(~˘▾˘)~~(˘▾˘~)
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In Earth's orbit, a massive spaceship in the shape of a skull, like a harbinger of destruction, loomed over the entire blue planet.
David and Clark obtained satellite images and information about the chaos in Metropolis from Jor-El and hurried back to Metropolis from the North Pole.
'Destroy the civilization, but leave one city.
This is Brainiac's style!'
Recalling the slogans of those robots, a sense of urgency filled David's eyes as they streaked through the sky at hundreds of times the speed of sound.
This was an unprecedentedly powerful enemy that the Earth had encountered, and, most importantly, his home was right next to Metropolis.
'Brainiac, originally created by the Coluan scientists as artificial intelligence with the highest level of intelligence in the universe. However, it evolved out of control, consumed the scientists who created it, conquered the entire planet, and continued to evolve, developing his own greed, envy, and hatred.
Subsequently, he transformed into a collector in the universe, delighting in the destruction of civilizations and selecting a desired city to shrink and preserve as a collectible.'
David recalled the information about Brainiac as the Metropolis city appeared on the horizon, but suddenly, an astonishing green light poured down from the sky like a waterfall, submerging the entire city.
Both of them quickly stopped and stared at the breathtaking scene.
A beam of light enveloped the entire city.
After the blinding light dissipated, the earth revealed a massive and grim scar. The bridges leading out of the city broke, and the underground drainage system was exposed to the air.
A city covering tens of thousands of square kilometers disappeared into thin air.
"Metropolis... It's gone!"
In mid-air, Clark opened his mouth wide, unable to believe what he saw, his eyes filled with shock.
"No, Metropolis is still there, but it has become smaller."
David frowned his brow and pointed to the very center of the enormous pit at the bottom.
There was a steel-gray area about the size of a beehive, contrasting sharply with the brownish soil surrounding the pit for miles.
With Clark's super-vision, he immediately saw the bottom of the pit, zooming in with microscopic precision. Once again, he laid eyes on the familiar steel city, enclosed by a glass dome.
The city that occupied a large amount of land now seemed to have turned into a model.
"What just happened? The bright light blinded me, and I hurt my neck."
"Did I get a concussion? Why does it feel like the sky is distorted, and that's... that's glass?!"
People in the city peered through the glass, like a storefront, at the sky, magnified countless times by the floating clouds, and they were terrified beyond belief.
The fear and chaos in the city reached its peak.
Chloe had just finished a late-night manuscript the previous day. She opened the curtains of her rented apartment and saw what was happening outside. She rubbed her eyes, and her vision spun before she passed out.
"Help, I must be dreaming!"
Giant subterranean creatures climbed up the glass dome, with two antennae resembling the main cables of the Golden Gate Bridge, and their massive jaws were like two mountain ranges pressed together, casting shadows over several blocks.
The citizens were in a state of extreme panic, and some even fainted from fear, clutching their chests.
"Survivors of Planet 200458, you have been sealed. The permanent sealing will be completed in one hour and is irreversible. Welcome to the Creator's collection."
The robots that remained in the city mechanically broadcasted the message.
The skull spaceship above Earth projected a tractor beam, and the Metropolis enclosed by the glass dome floated up and headed into the interior of the spaceship.
Clark's face turned pale, and he was about to fly to catch up, but David held him back.
"The citizens need help," he turned to look at his brother.
"They'll be fine; there's something more urgent right now."
David gestured to him to look at the edge of the massive pit.
Tens of thousands of skull robots, equipped with cutting-edge cosmic technology, began to depart, destroying everything they encountered, preparing to bring about the death of this living planet.
Only in this way can Brainiac's collection have the highest possible value of being unique.
The town of Smallville was located on the outskirts of Metropolis, and this inconspicuous town was not reduced in size along with the rest of Metropolis. However, due to its geographical location, it was going to bear the brunt of the attack!
"Mom, Dad!"
Clark hesitated for a moment, then gritted his teeth, withdrew his gaze from the city already taken aboard the spaceship, and descended like a supersonic fighter. He punched and shattered several of the robots that had entered the town first, scattering their parts in all directions.
Swoosh!
"Let's deal with these robots first, and then we'll save Metropolis."
A scorching cosmic energy beam shot out from David's eyes, sweeping through and cutting down the skull robots like wheat falling before the scythe.
[Template Fusion at 54%]
After clearing the robots near the town, David's eyes flashed with a strange light.
