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

Chapter 126 How should humanity respond?

If given the choice, Zheng En would actually prefer to use the bamboo dragonfly. But unlike Gotham, Metropolis has Superman, and people here are used to looking up. The weather is also very bright, with extremely high visibility, making it easy to spot during the day.

Although no one here will shoot him like a target, it's not a good thing to be filmed and uploaded to social media.

Driving is still the most discreet and convenient option.

Not long after Zheng En arrived, he used system items and skills to acquire a new identity and a series of items for himself. He also bought this car at that time, which is the most common type of car.

Tracking the radiation protection vehicle across several streets wasn't difficult; however, the vehicle gradually drove into a secluded area and turned into a path hidden by a large forest.

This route isn't listed in the navigation; it looks like it leads directly to the Metal Man's lair.

Classic American horror movies often feature a scene where the protagonists turn into an unfamiliar side road and encounter Frankenstein's monster, a mental patient, or a cult member.

The same thing happened when they were tracking Rob in Gotham, except that Rob met at Falcone's private villa, while the Metal Man was going to the laboratory where he was born.

The mad scientist's laboratory was hidden much deeper than Falcone's private villa. Although the ideas were similar, the laboratory's most important aspects were concealment and security, unlike Falcone's purpose of showing off his wealth and status.

The radiation protection vehicle's destination was a hospital that looked like it had been abandoned for a long time, with moss and vines climbing up the surface of the building and years of dust accumulating in the underground parking lot.

When the car drove in, the tire tracks on the ground were clearly visible, few and messy.

After the mercenary got out of the vehicle, the metal man jumped out of the back. The heavy weight slammed into the ground, creating several spiderweb-like cracks, making the mercenary's eyelids twitch.

When he jumped into the carriage, the metal man knew to hold back, using the anti-gravity module to slow down the impact of his fall. Now that he's back at base, he's unleashing his anger without restraint.

The half-human, half-machine face darkened, and the red light on the electronic eyes flashed intermittently.

After walking through the hidden door on the inside of the fire escape, there is a long and wide corridor. Every few dozen meters, there are mercenaries with guns on guard, and researchers in white coats moving back and forth.

The metal man's face was grim, and the others dared not touch his brow, all lowering their heads to avoid his gaze.

The laboratory was quiet. Usually, you could hear the researchers talking in hushed tones, but today, only the slight hum of the machines and the breathing mixed in could be heard.

The slightly louder noise came from the innermost laboratory. Even before entering, the metal man could see Dr. Weir recording something on a screen through the glass.

—Yes, the timing matches up. The spaceship I saw back then was the signal for Superman's invasion of Earth.—

He frantically typed on the keyboard, his eyes bloodshot, muttering rapidly incoherently, "I knew it—I knew that civilizations beyond Earth exist."

"Now they're here—"

Twenty-two years ago, at the mountaintop observatory in Mosville, Kansas.

At that time, Dr. Weir was just an ordinary astronomer. In order to observe the trajectory of a specific planet at a certain time, he stayed at the Moswell Observatory for half a year.

It was at that moment that he saw the radiance falling from the sky.

The meteor left a long trail across the night sky. Dr. Weir noted its approximate location and set out to search for it the next morning. He found large pieces of meteorite nearby and collected them.

Because he firmly believed in the existence of aliens since childhood and was wary of alien invasion, Dr. Weir kept most of the meteorite he obtained for research, and only sold a small portion when he was short of funds.

He discovered unusual energy in the meteorite, but assumed it was simply because the planet itself was special.

It wasn't until Superman appeared that he realized what he had seen might have been more than just a meteorite.

Given its size and distance, the falling object couldn't possibly be just a tiny piece.

Recalling the scenes he had witnessed, Dr. Weir, with his years of experience, quickly realized that his initial judgment was wrong.

Yes. Even though he couldn't remember what happened so many years ago, he had the answer he wanted in his heart, and the memories in his mind were corrected and modified to look the way he believed it to be.

