Damian's target this time wasn't a random one; it had been lurking on Earth for a long time, and the Avengers had even dealt with it before. However, Robert and Clark had never personally encountered this individual. Deep within an underground cave in Central Asia, Lars remained submerged in a strange marsh, showing no signs of leaving.
Lars had once soaked his body in the Lazarus Pit for a long time, allowing his physical vitality and strength to reach their peak. Now, this new cloned body of his required extended time in the pit to regain its former state.
Yes, Damian's goal was none other than Lars, who had been captured by the Avengers and then mysteriously turned into white bones before fleeing. To be more precise, Damian's target was the Lazarus Pit in which Lars was currently soaking.
As Damian approached the Lazarus Pit, something unexpected happened. The previously calm pit suddenly started bubbling, with countless bubbles bursting on the surface.
"Hm? What's going on? Why is the Lazarus Pit acting up?" Lars opened his eyes in confusion. He had lived for hundreds of years, spending considerable time with the pit, yet it had never shown any abnormal behavior. This sudden change left him puzzled.
"Could it be that the Lazarus Pit holds secrets I don't know? That's impossible. After finding it, I've tested it repeatedly with modern science, and there were no anomalies. Could it be…?"
While normal scientific methods couldn't detect extraordinary forces, some specialized techniques for monitoring energy could, as supernatural power often falls under the category of energy.
Just as Lars was musing, the energy monitoring device in the cave emitted an alarm. Excitement flashed in Lars' eyes, realizing that the change in the Lazarus Pit could be a significant opportunity for him.
However, his excitement didn't last long. There was a loud boom, and the monitoring device exploded, overwhelmed by the massive energy surge from the pit.
Lars' pupils shrank. Just as he grasped what was happening, waves of powerful energy surged into his already enhanced body, causing him intense pain.
"This isn't good!" Lars, realizing the danger, hurriedly tried to leave the Lazarus Pit, fearing that he, like the monitoring device, might be torn apart by the overwhelming energy.
In a swift motion, Lars stood up, but before he could escape, a wave of mud from the pit struck him down, followed by countless tendrils of the liquid wrapping around him, preventing any further struggle.
"No! No…" Lars' desperate cries rang out, but the Lazarus Pit had already transformed into a life-consuming swamp. Having granted Lars hundreds of years of life, it now mercilessly devoured him.
With a final gulp, Lars was completely submerged. Bubbles rose to the surface before the Lazarus Pit returned to its eerie silence, as if nothing had happened.
"You're hiding well…" After some time, a figure appeared in the cave—a small boy, no more than three years old by appearance. It was Damian. He scanned the cave and focused on the remains of the destroyed monitoring device, his eyes narrowing.
"Lazarus? You're not coming out? The explosion didn't happen long ago. Are you still trying to hide?" Damian's gaze shifted toward the Lazarus Pit as he spoke.
"If you don't show yourself, I won't be polite. All this pit water will be mine, and I'll compensate you when I return to the Hell dimension. How does that sound?"
Damian's voice echoed in the cave, but no response came.
"Well, then I won't hold back!" A smile spread across Damian's face as he dashed toward the Lazarus Pit.
Just as Damian's body was about to touch the pit, the water drained away as if a plug had been pulled.
"What?!" Suspended mid-air, Damian's eyes narrowed in disappointment. However, he didn't pursue the vanishing water but instead hovered above, observing quietly.
Moments later, a body appeared at the bottom of the Lazarus Pit—it was Lars' body. But when his eyes opened, the gaze was entirely different.
"Lazarus, I didn't expect you to show up in person," Damian sighed, addressing the figure before him. "But you've chosen the wrong time to come to Earth. Even though the dimensional breach hasn't healed, Earth is no longer a place where we can roam freely."
"What are you talking about?" Lazarus, now emerging from the pit, spoke disdainfully, almost causing Damian to lose his composure.
