Chapter 543: The Power of a God
The Giant's Face and the Shock of the Heroes
"Look! There's a face in the sky!"
Barry pointed at the heavens, completely stunned.
The face was enormous, covering almost the entire canyon area.
Linda and J'onn also stared with wide, disbelieving eyes. After a few seconds, J'onn asked, sounding uncertain,
"Is that... Luke?"
Linda swallowed hard, giving an equally unsure answer.
"It... it should be!"
The giant face was composed of mist and cloud, its contours indistinct. As the dark clouds churned, the face twisted, creating an indescribable sense of terror.
Inside the yacht, the unconscious Diana sensed something. Her eyes snapped open. The lightning-streaked sky reminded her of Themyscira and an unfamiliar yet familiar aura.
A God!
There was a God above the clouds.
Who is it?
Is it Zeus?
Diana murmured to herself. Her body, severely weakened, eventually forced her eyes shut.
The land grew darker and darker. All light was drained away, leaving only pure blackness. The lightning coursing through the clouds only intensified the horror of this darkness.
Luthor's Defiance and Luke's Wrath
"So you were hiding this all along."
Lex Luthor clenched his fist. Possessing such immense power, yet constantly holding back, choosing to pursue technology instead, using powered armor to mislead his opponents.
"Luke Shaw, you truly taught me a lesson. When it comes to being insidious, I am far beneath you. However..." Determination flashed in his eyes.
"I absolutely will not lose."
The clones and behemoths shifted their focus. High-temperature rays shot from their eyes toward the sky. The two Scarab-Armor Behemoths leaped up, rocketing toward the clouds like cannonballs.
The next second...
CRACK!
Heaven and Earth turned a blinding white. A giant bolt of lightning split from the clouds. Two seconds later, thunder finally exploded in their ears.
The Scarab-Armor Behemoths were pierced by the lightning. Electrical current ravaged their bodies. The colonization suits cracked open after only two seconds, and a shrill, insect-like wail echoed in the air.
The two behemoths plummeted from the sky, slamming deep into the earth.
Their action seemed to have enraged the clouds. The giant face became ferocious, opening a mouth like an abyss. Dark clouds condensed within it, transforming into brilliant electrical light.
BOOM!
A flash of lightning, larger than before, like the branches of the World Tree, descended from the clouds, slamming heavily onto the ground. Savage energy raged through the canyon, scoring the ground with countless deep, dense furrows like a brush.
Electricity shot out in all directions, turning the surrounding thousand meters into an ocean of lightning.
Linda snapped out of her shock and quickly activated her communicator.
"Get out of this area! Quick, run!"
With that, she took off running. J'onn followed close behind. Barry hoisted Bruce and transformed into a streak of lightning, sprinting far away. A few behemoths attempted to pursue them, but lightning struck them from the sky, causing their bodies to spasm.
The clouds pressed lower and lower. The gigantic face was right above them. The psychic pressure, originating from the soul, assaulted the behemoths' psychological defenses. The Parasite-Supermen, known for their ferocity and brutality, showed expressions of fear, like scolded children.
The wind swept through the canyon, howling like ghosts. Sand and dirt flew into the air with the wind, connecting with the clouds to form towering tornadoes. One, two, three... a total of thirteen tornadoes spiraled in the sky.
The Aftermath
Bruce's eyelids tightened at the sight. He couldn't help but mutter,
"Is this the power of a man?"
Barry swallowed. "The Boss has never been just a man."
"What is he, then?"
"Who knows? He's definitely not a man."
No human could perform such a feat. Even the greatest sorcerers in the magical world couldn't control such a terrifying storm of thunder and clouds. Only a god of legend could achieve this.
After escaping the lightning storm, the four gathered. Barry quickly asked,
"Linda, what kind of magic is the Boss using?"
"I don't know. He didn't tell me."
J'onn suddenly interjected, "What about Superman?"
They looked at each other. In their haste to escape, they had forgotten the most important thing. Barry gritted his teeth.
"I'll go. I'll get him out."
"Don't be reckless."
Linda grabbed him. "That lightning isn't ordinary electricity. If you're hit, you'll die."
"I'll be fine!"
Barry took a deep breath. "If I run fast enough, the lightning can't catch me."
With that, he activated his hover platforms, circling in the air. His speed increased rapidly, faster and faster. When he hit his limit, his figure disappeared.
Time seemed to pause at that moment. All objects moved at an extremely slow pace. Barry could even see the ionized air caused by the lightning tearing through the atmosphere.
A streak of electricity, invisible to the naked eye, bypassed the tornadoes and lightning currents, vanishing into the underground entrance.
Clark's location had already been locked—the laboratory near the entrance. There was one other person in the room: an attractive Asian woman.
Seeing her holding a weapon, Barry rushed forward, disarmed her, tied her up with a rope, then rescued Clark. He carried both of them and sped back out.
The lightning was dense. Looking up, all that could be seen were flashes of electrical light.
Barry took a deep breath, concentrated fully, and charted an escape route. He immediately took off. The Speed Force enveloped his body, allowing him to evade every strike. A single figure shot through the storm. The tornadoes and thunder seemed to have no effect on him.
Two seconds later, a sweaty Barry Allen returned to the gathering spot, his body on the verge of collapse from exhaustion.
Linda couldn't help but give him a thumbs-up.
"Barry, you're amazing."
Barry!
Bruce's mind stirred. He couldn't help but examine the speedster. The Flash's name is Barry. Is he Barry Allen from Tesla's Technology Department?
J'onn asked in confusion, "Who is this woman?"
Barry gasped for breath. "I don't know. She was holding a weapon, so I tied her up and brought her back."
"She is Mercy Graves."
Bruce walked up to the woman, staring intensely at her. "Lex Luthor's secretary and bodyguard. His most trusted subordinate."
Mercy said nothing, only watching the sea of thunder in the distance.
The clouds rolled, and the wind raged.
With Clark gone, the giant face in the clouds finally showed its teeth. One thick lightning chain after another fell from the clouds, connecting heaven and earth, dense and continuous. The terrifying scene was bone-chilling.
The clones and behemoths were engulfed by the sea of thunder. The lightning continuously pierced their bodies like sharp swords. Agonized screams echoed in the air. The Scarab-Armor Behemoths tried to escape but were repeatedly struck by lightning and driven deep into the earth.
The rumbling was non-stop. Countless craters exploded in the earth. The canyon disappeared. The missile testing base suffered countless bombardments. All equipment was destroyed.
The clones held on for only a moment before collapsing to the ground. The current destroyed the brain parasites. Incapable of moving, they lay there like corpses. Their indestructible skin was gradually carbonized by the ravaging lightning. Their flesh softened, turning into a muddy mess.
The behemoths suffered the same fate, though they lasted much longer.
The only thing in the area not struck by lightning was the Reach Spaceship. Perhaps out of malice, or for some other reason, Luke did not attack Lex Luthor, instead forcing him to watch as his painstakingly cultivated army was turned into a pile of rotting sludge.
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