A sound came from upstairs.
Eric and Jonathan looked up and saw Clark unconscious at the corner of the stairs.
The two hurried upstairs to help Clark up.
"His body is very hot."
Jonathan, holding Clark, said with a frown.
"When I tried to activate the spaceship, the same thing happened to me as it did with Mom, a beam of light hit me and Clark. Maybe Clark's body was affected."
Eric explained to his father.
"That's the worst case."
Jonathan motioned for Eric to help him move Clark to the couch.
"Eric, is your body okay?"
"For now, yes, except I feel a bit weak."
Eric shook his head, "Clark's condition is serious, he suspected earlier that he lost his powers."
"Sigh."
Jonathan let out a breath, "You stay here and take care of Clark. I'll call Dr. Helen."
With that, he went to the living room to make the call.
A dozen minutes later, Dr. Helen arrived at the farm.
Dressed casually, Helen pushed open the door with her medical bag and asked directly, "What happened?"
"Clark was exposed to the same toxin as his mother."
Jonathan explained to Helen.
Dr. Helen nodded, took a stethoscope from her bag, and immediately began examining Clark, who was lying on the couch.
"You should call an ambulance. Clark needs to go to the hospital immediately, and we must notify the Disease Control Bureau right away."
Helen said while examining Clark.
"I don't think that's a good idea."
Standing aside, Eric disagreed.
Jonathan glanced at Eric, agreeing with his younger son's opinion.
"Sorry, I can't let Clark go to the hospital."
"Why not?"
Helen asked, puzzled.
"Dr. Helen, you must promise me not to tell anyone about this, no one at all."
"Mr. Kent, I am very confidential with my patients' matters, but Clark needs medical assistance."
Helen tied a rubber band around Clark's arm and looked up at Jonathan.
Seeing she still didn't understand, Jonathan said more firmly, "Clark is not an ordinary boy, as you might think."
"I don't know what you mean by ordinary boy, but I need to draw Clark's blood."
She took a syringe from her bag, preparing to draw Clark's blood.
Eric looked at Jonathan, signaling whether to stop her.
Jonathan shook his head, indicating not to act rashly.
"Listen, Dr. Bryce, you can't do that!"
"Is it because of faith?"
Helen asked without looking up.
"No, it's not about faith, but you simply can't."
Before Jonathan finished his sentence, Helen's syringe had already pierced Clark's vein.
The fact that it penetrated Clark's skin so easily made Jonathan widen his eyes in surprise.
Could it be that Clark really lost his superpowers?
Taking a few deep breaths to clear his head, Jonathan bent down and said to the crouching Helen, "You can't send this sample to the lab."
"Mr. Kent, I'm trying to save your son. Unless you tell me what's going on, I can't help him."
Helen said impatiently while preparing to stand up.
But the next moment, Jonathan grabbed her wrist and said seriously, "Dr. Helen, you must promise me to test this sample yourself. Once you do, you'll understand why I'm doing this."
Intimidated by Jonathan's demeanor, Helen instinctively nodded.
After Helen left, Eric spoke to his father, "I can destroy Clark's blood sample."
"Don't do that for now!"
Jonathan bent down and covered the unconscious Clark with a blanket, "I know this might cause trouble, but if it can help cure Clark, even if there's just a small chance, we have to try, right?"
Eric nodded, but he was already prepared to destroy the blood sample privately.
"Eric, is your body really okay?"
Jonathan was still skeptical.
Martha and Clark were severely affected by the spaceship's beam, so why did Eric seem unscathed?
Now he suspected Eric was pretending to be fine to keep him from worrying.
"Maybe my physique is special, you know, Dad, I'm also resistant to meteors. This energy from the spaceship, maybe my body can resist its erosion."
Eric made an excuse to reassure his father.
"That's possible."
Jonathan nodded, agreeing with Eric's explanation.
The youngest son's talents and abilities since childhood had left an impression of invincibility.
Meteors, accidents, diseases—Jonathan couldn't imagine what could defeat Eric.
He never thought Clark would be brought down by illness either.
"If I bring the spaceship here, maybe the energy it emits when activated could heal Clark."
Eric suggested to Jonathan.
"You think the spaceship can heal Clark and Martha?"
"I don't know, but Mom believes the spaceship made her pregnant again, maybe it can heal her too. We can't put all our hopes on the doctors."
With that, he opened the door and walked out, "I'll be right back."
The next day.
Before dawn, under the cover of darkness, Eric moved the spaceship to Pete's cellar again.
After a night of effort, no matter how he operated it, he couldn't activate the spaceship again.
A weary Jonathan came over and patted Eric's shoulder.
"You need to rest, Eric."
"I just feel I can do more."
Eric shook his head, sat on the couch, and pressed his aching forehead, "It's strange, isn't it? My mind keeps flooding with random memories about Mom. When I was in second grade and couldn't get used to the school cafeteria's food, Mom would bring me potato stew and burritos. Sometimes, I think I'm strong, but other times, I feel weaker than anyone."
"You've done great, Eric, you've always been a source of pride for Martha and me."
Jonathan patted Eric's head, "Always."
Eric was silent for a moment, composed himself, and got up to leave the room, needing to calm down.
But his eyes inadvertently caught sight of the latest newspaper on the table.
The words "Blue Valley" and "Starlight" caught his attention.
And a familiar golden scepter appeared in the newspaper.
-----------------------------------------------------------------
10 Advance Chapters: patreon.com/ReadingOasis
Make Sure to give a Review!