Chapter 71: Lu Shaohua's Proposal

“What should we do, then?” one of the heroes asked, a hint of confusion in his voice after hearing Qin Hao’s words.

Truth be told, he doubted his ability to withstand six monsters at once—especially when the unknown was always the most terrifying. The group hesitated, uncertain of what to do.

Zi Hui noticed his hesitation, and uncertainty flickered in her eyes as well. Facing a monster alone was indeed the simplest way to clear the task, but those without sufficient strength would likely perish in such a fight.

She recalled her first task, convinced that there must have been heroes who fought their battles alone in separate rooms. Yet, of a hundred heroes, only she and Qin Hao survived. The rest had all died.

A frown creased Zi Hui’s brow.

At that moment, Qin Hao spoke up, “Let’s find a row of storefronts. Each hero takes a separate room. If you can kill your monster, do it. If you can’t, escape and come find me. Since you’ve joined Skyvault, I guarantee your survival.”

Qin Hao’s demeanor was steady and his tone calm, yet his words rang with conviction and inspired trust.

For the first time, the others felt the relief of having a powerful ally.

“Let’s do as he says,” Zi Hui agreed.

“Zi Hui, it’s almost midnight. Should we still go to the Heroes’ Assembly?” someone asked.

Zi Hui considered for a moment. “Yes. Since I’ve already sent the taboo through the Eye of All Sects, there’s no reason to withhold it from the people of my own city. The more heroes that survive here, the stronger our city becomes.”

Everyone nodded in agreement.

“Let’s all go together!”

“That’s right. This is a test for all heroes, not just one person.”

Zi Hui looked at Qin Hao. “Will you come as well?”

The last time Qin Hao had appeared, he’d intimidated the other heroes with his brief but overwhelming presence. If he could be there again, it would be for the best.

“Yes, I’ll come and see for myself.”

All eleven heroes of the Skyvault Base set out for the Grand Theater. This time, they left in full force, not planning to return that night. Zi Hui instructed Li Lan to guard the base and forbade anyone from going out during the day.

Fortunately, even without the heroes, the number of Evolvers within the base was formidable, not to mention Zi Hui’s fan legion—survivors of the very first survival task, who had gained abilities even before the heroes. There were those like Xu Qian, whose strength was such that even a hero might not be her match.

With this, Zi Hui left without worry.

At noon, they arrived at the Grand Theater, which was more crowded than usual. Though the Heroes’ Assembly convened daily, not all heroes attended—only those with business to conduct, mainly those from larger strongholds. Now, more and more heroes were gathering to exchange necessities like water and food.

After all, it had been a month since the apocalypse began, and most food stores had been exhausted. The flesh of the Fang Demons was incredibly valuable, and the leaders were unwilling to share it with ordinary people.

Yet, before they could solve their survival issues, the task posted on the Hero System had sent chills down their spines.

Almost immediately, they thought of Zi Hui.

So, both the leaders of the major strongholds and the lone heroes had all gathered here. Other Evolvers who heard the news also rushed over.

The number of people in the theater reached almost one hundred and fifty, but only fifty-three of them were heroes.

“Zi Hui is here.”

“President Zi Hui, did you receive the task? What exactly is it? Why is it so vague? Have you done this before?”

“Zi Hui, why is this task called ‘Survival 2’? Was your previous experience also a test? Are we really going to face over two thousand Level One evolved creatures?”

People greeted her eagerly, then immediately began peppering her with questions. Zi Hui felt as though she’d been transported back to the height of her fame before the apocalypse, when reporters would crowd around her with microphones, desperate for breaking news.

She walked onto the battered stage and said, “Everyone, calm down and take a seat. I’ll explain everything.”

The crowd hushed, some sitting, others standing anxiously, all eyes on her.

“I’m sure most of you have at least heard of my final concert. It was during that concert that I completed my task: survival.”

“In that task, the number of hunter-killer creatures that appeared was double the number of people in the area. This was confirmed over three different tasks, though in the latter two, the Claw Civilization was already breaking the rules.”

“Because we hunted so many members of the Claw Civilization, only a small number of creatures appeared, and no second or third spatial rifts opened.”

“Based on this information, I advise every hero to face the new wave of alien creatures alone.”

The moment her words fell, the heroes below the stage grew agitated.

“Zi Hui, if we have to face monsters alone, why did I bother cultivating Evolvers? I trained them to protect me, to work for me. Now you say the number of alien creatures will be double ours—are you trying to set us up?”

“Exactly! Why face them alone? Shouldn’t we unite at a time like this?”

“Zi Hui, are you refusing to help us now? Do you wish we’d all just die sooner?”

The heroes’ voices overlapped in protest, clearly unhappy with her approach.

Zi Hui did not argue further.

Qin Hao protected only those in Skyvault Base. These people were not part of Skyvault—why should he protect them?

Her expression frosted. “That’s all I know. I’ve shared my information. The rest is up to you. But whatever you do, don’t complete the task within your own stronghold. If you do, and hundreds of alien creatures appear, you’ll have no chance of escape.”

She left the stage, preparing to join Qin Hao and the others in searching for a suitable location for the task.

Just then, Lu Shaohua strode onto the stage.

“Everyone, there’s no need to be so pessimistic. In fact, this task is a great opportunity for us. Think about it—ever since we became Level One Evolvers, neither the Fang Demons, the Serpent Demons, nor the Venom Spiders have posed any threat to us. The Venom Spiders are extinct, Serpent Demons are rare, and Fang Demons have no value.”

“This new ‘Survival 2’ task will surely bring forth new alien creatures. Whether it’s edible flesh, hero points, or star diamonds, it’ll be a huge windfall.”

“Our North Base has stockpiled a large amount of explosives. We just need to set our traps before the spatial rift opens.”

“When it does, fresh alien creatures will fall right into our snares.”

The heroes’ eyes lit up at Lu Shaohua’s words.

That’s right—this was more like it. Working together to complete the task would be much easier.

As for Zi Hui’s warning, it clearly failed to sway them.