Chapter 234: Sangong Mo’s Grudge
Jonathan is a school player who plays American Football.
For the lifestyle habits instilled by Kobe, there is no particular preference for what time of night it is in a certain city, so he is currently feeling very uncomfortable.
Perhaps Damian and Jordan cannot understand.
But he can.
He doesn’t even have the strength to complain. Obviously, they are what Ian had a flash of inspiration for before falling asleep, yet couldn’t grasp – “something was forgotten.”
At the same time, he is also the one that his old man doesn’t want to lend a hand.
Jonathan’s thought is indeed not wrong; just as Jonathan vaguely guessed in his heart, their predicament was not entirely forgotten.
As early as when Ian, as the “God of Light,” staged his final, farcical curtain call, Superman Clark, suspended in outer space and carefully pushing Earth back to its original orbit, his global super hearing and vision had already captured the pathetic sight of his eldest son, second son, and Damian still bound in the ruins of a church.
A hint of pity flickered in his heart. But almost simultaneously, Batman Bruce Wayne’s voice, so calm it barely sounded human, came through his communicator.
“Clark, I’ve synchronized the locations of Jonathan, Jordan, and Damian to you.”
Batman said.
Superman was silent for a moment, then replied, “I see them. They’re… still there.”
“Mm.” Bruce’s voice was without any fluctuation. “According to behavioral psychology and frustration education theory, allowing them to fully experience the direct consequences of their actions in a relatively safe but memorable environment helps to strengthen and update their own cognition, allowing them to avoid repeating the same mistakes in the future.”
“They need to understand that not all enemies will give them opportunities for growth in battle.” When it comes to “cruelty” towards the younger generation, Batman is indeed the most formidable.
Hearing this, Clark looked at the blue planet slowly moving under his bio-electric field, and then “looked” at the three youths shivering in the ruins in the wind of the night.
Ultimately, that flicker of pity was suppressed by a fatherly “rationality.”
He sighed, “You’re right, Bruce. It’s time to teach them a lesson. Just… leave them hanging for one night. Anyway, with their constitution, they won’t freeze to death.”
This was Clark’s final decision.
Thus, under this tacit understanding, the two “strict fathers” defaulted to the arrangement of letting the three young heroes be “air-dried chickens” overnight in the broken church.
And as Ian “resolved” the threats of Darkseid and Sangong Mo, the cosmic crisis engulfing Earth was declared over. The other members of the Justice League, such as Wonder Woman, The Flash, Cyborg, and Aquaman, after confirming that no large-scale disasters would erupt subsequently, all received Batman’s order: “Crisis averted, return to your positions.”
Although they all grumbled about Batman behind his back, they knew to obey Batman’s decisions for the Justice League, so they subsequently left Metropolis, this place of strife.
“Bruce, wait a moment.”
After roughly correcting Earth’s orbit, Superman Clark intended to discuss the issue of Jonathan and Jordan and Damian in more detail with Batman.
However, as soon as he initiated the communication request, he was directly refused by Bruce.
“I have other matters to attend to, Clark.” Bruce’s voice carried a trace of imperceptible urgency and coldness. “We will discuss Ian and tonight’s events at the league meeting tomorrow.”
After speaking, the communication was unilaterally cut off.
Clark looked at the communication channel that had returned to silence and shook his head helplessly. He knew that Ian must have provoked Bruce again with some action, pushing him over the edge.
Therefore, he could only temporarily suppress his doubts and turn to fly towards the Fortress of Solitude – mainly because Ian’s actions were too unbelievable, and even the invincible Superman needed some time to process the incredibly chaotic experiences of the night.
…
Deep beneath Gotham City, in the deepest part of the Batcave. Bruce Wayne drove back at almost the fastest speed possible. He took off the Bat Suit stained with dew and dust, and without even changing into casual clothes, he immediately sat down in front of the enormous, multi-screen Batcomputer’s main console.
He had no choice; he needed to immediately figure out what tricks that little scoundrel Ian was playing in the real world after dealing with battles on the dimensional level! Especially the appearance of that fake Batman, which severely damaged Batman’s reputation and could very well trigger a chain reaction.
“This little scoundrel!”
Batman gritted his teeth.
As he booted up the computer and began scanning the global major media networks and social platforms, the sight that greeted him was enough to make his usually cold blood almost freeze!
Although he had many guesses in his heart, even the exceptionally intelligent Batman repeatedly hit a wall when trying to fathom Ian’s thoughts.
To Bruce Wayne’s complete surprise, almost all the popular TV stations, whether news channels, entertainment channels, or even children’s channels, were airing the same advertisement during prime time!
Online, the splash screen ads of major video websites, popular pushes in social media feeds, and even the corners of some serious financial media were all dominated by the same theme!
The protagonist of the advertisement was a meticulously produced, warm-glowing… Sparkle Stick toy!
Yes, the content of the advertisement was a perfect visual representation of the nonsensical content he had heard his butler monitoring earlier, which was Ian’s dictated speech to Madison!
In the images, scenes of school bullying and the anxious faces of children quickly flashed by, accompanied by tense and oppressive music, making it seem very evocative of people’s heartstrings.
Anyone with industry knowledge would realize that this advertisement had indeed hired a Hollywood director skilled at stirring emotions, and its subject matter cleverly avoided gore while perfectly creating the atmosphere.
