Chapter 261: To Defeat the Great Demon King Du Wa, Go For It, Big-Mouthed Batman with the Spiked Visor!
Author: Great Demon Spirit
2024-02-11
If one were to say that Druig was the number one die-hard fan among the Aliens from the Marvel Universe under Du Wa's command, then Frank Ramisky was the number one die-hard fan from the DC Universe.
This spirited young man, once a follower of the Green Lanterns, had desperately sought a Lantern Ring to no avail. At the critical moment when Earth faced annihilation by the Third Army created by the Guardians, he decisively defected to Du Wa and, from that point on, found his true purpose in life.
At least, that was what Frank believed.
Wearing the Power Ring that had lost Volthoom, he moved swiftly through the vacuum of space like a true Green Lantern, effortlessly crossing one galaxy after another.
"According to the information the great Du Wa gave me, I'm almost there."
Frank stopped, gazing into the deep Cosmos, looking at the endless stars. He recalled the sense of insignificance he felt as a mortal gazing up at the sky. But now, everything was different. He could use the Power Ring to traverse countless planets at will, watch the destruction of a sun, observe the birth of a planet, and peer into the terror of a Black Hole from afar.
All of this was the kind of ability he had fantasized about possessing only after becoming a Green Lantern like Earthlings Hal Jordan, Kyle Rayner, Guy Gardner, John Stewart, or Simon Baz.
Several rays of light flew over at high speed, intercepting Frank and surrounding him.
"Frank Ramisky, the Alien Lantern! You're not staying on Earth. What are you doing here?!"
Bathed in white light, exuding an aura of sanctity and life, Kyle Rayner stared majestically at Frank.
Not long ago, he wouldn't have given Frank a second glance. There were far too many people like him—those who yearned to become a Green Lantern but lacked the qualification and were completely unrecognized by the Green Lantern Ring.
Such people only coveted the power and glory of a Green Lantern but lacked the commensurate awareness and willingness to sacrifice.
What's more, this Frank fellow was an Alien.
"I can understand your complex emotions. My Ring once contained the most complex and evil will in this world. It made me uncomfortable for a time, but it also helped me grow, giving me the opportunity to see into the wickedness of the human heart... Mr. White Lantern, as holy as you are, your mind is similarly filled with a great deal of negative emotion." Frank looked at the Lanterns surrounding him with a contemptuous expression.
"Enough! What are you so proud of? You're not even a Green Lantern. Are you worthy of accusing the Life White Lantern?" Stewart cursed angrily.
"Idiot, is your head stuffed with muscles too? You know he has a White Lantern Ring? This White Lantern Ring of his is completely different from the White Lantern power Dove possessed during the Blackest Night. You should know this better than I do!" Frank stood alone, yet his presence overwhelmed everyone present as he roared his curses.
Dove had received the favor of the White Lantern Entity, the Entity of Existence, and had instantly become the origin for spreading the Life White Light.
And Kyle, this White Lantern? He didn't receive the same treatment as Dove. He had collected one ring after another, breaking through the boundaries of the Emotional Spectrum represented by the different rings. He became a White Lantern only by gathering and simultaneously mastering the seven rings of visible light.
Alright, it sounded like Kyle's path was more difficult, and in fact, it truly was.
"This also means that this White Lantern you all revere hasn't truly washed away extreme emotions like the Orange of Greed or the Red of Rage. Instead, he has made them an inseparable part of his will! He's still that ordinary person, just much more powerful and dangerous."
Frank looked coldly at the group. "Kyle is a bomb with immense power, one who only surpasses the seven visible spectrums in terms of strength and capacity. As soon as he faces a situation that exceeds his upper limit, his White Lantern state will crumble in an instant. In the worst-case scenario, he'll be overwhelmed by some extreme emotion."
To become a Red Lantern, the most basic entry requirement was to have suffered immense pain and generated a rage powerful enough to shake the entire Universe!
This was the Main Universe; what kind of insane rage would it take to achieve that?
Greed was even more self-evident. There had only ever been one Orange Lantern Ring. Its wielder was so greedy they refused to create other Orange Lantern Rings and would stop at nothing to seize and possess the rings of other color lights.
And then there was the Indigo Light of Compassion—a thorough brainwashing light. No matter how vicious a person was, once they were forced to wear an Indigo Lantern Ring, they would become a compassionate saint, a mass-produced product from a factory assembly line.
"White Lantern isn't synonymous with perfection, so don't try to use the Life White Lantern to pressure me. A White Lantern is nothing special." Frank looked at them and brandished the Power Ring on his finger. An eerie green light emanated from it, distinct from that of a normal Green Lantern. "Or perhaps you'd like to have a go at me and prove whose ring is stronger?"
