American comic book: My Father is Superman, am I just an NPC?

Chapter 236 Ian's Betrayed Friend
As the saying goes, those who do many unrighteous deeds will surely perish.

Perhaps Ian will soon demonstrate this to everyone through his own experience.

Dark Lord Darkseid is on the move.

Meanwhile, on the other side of the world, the followers of Sangokuma, like sharks that have smelled blood, have begun to quietly dive into the deep sea of ​​information, searching for everything about Ian Kent.

For many, this night is far from over.

Undercurrents are surging in deeper, darker places.

The edge of the universe, a place of absolute nothingness where even starlight cannot reach.

There is no matter, no energy, and even the concept of time seems blurred. There is only an eternal, overwhelming darkness and silence. Even the most fearless interstellar explorers dare not steer their ships into this airspace marked as an "absolute forbidden zone."

However, in the very center of this void, where even the gods might feel lonely, an enormous figure, exuding majesty and destruction, was silently suspended.

He is no one else.

It was Darkseid.

His rock-like body still bore the marks left from Ian's "Earth Together Fist" purification, like fine golden lines on cracked porcelain.

The wound was like a maggot clinging to the tarsal bone.

Even after being resurrected, the effects of the previous actions could not be erased.

Of course, these patterns are being covered and repaired by a deeper darkness at a visible speed, but it will be a process that seems to take an incredibly long time.

Darkseid raised his hand and gently stroked his face.

Hatred.

Resentment.

It filled my heart.

His crimson eyes, burning with the Omega effect, were colder and deeper than ever before, as if they contained two black holes about to erupt.

"I will come back again."

He now has nothing.

Apokolips was wiped out by an unknown entity, the vast Parademon army was reduced to ashes, and the loyal Dark Elite vanished without a trace. A king lost his kingdom, his army, and his foundation.

but!

He did not weaken as a result; instead, he exuded an even more dangerous and unsettling aura. A sense of absolute authority, as if touching upon the very fundamental rules of the universe, was emerging.

"Humph……"

A low, cold snort, seemingly emanating from the depths of an ancient glacier, shattered the deathly silence. Darkseid slowly raised an arm covered in jet-black armor.

He clenched his fist suddenly, facing the endless darkness ahead!
There was no earth-shattering explosion, no flashes of energy. But the instant his palms closed, the absolute nothingness before him began to twist and boil! It was as if an invisible, giant brush, composed of rules, was creating something frantically, using darkness as its canvas and memories as its paint!
Matter is forcibly extracted and shaped from nothingness! Energy is given substance from the conceptual level! The structure of space is ruthlessly rewritten!
The outline of a massive, grotesque living planet, its surface covered with rivers of lava and terrifying spires, began to emerge from blur to clarity at an astonishing speed!

It appeared out of thin air!

That was Apokolips!

It's just not the original, true Apokolips.

Rather, it is a projection that Darkseid, with his supreme will and some newly acquired power, reproduced based on his own memories and cognition!

A replica constructed from the power of a new god of pure darkness and the authority to alter reality!
If the ancient beings of the universe were to witness this horrifying scene, they would surely be utterly horrified! This transcends mere energy creation; it is creation from nothing, a supreme power that alters reality!
It was not a power Darkseid originally possessed! This experience of death and rebirth seemed to have allowed him to touch upon a more terrifying and essential source of power.

The recreated "Apokolips" floated silently in the void. Although it lacked the surging vitality of a real living planet, the dark aura and destructive will emanating from it were exactly the same as the original Apokolips. From within those spires, a chilling commotion began to emanate.

It is the sound of flesh and machine merging.

And—a deep, orderly roar!

Parademon!

Endless, newborn Parademons are surging forth like a tidal wave from the hatching pools of those spires!

Their twisted bodies, scarlet compound eyes, and absolute obedience to destruction and conquest were exactly the same as the Legion in Darkseid's memory!
Although these are merely projections of memories, they can still create a vast, fearless army for him, becoming the cornerstone for his renewed conquest!
"The thing I have plenty of is time."

