Chapter 538: Chapter 535 | The End: Punch Through The Multiverse.
"Batman, I don't think we need to keep talking to this guy!"
Shazam, with his jumpy personality, emerged from the crowd, kneading his casserole-sized fists with an eager expression.
"Give him a good, hard punch, and we'll know everything!"
The strong muscular man's real name was 'Billy Batson'.
Don't be fooled by his appearance, he was actually only a 15-year-old kid.
By chance, Billy Batson was selected by the wizard of the Rock of Eternity and got the magic power of six gods.
As long as he shouted out the name of 'Shazam', a magic lightning bolt would fall from the sky.
Turning him into a strong and brave superhero.
Billy Batson had the wisdom of Solomon, the power of Hercules, the endurance of Atlas, the divine power of Zeus, the courage of Achilles and the speed of Mercury.
Of course, about 'Wisdom of Solomon'...
It has also been jokingly referred to as 'The locked wisdom' because it was rarely embodied.
"That's right! If he is a dangerous criminal, he should be put in prison. If he's crazy, let's just beat him up!"
Arthur Curry -- Aquaman, agreed and swung his trident at the blue man.
Batman didn't get the gang together and travel to Mars just to admire the other party's naked body.
Nowadays, the Justice League, and by extension, the superhuman types around the world, were being questioned and watched with vigilance.
Superman was in a public opinion crisis, and Wonder Woman was forced to take to the stage of the United Nations, ready to make a public speech and salvage the situation.
There were still heaps of problems on Earth waiting to be dealt with by the superheroes.
They didn't want to waste time on a blue man who didn't like to wear clothes.
No matter how powerful the other party was or what kind of conspiracy it was...
The crowd wasn't the least bit intimidated.
The Justice League was stronger after Flashpoint ended in the New 52 timeline.
They defeated the Apocalypse and stopped the Darkseid's invasion.
Also, beat back the repeated attacks of the Brainiac and successfully save Earth.
Even Mobius, the Anti-Monitor, who masterminded the 'Crisis on Infinite Earths', fell at their feet.
Now, facing this blue man of unknown name and origin, these superheroes were filled with the same confidence.
"I don't mind if you keep talking for a bit longer. I'm charging by the hour anyway."
Constantine, who had a Silk Cut cigarette in his mouth, shrugged his shoulders and looked on with a look of amusement.
"Speaking of which, do any of you have a nickname for this guy? How about Blue Balls? I think it's appropriate!"
Dressed in a yellow trench coat, his hair fluttered like a bird's nest, just like a dishevelled old man.
This was Constantine.
He appeared out of place in the line of superheroes.
Like a noir film character showing up in a children's cartoon.
"No one wants to hear you crack jokes and appreciate your sense of humour."
Zatanna covered her forehead and gestured for Constantine to shut up.
The latter shrugged. Batman was the one to persuade him to take part in the operation.
Naturally, it wouldn't be because of a sense of duty or a sense of justice, such vapid things.
Constantine was always the first one to actively jump on board, as long as enough money or benefits were offered.
Of course, if there was danger or a price to pay, he was also the first one to run.
Zatanna, who was standing next to Constantine, silently took a few steps to pull away.
There's no way around it. In terms of reputation, he's probably the worst in the game.
Even Swamp Thing was more popular than Constantine. After all, the former was just a little cranky.
And with the latter, there was no telling when you would be sold to the devil or tossed out to block a blow.
As we all know, Constantine was an asshole in every sense.
But ironically, whenever the world was facing destruction…
This guy was always resourceful. People had to hold their noses and work with him.
"If you'd shut up, I might add an extra zero to the check, Constantine."
Without looking back, Batman unleashed his financial ability straight away and managed to turn the other party into a mute.
The reason he called Constantine, Zatanna, and Swamp Thing over from Justice League Dark...
Was to do as much as possible to address the blue man on Mars.
The Green Lanterns could grasp the energy of the emotional spectrum.
Shazam had the power of the gods.
Cyborg could suppress on a scientific and technological level.
Aquaman and Kara had the strength.
Martian Manhunter was responsible for linking everyone's minds and conveying tactical orders.
Batman thought that he had thought of every aspect that could possibly go wrong.
"I hope you will cooperate and not put up resistance."
Batman, dressed in pitch-black armour, spoke in a deep voice.
The blue man had been surrounded by superheroes. What else could he do but surrender?
"Green Lantern!"
Batman looked at Hal Jordan.
The latter was the first to raise his Power Ring.
Green light erupted and transformed into a huge chain that bound the blue man.
The rest of the Green Lanterns followed suit, their Emotional Electromagnetic Spectrum shifting into a variety of weapons and blasting at the immobile Dr Manhattan.
"Interesting."
Dr Manhattan didn't resist. He just stared at Hal Jordan's ring.
The naked body disintegrated into a stream of particles, evading the many Green Lantern attacks with ease.
Then, the quantum body reorganised itself in a flash.
He approached Hal Jordan and tried to take his ring off.
This gesture triggered the green Power Ring to burst into an emotionally charged light that flooded the room like a gushing wave.
"I'm interested in him."
Dr Manhattan seemed unaffected as a cloud of green light struck his torso without causing much damage.
"What's in it?"
Hal Jordan let out a roar of rage, his willpower highly focused as he tried to resist Dr Manhattan.
But it was useless. The Power Ring, which belonged to him, was finally removed.
"This energy uses emotions as the raw material, which is collected and converted into energy by the ring. A very novel device."
Dr Manhattan clutched the Power Ring, surveyed it for a moment, and then tossed it to the fallen Hal Jordan.