"Of course, we are stronger! We have several kinds of rings on our side!"
"But I have the Aliens!"
"We have the Life White Lantern!"
"I am an Alien!"
The Lanterns were filled with apprehension. Yes, Frank, this once-insignificant little figure who couldn't have been more mediocre, was now an Alien and had been granted a Power Ring by Du Wa.
"You're not on Earth. What are you doing here?"
"I answer only to Du Wa. I don't need to explain anything to the likes of you. Get lost!"
Frank didn't entangle with them any longer. Activating his Power Ring, the strange green light transformed into a swarm of hideously deformed monsters that madly pounced on the Lanterns, instantly throwing the scene into chaos.
By the time the Lanterns destroyed these green monsters, Frank was long gone.
"This is trouble. It was really that person who sent him..." The faces of the Lanterns present turned grim.
For Du Wa to issue a command, it had to be something major—most likely something that could affect the historical course of the Main Universe, or even the direction of the Multiverse. Yet, there was nothing they could do.
Simply because Frank was an Alien, none of them dared to make a move. This unprecedented feeling of frustration tormented them endlessly.
Who among them that could become a Lantern wasn't powerful? But everything they took pride in was utterly insignificant in the face of the Main Universe's new changes. After all, no matter how powerful a Lantern was, how could they possibly contend with a multiversal God like Du Wa? They couldn't even handle the vast numbers of Aliens.
"The Guardians are all dead, and we can't go back to Earth. We're like a pack of hyenas wandering through the universe, without even a safe place to rest!"
Stewart roared in anger, "Didn't even the First Lantern fall into Du Wa's hands? Even Black Hand was expelled by Du Wa! What can people like us, who are far inferior to the First Lantern and Black Hand, possibly do?"
"What's more desperate than the difficulty is that there's no hope in sight. What's even more terrifying is that even if we could truly abandon everything here and go to other worlds, we would still have to face countless Aliens."
At this moment, even Kyle Rayner felt a sense of powerlessness. The white light around his body even flickered faintly, showing signs of instability.
"Anyone can waver, but you can't. You can never lose hope, no matter what!" Carol hurriedly reminded him. "Don't forget, it's not time to give up yet. Hal is still following Black Hand back to the Dead World as a Black Lantern Zombie, and Sinestro's whereabouts are unknown!"
Everyone's spirits lifted.
Yes, Hal Jordan, the greatest Lantern in the history of the Green Lantern Corps, and Sinestro, the man who was both Hal's arch-nemesis and mentor, the previous greatest Lantern of the Green Lantern Corps.
The problem was, Hal was bound by Black Hand and couldn't act, which was one thing, but what was Sinestro doing?
At the same time, in the Dark Multiverse.
The Sinestro of the Main Universe arrived in a dark universe filled entirely with Black Lantern Zombies and met this universe's Sinestro, who wore both a Black Lantern Ring and a White Lantern Ring.
"What a rare guest. I didn't expect you to actually come, and to dare appear before me... You can call me the Phantom Lantern."
The Dark Multiverse's Sinestro, with one half of his body teeming with life force and the other half a rotting decay, stared menacingly at the version of himself from the Main Universe standing before him. "A Green Lantern Ring doesn't have the function to cross universes. How did you find me?"
"It wasn't difficult. One only has to follow the traces of Black Hand or the Entity of Existence. Among the countless universes, a universe almost completely occupied by Black Hand, suppressing the Entity of Existence to the point it daren't show its face, could only be this one. Because there is a 'me' here who has amplified his selfish nature to the extreme."
The Main Universe Sinestro cautiously observed his counterpart.
Terrifying fluctuations pulsed towards him. In the short time he had appeared, a vast number of Zombies surged forward like an endless black tide.
*Swish!*
The Dark Multiverse Sinestro activated his White Lantern, creating a white field of life that sealed off the endless Zombies. He said, "Yes, that's what I did. After obtaining the power of the White Lantern during the Blackest Night, I didn't choose the optimal path—sharing the White Lantern's power with the few remaining living people to create enough White Lanterns to turn the Blackest Night into the Brightest Day. And so, my universe became like this."
He regretted it. He truly regretted it.
The Main Universe Sinestro chose to share the White Lantern, but he had greedily tried to monopolize it, causing the White Lantern's power to be too weak. It was completely suppressed by the Black Lantern power, with no hope of turning the tables.
The White Lantern was suppressed by the Black Lantern power, and the Entity of Existence was beaten down by Black Hand. Across the entire World Within the Wall, this was an unbelievable outcome.
One had to know that on the Emotional Spectrum's wavelength, Black Hand was destined to be countered by the Entity of Existence.
