Chapter 357: Broken Spear
Tang Song looked out the car window. On the State Road ahead, a long blockade line had been set up. Fully armed Federation Soldiers were visible inside and outside the blockade line.
These soldiers surrounded the old district ahead, using Armored Personnel Carriers and Tanks as Bunker, setting up light and heavy machine gun positions.
The Rooftops of the dilapidated Tall buildings near the old district were also covered with Soldiers, in addition to the hundreds of Attack Helicopters hovering and flying in the sky.
Based on the numbers, the New Jersey National Guard had deployed at least ten thousand Military personnel here. In this situation, even an idiot could see that something big had happened in this abandoned old district near Gotham City.
Originating from the Federation Person's traditional love for enjoying the spectacle regardless of the trouble, the Military lockdown instead attracted a large crowd to gather in front of the blockade line.
Among these people were Reporters who wanted to get firsthand information, Gang Thugs who wanted to fish in troubled waters, and simple busybodies.
At least a thousand people and hundreds of vehicles gathered outside the blockade line. Amidst the faint clamor, slogans like "Freedom of the Press" and "Public's Right to Know" could faintly be heard.
"I'll get off here!"
Tang Song paid the fare and gave the Driver a twenty US Dollars Tip. After receiving the Tip, the Driver enthusiastically helped him take down his Suitcase.
"What a weird guy!"
Back in the car, the Driver watched Tang Song, who was pulling his Suitcase and walking unhurriedly towards the blockade line. The more he thought about it, the stranger it seemed.
"Could there be a Bomb in his Suitcase?!"
Military, blockade line, heavy Suitcase! Strange Easterner! The Driver's face suddenly turned pale. He had originally planned to wait here to see if he could pick up another person to take back to Gotham City. In this situation, he wished he could stomp the Accelerator through the Fuel tank. Vroom!
He drove the taxi as if it were a Sports Car, escaping from here with Black Smoke billowing.
"We want the Public's Right to Know!"
"Freedom of the Press!"
"White Person get out of Gotham City!"
Outside the blockade line, it had become a scene of revelry. Thousands of people gathered, shouting various chaotic slogans.
Environmentalism and Vegetarians also came to join the fun.
Some Black People wearing Cowboy Hats and Gold Chains of unknown authenticity gathered together, their eyes glazed over, making vulgar Gestures towards the heavily armed Soldiers, a string of Rap flowing from their mouths.
A few Thugs with business acumen weaved through the crowd of protesters, starting to peddle a Feature of the Federation, certain dried green plants.
In front of an Interview Van, a female Host in professional attire held a Microphone, constantly explaining something to the Lens held by the cameraman, appearing quite agitated.
Less than ten meters away from the female Reporter, a fat Black Person weighing at least three hundred Tonnage seemed to be surrounded by a group of people cheering him on.
Not far from this group, a group of women, also bare-chested, held signs protesting discrimination against women and staged a sit-in.
This scene could truly be described as a Host of Devils dancing wildly. Even the Outer Realm Heavenly Demon, Boss Tang, who had seen much of the World, couldn't help but take a second look.
From the Scene, these people had likely been gathered here for some time. Dozens of Tents had even been set up on the roads along both sides of the Interstate Highway. There were even Mexicans and Chinese people who had brought Dining Carts to sell Food, Burritos, and simple Hamburgers by the Roadside.
Besides the crowds protesting near the Interstate Highway, some people were driving SUVs and Pickup Trucks off the Highway, clearly trying to find loopholes in the National Guard's defenses to sneak into the old district.
A Fighter Jet painted with a horizontal V pattern, resembling an inverted triangle eye, hovered over the old district. On the Fighter Jet, a group of Agents were busy working busily.
In the Fighter Jet's Command Room, a middle-aged fat Black Person woman with typical thick lips of African Americans, was speaking on the phone in a respectful tone.
"Director, don't worry, we have a Contingency Plan. Once these Street Vigilantes fail, we will activate Plan B! Yes, yes, don't worry!"
Just then, the Doorbell of the Command Office rang. The fat Black Person woman hung up the phone, her demeanor instantly becoming haughty. "Enter!"
