Chapter 5: The Power of Metal

If no other powerful items appeared among the goods, Qin Hao had already decided to purchase this one. His gaze swept over the other items. The deities of the Peace Alliance varied in strength, so the gifts they offered differed as well; indeed, nothing else matched the value of the metal-element ability.

Hao felt a tinge of regret, but he wasn’t truly disappointed; possessing a metal-element ability was already more than enough.

...

The next morning at dawn.

The moment Qin Hao opened his eyes, he immediately checked his Hero System.

Hero Points: 11,029,831

Eleven million!

Almost without hesitation, Qin Hao bought the item: [Ability: Metal].

Within the Hero System, a wave of divine power surged forth—though in truth, it was simply a purer form of starlight energy. This starlight energy poured into the crown of Qin Hao's head, expanding the regions of his brain.

In an instant, his brain cells seemed to burst into life, and as the energy activated, Qin Hao felt his thoughts reach out like tendrils, as if his soul was leaving his body.

Crack!

It was as though something shattered.

It was the lock on his cognitive genes.

Having endured twenty years of the apocalypse, Qin Hao immediately understood what had happened.

Bathed in this intense starlight energy, he had unlocked the first layer of the cognitive gene lock.

By the standards of ability evolvers, he was now a first-level evolver.

But things did not end there. His mental tendrils grew even stronger, extending up to a meter, then reaching out in one direction up to ten meters.

Crack!

Another sound.

He had unlocked the second cognitive gene lock.

At this moment, Qin Hao’s mind perceived a new dimension to the world—the warmth of fire in the air, the dampness of water, the scent of earth, the flow of wind, and even the faint texture of metal.

Yet as his mind expanded outward, he realized the surroundings were full of metal.

In a flash, his thoughts swept up all that metal and drew it back into his mind.

Within the Hero System, a golden light radiated, injecting itself into Qin Hao’s mind, granting him mastery over the metal element.

When the light faded, he heard a third crisp click.

Clack!

The third cognitive gene lock was broken.

Mental tendrils.

Telekinesis.

Elemental sensing.

Unlocking each layer of the gene lock corresponded to one of these abilities. Now, with three layers open in advance, Qin Hao’s power was already incomparable to before.

With a thought, he caused a thermos on a distant table to twist and transform, reshaping itself into a sharp, spiraling dagger.

The dagger hovered in the air, and at Qin Hao’s command, shot forward suddenly.

Thunk!

The metal dagger sank into the wall.

In modern society, metal is everywhere. Qin Hao’s ability was likely the most powerful in the early days of the apocalypse.

After learning this ability, he still had over a million Hero Points left.

But he didn’t buy anything else, nor did he feel any urge to continue completing random tasks.

The Hero System was a gift from the Universal Peace Alliance to aid humanity, but were these divine beings of advanced races truly offering their help without compensation?

Of course not. These deities were more akin to arms dealers.

Only, these arms dealers peddled low-grade goods, many of which likely carried side effects.

Permanent enhancement serums might seem to grant strength, but they foster dependency, making it even harder to break through one’s own limits in the future.

Qin Hao had no intention of buying any of these serums.

He had his own method.

His innate ability: Gene Devouring Technique.

To use this technique, one must consume the fresh flesh—or even bones—of other creatures.

Before he turned back time, Qin Hao had devoured the corpse of a Fanged Demon, his power soaring, though he nearly perished from genetic collapse.

That was a creature entirely different from humans, not even native to Earth.

But now, before the apocalypse, resources were abundant. With enough money, anything could be bought.

The only problem was... Qin Hao had no money.

Fortunately, he now possessed superpowers.

Knock, knock, knock!

A knock at the door took Qin Hao by surprise.

But with his mind sharp and his thoughts extending outward, he immediately sensed the people outside.

There were four of them. Among them, a woman in a black dress looked very familiar—it was An Shiyue, the university student in white he had saved two days ago.

The other two were tall, sturdy men dressed in short-sleeved white shirts, long trousers, and leather shoes. Their calm, alert expressions made them look like bodyguards.

The last man, however, was more frivolous in demeanor, yet impeccably dressed. Even the watch on his wrist was worth a fortune—clearly a rich heir.

Qin Hao frowned slightly, but still opened the door.

Their eyes met, and at once An Shiyue’s beautiful eyes shone with excitement, even brimming with tears.

“Hello, Mr. Qin Hao. My name is An Shiyue. Thank you for saving me the other day. I couldn’t reach you by phone, so I searched everywhere to find you—I just wanted to thank you and make sure you were safe. I was worried those thugs might have given you trouble.” An Shiyue was clearly emotional.

She had tried to thank Qin Hao yesterday. After getting his number from the police, she found it unreachable. She then went to the barbecue stall to ask the owner, learning only that Qin Hao was a student at Yang Province University. Tracking down his internship report, workplace number, and verifying various details, she finally managed to find him.

In this world, nothing can stop someone determined. Qin Hao wished to be an anonymous hero, but there were those who truly wanted to express their gratitude.

Before Qin Hao reversed time, while detained, he had met An Shiyue.

Her family was well-off. She had sent gifts to the detention center on his behalf and, feeling deeply guilty, even hired a lawyer for Qin Hao. She promised to compensate him with two million yuan, even if he ended up convicted.

But the two had never met again after that.

“And these are...?” Qin Hao looked at the others.

“This is my cousin, Lei Yunzhou. And these two are... friends of his,” An Shiyue replied, not wanting to mention they were bodyguards, lest Qin Hao think she was making a fuss. After all, bringing bodyguards to meet one’s savior might seem inappropriate.

Qin Hao didn’t mind her omission, though he didn’t quite agree with her approach.

Before he could say anything, Lei Yunzhou looked at him in shock and blurted out, “You—you’re that martial arts master from last night, aren’t you?”

Martial arts master?

Qin Hao was unaware that the internet had already given him a title, but as soon as he heard mention of last night, he understood.

For the sake of spreading the footage, he had stood right under a surveillance camera, not realizing that the luxury car had a dashcam as well. The footage had already been shared online, his face revealed to all.

“Come in,” Qin Hao said, inviting the four into his room.