It could be said that this Black Steel Longsword was an absolute top-tier divine sword. Even in the world of One-Punch Man, with its high power levels, it would be nearly impossible to find a better sword, except for the Nichirin Sword and the lost Moon Wheel Sword.
Atomic Samurai couldn't help but feel envious.
Although the swords he used were also crafted by world-class master swordsmiths, they were truly no match for Qingshui's Black Steel Longsword.
"Ahem, ah, speaking of which, that Tiger Soul sword of Haragiri's was also made by you, right? That guy hasn't stopped showing it off to us for the past half year."
Atomic Samurai looked longingly at Qingshui, his face practically screaming, "I want one too."
"If Brother Divine Wind is interested, I can help you forge one, but..."
"I understand, I understand. We're both S-Class Heroes, so we're not lacking in money. You know, Haragiri only knows a few techniques, and he mostly keeps them to himself. If you teach me Atomic Slash, can you give me a better sword? Not too many flashy features, just something more powerful than Tiger Soul."
Atomic Samurai removed the toothpick from his mouth and slung an arm around Qingshui's shoulders.
Even though it was their first meeting, Atomic Samurai acted like they were old buddies.
A swordsmith capable of forging top-tier divine weapons was someone every swordsman wanted to befriend.
Moreover, Atomic Samurai had always respected only the strong. Qingshui's ability to become an S-Class Hero and quickly ascend into the top ten of the S-Class had earned him Atomic Samurai's approval in terms of strength; he was a powerhouse on the same level as himself.
Furthermore, Qingshui was certified by Haragiri, a member of the Sword Saint Association, as a master swordsman on par with them. To a swordsman like Atomic Samurai, this meant they were kindred spirits. Coupled with his desire to have Qingshui forge a good sword for him, he naturally tried to get closer to Qingshui.
Qingshui looked at Atomic Samurai's expression and knew he was genuinely coveting the sword.
In his opinion, Tiger Soul was just an ordinary item. Even with its mental deterrence ability, it wasn't that powerful.
However, in reality, even excluding this special ability, Tiger Soul itself was a top-quality blade. Qingshui had used premium materials to gain genuine swordsmanship knowledge from Haragiri, and coupled with his exceptional craftsmanship, it was inherently no inferior to the conventional top-tier cold weapons in this world.
Tiger Soul also benefited from Magic Tool Transformation, which significantly enhanced its sharpness, toughness, and hardness, and it possessed an attack-strengthening effect. Even the swords of other members of the Sword Saint Association were at least one tier lower in quality than Tiger Soul.
In the original story, Atomic Samurai's sword was broken by Gums during the Monster Association arc, which led to him drawing the Nichirin Sword later.
"Alright, Brother Divine Wind, just tell me the shape, weight, and length of the weapon you're used to."
Qingshui didn't resist Atomic Samurai's attempt to get closer. Instead, he put his arm around his shoulders, and they walked together towards the meeting room.
"Here, just make it according to the specifications of this one. I've been using this sword for about ten years, and I'm used to the feel."
Atomic Samurai removed the sword from his waist and showed it to Qingshui.
"Okay."
Qingshui took the sword, examined it carefully for a moment, swung it a few times to test the feel, took out tools from his Devouring Pouch to precisely measure its weight and length, and took a photo of its design before returning the sword to Atomic Samurai and entering the conference room.
Since Qingshui had arrived directly via Teleportation Halo, he was faster than most of the S-Class Heroes.
Besides Atomic Samurai, who happened to be visiting an old friend in City A, there were only two other S-Class Heroes.
Superalloy Darkshine and Tanktop Master. The Hero Association headquarters had a top-tier gym for hero training, which was usually used only by these two fitness enthusiasts. One was a place where the Tanktop Army gathered to train their Tanktop Power, and the other was used by Superalloy Darkshine, who sometimes mentored A-Class Heroes who came to use the equipment there.
Qingshui didn't have much interaction with these two, but he greeted them and exchanged some workout tips while waiting for the other S-Class Heroes.
If nothing else, Superalloy Darkshine was someone worth learning from.
