How Long Does It Take a Human to Take Off Their Clothes? The Answer Is 0.03 Seconds

"A-Train?"

Homelander suddenly clapped his hands. Right! How had he forgotten about him?

"Sorry, brother. I was being narrow-minded this time!"

Homelander apologized repeatedly.

A-Train really was the best candidate. He had been kicked out of The Seven and was being sidelined right now, but even a discarded pawn could still be put to maximum use.

If Homelander so much as hinted that A-Train had a chance of returning, wouldn't A-Train work himself to death?

"Exactly, brother. A-Train is perfect. We want to be the big shots behind the scenes, so we can outsource this kind of dirty work!"

"Even without A-Train, there's Shockwave!"

"Didn't Shockwave say he wanted to challenge A-Train's position? He can handle this too. Once it's done, just find somewhere to sink him in the ocean."

The truth was, Guardian was far more ruthless than Homelander.

Homelander raised an eyebrow. That did remind him of something.

"Don't tell anyone about this," Homelander said quietly. "I only told you because I trust you."

"But you just wanted me to do the dirty work. That really hurts my feelings."

Lu Heng gave a fake smile.

"My mistake, brother. I can compensate you."

Homelander signaled for Lu Heng to name his terms. As Vought's biggest star, what could he not accomplish?

"Earlier, Ashley Barrett pitched superhumans to the executives. The annual stability-maintenance fund was several hundred million, right?"

"Yeah. A bundled contract for a second-tier superhero starts at three hundred million a year."

Lu Heng squeezed Homelander's shoulders with both hands, as if giving him a massage.

In reality, he was testing Homelander.

Homelander was unused to being touched by others, but this time, he showed no resistance at all.

"Very good. In that case, as a superhuman ranked among the top five in popularity across America, isn't it a little unreasonable for me to earn only a few tens of millions a year?"

Homelander nodded. It was indeed unreasonable. Guardian's annual salary should start at a billion.

"Come ask Edgar for his opinion with me. With me speaking for you, there's a good chance we can negotiate it."

"No! No! No!"

Lu Heng shook his head. "Who am I, and who is he? Why should I beg him? Wouldn't that be like kneeling to beg for food?"

Homelander looked utterly bewildered.

"But... but only Edgar has the final say on salary."

Lu Heng revealed his Omega Beams and gave Homelander's beard a trim.

"With this, can I demand the money while standing?"

"Uh... I-I guess so."

Homelander could not understand why Lu Heng was not afraid of Edgar, or even looked down on Vought's boss, the man who held everyone's lives in his hands.

"Don't be so wishy-washy, Homelander. You're Vought's god, and one day, you'll be the god of all America. Hesitating like this doesn't look manly!"

Lu Heng punched Homelander.

The blow only made Homelander shift slightly, but it awakened the ambition deep in his heart.

"I... am a god?"

"That's right. Look at our powers. We can fly, fire heat vision, and evaporate an entire ocean. Does God have power like that?"

"Hey, don't say that. How could we possibly stand shoulder to shoulder with God?"

Homelander glanced around and hurriedly covered Lu Heng's mouth.

"Your guts are just too small. How many divisions does God have?"

"Don't... don't be like this. I'll help you apply for it, okay?" Homelander was genuinely scared now.

America was a religious country. If people found out that he and Guardian were here blaspheming God, all of America probably would not forgive them.

"That's more like it. Don't lose face—go pick a fight with Edgar!"

Seeing that his goal had been achieved, Lu Heng offered encouragement.

The panel began flashing wildly.

[Key Character · Homelander—Emotional Climax: Trust (Extremely High), Ambition, Desire for Control, Dependence]

[Ability Points Gained: +3,456]

[Hidden Achievement Unlocked: Behind-the-Scenes Instigator—Successfully guided a key character into making a decision that changed the world's balance of power]

[Additional Reward: Ability Points ×5,000]

Current Ability Points: 72,659 / 250,000

Oh-ho!

"So that's the plan. Tomorrow, I'll go see Edgar first, and you go talk to A-Train. How about it?"

"Fine."

Homelander's proposal was exactly what Lu Heng wanted. He wondered whether A-Train knew his mistake by now.

Homelander left.

Lu Heng genuinely felt that Homelander was actually pretty easy to get along with. His lifestyle was quite decent. He did not sleep around; he had only forced himself on Oi-Man's wife eight years ago.

He never smoked, never smoked weed, and never did drugs. Compared to other superhumans, he was practically a living saint.

He only killed a couple of capitalists and politicians now and then.

Mm, Homelander was a sunny, cheerful good boy!

That's right!

That was exactly how it was!

The bedroom door opened.

Starlight poked her head out.

"He left?"

"He left."

"I think I overheard some of what you said just now... He actually wants to inject Compound Five into terrorists just to push a bill through?"

Starlight looked somewhat nervous.

"And you actually said, 'How many divisions does God have?'"

"That's blasphemy, you damned heathen!"

Lu Heng wore a frightened expression.

"Oh? God doesn't allow premarital behavior. Does this lady's wild God know about that?"

Starlight bit down on her lower lip, hooked a finger around Lu Heng's belt, and dragged him toward the bedroom.

The more Lu Heng revealed his dark side, the more easily Starlight sank into it, unable to break free.

She knew this was wrong, but she simply could not bring herself to hate him.

"Want it?"

Annie deliberately put on a weak expression, but pulled her shirt upward.

How long did it take a human to take off their clothes?

Lu Heng's answer was 0.03 seconds.

"But... we need to talk first..."

Starlight shoved Lu Heng, slamming him back against the wall. A crack appeared in the white wall behind him.

Superhumans fooling around was truly jaw-dropping to ordinary people.

"This is wrong. We're both superheroes. We should be doing good things for the public."

Lu Heng's gaze kept drifting downward.

Was this how one did good things?

"This is definitely wrong, but do you think we can stop Homelander, America's number one superhero?" Lu Heng twisted her arm behind her back, sending Annie into the wall.

To her, that force was no different from a light touch.

"Mm-hmm!"

"You're Guardian. He sees you as a friend. He'll listen to you." Annie turned her head toward him.

"Is that so? Not necessarily. Homelander has his own ideas. He won't be easily persuaded by anyone. All I can do is go along with him and minimize the harm to innocent people."

Lu Heng's waist was especially strong today.

"Mm-hmm?"

"All I heard was you giving him advice. You even dragged A-Train into it. That guy may have done something wrong, but he shouldn't become a dirty... dirty tool."

Annie shot Lu Heng a sidelong glance. He was clearly doing it on purpose, not letting her finish her sentence.

"The reason I chose A-Train is because he still has some sense of restraint, and being kicked out of The Seven is only temporary," Lu Heng said.

"Mm-hmm!! What does that mean?"

"It means everything can be fake, but my feelings for you are real. You only need to remember that!"

Lu Heng's shirt shattered.

(26,992 words omitted here)