A Man in a Black Suit pushed the door open and walked in. "Officer, the National Guard reported that the crowd outside the blockade line is growing. If this continues, if those Parademons riot, things will become troublesome!"
"Tell the National Guard's commander to use Tear Gas to expel and drive away these people! Do I still need to teach you such a small matter?"
The fat Black Person woman, like a middle-aged woman, waved her hand impatiently.
"Yes! Officer!"
The Black Suit Agent nodded and turned to leave.
"Wait! Tell all departments to be ready for Plan B at any time! Send out Reconnaissance Aircraft. Once those few Vigilantes' actions fail, immediately drop Nuclear Bombs!"
"Officer, shouldn't we discuss this with those few Superheroes beforehand and give them time to evacuate?" The Black Suit Agent looked at the middle-aged fat woman with some hesitation.
The middle-aged fat Black Person woman's large backside sat on the Office Chair, pressing it until it seemed unable to bear the weight. She said indifferently, "Discuss? Hesitation will give those Aliens a chance. I believe that for the safety of all Humanity, they will understand our actions!"
Understand? So it's not you getting hit by the Nuclear Bomb, he muttered inwardly. But on the surface, the Agent still wore an expression that showed he was considering her.
"Officer, Ms. Prince has Themyscira (Paradise Island) behind her, after all. Won't doing this cause a Diplomatic Dispute? And between her and Commander Trevor, although Mr. Trevor has passed away, he was the founder of ARGUS after all. Shouldn't we consider the impact?"
The middle-aged fat Black Person woman, who was the current Cobra Commander of ARGUS, Amanda Waller, couldn't help but adjust her Glasses when she heard her Subordinate Agent's words.
She didn't care about the lives of these Superheroes, but if it truly caused a severe diplomatic impact as her Subordinate Agent said, it would undoubtedly affect her career advancement.
For Amanda Waller, who aspired to be the first Black female President of the Federation, anything that affected her advancement was unacceptable.
"Go notify them. We will give them fifteen minutes to evacuate!" Amanda Waller said with a patronizing expression.
Golden Light spread across Diana's body. The Strength from the Zeus Bloodline poured out of Diana without reservation. The blessings of the six Olympian deities floated around Diana's body like ribbons.
Diana felt that in this state, she could cleave a mountain with one sword. However, when her Godslayer Sword clashed with Steppenwolf's battle axe, she realized how terrifying this New God was.
Steppenwolf, as one of the oldest members of the New Gods, was even the direct nephew of Darkseid, the Ruler of Apokolips!
He had conquered countless Planets for Darkseid with his powerful Strength. It could be said that Diana, who had not yet fully developed her own Strength, was no match for Steppenwolf at all.
Wonder Woman Diana, wielding the Godslayer Sword, held the sword with both hands and took an axe strike from Steppenwolf head-on. Beneath her Feet, in the shockwaves of the clash between Old God and New God powers, the old district could not withstand this powerful pressure. The already dilapidated Ground silently collapsed and crumbled.
Diana herself was sent flying dozens of meters away, her Feet digging two deep gouges in the Ground like a plow.
"Drop the Nuclear Bomb! Are you serious? This is your Country's homeland!"
Casually swinging her sword, she killed two Parademons that pounced for an easy kill. Diana suddenly found that the Communicator she carried was ringing. Thinking it was Bruce Wayne, Diana glanced at Arthur not far away and took a brief break to answer the phone. Unexpectedly, the person on the other end claimed to be an Agent from ARGUS, and the first sentence they spoke instantly made Diana's anger flare up.
"Ms. Prince, we have no choice either. For Federation security, we cannot let these extraterrestrial life forms escape this area. If your actions fail, we will give you ten minutes to evacuate! This is already the result I fought hard to secure! Mr. Trevor was my Mentor, Ms. Prince, I think if he were alive, he wouldn't want to see anything happen to you!"
Hearing the Agent on the other end mention her Ex-boyfriend's name, Diana was silent for a moment: "Thank you for your kindness. What's your name?"
