Chapter 31: The Future Clark Saw
Clark reached out, his hand brushing against the old woman's wrinkled one.
A few seconds later, his vision blurred.
It was as if the world had changed before his eyes.
A scene of apocalyptic disaster unfolded, a blood-red twilight enshrouding the sky. Buildings were pierced through, houses collapsed, fires raged, and thick black smoke billowed upwards like pillars.
People scattered in panic, their desperate cries, a million voices, drilling into his ears like sounds from hell.
A massive ravine, like a finger of a titan, carved through the ground. Clark felt a searing pain all over his body, as if struck by a meteorite. He lay at the end of the chasm, struggling to lift his head, his body unresponsive.
Whoosh!
A black-haired man, clad in a black battle suit adorned with mysterious dark gold patterns, his physique lean and powerful, descended slowly from the heavens.
Half a meter above the ground, pebbles and debris rose from the earth, orbiting him like celestial bodies.
His overwhelming aura, like that of a divine being descended upon the mortal realm, made it difficult to breathe.
"David?"
Witnessing such a terrifying scene and seeing his brother, both familiar and strange, Clark was utterly shocked.
He felt as if he were trapped in a dream, able to watch but not control anything, unable to even speak, with only a limited perspective.
"Clark, look around you."
David's eyes still held a residual molten red glow as he shook his head slightly.
"I didn't want to do this, but you were too disobedient, forcing my hand."
"What do you mean?"
Clark was shocked and confused. Had David done all this?
His thoughts raced wildly. Had he refused to yield to David, and David, in a fierce battle to stop him, had destroyed the city?
"Wait a minute, this looks like Metropolis!"
Clark recognized it.
In the distance, atop the Daily Planet building, the iconic golden globe statue, used as a weapon by someone, had smashed through several buildings and landed on the ground.
"Could it be that what I feared has happened? David lost himself to his power and turned to evil, and I stood against him to stop him?"
He was filled with doubt and unease.
As if to confirm Clark's fears, he felt an infinite rage welling up from his future self's heart, his eyes about to erupt like a volcano.
"Brother, you need to be corrected!"
His future self, exuding immense power, roared coldly and leaped forward, charging at his brother like a divine being attacking a rival deity.
Swish!
A golden rope, like lightning, shot out in an instant, wrapping around his waist.
Almost simultaneously, several green chains, resembling those made of green crystal, coiled around his body like snakes. Huge nails secured the chains to the ground, preventing him from moving forward.
His forward momentum was abruptly halted, violently yanked back.
His body, which had been flying like a cannonball, stopped, only stirring up a shockwave that spread outwards.
Mere centimeters away from colliding face-to-face, David hovered in mid-air, not even blinking.
"You're the one who needs to be put in his place, my brother."
"Who helped David?"
Clark wondered.
His future self turned his head in anger, and Clark saw a heroic and beautiful figure, like a female war god, wearing a crown and a battle skirt, her feet crushing the ground as she held tightly onto the golden rope.
On the other side, a brown-haired man in a green, glowing bodysuit, his usually casual smile replaced by a stern expression, floated in the air. A ring resembling a green emerald in his hand emitted light, struggling to keep the materialized chains and nails from being torn apart.
Both gritted their teeth, unable to speak a single word due to the immense strain, exerting all their strength just to hold back the future Clark, who was like a maddened bull.
"David's helpers?"
Clark's heart jolted.
Were they David's allies in evil, or his pawns?
Bang!
Before he could ponder further, David appeared before him like lightning and swung a punch, smashing him back into the ground.
Future Clark's body crashed into the ground, creating a crater tens of meters wide. The surging force, like a raging tide, spread across a dozen streets, causing buildings to shake and windows to shatter as if an earthquake had struck.
Crack!
"What do we do?"
A deep, resonant voice echoed.
A grappling hook embedded itself into the wall of a building, and a shadowy figure, resembling a bat, swung towards them.
He spread his black, bat-like cape and landed steadily on the ground, his expression cold and unapproachable. The dark aura surrounding him was as thick and perpetual as the legendary storm clouds over Gotham, instilling an involuntary sense of oppression and fear.
Clark had doubted the authenticity of this future, wondering if his own brother had truly walked the path of darkness. But suddenly, the scales in his heart shifted.
He observed closely. This bat-like monstrosity truly didn't look like a good person, as if fundamentally incompatible with light.
Could the people he associated with be good?
"Clark, if our parents saw this, they'd be heartbroken."
David frowned as he spoke, raising his hand as if preparing to do something.
Crack!
The image suddenly shattered.
Clark's consciousness returned to reality. Ms. Cassandra, who had been staring in shock, turned to look at him.
Cassandra opened her eyes, as if the vision of the future had ended. She immediately looked at herself in surprise, while David wore a look of confusion.
Why are they looking at me like this? Why aren't they looking at the future related to Clark?
Did she see me looking like an alien in Clark's future?
"David, you...!"
Clark, having just returned to reality, abruptly stood up.
...
A smokestack, tens of meters in diameter and thick and tall, stood majestically on the ground.
Sean, a tiny figure, withdrew his hand from it with a look of intoxication. At his feet, over a dozen factory workers had become ice sculptures, their faces frozen in terror.
Frost covered and encased the entire massive smokestack.
Cold and a return to normalcy alternated, and each time he absorbed enough heat, his power would advance another step.
A feeling akin to being "overstuffed" washed over Sean, and he finally stopped.
He felt incredibly powerful now!
He excitedly glanced at the dozen or so dented brass bullets on the ground. The bullets had hit him earlier, but they hadn't even been enough to tickle him.
He couldn't imagine how powerful he was now.
He picked up a crowbar from the ground, which a patrolling power plant worker had used as a weapon.
Creak!
A grating sound.
The crowbar was twisted into a knot by immense force.
"Still not my limit."
Sean placed his hands on the mangled crowbar and applied fierce pressure. Steel flowed like mud through his fingers.
He looked at this scene, his face filled with ecstatic joy, and burst into uncontrollable laughter.
Modern civilization was built almost entirely on steel; there was almost nothing harder in the world.
He was now powerful enough to shake the entire world, and the police couldn't control him.
From now on, this small town would be his playground, for him to do as he pleased.
"Where should I start?"
Should I find a pretty girl and ask if she'd like to experience my strong, steel arms?
No!
A figure emerged in Sean's mind.
"David!"
Yesterday, that guy had just glanced at him and said a few words, and he had fled.
He uttered the name with full of resentment, "You think you're so tough?"
Recalling how he had fearfully retreated in front of those people yesterday, Sean, who had initially wanted to forget that embarrassing incident, felt uncontrollable anger and humiliation. Gritting his teeth, he declared, "I am no longer the person I was."
What were a few football players compared to him? Now, he alone could take on an army equipped with firearms!
Leaving behind a ground covered in lifeless ice sculptures, Sean clenched his fist and left the power plant, his face stern as he headed in the direction of Kent Farm.
"I promise, you'll regret daring to treat me like that, David!"
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