"Then when do we go to rescue them?"
"After I figure out their exact location. Although I've installed trackers on them, there's still a layer between the two Worlds.
I must go in first to get their accurate location. If the timing is right, I might bring you all over too."
Batman frowned slightly at this. "You want to go alone?"
Dane smiled, "It's best to let those who are good at magic handle magical matters, isn't it?"
Zatanna immediately said, "Then I'll go with you!"
Constantine was genuinely scared; he didn't even open his mouth.
Dane shook his head, calming Zatanna by stroking her head.
"This time we're facing Gods, and likely more than one God. It's not suitable for you to go."
The Gods inside are all battlemages like Gandalf. A squishy mage like Zatanna would probably be torn apart instantly upon entering.
"You and the others stay here and help me watch those criminals." He was referring to the Three Goddesses and Teth-Adam, among others.
Dane thought for a moment and then input the coordinates of the God Realm into Zatanna's bracelet.
Cortana was going to the Underworld with Dane this time, so it was better to leave things here to Zatanna.
"Oh, and if you're unsure about anything, you can consult Mera or Poison Ivy..."
Zatanna pinched Dane's arm hard. "I don't need them!"
With that, a Flash of teleportation light enveloped her, and she disappeared.
The other members kept their eyes down, pretending not to see.
But the young people inwardly exclaimed, "Awesome!"
This was more than just juggling multiple relationships; it was like walking on a chain bridge of boats without falling!
Batman felt nothing. For rich second-generation individuals like them, this kind of life was normal. After explaining a few things, Dane immediately prepared to leave, but first, he had to find Hades's Underworld.
The Underworld is a very vast World, almost as boundless as the Universe.
Although Dane could also use his God of Death authority to enter the Underworld, his Underworld might be very far from Hades's Underworld.
Perhaps it was as far as the distance between Earth and Oa. Without precise coordinates, he could easily get lost in the Underworld.
But the Kryptonian Phantom Zone gave him a new idea for finding Hades's Underworld.
Since the Phantom Zone and the Underworld are essentially one, and Hades has captured numerous Kryptonians from here, it's very likely that his Underworld is not too far from the Phantom Zone.
So, to find Hades's Underworld, he must first find the Kryptonian Phantom Zone.
And in the movie "man of steel," it was revealed that the collision of Kryptonian phantom engines can create wormholes to the Phantom Zone.
So... he still had to go through this plotline.
Fortunately, all the captured Kryptonian spacecraft were stored in the Hall of Justice's warehouse.
And to ensure the warehouse would not be invaded by external enemies, Dane had long ago placed it within the Dream World governed by Cortana.
"Are you really sure about this?" Cortana asked with concern.
"The Phantom Zone is a place we know nothing about. You won't be safe there."
Dane said easily, "Sometimes, to get something, you have to take some risks."
"And honestly, I don't think this trip will be very dangerous. It's not like the anti-magic space in Hell; divine power and magic can still be used there."
"Even if we consider the worst-case scenario, if something really goes wrong, don't I still have you?"
Cortana's worried mood eased slightly, but she still said, "I am no longer a purely technological creation, so if I encounter an attack from unknown magic, I may not be able to help you in time."
"You lack understanding of your own abilities."
Dane did not agree with her assessment of herself. As a Dream God of dreams, she still had a lot of potential to uncover.
"But since you're so worried, why don't we conduct that experiment in the Underworld?"
Upon hearing this, Cortana quickly verified it in her mind. A moment later, she said with a hint of confusion, "According to the simulation experiment, the success rate has indeed significantly increased."
Dane was not surprised. "In that case, take the experimental subjects with you, and we'll complete the verification there directly."
He had been studying the problem of demonization for some time, hoping to reverse-engineer the Shazam Force to deduce contract magic for demonization transformation.
He chose the seven deadly sins as the source of power for the demon body, intending to synthesize a new demon body using the complete power of the seven deadly sins.
But the self-awareness of the seven deadly sins was a big problem.
He couldn't achieve demonization with the Shazam body because the power attributes of the two were mutually exclusive.
Nor could he transform as the God of Death, because this would be like backward compatibility, utterly meaningless; he would still be the God of Death after transformation.
So, after much research, Dane found that using a human body had the highest success rate for transformation.
But how to resist the erosion of the seven deadly sins on the mind with a human body became the biggest problem. Dane was not arrogant enough to believe he could fight the power of the seven Sins with willpower alone.
Previously, in Cortana's simulations, even in the Dream World, with her help, Dane's chances of success against the seven deadly sins alone were only fifty-fifty.
This was not a confrontation of strength, but of will, of spirit. Yet Dane, at most, was no more than 30 years old.
Even adding his past life experiences, he was still no more than 50 years old. How could he compare to the incarnations of the Sins that had existed for tens of thousands of years?