"Lyla! Lyla Michaels!"
"Thank you, Lyla! Trust me, we will definitely drive these Aliens out—"
"Splash!"
Without Diana's assistance, facing Steppenwolf's heavy battle axe, Aquaman Arthur's figure moved like a fish in the Sea, engaging Steppenwolf in hit-and-run tactics.
He maintained a certain distance from Steppenwolf, occasionally throwing his trident, truly like a fisherman catching fish.
His trident was imbued with his magic power. As long as he opened his hand, the trident enveloped in pale blue magic power would return to his hand.
Amidst bellows, the sharp trident stirred up water spray that flew everywhere, continuously stabbing towards Steppenwolf.
"Bang!" Steppenwolf held his battle axe horizontally in front of him, swinging it left and right to block, easily fending off Arthur's barrage of tridents.
The lightning flashing on his battle axe collided with the water magic power attached to Aquaman Arthur's trident. The Tall buildings in the surrounding old district directly shattered into countless gravel under the shockwaves of their clash, collapsing like building blocks and kicking up clouds of smoke and dust.
"You lured me out because you wanted to steal the Mother Box while you had the chance? Not a bad idea, but unfortunately, once the three Mother Boxes merge, they will madly absorb all the energy sources of your World until your World is devoured completely. Even if you get the Mother Box, it will be useless!"
Steppenwolf blocked the trident thrown by Arthur with an axe strike. His Voice echoed throughout the entire old district. He said, "Back then, to split the Mother Box into three, you gathered the Old Gods, Atlantis, and the greatest forces of your entire Planet. Now that the Old Gods have perished, do you few think you can withstand the might of the New Gods?"
"Old Gods, New Gods, if gods all look like you, that's truly terrifyingly ugly. Has anyone ever told you that you look a lot like a Hammerhead Shark, and a very ugly one at that—"
Aquaman Arthur leaned on his trident, continuously spreading his water magic power outwards, like a sea wave rising on the Sea Surface.
He wanted to use his magic power to create a domain of seawater around Steppenwolf, to weaken Steppenwolf's strength. He had fought Steppenwolf in the Undersea Secret Vault of Atlantis before.
This guy wasn't so troublesome Underwater, so he wanted to create a battlefield environment that was favorable to him.
As Arthur stirred the trident in his hand, a blue water ripple pushed towards Steppenwolf.
"Little trick!"
Steppenwolf looked at the water ripple pushing towards him from Arthur and instantly understood his idea. Steppenwolf narrowed his eyes: "Pitiful mortal, you can never imagine the kind of war I have experienced! Your little trick is useless against me!"
"Swish!"
Steppenwolf raised his hand and swung. A ball of lightning flashed on the battle axe in his hand. A dazzling lightning bolt cleaved out, spreading outwards like a spiderweb.
Crackling, the blue water ripple and the electric net quickly collided. Crackle, crackle—
Arthur convulsed as if he were a fish in the Sea that had been hit by an electric shock.
"Hey! Diana, are you done? I can't keep this up!" Looking at Diana, who was on the phone not far away, Aquaman Arthur, who was barely fending off Steppenwolf's attack, turned back and shouted at her.
"Didn't you always say you were very strong?"
Diana put away her phone, teased Arthur, then gripped her sword, and leaped up. In mid-air, taking advantage of the moment Steppenwolf raised his battle axe to cleave towards Arthur, leaving his opening exposed, she stabbed towards Steppenwolf's face.
With Diana's all-out attack, a White Rainbow strike, the whistling golden light on the sword body was like a rising sun, smashing towards Steppenwolf.
Seeing Diana make her move, Arthur also closed in with his trident, aiming directly at Steppenwolf's chest and stabbing forward.
"Clang!"
Facing the flank attack from the two powerful ones, Steppenwolf swung the battle axe in his hands, parrying Diana's White Rainbow strike.
Amidst the huge sound of their weapons clashing, the great strength of their confrontation instantly exploded on the Ground, as if ten thousand tonnage of gunpowder had exploded in this old district.