If he didn't have psychological weaknesses and possessed the mindset of a normal, qualified soldier who wasn't afraid of pain or setbacks, it would be difficult for even peak Dragon-level monsters, excluding those above Dragon-level, to defeat Superalloy Darkshine.
After about two hours, basically all the S-Class Heroes who could be contacted had arrived.
Those who made it to S-Class were generally strong, except for King.
However, King had arrived on the association's private jet from City M and was not late.
It was just that Qingshui's expression was a bit off.
"Genos, where's Saitama?"
Qingshui asked Genos, who had arrived alone in a hurry.
"When I received the notification, I was at the Doctor's changing parts and wasn't with Teacher Saitama. However, before coming here, I sent him a text. Once Teacher Saitama wakes up from his nap, he should see the notification."
Genos said with a serious expression.
Qingshui's heart sank.
This is bad.
Could it be that because of my influence, Saitama didn't come this time?
Then who will stop Boros?
Me?
Even with Tatsumaki, it would be difficult to defeat this alien.
"Let's just call him directly and ask him to hurry over."
Qingshui said to Genos, who had sat down next to him.
"Has the situation become so troublesome that it requires the Teacher's intervention?"
Genos's eyes narrowed.
Could it be that Black Lightning arrived earlier and somehow got wind of some inside information?
Qingshui continued:
"Otherwise, why do you think we summoned all the S-Class Heroes? If so many S-Class Heroes present can't solve this problem, what do you think we should do?"
That makes sense!
"I'll make the call right now."
Genos immediately got up and walked with Qingshui to the hallway outside the door to call Saitama.
Saitama was still napping and probably hadn't heard, so he didn't pick up.
Might as well have someone go wake Saitama up.
Qingshui also took out his phone and found Charanko's number.
They were both in Z-City, and Charanko had the strength of a mid to lower-tier B-Class Hero. No matter how slow he was, he wouldn't be too slow and should be able to notify Saitama relatively quickly.
Not long after this call, Sitch and Bujing appeared around the corner of the hallway and walked quickly towards the conference room.
"Apologies for being late, everyone. I was busy contacting other heroes who weren't present. Metal Knight and Blast are currently unreachable. Waiting any longer won't help, so we'll start the emergency meeting directly. I, Sitch, will explain the situation to everyone.
Without further ado, let's get straight to the point."
Sitch's expression was serious as he cut to the chase:
"We've gathered the top experts in the hero industry here today not for any other reason than to ask everyone to work together to protect Earth, which is in imminent danger!"
Following that, Sitch presented a statement that was not to be leaked. Those who couldn't accept it could leave beforehand. Only then did he begin to reveal the truth.
"The great prophet, Sibabawa, who has accurately predicted future disasters multiple times, died this morning."
Sitch said with a heavy expression.
Someone asked:
"Sibabawa? Who killed her?"
Sitch lowered his head and spoke with a pained tone.
"No one harmed her. This morning, after divining the future for the next six months, she suddenly looked panicked, had difficulty breathing, and started coughing. She ate a throat lozenge and ended up choking to death."
Everyone: ...
What a ridiculous way to die.
"The passing of the great Sibabawa is a huge loss to the Association and to humanity. We've lost a powerful means of preventing disasters. But more importantly, it's the last dying words Sibabawa left behind before her death."
Sitch took out a folded piece of paper from his suit's breast pocket, unfolded it, and placed it on the table, displaying it to everyone.
"Although her throat was blocked by the throat lozenge and she couldn't speak, she still did her best before she died and wrote down the content of her prophecy."
[Earth is finished!]
Four hastily written characters appeared on the paper.
"What a bore. Prophecy and such things are unscientific. Can I go back to my cram school now?"
Child Emperor licked his lollipop and complained helplessly.
"Child Emperor, although you are a child prodigy, you are only ten years old, so it's normal that you don't know about the past achievements of the great Sibabawa. While she couldn't predict all future disasters, every prophecy she made has come true without exception. Up until her death, her prediction success rate was one hundred percent.
This means that within the next six months, a disaster that could potentially doom the entire Earth will occur!
At the very least, this time it will surpass every previous disaster, because in the past, no major disaster has ever prompted the great Sibabawa to use the word 'finished'."
