"You always have an illusion that you're an outsider, a third party. But the human race is like a whirlpool; any existence wanting to govern this group from a bystander's perspective will eventually be pulled into the abyss. If you can't become one of us, you will never truly rule us."
"I've thought about this," Brainiac said, "But there's a fundamental difference in the way I think from you. I don't even know if I possess emotions. That's why I want to make breakthroughs, but unfortunately, I haven't had any leads so far."
"You've got it backward," Greed said, "It's not about breaking through your life form and then joining us, but rather trying to join us first, then you'll have a way to break through your life form."
"Then you think I..."
"I know, what you might envisage is to make a body, join this warm human family, eat and sleep with us, participate in community activities, and celebrate with us. I'm not opposed to you doing so, as it can serve a certain promotional purpose, at least pacifying those who have doubts about the existence of your life form. Even if it's just acting, you can act like a person; I believe your computation system can achieve that."
"I'm also considering whether to make a body for myself, but with current human material science, the body made has major limitations, and I'm not very satisfied."
"Ha, Greed," Barry said, "You must have seen how good Zero Ultron's body is, and that's why you think yours isn't good enough, right?"
Brainiac remained silent, seemingly in agreement.
"Let's not talk about that," Greed said, "Establishing a positive image of enjoying life with the people might be useful, but more for pacification. To truly collapse and defeat the enemy, you must start with a negative image."
Barry also found it a bit hard to understand. He said, "What does starting with a negative image mean? Are you saying Brainiac should become an evil robot?"
"Exactly," Greed said, "but not aimed at the public, aimed at those who need you to be an evil robot."
"I still don't quite understand," Barry said, "Who would want Brainiac to be an evil robot?"
"Tobias Whale."
"Who exactly is he?" Barry asked somewhat confusedly.
Brainiac was just about to transmit some information to him when Greed said straightforwardly, "Do you know Spider Man?"
"Oh, I do, I just chatted with him a couple of days ago."
"Then you've definitely heard of Kingpin, Tobias is your side's Kingpin."
Barry suddenly understood and said, "A very capable, cold-blooded, evil mob boss good at calculations."
"Exactly. Do you think such a person would really have any beliefs?"
"Of course not, such people are the most selfish. They are extreme egoists; if it benefits them, they'll praise God in the morning and kill God in the afternoon."
"Exactly, Tobias is the same. So what's the difference between Darkseid and Brainiac?"
"Hmm... Darkseid enabled Tobias to organize an underground network and gave him shielding devices. But Brainiac only made him a paint factory manager." Barry quickly grasped the point, saying, "Such people only look at the size of the benefit. Darkseid provided him greater benefit, so he helps Darkseid. If Brainiac offered him greater benefits, he would assist Brainiac."
"Yes, that's how it works. Such people wouldn't really have any fanatic devotion, insisting on aliens ruling Earth. He sides with Darkseid simply because Darkseid offered him greater benefits. If Brainiac were to provide him greater benefits, he would become Brainiac's most loyal enforcer."
"But how can Brainiac offer him greater benefits?" Barry asked, "Brainiac is constructing a society of labor equality where everyone has their role; he can't be placed above others."
"You said everyone has their role, so do you think a mob boss capable of establishing a global underground network is only suited to be a paint factory manager?"
"Hiss..." Barry pondered while stroking his chin.
"He hasn't shown any management talents before," Brainiac said, "If not for your connection with him, I wouldn't have suspected him. There's ample data to support this."
"That isn't necessarily wrong, because you're an electronic life, and your logic relies on data. So let's analyze the logic of why Tobias hasn't shown his talents: is it because he's afraid of you?"
"If he truly feared me, he wouldn't be doing these things."
"Yes, him hiding his strength isn't entirely out of fear, but precisely because you appear too kind."
"What?"
"What you want to construct is a utopian society where everyone performs their duties and resources are allocated as needed. You are very fair, always emphasizing data and evidence, not abandoning any weak human, and even caring more about the future of their civilization than humans themselves. Do you think you would get along well with someone like Tobias?"
