American Comics: The Strongest Villain

Boom!

A blinding blue light shot out from the shrinking beam, crashing into Su Sheng with a thunderous roar. Indigo looked on nervously, but the beam passed right through Su Sheng, continuing to the stone forest behind him.

In an instant, the stone forest began to shrink rapidly, reducing in size until it was no bigger than a toy set.

"Master?" Indigo asked cautiously.

Su Sheng nodded lightly. It worked.

When the shrinking beam hit him, he had already copied its power, and thanks to his phaseless state, he was immune to its effects.

"The Martian Manhunter is way too underutilized in this world," Su Sheng muttered to himself. In other realities, the Martian Manhunter's abilities were formidable, but here, his potential remained largely untapped.

"Prepare the Disciple and wait for me outside the planet," Su Sheng ordered.

"Yes, Master." Indigo vanished, and moments later, the Disciple lifted off from the ground and left Argonaut.

At that moment, Alura emerged from her quarters, now dressed. She looked at Su Sheng with a mix of curiosity and apprehension. "What are you planning to do?"

Su Sheng turned toward her with a grin. "I'm going to take this city with me—and you, too. You've been content here, but I think you'll be safer elsewhere."

"Where?" Alura asked, her eyes widening. "Earth? You promised me I'd meet Kara."

Su Sheng's expression softened. "I'm not a good person, nor a benevolent god. But I keep my word."

With that, Su Sheng shot into the air, passing through the protective shield surrounding Argonaut City and into the vacuum of space. Hovering outside the city, he raised his fingers, pointing them directly at the floating metropolis.

"Infinite superposition—twenty times!" he whispered to himself.

A massive wave of energy shot from his fingertips, the shrinking beam engulfing Argonaut City. Within moments, the city began to shrink, reducing in size until it was no bigger than a music box.

Su Sheng flew toward the tiny city, grabbing it and returning to the Disciple. Once inside, he placed the shrunken Argonaut into his collection room. The Kryptonians inside were still alive and safe, albeit shrunken in size. In this reduced state, they no longer had to worry about the environmental threats of the atmosphere or rely on black kryptonite to stabilize the climate.

Su Sheng wasn't worried about them trying to escape. He and Indigo had full control over Argonaut's network, meaning the Kryptonians had no chance of getting out without their consent. Besides, the collection room was far from sunlight, meaning they would remain powerless in their new, confined environment.

"Take us back to Earth," Su Sheng commanded, and the Disciple began its swift journey home.

Meanwhile, on Earth, the Department of Extranormal Operations (DEO) was struggling. With their satellites destroyed by Zod, Supergirl, and Martian Manhunter, their intelligence network was severely crippled. But with the DEO largely dismantled, their main focus was now on Superman and the Superchamber.

"Still no response?" Alex asked, looking at Supergirl.

Supergirl, holding her phone, nodded in concern. "Do you think something happened to him? What if Superman caught him?"

"Don't worry," Alex reassured her. "He can handle himself."

"But what if Superman uses him to get to me?" Supergirl said anxiously.

Alex frowned. She knew Superman didn't have the strength to capture someone like Su Sheng, but revealing Su Sheng's true identity was something she had been hesitant about. After all, what would happen when Kara found out who Su Sheng really was?

Supergirl seemed determined. "I can't just sit here. I need to find him!" she declared.

"But if you go out now, Superman will—"

"I don't care anymore," Supergirl interrupted, preparing to leave.

"Wait!" Alex called out, clearly conflicted. She gritted her teeth before finally admitting, "There's something I haven't told you... about Su Sheng."

Supergirl paused, turning to face her sister.

Alex sighed. "Su Sheng—he's not just anyone. He's Iron Man. The same Iron Man who nearly destroyed the Earth. We didn't tell you because we weren't sure what he would do next."

Supergirl stood frozen in shock. She struggled to process the revelation, remembering all the stories of Iron Man's destructive power.

"Why didn't he tell me? Why did you hide it from me?" Supergirl asked, feeling both betrayed and confused.

Alex tried to explain. "We didn't want you to be forced into a situation that might conflict with your ideals. Su Sheng—he cares about you, Kara. I think he was trying to protect you from having to make difficult choices."

Before Supergirl could respond, a voice called out from across the room.

"She's right, you know."

Everyone turned to see Su Sheng, casually walking toward them with a smile.

Supergirl's emotions were a mix of confusion and frustration. "You... heard all of that?"

"I did," Su Sheng replied, glancing at Alex before addressing Kara. "I won't lie to you, Kara. I'm not a hero, and my identity is complicated. If you're willing to listen, I'll explain everything. But if you don't want to—"

Supergirl cut him off coldly. "Are you going to break up with me?"

Su Sheng laughed softly. "If you don't want to listen, I'll just have to win you over again." With a snap of his fingers, he conjured a potted flower from thin air.

Supergirl's eyes widened in recognition. "Is that... Big Elsa? Where did you find it?" she asked, rushing over to admire the flower. "This is unique to Krypton! My mother grew one when I was born."

Hearing this, the others were equally stunned. "Krypton's gone. How did you get this flower?" one of them asked, their disbelief evident.

Su Sheng simply smiled. "Krypton may be gone, but not everything from it was lost."