Superman was struck by the World Forger's massive hand, sent plummeting to the ground like a meteor crashing through the atmosphere, engulfed in flames!
Boom—
The earth's crust shattered.
At the epicenter of his impact, a massive earthquake rippled across the land.
The last remaining sunlight in the sky was instantly obscured by volcanic ash erupting into the air.
Across the entire globe, regardless of time zone or day and night, darkness fell upon the world without the light of the yellow sun.
—As if humanity's Sun God had fallen.
High in the sky, the magnificent yellow rays of sunlight vanished behind the sea of clouds.
The Earth felt as though it had been swallowed by a gray, oppressive sack, and in the next moment, the world's inhabitants lost their light.
"You're far too arrogant, Superman," the World Forger said, looking down at him.
He slowly stepped forward, walking to where Superman had fallen, and placed his foot on Superman's chest.
Superman's steel body—capable of withstanding the weight of stars, impervious to any form of damage, from radiation, nuclear weapons, and bullet impacts to planetary collisions—was now cracking under the pressure of the higher-dimensional force of the multiverse.
With a sickening crunch, every bone in Superman's body was ground into dust beneath the World Forger's foot.
The sharp sound of bones breaking echoed across every corner of the Earth.
But Superman possessed another incredible ability—super healing.
Though the yellow sunlight was blocked by the ash-filled sky, the faintest solar wind from the South Pole still managed to reach him, providing energy.
The cells in his body, which contained the genetic blueprint of all Kryptonians, rapidly regenerated. Superman's bones reformed, his body drenched in blood, as he flew out from beneath the World Forger's foot!
His crimson heat vision flared, becoming a second sun, bathing most of the now-darkened Earth in a red glow.
The heat beams relentlessly targeted the World Forger's eyes.
—With unmatched combat experience, Superman had identified the World Forger's weakness early on: his eyes.
Annoyed, the World Forger closed his eyes in irritation.
He swung at Superman, and the chilling blade of the World Forger Hammer slashed through the air, leaving what seemed like multiple scars torn into the sky.
Superman moved so quickly that he was nearly invisible to the human eye.
He continuously dodged the swings of the World Forger Hammer. Frustrated, the World Forger scoffed and stopped his direct attacks, instead pointing his finger toward the clouds. In an instant, the restructured molecules exploded, engulfing Superman within the blast.
The explosion triggered a sudden contraction of Earth's atmosphere, causing it to roil and churn. Atmospheric particles began to dissipate into space.
This meant that Earth was now losing its most primal layer of protection.
Without the atmosphere, Earth would become a planet devoid of oxygen, where even a tiny pebble from Saturn's rings could smash into its surface and cause catastrophic damage.
Oxygen across the globe was rapidly vanishing.
Superman, engulfed in flames from the explosion, was falling.
His Kryptonian suit, along with his red cape, was charred black. The impact from the blast had driven him into the ground, and blood was streaming from his ears.
The World Forger gazed down at him, his eyes cold. "You cannot stop me, Superman. You are nothing more than one of the lives I created. I can erase you from existence with ease."
Superman lifted his gaze, his face split open with deep wounds, even his eyelashes stained with blood.
"I will protect this world," he said, his voice low but unwavering.
Once again, Superman charged toward the World Forger—
And once again, he was effortlessly defeated.
This time, the World Forger clenched him in his fist.
Superman was gripped tightly between the World Forger's fingers, the immense pressure crushing his body.
His steel frame groaned under the force, and blood erupted from his pores as his skin broke open under the pressure.
Superman let out a muffled grunt, but even so, he relentlessly tried to raise a single finger.
He couldn't back down. He couldn't fall.
He had sworn an oath to protect this world…
He was the first line of defense for this planet, and the last line of defense for humanity in the face of a being beyond dimensions.
No one else could stand against the World Forger.
If he fell, if he gave up, then in the blink of an eye, this entire universe would turn to ash.
At that moment, all life, every living being on every star he had ever set foot upon, would cease to exist.
Let alone Earth.
The blue planet he had arrived on decades ago in a spacecraft.
Here lived his parents, his friends, and his loved ones. Here, he cherished the morning sunlight, the intoxicating scent of fresh flowers, the innocent laughter of children, and the delicate dreamlike butterfly that once perched on his fingertips…
This Earth.
He would fight for it until his very last breath!
Superman let out a roar, using every ounce of his remaining strength, and forcefully pried open the World Forger's fingers. In that instant, his freezing breath enveloped the World Forger's eyes, encasing them in solid ice.
The World Forger cried out in pain, quickly shielding his eyes, his anger finally igniting.
The fury of a creator god, akin to divine retribution, was about to sweep across the entire world.
He opened his eyes and glared at Superman, molten rage swirling in his gaze like rivers of lava. "—Superman!"
He growled, and the World Forger Hammer cut through the air, slicing through time and space, folding the three-dimensional world around Superman—like folding a sheet of paper with casual ease.
Superman was trapped in the folded space-time created by the World Forger. No matter how fast he was, even if he surpassed the speed of light, he could only depart from a single point and return to that exact same point.
