Hmm?
This image?
Alex's heart stirred immediately—he had already vaguely realized what this meant.
"What's going on? What happened to the TV?"
"What does this mean? Who did this?"
Alex's super perception spread outward in an instant.
It covered all of Smallville, all of Metropolis, the entire United States, and even the whole planet.
He discovered that televisions across the globe were all broadcasting the exact same image.
No doubt about it!
Zod!
Crackle—pop!
Sure enough.
After the screen flickered a few times, a heavily armored, imposing man appeared on every television.
It was General Zod.
Exactly the Zod Alex remembered.
---
"I am General Zod. I come from a distant world, yet I crossed the vast sea of stars to find you."
"You are harboring one of my people. I now demand that you hand him over."
"For certain reasons, he chose to conceal his existence. He did everything he could to blend in among you."
"Though he looks like you, he is not of your kind."
"If any of you know his whereabouts, then the fate of your planet lies in your hands."
"Kal-El, can you hear me?
Within twenty-four hours, surrender yourself—or let this entire world pay the price!"
---
Under the gaze of the entire world, General Zod delivered this blatantly threatening declaration.
The name Kal-El echoed across every corner of the globe.
"As expected—it's General Zod."
Alex's spirits lifted slightly.
What he did find curious was how Zod managed to escape the Phantom Zone after Brainiac had already been killed by him.
But after thinking it over, the answer was obvious.
Zod's escape had nothing to do with Brainiac at all.
Even without Alex's interference, Brainiac had been destined to fail anyway.
---
[New mission generated]
[Mission: Thwart General Zod's plan and destroy General Zod's fleet]
[Mission Reward: 50,000 Origin Points]
Just as Alex was thinking this through, the system's voice interrupted him directly.
Alex's eyes immediately lit up.
"As expected—a mission!"
It seemed he understood the system quite well.
Events on Zod's level were impossible for the system to ignore.
And the reward wasn't low either—a full fifty thousand Origin Points.
Alex was extremely satisfied.
---
Knock knock knock!
There was a knock at the door.
"Come in, Clark."
Creak.
With Alex's words, Clark's figure appeared before him.
Even though Clark now knew Alex wasn't Kryptonian, Alex was still someone who had fought alongside him—and someone who knew everything about him.
Faced with such a monumental decision, Clark instinctively came to Alex for advice.
"You saw the broadcast too, right?"
Clark sat down beside Alex, his expression extremely grave.
"Zod is here. He's finally here."
Back when Zod and his two companions escaped the Phantom Zone and beat Clark like a dog, it left an unforgettable impression on him.
Since then, Zod had been like a mountain pressing down on Clark's heart.
He didn't know when Zod would come—but he always knew that day would arrive.
And now, it finally had.
---
"Yes. Zod is here. That was inevitable."
Alex shrugged calmly.
Compared to Clark, his reaction was far more relaxed.
"So what are you thinking?"
Alex glanced at Clark with mild curiosity.
"Zod wants me to choose between him and humanity," Clark said quietly.
"I don't trust Zod—but I don't know whether I should fully trust humanity either."
"But I can't let Earth pay the price for Krypton's sins."
As Clark spoke, his gaze gradually hardened.
It was obvious—he had already made his decision.
"You plan to surrender to Zod to protect humanity?" Alex raised an eyebrow.
Classic Superman.
So kind it was almost naïve.
"Yes. I've decided to surrender to Zod."
Clark nodded firmly.
"But just as I said, I don't trust him. Even if I surrender, I can't guarantee he won't attack Earth."
"So, Homeland—"
"You want me to protect the people of Earth?"
Alex interrupted him directly, looking at Clark with a hint of disbelief.
You're not even sure humanity deserves trust, and yet you're this concerned about them?
"Yes, Homeland. That's exactly why I came to you."
Clark nodded seriously.
---
"That's not happening."
Alex shook his head without hesitation.
"Clark, I thought you understood me. Do I look like some selfless saint like you?"
"No," Clark said solemnly.
"Homeland, you're actually a good person."
When Clark first met Alex, he'd misunderstood him, and the two had even clashed.
But Alex had saved the town from Kryptonians—and eliminated Brainiac.
Clark believed that deep down, Alex was just like him.
Unfortunately for Clark—
He was completely wrong.
"I'm not a good person," Alex laughed.
"I don't care about the lives of irrelevant people.
But as for General Zod…"
"I'll take him out."
"I knew it—I knew I could trust you!"
Clark nodded in relief, then stood up.
"If that's the case, I can finally rest easy."
Homeland was always like this.
Gentle as water on the inside, yet wrapped in an icy shell.
Clark himself was Kryptonian—that much was understandable.
But Homeland had nothing to do with any of this.
Why would he take down General Zod?
Wasn't it obviously to stand up for humanity?
Clark understood.
He totally understood.
Alex: "..."
Clark… are you misunderstanding something here?
Still, Alex had no intention of explaining.
If Clark wanted to misunderstand, then so be it.
It didn't seem like a bad thing for Alex anyway.
---
Whoosh!
After Clark left, Alex once again spread his super perception across the globe.
Very soon, his eyes lit up.
"General Zod…"
"I've found you."
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