Everyone stood up. Hal still looked troubled, and he said, "You must negotiate properly with them. Don't start a conflict. The technology level of the Guardians of the Universe is very high; many years ago they were already one of the top civilizations in the cosmos..."
Clark wasted no words, directly waved his hand and said, "Open the teleportation portal."
Hal was utterly helpless, and could only open the teleportation portal, but not directly to the Guardians of the Universe's planet, instead first going to the Green Lantern Corps headquarters.
As the green teleportation portal opened, the Justice League walked out, and the security monitoring equipment began to alarm violently. Green Lanterns looked toward the direction of the hall and flew over one after another.
"Oh my God, Hal Jordan! How can you bring non-Green Lanterns to the headquarters?! This is a serious violation..."
Before they could finish speaking, a red light flashed in front of them, and a laser knocked down the speaker. Hal quickly flew into the air to stop Clark, whose eyes were glowing red, and said, "No, no, no, don't attack them, they're all good people."
Other Green Lanterns immediately assumed battle positions, while the Justice League didn't show weakness. For a moment, Green Lantern energy and red lasers flew around chaotically, interspersed with Hal's cries of pain.
"Stop fighting, stop fighting!! Let's talk!!"
"Clark, stop it, and you, Sinestro, stop too!! We're not enemies!!"
Clark wouldn't waste words with them. He knew clearly that coming here surely meant a showdown; otherwise, it would be impossible to take away Green Lantern energy. If a fight's inevitable, might as well fight directly.
At Green Lantern headquarters, there were thousands of Green Lanterns, and even those rushing to the hall now numbered in the hundreds. Clark showed no fear, standing in the center like a defensive tower, hitting wherever there was movement, the laser "shoo shoo shoo shoo shoo" without pause.
After a while, perhaps he was fed up with fighting, he took a deep breath, and a laser cannon over three meters wide swept around him as the center, Green Lanterns falling like raindrops.
Green Lanterns didn't back down; Sinestro used a Green Lantern energy cannon to counterattack. But unexpectedly, a magical shield shone in front of Clark. The prism-like shield of multicolored light directly reflected the Green Lantern energy cannon back, knocking down another swath of people.
Then, Clark shot into the sky, magic energy protecting him, and from high above he descended like a meteor. With a palm strike from above, "boom," it caused a massive crack in the planet's surface, the entire planet began shaking violently.
"Stop it, stop it quick!"
"The planet's going to fall apart! Stop him quickly!"
"Hal, quickly restrain your comrade!"
"Does he look like my comrade to you?!"
Sinestro, just climbing up from the ground, said a bit helplessly, "Hal, make him stop, let's talk it out."
Hal rushed forward, stopping Clark who was about to hit again. If he hit once more, the planet would definitely break apart. Where on earth did this monster come from?!
Clark landed back on the ground, arms crossed, floating in mid-air. Sinestro looked at him and said, "Did you come here just to cause trouble?"
"Of course not," Clark said, "I'm just here to notify you, a multiverse-level disaster is about to descend on Earth, and as cosmic police, you've done nothing. Now is the time for you to act."
His words sparked an intense discussion below. They hadn't sensed any multiverse-level disaster, the cosmos recently unusually peaceful, even the instigator Darkseid had quieted down.
But Sinestro was obviously more perceptive than the others, he said, "Does it relate to Darkseid?"
"In a deeper sense, yes, but for now he's not the key," Clark said, "The power of death is polluting Earth's oceans, we need enough Green Lantern energy to dispel the pollution."
"That's not something we can handle," Sinestro said, "The source of Green Lantern energy is controlled by the Guardians of the Universe..."
"That's why I need you to take me to the Guardians of the Universe," Clark said, "Since they claim to be Guardians of the Universe, they surely won't be stingy in providing energy to those who protect the cosmos?"
"I can take you there," Sinestro said, "but I advise against using such violent methods against Oa Star. There are many important devices there, and if damaged, it might affect cosmic stability."
"That depends on their attitude," Clark was reluctant to yield, "If they're willing to fulfill their responsibility, I'll treat them with courtesy; if they're not, I'll have to give them a reminder."
Sinestro said a bit helplessly, "The power of the Guardians of the Universe is extensive, aren't you afraid for your mother planet..."
"My mother has long since perished," Clark said, "Don't you know about the Kryptonian extinction?"
Sinestro seemed surprised, looking at Clark, "You're a Kryptonian? But... but no Kryptonian was said to have superpowers..."
"It's a special breed," Hal tugged at Sinestro and then said, "You should send a message to those big blue-headed folks to remind them. Superman doesn't care if shoes are worn. If he really smashes Oa Star, what can the Guardians of the Universe do to him?"
Sinestro also realized the severity of the issue. If it were another civilization, there might be some considerations, but Kryptonians really are unrestrained. No matter how powerful the Guardians of the Universe are, they can't retaliate against them.
Sinestro used the lantern ring to contact Oa Star. Normally, there would be an automatic reply for received messages, and someone would soon contact him, given his status as leader of the Green Lantern Corps, he was relatively valued. But this time, the message was sent for a long time without any reply.
