Chapter 53: Countdown to the Alliance



"—you shouldn't have come."

This is a huge arena, the stage is filled with shouts and shouts, the atmosphere is hot and cruel, the two contestants are sitting in the rest area nearby. Superman holds his knees with his arms and breathes slightly, bright red blood drips down his jaw.

Hearing his opponent's voice, he paused for breath, wiped his face with the towel on his forehead, and whispered back, "And you shouldn't have reminded me."

"I'm not kidding." The alien lowered his head, his mouth didn't move, and his voice was almost inaudible. "This is a trap. If you want to save the human girl, you have to defeat me. But the rule is that you can't use superpowers, and I'm faster and stronger than you, so you can't win. But if you lose...Darkseid can get what he wants."

"What does he want?"

"you."

"Then let him come."

"You have no idea how powerful he is. There is almost nothing in this universe that he cannot obtain. He needs humans to produce legions for him, so he attacks the Earth. He wants you to help him find his daughter, so you have no choice but to come here. You will die here, and the Earth will become another factory."

"He won't succeed. Even if I can't get back, there are people on Earth that his clone can't defeat."

"You are very confident... Superman." The alien shrugged his shoulders. "You saved many people, but you can't save everyone. You must go to Earth to inspire those you love instead of wasting time here."

"Then you probably don't know me well enough."

Superman stood up again, sweat flowing over the wound, causing a burning pain. He controlled his body to make an attacking posture, his eyes still clear and blue.

“I don’t inspire them—they inspire me.”

**

He felt like he was floating over the wilderness.

His body ached as never before, he was tired as never before. His vision was blurry, his steps were weak, his head was heavy, but he kept moving forward.

The mid-course signal was briefly restored.

"…Superman?"

Batman's voice came.

"Where have you been?"

“Is the Earth in danger?”

"Everything is normal at the moment."

"What about the metropolis?"

"Luther's trial was postponed, and they decided to keep him in custody a little longer, which is a good thing."

"That's right." Superman smiled faintly, trying to straighten his back and speak with more confidence, "Has Clark Kent been fired by the Daily Planet?"

"Not yet. I met Louise Lane, and she's a really nice girl... and she's been missing you."

"I miss her, too." Superman said slowly, "I also miss Earth and you. But I can't go back. There are people in this universe who miss me too."

Batman was silent for a moment.

He said, "You can do it. Get some rest."

**

"It's a boring pastime," said Darkseid.

The alien sat in his high-backed chair and looked down at Superman.

"You have come this far, having defeated many enemies and sacrificed many things. You left your friends and family behind on Earth, and then you mustered up the courage to face me alone."

"So I decided to give you a reward."

"Go do one last thing for me, Superman. Something insignificant... Kill an innocent person who is suffering from illness and wants to die. Then come back to me and I will tell you where the girl is."

"...Can I leave after that?"

"You can't." Darkseid raised his lips and looked down at him, his fingertips together and said calmly, "I will only agree to let the girl go back to Earth. As for you, you will become my best experimental material to help me achieve my goal. You can also refuse, and then the human girl will die."

For Alice?

He held the knife and stabbed the dying man's neck repeatedly, looking into his eyes that were gradually losing their vitality.

——Then I realized that some things are indeed impossible to do.

Neither can Superman.

"It seems you have failed, refusing to stain your hands with blood, refusing to fall. Your homeland is about to face war, your planet is suffering, and your companions are on the verge of death." Darkseid's clone in this universe has already set off for Earth. The phantom he left behind for communication walked down the stairs and looked at Superman who was firmly trapped by Krontim steel and the gravity of a black hole - this metal is usually used to drag planets in the universe, "and you can't do anything about it. Superman, Kal-El, you have chosen a path that is simply impossible to complete."

"It is easier to destroy than to rule, but harder to save than to conquer."

Superman just struggled silently, his knees were forced into the ground, leaving two deep marks due to the reaction force.

"Don't you understand me?" The alien image frowned vividly. "Don't waste your energy. This is the hardest metal in the universe. You can't break free from it."

Superman said: "You could say I've been wasting my time."

He gritted his teeth, his knees trembled, his muscles tensed, and he stood up inch by inch.

"Whether it's to save Alice... or to face you... or to lift this chain..."

"Someone has to do it!"

——This person does not have to be a superman.

But now there is only Superman.

He stood up, shattered the image of Darkseid with a punch, and said with a gasp: "Whether it's taking away the little human girl or invading the earth, don't even think about it."

As soon as he finished speaking, he staggered a few times and raised his head to look at the universe.

The earth was still as far away as a star in the sky, but before us was an endless army of demon-like creatures.

**

"Do you understand the monster we are facing? Is he related to Superman's transfer?"

