American comics: Starting in Arkham, a system-based Batman

Chapter 120 The Man with Black-rimmed Glasses

Because they hadn't spent enough time together, Jung Eun couldn't find the source of his anger in his words.

Is it the resentment, hatred, and disgust that accumulated over long periods of imprisonment? Or is it the regret of being unable to change the past even after ruling the world, and the aversion to one's past powerlessness?

I can't tell the difference.

This is not a question that can be answered in a short time. Rather than dwelling on this, Jung Eun is more concerned about the current point in time.

His first mentor after time travel was Batman, who taught him many things, both in life and at work.

The most important point is that when you arrive in an unfamiliar environment, you must quickly figure out your surroundings.

The most important events in the Unjust universe are the death of Louise and her unborn child, and the nuclear explosion in Metropolis. These events mark the dividing line between the Children of Tomorrow and the Gods on Earth.

It wasn't a matter of a day or two for Injustice Superman to become a tyrant. At least for a short time after the Joker's death, he was simply determined to eliminate violence and criminals in the world.

Although, after being corrupted by power, he became one of the world's most notorious tyrants.

In this universe, time is crucial information.

He spent some time wandering around the metropolis, partly to observe the city's appearance, but more so to bring up his mentor.

Mentors and players are one entity, but they may not necessarily be of one mind.

Only after confirming the identity of Injustice Superman can Jung Eun make a judgment on her subsequent actions.

Back at the hotel, he began researching the information he needed.

The laptop was purchased on the spot, and the hotel stay identity was also fabricated using system tools.

He sat cross-legged on the bed, typing away at the computer, and the information he wanted quickly appeared on the screen.

A pale-faced man with bright red lips stretched to his ears appeared on the screen. As soon as his prison photo appeared, Injustice Superman's emotions, which had just calmed down, instantly became agitated again.

"Kill him!"

The sound, seemingly squeezed out from between his teeth, even included a grinding, gritting noise. If he still had a body, Injustice Superman's eyes would surely be a terrifying red. "I'm going to kill him!"

As he spoke, a bright blue panel appeared before Zheng En's eyes.

[Mission: Kill the Joker]

Tolerance towards criminals is cruelty towards victims.

You don't understand why some people can hurt others repeatedly without paying any price, as if everything they do is just a game.

If the law is meaningless to him, then someone should bring divine punishment upon him.

[Mission Reward: 100,000 US dollars in simulation points x 10]

Superman Skill Fragment: Flight Skill Level x1

Superman Skill Fragment: Iron Body Tier x1

Superman Skill Fragment: Heat Vision Level x1

Superman Skill Fragment: Freeze Breath Level x1

【————

The skill rewards from this mission are so numerous that Zheng En had to specifically unlock them: one, two, three, four—in addition to the skills mentioned above, there are also super vision, super hearing, super speed, and so on.

This caused Zheng En, who could only get one or two skill cards each time she did a task, to be shocked.

No, this much?

Even with most of her memories blocked, has her hatred for the Joker really penetrated to this extent?

Even though he knew that the amount of the reward was related to the stability of the universe itself, the willingness of the mentor player, and the difficulty of achieving it, Zheng En was still amazed by the rare and generous reward.

Perhaps because they've entered a wealthy household, some aspects of the system have been adjusted. Unlike in the original universe, this time the rewards aren't tiered, but rather described as "levels."

He clicked on the details to explain that the mastery of skills is divided into four levels: beginner, minor proficiency, mastery, and advanced proficiency. The system directly divides the four levels into four tiers. If you obtain a certain level of a skill in any task, you are considered a beginner; if you obtain two, you are considered a minor proficiency, and so on.

Zheng En thought about it and could understand it. After all, if he set all these skill fragments to the beginner level, he wouldn't be able to get any Superman-related skill cards when doing other tasks later.

He was tempted, but that wasn't the most important thing right now.

Swipe down the screen quickly, scanning the relevant information with your eyes.

