179: Qin Lang, a national hero, has become a viral sensation online!

Gunpowder smoke filled the air at the perimeter defense line of the Capital City.

The piercing screeches of insects and the roar of energy cannons intertwined, composing a symphony of death.

"Kill!"

Cheng Ye let out a furious roar as the alloy warblade in his hand, wrapped in violent Primal Energy, split a pouncing third-rank Blade Bug in two.

Beside him, Lu Fang, Xiang Changkong, and other Genius students from prestigious universities were all fighting with bloodshot eyes.

Inspired by Qin Lang's deeds, these favored children of heaven, who usually only sparred within their ivory towers, had finally stepped out of campus and thrown themselves into this massive meat grinder.

During a lull in the battle, the group retreated to a bunker to rest and reorganize.

"Holy crap! You guys, look at this!"

Jin Yao suddenly cried out in shock. He was clutching his communicator, his eyes bulging as if he had seen something unbelievable.

"What's wrong? Why the fuss?"

Cheng Ye wiped a smear of insect blood from his face and leaned over.

A slightly blurry video was playing on the screen.

In the footage, a young figure clad in golden armor and holding a broken sword was moving like a god of slaughter, dominating the battlefield while besieged by three fifth-rank aliens.

With a final strike, he cleanly and decisively decapitated the Shadow Demon Clan powerhouse.

"This... is this Qin Lang?!"

Lu Fang sucked in a breath of cold air, and the water bottle in his hand fell to the ground with a thud.

Although he had long heard that Qin Lang was strong, seeing him slaughter a fifth-rank powerhouse like a dog with his own eyes still made his scalp tingle from the visual impact.

"Hahaha! I knew it!"

Cheng Ye suddenly burst into laughter, slapping his thigh and shouting in delight.

"This kid always manages to cause a huge stir! A fifth-rank Shadow Demon—that's a nightmare for so many people, yet he just chopped it down like that!"

In contrast to Cheng Ye's ecstasy, Xiang Changkong, who was standing nearby, remained exceptionally silent.

He stared intently at the screen, his brain working at high speed.

As a Genius of the Xiang Family, he naturally held life-saving trump cards given to him by his Family, including a precious six-star attack energy talisman.

But after calculating in his mind for a long time, he eventually shook his head helplessly.

"I can't do it."

Xiang Changkong sighed, a hint of bitterness in his tone.

"Even if I used the six-star energy talisman, I could heavily injure or even kill a fifth-rank powerhouse, but that's assuming they don't run."

"When a fifth-rank powerhouse is determined to flee, it's difficult for even someone of the same rank to keep them there."

"But Qin Lang..."

He pointed at the Shadow Demon in the video who had no way to escape, his eyes full of wariness.

"He didn't just kill it; he didn't even give the opponent a chance to run."

"This kind of control is more terrifying than pure destructive power."

At this moment, his assessment of Qin Lang's strength was once again violently updated.

Meanwhile, at the other end of the defense line.

Wei Hong and Lei Zhen were huddled in a corner, watching the viral video with faces so dark they looked like they could drip ink.

"Damn it! Damn it!"

Wei Hong punched the wall, blood seeping from his knuckles.

Jealousy gnawed at his heart like a poisonous snake.

The more dazzling Qin Lang became, the more he, the former 'Number One of Wanhao,' looked like a joke.

"Don't worry, there's still a chance."

Lei Zhen said sinisterly, a desperate madness flickering in his eyes.

"The Rainbow Bridge is about to open."

"As long as we find a fortuitous encounter in the Spirit Realm, we might be able to overtake him from the inside lane and surpass Qin Lang!"

The two looked at each other, seeing the unwillingness and ruthlessness in each other's eyes.

In a nearby medical tent.

Feng Rui, who was having his wounds bandaged, let out a long sigh of relief as he watched the footage on his phone.

"The gap... is already worlds apart."

He gave a bitter smile and turned off his phone.

His former competitiveness completely vanished at this moment.

Rather than getting lost in jealousy, it was better to calm his mind and focus on himself.

Qin Lang's height was no longer something he could even look up to... Qin Lang's influence reached far beyond the world of Evolvers.

The video seemed to have grown wings, quickly flying into thousands of households.

Tong City, temporary relocation point.

The little girl who had once been saved by Qin Lang clutched her rag doll, pointing at the golden-armored figure on the TV and jumping with excitement.

"Look, Mommy! It's the big brother! It's the big brother who saved me!"

"He's gotten stronger again! He's a great hero!"

Her youthful voice was filled with pure admiration.

In the streets and alleys of remote small towns, several elderly men and women were also gathered around phones, discussing heatedly.

"This young man is really handsome! I heard he's only a freshman?"

"Isn't that right! Risking his life against those monsters for us common folk, he's truly a good boy!"

"I wonder which Family's daughter will have the fortune to marry him."

Qin Lang's act of stepping forward to protect ordinary people caused his popularity among the masses to reach a peak.

This simple emotional resonance was far more powerful than any lofty 'Genius' title.

In Tiandu, inside a taxi currently on the road.

The driver was listening to the news on the radio when he suddenly slapped his thigh hard.

"Oh my god! Isn't this Qin Lang!"

The passenger in the back seat was startled: "Master, you know him?"

"Of course! More than just knowing him!"

The driver's face was flushed with excitement as he directly stopped the meter.

"This ride is on the house today! I've got to have a good chat with you!"

"Back then, this young man was in my car when assassins tried to get him!"

"You have no idea how thrilling that scene was! My hands were shaking on the steering wheel, but what about Qin Lang?"

"He didn't even blink! He truly remained calm even as Mount Tai collapsed before him!"

The driver spoke with spit flying, enthusiastically boasting about his experience of "life and death" with the great hero.

It was as if he were the one who had slain the fifth-rank Shadow Demon himself.

Just as the whole nation was discussing it.

An even more explosive bit of gossip went off like a depth charge on the internet.

"Latest inside scoop! Qin Lang wasn't ambushed; he was using himself as bait!"

"He coordinated with the Martial Artist Guild to set a shocking trap, wiping out that entire group of lurking alien elites in one go!"

"I heard there was even a sixth-rank big guy in there who fell for it!"

This news completely ignited the passion of the entire internet.

"Holy crap! Using himself as bait? That's way too badass!"

"I knew it, how could Brother Lang just take a beating passively!"

"This move was on another level! Young Master Qin is picking up the tab for all the aliens on the field!"

Netizens started making memes, and countless edited videos and posts popped up like mushrooms after a rain.

"National Husband," "Backbone of the Human Race," "Strongest Freshman"... all sorts of titles were heaped onto Qin Lang's head for free.

At this moment, Qin Lang's name truly "broke through the circle."

From the circle of Evolvers, he became a sensation in every corner of the internet.

He was no longer just a Genius.

He had become a household name, a national hero praised by everyone!