Seeing Clark's growing unease, Sinestro could only say, "Let me take you there first."
He opened the teleportation portal. Clark stepped in without hesitation. He wasn't worried, but the Green Lanterns were, each following him through. What lay beyond the door stunned both Clark and Sinestro.
Oa Star was left in ruins.
Sinestro was frozen, and the Green Lanterns walking in were also stunned. Clark turned to Sinestro and asked, "What happened here?!"
Sinestro flew up in disbelief, only to find the once prosperous city completely destroyed, debris everywhere, and the Lantern Furnace nowhere to be found.
"Damn it." Sinestro muttered to himself, "Darkseid, it must be him."
Clark frowned. Sinestro continued, "Darkseid hasn't demolished any planet recently, we thought he had changed. Now it seems he's brewing a larger conspiracy. Only he has the power to destroy Oa Star..."
"I fear the larger conspiracy isn't just about destroying planets." Clark said, "He has taken the Lantern Furnace, and we can't obtain enough Green Lantern Energy, Earth's seas will surely be polluted. Once Earth is lost, the gateway will be opened..."
"Gateway?" Sinestro looked at him.
"That's right. A powerful entity wielding the Power of Death aims to breach the Multiverse barrier and turn this place into a lifeless domain. Our cosmos is the chosen bridgehead. He's already begun large-scale invasion. We need the Lantern Corps' strength to repel the invaders!"
"Darkseid plays a vital role in this too." Clark said, "We suspect he's the one who instigated the entity to invade the Multiverse."
"That makes sense. To prevent you from accessing the Lantern Furnace Energy, he invaded Oa Star in advance." Sinestro sighed deeply. He scanned Oa Star and then said, "Let's search nearby."
"Search for what?"
Sinestro opened his mouth but didn't say anything, just replied, "Anything useful, surely something remains."
The Green Lanterns had already dispersed to search, the Justice League could only assist in the search. However, the destruction here was thorough, not a single Little Blue Person was left, buildings, instruments, roads were all annihilated, even plants weren't spared.
Sinestro's expression grew more perplexed. Clark looked at him and said, "You better speak up about anything you know. If your secrecy leads to severe consequences, you'll be a criminal to the Multiverse."
"It's not that I won't say, I'm unsure." Sinestro said, "I only heard rumors. The original master of Emotional Spectrum was imprisoned by the Guardians of the Universe. A very powerful entity, unlikely to be killed by Darkseid..."
"Then he probably escaped." Clark said.
Sinestro shook his head again: "If he were here, he wouldn't let Darkseid take the Lantern Furnace. He has long sought to reclaim the power of the Emotional Spectrum. There's no reason he would lose to Darkseid's army."
"Now's not the time to study this." Clark was also getting anxious, "Where else can we get Emotional Spectrum Energy?"
"He's the key," Sinestro emphasized, "He's the only one besides the Guardians of the Universe who knows how to use Emotional Spectrum Energy. Finding him is our only hope!"
Sinestro looked around and then said, "I'll contact other Lantern Corps first, see if they have any leads. You return to Green Lantern Headquarters, move their Lantern Furnace to Earth. The Green Lanterns will follow, the Energy should last for a while."
Clark, though dissatisfied, had no better option. He led the Justice League away. Sinestro took a final look at the ruined Oa Star and left.
On the way back, Clark paused, sensing something was amiss. He turned to the Justice League members, saying, "I'm not surprised Darkseid destroyed Oa Star, but how did he manage to prevent the Guardians of the Universe from transmitting any information?"
Diana was also stunned, she said, "Yeah, isn't it said that the Guardians of the Universe have advanced technology? They should have been able to reach out to the Green Lantern for support, how could they just silently be..."
"If Darkseid could wipe out the Guardians of the Universe, he'd have done it long ago," Ron said, "That kind of savage person would be the arch-enemy of the Green Lantern Corps. If he could directly destroy the Green Lanterns' home, he would have. Not doing it shows either he can't, or at least can't do it smoothly. A big battle should have happened."
"There must be something we don't know." Arthur said, "But I can't think of who would..."
Suddenly, a detail seen on Oa Star flashed in Arthur's mind. The last time he saw similar ashes was when Hell Bat Armor killed the Savage Wolf.
Since the battle occurred in the sea, Arthur knew more details than others, and the ashes fell into the sea. He was more aware of the appearance of the enemies killed by Hell Bat Armor.
Arthur's breath hitched. He wanted to speak up, but swallowed his words. If Batman truly did it, and he didn't speak, guiding so many people to search must have a purpose. He couldn't disrupt his plan.
But upon returning to Earth, they learned a terrible news — Savage Wolf, Atlanna, and other resurrected spirits and Justice League enemies formed a supervillain alliance and openly declared war on them.
A strange and deep voice echoed over Metropolis.
"The Blackest Night covers the sky, ebbing shadows swallow the light. Heart gouging, soul enthralling to death, resurrected spirits serve the Black Hand!"
"You will eventually understand, death is the eternal refuge, and we, shall descend like the Black Death Day, dragging the cosmos into the Blackest Night. Come, and pledge allegiance to the great Black Death Emperor!"