Whoosh!
General Zod's expression darkened instantly, his gaze turning razor-sharp.
An invisible killing intent erupted outward.
Seeking death.
This so-called Homeland was courting death.
As one of Krypton's highest-ranking military leaders, even after being imprisoned for grave crimes, very few had ever dared to show Zod such disrespect.
---
Boom!
Just as Zod was about to let Alex experience the wrath of a Kryptonian general—
A sonic boom exploded through the air.
A figure descended from the sky like a meteor and smashed violently into the ground.
---
"Clark!"
Martha rushed forward, shocked yet overjoyed.
"Mom, are you okay?"
The newcomer—Clark Kent, no, Superman—immediately checked her anxiously.
"I'm fine,"
Martha said quickly.
"It was your friend Alex—he saved me."
Only then did Superman relax, seeing that Martha was unharmed.
---
"Alex, thank you for saving my mother!"
Superman thanked him sincerely.
"It was nothing,"
Alex replied casually, waving his hand.
As if protecting Martha from Zod's forces had been utterly trivial.
---
"Kal-El… you finally show yourself."
Zod's deep, icy voice rang out as his eyes locked onto Superman.
At this moment, Alex no longer mattered.
The Codex mattered.
Kal-El mattered.
---
Whoosh!
The instant Zod finished speaking, one of his armored soldiers kicked off the ground and shot toward Superman like a cannonball.
The two collided—
BOOM!
The Kent farmhouse was blasted clean through.
The shockwave continued, smashing through several houses down the street behind it.
---
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Deafening impacts echoed as Superman and Zod's subordinate engaged in a brutal fight.
At this stage, Superman's strength was still limited.
Even fighting one of Zod's soldiers was difficult.
---
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Zod and the remaining Kryptonians followed immediately, vanishing in the blink of an eye.
The group that had surrounded Martha moments ago seemed to vanish entirely.
To them—
Alex, this mysterious second Kryptonian, didn't matter.
Even if he had killed Faora.
Martha Kent mattered even less.
Only Kal-El mattered.
---
"Alex…"
Martha walked over, her face full of worry, eyes pleading.
"I know this might be too much to ask, but… could you help Clark?"
"Clark will be fine,"
Alex replied with a smile.
After all—
He was Superman.
The undisputed protagonist of the DC universe.
What was a mere Zod supposed to do to him?
---
Martha misunderstood.
She thought Alex had agreed to help Clark.
Relief washed over her face.
Alex didn't bother correcting her.
After all, he did plan to deal with Zod anyway.
---
Boom!
Alex vanished.
---
A moment later—
He appeared several streets away, at the battlefield.
---
Boom! Bang! Crash!
Explosions rang out continuously.
Zod was brutally beating Superman into the ground.
"Kal-El!"
Zod snarled.
"Humanity has made you weak!
Humanity has diminished you!"
"You're pitifully fragile now!"
Zod slammed Superman into the ground and stepped on his chest, looking down in disdain.
This wasn't arrogance.
At this point, Superman truly wasn't strong enough yet.
He couldn't even defeat Faora earlier.
---
Rat-tat-tat! Rat-tat-tat!
At that moment, military fighter jets arrived.
Without hesitation, they opened fire on all Kryptonians—
Including Superman.
To the military, Superman was also an alien.
For now, he was classified as an enemy as well.
---
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Bullets struck Zod's body relentlessly.
They couldn't hurt him—but they were irritating.
Zod casually kicked Superman away and looked up at the jets coldly.
Ants.
How dare they attack him?
---
Boom!
Zod leapt upward dozens of meters, landing directly on one of the fighter jets.
Crash!
One punch shattered the cockpit canopy.
---
Bang! Bang! Bang!
The pilot fired desperately.
Useless.
Bullets bounced harmlessly off Zod's body.
---
Boom! Boom!
Two punches later—
The pilot was reduced to pulp.
Zod prepared to leap toward another jet—
---
Then he froze.
From the corner of his eye, he noticed an extra figure on the battlefield.
---
Alex.
Zod's expression instantly turned grave.
Superman?
Zod didn't care much.
But Alex—
Alex was a genuine threat.
---
Boom!
Zod changed targets immediately.
He leapt down from the spiraling jet and landed in front of Alex.
The remaining jets would be handled by his subordinates.
No need for him to bother.
---
"Alex,"
Zod said coldly.
"You don't want to be my enemy.
Believe me."
"This will be the greatest mistake of your life."
---
"Is that so?"
Alex raised an eyebrow.
He merely shifted his body slightly.
That was all.
---
Then—
BOOM!
Zod was suddenly launched backward like a shell, smashing violently into the ground.
The impact blasted out a massive crater.
Cracks spread outward like a spiderweb.
---
At the bottom of the crater—
Zod stared up in pure shock and disbelief.
Eyes wide.
Mind blank.
---
What… was that?
Who… is this man?
He hadn't even perceived the attack.
In a single instant—
Alex had punched straight through his heart.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
For 60 advanced chapters, visit my Patreon:
Patreon - Twilight_scribe1
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~