"Let's all go together! Against such villains, we don't need to talk about morality!"
Constantine retreated to the back of the line and roared.
Listening to his impassioned tone, they thought he was going to take the lead in the charge.
"Try magic."
Batman gestured.
Zatanna spread her hands wide and performed Logomancy.
"Ezeerf!"
A cold stream that could even freeze blood rose out of thin air and swept toward Dr Manhattan.
Not to be outdone, Swamp Thing moved. The barren, dry red soil of Mars was abruptly sprouting gigantic trees and vine plants.
Thick tentacles waved and broke through the palace like whips, lashing out at their opponent.
Shazam mobilised his divine power, and a bright white lightning bolt of magic erupted around him.
"Magic? You think you're manipulating that mysterious energy, but you're not."
Dr Manhattan remained expressionless; his voice was indifferent.
"As I see it, the power you harness is only a fragment of creation, a conceptual manifestation."
The naked blue man spread his palms. The freezing cold air, the plant growing, the magic lightning ... all attacks suddenly disintegrated into atomic dust invisible to the naked eye.
Afterwards, he reorganised the unstable mass of energy, taking on an entirely new existence.
"This is the true face of magic."
Dr Manhattan looked into the palm of his hand at the blazing core and gently blew out a mouthful of air.
An infinite amount of light and heat was released, almost as if it was a nuclear explosion.
The powerful blast of air instantly destroyed the clock-like palace and sent a flurry of superheroes flying out.
"Batman, get Superman!"
Constantine used magic to protect himself from the ripples.
He shouted at the pitch-black armour. Not even the Green Lantern and the many magic users were a match for Dr Manhattan.
Who else could stop the other party but the Son of Krypton?
"I can solve it!"
Kara stood on Mars's soil, defying the violent air currents. Her eyes radiated fiery beams of light.
"Kryptonian?"
Dr Manhattan's eyes flashed white.
Super Girl's Heat Vision failed to break the quantum body.
The blue man bent down, grabbed a handful of dirt, and then clenched it.
In an instant, matter changed, and green kryptonite appeared.
"Is this your weakness? Weakness, pain, suffering ..."
The kryptonite radiation was shining on Kara, causing her to lose her strength instantly.
...
...
"What should we do? Even the Justice League is no match for that blue man!"
The Flash, who was watching the battle from the sidelines, was anxious, especially after seeing Hal Jordan get knocked out. He wanted to rush straight into the battlefield.
After all, they were best friends.
"I know. You can join in, but it won't affect anything other than increasing the number of losses."
Luke didn't hide his tracks. He just watched the blue man's every move.
The quantum body and the quantum senses enabled Dr Manhattan to dominate everything, to master the movement of particles of matter and energy.
He could disintegrate and restructure at the drop of a hat. For example, he could turn clay into kryptonite.
He's able to understand the power of magic and the Emotional Spectrum from a microscopic perspective and parse it out.
Even the Flash, with his Speed Force, couldn't do anything about Dr Manhattan, with his Planck time reaction speed.
To sum up, this blue man was probably the most difficult opponent the Justice League had ever met.
Even if Superman, which was on Earth right now, arrived in time, it would have very little impact on the battle.
"Are you going to fight?"
The Flash looked at Superman's older cousin, his eyes flashing with hope.
In a few minutes, all the superheroes were on the ground.
On the surface of Mars, only the blue man stood as before.
Even Batman, with one of the most powerful brains, was helpless in the face of the crushing power gap.
"I have an old score to settle with him."
Luke's mouth curved, and he glanced at Dr Manhattan.
The dark red cloak fluttered up, and a step was taken, pulling out a sonic boom-like explosion.
No pleasantries, no greetings, just a straightforward punch.
For the first time, surprise appeared in Dr Manhattan's indifferent eyes.
"You actually came out of that world?"
Earlier, to prevent Luke from sabotaging his plans, he had specifically banished his opponent to the Watchmen universe.
"Adrian asked me to send you his regards."
Luke clenched his fist, and the space around him shuddered.
The next moment, like a shattered mirror, it broke open into a pitch-black void.
The emotional energy shield that enveloped Mars' atmosphere took a hit.
Like a fragile eggshell, it dissipated.
The fallen superheroes looked up, and all they could see was a blur.
The man stood tall and magnificent, his cloak raised high as if he occupied the centre of the universe, radiating endless light and heat.
Dr Manhattan tried to see through the attack; ordinary physical combat couldn't hurt his quantum body at all.
But the fist that encompassed all the cards of Superdemon, Devastator, Super Kryptonian, Cyborg Superman, Silver Superman, Superboy-Prime ... wasn't that simple.
When the fist was punched out, not only was space broken, but time also began to curl and contract.
The Mars beneath their feet wailed in pain as if it would soon fall apart.
"Is this the end I saw?"
Dr Manhattan's eyes drifted off to look at the tall man with blazing eyes and a billowing cloak.
That punch sealed off any way out!
Space, time...
The quantum body couldn't travel through space and time as it normally could for the time being.
There was no other way out but to take it head-on.
Boom!
A loud sound!
As if a rumbling thunderclap had stirred the Multiverse!
Mars, Earth, Darkseid's planet -- Apokolips, the headquarters of the Green Lantern Corps-- Oa, and even the inside of the Source Wall...
Those multiverse-level existences felt that terrifying power with unparalleled clarity.
No frills, no tricks, just pure power that nearly broke through the dimension of reality.
The intense light rolled in like a wave, and all the superheroes on Mars were left blind.
When they regained their sights and could see things clearly.
Dr Manhattan had disappeared, and there was no sign of the tall man who was as imposing and powerful as the other.