The last time the template fusion level grew abnormally, he had some guesses because of it.
The system requires influencing individuals crucial to the fate of the world to acquire emotional points, such as those superheroes or supervillains and people with extraordinary powers.
'But in the plot of the fate of the world, what role do ordinary people always play?'
They seem unimportant, often unremarkable, and constantly in need of rescue when faced with powerful super-villains. However, if they didn't exist, would any of the storylines have any meaning?
Superheroes defeated supervillains and thwarted the conspiracy to destroy the world, but if the world is a desolate empty land, is it still worth saving?
'Those are the hidden 'important characters'.'
David raised his hand and released a torrent of energy, smashing several robots. His eyes narrowed.
Although these ordinary people had never appeared on the panel's refresh, they undeniably contributed to his template fusion level.
Ever since he appeared before the masses as the Purple Light Man, he had been paying attention and confirmed that every time he appeared, it stirred the emotions of those ordinary people.
'Afterward, the template fusion level always has abnormal growth!'
David had no interest in saving the world, doing something for strangers unrelated to him. However, if it meant gaining emotional points, he didn't mind helping out when the situation wasn't dangerous. Of course, if the situation was dangerous he was going to come to the rescue quickly.
"Scanning detected leaked Kryptonian samples, must be destroyed!"
The army of skull robots saw David and Clark, shouting as they ascended, a steel army approaching like a swarm of locusts. It seemed that, in comparison to world destruction, they had identified a higher-priority target.
"Scanning detected the unknown life form to be captured, prepare for capture!"
Energy laser cannons rained down, along with steel fists that could easily pierce through tanks. David and Clark fought their way through the encirclement of robot forces.
"We can't allow any of these robots to leave our sight intact." Clark swung his iron fist, and his immense strength shattered the brittle steel alloys that these robots were made of.
David manipulated the gravity field and ruthlessly compressed over a hundred skeleton robots together, crushing them into a pile of scrap metal, and letting them fall to the ground.
These skull robots created by Brainiac seemed like shoddy goods in the hands of David and Clark, but in reality, they had been responsible for destroying one world after another under Brainiac's control.
On Earth, any one of these robots, taken at random, would be capable of fighting in various terrains and environments, including jungles, deserts, lava, and the depths of the ocean. They could fly at speeds of over ten times the speed of sound, effortlessly throw tanks weighing tens of tons, and unleash energy attacks that could pierce through skyscrapers.
The power of a single robot could easily annihilate a entire powerful army!
Tens of thousands of skull robots could effortlessly bring about the destruction of the Earth.
Allowing just one of these robots to escape and embark on its programmed journey to destroy the world could potentially result in countless lives lost in its hands.
Gotham and Metropolis are like a pair of twin siblings, one shrouded in shadow and silence, the other prosperous and vibrant, gazing at each other across a stretch of coastline.
But now, the other side of the coast has turned into a massive abyss, a dark void staring at the sky, leaving only Gotham behind.
Brainiac claims to collect samples of civilizations. In fact, his spaceship immediately invades the entire planet's database of intelligence whenever it arrives on a life-bearing planet, downloading all useful information.
Whether or not a city was left behind was inconsequential; it was just his personal preference.
Metropolis is not the most perfect city on Earth, and it was difficult to call it a model of Earth's civilization.
However, no matter what, it was not Gotham's turn to be a model of Earth's civilization, and it managed to escape due to its decadence and darkness, making even the mechanical Kryptonian frown.
But Gotham's Batman couldn't stand idly in the face of a crisis in the neighboring city. He piloted his Fenrir armor, which was made of Promethium, a metal that could absorb energy, defending against all attacks. It possessed the power to sink battleships and destroy one robot after another.
"What's the reason this time?"
He fired a Batarang, grabbed a skeleton robot with the Bat-hook, and viciously hurled it, smashing another ten. The hoarse and grim voice resonated from the towering and heavy mech suit, allowing anyone to guess his expression without even seeing his face.
"I've been alive for over thirty years, even though I've spent half of that time out of this country.
But I remember that the old Metropolis has never been this lively before!
But ever since you guys appeared..."
World-threatening crises involving the universe and aliens are happening one after another, all centered around Metropolis.
It couldn't help but make one wonder if it was the presence of these two people that attracted the gaze of some terrifying entities from the universe to this planet.
'Just like two rhinoceros beetles suddenly appeared in an ordinary ant colony. What used to be an unnoticed roadside now has curious onlookers wanting to dismantle and study it, potentially bringing disaster to the ant nest.'
