Two days later...
On Themyscira, Heisenberg sat wearing the sunglasses Lois had given him, dressed in beachwear that his divine armor had transformed into—a pair of coconut-tree-patterned board shorts and a matching Hawaiian shirt.
He lounged imperiously in his chair, sipping coconut juice delivered by the Amazons while watching Steppenwolf get thoroughly thrashed.
At the center of the arena, over thirty Kryptonians stood like pillars nearby, watching coldly as Steppenwolf endured beating after beating.
Steppenwolf, wielding his axe, struggled desperately to fend off the combined assault of Diana, Arthur, Cyborg, and Flash. Unlike two days ago, they now had a rhythm to their attacks. Steppenwolf, relying solely on his short-axe techniques, could no longer land a single blow on them.
Diana's Lasso of Truth snaked around Steppenwolf's ankle. She and Arthur yanked hard together, sending Steppenwolf crashing to the ground.
At the same time, she hurled the Godkiller. Flash caught it in an instant, grimaced with reluctance, and brought the blade down—severing Steppenwolf's head in a single stroke!
As the fastest among them, when they fought as a unit, the finishing blow always fell to him.
But even after countless decapitations, Flash still flinched and turned away.
As sunlight blazed down, Heisenberg raised his right hand. Steppenwolf's head flew back to his neck, reattaching itself.
An eager warrior stepped forward from the surrounding Kryptonians and said to Diana:
"You can rest now—it's my turn!"
"Understood. Be careful—don't let him wound you!"
Diana exchanged a few words, then led Flash and the other two over to Heisenberg. Before they could speak, the newly revived Steppenwolf roared at Heisenberg in fury:
"Let me die, you bastard! Don't humiliate me with this butchery—"
"SILENCE!!!"
Before Steppenwolf could finish, the Kryptonian warrior charged at him. Though this warrior couldn't crush him with the sheer overwhelming force Clark could, his strength still vastly surpassed Steppenwolf's.
Within two minutes, the Kryptonian warrior tore Steppenwolf apart with his bare hands!
Listening to Steppenwolf's agonized screams yet again, Heisenberg lazily raised his hand. Steppenwolf was reassembled, ready to greet the next Kryptonian "masseur" for another round of intensive "therapy."
Watching this, Clark casually accepted a juice drink from an Amazon warrior. Taking a sip, he asked Heisenberg:
"Great-grandfather, if we keep this up, will he really spill everything about Apokolips?"
"Of course!"
Heisenberg nodded matter-of-factly.
"Don't you think Steppenwolf's movements have been growing more and more listless lately?"
With that, Heisenberg lightly clapped his hands.
"You know, the true punishment I'm giving him isn't the repeated injuries and deaths.
Pain alone can never break a strong-willed warrior's spirit.
For him, the most agonizing thing is the endless, repeated failure.
Once he realizes he's completely lost the power to overcome any single one of you, his spirit will inevitably shatter.
When that time comes, he'll tell us everything we want to know."
"Fair enough."
Clark nodded.
Beside him, Lois shot Heisenberg a meaningful glance.
"Great-grandfather knows human psychology too?"
"Haha, of course!"
Heisenberg laughed at the question.
"Psychology is the psychology of all thinking beings—not just humans.
Right?"
"Indeed."
Lois nodded, swallowing a sip of coconut pulp.
A Kryptonian warrior approached respectfully and said softly to Heisenberg:
"Your Holiness, Scholar Bach has urgent news for you."
"Oh?"
Heisenberg rose at once, took the communicator from the warrior's hand, and casually wrapped it around his wrist.
Bach's voice came through.
"Your Holiness, I've completed all facilities at the Divine Kingdom base. But after establishing the new communications channels, we've detected countless signals transmitting toward us from across the universe.
About eighty percent come from various alien races—all of them former enemies of Krypton, naturally, so I've ignored their inquiries and consultations.
But the remaining twenty percent—those are from our people scattered across the cosmos!
I believe we must act on these signals and rescue our kin from their dire circumstances, one by one."
Heisenberg's spirit soared. He clapped Clark firmly on the shoulder and said softly:
"We've found information about many of our people. Want to come with me and bring them home?"
"Absolutely!"
Clark nodded without hesitation. Heisenberg replied to Bach through his wristband:
"Wait for us—we'll be right there!"
With that, Heisenberg said to the Kryptonian warrior:
"Bring thirty warriors with us. The rest will stay with the Justice League on Themyscira to guard Steppenwolf.
Not a single moment of his torment is to cease!"
"Yes!"
The Kryptonian warrior nodded solemnly, then returned to his kin to relay Heisenberg's orders.
A moment later, thirty warriors stood in perfect formation before Clark. Clark took the lead, looking to Heisenberg:
"We're leaving now, right?"
"Of course!"
And with that, Heisenberg summoned the Bifrost, and he and his kin vanished—reappearing in an instant at the Divine Kingdom base in Metropolis.
