Chapter 69: Qin Hao's Analysis

Zi Hui swiftly recorded a new video and then synchronized it with the Myriad Sects’ Eye. At present, a hundred of these devices had been distributed throughout the Huaxia region. However, the movement speed of the Myriad Sects’ Eye was limited—it had taken three days just to travel from the Demon Capital to Yangchuan City. To broadcast nationwide would require at least ten days.

Yet there were only twenty-four hours left until the task began.

Zi Hui knew she wouldn’t be able to save many, and moreover, the situation, which had finally begun to stabilize, was about to change once again.

After the [Survival 2] task, she feared a new wave of monster invasions would begin.

Even Zi Hui herself now felt lost and helpless.

Let alone the other heroes.

Within the Celestial Vault Base, An Ziheng and Li Xinlong came out looking for Zi Hui, and even the newly joined heroes rushed back from outside.

“Zi Hui, didn’t you say Qin Hao returned a few days ago? Where is he now?”

“Qin Hao must know what to do about this mission, right? Are we supposed to face it alone?”

“Yeah, maybe we should wait for Qin Hao to join us. We now have eleven heroes at the base; if the numbers double, that’s twenty-two monsters. We should be able to handle that, shouldn’t we?”

Everyone was growing anxious.

“You all keep mentioning this Qin Hao—I’ve never even seen the guy. Is he really one of our founders, or is he the sort who just takes a cut but doesn’t do any work?”

The Celestial Vault Base’s council of elders consisted of four people, functioning much like shareholders. Of the base’s income, 30% went to Zi Hui, 30% to Qin Hao, and 5% each to An Ziheng, Li Xinlong, and Li Lan. The remaining 25% went to operating the base, assigning missions, and rewarding others.

In other words, the six newly joined heroes only received the base salary—they weren’t truly part of the base, more like partners, and Zi Hui never forced them to stay. She didn’t care if they left.

This was what gave Zi Hui her confidence.

But the Celestial Vault Base possessed things no other base did.

Especially the flesh and blood of the first-level evolved Ripper Zerg that had appeared a few days prior.

“You dare question Mr. Qin Hao? Just because of the metallic badge replacements?” a woman said coldly. Everyone turned to her and felt a chill run down their spines.

It was Mad Xu.

She was the top-tier evolver in the Celestial Vault Base—a rare individual who had broken through the second-level gene lock purely through her own willpower.

The newcomers all called her Captain Xu, though behind her back, they referred to her as Mad Xu. Few even remembered her real name anymore.

She was Xu Qian.

Now Xu Qian wore a combat suit, a gray mantis blade over a meter long strapped at her waist.

That was something Qin Hao had placed in the Celestial Vault Base; it cost three thousand Star Energy Diamonds to exchange for it. Qin Hao had no idea that mere days after he left, Xu Qian, hunting alien creatures tirelessly day and night, had already obtained the mantis blade.

This made her even stronger. No one had seen her attack a human, but everyone feared her.

Her methods of dealing with alien creatures were notoriously brutal and bloody.

Xu Qian’s words made Yuan Xingcan’s heart skip a beat. He, too, possessed the Hero System but had not reached the second-level evolver stage, and he had no idea how Xu Qian managed to break through the second gene lock so quickly. The murderous aura about her was so intense, she seemed more like a vengeful spirit than a human. No one dared provoke her.

Yuan Xingcan didn’t want to make an enemy of Xu Qian, but he felt indignant. “I’m just stating facts. I didn’t expect the badge issue.”

He was simply directing his anger at Qin Hao. With a single word, Qin Hao had not only gotten his badges replaced but had also impacted many long-term affairs.

Besides crafting badges, Yuan Xingcan could also make weapons. After Qin Hao’s decree, demand for his weapons sharply fell.

If metal-type ability users could modify badges, why not weapons? If one day they had to fight a metal-type user, wielding a metal weapon would be no different from courting death.

With metal weapons now out of favor, many people turned to biological weapons instead.

The eight legs of the Venomous Demon Spider became the weapon of choice. Fortunately, Qin Hao had left plenty behind at the Celestial Vault Base, and one could be redeemed for only a hundred Star Energy Diamonds.

Qin Hao was making a fortune, while Yuan Xingcan’s business was in ruins.

Cutting off someone’s livelihood was akin to killing their parents—naturally, Yuan Xingcan bore a grudge against Qin Hao.

“I’m only telling the truth. You’re all so eager for Mr. Qin Hao to appear, but where is he?”

Xu Qian’s eyes glinted with murderous intent, making Yuan Xingcan swallow the words he wanted to use to sow discord.

At that moment, someone appeared in the meeting hall.

“Were you all waiting for me?”

Qin Hao walked in.

Within the Celestial Vault Base, Qin Hao was a living legend. In fact, many who had known him before hadn’t seen him in ages.

Now, looking at him, they felt he seemed different once again.

His appearance had taken on a gentle, almost ethereal quality; his skin was flawless, and he carried an air of detachment from the world.

Yet his aura remained cold and forbidding. When his gaze swept over someone, it brought the chill of being hunted by a monster.

None of them knew that Qin Hao had undergone a complete transformation thanks to the fruits from the water, which had refined his body and appearance, though his demeanor had never changed—he was always cold and ruthless.

“Mr. Qin, you’re back.”

“Elder Qin.”

“Lord Qin.”

Everyone greeted him, their eyes full of hope.

“Qin Hao, what kind of creatures will appear in this main task? Will the Ripper Zerg you killed last time show up again? Are they strong? What should we do this time?” Zi Hui blurted out a series of questions.

Though she had survived last time, she knew she’d made the wrong choice by accepting the task during her concert.

If not for Qin Hao, she would likely have died there.

As for the other questions, though nobody else knew the answers, she had a feeling Qin Hao certainly would.

Qin Hao replied, “The Ripper civilization probably won’t send intelligent species again—this time it’s likely to be first-level evolved creatures. Also, there may be other civilizations sending invaders as well.”

“How do you know that?” Yuan Xingcan protested, dissatisfied. Why should Qin Hao have information no one else did, and speak with such authority? Wasn’t he just bluffing?

Qin Hao glanced at Yuan Xingcan, not recognizing him, and said in a low voice, “All items sold to us by the Peace Alliance bear marks of their origin. The civilizations we’ve dealt with through the Peace Alliance so far are Gold Radiance, Wind God, and Silvershine. In the Hero System, under the third row of antidotes, there’s now a new antidote for dispelling voodoo, specifically targeted at the Ancient Demon civilization. If that’s the case, the Ancient Demon Alliance must be among the invaders this time.”

“This time, it’s likely that two or more civilizations will send creatures to attack us. Every hero may have to face double the enemies, multiplied by the number of civilizations.”

“Each hero’s foes could be four or even six first-level evolved hunter creatures.”