According to the Gotham Police Department's database, the Joker was captured by Batman and imprisoned in Arkham just two days ago. He was seriously injured, suffering from a medium-sized closed head injury, a comminuted fracture of the nasal bone, multiple rib fractures on both sides, pulmonary contusion, and multiple soft tissue lacerations throughout his body.

In short, well done.

It seems the Joker won't be able to cause trouble for a while.

But just in case, he would need to investigate some other information.

Fingers tapped on the keyboard, and the page redirected to reveal another face; the man's name was listed next to his ID photo.

Clark Kent.

Perhaps knowing that he couldn't do anything in his current state, Injustice's anger towards the Joker came quickly and went quickly.

Jung Eun did not react to his outburst, and the other party's attention was immediately drawn to the new image that appeared on the screen.

"What are you doing?"

Perhaps because he had been in a position of power for too long, or perhaps because he didn't want his identity as a human to be discovered, Superman's tone was filled with strong doubt, sounding more like a rebuke than a question.

Jung Eun didn't care at all. "Investigating you, huh?"

His attitude made Injustice Superman's veins bulge, if he had a physical form.

"You bastard—what's your relationship with Batman?!"

Without even asking, he was certain that Zheng En was connected to Batman.

Even before the other person started wandering around, Injustice had already noticed that they seemed more like they were making preliminary observations of their surroundings than buying items. The same applied to their investigation of the Joker; they weren't browsing public information, but rather using hacking techniques to infiltrate the police station and retrieve relevant data.

This style of behavior was hard not to feel familiar to him.

Superheroes mostly possess various special abilities, while ordinary superheroes each have their own preferences in doing things. The Bat-family excels at infiltration and is also top-notch in intelligence gathering.

He didn't want to admit it, but he did see Batman in Zheng En, as well as the image of a bunch of kids behind him.

"What did you say?!"

He flew into a rage, but without a physical body, he could only shout in Zheng En's mind, appearing utterly powerless.

After Zheng En unilaterally blocked the other party, he became even more incompetent.

After reviewing the data on the page, including height, weight, blood type, and race, Jung Eun scrolled down, and the screen displayed Clark Kent's information from birth to the present.

The birth certificate appears normal, but a careful examination reveals it to be forged. Details include the school attended in a small Kansas town, the accident experienced, the university attended and its ranking, the major pursued, employment status, home address, and submitted resume.

Zheng En typed away and read through all of Clark's information. He found almost all the information that was left on the Internet.

Having completed numerous tasks, he had reached an expert level in "Introduction to Computers and Related Intelligent Applications." The other party showed absolutely no intention of protecting his personal privacy, and the firewalls of the relevant websites were practically useless against him.

Upon learning that Clark had just started an internship at the Daily Planet, Jung Eun finally breathed a sigh of relief.

While the Joker's actions cannot be used as an accurate basis for judgment, the progress of Clark and Lois's relationship can be used to estimate the approximate timeline.

Louise died while pregnant. Clark has just started his internship at the Daily Planet and might not even get to see Louise a few times, let alone date her or have a child.

After exiting access to Clark's information, Zheng En then looked up information related to Superman and Lex Luthor.

Similar to Batman, the Superman here is also a newcomer, but he quickly gained the trust of the citizens.

After saving a plane from an accident, the Daily Planet officially reported his story, and Lois Lane, who wrote the article, called him "Superman." Since then, the name Superman has spread throughout Metropolis.

This is similar to the development of most other universes, but Luther is a little different.

Just as he had guessed, Luthor and Superman were good friends, having known each other since childhood and growing up together in Smallville.

When Injustice Superman established his regime, Luthor wholeheartedly helped him, but he soon realized that Superman had changed.

He created the super-potion at the request of Injustice Superman, but not for Injustice Superman's rule; he lent it to the resistance forces. The two became bitter enemies only after Injustice Superman realized his betrayal.

After gathering relevant information, Jung Eun decided on the house she wanted to rent.

He bought a huge amount of new furniture, so much so that it almost flooded the stairwell, leaving the poor neighbors with nowhere to step when they came home.

Seeing the man wearing black-rimmed glasses with a hunched back and an honest-looking face, Zheng En quickly put down what she was holding and went over.