Heisenberg might not have been shocked, but Clark certainly was.
Before him was no ordinary spacecraft—they stood on an impossibly vast plaza, covering at least hundreds of square kilometers!
"Your Holiness, the super-intelligence granted by solar radiation allowed me to swiftly conquer the Mobius technology that once stymied us. I extracted a portion of the theory behind spatial folding and prioritized its realization.
The Divine Kingdom is now truly worthy of your name. It can shrink to the size of an atom or expand to the size of the Milky Way!
This way, even as our people multiply, we will never again face the survival crises of the past.
Of course, the energy requirements are unimaginable, so I burned every last bit of antimatter I could extract to secure sufficient power.
Our physiology—enhanced by yellow solar radiation—inspired me to rebuild our technological tree from the most fundamental foundation: controlled nuclear fusion, charting a new path for Krypton's future.
Fusion can replenish our strength—it's the ideal energy starting point for us.
I hereby request your approval to modify the direction of Krypton's technological future, Your Holiness!"
"Of course, you have my approval!"
Heisenberg nodded, then surveyed his surroundings with delight.
For kilometers in every direction, he saw all manner of flora unique to Krypton.
He had never seen these plants with his own eyes before—only recalled them from memory. Seeing them now stirred a thousand emotions.
He pointed at the landscape around them and patted Clark's shoulder.
"You never had the chance to see the old Krypton. So take a good look at the Divine Kingdom as it is now.
Most of the plants growing here once thrived on that great planet."
With that, Heisenberg turned to face his warriors, who were clenching their jaws with emotion.
He spread his arms wide and declared proudly:
"With our new abilities and our new technological path, I have fulfilled my first promise to you.
Breathe in the fragrance of these plants from all around. The old Krypton is gone, but the scent of home will forever linger in our lives.
And this is only the beginning!"
Heisenberg let his warriors wander freely. These soldiers who wouldn't flinch even at decapitation now wore expressions of every kind.
They crouched at the plaza's edges, gazing at the myriad plants growing from the soil. With each burst of Kryptonian greenery, their confidence in the future swelled.
Meanwhile, Heisenberg approached Bach and asked softly:
"Compared to the new Divine Kingdom, our people matter more. How many of our kin's signals have you located?"
"A total of sixty-three signals from our people. Twenty-seven have established contact.
These twenty-seven signals are scattered across the universe. The smallest group has only a single kinsman barely clinging to life. The largest has a full seventy-six kinsmen struggling to survive."
Bach lowered his voice and reminded him:
"We should prioritize rescuing the seventy-six kinsmen in Rozenburg. They're still trapped in the Phantom Zone.
If we can channel sufficient energy through proper configurations to breach the boundary between the Phantom Zone and the material realm, they can return to us instantly!"
"Excellent!"
Heisenberg nodded with delight, then instructed Bach:
"No time to waste—do as you've said. Bring our people back from the Phantom Zone first!"
"Yes!"
Bach nodded, then activated the communication system and handed the remote energy transmission device to Heisenberg.
...
Meanwhile, deep within the Phantom Zone, inside Rozenburg, General Astra looked joyfully at the communications device that had begun flickering back to life.
Two figures gradually sharpened into focus—one was Bach, the other was Heisenberg.
At the sight of them, Astra rose excitedly and bowed slightly.
"An honor to meet you, Your Holiness. I am Astra, temporary commander of Rozenburg."
"At ease, Commander Astra. Extract the ship's data, open the weapons' energy conduits, and connect to the remote energy transmission system.
With insufficient power at your disposal, I will provide my own bio-energy as the primary fuel for you to break through the Phantom Zone barrier.
Coordinate with the energy parameters Bach provides to utilize my bio-energy efficiently.
Only the Phantom Zone separates us—and I want you standing before me in the very next moment!"
"Yes, Your Holiness!!!"
Astra's eyes instantly welled with tears. She turned away, dabbed at the corner of her eye, then called out to her subordinates:
"You heard His Holiness—get moving!
Prepare to receive His Holiness's bio-energy. Prepare to channel that energy into the weapons systems.
We're going to break through the Phantom Zone in one decisive blow—cross this locked pocket of spacetime—and appear before our god to swear our allegiance!"
The moment she finished speaking, the divine power Heisenberg transmitted surged into Rozenburg's weapons systems. In an instant, Rozenburg blazed with incandescent light!
Little Kara stared in utter awe at the soft radiance surrounding them.
She scurried over and tugged at Aunt Astra's hand.
"Auntie, is this Heisenberg's power?"
"Address him as 'Your Holiness,' child. And brace yourself for impact.
We're about to soar beyond the Phantom Zone with His Holiness's help!"
"Okay, okay!"
Kara quickly steadied herself, wrapping her arms around her aunt. As she waited nervously, she couldn't help but feel a thrill of anticipation.
Soar beyond the Phantom Zone?
She couldn't wait!
/-\
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