Darkseid gazed at the land he had "remembered" with his own hands, his crimson eyes devoid of any joy, only displaying his usual coldness and absolute desire for control.

"The Origin Wall..."

He murmured softly, his voice echoing in the void isolated by his power, carrying an undeniable certainty, "...in the end, they could not escape my conquest."

Clearly, Darkseid, after being resurrected, not only gained new powers, but also learned information that he should absolutely not know at this stage.

And that ultimate barrier that imprisoned countless ancient evil gods and divided the known and unknown universes no longer seemed like an insurmountable chasm in his eyes.

Just now.

suddenly.

"Your efficiency is higher than I expected." A calm, ethereal voice, seemingly transcending gender and emotion, suddenly rang out in the void shrouded in Darkseid's power. This voice did not travel through a medium, but rather was a direct communication affecting the level of consciousness.

Darkseid didn't turn around; his rock-like face showed no surprise, as if he had known of the other's presence all along. He simply responded in his deep voice.

“What we agreed on did not include restricting my movements.” Darkseid seemed to know who the voice belonged to, and had no doubt about it.

"of course."

That ethereal voice rang out again, carrying a detached indifference: "As long as you do what you're supposed to do, I won't care about any of your other... childish attempts."

Darkseid remained noncommittal in response.

"I'm already taking action."

Darkseid said, his crimson eyes still fixed on the Apokolips projections that were constantly emerging from the demons ahead, "A seed has been planted. It's just waiting for the right time..."

He paused slightly as he spoke.

He didn't finish his sentence.

For the first time, his enormous head slowly turned towards the direction from which the sound came. His crimson eyes, like two swords imbued with the laws of destruction, pierced into the deep darkness.

“However, I’m very curious.” Darkseid’s tone shifted, tinged with a hint of inquiry. “Although my trip to Earth was short, I did gather some… interesting information.”

He deliberately slowed his speech, each word carrying immense weight: "I've noticed... you and that boy—Ian Kent—seem to have... a pretty good relationship?"

This is not a question, but a statement with a certain degree of confirmation.

“But you…resurrected me, their enemy, who even nearly destroyed the Earth.” Darkseid raised his question, a question that had always lingered in his mind: the motives of this “collaborator.” This being’s actions were full of contradictions.

"Heh, how suspicious you are." Faced with Darkseid's sharp gaze, which was filled with scrutiny and inquiry, the darkness in the void slowly parted to the sides like a curtain.

A figure emerged step by step from absolute nothingness.

She was tall and elegant, wearing a long dress that seemed to be woven from the eternal night sky, with stardust and the faint glow of the end flowing through the hem.

A woman with a mature, sophisticated aura was eating ice cream, but her face was breathtakingly beautiful, radiating an absolute peace and emptiness that transcended any understanding of life. Her eyes were like two shrunk cosmic remnants, slowly fading into heat death, reflecting the end of all things.

Her clothing and possessions did not reveal any symbolic items, yet her very existence embodied the concept of the "end" of everything in the universe.

This person is no one else.

It is Death, a member of the Infinite Family, who holds the power over the end of all life in the universe!
Miss Death stood there quietly, as if she was meant to exist anywhere, including this void that Darkseid had forcibly defined.

She calmly met Darkseid's scarlet gaze, burning with a desire for destruction.

To Darkseid's incredibly sharp and pointed question, her beautiful face remained completely expressionless; she simply spoke clearly in an ethereal tone that transcended all worldly voices.

"I'm just doing what I'm supposed to do."

Her response was almost identical to Darkseid's previous one.

Darkseid's rock-solid brow furrowed almost imperceptibly. The answer was too vague, too... in line with the very nature of "death."

It is forever shrouded in an impenetrable fog.

"What you should do?" Darkseid repeated, his crimson eyes flashing. "Resurrect me, disrupt the predetermined fate, is that also part of what you 'should do'? As far as I know, the Infinite Family, especially you, has always tended to... maintain a certain balance rather than actively create turmoil."

