"Every student has to do 30 hours of community service, but instead of choosing to be a lifeguard for the girls' swimming class, I chose to be here, chatting with old people who wear dentures. Do you know why, Clark?"
Inside the nursing home, Pete, dressed in a caregiver's uniform, asked Clark.
"I… I don't know."
Clark was still thinking about the apocalyptic scene he saw after falling into an illusion last night.
Buildings in ruins, scorched earth, a torn sky, and thick smoke rising from the city in the distance.
Eric, exuding a murderous aura, looking like he ruled the world.
Such a shocking and terrifying scene couldn't help but make him connect the dots.
Could it be that Eric would become the ruler of the world in the future?
Based on what he knew about his younger brother, considering both his strength and personality, it was indeed possible for him to do such a thing.
But why would he become Eric's accomplice in the future?
If Eric became a dictator, given his personality, he would definitely stop him, not choose to go down the same path.
So...
What happened in the future?
"Clark?!"
Lost in thought, Clark was startled by Pete tapping his shoulder.
"Sorry, I got a little distracted."
"You've been distracted ever since you entered the nursing home. It seems you haven't recovered from the escape game at Luther Manor," Pete said with a shrug.
"I was just thinking about something."
Clark shook his head, quickly changing the subject and asking, "So why did you give up the lifeguard job for the girls' swimming class and choose to read to the elderly?"
"The real reason is actually that a girl I know is also volunteering at this nursing home."
Pete winked at Clark, "So for the reading task, Clark, you'll have to help me complete seventy percent of the workload. I need to free up some time to talk to the girl."
"I knew it, Pete."
Clark sighed.
"Don't be discouraged, Clark. Didn't Chloe often say that the true name of love is friendship? I value our friendship very much."
"I'd rather not have this kind of 'love'."
Clark grumbled.
As they spoke, the two walked to the door of the elderly person's room they were to read to.
Before they could knock, they heard an old woman's voice from inside.
"It seems two people will be reading to me today. Young men, don't stand outside, come in."
Clark hesitated, pushed open the door, and entered with Pete.
What came into view was a kind-looking old woman wearing sunglasses, sitting on a single sofa, holding a book, and smiling at the two.
"How did you know there were two of us?!"
Clark asked her curiously.
He was now skeptical of what Pete and Chloe had said about her being able to predict the future.
"I may be blind, but my ears aren't deaf. I heard the 'squeaking' of your shoes on the floor from a long way off."
The old woman took off her glasses and said unhurriedly.
"…"
Clark was silenced by the old woman, who was playing the role of a "silent sorceress."
"Do you really predict the future, Ms. Cassandra?"
Adjusting his emotions, Clark asked her.
"Hehe, if it's that kind of fortune-telling method, I can't."
The old woman put down the book in her hand and said to the two, "Sit down, young men."
Just as Pete was about to sit down, his phone suddenly rang.
After glancing at his phone, he said helplessly to Clark, "Emergency, Clark, you stay with Ms. Cassandra for now, I'll be right back."
He then quickly got up and walked out.
"What an impetuous young man."
The old woman smiled at Clark, patted the seat next to her, signaling Clark to sit down.
"What should I call you?"
"Clark, Clark Kent."
Clark sat down and replied to the old woman.
"Kent, come closer."
The old woman waved at Clark, motioning him to come closer, then gently took Clark's hand.
The hand Clark was holding instantly felt a warmth spreading between their hands.
Then his right hand began to tremble slightly along with the old woman's.
The space before him twisted, and his consciousness instantly entered an unfamiliar place.
Under a torrential downpour, Clark found himself standing in a graveyard.
Crack!
A bolt of lightning struck from the sky, illuminating the night like day.
Clark, drenched by the heavy rain, looked at the tombstones around him.
Jonathan Kent!
Martha Kent!
His parents' names were carved on two prominent tombstones.
And not far away, Eric, amidst the pouring rain, walked towards him step by step.
His eyes, emitting an eerie red glow, radiated a chilling light in the night.
Zzzzz!
A beam of Heat Vision directly struck Clark's chest.
Possessing a body of steel, he resisted the impact of the Heat Vision, but the next second, he was sent flying by the immense impact force carried by the Heat Vision itself, crashing through a tombstone with a thud and landing on the ground.
Before he could get up, Eric activated his super speed, moving to his side in an instant, gripping his neck, trying to break it.
Clark's eyes glowed red, and he gritted his teeth, fighting against Eric.
"Ah!"
Roaring, Clark's eyes shot out the same crimson laser as Eric, and he forcefully pried Eric's hands apart.
But Eric landed another fierce punch to his cheek, with a bang, sending him tumbling on the ground.
Rolling in the mud, Clark's veins bulged on his forehead, and his eyes emitted crimson Heat Vision, striking towards Eric.
Eric was not to be outdone, his Heat Vision instantly activated, and two powerful laser beams collided in the air.
"No!"
Clark, gasping for breath, broke free from the illusion, stood up, and looked at the old woman with shock and disbelief.
He had seen his parents' tombstones, and Eric was trying to kill him...
How was that possible?
Was this the future?!
Was his future like this?!
Clark couldn't suppress the fear and shock within him, backing away step by step, knocking over a chair in the room with a thud.
"Kent, did you see it too?"
The old woman also seemed surprised that she had seen such an incredible scene in her conscious perception.
Tremblingly, she extended her hand, "I have to tell you, child, you've only seen some scenery on your life's journey. It's not fixed; what you do is entirely up to you. You cannot treat it as truth."
"No!"
Clark's emotions were on the verge of collapse. With a "whoosh," he activated his super speed and instantly left the room.
The now blind old woman only felt a gust of wind, and Clark vanished from the room.
She withdrew her outstretched hand, sighed, and covered her face.
.
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