[First defeat of The Boys universe, strongest super-human Homelander, combat evaluation: Average, reward: Assigned Ability +1]
Shawn felt a bit at a loss, "I let Homelander off too easily. If I had known there was a reward for the first clear, I should have beaten him harder."
The reward of Assigned Ability +1 was not bad either.
Shawn's Superman bloodline had now developed to a higher level. Measuring by the combat power of The Boys universe, he was now a hexagonal war god without any weaknesses.
But he knew clearly that having no weaknesses also meant having no distinctive features.
There might be some strange abilities that could threaten him.
Shawn thought for a moment and quickly made his choice: "Add the ability to 'Super Strength'!"
Offense is always the best defense, and power is eternal.
[Ability: Super Strength (Bronze) · LV6 ——" LV7]
'Stellar Energy' was running wildly, and the energy of cosmic stars swarmed in. Shawn closed his eyes, took a deep breath, and carefully felt the surge of power brought by his body's transformation. This feeling intoxicated him.
The upgrade ended, and the violent power was quickly controlled by him.
Power LV7 had reached a very high level, beginning to approach the Bronze ceiling. He really wanted to know how the ability would transform after LV9.
"Given the current situation, dragging a cruise ship or carrying a plane shouldn't be an issue, right?"
So far, the levels of Shawn's six-piece Steel Body set were:
[Steel Body (Bronze): Super Strength (Bronze) · LV7, Super Agility (Bronze) · LV5, Super Physique (Bronze) · LV6, Super Senses (Bronze) · LV5, Super Brain (Bronze) · LV5, Super Healing (Bronze) · LV5]
Other ability levels were:
[Ability: Flight (Bronze) · LV5, Heat Vision (Bronze) · LV5, Freeze Breath (Bronze) · LV5]
He was getting closer and closer to the Superman image of 'brute force flying'!
It wasn't that there were no problems.
As the levels increased, the promotion of abilities became slower and slower. He felt that without tasks, just by sunbathing and exercising on Earth, it would take quite a long time to improve.
Measured in years.
And this was based on the fact that he had given birth to three children and increased his 'Stellar Energy' talent by 30%.
He needed stronger opponents or a more suitable environment.
If soloing Homelander only gave such a small reward, when could he count on system tasks to skyrocket?
The days ahead, I'm afraid, will only become more difficult...
He still had to find a way; creating an environment himself was the real solution.
After Shawn's abilities generally reached LV5, he felt he could abandon the Earth environment and survive in space.
"Hmm, should I try it?"
He took a deep breath, and in the next second, he shattered the sound barrier.
If anyone were looking up from the ground at this moment, they would see a meteor flying in reverse.
At a speed exceeding Mach 10, the S symbol on his chest began to heat up. It wasn't because of friction, but because the air molecules couldn't bypass his body in time and were directly ionized into plasma in front of his chest.
The moment he broke through the Kármán line, he heard the sound of the universe for the first time.
It wasn't silence, it was a hum. He realized that Earth had been making a sound all along.
Shawn flew up a bit further, stopped his speed, and turned around.
The Earth appeared completely before his eyes.
Yes, even more vivid and moving than the photos and videos he had seen countless times: the azure sphere, white clouds, and brown continents.
He looked down from above.
Above the Indian Ocean, a milky-white typhoon eye was slowly rotating. The Amazon rainforest was breathing; a thin mist rose from the green ocean, drifting lazily with the Earth's rotation. The polar ice caps were slowly refracting sunlight, splitting the light into a fan-shaped neon, like a faint, imperceptible wound.
"It's truly beautiful..."
Shawn whispered in his heart. While feeling shocked, his soul was also cleansed.
However, such beauty is not something an ordinary person can withstand.
Under the unobstructed solar radiation, his body facing the sun was being roasted by a high temperature of two hundred degrees Celsius. Such a temperature was enough to burn life, causing ordinary carbon-based organisms to rapidly head toward Death in just a few seconds.
And what about Shawn?
The intensity was just right. The cells in his body were cheering, and the 'Stellar Energy' talent seemed to be completely activated at this moment. This wonderful feeling was simply indescribable.
His body was slowly getting stronger, and the speed of transformation gave him the illusion that he had returned to the time when he first awakened his bloodline.
So, the method was feasible.
A communication satellite slid past two or three kilometers below him.
Shawn hovered quietly. He closed his eyes and spread his hands. His red cape moved without wind. Behind him was the endless, deep universe, and below him was that azure home planet.
"It's so good. Perhaps I can discuss it with Mira when I go back."
...
...
"Is the clash between Homelander and Superman a conflict or a performance?"
"Superman draws with Homelander, fan count skyrockets, Vought International might be the biggest loser?!"
"A younger Superman appears. Does he have the ability to replace Homelander and become the world's number one?!"
"Homelander accepts an interview, in great shape. He states that the fight with Superman was just a sparring session, and neither side used their full strength."
"Homelander clashes with Superman, broadcast live by Vought News, breaking global ratings records!!"
"Vought International Vice President Madelyn expresses admiration for Superman, suspected of sending signals to recruit Superman into the superhero department, but Superman has not responded..."
"Vought International quietly recalls most superheroes in the Texas region. The outside world interprets this as an olive branch to Superman."
...
On the internet, the topic of the battle between Superman and Homelander had flooded all major platforms.
Some supported Superman, some supported Homelander, and others said they didn't care—they were just bystanders watching, following whoever gave the hot search traffic.
In short.
Shawn's popularity and influence had exploded again based on the original foundation, and this time it was growing at an astonishing speed. He had almost stepped on the backs of Vought International and Homelander to rise to the top.
This was unavoidable. Who told Vought to take such dirty and indecorous measures?
This company, which is an entertainment group on the surface but is actually a 'god-making factory' that mass-produces, packages, and capitalizes superhumans through compound v, completely treated superheroes as their private property.
After the 'House of Superman' was expanded and completed, it had always been well-behaved, at most opening a corporate verified account to do some fan business.
Even so, almost every day, three or four superhumans would disguise themselves as ordinary tourists to investigate.
In order to collect clues about Superman, they approached Brad and Dalton in various ways, using increasingly blatant methods. They also manipulated public opinion, incited protests, and maliciously slandered Superman and the 'House of Superman'.
In the end, they even sent Black Noir to try to capture people directly, until he was handled by Gecko and made a fool of himself.
Shawn's indifference was interpreted by Vought as weakness and hesitation.
Now they knew that even if Homelander came, he couldn't do anything to Superman, and Homelander was even vaguely not Superman's opponent!
So now, even if Vought International was unconvinced, they had to hold it in, because from beginning to end, Superman seemed to be the victim.
Shawn expressed satisfaction with this. He would have no psychological burden for anything he did to Vought later.
In a word, the other party must take full responsibility.
PS: Support the new book, please!
plz support my patreon
https://www.buymeacoffee.com/AZofficial
patreon.com/AZofficial
it is 30 chapter ahead