Watching Kara fly away into the night sky, Lucas's gaze softened with warmth.
In his previous life, his partner had been willful and temperamental, throwing tantrums at the slightest provocation and making his life exhausting.
In this life, he found himself far more drawn to Supergirl's gentle and considerate nature.
Once her figure vanished from sight, Lucas reined in his emotions and refocused.
After thinking for a few seconds, he took out his phone and made a call.
"Luthor, bring your most advanced anti-surveillance equipment to my place tomorrow."
---
The next day, just after lunch.
Luthor arrived at Lucas's house right on time, accompanied by several technicians dressed in work uniforms.
"Let them install everything first," Lucas said.
"We'll talk somewhere else."
Soon, Lucas led Luthor to a quiet, open park by a lakeside.
"In fact, it'll take them less than an hour to finish installing and calibrating everything," Luthor said, glancing around.
"Although it's hard to hide people here, top-tier surveillance devices—or even expert lip readers—could still pick up our conversation."
The next moment, a strange sensation swept over him, as if something had scanned his entire body.
"Relax," Lucas said calmly.
"They can't hear us now."
"This is…?" Luthor asked curiously.
"The application of ki," Lucas replied.
"Nothing unusual."
"Ki? As in the ki mentioned in Japanese mythology?" Luthor's expression brightened.
Lucas nodded.
"Yes. More precisely, it's a form of life energy within the human body."
Luthor's eyes lit up.
"I always thought that was just mythology. I never imagined it was real!"
Then he asked eagerly,
"Does that mean I also have this energy inside me?"
Under Luthor's expectant gaze, Lucas nodded.
But he added a warning,
"Having it is one thing. Training it depends on talent—not everyone is suited for it."
"Still, it does help strengthen the body and extend lifespan."
"That's more than enough!" Luthor said without hesitation.
"Can you teach me, Lucas? No matter how difficult the training is, I'm willing!"
He grasped Lucas's hand, eyes filled with anticipation.
Lucas looked at him calmly—this reaction was exactly what he had expected.
In fact, this was a plan Lucas had prepared long ago.
Why did Luthor always oppose Superman? In Lucas's view, there were two main reasons.
First, Superman was an alien, while Luthor was an Earth-centric human supremacist.
He firmly believed in the idea that those not of our kind must harbor different intentions.
This didn't concern Lucas at all.
He had already tested his own hair and blood countless times in laboratories. No matter how it was examined, the results always showed him to be completely human—at most, his cells were unusually active.
So even if Luthor somehow created a clone of him, it would still just be an ordinary human.
Second, Luthor's jealousy was severe—he envied Superman's overwhelming power.
That was why Lucas decided to teach him uses of ki.
If Luthor could gain strength through his own effort, his jealousy wouldn't twist him into something dangerous.
And with Luthor's physique, at best he would only reach Krillin's level—hardly a threat.
If his personality flaws were set aside, Luthor was actually an excellent ally.
He possessed one of the sharpest minds in the DC world, along with an unyielding will and incredible tenacity.
More importantly, he had never harbored thoughts of completely annihilating humanity.
That was why Lucas had chosen him long ago.
As for whether Luthor might eventually turn on him?
Lucas could only smile at the thought.
As if avoiding him would somehow prevent that outcome.
At least Luthor wasn't Iron Man or Batman—he wouldn't call you a brother to your face while secretly studying how to exploit your weaknesses.
Lucas smiled, patted Luthor on the shoulder, and suddenly injected a stream of ki into his body.
In the next instant, Luthor felt his body lose all control.
It was as if a foreign force was rampaging through him.
Intense pain surged wave after wave, and he almost cried out.
"Hold on," Lucas said calmly.
"I'm using ki to purge the impurities from your body."
Hearing this, Luthor clenched his teeth and swallowed the scream.
His entire body felt as though it were being pierced repeatedly by countless needles.
A swelling pressure filled him from head to toe, as if he were about to explode.
Yet relying on his formidable willpower, Luthor endured the tearing pain without making a sound.
Even when the agony at his spine drilled straight into his bones and knocked him unconscious, he never cried out.
Lucas couldn't help but admire him.
As expected of Superman's greatest enemy—his willpower was truly terrifying.
Several minutes later, a faint gray substance began seeping out from Luthor's skin.
Lucas released a pulse of ki, shattering the residue into dust that scattered with the wind.
At the same time, the shock woke Luthor from his unconscious state.
"How do you feel now?" Lucas asked.
Luthor shook his head slightly and replied,
"I can feel it… deep inside my body. A warm, comfortable energy."
Lucas withdrew his hand.
"I used this method because you've already passed the optimal age for ki awakening."
"If you tried to train on your own, even ten years wouldn't yield much progress."
Luthor tested his body by jumping in place a few times, sensing the difference.
Then he suddenly threw a punch.
The air ripped with the force of it—far stronger than before.
He immediately turned to Lucas and asked,
"Lucas… what you just did to me'?"
Lucas laughed.
"From a medical standpoint,"
"I used my own life energy to forcibly widen your energy pathways and clear out the impurities."
"I also stimulated your bone marrow, bringing your body as close as possible to its optimal initiation state."
"For an ordinary person without assistance, decades of training might still never allow them to sense ki at all."
Luthor bowed his head slightly.
"Thank you so much, Lucas."
Lucas waved him off.
"Don't thank me yet. This method has side effects—it'll slow your progress from now on."
Luthor didn't care in the slightest and said excitedly,
"This is already more than enough! I'm far stronger than I was as an ordinary man!"
Lucas replied calmly,
"I've only guided you through the door. How far you go from here depends entirely on your own destiny."
"I understand," Luthor said solemnly.
"Rest assured, I will persevere."
"Good," Lucas said.
"Now let's talk business."
"There's someone on my side who can read the text on that spaceship. I'm planning to send her to help you."
__
T/N:
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