The General's Humiliation
A video was playing in the Main Control Room.
In the footage, Luke, wearing the Phantom Armor, stood next to General Zod. The AK assault rifle in his hand was pressed against Zod's forehead, poised to fire at any moment.
"Kara, should we stop him?"
Linda, her face pale, remained silent. A flash of inexpressible complexity crossed her eyes.
Luke, are you really going to pull the trigger?
Death is a peculiar event.
People with different experiences view it differently. A desperate person with nothing to lose doesn't care about life or death. A person who fully enjoys material and spiritual life cherishes their life deeply. The former owns too little, the latter owns too much.
Dru-Zod was a different kind of person.
He cared neither for enjoyment, money, nor status. He was a pioneer with an absolute ethnic spirit and a grand mission, committed to giving everything for Krypton's future, even his own life.
Therefore, he was not afraid of death, but he could not afford to die.
The mission of rebuilding their civilization had just begun. If he died, who would shoulder this responsibility? Relying on the House of El's soft-hearted weaklings was impossible.
These conflicting emotions intertwined, leading to a strange spectacle.
Zod's face was strained, his eyes wide and furious, as if he wanted to devour someone. Yet, they betrayed a pitiful, unwilling plea—the distress of a great ambition cut short before fulfillment.
An expression like that belonged on an oil painting in a museum.
Luke pulled back the bolt of the rifle and placed his finger on the trigger. His killing intent intensified.
"General, any last words?"
Zod couldn't take it. He could die, but not now.
"What do you want to let me go?"
The hoarse voice echoed in the room, like a weak tiger begging a fox for mercy. Luke couldn't help but smile, his lips curving, his eyes narrowing with unmistakable pleasure.
Witnessing this, Linda was dumbfounded.
The supreme military commander of Krypton, Dru-Zod, renowned for his tyranny and brute force, was actually begging for mercy!
Why?
Linda disliked General Zod, even found him repulsive, but as a Kryptonian, she absolutely hated seeing this scene.
A military leader of a high-level civilization bowing to a native of a low-level one—this was not just between two men; it was a clash between civilizations.
Luke said lightly, "General, may I take your words as a plea for mercy?"
Zod closed his eyes, trembling violently with shame and rage.
"It seems the General is unconvinced. How about this: put on your combat suit, and let's fight one more time. If you win, I'll let you all go. If you lose, I'll execute three of your subordinates. How does that sound?"
Zod took a deep breath, suppressing the fury in his heart, and said word for word,
"If you want to humiliate me, then do it."
Luke clapped his hands.
"A General is indeed a General. To maintain your composure at this point—I'm impressed."
"Actually, personally, I don't want to kill anyone. After all, you are Linda's few remaining people. Killing you would surely cause her great distress. However, some things need to be made clear."
Luke stepped back, lowered the AK rifle, and his killing intent dissipated. "I am a pragmatist who is clear about rewards and punishments. Simply put, as long as it doesn't involve core principles, everything can be exchanged for profit."
"General, what are you prepared to trade for your life and the lives of your subordinates?"
Hearing this, Zod breathed a long sigh of relief and said earnestly,
"What do you have in mind?"
"Something of equal value, plus a partial compensation fee for emotional distress."
The cunning Earthling.
Zod cursed inwardly. Something of equal value sounded simple, but was complicated to calculate. What was more valuable than life itself?
"What exactly do you want?"
Luke rubbed his hands, looking somewhat embarrassed.
"General, let me ask you a question. To a person, what is the most precious thing?"
Zod frowned, confused about the Earthling's intention, but answered anyway,
"Honor!"
"No, no."
Luke shook his head repeatedly. "Honor is only for the military. I'm not a soldier, so what would I do with it? Guess again."
Zod snorted and closed his eyes, refusing to participate in this clumsy, childish game.
Luke sighed. "A personality like the General's is suited for the battlefield, but not for leadership. You will only drag down your people if you lead them."
"Since the General isn't interested in guessing games, I'll be direct. To a person, the most precious thing is, of course, their life. If you don't have life, what's the meaning of anything else?"
"So, I don't want anything else. I only want lives."
"Your subordinates are brave and fearless, tough and resolute. They are soldiers of extremely high caliber, and rare bodyguards. I greatly admire them, especially Faora, Edwin, Hill, and Grot—the four of them. Give them to me, and I'll let you go."
Zod burst into laughter, as if he had heard the most ridiculous joke.
"Earthling, Kryptonian soldiers will never betray their General, nor will they submit to a low-level native! They will never become your subordinates!"
Luke shook his head. "General, you may not know much about Earth. We have a form of magic there that can twist a person's mind, turning them into puppets who only obey their master. The only drawback is that the target must not actively resist during the spell."
Luke leaned in and whispered in Zod's ear,
"And I just happen to know this magic. Do you understand what I mean, General?"
"Never!"
Zod roared in fury, struggling violently. The medical bed shook. "Don't you dare use your damned witchcraft to enslave my people! I will never agree, even in death!"
"Don't use such ugly words. It's just control, not enslavement. Besides, there are nine of you, and I only want four. Four for five. You're even profiting by one, aren't you?"
"Get lost!"
SLAP!
Luke slapped him across the face, then clamped his right hand around Zod's throat and hauled him forward. Killing intent surged from his eyes, and a terrifying aura crashed down like a tsunami.
"Dru-Zod, who do you think you are? A Kryptonian General? Pah! You're a cowardly, incompetent piece of trash, an intellectually deficient idiot! On Earth, there are thousands, if not tens of thousands, of people like you! I called you 'General' only out of respect for Linda, but you actually think you're important!"
SLAP!
Another slap landed, immediately turning half of Zod's face a deep purple-red.
"Let me tell you, I've decided on these people. It doesn't matter if you disagree. I'll test them one by one. If any of them refuse, I'll put a hole through your body right in front of them, and we'll see if they dare to resist then."
With that, he punched Zod's head, making the man see stars and dizzy. He then unlocked the restraints on the bed and began dragging him out by the throat.
The situation changed too quickly for Linda to react. Seeing Luke's increasingly brutal methods, she quickly stood up. Just then, the dynamic shifted once more.
Zod seemed to realize something. He wrapped his hands tightly around the table leg, refusing to let go no matter how hard Luke yanked him.
Luke looked exasperated. "General, why bother? You've already lost. A loser needs to accept their defeat. Dragging this out only makes me look down on you."
"Let them go!"
Zod looked up, his eyes now completely gray and desolate.
"If you let them go, you can take everything I have."
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