Shin soared into the sky and stretched out his hand to stop the descending space station. Although he only possessed one-quarter of Kryptonian blood, his strength, bolstered by stellar energy, was nearly on par with Superman's. However, the range of his bioelectric aura was much smaller, extending only about ten meters compared to Superman's far broader influence.
As Shin exerted his strength, the outer wall of the massive space station immediately caved in, leaving a deep ten-meter dent. He frowned slightly at the result. Fortunately, he wasn't relying solely on Kryptonian abilities. Drawing upon his chakra, he activated his powerful gravity manipulation technique. A pulse of repulsive force erupted from his body, halting the falling station midair.
Then, black mist flowed from his hand and formed a swirling dark vortex, sucking the entire space station into his dark dimension.
'Strange... Where did that Superman under Grid's control go?' Shin scanned the surrounding sky, a slightly frustrated look on his face.
He had been hoping to confront Superman. Opportunities to openly take advantage of Superman's Kryptonian bloodline didn't come often. And Superman wasn't just any Kryptonian, he was a special case. In every known universe, he consistently displayed potential that far surpassed his peers.
There were many fan theories floating around, some said Superman represented the embodiment of hope, others believed he was connected to higher-dimensional forces, and some noted that, unlike many genetically engineered Kryptonians, Superman was a naturally born individual. Shin didn't know which of these theories were accurate, but the results spoke for themselves, Superman was far superior to standard Kryptonians.
For ordinary Kryptonians, their ceiling was the baseline of what Superman could achieve. As for Clark Kent, he embodied the idea that one's power was as boundless as their will. At his peak, he had become something akin to a god. Naturally, Shin wanted access to that bloodline. But unfortunately, Grid had been cautious. The moment Shin appeared, Superman vanished without a trace.
'I don't know what that machine is plotting, but if it's avoiding direct confrontation, it must be planning something drastic.'
Shin pondered for a while, but lacking Superman's enhanced vision or hearing, and with his Observation Haki only able to scan several hundred kilometers at most, he couldn't locate the controlled Superman. Left with no choice, he returned to base, hoping the others had gathered more intelligence.
Meanwhile, far away in the United States, in the heart of Wyoming, Yellowstone National Park, the location of the planet's largest supervolcano, was about to become the epicenter of a catastrophic plan.
According to human predictions, there were typically three scenarios that could lead to global extinction, global nuclear war, a massive meteor impact, or a chain eruption of supervolcanoes. Yellowstone, as it turned out, represented the third scenario all on its own.
If it erupted, the volcano would shoot molten lava thousands of meters into the atmosphere, and volcanic ash would cover a thousand-mile radius with a layer ten feet thick. That ash zone would encompass nearly two-thirds of the United States. Even if humanity didn't go extinct, the American population and civilization as they knew it would be utterly devastated.
The eruption would release enough sulfur dioxide to blanket the globe, blocking out sunlight. Temperatures could plummet by 10°C, and the climate would take at least a decade to recover. Toxic gases would circulate the globe, leaving no country untouched. Even if some pockets of humanity survived, their numbers and technological capabilities would be severely crippled.
And now, high above Yellowstone, a red figure sliced through the sky, carrying a nuclear warhead marked with black and yellow hazard stripes.
It was the Grid-controlled Superman. And on his back was a B41 thermonuclear bomb.
The B41, equivalent to 25 megatons of TNT, was the most powerful nuclear weapon ever produced by the United States. Only the infamous Tsar Bomba of the Soviet Union surpassed it in yield.
In this movie-based world, nuclear weapons followed real-world storage protocols. There were no automated launch options. Even with its vast control over Earth's systems, Grid couldn't remotely launch nuclear weapons at will. But it had found a workaround.
If it couldn't launch the weapon, it would simply drop it.
Most nuclear bombs won't detonate from simple impact or mishandling. But in Superman's hands, traveling at supersonic speeds and slamming the warhead down with precision, the B41 could absolutely be manually detonated. And the target? The Yellowstone Caldera.
The consequences were obvious and terrifying.
Back at the Justice League's underground base, Luthor was busy fantasizing about how his global reputation would soar once the crisis was averted. But his thoughts were shattered when Brainiac's voice cut through the room with urgency.
"Superman has left Metropolis. He's passed the 23rd Military District and is now heading toward Wyoming."
Luthor blinked in confusion. "Wyoming? What's he doing out there?"
The Joker's expression turned deadly serious. "No. No, no, no. He's targeting Yellowstone Caldera! The 23rd District has a nuclear arsenal he must've taken a bomb!"
As usual, the Joker saw through the chaos with terrifying clarity. In the comics, Superman could destroy the world in a dozen ways slamming into Earth at full force, igniting nuclear chain reactions, or even just running around the globe at relativistic speeds.
The Superman of this world, however, was far more grounded. While still immensely powerful, he could be knocked out by a well-placed nuke. Destroying the world with raw strength alone would take months and an uninterrupted stretch without interference.
But destruction didn't always require brute force it only required strategy.
Using a nuclear warhead to trigger the Yellowstone Caldera was a masterstroke. He didn't need to destroy humanity. He just needed to wipe out America.
Luthor's face turned pale. Green Arrow cursed under his breath. The entire room tensed as the implications sank in.
"Quick! Open a portal to that location!" Luthor barked at the Ancient One.
But before the portal could activate, the ground trembled violently. An alarm blared from Brainiac's terminal.
"Warning! Massive energy fluctuation detected at Yellowstone National Park! Catastrophic geological event imminent!"
Everyone's blood ran cold.
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