All this time, he had also been thinking about how to deal with this thorny problem. The seven deadly sins obviously couldn't cooperate with him like the Shazam Force.
On the contrary, they would definitely look for opportunities to control him.
But in the Underworld, the success rate increased. Although Cortana personally verified this, she couldn't understand it.
0 for fresh flowers
This was because her verification method was different from that of ordinary supercomputers; she also used a bit of "precognition" power.
This was magic she learned from a Gypsy in the Inspiration Dream World. Precognition is essentially peeking into fate, so its principles are difficult for science to explain.
"Oh, right. When I was reading Teth-Adam's memories, I found that he had taken Doctor Fate's helmet."
Dane mused, "But the helmet of fate is not on Adam."
"Yes, because he used that helmet to exchange for a portion of power from Hades."
Dane chuckled at this, "Then he must have sold that helmet for a pittance, otherwise how could he have only gotten so little power?"
Hades's heart is as black as his brothers'!
"You need to be careful. The helmet of fate is now in Hades's hands. We don't know how he will use this item."
Dane knew this was important and nodded solemnly.
After that, Cortana found Atlas's Three Goddesses, and quietly extracted the Sin power from their bodies while they slept.
Finally, under her operation, the seven deadly sins were sealed back into the magic Eye. Then Dane obtained the new artifact that the Witch had forged some time ago.
That is, the new equipment forged at the cost of sacrificing millions of demon souls.
It was not a tangible weapon, but a highly malleable black metal, which, like N Metal, could transform into any shape of weapon according to the user's will.
Because its formation relied on demon sacrifices, it had strong compatibility with evil forces.
Dane installed the magic Eye on a necklace formed from this metal, its shape inspired by the Eye of Agamotto next door.
So it also possesses the ability to seal the magic Eye, making it very safe, even for an ordinary person to wear.
Dane wore it on his chest and concealed its form.
In the Dream World, Cortana collided two newly built phantom engines before his eyes.
At the moment of impact, an invisible singularity appeared, spontaneously generating a huge gravitational pull that sucked in Dane, who offered no resistance.
At the critical moment, Cortana also transformed into a beam of light and drilled into Dane's battlesuit.
Phantom Zone.
This is a lightless area where those trapped lose their conscious form, wandering like blind ghosts in this silent space.
When Dane appeared here, the lightning on his chest became the only light.
"You're finally here. I've been waiting for you for a long time."
Dane suddenly turned his head and saw a mysterious man in a black suit, wearing a top hat and a cloak.
He scrutinized him for a long time before recalling the man's identity from his memory.
"Phantom Stranger?"
Chapter 244: Phantom Stranger and the Deal
Phantom Stranger seemed unsurprised that Dane could instantly call out his name, and he was indeed specifically waiting for Dane here.
"This should be our first meeting, but I imagine you know something about me."
Phantom Stranger, the most mysterious and unknown figure in the DC Universe, has as many as five origin stories in the comics.
Dane blindly guessed one of them and tentatively asked, "Judas?"
Phantom Stranger's face immediately darkened. "Don't say that name!"
Confirmed, this should be the New 52 version, Judas, who once betrayed Jesus.
Because he betrayed Jesus, he was punished to become the Phantom Stranger and atone for his Sins in the World. He works for something called the "Voice of Heaven."
Dane strongly suspected that the so-called "Voice of Heaven" was God blabbering.
"What do you want from me?" Dane remembered that he didn't seem to have any connection with this person.
Phantom Stranger, however, said without preamble:
"Your Ideas is correct. The Phantom Zone is indeed connected to Hades's Underworld, but it's still very far from the Underworld, light-years away."
Hearing this, Dane frowned. He opened his nano microcomputer, and indeed, he had not received Diana's and their location coordinates.
He looked up at Phantom Stranger. Since the other party was specifically waiting for him here and pointed this out, it meant he intended to help.
Sure enough, Phantom Stranger immediately continued, "I can help you find the other members of the Justice League. I can also give you this."
As he spoke, he pulled out a silver coin from his Pregnant.
Dane immediately guessed, could this silver coin be one of the 30 silver coins he exchanged for betraying Jesus back then?
Cortana immediately spoke in his ear, "Dane, that silver coin contains extremely strong magic. The results of that experiment might manifest in this silver coin!"
This made Dane begin to examine the value of that coin, but he knew there was no free lunch in this World, so he asked directly:
"So, what's the price?"
Phantom Stranger indeed had another request. He replied:
"I cannot stop the experiment you are about to conduct, but I... and those behind me hope that after your experiment succeeds, you will not appear in that form anywhere outside of Hell."
Dane's eyes narrowed slightly. "In other words, you want me to confine this power within Hell?"