The folding of three-dimensional space—this was the true power the World Forger used to deal with Superman.
In this distorted space, Superman was like a prisoner, caged by the World Forger. Then, with a swift motion, the World Forger's scythe descended, slashing into Superman's chest!
Once again, Superman plummeted from the sky.
Like a feather falling.
Like a suffering Christ tumbling from the cross.
His chest was split open by the Creation Scythe, and his heart, still beating, was visible within the blood-drenched cavity.
He crashed into the dust, now unrecognizable from the once god-like figure of Apollo, his flesh mangled, skin scorched black. Yet, his light blue eyes remained as clear as ever.
He was barely alive, clutching his torn chest as he struggled to push himself up off the ground with trembling arms.
"Should I call you foolish or arrogant?"
The World Forger whispered as he approached.
Dragging the World Forger Hammer behind him, the blade gouged a deep chasm in the earth, a rift large enough to become a new world canyon.
"If you were willing to journey with me to the future… then you could join me in entering the new multiverse. This current multiverse has grown old, incapable of providing me with further power. The new multiverse I've created will replace Perpetua's strength and make me the one true god…"
The World Forger spoke slowly and calmly.
He didn't care about revealing his ultimate goal to anyone.
Because this world was about to be harvested.
Standing before Superman, the World Forger raised the World Forger Hammer, preparing to sever Superman's head, when a single, utterly ordinary bullet pierced the sky, transcending dimensions, and struck the World Forger's hand.
A small, silver bullet.
Still warm from the gunpowder blast that propelled it from the chamber.
For a moment, the World Forger's movements froze, something rare.
Slowly, ever so slowly, he turned his head to see where the bullet had come from.
—Out on the yellow sand plains, Soren, having just emerged from the pyramid, stood in shock, staring at his own finger on the trigger, unable to believe what had just happened.
…How could it be?
Soren felt as though it was his first time ever firing a gun, yet the moment he gripped the handle, an overwhelming sense of familiarity, like muscle memory, guided him perfectly. His arms had lifted with precision, aiming at the World Forger's wrist, and he had fired the shot.
That single bullet surpassed the limits of any sharpshooter on Earth.
A bullet without any real power could never have hit the World Forger, who existed on a higher dimensional plane.
Soren was drenched in sweat, his golden hair clinging wetly to his face. Though every ounce of his strength had been drained the moment he pulled the trigger, he still raised his head with unwavering resolve, meeting the gaze of the World Forger.
The god's massive form blotted out the sky, its oppressive presence more terrifying than any nightmarish creature. Any ordinary person, meeting such an indifferent gaze that seemed to encapsulate the coldness of the entire universe, would have collapsed in fear, their legs giving out beneath them.
But Soren stood tall in the face of the World Forger.
Even though his fingers trembled with exhaustion, his gaze did not falter.
In that moment, he thought of nothing.
All he knew was that he could not—could not stand idly by and watch Clark be killed by the World Forger.
The World Forger could kill him, but not Clark.
Soren needed to buy Clark time, give him the chance to catch his breath and recover his strength...
The World Forger, too, seemed unable to comprehend how a human could strike him with a mere bullet.
... But it didn't matter.
It was only an ordinary human.
The World Forger didn't even need to lift a finger—just a single glance would be enough to reduce Soren to pieces with a dimensional attack.
The World Forger's gaze fixated on Soren, and the space around him began to fold. Yet Soren made no attempt to flee. He continued to look forward, and when he saw Clark slowly rising in the distance, a brief sense of relief washed over him.
He lowered the gun, feeling a momentary peace and release.
To sacrifice his life for the sake of saving the world—perhaps that wasn't such a bad thing after all...
Soren closed his eyes, awaiting death with calm acceptance.
—But what pierced his eyelids wasn't darkness, but a blinding blue-white light.
A brilliant radiance, brighter than any star, cascaded before him like a waterfall.
A colossal, pale blue figure, equal in height to the World Forger, materialized in the air.
This enormous, translucent figure stood like a fisherman with feet planted in a flowing river, halting the space from folding any further.
"You've been waiting for me to show myself, World Forger," the pale blue giant spoke from high in the sky.
The World Forger turned around to face the newcomer.
"Dr. Manhattan, you always know everything," the World Forger said. "Then you must also know that I am going to kill you and take your power."
—Dr. Manhattan, a quantum god from the fourth dimension, derived his power from time itself. The World Forger, desperate to harvest all forms of energy, had long coveted Manhattan's power. Forcing Dr. Manhattan to reveal himself had been part of the plan all along.
If not for this very purpose, the World Forger wouldn't have bothered wasting so much time with Superman here.
"Yes, I know. All things must come to an end. From the moment I became a quantum observer, I have known my own fate," Dr. Manhattan's voice remained utterly calm, with barely a hint of emotion.
He tilted his head slightly, glancing at the World Forger before continuing, "But I also know that in three seconds, I will cause a quantum explosion inside you."
He lifted a finger, pointing directly at the World Forger.