"What do you mean by that?!" Damian's face darkened as he questioned Lazarus.
"What I mean is, when have you ever roamed freely on Earth?" Lazarus scoffed. "Since ancient times, Earth has always been a special place, capable of forming an independent dimension separate from the current universe. That alone proves Earth's uniqueness."
"In every era, Earth has produced powerful beings. Your strength might be decent, but in no era could you have dominated it."
"Besides, Damian, don't think I don't know why you're here. You dare target me and disrupt my plans? Once you return to the Hell dimension, we'll settle this!"
"What plans? I don't understand what you're talking about," Damian brazenly denied everything. After all, he hadn't even had time to make a move before Lazarus revealed himself. If he hadn't been caught in the act, there was no way to prove his intentions.
"You fool! You've been followed here, and you didn't even notice. Did your brain get damaged during your Earth reincarnation?" Lazarus' expression shifted as he glanced at the ground, his eyes flashing with cold light.
"What?!" Damian could no longer feign ignorance. He recalled how he had narrowly escaped Robert and Clark earlier, and his expression turned serious. Looking toward the direction he had come, he growled, "Superman! You tracked me?!"
"Well done. You still managed to find me…" As Damian spoke, Robert, Clark, and Diana appeared in the cave. They weren't alone—Baron Mordo and Kaecilius were with them.
Since they already knew Damian was a hell lord, they anticipated a major battle. Last time, when Robert fought the hell lord Kalel, the late arrival into the Mirror Dimension had nearly destroyed Earth in just a few clashes.
Now, with two hell lords present, Robert and the others had prepared in advance. Clark had contacted Baron Mordo to open a portal and bring them over.
Although maintaining a Mirror Dimension strong enough to contain a battle between four hell lord-level entities would be difficult even with magical artifacts, Clark's biofield could serve as a stabilizer for the dimension.
Clark couldn't understand how he had ended up in a role similar to the Ancient One, merely observing these battles without much opportunity to fight.
But he knew that if the situation on Earth escalated to the point where he had to go all out, it meant that the crisis would be far too severe to handle easily.
With a hum, the Mirror Dimension enveloped the Lazarus Pit's cave as Baron Mordo and the others arrived.
"A Mirror Dimension?" Both Damian and Lazarus were familiar with this construct. Sensing the fragile space around them, Damian sneered, "Even the Ancient One's Mirror Dimension wouldn't be able to hold me…"
"Heh, the Ancient One isn't here, so you can brag all you want. No one can prove you wrong now," Robert chuckled mockingly. "But I don't get it. A guy who conjured up a hellish domain but was too scared to even fight now claims he can beat the Ancient One. Did this colleague of yours give you that confidence?"
"Superman, Saiyan, or whatever you are, this doesn't concern me. As long as hell lords don't cause chaos on Earth, even the Ancient One wouldn't have interfered. That's always been the unspoken rule," Lazarus responded seriously, looking at Clark and Robert.
"You know me?" Robert asked in surprise. His name wasn't nearly as well-known as Clark's, so Lazarus recognizing him felt odd.
"My current body is that of Lars, who had conflicts with the Avengers. After his escape, I took over his cloned body, so I know a little about you and figured out your identity," Lazarus calmly explained, signaling no hostility.
"Lazarus! What are you saying?! The enemy is here, and you're still trying to avoid responsibility? If they defeat me, do you think they'll spare you?" Damian couldn't contain his frustration anymore, completely forgetting how he had fled from Robert and Clark earlier. Now, he was righteously rebuking Lazarus.
"I'm not like you. You've clearly caused trouble. As for Lars, his life was always mine. I granted him over seven hundred years of life, and now I've taken his cloned body. He had committed countless misdeeds, so replacing him is a good deed…" Lazarus distanced himself from Damian, speaking indifferently.
"And as for you, I can tell you haven't restrained your demonic nature, even after reincarnating. You must have committed some heinous crime, or you wouldn't have come to me…"
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