Chapter 5

A silver-haired beauty was currently in an office at the Hero Association headquarters in H City.

"Why was the attack record altered?" The Winter Witch looked at the man before her with displeasure. "Black Hand has been confirmed to have B-Class strength, and according to the on-site surveillance, the Ten Gods people didn't play any role at all."

"Forget it, Miss Dong. The criminal was caught in the end, wasn't he?" the man said.

The man in the office was Ouyang Rui, the president of the H City Hero Association.

"That's not the issue," the Winter Witch said. "Why was the credit given to the Ten Gods Family?"

"It seems you still don't understand, Miss Dong. Do you know what heroes are nowadays?" Ouyang Rui said. "Heroes these days are a type of celebrity. Since it's all about public image, I hope to select figures more suited to public taste. The young ones from the Ten Gods Family aren't bad—young, popular, and with growth potential."

"That's no reason for you to meddle with the hero rankings," the Winter Witch said.

"Just a few insignificant tweaks," Ouyang Rui said. "I'm only giving some opportunities to the more popular ones."

"I don't agree."

"No one cares about your opinion," Ouyang Rui said. "As long as I'm still the president, don't think you can stick your nose into these trivial matters."

With that, Ouyang Rui clearly lost interest in continuing the conversation.

"What you're doing doesn't qualify as being a hero."

"That's the hero in your mind," Ouyang Rui said contemptuously. "Heroes like 'Zero' went out of style long ago. What we should be focusing on now is the profit those super heroes can bring. Do you understand? What the Hero Association needs to do is plan the actions of those super heroes and use that to drive a massive profit chain."

"This kind of behavior isn't heroic at all."

"Don't bring up your hero dreams with me again." Ouyang Rui slammed the table and stood before the Winter Witch. "People like 'Zero' can't survive in this world anymore. Also, who do you think got you promoted all the way to B-Class? If you weren't part of the Dong Family, do you think I'd waste so many words with you? I'd have crushed you long ago. Now go back and think it over."

Ouyang Rui made a gesture of seeing her out.

Silently walking out of the president's office, the Winter Witch clenched her fists. "This isn't the kind of hero I want to become."

At Lin Jie's home, Lin Jie and Xiao Zhan were watching the news on TV.

"Damn! Is there no justice?!" Xiao Zhan pointed at the TV report angrily. "This is a fix!! It's blatant backroom dealing!"

"Calm down," Lin Jie said.

"Calm down my ass! We were the ones who took down Black Hand, but the news says the Ten Gods Family did it all!" Xiao Zhan fumed. "Now even the Hero Association is playing these shady games. Damn it."

"Calm down," Lin Jie said.

"How can I calm down?! Those Ten Gods guys were just lying there the whole time. Talk about a free win."

"Looks like you were a free rider too."

"I'm different from them. Without me, they'd be dead."

"What's all the noise?! Can't you see I'm studying?" Lin Wan's voice came from her room.

"Your sister's pretty impressive, huh? Already in grad school and going for a doctorate," Xiao Zhan said.

"Yeah. Gonna be hard to marry her off!" Lin Jie sighed.

"Both of you, get lost!!"

The next day, though reluctant, Lin Jie still made his way to the top floor of Xiao's Building.

"You're here, partner!" Xiao Zhan popped his head out from behind a workbench.

"That feels gross," Lin Jie said.

"Perfect timing. First, take a look at my latest gear. I'll set you up with a set too, so your hero registration exam will be a breeze," Xiao Zhan said.

"You said there's an exam?" Lin Jie asked in surprise.

"Of course. Physical ability test is one part, but there's also a written exam and a thesis," Xiao Zhan said.

"How is this like my high school graduation exam?"

"Alright, check out my newest equipment." With that, Xiao Zhan pulled out a handgun.

"A gun?"

"Do you think I'm that shallow?" Xiao Zhan then pulled the trigger on himself, and a gust of wind blew through his hair. "It's actually a hair dryer. Not only does it intimidate enemies, but it also keeps your hairstyle perfect in any fight."

"..." Lin Jie looked at the guy drying his hair. "Let me ask you something. Is this thing useful in a fight?"

"Didn't I tell you? It intimidates the enemy. The key point is that it keeps my handsome image intact at all times. You know how important image is for super heroes these days. See those useless Ten Gods guys? They're textbook cases of living off their looks. So no matter what, you have to maintain your image."

"Oh." Lin Jie looked at another gun. "Is this one also a hair dryer?"

"Of course not. This gun fires hair conditioner," Xiao Zhan said. "I plan to name these two guns Ebony and Ivory."

"Trust me, some guy named Dante is definitely going to come after you."

"By the way, check out this device." Xiao Zhan then pulled out a button.

"What is it?"

"An Omnidirectional Stereo Camera. This way, we can record our heroic deeds from every angle without any blind spots. Perfect for promoting my Xiao Tech Company," Xiao Zhan said proudly.

"Trust me, if you release that footage, you'll be bankrupt and selling your pants."

