Chapter 80: The Genius of the Capital

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The city of Kyoto.

The capital of Huaguo, a city of a thousand years, enduring through dozens of dynasties. Before the apocalypse, this was also the political and cultural center of Huaguo, its population soaring to a staggering thirty million.

This city ran at full capacity every day: congested streets, sky-high housing prices, yet it welcomed wave after wave of people undeterred by hardship.

When doomsday arrived, Kyoto was the fastest to subdue the mutated beasts and establish a survivor enclave. Because of its massive population, supplies were quickly exhausted—so quickly, in fact, that before Zihui’s All-Seeing Eye reached here, the people had already mastered the method of consuming invasive creatures like the Fang Demon.

The All-Seeing Eye paused here a second time, announcing the means to survive the [Survival 2] challenge.

Little did they know that before this, someone in Kyoto had already deduced the nature of the task.

Ling Bo.

A super-genius, a prodigy with both IQ and EQ at 200, selected early for special training by a government agency, now only sixteen years old yet already a postdoctoral researcher in information sciences. His research spanned signal transmission, satellite manufacturing, missile development, and more.

Some people seem to be favored by fate itself.

After the apocalypse, the second wave of the Hero System chose Ling Bo as one of its champions.

He watched Zihui’s broadcast from start to finish, including the subsequent interrogation reports, which he immediately forwarded to the special department—even keeping a copy for himself.

Thus, on the day of the [Survival 2] mission, he summoned all 103 heroes of Kyoto to the city’s First Prison.

That day, there was an unprecedented clash between the military and the heroes.

Armed soldiers forced the heroes into cells secretly constructed in advance; all who resisted were killed by Ling Bo, now a level-two evolver.

In the end, eighty-seven heroes remained, confined within sealed rooms.

“If any of you step outside before the spatial black hole closes, you will die. Don’t think I’m joking—I have snipers stationed eight hundred meters away, ready to take you out in an instant.”

Ling Bo’s cold voice echoed.

“Ling Bo, you’re a hero too—why help them? If we heroes unite, this world could be ours,” one hero tempted him.

Ling Bo looked at him, expressionless, as though gazing at a fool.

He didn’t bother to explain further. Ordinary people could never understand his actions.

But he was right.

This apocalypse did not need a single hero, but countless heroes—and countless heroes are born among humankind.

At least for now, humanity must not die, nor be dragged down by these so-called heroes.

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Ling Bo himself entered a space sealed by reinforced concrete, with one difference: a girl followed behind him.

This girl was only fifteen, another hero.

“I’ll protect you, but as agreed, you must not unlock the second-level gene lock. If you can’t do that, or if you ever harbor any ambition, I’ll kill you without hesitation.”

The girl gazed at Ling Bo with admiration and affection, nodding without a moment’s hesitation.

With Ling Bo, food was never scarce—he could even provide her with beautiful dresses and a spacious home. Why would she want to advance her hero rank and unlock the second gene lock?

Then, the survival mission began.

Ling Bo took ten minutes to eliminate eight of the hunting creatures, spending a bit more time dealing with the Liquid Stalkers.

Outside, gunfire erupted, but every hero managed to hold out until the black hole space closed. In the end, only twenty died—sixty-seven heroes remained.

Kyoto now had the highest number of heroes in the world.

No ordinary person or evolver perished; for Kyoto’s survivors, this [Survival 2] mission passed with thunderous noise but little real harm, as if nothing had happened at all.

Within Kyoto’s prison, though, the military began dissecting the new creatures, utilizing every part to the fullest.

No guns? No cannons? The enemy provides them for us.

After twenty-four hours, the mission ended, and Ling Bo remained in the prison, using earth-based abilities to rebuild the facility.

In the years to come, Kyoto’s First Prison would gain a new name:

The Hero Prison.

…

Qin Hao wandered the streets of Kyoto.

He knew this place well.

The Kyoto base was humanity’s last bastion, but even it fell during the final Divine Judgment battle.

Here, the last strength of humankind gathered—all thanks to a great hero.

Dr. Ling Bo, the scientist, the only man to restart technology after the apocalypse.

In the third month of the end times, he revived radio broadcasts and distributed receivers to the major enclaves.

He founded the Hero Prison to keep heroes from dooming ordinary people, weathering survival challenge after challenge.

He developed antidotes, accelerated by star energy, to halt the mutated virus.

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His achievements were too many to count.

Yet, in the end, even such a man perished.

In the sixth year of the apocalypse, he slaughtered all the leaders of Kyoto, then took his own life.

Qin Hao approached the Hero Prison, sensing the turbulence of psychic power within.

The air still reeked of blood—yesterday’s battle had clearly been fierce.

Qin Hao leapt over the prison wall in a single bound, looking inside.

Opposite the prison walls was a small exercise yard. Across from it, a building had been toppled, and one person was using earth-element abilities to raise the outline of a new structure.

Qin Hao strolled over, reining in his psychic energy, making no effort to hide his approach—the sound of his footsteps echoed through the empty prison.

A bored girl squatting nearby turned her head to look at him.

“Dr. Ling, Dr. Ling, someone’s coming!” The girl gazed at Qin Hao with curiosity, then suddenly shrank behind Ling Bo, startled.

She couldn’t say why, but though this newcomer was handsome and gentle in appearance, he exuded an aura of terror.

Ling Bo turned, regarding Qin Hao, his gaze lingering a moment on the combat suit Qin Hao wore; a flicker passed through his otherwise calm eyes.

“It’s you. I recognize you. On August 25th, eight in the evening, Zihui’s final concert—you and she hunted a mutated beast together. You were among the first heroes.”

Qin Hao stopped a few paces away.

“My name is Qin Hao.”

“Ling Bo.”

“A pleasure.” Qin Hao extended his hand, and Ling Bo shook it—even though he was only a sixteen-year-old youth.

Yet in truth, his mind was mature beyond his years, possessing terrifying potential.

Qin Hao’s gaze shifted to the girl behind Ling Bo.

“I—I’m Tan Xiaowei,” she greeted, though she had no intention of shaking Qin Hao’s hand.

Qin Hao nodded. Naturally, he knew who Tan Xiaowei was.

Kyoto’s canary, the dodder vine, Ling Bo’s reverse scale—Tan Xiaowei.