Miss Death's eyes, which seemed to be in a state of cosmic stillness, seemed to shift slightly, her gaze seemingly piercing through Darkseid and seeing some kind of "vein" that was more distant and more essential.

"The cycle of life and death, the alternation of existence and nothingness, is itself a dynamic process. Sometimes, in order to maintain a 'balance' on a larger scale, or to promote a certain... necessary 'cycle,' some local 'imbalances' and 'variables' must be set."

Her gaze refocused on Darkseid, a gaze devoid of any emotion, only an absolute calm as she viewed the "inevitable process."

"Your existence, your ambition, your power... and your 'failure' and 'rebirth' are all part of this grand cycle."

Death spoke slowly.

"Your resurrection is not based on any personal preference for 'Clark Kent' or 'Ian Kent,' but because... you need to exist. At least for now, you need to play your role well and complete your 'scene.'" Her words seemed to be expounding a pre-written script.

She was merely a stage manager responsible for ensuring the actors were in place and the process flowed smoothly.

"As for my relationship with that child..." Miss Death's tone remained flat, but Darkseid keenly noticed that when she mentioned "that child," the "End" aura in the surrounding void seemed to fluctuate in an extremely subtle and indescribable way.

"That's none of your business, Darkseid." The voice of death returned to absolute calm and coldness. "You only need to remember our agreement. After you've done what you're supposed to do, you can go ahead and pursue your dark journey, challenge the Origin Wall, and realize your so-called 'grand ambitions'."

“However, if you cross the line, or fail to fulfill your promise…” Miss Death did not finish her sentence, but the aura of absolute stillness surrounding her seemed to bring about the heat death of the universe ahead of time.

That has already explained everything.

Darkseid fell silent. His crimson eyes were fixed on Death's calm, expressionless face, trying to glean more information from those eyes.

However, in the end, he gained nothing. This being, representing one of the ultimate rules of the universe, possessed a way of thinking and motivations far beyond his full comprehension. He only knew that he had been given an unprecedented opportunity, a chance to make a comeback granted by "death" itself. Furthermore, he seemed to be drawn into a game far more complex than conquering the material universe, involving higher-level rules…

The Earth boy named Ian Kent seems to occupy a rather special position in this game, a position that even the other side may not be aware of.

"What will happen if I fail to complete the task you assigned me?" Darkseid probed, as he was accustomed to walking a tightrope.

It's just the Infinite Family.

This wasn't an insurmountable obstacle for Darkseid. Lady Death was well aware of this; the Infinite Family's reputation was perhaps infamous throughout the universe.

however.

Before the projection of this higher-dimensional life form, even the Infinite Family is a rule that can be challenged. However, Miss Death was not one to easily manipulate Darkseid through threats.

"Then I can only wish you good luck... Believe me, what comes looking for you will be far more terrifying than us, far more terrifying than the worst catastrophe you can imagine."

Miss Death stated a fact.

She knew very well that the other person could also read the truth in what she was saying.

There is not an exaggeration whatsoever.

And indeed, that was the case. Darkseid fell into a deeper silence, a hint of confusion and seriousness flashing in his eyes, as if he were pondering what it was that made the Infinite Family so wary and fearful.

After a long time.

“I understand.” Darkseid’s deep voice broke the silence once more. He didn’t ask any further questions, suppressing all his doubts and calculations deep within his heart.

“Ian Kent will meet his destined death, which is what I’ve been waiting for.” With that, he turned his gaze back to the Apokolips projection that he had recreated.

And the ever-growing army of Parademons.

Darkseid was also telling the truth.

After all, no matter what secrets and power struggles lie behind it, strength is the eternal truth. He needs to recover more quickly and return stronger.

The journey through darkness has never ended.

He would never allow someone who had once thwarted him and even killed him to continue living; that was not only a provocation against his authority but also a thorn in his side.

"Better so."

The moment Darkseid turned his gaze back, Miss Death's figure vanished into the void like an ink droplet blending into the background.

It's like it never happened.

Only Darkseid remained, along with his dark legions roaring in the void, brewing a terrifying storm that would inevitably sweep everything away on the edge of the universe.

(End of this chapter)