: The Chasm Between Heroes

Lu Shaohua felt an immense force surge from Qin Hao’s fist, pain instantly shooting through his fingers. It was as if a massive boulder had crashed down—his fist’s starlight energy was crushed, the sheer power tearing his skin and flesh, fracturing the bones in his fingers.

A crisp crack sounded from Lu Shaohua’s wrist, agony flaring.

“Impossible!” Lu Shaohua shouted, his face contorted with pain as he stumbled back, clutching his injured hand while glaring furiously at Qin Hao. “How could you possibly have such strength? I’ve taken five bottles of strength serum—what gives you the right?”

Qin Hao raised an eyebrow.

A single bottle of basic strength serum (permanent) could increase punching power by 100 kilograms, but with each subsequent dose, the effect diminished. The second bottle might add 50 kilograms, then 30, then 20, and by the fifth, the increase was negligible.

However, each bottle of serum cost a thousand starlight crystals in the current hero shop.

Five thousand starlight crystals invested in one person would never yield as much as spreading them among five.

Lu Shaohua was likely an experimental subject for the military—either that, or he possessed some powerful background that warranted such investment.

Regardless, a total of 200 kilograms of punching power, even with a martial art that doubled the force, was still no match for Qin Hao.

Qin Hao wielded two divine beast gene fragments, his strength and physique vastly enhanced; his own punching power had already reached 600 kilograms.

This was simply not a contest between equals.

Moreover, Qin Hao’s physique had yet to unlock its first stage—his greatest strength was his mental power.

“Perhaps you haven’t had enough serum yet,” he remarked.

Taking too much of this serum would only solidify one’s genes, forcing future advancement to rely solely on the hero shop.

But Lu Shaohua clearly took him seriously.

He stared at Qin Hao, his gaze gradually shifting, while the soldiers behind him wore puzzled expressions.

“Major Lu, he—he’s the one who fought beside Zi Hui at the Grand Theatre.”

Lu Shaohua’s expression changed.

“Are you sure?”

“I’m pretty sure.”

Lu Shaohua’s face darkened as though someone owed him millions.

He glared menacingly at Qin Hao, sneering, “So you’re one of the first batch of heroes, huh? Got more hero points, so you bought more serum—think that makes you special? The military’s strength will always surpass yours. In a single day, we can sweep out thousands of Fangtooth Demons. How many could you kill alone? You’d be wise to come to the military’s base and tell Zi Hui as well—going it alone will only get you killed here, sooner or later.”

“We’re leaving!”

After just one exchange, Lu Shaohua realized he was no match for Qin Hao.

But this would not always be the case. When he grew stronger, he would return.

Lu Shaohua strode away, though to those at the Skyvault Base, he seemed to leave with his tail between his legs.

As soon as they had gone, those behind Qin Hao cheered quietly, as if they had won a victory.

“Killing thousands of Fangtooth Demons a day—does he really think that’s impressive? Mr. Qin could kill a thousand Serpent Demons in a day, I bet.”

“I’ve seen that guy before. Lu Shaohua is a notorious second-generation scion from the Magic City. They say he has connections at the very top in Hua Country. Who’d have thought, even in the apocalypse, he’d still be so arrogant—being born right really is a skill.”

“Hmph, he’s nothing without his elders.”

At that moment, the people at the Skyvault Base realized something important.

Even if they joined the military, the starlight crystals they earned might well end up being handed over to someone like Lu Shaohua.

“All right, let’s get back to work. Bring in steel; if you can’t find any, push over all the vehicles nearby.”

After two days of eating Fangtooth Demon meat, these ordinary people were still no match for the Evolvers, but their bodies had grown stronger—at the very least, the sub-healthy state was gone, and everyone felt a bit more robust.

As the vehicles were brought over, Qin Hao unleashed his mental tendrils, drawing out the metal from the cars and forging it into steel plates, which he affixed to the exterior walls of the Skyvault Tower. Metal spikes sprouted from the walls as well.

Seeing this, everyone’s eyes lit up. With such defenses, the base would surely become even stronger.

He layered the steel plating up to three stories high.

Only he could do such work for now, but once the base had its own first-level Metal Evolvers, they could take over the task of reinforcing the structure.

Everyone was busy and focused.

Car parts were dismantled, tires rolled into the lobby and stacked against the walls, creating a double barrier for the ground floor.

As the supply of metal dwindled, some people ventured farther afield to fetch more cars, while Qin Hao headed to the underground parking garage.

Sure enough, many vehicles were parked there, and he collected them one by one.

On the 35th floor of the Skyvault Base, people were equally busy. Though not as perilous as outside, the work was just as heavy, given the threat of Fangtooth Demons.

They installed soundproof panels, hung thick blackout curtains, moved all usable items from floors one to thirty-four, established a canteen and a training room, and reassigned rooms for Evolvers and ordinary people.

The Skyvault Base was running at full throttle.

By noon, one entire wall had been transformed into solid steel. The twenty people who had helped were exhausted, their arms too heavy to lift.

But when each person received a starlight crystal and a pound of Serpent Demon meat as a reward, they feasted happily. Warmth suffused their bodies, a new strength blossoming within as their fatigue fell away.

In the afternoon, Qin Hao instructed them to continue bringing in cars, but he himself did not go down—instead, he returned to his room.

Sitting cross-legged, he began to regulate his internal energy.

Qin Hao had already absorbed two divine beast gene fragments; his potential seemed limitless.

His vital energy was abundant, causing his muscles to swell and his frame to expand.

Yet, this swelling was somewhat illusory.

To truly advance his strength, he needed to temper his body.

Blue Star had only just awakened and discovered starlight energy, so there were no native techniques for body refinement. However, the Peace Alliance had placed quite a few such methods in the hero shop.

Qin Hao had mastered these before the reversal of time; now, even without purchasing them, he could execute them at will.

He had even created a combat technique tailored to himself, which he named the Blood Sacrifice Demon Body.

The Blood Sacrifice Demon Body had limitless potential, usable right up to breaking the ninth gene lock. Whether it could reach the divine level, Qin Hao did not know—because the alien invasion civilization had never given him the chance.

“With the vital energy I have now, I should barely be able to run through the method once.”

And if that wasn’t enough…

Qin Hao took out a small vial from his spatial ring. Inside was a portion of violet blood.

[Blood of the Thunder God] [Divine Grade]