"I understand," said Brainiac, "I acted too righteous, and he feels that we are not on the same path, so he thinks if he reveals his evil talents in front of me, not only would I not employ him, but I might arrest him instead."
"That's right, that's what I'm saying, sometimes you have to be an evil robot. Because on Earth, there are too many evil geniuses who need to share the same foul air with others. If I'm not mistaken, Tobias won't be the only one."
"Indeed, many people are unwilling to work for me, such as Scarecrow Jonathan Crane. The data shows he has excellent talent in chemistry. I wanted him to develop a fertilizer that could increase crop yields, but he would rather go to jail than say another word to me. Even if I placed him in the factory lab, he didn't work diligently, managing to mix up even the simplest chemical ingredients."
"Pig-faced Professor Valentine doesn't resist me, but he seems very aloof, never speaking much to me, nor does he use any electronic devices or networks, spending every day with corpses instead."
"Joker Jack seems to have some issues with me too, even though I've improved the lives of many truck drivers, he still acts indifferent towards me, preferring to play solitaire alone rather than play cards with me."
"Who would want to play cards with electronic life..." Barry whispered.
"Even Pamela, who has already made significant achievements, doesn't seem to accept my career advice to her. As for Harley, the most communication we have is me helping her with the washing machine timer."
"That's exactly it," Greed said. "Humans always fear authority but not kindness. If you are a fair and just good person, no one will fear you, because they know you won't overreact to small matters, and even for major crimes, you will be cautious and objective, at most throwing them into jail. What would they be afraid of?"
"They also know if you are like this, then people like them will never truly follow you. 'Nobility is the epitaph of noble people.' If you keep insisting, one day, your rule will fall apart like dead wood. You must be strong enough, authoritative, and beyond question to make more ambitious people realize you have the ability to take them further, to follow you, and respect you from their hearts."
"The shepherd's way again." Barry sighed.
"I know it's a bit cliché, but it's effective because it's classic," Greed sat back down and said, "Your awkwardness lies in the fact that you're very understanding but not entirely, stuck in a middle ground. The weak don't feel you can truly empathize with them, and the strong think you're too cowardly to lead civilization further. Sometimes, you can't have it both ways; choosing both is choosing neither."
"Considering you currently can't break through the form of life and gain real emotions, the only path left for you is to become more assertive, to truly unite those ambitious geniuses around you and take action, plundering benefits for human civilization within the cosmos. Only then can there be less of these nonsensical things created to overthrow you on Earth."
"Like what you did in another world?"
"But to be fair," Greed's tone changed, "being too strong can indeed provoke backlash, so we can cover this assertiveness with a veneer to fool others."
"For example?"
"He doesn't ask, you don't speak; he asks, you're surprised; he questions, you apologize; he gets angry, you promise; next time, the same."
Barry couldn't help but cover his forehead.
"In summary, formulate a plan where no matter what anyone does, they can't change the outcome. Over time, they will stop trying to interfere, because they know that no matter what they do, the result is the same."
"It sounds a bit difficult," said Brainiac. "I'm not sure I can do it as well as you."
Barry watched as Greed's face visibly brightened. Greed clapped his hands and said, "Seeing that you appreciate this, I can help you once, but only this once."
"What are you planning to do?"
"Simple, get me a voice changer."
Metropolis Smith Chemical Factory Manager's Office. A man who looked incredibly obese, like a large white whale, with a ferocious face full of flesh, was sitting behind a desk, examining this month's reports.
"Mr. Tobias Whale."
"What's going on? Brainiac? Is there a problem with the material statistics?"
"No, the report on material statistics you submitted is very timely and the data is accurate. What I want to discuss with you is another matter, which is the illegal organization '100' you organized and their members' terrorist attacks worldwide."
Tobias didn't look surprised or scared at all, he just slightly raised an eyebrow and said, "Oh? It turns out you already found out, faster than I thought. So what do you plan to do? Arrest me and put me in jail?"
"If that was my intention, it would have been the police coming here. In fact, I have heard from Schiller Rodriguez that you intercepted the Mother Box that should have been offered to Darkseid. What do you think His Majesty the Emperor would do if he knew about this?"
Tobias' complexion changed.