There must be something else there.

Dr. Weir remained steadfast in his belief and managed to return to the area. Upon careful searching, he found fragments resembling the wreckage of a spaceship.

He was certain that the so-called Superman was the alien who had infiltrated Earth in a spaceship twenty-two years ago.

"Superman is their vanguard in their invasion of Earth—"

Dr. Weir muttered to himself, lost in his own world, and didn't even notice the heavy footsteps of the metal man.

Among the fragments resembling spaceship wreckage, he also found something that looked like a data chip. He deciphered the text in his own way and deduced that aliens wanted to invade Earth.

He was certain he was right.

Dr. Weir was overjoyed that his previously dismissed fears had been proven true.

He knew it! He knew it!

How could those reckless fools who only care about the present possibly understand his ideas!

Extraterrestrials do exist; this is the conclusion he reached after decades of astronomical observations. Even without concrete evidence...

According to reports, there is far more data and information that can be indirectly confirmed.

Dr. Weir knew that they would one day launch an attack on Earth.

This is why he has always been committed to the study of meteorites.

Of all the meteorites he collected, the most destructive were the ones he found in Moswell, the ones he infiltrated Earth with Superman.

The eerie green meteorite emitted an ominous glow, and its energy supply was tens or even hundreds of times greater than that of existing materials.

Dr. Weir believes that if this energy can be utilized, even if an alien army were to descend upon Earth, they would be able to fight back and protect the planet.

His conclusion is not unfounded; the best example is the Metal Man.

"How was it like fighting Superman?"

Dr. Will didn't notice the Metal Man until he stood right in front of him. He snapped out of his own world and looked up at the Metal Man who had just finished fighting Superman.

The electronic eye on the right flickered, and the silver-gray alloy skeleton was scorched by the heat vision, leaving black marks. The torso and shoulder armor remained intact, and the armor plates on the arms and legs were also fine.

These are all minor injuries; the most serious injury was only to the most visible part of his chest.

Dr. Weir was not surprised to see visible cracks appearing in the kryptonite embedded in the breastplate.

"Since it's made from a mixture of other materials, it's normal for it to be destroyed."

I knew it.

Seeing their conversation through his monocle, Jung Eun sighed helplessly. He had previously drawn the lip-reading skill, so figuring out their conversation wouldn't be difficult.

Neither he nor Injustice Superman were surprised that Kryptonite was a mixture. High-purity Kryptonite wasn't a substance that could be easily destroyed; otherwise, it wouldn't have become Batman's trump card in his fight against Superman.

Superman at his peak can melt Kryptonite with his heat vision, but in that case, the Kryptonite will turn into liquid Kryptonite magma. If heated further, it will form Kryptonite vapor. After cooling and condensing, the Kryptonite powder floating in the air is highly toxic. It is not only more lethal to Superman himself, but also affects ordinary people.

In the main universe, if Superman and Batman want to destroy Kryptonite, they have to put it into a special container, have Superman wear a full titanium alloy protective suit to block the radiation from Kryptonite, and then fly the container into space and throw it into the sun to burn it with the sun's tens of millions of degrees of heat.

When Superman could use his heat vision to affect the kryptonite in the Metal Man's chest, they knew it wasn't pure kryptonite.

This is normal; truly high-concentration kryptonite is not common. In Zheng En's view, Superman's tolerance to kryptonite fluctuates in various storylines, largely due to the purity of the kryptonite, in addition to plot requirements.

He hadn't taken Dr. Weir and the Metal Man seriously, but Dr. Weir's words clearly meant that he had a higher concentration of Kryptonite.

Otherwise, their attitude wouldn't be so relaxed.

"The test results were pretty good this time."

The kryptonite on the metal man's chest was damaged, so Dr. Weir naturally had to deal with it.

While the metal man was lying on the operating table, he was wearing a white coat and tapping and tinkering on his body.

