The feeling of having both feet off the ground was truly exhilarating.
Luke couldn't resist flying a circle around the warehouse, but after several tumbles, he had to stop to adjust his balance.
This process was time-consuming, requiring constant data collection, adjusting the internal structure based on the collected data, and then repeating the process.
After two days of busy work, the results were still not ideal.
Ghost One's flight capability relied on energy propulsion, which was fundamentally different from a Kryptonian's biological field. The latter could perform any maneuver in mid-air: dancing, strolling, hovering, etc. Ghost One could only move horizontally, front, back, left, and right, appearing quite clumsy.
"How should I solve this?"
Luke, with a cigar in his mouth, was a bit troubled. "Adding an anti-gravity device would be a good option, but that would make the armor bulky, and energy consumption would also be an issue."
"If only I had Nth metal."
Just as he was thinking, the spaceship suddenly shook, as if it had hit something.
"Not another asteroid belt, is it?"
Luke didn't dare to be careless. He quickly put on his battle armor and left the warehouse. This time, the tremor lasted for a shorter period, only about ten seconds. By the time he reached the main control room, the spaceship had already stabilized.
"Linda, what happened?"
The pale-faced girl stiffly turned her head, her smooth forehead covered in sweat, as if she had experienced something terrifying. She swallowed, her voice hoarse, and said,
"We… we might… be in trouble."
Outside the Fortress of Solitude was a void, without light or darkness, just the most basic particles that make up matter and the vague concepts formed by consciousness and thought.
This was the dimensional space, also known as the Dark Domain, or the Place of Origin.
Space jumps utilize the spatio-temporal differences between dimensional space and the real universe for super-fast travel. Each entry into or exit from dimensional space consumes energy. The larger the volume and higher the density of an object, the more energy is consumed. For a spaceship like the Fortress of Solitude, the energy consumed cannot be measured by Earth's current technology.
Energy is the foundation of civilization's development; all so-called technology is merely branches built upon the main trunk of energy.
Dimensional space is closely linked to energy. Compared to a universe with complete physical laws, it is more like a conceptual entity formed by energy factors.
There is no air, no light here, only the most basic elements. It appears dark and profound, but in reality, it contains unimaginable dangers. The source of these dangers are those high-dimensional beings that cannot be described by real-world concepts. No one knows how these beings formed, and even the most brilliant scientists in the entire universe cannot explain it. Some scholars from advanced civilizations believe that these beings existed before the birth of the multiverse.
They roam aimlessly in dimensional space, passing through endless ages, growing larger and stronger day by day. In front of them, even the most powerful gods in the entire universe are as tiny as ants.
At this moment, Luke had such a feeling. Just by glancing through the moon window, his body trembled like a sieve.
It was too big, so big that he could only see a shadow. He couldn't find the outline of its body within his field of vision. The Fortress of Solitude, dozens of meters tall, was like a grain of sand in the ocean compared to it.
Fortunately, there are no physical laws in dimensional space. Otherwise, if this thing merely moved a little, the impact it would create would turn the entire spaceship into dust.
Luke swallowed, stammering,
"What... what... what the hell is that thing? Linda, do you even know how to pilot a ship?! You can't see something that big and have to crash right into it. If you want to die, don't drag me with you."
"Who wants to die? It flew over on its own, how was I supposed to know?"
The girl retorted angrily and quickly activated the emergency procedure.
The Fortress of Solitude concealed its form, the energy shield was reduced to minimum power, the outer structure retracted inwards, and all the lights brightened, doing its best to impersonate an ostrich.
After doing all this, the two sat side by side under the moon window, not daring to breathe, silently chanting "It can't see me, it can't see me" while praying to all the gods that the big guy outside wouldn't turn over.
If it turned over, let alone the Fortress of Solitude, even big shots like Brainiac, Darkseid, or the Anti-Monitor would have to kneel and sing praises.
At this moment, Luke suddenly recalled a documentary he had seen in his previous life: How many microorganisms are crushed when a person turns over? Does a person care about the lives of microorganisms?
The answer is obviously no. Once a life form reaches a certain level, the significance of weaker life forms becomes blurred. Just as humans don't care about the lives of microorganisms, similarly, this behemoth in front of them wouldn't care about the Fortress of Solitude. Perhaps it hadn't even noticed the tiny speck clinging to its skin.
Time passed slowly, becoming incredibly long.
After an unknown period, the oppressive feeling began to recede. Luke still couldn't clearly see its appearance; his vision was completely dark, and apart from a large, blurry shadow, he couldn't discern its true form.
After confirming the danger had passed, Linda seemed to lose all belief, slumping to the ground like a fish with its bones removed. Her heart pounded, but her cheeks were devoid of color, and sweat dripped through her clothes, forming a puddle on the floor.
Luke wasn't much better. He exited the Ghost armor and plopped onto the ground, saying with lingering fear,
"You didn't tell me I'd encounter something like this before we came."
"I didn't expect it either."
"What exactly was that?"
"I don't know. You can call them high-dimensional beings."
"Them?"
Luke accurately grasped the keyword. "Don't tell me there's more than one of these things."
"Who knows? Anyway, it's my first time encountering one."
Luke took a few deep breaths, his expression a little grim.
"Linda, I think you've hidden a lot of things from me."
The girl rolled her eyes. "You're overthinking it. How could I possibly lie to you? Only you lie to me."
"Is that so?"
Luke didn't believe her at all, staring intently at her. "Kryptonian space technology has tens of thousands of years of development history. It's impossible not to be aware of the dangers of space jumps, and you didn't tell me anything."
"You didn't ask!"
Luke: "..."
"Alright, alright."
The girl got up and whispered something. Luke sneered and held up four fingers.
"One box isn't enough, I want four boxes."
"Four boxes it is."
There were plenty of energy crystals stored in the Fortress of Solitude, so giving him four boxes was no big deal. After all, the items belonged to her cousin, Kal, not her.
Her share had long since been transferred to the 'Voyager,' which was Linda Danvers's capital for survival.
Women who start to split assets are just that unreasonable.
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