Superman's return, like a bombshell that crashed into the calm lake, caused huge waves.
The darkness of the world's landscape seemed to have been slightly altered by the presence of that man.
Of course, Luke himself had no personal feelings about it.
He only said a sentence at the press conference and then handed the scene to Peggy.
Those reporters were so busy pressing the shutters that they didn't even have time to ask serious questions.
News travelled fast in the modern world.
10 minutes later, the White House and the Pentagon were taking turns calling.
Whether the President or the Generals...
Their words were polite, and their attitudes were sincere.
Most of the conversation was about inviting Superman to Washington, D.C., or to attend a party.
Such politically charged conversations were usually uninformative.
Luke exchanged a few casual greetings and then handed over the itinerary for the next few days to Natasha, the head of S.H.I.E.L.D's administration department.
"The Mayor of New York would like to invite you to give a speech in Brooklyn, what do you think, Director?"
This pretty girl with burgundy hair looked much more mature than when she was in the Soviet Union and in Leviathan.
The top brass core of S.H.I.E.L.D. had basically been injected with the Infinity Formula's enhancing elixir to slow down cellular ageing and maintain youthful vitality.
Even though Luke left this world for a long time, Peggy and Natasha didn't change much.
But the passage of time always gave women a more graceful and elegant charm.
"No time and no interest."
Superman was back at S.H.I.E.L.D.'s headquarters building. He shook his head in refusal.
Right now, he just wanted to have a good rest and take a long vacation.
In the past, when his business was still in its infancy, he couldn't escape politics and the circle of power, so he could only get involved.
But today was different from the past. S.H.I.E.L.D was on the right track and was gaining momentum.
The image of power portrayed by Superman had become the common perception of those at the top of the pyramid in the human world.
Luke didn't need to deal with any dignitaries, let alone keep his schedule full, juggling various high-end receptions and interpersonal relationships.
He was perfectly capable of shifting from the forefront to behind the scenes, watching where the world, which he had changed beyond recognition, would go.
"From now on, you can just push back on these kinds of invitations without having to come and ask me again."
Luke knocked on the table and lightly said so.
Confirming that Natasha had nothing else, he simply closed his eyes and magnified his senses on his single multiverse.
The Black Widow, sitting opposite, felt a powerful wave-like substance sweep over her like a radar wave.
Because she was so close, she could see with her own eyes the distortion in the air, as if it was constantly vibrating, sending out light and strange colours.
Witnessing this scene, Natasha subconsciously held her breath, not daring to make any movements.
"Relax, it won't hurt you."
Luke spoke out in reassurance.
He was gradually covering the planet under his feet with his senses.
No matter what those Skrulls would choose to do, it was an indisputable fact that they secretly kidnapped Howard and Nick Fury with the intention of destroying S.H.I.E.L.D.
For the purpose of setting an example to scare others, Luke definitely had to show a stern attitude.
As for the consequences of offending the Skrull Empire?
Sorry.
That was out of his consideration.
Superman's senses expanded rapidly. His whole being seemed to ascend to great heights, opening up a God-like perspective.
Earth was like an azure glass marble placed in the palm of his hand.
...
...
Westchester County, Mutant Academy.
The now young man Charles stood at the podium, giving a history lesson to the fifth graders in a kind and gentle tone.
Unlike his friend Erik's choice, he didn't enter S.H.I.E.L.D.
Instead, he stayed at the academy, a school that held great meaning for mutants, as a teacher.
This was because the White Queen, Emma, and Superman had worked together long before they made it to the stage.
The Mutant Registration Act was introduced and dramatically reversed the general perception of mutants.
The climate of public opinion at this time was much better than before.
Even William Stryker, the 'mutant butcher' in the original plot, sent his son to the academy.
As someone said, the plot of the world was messed up, he couldn't see the original appearance anymore.
Thus, Professor Charles and Magneto, the best of friends, were supposed to be deadly rivals.
Not only did they not go their separate ways, but they became youth leaders for their fellow compatriots.
"The original mutants date back to ..."
Charles propped his hands on the table, and his voice suddenly paused.
He looked up with eyes full of shock.
Through the window, he looked towards far-away Washington, DC.
As an alpha class mutant, Charles had the most powerful psychic ability in the world.
If he was willing, he could even enter the consciousness of every human being, all over the world, with the help of the Cerebro, developed by Hank, the Beast.
As Luke sat in his headquarters building at the Potomac River, he let go of his sense of awareness and searched for every Skrull on the planet.
Charles, who was in Westchester County, North of New York, was naturally aware of it.
Habitually, he tried to catch the mental traces of it, trying to find out who the person was.
