Meanwhile, in Gotham City.
The Kryptonians had searched for two full hours, but they still couldn't find the codex they were looking for.
With no other choice, a frustrated Fiona approached the silent General Zod and quietly delivered her report.
"General, there's no sign of the codex anywhere in the spaceship."
"I know."
General Zod replied without looking at her, his gaze resting on Alfred, who stood quietly in the distance.
He gave Alfred a slight nod before turning back to Fiona and lowering his voice.
"I had truly hoped the codex was still aboard the ship. If it were, we might not have needed to become enemies with these people. But now it's obvious. Since the codex does not physically exist among the remnants of Krypton, Jor-El must have encoded it directly into his naturally born son."
Zod fell silent for a moment before releasing a long sigh.
Fiona thought about his words before asking, "Then, General, should we eliminate Clark..."
"Silence."
Zod immediately cut her off.
"Do not underestimate Earth's technology. Their methods may appear primitive on the surface, but that is merely how their civilization developed. Their technology is far from primitive. Their magical traditions and technological advancement alone are proof of that.
"They may possess methods of monitoring our conversations, and our Kryptonian language may already have been deciphered. Do not openly express hostility, especially when there is no reason to reveal it yet."
With that, General Zod raised his right hand, signaling the soldiers who had gradually returned to gather around him.
One after another, the Kryptonians assembled.
There were now seventeen of them.
Originally, only five Kryptonians had come to Earth. However, after Zod discovered that Earth's yellow sun could greatly enhance Kryptonian abilities, he had ordered the remaining soldiers to leave the ship as well.
Even the Kryptonian scholars who had remained aboard the vessel eventually ventured into space to absorb the sun's radiation and underwent the same physical enhancement.
Across from them, Alfred stared at the seventeen Kryptonians gathered together and swallowed quietly.
He raised his left wrist, removed the armor covering it, and checked his watch. After confirming the time, he restored the nanotech armor, allowing it to spread across his body once more.
"It seems Master will be back soon. Otherwise, having more than a dozen Clarks standing together would be quite difficult to describe."
"Ha, they're not simply a dozen Clarks. They're considerably stronger than Clark."
Zatanna couldn't help interrupting.
"Uncle Butler, Clark can't even fly yet, but those Kryptonians started flying as soon as they absorbed enough sunlight. Their speed is incredible!"
As she spoke, Zatanna fanned her flushed face.
The group of Kryptonians possessed remarkably impressive physiques. Seeing so many of them standing together had nearly overwhelmed her.
She continued fanning herself and laughed.
"Fortunately, spending so much time around Axel and everyone else has given me enough resistance to this sort of thing. Otherwise, if I kept staring at those men, I'd probably get a nosebleed.
"Seriously, what do Kryptonians eat to grow up like that? Are there really no unattractive ones among them?
"By the way, will Clark eventually become like them? Will he be able to fly and fight like that?"
"Of course, Zatanna. Clark is simply young. They're all his people."
Victor answered from the side while wiping the blade of his katana.
The weapon had been forged from a specialized metal synthesized by Lex. It was exceptionally durable, yet Victor still wasn't satisfied with it.
To be honest, Victor had his eye on the weapons wielded by Hawkman and Hawkgirl.
Those Nth Metal artifacts possessed extraordinary properties. Merely wielding them could grant their users abilities far beyond what ordinary weapons could provide.
Unfortunately, Hawkman and Hawkgirl's weapons were extremely difficult to destroy. Lex had studied them for a long time without finding a reliable way to break them down.
That wasn't surprising.
Although Hawkman and Hawkgirl had died, death was hardly permanent for them. Their lives were tied to reincarnation, and they had returned from death countless times throughout their history.
If their destined weapons could simply be destroyed, then their connection to that cycle would hardly mean anything.
Even someone as brilliant as Lex would have difficulty circumventing the divine forces tied to their reincarnation and completely dismantling and reconstructing those weapons in such a short period.
For now, Victor finished wiping the blade.
He held the katana with both hands and performed a preparatory swing, a basic sword exercise known as suburi. After checking the weapon's balance, he returned it to its sheath with a satisfied smile.