Phantom Stranger nodded.
If he had only been suspicious just now, Dane was now at least eighty percent sure that the person behind him was God.
Only he would make such a request.
Dane suddenly asked him again, "What are you going to do with Gabriel?"
Phantom Stranger was a little speechless. Given your relationship with her, what else could we do?
So he said, "She can stay in the Human Realm as you wish. We will not force her to return to Heaven; that is also her fate."
Dane quickly calculated in his mind.
It seemed Cortana's calculation of increased success rate was related to God's power; if he wanted to successfully complete the demonization experiment, God's involvement seemed essential.
But it wasn't over yet; Phantom Stranger hesitated for a moment before saying:
"Also, I have a personal request: if you can find Nabu's helmet, please help me retrieve it."
"You can't do it yourself?" Dane asked curiously, knowing Phantom Stranger's abilities were no less than a god's.
But Phantom Stranger just shook his head: "I cannot act, especially against gods from other pantheons."
Dane suddenly understood; it seemed Heaven didn't want to directly confront the God Realm. Then he frowned, realizing this meant they wanted to use him to deal with those gods?
However, since they were both getting what they wanted, there was nothing to say.
After weighing the pros and cons, Dane chose to accept the deal.
"I accept your terms."
Phantom Stranger seemed unsurprised by Dane's choice, so he casually tossed over a silver coin, which Dane caught.
"Our transaction remains a verbal agreement. I trust Shazam's credibility; you wouldn't break your promise, would you?"
Whether it was his imagination or not, Dane felt a hint of teasing in his words. Could it be that his habit of forcing people to sign contracts was already circulating in Heaven?
But if he didn't sign, he didn't sign; he still had that much credibility.
Mainly, God was too much of a bug; he temporarily didn't have the conditions to break the contract.
Seeing Dane accept the silver coin, Phantom Stranger raised his hands, and magic power surged between his palms.
"I'll send you to your teammates; don't resist."
Dane relaxed his body as instructed, and his vision suddenly blurred, and the surrounding scenery changed.
Then he watched an axe whistle towards him. He quickly turned his head to dodge the axe, then looked forward.
The muscular man wearing a horned helmet and radiating a murderous aura was clearly Ares, God of War.
"You've come at the perfect time!"
Ares, upon seeing him, was not surprised but delighted. He reached out, and the battle axe returned to his hand.
He sprang up, leaping at least two hundred meters high, but his descent was remarkably fast!
The axe blade seemed to glow with a red fire, striking heavily onto Dane!
"Dane—!"
Diana shouted loudly, charging towards Ares... As for why they encountered Ares, it was actually The Flash Barry's fault.
Originally, according to Dane's plan, The Flash, wearing his specialized battle suit, only needed to do nothing and would naturally wait for Dane to retrieve him.
Hades indeed couldn't see him before he ate the soil of the Underworld, but when he accidentally ingested the Underworld soil, Hades's gaze instantly shifted to him, and he also saw the three Justice League members.
He said to Ares, who was sulking alone beside him: "I've found them. They're still on the land of the Underworld. They must have used some magic or artifact to evade my sight."
"Where are they?" Ares immediately grabbed his axe and asked. He was not the same as before; in the Human Realm, his power would be greatly suppressed. This was a law of the World that he couldn't break, so he could only passively take a beating.
But here in the Underworld, as long as Hades approved, he could unleash his full power and show those mortals the true might of the God of War!
What demigod Diana, what Kryptonian, what Green Lantern Corps, they were all bullshit! I've even cut Darkseid!
Zeus is not as awesome as I am!
So, with Hades's cooperation, he directly teleported to the location of the Justice League.
And it's not surprising that he was so arrogant; Ares, after completely unleashing his divine power, was indeed incredibly powerful. In terms of absolute strength, he was even slightly stronger than Clark.
The war aura Ares absorbed during World War II was enormous, and he had been saving this vast power. This time, he unleashed it all onto the strongest members of the Justice League!
"Is it my imagination or is it true? How do I feel like he's much stronger than last time?"
Hal, who was repeatedly sent flying by Ares, said dejectedly.
His green lantern constructs couldn't even get close to Ares; the opponent would swing his axe, and any construct would be instantly shattered.
Even his strongest protective shield would be broken after several consecutive hits; the opponent's attack power had increased too much compared to when he was on Earth.
"That's not an illusion. Although I hate to say it, this is Ares's true strength."
Diana knew some secrets about the gods. A true god like Ares would suffer strong power suppression in the Human Realm. She had only won against Ares when she was a novice by taking advantage of this.
Otherwise, the outcome would have been uncertain.
Clark looked a little serious. To deal with Ares, he had to use more power and energy. In this World without a Sun, every bit of power he used would be one less bit.
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