"Sorry, I'll move these things out right away."

He picked up the box in front of the other man, and the man with the briefcase in his hand followed him, putting his things down. He then walked with Jung Eun, saying, "Perhaps I can help."

"Thanks." Jung Eun deliberately lingered her gaze on the other person's chest and called out his name, "Clark," while looking at the name tag.

He did it on purpose.

After learning Clark's address, he had the idea of ​​getting close to him.

I always feel that Injustice Superman's mental state is more prone to imbalance compared to other Supermen. If this cannot be changed, even without the Joker, he might lose the people he wants to protect because of other villains.

Jung Eun wasn't arrogant enough to think he could save Superman; that would be too presumptuous. Living next door meant he could help if anything happened to the other side.

He deliberately bought so many things and had them delivered before the Daily Planet closed for the day. Despite having the physique of Killer Croc, he moved them so slowly. It was all a design he devised to make contact with Clark.

Clark is a good man; even when he's exhausted after get off work, he'll still make time to help his neighbors.

The goods piled up in the hallway were gradually reduced with the efforts of the two people, and by the time they finished moving them, almost half an hour had passed.

"Gurgle."

After placing the last box on the ground, Clark scratched his head sheepishly. "I've moved everything, so I'll head back now."

"No way!" How could Zheng En let him leave so easily? "Come to my house for dinner tonight."

It's normal for Clark to be hungry. Americans eat simple lunches. He had just started working at Planet Daily and probably didn't eat much at noon. He was dragged off work by Clark, so it's no wonder he was hungry.

By moving some things and having dinner, Zheng En planned to get to know Clark in this way.

He just overestimated his cooking skills.

Clark felt rather awkward being warmly invited to stay in the living room. He had only been in the Metropolis for a short time, and this was the first time he had been invited to be a guest.

After Zheng En entered the kitchen, he sat on the sofa, sometimes rubbing his palms together with his head down, and sometimes looking up at the kitchen.

Through his X-ray vision, he could tell that Zheng En was not very familiar with the kitchen or knives, and the same went for the ingredients. The fine Australian Wagyu beef was sliced ​​too thinly, making it difficult to control the heat when frying. The beans were soaked for too short a time, making them easy to harden after cooking. And the eggs—eggs cannot be put in the microwave!

Clark, who had been hesitant about whether to go in and help, finally made up his mind and rushed to the kitchen in a few quick steps.

"Um, let me help you. It's just awkward to sit outside."

Clark gave an awkward laugh, his gaze falling on the opened microwave. He walked straight over and said, "A whole egg will explode if you put it in the microwave."

"But I had the puncture done beforehand." This is what Jung Eun saw on Facebook.

Clark brought out the plate and the eggs inside, and gently warned him, "It's no use. The chances of the eggs exploding are still very high. There's no need to take the risk."

"Okay." Zheng En nodded, sensing a certain authority.

Soon, he lost control of the kitchen.

"Can I grill this steak? Wrapping it in foil and putting it in the oven will lock in the juices."

Jung Eun, who originally wanted to fry steak, nodded repeatedly.

"Would you like to try Kansas-style fried chicken nuggets? I can make them with starch and seasoning."

Zheng En, who originally wanted to make chicken stew with mushrooms, nodded repeatedly.

"These vegetables are very fresh; they would make a delicious salad."

Zheng En, who originally wanted to cook, nodded repeatedly.

He thought he could at least help Clark out, but found himself unable to even begin.

Clark worked so efficiently, spinning around the kitchen like a top, that Jung Eun even suspected he was using super speed.

He'll only get in the way if he stays in the kitchen.

In short, under the shadowy gaze of Jung Eun lying by the door, Clark prepared a large table of dishes.

"I was supposed to thank you and treat you to a meal, but I ended up asking you for help again." Zheng En was genuinely embarrassed, since he was the one who had tricked the other party, but Clark didn't care at all.

"What does it matter? If I were alone, I wouldn't be willing to buy such expensive ingredients."

He laughed heartily, "Let me make it clear beforehand, I have a huge appetite."