One-Punch Man: Boros, the Universe Overlord

The geisha remained calm and composed, the silver bells in her hair jingling gently in the breeze.

Upon hearing Rai Genji's words, she covered her mouth and let out a charming chuckle, which sounded particularly jarring amidst the noisy explosions.

"Heh, an A-rank hero? Rai Genji? Running into us... how can you say it's bad luck?"

She spoke in a sweet voice, then paused deliberately. Her long, narrow eyes did not look at the disheveled Genji, but instead looked over his shoulder with interest at the distant city where flames were rising and loud noises were coming from.

She smiled elegantly and continued:

"After all, compared to our 'refined' performance, there are far more violent and rude guys wreaking havoc elsewhere! The city is probably a slaughterhouse by now. Hahaha!"

"Damn it... do these two think they've got me cornered?!"

Enraged by this humiliation, Rai Genji's face flushed red, and he roared, "Since my lightning attribute is useless, I'll defeat you with pure physical skill and strength!"

Having said that, he held nothing back. He suddenly swung his hands in front of his chest, and lightning exploded in his palms, instantly condensing into two lightning swords about three feet long, crackling and radiating violent heat.

"Drink it—!"

Genji unleashed all his strength, transforming into a blur as he charged toward the two strange figures. His swords crossed, unleashing two sharp cross-shaped slashes, the wind whistling as they aimed straight for their vital points.

Faced with this swift attack, the giant catfish monster, covered in slick water, did not dodge. Instead, it swung its fists and rammed them head-on into the incoming sword light.

"Bang bang bang—!"

A deafening roar shook the surroundings. After the intense collision, the lightning shattered, and Genji felt a violent tremor in the palms of his hands. The seemingly clumsy catfish-like monster remained completely still.

Immediately afterwards, the catfish monster used the momentum of the impact to precisely strike Rai Genji's abdomen with his right fist.

"Hmm!"

Genji felt a tremendous force strike him, his stomach suddenly spasmed, and he was instantly sent flying backward, crashing heavily into the rubble several meters away, kicking up a cloud of dust.

Looking at the Lightning Source, curled up and lying motionless in the ruins, the Catfish Monster withdrew its fist, shook the dust off its hands, and smiled, saying in a gruff voice:

"So that's all. It seems that as long as there's an elemental advantage, we 'Tiger' level monsters can easily defeat so-called A-class heroes!"

Upon hearing this, the eccentric geisha beside her lightly waved her folding fan, covering her lips with a series of clear and charming laughs. She approached with elegant steps, her eyes filled with mockery:

"Haha, you're right. If we'd known A-rank heroes were this weak, we wouldn't have needed to hide at all. It seems the Hero Association's ranking system is nothing special, just an empty title!"

Lei Yuanguang felt as if his internal organs were churning, the excruciating pain making it almost impossible for him to breathe. He struggled to lift his head, his gaze sweeping over the two arrogant freaks before him, his heart filled with humiliation and resentment.

With his vision blurred, he then noticed the bald figure not far away, still standing there blankly, as if everything happening around him had nothing to do with him.

"Hey! Bald Capeman!"

Enraged, Lei Yuanguang roared with all his might, his voice hoarse and distorted from the pain and anxiety.

"What are you standing there for! Run! Get reinforcements from the association immediately! These two weirdos are far stronger than we expected!"

His roar echoed across the empty ruins, carrying a hint of pleading, hoping that the bald hero, who looked a bit senile, could understand the urgency in his words.

"Oh? Heh, there's still one clueless human left here. Is he a hero? Or... has he been scared out of his wits and can't move?"

The geisha giggled, covering her mouth, her fingernails tracing a seductive arc in the air. Then, the giant thunder drum behind her trembled violently, its surface heaving like waves, and a thick, dark blue bolt of lightning roared out, surging straight toward the bald figure who was still in a daze.

On the other side, Saitama, still lost in his own world because of the code name issue, stood there dejectedly with empty eyes.

Only after being snapped out of his daze by Genji's shout did he look around blankly, only to be struck head-on by a bolt of lightning, leaving him completely bewildered...

Although there was no real harm, I felt a jolt all over my body, and a sense of astonishment and speechlessness filled my heart.

At this moment, Saitama had just been forced to confront the shameful nickname "Bald Cape Man," and his mental world was on the verge of a delicate state of self-doubt.

This sudden lightning strike was like a precise "shock" to his fragile heart. Although it did not cause any physical trauma, it dealt a second blow to his already fragile heart!

Although Saitama usually seems careless and even a bit eccentric, his innate heroic instincts are surprisingly reliable in crucial moments.

Hearing the continuous explosions all over the city, and the firelight turning half the sky red, he came back to his senses and immediately took a deep breath, forcibly banishing the sadness and entanglement about the codename "Bald Cape Man" from his mind.

His previously unfocused gaze instantly sharpened, and even his perpetually deadpan eyes now revealed a hint of shrewdness.