With that, Lin Jie looked at a pair of steel forks on the table.

"You've got good taste. You zeroed in on my Plasma Decontamination Fork 2.0 right away," Xiao Zhan said.

"Let me ask you something—what's the point of this thing?"

"Decontamination! The 1.0 version could only get dust off your clothes, but my latest 2.0 version can easily remove any stain, even oil and grease. That way, you can keep your image clean and tidy anytime, anywhere, and you can also keep your enemy's image clean and tidy."

"How much do you care about image?!" Lin Jie roared.

"That's why you can't get a girlfriend!" Xiao Zhan said. "It's a looks-based society now. As long as you're a handsome guy or a pretty girl, you get special treatment no matter what you do. For example, even if a handsome guy makes all kinds of mistakes, there are still plenty of girls willing to love him and scream for him.

Look at female villains in anime—as long as they're pretty and have personality, and show just a little bit of kindness, no matter what heinous things they've done before, they often survive until the last episode.

On the flip side, if the villain is ugly? Hah. They don't last three episodes."

"That makes so much sense, I'm speechless."

"Young man, it's not that you're not trying hard enough—it's just that this is a looks-based society." Xiao Zhan said.

Lin Jie thought about it and figured he was right. Back when he was Zero and used black fog to cover his face, no matter where he showed up, there were no warm welcomes, no screams, no girls coming up to hug him. Then he thought about the Ten Gods Family—their selling point was being handsome, so they could get a crowd of girls screaming wherever they went.

"Oh, right, this is for you." Xiao Zhan tossed him a large pair of sunglasses. "This is my latest high-tech invention."

"What's it do?"

"We can video chat through the sunglasses, and at the same time, it adds some fun to the boring hero life. It can connect to the internet to watch movies, read e-books, and stuff. Most importantly, it's got a terabyte of seeds inside."

Xiao Zhan flashed a smile that only men would understand.

"You're not lying to me?" Lin Jie returned a look that said he got it.

"Absolutely true."

"I appreciate you, partner." With that, Lin Jie shook hands with Xiao Zhan.

"Want me to see what other gear I can hook you up with?"

"Forget it. Besides the sunglasses, I don't need anything else—I've got my own equipment." With that, Lin Jie pulled out the wolf-tooth club he'd used last time from his chest.

"I've always been curious—how do you hide a weapon that big?"

"Actually, I've got a Four-Dimensional Pocket in my chest."

"Get out of here. The World United Association hasn't even cracked space technology yet. But that club of yours looks like it's made of some unusual material—how about letting me appraise it?"

"No." Lin Jie said. "But luckily I didn't sell it off a few years ago, or I'd be stuck with a joke weapon like the Decontamination Fork."

Lin Jie remembered back in his second year of being a shut-in at home, when money got tight and he had no choice but to set up a stall and sell off the weapons and gear he'd earned over the years at dirt-cheap prices.

"Just nine-nine-eight, and the Dragon-Slaying Saber goes home with you." Lin Jie held an authentic Dragon-Slaying Saber in his hand and said to the person in front of him.

"Tch, who'd believe that? Can you prove this is the real Dragon-Slaying Saber?" The person replied.

"Well..."

"Can't even make up a lie that sounds halfway believable."

"How about this—nine-nine-eight, the Dragon-Slaying Saber goes home with you, and I'll throw in a Heaven-Defying Sword for free."

"Too expensive."

"Then how about this one? The Snow-Drinking Mad Blade, just seven-nine-eight, and I'll throw in a Peerless Sword for free." With that, Lin Jie pulled out a blade and a sword.

"This... doesn't look impressive. I don't really like the design."

"Then what about this one? The Longquan Ancient Sword, six-nine-eight and it's yours, plus I'll throw in the ancient sword Juque, forged by Ou Yezi."

"Now this design is nice." That customer, however, was eyeing a gorgeously decorated bow.

"Good eye—this Tears of the Stars is a high-grade item, but it's a bit pricier at one-nine-eight-zero. And I'll throw in a Demon Wolf Fang Club for free."

"My girlfriend would probably like this. I don't need that club—it's too big. I'll just take the bow."

"Sure thing, sir, no problem."

After paying, the customer suddenly looked at the four ancient swords floating behind Lin Jie.

"These four look interesting." The customer walked toward the four swords.

"Those are display pieces—not for sale! Hey, don't touch them." Lin Jie said to the customer, but it was already too late.

Before the customer's hand even touched the floating swords, his fingers vanished in the next instant, blood spraying everywhere. A scream echoed through the alley.

"Damn, I told you not to touch them—these are the Four Immortal-Slaying Swords, a weapon that can obliterate the heavens, the earth, and the air itself, and you still dared to touch them." Lin Jie said to the person in front of him. "You touched them yourself—I'm not paying the medical bills."

"What's going on over there?" Several people in urban management uniforms heard the noise and ran into the alley.

"Crap, it's the urban management!!" Lin Jie quickly packed up his things.

If you think this book is good, to avoid losing it next time, please remember to add it to your bookshelf.