"I don't know. There's no information about this in my lantern ring." Green Lantern said, "It feels like I just took a trip to the universe, and the whole world has become different. There are more and more superheroes I don't know, and the Avengers plan that was only on paper can be successfully built. But why didn't they invite me?"

Batman: "...They invited me, but I turned it down."

Green Lantern: “?”

"This isn't fair. What superpowers do you have? Can you fly? Why do we have to walk? It's too slow."

"I can't."

"Hey." The green light circled around the vigilante, illuminating his vision in a smoky green. "So what can you do? We are on the same side now."

"I'll remind you of our purpose." Batman carefully observed the monsters' actions. "They left without killing anyone. What was the purpose? Since Green Lantern can do anything, you should follow them."

In the end, they all boarded the plane that the lantern ring transformed into.

Because Green Lantern discovered that this kind of creature, which the system calls a demon, not only appears in Gotham. They can be found in almost every city where superheroes appear. In a short while, the two of them met Wonder Woman and Flash who were also chasing the enemy on the road. When passing through New York, Batman also took the time to say hello to Iron Man.

"You told me last time that you had to give me advance notice before flying to New York." He raised his hand to signal the green light man, "but this time the driver is not me."

"Who is this again?" Tony's armor's cannon exploded across the city, like a grand and artistic fireworks display, the light slightly dimming the Green Lantern's light. With the two of them around, the other superheroes all faded, not even noticeable in the crowd.

"Batman, do you have your own superhero random generator? First it was Superman, then this green light. If you have an idea of ​​the next target, you can inform the Director of SHIELD in advance. After all, he has no hair left to lose."

To be fair, Moses couldn't tell which was more eye-catching.

Batman, who has always been low-key, is not used to this style of painting. His colorful cape is full of discomfort. He shouldn't always criticize Superman for being high-profile. Superman attracts attention more passively, while these two people are simply born to be keen on standing in the center of the stage and becoming the focus of attention.

"Don't be so rude!" Green Lantern turned and shouted at Iron Man, "I am much more famous in the universe than you! And I am the first one to arrive."

"I am." Wonder Woman corrected.

“……”You can’t outlive a demigod.

The lantern has withered.

"Why do you all know each other? I feel like I'm left out. But that's okay, I still know the Flash, thank you, Barry."

The Flash's expression cracked. "But I regret ever meeting you, Green Lantern. Don't call me by my name."

Perhaps because the Avengers' headquarters is in New York, there are a lot of demon-like legions running rampant in this city. They were flying in the air and looking down. The Hulk was guarding the end of the road, blocking all enemies. There was an endless stream of monsters ahead. The scene was funny, like plants fighting zombies.

It seems that not only does he not have to worry, but he also seems to be able to handle it with ease. However, it is difficult to judge which one caused more damage, the Hulk or the alien.

"Thor went to Metropolis." Tony flew beside Green Lantern's plane. "The small box that Loki brought last time formed a transmission channel, and Metropolis also has one. But Superman is not here now, and Thor decided to help him defend the city until he comes back."

Batman: "But these creatures don't intend to attack, they just want to take people away."

"Yeah, so I guess we'll see that guy at the finish line soon."

Sure enough, they saw Thor in front of a tower-shaped alien building in Metropolis. He was holding a hammer and standing side by side with another young man wearing scale-like armor.

"Let's do this." The man, who was soaking wet like he had just escaped from the sea, said in a commanding tone, "I'll soak them in the water first, and then you can send down a few mines."

"Your water conducts electricity?" Thor asked in a deep voice. "I know you are the king of Atlantis, but I will inherit Asgard in the future. Our identities and status are equal, so you'd better be respectful in your tone."

Although the words were not harmonious, the two gods and fish (?) who had never studied physics worked together quite well. When Batman glided from the sky to the ground, all he could smell was the burnt smell of being burned by electricity.

Thor looked up and saw Iron Man and Green Lantern flying in the sky. He raised his hand and waved to his companions: "I know this thing. My girlfriend taught me last time. She said it's called... it's called a traffic light! But we don't have any cars here. Who are you giving instructions to?"

Iron Man and Green Lantern, both wearing red and yellow armor, looked at each other.

They rolled their eyes in disgust at the same time and quickly moved away in opposite directions.

"No, I am me and he is him." Iron Man's feet touched the ground, making a crisp metallic collision sound. "How can this thing be closed? That's - damn it!"

A burst of bright golden light suddenly lit up, lighting up the sky of half of the metropolis into a gray-blue color. Then came the rhythmic and powerful footsteps, something invincible was slowly descending on the earth.

Amid the continuous cheers of "Long Live Darkseid", people finally saw the leader of the monsters.

The alien known as Darkseid stood at the end of a sea of ​​fire and the bright blue light of the portal, heavy shadows on his wild face.

"It seems that you are the friends who are determined to believe in Superman even when they are in prison and facing death."

“?!”

"Tell us where Superman is!"


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