"Weird guys? When did they appear? They're everywhere..."

He muttered to himself, his brows slightly furrowed, but there was no trace of panic in his tone.

"I need to get rid of them quickly. Maybe if I take out a few more, I can suggest to the association that they change my codename?"

The thought lingered in his mind for less than half a second before being forgotten. The next instant, he pushed off with his feet and charged towards the nearest flame.

As they passed the two strange figures, the geisha and the catfish, that blocked the street, two extremely loud "bang! bang!" sounds rang out...

"What?!"

Lei Yuanshi, lying on the ground in excruciating pain, didn't bother wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth. He raised his head, his gaze fixed on the dissipating dust in the distance.

The two freaks who were just moments ago so arrogant in front of him suddenly exploded into two clouds of crimson blood mist in the blink of an eye, without even having a chance to scream, their severed limbs splattered all over the ground.

The bald man didn't even pause for a moment, as if he were just casually brushing the dust off his shoulder, leaving only a receding silhouette.

Genji's pupils trembled, and he rubbed his eyes hard with disbelief, wondering if he was hallucinating from his severe injuries.

But the strong stench of blood in the air and the lingering tremors on the ground told him that it was all real.

"This...this bald, caped hero..."

His throat was dry, and he muttered to himself:

"This 'Bald Cape Man'... how come he's still only at the B-rank level with his abilities?!"

…………

Next, Saitama was accompanied by sparks and lightning.

He started running, the sparks from the friction beneath his feet mingling with the sonic booms that tore through the air, creating a dazzling band of light.

His speed had reached its limit. Wherever he passed, whether it was ordinary people fleeing in panic or heroes preparing for a desperate fight, they only felt the interplay of light and shadow before their eyes, as if a gust of wind had swept by. Before they could even see what it was, nothing was left in their field of vision.

In that instant of confusion, those monstrous beings that had been raging and roaring, so arrogant and domineering, suddenly exploded on the spot without warning, turning into clumps of dust and dissipating in the wind.

Saitama didn't pause at all, not even for a second. Like a tireless cleaner, he kept rushing into the city's explosions and flames. The time he spent traveling was dozens of times longer than the time he spent defeating monsters.

This bizarre scene repeats itself repeatedly: people often only hear a muffled "bang" in their ears, and when they turn around, the enormous creature that was originally a threat to their lives has already turned into a pile of minced meat.

The survivors stood there bewildered, then erupted in thunderous cheers, paying their highest respects to the heroes who remained frozen in place.

Meanwhile, the "heroes" were completely bewildered, their minds filled with question marks.

Just a moment ago it was extremely dangerous, how come inexplicably my vision blurred and the monster exploded?

Inexplicably... the credit for defeating the monster just fell on their heads out of nowhere...

………………

Inside the Hero Association headquarters, in the highest-level emergency command center, the air felt heavy and frozen. Pale white lights shone on the cold metal walls, illuminating solemn faces.

Everyone's eyes were fixed on the huge screen that occupied the entire wall, right in front of them. On the screen, countless red alarm dots were flashing wildly, and piercing alarms were blaring one after another.

"All branches... no, all branches, simultaneously issued the highest-level emergency support requests!"

The technician in charge of intelligence monitoring had a trembling voice, and fine beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead. His fingers flew across the keyboard, but he couldn't stop the data that kept flashing red on the screen.

"Signal sources are spread across the globe, and new disaster zones emerge every second!"

"What are the S-class heroes doing?! Why haven't they reacted yet?"

A senior leader slammed his fist on the table, veins bulging on his forehead, his voice sharp with anxiety.

"Send them out immediately! No matter what level of monster it is, an S-class officer should be able to suppress it, right?"

"No... the situation is worse than I thought."

Another intelligence chief, looking grave, pushed up his glasses, his tablet displaying real-time battle reports.

"This is far more than just a coincidence. So many strange individuals launching saturation attacks on cities around the world at the same time and under the same circumstances must be orchestrated by an unseen hand."

"Could it be... that those strange individuals who originally fought alone have also formed some kind of tightly organized group? Is this a long-planned, all-out war against our association?"

The atmosphere in the meeting room instantly plummeted to freezing point.

"We have just received intermittent messages from the front lines."

The communications officer took off his headset, his face pale, his voice trembling slightly.

"The main heroes defending the core cities are engaged in an unprecedented and fierce battle... Some cities... some cities' garrison heroes have even been defeated, their defenses have completely collapsed, and they urgently need reinforcements! If this continues, those cities will fall!"

"No, there are too many! We simply can't provide enough support!"

The person in charge of scheduling grabbed his hair in despair, staring at the green lights representing the "safe zone" on the map that kept going out, his eyes bloodshot.

"The number of monsters has far exceeded our expectations. Our heroic forces are scattered across various battlefields, making it impossible for them to form an effective combined force..."

"If this continues, we will be completely wiped out."

An official slumped in a chair, staring blankly at the ceiling...