But the mind wave, which was truly powerful, repelled Charles without mercy.
In the next second!
He screamed!
He covered his eyes with his hands as if his retinas had been burned when he directly looked at the sun.
It was far beyond his imagination!
'More powerful than the legendary Omega-class mutants!'
"Class dismissed!"
Charles hastily spoke, turned and rushed out the door to find the Madam Principle to explain the situation.
...
...
The Skrull contact officer disguised as Nick Fury sent a message to his fellow infiltrators in S.H.I.E.L.D.
He had already been informed of Superman's horrifying presence from the leader's mouth.
All the news that seemed exaggerated was all true.
Then, not to mention an advanced unit, even if the Empire threw all its forces at him, it probably wouldn't be able to do much damage to him.
After all, that was the man who easily defeated the Gladiator whom the Elders of the Universe had to treat with respect.
Superman's fame within the galaxy...
Had surpassed Odin, the former master of the Nine Realms, and was vaguely on track to catch up with the Mad Titan.
"Using stealth technology, the ship docked in outer space is ready to make the jump at any time."
After contact, this Skrull had returned to his original appearance.
He didn't like to dress up as the dark-skinned hard-boiled egg.
"What should we do with those humans we have under our control?"
The officer asked.
Only he and the leader of the Skrulls' advance unit were left in the darkroom.
"Throw them in the 'warehouse'. They'll come to their senses sooner or later anyway, and they'll just figure it out for themselves."
The leader didn't kill those people, nor did he extort information by torture.
There was a simple reason.
Not out of some cosmic humanitarianism or something else...
It was because the Skrulls didn't need to do that.
When they captured their targets, they could control and copy their appearance and memory.
"Is Superman already aware of our presence?"
The contact officer was a little nervous.
The laws of survival in the vast galaxy had always been close to the laws of the jungle, where the strong eat the weak.
The civilisation was a facade; take off that cover, and the interior was nothing but naked savagery.
The Mad Titan and the Black Order under his command had become a major problem for the three empires.
And now the equally powerful Superman was about to take the blue planet to the top.
Once the other party knew that the Skrull Empire had struck Earth, would it lead to an outbreak of war?
"What could he do if he knows?"
The leader seemed to regain his composure.
The Skrull's ability to shape-shift didn't stop at the surface but mimics on a genetic level.
Unless Superman could see the distribution and movement of each atom, penetrate into the microscopic world and see the variations in it...
How could he tell who was human and who was Skrull?
Therefore, in the leader's view, the best situation was for everyone to take a step back.
They were forced by Superman's power to withdraw from the planet.
And the other party could only turn a blind eye to it as if nothing had happened.
The idea of the Skrull leader was beautiful, but the reality was cruel.
Boom!
The darkroom seemed to be lifted by an invisible hand.
Light came in!
This was an air defense base buried deep underground.
The leader of the Skrulls borrowed Howard Stark's power and funds to build a private base.
But that invisible force, like the palm of God's hand pressing down!
The thick soil and hard reinforced concrete were all crushed!
"Found you."
A magnificent, spirit-shaking sound blasted directly into the Skrull leader's consciousness.
His expression of panic suddenly solidified.
As if his soul had been drained, he fell to his knees, trembling.
Meanwhile, the Skrulls, scattered all over the area, were struck by lightning.
They clutched their heads, stubbornly resisting the invisible psychic wave.
But no one could persist for more than a second, and then they all lost consciousness.
"Director ..."
In the office of the headquarters building, Natasha cautiously called out.
Luke leaned into his chair, with his eyes closed, as if he was resting.
She had been motionless and sat stiffly for 5 minutes.
It was a little too much to bear, and that's when her voice came out.
"Okay, get security to throw those Skrulls under the building in jail for a proper interrogation when Peggy gets back."
Luke opened his eyes and gently snapped his fingers.
Outside the headquarters building, magical sparks flicker incessantly, pulling open numerous teleportation portals.
The Skrulls, who lost their resistance and passed out, fell to the green lawn like heavy sandbags.
"Skrulls?"
Natasha, alarmed, went to the floor-to-ceiling window and looked over.
"Director, how did you find them ...?"
The female secretary, who graduated from Leviathan and won the title of 'Black Widow', covered her mouth.
She had just heard from Peggy that the Skrulls were quite cunning and hard to distinguish.
But Luke was just sitting in his office, and these guys were delivered to his doorstep. It was unbelievable.
"When you can put a planet in the palm of your hand and play with it as you please, doing anything you want to do or finding anyone would be easy."
Luke smiled and slightly leaned back.
With the secret invasion of the Skrulls out of the way, it was time for a vacation.