"I've known for a long time that Clark has incredible potential. Even if he never learns to fly, his strength alone would make him one of the most successful among us.
"But what I'm more interested in, Alfred, is when you and Martha are planning to get married."
"Uh..."
Alfred's old face immediately reddened.
"Perhaps in a few months. Maybe next year. I won't let Martha down. She's one of the finest women I've ever met."
"Hmm. Then I'll wish you a good son who can fly and get himself out of trouble early. Haha.
"By the way, the sun is almost setting. Axel left with his wife today. Do you think they'll return a little earlier?"
"Why would Axel come back earlier just because he's with his wife?"
Zatanna asked Victor curiously.
Everyone fell silent for a moment.
Then they looked at one another and burst into laughter.
Zatanna became even more confused by their reaction.
Da Zha Jie leaned toward her ear and whispered.
"Lord without his wife might spend longer playing with new women. Since he brought his wife along, wouldn't coming back here also count as playing?"
"You all..."
After hearing the explanation, Zatanna rubbed her cheeks, looking increasingly helpless.
"You understand far too much."
"Haha, you'll understand eventually, Zatanna."
Enchantress chuckled and patted Zatanna's butt. Axel had done the same thing so many times that Da Zha Jie had apparently picked up the habit.
Amid everyone's laughter, a speeding van suddenly came down the nearby street.
Alfred's smile disappeared when he noticed the vehicle traveling against traffic.
He immediately waved to Floyd.
Floyd understood the signal, activated his armor, and flew into the street before landing heavily in front of the speeding van.
Inside the vehicle, Mera, sitting in the passenger seat, was startled.
"You're going to hit someone!"
"Don't worry, Princess. My driving is excellent!"
Vico replied confidently as he sharply turned the steering wheel.
The van swerved around Floyd, slammed into a roadside lamppost, overturned several times, and finally crashed into a cake shop.
Floyd stared at the wreckage and frowned.
Strange.
Why hadn't the armor's intelligent system identified the people inside the vehicle?
Had the facial-recognition system malfunctioned?
With that thought, Floyd walked toward the wreckage, entered the cake shop through the shattered entrance, and looked coldly at Mera as she crawled out of the overturned vehicle.
Once she was outside, Mera shook her head and dusted herself off. She then patted her rounded backside before suddenly realizing that someone was watching.
Her face flushed, and she quickly moved behind Vico.
Vico looked equally embarrassed.
Driving a vehicle on land was far more difficult than operating the shark-shaped watercraft and ray-like speedboats he was accustomed to. He had confidently boasted about his driving ability, only for the vehicle to flip over almost immediately.
It was humiliating.
Still, he had to handle the negotiations with the surface dwellers. That was his responsibility. He couldn't simply leave everything to the princess.
Vico awkwardly stepped forward and addressed Floyd.
"Greetings, elite warrior of the surface world. I am Vico, chief adviser to the royal family of Atlantis.
"This is Her Royal Highness, Princess Mera of Xebel. We have an extremely important matter to discuss with your king or lord.
"Believe me, we come with peaceful intentions. The matter we need to discuss concerns the safety of the entire world."
Vico bowed deeply.
Floyd was momentarily stunned by the gesture before instinctively returning the bow.
"Hmm. I understand. Tsk, you're pretty polite.
"Whether what you're saying is true or not, The Dead Souls Gang isn't the White House. We're not afraid of unexpected trouble.
"You want to see my boss? Follow me. He's out at the moment and probably won't be back for a while, but Mr. Butler is nearby.
"However, I'll warn you now. We're currently dealing with a group of Kryptonians from space. You'd better be confident in your own strength. Otherwise, don't blame me if you get yourself killed."
"What?"
Mera was startled by Floyd's words.
She clenched her fists and looked toward the distant Kryptonians.
"What do you mean by Kryptonians? Are you talking about those people wearing tight suits?
"Aren't you all allies? I saw the video of you fighting the man who stole the Mother Box!"
"Hmm?"
Floyd looked confused by Mera's statement, but his easygoing attitude didn't change.
