Talent Furnace

With the deafening explosion, the air filled with the thick stench of blood and gunpowder. It was like a "zombie fireworks show" had just ended.

Lu Chen stood amid the wreckage of the base, surrounded by rubble and severed limbs. Mosquitoes probably wouldn't even come here for a "team-building event."

He didn't care. He stretched, his joints cracking as if to announce, "Today's performance target: exceeded!"

The eastern sky turned pale, and a ray of sunlight pierced the darkness and fell across Lu Chen's face, bathing him in a golden glow that made him look especially... punchable (strike that)... heroic!

He narrowed his eyes at the rising sun in the distance, an arrogant smile curling his lips. "This is only the beginning. The best is yet to come. Just wait and see-I'm going to turn this apocalypse into my stage!"

"Next, I'll let the whole world know that the Godslaying Legion didn't come here to scrape by on scraps. We came to rewrite the rules of the apocalypse and redefine who's boss!" Lu Chen's voice wasn't loud, but it was full of domineering confidence as he declared his ambition like a king. He might as well have written it on his forehead.

Linda and A Kai stood respectfully behind him. They knew that by following this man, they would witness a brand-new era, an era ruled by the Godslaying Legion's... uh... "overbearing CEO," Lu Chen!

Even though the air still reeked of blood, their blood was boiling and their adrenaline was surging. All that was missing was for them to start dancing on the spot.

"Boss, where are we going next? Are we going to 'kill monsters and level up,' or 'unlock a new map'?" A Kai rubbed his hands together excitedly and asked, eager to get started. His eyes sparkled with anticipation for the future, as though he could already see himself tearing zombies apart with his bare hands and reaching the pinnacle of life.

Lu Chen didn't answer. He only raised his head, his profound gaze seeming to pierce the endless void and land on the distance, where a new hunting ground and new challenges awaited.

He slowly clenched his fist, feeling the surging power within him. It was as if countless miniature universes were exploding inside him, making him feel invincible.

"Time to... collect some interest. Those blind fools from before should learn that debts have to be repaid, and repaid double!"

Before his words had faded, Lu Chen sat down cross-legged on the spot. Wave after wave of heart-stopping energy began to surge around him, like a volcano on the verge of eruption, brimming with destructive power.

Before him, a mass of strange energy slowly took shape. It was a sphere woven from the ferocity of fire, the piercing chill of ice, and the swiftness of lightning. Three entirely different powers now blended together in harmony-it was a "miracle of the energy world."

He closed his eyes and immersed his consciousness in his own talent system, as though entering a mysterious "talent archive." Countless pieces of information about talents flashed through his mind in a dizzying blur.

"Though these talents are powerful, they conflict with one another, like three little brats. If I don't get them to coexist peacefully, sooner or later they'll raise hell... I have to find a balance and get them to 'love one another' before they can unleash their full power." He muttered to himself, his brows tightly furrowed, as though he were tackling a world-class problem.

Then he began trying to unite them within a single energy structure, like a master architect attempting to use an ingenious design to fuse three different materials into one solid whole.

As his consciousness delved deeper, the mass of energy gradually stabilized. The three energies blended and transformed into one another, finally condensing into a transparent crystal. The [Talent Furnace] had taken its initial form, radiating a heart-stopping light.

Linda and A Kai watched from the side, not daring to breathe too loudly for fear of disturbing Lu Chen.

Unable to contain his curiosity, A Kai asked, "Boss, can you... can you really control so many different powers? Th-this is practically cheating!"

Lu Chen opened his eyes. "They'll devour and compete with each other until only the strongest remains and becomes the true 'king'!"

With a casual wave of his hand, the crystal fell into his palm, releasing energy fluctuations that were gentle yet intensely oppressive, like a sleeping dragon ready to unleash astonishing power at any moment.

To test the [Talent Furnace], he took Linda and A Kai to the base's core laboratory area. An abandoned high-energy particle accelerator stood there, a product of humanity's attempts to explore the mysteries of energy before the apocalypse.

He reached out and touched the device's casing, instantly copying its F-rank [Energy Resonance] module and upgrading it to SSS rank. Then he fed it into the [Talent Furnace], as though adding an "energy battery" to give it plenty of power.

"Now, let's see just how strong it is, so I have some idea and don't accidentally blow up the Earth," Lu Chen joked, his tone easy, as though the coming experiment were a simple one.

As the energy poured in, a blinding light burst from within the [Talent Furnace]. The three energies surged wildly, intertwining before finally converging into a dazzling beam.

A moment later, a beam combining fire, ice, and lightning shot out with a roar. Carrying enough power to destroy heaven and earth, it punched straight through an alloy wall several meters thick and left a bottomless fissure in the distant mountainside, a shocking sight as though the mountain had been split by a giant blade.

Linda stared at it all in shock, her mouth forming an "O." For a long time, she couldn't speak.

"Th-this power is already beyond anything an ordinary SSS rank can compare to... This is practically a reconstruction on the level of laws! H-how did you do it?" she stammered.

Lu Chen looked at the fissure, the corners of his lips rising. "That's right. Next, I'm going to... Lu Chen looked at the fissure, the corners of his lips rising. "That's right. Next, I'm going to make sure everyone in the Godslaying Legion can wield this kind of power." He turned to Linda and A Kai. "Are you willing to be the first test subjects?"

Linda and A Kai exchanged a glance, excitement and apprehension in their eyes.

After all, with power on this level, one slip might send them straight to heaven and scatter their ashes to the wind!

The smell of scorching still lingered in the air, the smell of the alloy wall melting under the heat, like the sadness of grilled meat without cumin.

"Boss, does this thing... have any side effects? Like... baldness?" A Kai asked cautiously, touching his still reasonably thick hair.

"Side effects? I suppose you might become too strong to find an opponent." Lu Chen shrugged, sounding as casual as if he were commenting on the nice weather.

Linda took a deep breath, determination flashing in her eyes. "I'm willing to try! You saved my life anyway, Boss. Even if it fails... it'll be worth it!"

Seeing that, A Kai gritted his teeth. "Damn it, nothing ventured, nothing gained! I'm in too! If I can have that kind of power, forget going bald-even if I mutate into the Hulk, I'll take it!"

Lu Chen laughed and patted their shoulders. "Good! That's the spirit! But don't worry, I won't turn you into the Hulk. At most... you'll become an upgraded Flash or Snow Queen."

He turned and walked deeper into the laboratory, where all kinds of instruments and equipment stood, gleaming with cold metallic light.

The advanced technology from before the apocalypse had now become a tool for him to increase his strength.

A faint smell of disinfectant hung in the air, along with... a trace of something unsettling.

"Now, it's time to witness a miracle... but before that, I need to give you both a shot of 'sedative.' After all, things might get a little... intense later." Lu Chen took a syringe from a cold box. It contained a strangely colored liquid that shimmered eerily under the lights, enough to send a chill down anyone's spine.

Holding the syringe, he gave Linda and A Kai a meaningful smile. "Don't be nervous. This is just... the appetizer. The real feast is still to come."

Night fell, and the entire base was shrouded in darkness. Only the laboratory lights continued to flicker, like a tireless eye watching everything that happened there...