Sitch said with a serious expression, hoping every hero would take it seriously.
He was a good friend of Blast, and they had collaborated many times in the past to fight evil.
A year ago, the influence of the gods grew stronger, and even Blast had to enter another dimension to fight the gods' minions.
What Sitch worried about most now was whether the prophecy was related to this so-called god.
He knew best how powerful Blast was; he was a truly powerful individual, close to invincible.
Even Tatsumaki, who was almost capable of killing all Dragon-level monsters and was the Association's ace, Blast thought her strength was still a bit lacking and refused to let her enter the other dimension with him.
If a God-level disaster that threatened all of humanity, and even the entire Earth, were to occur, Blast would certainly not stand idly by.
And Sibabawa's prophecy that Earth was finished suggested that this disaster might be something even the powerful Blast, with his God-level combat power, couldn't resolve.
Sitch hoped to try to gather the strength of all S-Class Heroes and try to help Blast.
Because only the top existence among these humans had the possibility of helping Blast.
"It's said to be within six months, but we don't know which day it will be,"
Prisoner said, leaning on his chair and enduring the noise of Pig God eating potato chips opposite him, his expression calm.
His face was very similar to Saitama's, the kind that could be outlined with just a few lines.
"So what is the Association's countermeasure?"
Flashy Flash retracted his gaze from scrutinizing Qingshui and asked Sitch.
He felt that Qingshui possessed a strange, yet vaguely familiar aura.
The other person seemed to have originated from a ninja background, but there were significant differences from himself.
Sitch replied:
"The association's think tank is still researching solutions, but we also need to consult the opinions of all S-Class Heroes. Once a crisis occurs, we must have the ability to assemble all S-Class Heroes in a short period."
"I have spatial abilities. As long as everyone takes a kunai with my personal mark as a locator, I can open a portal connecting two places. If we need to gather, just send me a message, and I'll bring people over."
Qingshui reached into his Devouring Pouch and took out twenty kunai, placing them on the table. He then looked at Sitch:
"The extra ones, please have the association forward them to Blast and Metal Knight, or use them for reserves to be given to other personnel who can help."
Sitch's eyes immediately lit up.
Blast's ability was spatial, and he knew how powerful spatial abilities could be at their peak.
Now, there was even more hope to help Blast!
However, the report submitted by Sweet Mask back then didn't mention that this person had spatial abilities.
Was it newly developed?
Sitch then recalled the terrifying laser used to bombard the sea and destroy the House of Evolution, and he cast a deep look at Qingshui.
This person's strength seemed to be continuously increasing after becoming an S-Class Hero. Could he also possess terrifying strength like Tatsumaki and King?
But this was also a good thing; at least in the future, the possibility of overcoming crises would be greater.
After a period of discussion among the S-Class Heroes, they eventually each took one.
This item was actually similar to the communicators issued by the association. Although it would expose their location, they could choose not to carry it, so there was no need to worry about privacy leaks.
Moreover, they were indeed somewhat apprehensive about the disaster that would occur within the next six months. Although they were all proud individuals, they had to admit that in the face of a great crisis, they needed to overcome difficulties together. Having the ability to quickly assemble was important; if others needed support one day, they could also arrive quickly.
"I wonder when the disaster will occur."
Genos took a kunai from Qingshui's hand and secured it in a slot on his forearm designed for weapon storage. He then asked Qingshui:
"But Senior Qingshui, since the matter here is concluded, we shouldn't need to notify Teacher Saitama to come over anymore, right?"
"Not necessarily, Genos. The prophecy states the time is after these six months. The disaster could happen tomorrow or today, or even in the next second..."
Qingshui looked up, gazing silently at the ceiling.
"Mr. Sitch, please activate the alarm and have all residents of City A transferred to the shelters."
Sitch was taken aback for a moment, then looked at Bujing beside him.
The latter immediately moved to activate the alarm and arrange personnel.
"Mr. Black Lightning, do you know anything about a crisis related to the prophecy?"
Qingshui said leisurely:
"No, I just sense that the space above City A is experiencing violent fluctuations. It seems a colossal entity is about to perform a warp jump and teleport here."
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