Amidst the flying smoke and dust, Arthur felt his trident went right in.
"It hit!"
Before Arthur could celebrate, Steppenwolf's somewhat tired face was revealed in the smoke and dust in front of him. One corner of his two-horned Helmet was clearly missing.
A sword mark cut across his Forehead. Blood water dripped down his Forehead. Arthur was startled by his angry gaze. He instinctively wanted to pull back.
But when he tried to pull his trident in the first instant, he felt a great strength locking his trident.
Arthur looked closely and saw that Steppenwolf had clamped his trident with his arm.
Just then, Steppenwolf brought his axe down on Arthur's trident.
As the heavy battle axe cleaved down, Arthur felt his hands were numb with severe pain, and a crack spread along his trident.
Seeing the trident given to him by his Master about to be chopped off by Steppenwolf, Arthur, his heart aching, directly grabbed the trident and stuffed it under his armpit, wrestling for control with Steppenwolf using his arm. At the same time, he swung his fist, closing in on Steppenwolf, pressing close to him, and smashed his fist the size of a sandbag against Steppenwolf's armor.
Steppenwolf was knocked back by this punch. He released the arm clamping the trident, swung the battle axe with both arms, and cleaved directly towards Arthur's Head.
A golden radiance whipped over towards Steppenwolf's battle axe, snaring his downward cleaving battle axe. After Diana threw out her Lasso of Truth and snared Steppenwolf's battle axe, she immediately used her legs as anchor points and pulled hard like in a tug-of-war, saving Arthur.
Steppenwolf's blue veins bulged as he engaged in a contest of strength with Diana.
Under the mountain-pulling strength of the two, the land beneath their feet instantly collapsed.
Arthur, who had taken the opportunity to regain his trident, stroked the crack on the trident with a pained heart, looking at Steppenwolf, who was locked in a stalemate with Diana.
He raised the trident in his hand and threw it fiercely towards Steppenwolf.
The trident transformed into a blue lightning bolt in mid-air, piercing directly through Steppenwolf's armor with a hiss and hitting his body.
"Humanity, you have enraged me!"
The stinging pain in his chest instantly added a few points of ferocity to Steppenwolf's scarred face.
He grasped the Lasso of Truth with one hand, pulled hard, and swung, directly throwing Diana flying.
Under Steppenwolf's great strength, Diana was thrown flying dozens of miles away, smashing towards the area outside the old district like a meteor.
"Hiss!"
Under Aquaman Arthur's wary gaze, Steppenwolf calmly pulled out the trident stuck in his chest, used both hands, and raised his knee.
"No!"
Amidst Aquaman Arthur's angry voice, Steppenwolf clamped onto the trident shaft with both hands, locking the trident that was vibrating and trying to fly back to Arthur's hand, and raised his knee.
"Crack!"
Steppenwolf picked up the half trident, flicked his hand, and threw the sharp trident prongs towards Arthur.
Arthur, whose trident was destroyed, had no intention of dodging. Bare-handed, he was about to rush forward and fight desperately with Steppenwolf.
"Clang!"
Just as the half trident was about to stab Arthur, a Star-Spangled Shield flew out from somewhere, blocking Steppenwolf's strike for Arthur.
"Looks like we're not too late!"
An ant-sized figure leaped up, his body size expanding to that of a Normal Person, and caught the Star-Spangled Shield.
Captain America Steve Rogers stood beside Arthur and looked at Steppenwolf not far away: "This is your enemy!?"
"Be careful, his strength is much bigger than mine!" Arthur had heard from Bruce Wayne about their alliance with these Parallel Universe visitors long ago.
Although he didn't quite understand Bruce Wayne's idea, he didn't oppose it either.
"Strength! What a coincidence, my companion is also an Attendant!"
Before Captain America finished speaking, an ant-sized figure behind Steppenwolf suddenly rapidly expanded, transforming into a green hulking figure.
Hulk, or strictly speaking, Dr. Banner, swung a Mechanical Warhammer made by Tony Stark, smashing it heavily towards Steppenwolf's Head.
"Bang!"
(end of chapter)