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Chapter 369 Mysterious Visitor

When the Kryptonians were mentioned, Clark immediately sat up straight.

Clark's bobbing Adam's apple indicated that he was extremely nervous.

He knew the extent of the damage General Zod and his men had inflicted on the Earth.

But at the same time, those people were also among the few remaining members of Clark's clan.

Therefore, if possible, Clark hopes that the outcome of this discussion about Kryptonians will be moderate.

However, most of the people present were waiting for Depp to make a statement.

However, there was still one person who held a completely different view from Clark.

He is Lex Luthor, Clark's close friend.

Before Depp could speak, Lex said, "I suggest that these Kryptonians be executed as soon as possible. Of course, before that, some necessary research can be conducted on their bodies."

Necessary research...

Depp thought to himself, "As expected of you, LeBron!"

Upon hearing this, Clark immediately became restless. He controlled his throat muscles and changed his voice, saying, "I do not agree with this plan. Although they have made a huge mistake, I don't think we should so arbitrarily declare their life or death."

“Arbitrary? Don’t you think your words are a bit ridiculous?” Lex didn’t realize that the person refuting him was Clark. He took out a report printed on A4 paper and threw it at Clark, saying, “This is the report on Metropolis in this incident. It details the economic losses and the number of deaths caused by this incident. Please read the statistics aloud.”

Clark picked up the document, glanced at it, and unconsciously clenched his fists. He said, "This attack on the Kryptonians resulted in the deaths of at least 13,000 civilians and caused losses exceeding 50 billion US dollars."

As he read, Clark's hands began to tremble involuntarily.

The economic losses may not have caused much of a stir in the heart of this future god among men, but the loss of thirteen thousand precious lives caused Clark's heart to ache as if it had been shattered.

Clark couldn't hold back his tears, which slid down from under his mask and soaked the report.

"After seeing this, do you still want to plead for them, Superman? Or... the Kryptonians hiding among us!" Lex said mercilessly.

In fact, Lex had already determined through live streams and surveillance videos that the Superman who protected Metropolis was quite similar to the Kryptonians who attacked Earth.

Upon seeing Superman's presence at the meeting, Lex Luthor was already prepared to launch into a questioning.

Lex's question left Clark speechless.

Beneath the mask, Clark's face was flushed. He placed the documents on the table and stammered, "I... well... I am indeed a Kryptonian, just like them, but I grew up on Earth. All I want to do is protect humanity and this planet!"

Lex sneered upon hearing this, then shouted, "Then kill all those who want to destroy this planet! Eliminating the ones causing the crisis is the best way to protect Earth and humanity!"

"cocoa......."

Clark was caught off guard by Lex's retort and didn't know how to respond. His face under the mask turned as red as an apple.

Clark clenched his fists, and the air around him began to swirl uncontrollably, blowing the documents on the table into the air and tearing them to shreds.

Clark was jolted awake by the sight of the paper scraps swirling around him like snowflakes, and the air around him seemed to stop spinning.

The scraps of paper twirled and fell slowly like butterflies, landing on the long table and the ground.

Beneath the mask, Clark pursed his lips, lost in thought.

After a while, Clark slowly raised his head and looked in Depp's direction.

Depp looked at the silent Clark and the arrogant Lex, and he knew that Clark was afraid, terrified. He was afraid that everyone would agree to kill the Kryptonians.

And in Clark's gaze as he looked at Depp, he saw pleading.

Seeing this, Depp gently tapped the table, attracting everyone's attention.

After clearing his throat, Depp said, "I think Clark and Lex are both right, just from different perspectives. The purpose of the Court of Owls is to reconcile all of this and find a solution that everyone can accept."

Depp stood up and went to Clark's side first, saying, "First of all, I agree with Clark's suggestion, but I don't think killing these Kryptonians now is the best way to deal with it."

"But they almost destroyed the world!"

Lex said angrily, he didn't understand why Depp would agree to let the invaders go.

Depp looked at Lex, who was filled with righteous indignation, and smiled to himself.

This exceptionally intelligent young man truly deserves to be a key force in protecting the Earth during various major events in the future.

Furthermore, this supervillain is different from superheroes like Superman and Batman. For him, as long as he can protect the Earth, he doesn't care whether he has to kill all the enemies.

To be honest, compared to Clark and Batman's relentless refusal to kill, Depp actually prefers the style of supervillains and anti-heroes like Lex Luthor.

To completely eliminate the threat and prevent future troubles.

However, due to the system's limitations, Depp now has to change his choices and strategies, letting General Zod and his men go.

Of course, Depp wouldn't let them off so easily.

In fact, according to Depp's plan, what awaited Zod and the others was a torment even more devastating than death.

However, Zod and the others might see these torments as a blessing in disguise.

Depp put his index finger to his lips, making a "shh" gesture to Lex.

Depp then said, "It's a better way than to kill these guys and make them atone for the damage they've done. For example, have them help us rebuild the city, have them share the most cutting-edge technology about Krypton, and... like Lex just said, study their bodies and figure out the source of those extraordinary powers."

Lex sneered upon hearing this.

This genius, arguably the smartest human in the DC Universe, will not easily yield just because of Depp's position as the head of the Court of Owls.