Dr. Weir is a genius. In addition to astronomy, he is also well-versed in other fields such as biology, chemistry, and medicine, which is why he was able to save Kurben from the brink of death and transform him into a powerful metal man.

Initially, he did not intend to use kryptonite on himself; the first energy source he adopted was a uranium battery.

Uranium batteries have an extremely high energy density; a small piece is enough to power an entire city. But even so, the energy from uranium batteries cannot sustain the metal man's activities for very long. When he first woke up, he had to replace the batteries almost every day.

Although Dr. Weir received investment from Lex Group, he didn't report everything to Luther.

The modification of the metal man was his own idea.

Long before Superman appeared, Dr. Weir had already confirmed the existence of aliens and was convinced that they would invade Earth.

The energy contained in kryptonite is astonishing. It's hard for him not to imagine how powerful a planet with such energy would be, and how advanced their weapons and technology would be.

The idea of ​​modifying metal humans was not a sudden whim of his. Shortly after joining Lex Luthor, he proposed the idea of ​​modifying humans and building a super army.

But this idea was rejected by Lex Luthor as soon as it was proposed.

"Dr. Weir, I admire your vision, but we should not violate human rights for the sake of a war that has no basis."

Luther disagreed with the proposal to improve the army's combat effectiveness by modifying human bodies. "I know this is just your idea, but it seriously infringes on the freedom and dignity of others."

"I don't want the money that Lex Group invests to be used in this place."

His attitude was serious and earnest, carrying an air of unquestionable authority. Dr. Will then realized that Luther was not the same kind of person as him.

He misjudged Lex Luthor.

Few people were willing to listen to his ideas and support his research on extraterrestrial civilizations; many investors were only interested in the potential wealth that the meteorite might bring.

Luther is one of the few people who firmly believes in the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations and fully supports his research.

Dr. Weir assumed that the other party shared his views, acknowledged the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations, and was wary of potential dangers.

But now it seems the other party is no different from ordinary people. Believing in the existence of extraterrestrial civilizations, yet naively thinking there's no need to take precautions, what's the difference between them and fish on a chopping board?

He and Luther parted on bad terms.

Luther didn't pay much attention to his thoughts, only assuming that Dr. Will was uncomfortable because he had been humiliated. After that, the other party never brought it up again, so Luther considered it a thing of the past.

But Dr. Weir's stubbornness far exceeded Luther's expectations.

He was indeed still working for LexCorp, researching the power of Kryptonite with Luther's financial support. But in addition to his official projects, he had been engaged in research on human modification and bionic prosthetics.

Before being transformed into a metal man, Cobain's body was in a state of complete unusability due to a car accident. Dr. Weir removed his brain from his skull and transplanted it into a pre-prepared metal body.

Partially modifying the human body would hardly achieve the strength he desired. Especially after Superman appeared, Dr. Weir went berserk, tearing all the documents on the stage to shreds.

Superman's power far exceeded his imagination. The more he learned, the more resentful and bitter he became. The impending war blinded him.

When Superman saved someone from falling, he saw his ability to fly; when Superman lifted a car to save someone from a car accident, he saw his immense strength; when Superman crossed the city to rescue someone, he saw his incredible speed.

Super strength, super speed, flight, heat vision, cryo-breathing—the abilities the other party has demonstrated in just these few months have exceeded Dr. Weir's imagination.

Is this really something that humans can defeat?

What kind of destruction will Superman cause after he tears off his mask of hypocrisy?

How many aliens like Superman are there? How should humanity respond if they invade Earth?

Dr. Weir was gripped by deep fear, and his already paranoid mental state worsened. So when he happened to encounter the dying Cobain, he didn't hesitate to perform surgery on him.

He still maintains his job at Lexcorp, but the staff in his private labs have all been replaced by military personnel.

Researchers who wanted to learn something from him, and soldiers who were used to provide armed support, protection, and surveillance.

Luthor wasn't the only one who had heard his ideas, but before Superman appeared, nobody took the idea of ​​a super army seriously.

But it's different now.