"Heh. Sounds like you two have quite a story to tell.
"Never mind. Come with me. Talking to me won't accomplish much. I'm responsible for action, not decisions. You'll have to tell your story to someone more important."
Floyd waved to the Atlanteans and led them toward Alfred.
Mera followed behind Vico and quietly whispered to him.
"Uncle Vico, Gotham doesn't seem to be what we expected. They appear to have plenty of problems of their own."
"Problems?"
Floyd suddenly turned his head while continuing to walk.
"Miss from the sea, they say you shouldn't underestimate us.
"For us, no matter how serious the problem is, it's only because our boss hasn't returned yet. Once he comes back, all these so-called troubles will just be entertainment."
"Oh?"
Mera frowned at his arrogance.
"The problem I'm talking about once forced humans, Atlanteans, and the gods to face it together, and we nearly failed.
"Even Zeus couldn't resolve something on that scale. Do you really believe your boss could handle it so easily?"
"Haha, you'll see. Compared to my boss, Zeus is more like a plaything. Never mind, that guy barely counts as one of my boss's fathers-in-law anyway. Hahahaha!"
Floyd couldn't contain his laughter as he suddenly thought of Diana.
At that moment, Victor approached with the others, one hand resting on the hilt of his katana.
"Why are you laughing like an idiot? Are they another group of lunatics trying to make us laugh?"
"Bullshit. They're Sea Clan. They claim to be from the legendary Atlantis.
"I don't completely believe them, but they're not in the database either.
"Unless the information network created by Lex and Bruce can somehow be breached by these people, then there must be at least some truth to what they're saying."
"Wow."
Victor's eyes widened slightly.
Zatanna immediately stepped forward, curiosity taking over as she examined Mera.
"Is it really you? You actually exist? My dad wasn't lying to me?
"But I heard from my long-lost father that the Sea Clan rarely comes to the surface."
"You know about us?"
Mera looked pleasantly surprised before quickly explaining.
"Since someone here knows about us, I'll be direct.
"Just a few hours ago, the same enemy who stole your Mother Box came to Atlantis and stole the Mother Box protected by our people.
"Believe me, no matter how powerful you are, you will understand despair once you face the enemy behind these Mother Boxes.
"Surface dwellers, we need to cooperate fully. In fact, besides our two sides, we also need to find a way to contact the Amazons and determine whether their Mother Box has also been stolen..."
Whoosh!
Before Mera could finish, a golden figure descended from the clouds and crashed heavily onto the nearby road.
The impact shattered the pavement.
Diana emerged from the dust and strode directly toward the stunned Victor.
Victor raised his mask slightly as Diana looked him over with curiosity. She didn't remember Gotham's people possessing technology this advanced.
But there was no time to dwell on it.
Diana pulled the Mother Box from her back and raised both it and the Lasso of Truth for everyone to see.
"Mr. Alfred, Axel... Axel!"
She stopped abruptly.
"I have something extremely important to tell him. I..."
Diana looked around.
"Damn it. He's not here, is he?
"Alright. If he's not here, I actually feel a little more relaxed.
"Regardless, even if you still consider me an enemy, I have to ask for your help. I really need help. I..."
"Wow, haha! What is the famous Daughter of Zeus doing?"
Before Diana could finish, Axel suddenly emerged from the flames and casually draped an arm around her shoulders.
"I didn't mishear that, did I? Haha, I really didn't. You were begging me?
"Tsk, tsk. That sounds wonderful, Diana. Beg me a couple more times. I want to hear it again."
Diana's face immediately darkened.
She quickly slipped out of Axel's embrace and awkwardly held up the Mother Box.
"So you were here. That's great."
"Mhm. I just got back too."
Axel waved toward everyone before looking at Alfred.
"I'm curious about what happened here. Gotham is certainly lively today.
"If I'd known so much was happening at home, why would I have gone to Marvel to play with women and watch a show?
"By the way, what's the deal with these Kryptonian refugees and these Atlantean fish people?
"Damn, do they think my Gotham is a nightclub, where they can just come and go whenever they want?"
=≠=
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