He continued rambling on, "Sir, you don't actually think those Kryptonians will obediently follow your advice, help us rebuild the city, share technology, or even become our guinea pigs, do you?"

"Those vicious bastards will only break free of their cages when we least expect it, and then unleash the flames of destruction upon our world once again!"

"As far as I know, their goal is to rebuild Krypton, that is, they want to transform Earth into a new Krypton."

"And in the matter of rebuilding Krypton, it seems that one of the necessary conditions is that Kryptonian named Kal'el."

"Hiss~ I think I've discovered something incredible!" Lex looked at Clark and said, "Maybe... our dear Superman is Kal-El, isn't he?"

Although Lex's reasoning did not reveal that Superman was Clark, it still sent chills down the spines of everyone present.

Although they already knew that Superman was Kal-El, the man Zod had been searching for when he first invaded, and even that Superman was the Earthling Clark Kent.

But Depp told them almost all of this on his own initiative!

But now, Lex has deduced all of this simply from well-known information.

Even Bruce was alarmed by this.

Bruce was thinking to himself that once he got back, he would thoroughly investigate this guy's information and devise a plan for the future.

A person who is exceptionally intelligent and wealthy may be more dangerous than Superman in the future!

If Depp could hear what Bruce was thinking, he would definitely give him a merciless sarcastic remark...

"In that case, Bruce, I suggest you write yourself into the contingency plan first, so that you, who are incredibly wealthy and exceptionally intelligent, won't cause any trouble in the future."

Just as everyone looked at Lex in shock, Depp walked up behind Lex and said, "You're right, your reasoning is perfect, and I also know why General Zod is looking for Karl."

"You actually knew that?" Lex asked incredulously.

“Of course, I knew that all along.” Depp put his hand on Lex’s left shoulder and said, “Because within Kal’el’s genes lies the key to the continuation of Kryptonian civilization… the Kryptonian Codex. It contains the genes of all Kryptonians, and it’s something Zod must find to rebuild Krypton. Otherwise, with just Zod and Usa’s people, it would take forever to even establish a single population.”

Upon hearing this, Lex looked enlightened, but he didn't ask Depp how he knew these things, since everyone has their own secrets.

Instead, Lex was more concerned with something else: "But even if you knew, what good would it do? The problem is, we have no way to control those Kryptonians and use them for our own purposes."

"Tsk tsk tsk." Depp shook his head, thinking to himself, "Foolish Lex, you have no idea how vast my gadget collection is!"

“Controlling those Kryptonians is actually quite simple,” Depp said. “All we need to do is help them rebuild Krypton, and that will be enough.”

"Rebuild Krypton?" Lex's eyes widened suddenly upon hearing this, and he immediately understood. He said, "What do you mean... you have all the conditions to rebuild Krypton?"

This time, Depp nodded, then reached into his pocket and took out the Kryptonian Codex he had previously obtained from his system space.

The blue of the starry sky and the gold of the quicksand intertwine and echo each other, floating in the air like a constantly shimmering fluid sphere of light.

Even the well-traveled Lex couldn't help but widen his eyes. Having seen countless precious gems in the world, he had never seen anything so beautiful.

The secret manual, containing the genes of all Kryptonians, attracted everyone's attention like the most exquisite and luxurious work of art in the world.

"This is... the Kryptonian Codex?"

"Lex asked."

Depp nodded and said, "That's right, this is the Kryptonian Codex that Zod and his men have been searching for. I used it as leverage to get them to rebuild our city, and in the meantime, I found them a planet that was large enough and young enough to be transformed into a new Krypton."

Upon hearing that Depp was really going to help Zod and the others rebuild New Krypton, Clark's tense nerves finally relaxed.

He leaned back in his chair and said in a rather relaxed tone, "Things seem to have been perfectly resolved, haven't they?"

“That’s about it.” Depp patted Lex on the shoulder and said softly, “Don’t leave after the meeting. Wait for me here for a little while.”

Before Lex could react, Depp stood up, returned to his seat, clapped his hands, and said, "Now, we move on to the final stage of the meeting: deciding the final solution to the problem by voting."

"First, there's the issue of urban reconstruction, which seems to be undisputed, so we can skip it for now. As for the subsequent cooperation between the three companies, let their respective representatives contact them individually."

“Then there’s the issue of dealing with the Kryptonians,” Depp said. “Actually, the problem has three solutions: Superman, Lex Luthor, and me.”

"Everyone, please pick up the ballot you have and hand it to the party you support."

"Um...aren't we all moving a little too fast?"

Depp looked at the ballots in front of him and said that all the ballots, even Lex's, had been thrown in front of him.

"It seems... voting has become an unnecessary part of the show."

"The meeting is adjourned!"

"Wishing everyone a perfect day."

After Depp finished speaking, everyone took their leave, leaving only four people behind.

Depp, Selena Gomez, Mera, and Lex Lucas.

Lex took off his mask, took a long breath, and said, "Honestly, wearing this thing all the time is so uncomfortable, I'm suffocating."

"Aren't you curious why I kept you here?" Depp asked.

Beside him, Selena and Mera also removed their masks.

Unlike Clark and Bruce, the four people present did not need to hide their true identities.

Lex laughed and said, "Of course I'm curious, but I know that since you've taken the initiative to keep me here, there's no need for me to ask anything."