The duel between Clark and Ter-Ror spread across the world through the few cameras that miraculously weren't destroyed.
Superman was going to duel another mysterious Kryptonian in the Arctic.
The news spread rapidly.
Lex Luthor, the Kryptonians' number one enemy, angrily declared that Kryptonians didn't care about human lives at all!
The internet exploded.
Some were excited, others panicked.
But all of this was irrelevant to the few people in the center of the ruins.
Clark looked at his arrogant cousin in front of him, then at the ruined Central City.
His anger had been replaced by a deeper sense of responsibility.
He took a deep breath, trying to keep his voice steady.
"Within three days, you are not allowed to cause any more trouble."
Ter-Ror picked his ear, looking impatient.
"Got it, got it."
"You're nagging like an old mother."
"As long as the two of you combined can give me a good fight, anything is negotiable."
Kara stomped her foot in anger.
She pointed at the flattened blocks around them, her voice rising an octave.
"Trouble?!"
"You call this 'causing trouble'?"
"This is a crime of urban destruction! A crime against humanity!"
"And you beat Barry like that!"
"Medical expenses! Emotional distress compensation! Lost wages!"
The more she spoke, the more agitated she became, pulling out a non-existent notepad and starting to calculate out of thin air.
"Most importantly!"
Kara pointed at Ter-Ror, gritting her teeth.
"My black card! The one with the unlimited global limit!"
"You crushed it!"
"And the bills from those thirty restaurants in National City before!"
"I ask you, who's going to pay?!"
Ter-Ror paused.
He looked at Kara, then at Clark, his face full of confusion.
"Pay?"
"Why should I pay?"
"I've eaten my fill, I've fought, isn't that enough?"
"Do the strong still need to pay for the losses of the weak?"
This bandit logic almost made Kara faint from anger.
Clark held back Kara, who was about to lash out again.
He looked calmly at Ter-Ror.
"On Earth, you do."
He pointed to the police and firefighters organizing rescue efforts in the distance.
"These are the rules."
"You break it, you fix it."
Ter-Ror pouted.
He looked at Clark, then suddenly laughed.
"You mean, if I beat you, I won't have to pay anymore?"
"Right?"
Clark was stunned.
He realized that this guy's thought process couldn't be judged by common sense.
"You could say that."
Clark nodded, deciding to go along with the other party's logic.
"If you win, no one on Earth will ever make you 'pay' for anything again."
"Good!"
Ter-Ror slapped his thigh, sealing the deal.
"This is great, from now on, eating and fighting will be a one-stop shop, all free of charge."
He was as happy as a child with a new toy.
Clark looked at him like this, and that feeling of powerlessness welled up in his heart again.
He turned to Kara and said.
"Kara, take him back to National City first."
"Keep an eye on him."
"Absolutely don't let him run out again."
Kara looked unwilling.
"Why me again?"
"I don't want to see that face, it makes me angry just looking at it."
Clark gave an imploring look.
"Only you can keep him in check."
"Please."
Kara sighed, nodding reluctantly.
"Alright."
"But I'm telling you, if he messes up the house again, I won't hold back."
"I'll send the bill directly to The Fortress of Solitude for you to sign for."
Clark accepted with a wry smile.
Just as Ter-Ror was about to leave with Kara.
A news report suddenly interrupted on a large, still-lit advertising screen on the street corner.
In the picture was a turbulent, deep blue ocean.
A man with long golden hair and bulging muscles, holding a trident, rose from the sea.
Behind him was an army composed of countless strange marine creatures.
The news headline read: [King of Atlantis warns Ter-Ror!]
Ter-Ror's footsteps stopped.
His "Qi" perception reached deep into that ocean, where there was an equally powerful energy.
That energy, and the man holding the trident, came from the same source.
He stretched out his finger and poked the man on the screen, who was called Aquaman Arthur.
A smile, like he had found new prey, appeared on his face.
"Hey, cousin."
"This guy looks pretty good in a fight too."
"How about we don't rush to the Arctic first."
"I'll go into the sea first and break his trident, then we'll talk?"
Clark and Kara's faces instantly darkened again.
"No!"
Clark and Kara refused in unison.
Kara grabbed Ter-Ror's arm, dragging him like a giant husky.
"You behave yourself!"
"Three days! Just three days!"
"If you dare to take a bath in the sea during these three days, I'll press you into the Mariana Trench and give you cupping therapy!"
Ter-Ror was dragged by her, pouting unhappily.
"Hmph, stingy."
He still followed Kara, turning into a streak of light and disappearing into the sky.
Clark remained in place, looking at the devastated city, and sighed deeply.
These three days, for the entire world, would be an incredibly long torment.
In the next three days.
The entire world was plunged into a strange state of excitement and unease.
The duel agreement of [Superman vs. Mysterious Kryptonian] became the hottest topic globally.
Major TV stations, news websites, and social media broadcast related analyses and reports 24 hours a day.
In the top office of LexCorp.
Lex Luthor looked at Ter-Ror's arrogant face on the screen, a pathological gleam in his eyes.
On the whiteboard in front of him, next to the "Prometheus" plan, another line of text had been added.
[Target Two: Kal-El]
[Target Three: Kara Zor-El]
He wanted more than just Ter-Ror's data.
He wanted all Kryptonian data.
This duel, for him, was the most perfect experiment, personally prepared for him by Deleted.
Meanwhile, at Belle Reve Prison, in the control room that once made Amanda Waller feel suffocated.
She was on a call with a virtual projection.
The man in the projection, with a stern face, was S.H.I.E.L.D.'s director, Nick Fury.
"Three days from now, the Arctic, a duel?"
Fury's voice was devoid of emotion.
"Yes."
Waller's tone held a hint of an imperceptible tremor.
"I have activated the highest level of satellite monitoring to ensure all combat data is transmitted back without a single error."
Fury was silent for a moment.
"Waller, you need to understand."
"This is not a performance."
"These are two beings capable of destroying planets, engaged in the most primal of struggles."
"I don't want data."
Fury's single eye seemed to pierce through the screen.
"I want a result."
"A result that allows us to sleep well at night."
Cold sweat ran down Waller's temples.
At the same time, in the Justice League's Watchtower space station.
The atmosphere was extremely tense.
Wonder Woman Diana, Batman Bruce Wayne, Aquaman Arthur Curry, Cyborg Victor Stone, and Green Lantern Hal Jordan were all present.
On the holographic projection in front of them was Clark Kent.
Bruce's voice was hoarse and low.
"Are you sure you want to do this, Clark?"