(A place to store your brain cells, personally guarded by Homelander)
(I saw some readers talking about Smart Atoms. I know a little about the comics, but not much. I'll add a biological force field later, which should come in handy for holding up planes.)
(Of course, I haven't changed any of the original stuff, like the karate-chop immortal. He's a partner in justice early on, then becomes justice itself later. This book is about an invincible protagonist and is pure parody, so I made up the stats as I went. Lore buffs, enter at your own risk.)
"Vought International announced today that The Seven will hold their annual Hero Gala in New York this month. All members will be in attendance..."
The anchorwoman's voice drifted out of the TV, sounding strangely unreal.
Brooklyn, on a damp night.
A man lay in a dark alley, the back of his head resting in a pool of scarlet liquid, his eyes fixed on a poster on the wall.
It was a Vought International poster, with seven people standing in a row.
The blond man in the very center wore a star-spangled cape, his chin raised at a thirty-degree angle. His smile was so perfect it looked like it had been poured from a mold.
Homelander!
America's strongest superhero!
Vought International's flagship hero! The most popular man in the world!
When Lu Heng woke from his unconsciousness and saw the poster, memories surged through him like a raging tide.
The original owner was twenty-four, shared his name, and had been born and raised in New York, in an orphanage.
No parents, no friends, scraping by with odd jobs.
As for him, the last thing he remembered was working late in an office building.
The next moment, he'd crossed over into a world he knew all too well.
The Boys!
A world where entertainment reigned supreme!
Superheroes weren't the main force fighting crime here. They were products packaged and manufactured by capitalists. Even The Seven, famous around the globe, were nothing more than brand ambassadors for Vought International. Behind the scenes, they were rotten to the core.
The man standing in the center was the worst of the worst!
Justice didn't count for much in this world.
Lu Heng took a deep breath and pushed himself up from the ground.
His body felt unfamiliar. He was more than half a head taller than before, his shoulders were broader, and the muscles in his arms were sharply defined.
He clenched his fist.
The gust of wind from the punch made the rusty trash can beside him wobble twice.
Just then, a translucent golden panel appeared out of thin air in his field of vision—
[Viltrumite Bloodline—Awakened] Bloodline Rank: Lv.1 Viltrumite Clerk Strength: 8 tons Speed: Subsonic Defense: Immune to conventional weapons Flight: Unlocked Space Survival: 30 minutes Biological Force Field: Basic (Passive · Protects body and clothing) Genetic State: Absolutely stable, immune to all diseases/viruses/genetic contamination Ability Points: 0 / 10,000 How to Earn Points: Positive/negative emotions from the public, positive/negative emotions from key characters
Viltrumite?
Lu Heng stared at the panel for a long time, then the corner of his mouth twitched.
Of course he knew what that was: an alien race from Invincible.
One of the most powerful warrior races in the universe.
The purer their bloodline, the greater their natural talent. They relied on neither magic nor technology; their sheer physical strength could crush anything.
They also lived extraordinarily long lives. Pure-blooded Viltrumites like the Regent and the Conqueror were monsters who had lived for thousands of years.
More importantly, Viltrumites accelerated their growth to reach adulthood—the peak of their combat ability—and then stopped aging.
The thousands of years that followed were their golden age.
And the bloodline he'd awakened was only Lv.1: a clerk, the lowest rung of Viltrumite society.
Yet he already had eight tons of strength, a body bullets couldn't pierce, and the ability to fly at subsonic speeds.
In a normal world, that was freaking Superman!
In the world of The Boys, though, he wasn't so sure. He looked up at Homelander's smiling face on the poster.
But beneath the panel was a bloodline upgrade path.
Lv.2: Regular Soldier
Lv.3: Elite Warrior
Lv.6: Pure-Blooded Royalty
If he could level up, then this wasn't a problem.
He just needed ability points to upgrade, and he could earn ability points from emotions.
For example, admiration, gratitude, and respect from the public—or disgust and hatred.
He could also earn ability points by changing the fates of key characters.
The simplest approach was to be a real hero in a world where superheroes were all trash.
How ironic.
Lu Heng stood up and brushed the dust off his pants.
His athletic ability exceeded his expectations. He rose as lightly as a feather, without feeling the slightest weight.
Eight tons of strength lay hidden in his muscles and bones, with nothing unusual visible from the outside.
But what was the current timeline?
Lu Heng suddenly realized.
The Boys spanned several years, and the story took a different direction in each of its five seasons. If he'd crossed over during the period when Homelander ruled the world, he'd be completely screwed.
Lu Heng searched the original owner's pockets. He found an old phone with a cracked screen and thirty-seven dollars in cash.
He opened the news app. The top headline was an announcement for Vought International's Hero Gala.
He scrolled down...
"Seven member Translucent to attend a Brooklyn community charity event this week!"
Translucent was still alive?
Translucent had been killed by Hughie and Butcher early in the first season. If he was still making public appearances and attending events, then the main plot of the first season hadn't started yet.
He scrolled down again.
"A-Train's drug test results this month are all clear. Vought responds to public concerns!"
"Vought's Seven recruitment plan revealed: nationwide search for 'the eighth' sparks heated debate"
The headline made Lu Heng narrow his eyes.
The Seven were recruiting. They were building up hype for Starlight's arrival.
Starlight, Annie January, had joined The Seven through a nationwide audition. The timing of her joining just happened to coincide with Hughie's girlfriend being killed by A-Train.
In other words...
Robin was still alive?
Lu Heng slipped the phone back into his pocket.
In a world crawling with supes, he'd need to keep upgrading his bloodline to gain more power.
Power was a voice in the room. Power meant he wouldn't have to eat beef!
Lu Heng raised his head and tried to will himself upward.
His feet left the ground.
He floated up as naturally as breathing.
The night wind rushed into his collar. The air around him sped up, and Brooklyn slowly shrank beneath his feet.
For Viltrumites, flying at incredible speeds was instinctive, as natural as walking was for humans.
Lu Heng hung in midair and looked down at the city. Homelander's silhouette appeared on a billboard.
Then he heard something in the distance...
Three blocks away, glass shattered with a crash, and a woman screamed helplessly.
Every so often, a man's angry curses rang out. Maybe it was his imagination, but Lu Heng heard the crackle of electricity.
A superpowered crime.
In New York, that was more common than car accidents.
Vought only cared about marketing top-tier superheroes and making money. The low-level supes whose lives had been ruined by Compound V on the streets?
No one gave a damn!
The more of them there were, the better. That way, people would see how necessary superheroes were.
Lu Heng opened the system.
The experience bar on the panel read zero.
He needed ten thousand points to level up.
He didn't hesitate for long. He leaned toward the sound, and at one point his speed abruptly surged.
To ordinary people, subsonic flight was just a blur flashing past.
A few seconds later, Lu Heng arrived at the scene of the incident.
Before you continue