Bruce Wayne's suspicious mind stirred again. If the two of them left this planet, would the world return to its previous state of relative peace? He could go back and peacefully patrol the city in his Bat-suit, just like before.
"Gotham is full of lunatics, especially a bunch of mentally ill criminals who don't commit crimes for money, but the number has become more and more since your appearance."
David manipulated the gravity field, shattering dozens of robots that had rushed at him. He glanced at Bruce and spoke coldly.
"Can these events also be attributed to you?"
In reality, what Bruce was saying wasn't baseless suspicion. To some extent, these crises were indeed related to Clark's appearance.
In the comics, Dr. Manhattan had once used the universe as an experimental ground to study this matter. Clark is the starting point of everything and could even influence the past. As long as his destiny changed even slightly, it could lead to significant alterations in the timeline.
It could be said that Clark is the son of DC and the centerpiece of the multiverse.
"They came to Earth following Zod's ship."
Clark fiercely sent a skull robot flying and violently crushed its parts. His face had a slightly unpleasant expression, and he explained in a serious tone.
He didn't want things to escalate to this point, but the situation had developed beyond their control. The disaster Zod brought was already enough to make him feel guilty.
But the trouble was far from over.
'No matter who's behind these robots, I will stop them, and no one will be harmed in this event!'
Clark's eyes burned with determination as he swept through a large group of robots and clenched his fists, gazing at the sky.
"Someone has arrived from space!"
David stared into the heavens, squinting his eyes.
In space, within the massive skull-shaped spaceship.
The mechanical Kryptonian surveyed the Metropolis trapped under the glass dome. His steel fingers glided across the glass, seemingly oblivious to the terrified people within the city, screaming and crying at the sight of the 'giant hand' in the sky. He waved his hand dismissively.
"Bring it down, seal it."
Two skull robots stepped forward to receive the 'Metropolis' that had turned into a city in a bottle.
Zor-El cast a cold gaze downward.
The steel floor transformed into a transparent screen, continuously displaying data of David and Clark's battle against the skull robots. His intelligent brain rapidly calculated an unsettling conclusion.
'If there is no external interference, tens of thousands of combat units will be completely annihilated by these two in just over ten minutes.'
He controlled the ship to open the hatch, and crimson flames erupted from beneath it, resembling a comet of doom and death hurtling straight down.
In the sky above Metropolis, three of them gazed at the trail of flames caused by the crimson comet, its entire body wrapped in fire due to friction with the atmosphere.
The atmosphere hummed and buzzed, a powerful oppressive force rolling in.
"It's you!"
Clark shouted angrily and punched the oncoming threat.
"The source of this disaster?!"
Boom!
The flames exploded, and a figure with blue and red appeared, sending Clark flying. A visible shockwave spread out, sweeping across hundreds of meters.
Facing a powerful enemy he had never seen before, Clark felt like his head had been struck by a meteor. He flew out hundreds of meters, steadied himself, shook his head, and was about to launch an angry counterattack when he suddenly froze.
"Who... who are you?"
David and Bruce Wayne exchanged rapid glances between the two of them.
Even the ferocious skull robots halted at this moment, guarding the newcomer like an escort, making him appear as a superior mechanical god.
The same red and blue-themed costume, a similar "S" symbol on the chest, and even a somewhat similar facial appearance, one flesh and blood, the other mechanical.
'Mechanical Superman!'
David's gaze sharpened as he recognized the identity of the newcomer from his distinctive appearance.
The Mechanical Superman was one of Brainiac's creations, a product of his technological modulation, one of the survivors of Krypton, and initially, Clark's own uncle and Supergirl's father—Zor-El.
'Krypton, as a renowned and powerful civilization throughout the universe, has been coveted by Brainiac to serve as a sample of his collection. When Krypton was destroyed, he saved a Kryptonian city named Kandor and preserved it.
Zor-El was affected by the explosion, and was gravely injured, and Brainiac transformed him into a servant to collect samples of civilizations, turning him into the Mechanical Superman.'
"I am the ultimate Kryptonian created by the Creator, here to fulfill his will!"
Zor-El stared at Clark and David with a cold gaze, and his hand transformed into a sharp blade, like a messenger of god's will, exuding a fierce momentum as he moved to attack the two.
"You need to be eliminated, and you need to be captured!"
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(~˘▾˘)~Don't forget to send your power-stones!~(˘▾˘~)