"I happen to know a few of the epic stories about the Lantern Entities. Legend has it that there were no Lantern Entities on the Emotional Spectrum, only a group of wild beasts. Then one day, a guy named Black Hand suddenly appeared from who knows where, wielding a scythe and beginning a massacre of all the beasts. The seven that managed to survive became the Lantern Entities. And because their reactions while fleeing were different, they came to represent different color light wavelengths. The Butcher, filled with rage, became the Red Lantern Entity; Parallax, terrified to the extreme, became the Yellow Lantern Entity; and Proselyte, who helped the other Lantern Entities, became the Blue Lantern Entity..."
The Main Universe Sinestro said coldly, "However, Black Hand, who could so easily create a massacre, was easily killed by a light of creation."
After the light of creation defeated Black Hand, it broke itself down, transforming the seven remaining creatures into Lantern Entities, while it itself degenerated into the Entity of Existence.
Light suppressing Darkness—perhaps there was a deeper reason for this. The Main Universe Sinestro was certain that everything in this world had an origin; it was impossible for Light to be inherently superior to Darkness!
Perhaps in an even more ancient age, the extremes of Light and Darkness had already battled? The light of creation killing Black Hand, and the phenomenon of the Entity of Existence generally suppressing Black Hand across countless universes—were these just insignificant continuations of that struggle?
He couldn't figure it out, nor did he have the means to understand it all.
"A fascinating story, and completely useless. I spared your miserable life hoping you would bring me some different information, not to listen to you give a lecture on mythological interpretation that isn't even a history lesson! My Life White Light can't block over ten trillion Zombies. Your time is running out," the Dark Multiverse's Sinestro said with an impatient look, his mood clearly much more volatile.
As an outsider who was also wearing a Green Lantern Ring, Sinestro was as conspicuous as a flame in the night.
Countless Zombies rushed over from various galaxies, drooling with hunger.
The Main Universe Sinestro took a deep breath, the pressure immense. This was a huge gamble. If he didn't do this, to put it bluntly, he would still be the honored leader of the Yellow Lantern Corps. As long as he didn't oppose Du Wa, he could still be a cut above the rest, even doing what he wanted to a certain extent within the Main Universe.
But since he was unwilling to accept the status quo and had risked death to come to this dark universe, he had to be prepared to pay the price with his life.
"The fate of all Lanterns is about to take a major turn. The worst-case scenario is that the Emotional Spectrum will soon have a new master."
"Oh? Is that all? Don't think I'm completely ignorant about the Aliens. Aliens once appeared in this universe too, but they were erased by some power before they could spread. I also know that Du Wa captured the so-called First Lantern, but he wants to control the Emotional Spectrum? How is that possible?"
This time, it was the Main Universe Sinestro's turn to be shocked. In the Dark Multiverse, one could actually say Du Wa's name aloud? The Aliens had also been cleared out? This meant there was a being no less powerful than Du Wa, one who could forcibly erase the influence Du Wa exerted.
This filled him with excitement and ecstasy, as if he had seen a glimmer of hope.
"Hehehe, yes. Here, you can speak Du Wa's name without worrying he will parasitize you. His power hasn't been able to spread to the Dark Multiverse yet. But that doesn't mean that you, who are so deeply tied to the Emotional Spectrum, will be safe and sound when Du Wa seizes it."
Someone else had broken into this universe and cut into the Green Lantern Ring's communication channel.
This in itself was normal. The Lantern Ring was essentially a conglomerate of supernatural power, yes, but it also possessed the functions of a high-tech creation. Things like long-distance communication and broadcasting to other Lanterns across the universe were standard features.
Wearing a spiked visor, grinning with a wide mouth full of sharp teeth, The Batman Who Laughs appeared at the edge of the universe under the protection of a Green Lantern Batman exuding evil energy—The Dawnbreaker. Before a group of Zombies could sense and attack them, The Batman Who Laughs made his announcement:
"Your time is running out. The evidence is that Du Wa has been far too quiet recently. Even the frequency of the Aliens' activities has dropped by 57%. This is not normal. I believe Du Wa is in the process of conquering the Emotional Spectrum, intending to transform all the Lanterns in the Multiverse into Aliens. From then on, every Lantern, from the very beginning, will be an Alien."
The Batman Who Laughs paused, appreciatively watching the few Zombies that had drifted closer, and said with a grin, "As luck would have it, I've also lost Barbatos's trust and need to achieve something to win it back. So I've formulated a meticulous plan, and I need your help. Of course, if it fails in the end, this will also be the last plan I ever formulate—the patience of Gods seems to be universally poor. Despite having nearly endless life, they always lack patience in necessary matters."
(end of chapter)