This was accompanied by tense and oppressive music.
Then, a warm light broke through the gloom, and a child raised the Sparkle Stick in their hand, transforming into a cute, Q-version “Mini Ultraman,” dispelling unease and bringing smiles and courage. Although it was pixelated, the design was clearly a cute version of Ultraman Tiga.
Yes, that’s right.
Most of the light that Tiga couldn’t comprehend was actually invested in the market by Ian with a “small investment for a big return” mindset. No one could have predicted that someone would do such a thing to deceive the faith of future generations of humanity.
Tiga’s Sparkle Stick dispelled unease and brought smiles and courage.
The background narration was even more provocative.
“When shadows of the world engulf childhood, when unease spreads through schools… what can you do for your children?”
“Guardian Sparkle Stick for Childhood – Not just a toy, it’s a promise of safety, a symbol of hope!”
“Let your child hold their own light and bravely face every challenge!”
“First limited eco-friendly edition, only $199.99 per month subscription! Protecting the priceless!”
At the end of the advertisement, there was even a small line of text: “A portion of the proceeds from this project will be donated to the Anti-School Violence Foundation” – whether this foundation was newly established or if Ian or his cronies were the person in charge is unknown, and the public doesn’t need to know such things.
Of course.
Bruce Wayne was certainly well aware of this, and it was even harder for him to imagine that in “business competition,” Ian was playing a game that even he, a “normal” capitalist, couldn’t handle.
“This kid, in order to become the light of humanity, has he really gone mad?” The advertisement’s reach was immense, its coverage extensive, and its penetration channels very deep, which made even Bruce feel a tremor of fear! He immediately accessed the data stream for analysis and found that these advertisements were not placed through traditional bidding or contract models.
Instead, they were legitimately purchased advertising channels at a very high price.
“His goal is definitely not just the monthly rent of around $200! This guy will definitely introduce pay-to-win services in the future, I’d even bet my descendants on it!”
At this moment, Bruce became the first person to analyze Ian’s “cost-saving” marketing strategy, but the world had not yet been harmed by the tactics of pay-to-win mobile games.
Most people didn’t know that this monthly subscription was just a way to lure people in. Even without thinking, Batman knew that Ian wouldn’t do business at a loss.
Bruce Wayne even discovered that several media companies controlled by Wayne Enterprises were airing this advertisement without his authorization.
It wasn’t due to any black technology; it was simply because Ian Kent outbid other bidding companies, and it was common knowledge among the Justice League that Ian wouldn’t do business at a loss.
“What exactly does he want to do?”
Bruce Wayne was filled with unease.
Since Wayne Enterprises signed a contract with Ian’s shell company, the technology department’s reports indicated that they were unable to stop it, shield it, or even delay its broadcast. It was as if an invisible force had bypassed all firewalls and permission settings and “stuffed” the advertisement into their playback list!
From this, it could be seen.
One could imagine.
How much Ian had invested in this kind of advertising, and anyone who understood even a little bit about Ian could realize that the more Ian invested, the greater his confidence in making a fortune.
“…” Bruce leaned back in his chair, looking at the advertisement on the screen, which was a loop of Ian’s characteristic “bluffing” style, and remained silent for a long time.
“…” Bruce still leaned back in his chair, looking at the advertisement on the screen, which was a loop of Ian’s characteristic “bluffing” style, and was truly silent for a long time.
Finally, he took off his glasses, rubbed his temples, and in a tone mixed with frustration, absurdity, and a trace of indescribable… “admiration”?
In any case, he murmured in a low voice.
“The Kent family… has truly produced a… capitalist genius.”
It wasn’t that Batman knew of Ian’s vanity and thus praised him privately to his liking, but rather that Batman genuinely felt from the bottom of his heart that Ian was perfectly suited to be a capitalist.
This perfect combination of supernatural events, emotional marketing, moral coercion, and commercial monetization, coupled with such an overwhelmingly dominant channel coverage, had overturned his understanding of business operations. This was no longer ordinary business acumen, but a near-emotionless commercial machine!
He could even monetize and rent out the energy of invaders… At this moment, Bruce Wayne had gained unprecedented knowledge and inspiration.
Just as Bruce Wayne was shocked by Ian’s business tactics in the Batcave, Clark was sorting out his thoughts in the Fortress of Solitude, and the three young heroes were drinking the northwest wind in the ruins of the church.
Far from the prime material universe, in a special dimension that was attached to reality yet independent of it – a vast and scorching domain often referred to by beings as Hell.
There was no sky here, only eternally churning, blood-like dark red clouds.
The ground was paved with scorching sulfurous rocks and the ashes of wailing souls, and twisted, burning demonic trees stretched like pained limbs towards the void.
The air was also filled with an aura of despair and the stench of sulfur.
In the core of this domain, within a dark palace built from countless twisted skulls and still-wriggling internal organs, towering like a mountain range, a figure too enormous to imagine was being forcibly awakened from its deepest slumber! There was no need to guess; this was the true form of Sangong Mo, who had once again been used as food by Ian!
His demonic body, as vast as a mountain range, had six eyes burning with eternal evil flames that suddenly opened simultaneously! The wrath contained within instantly ignited the entire dimension, the sea of sulfur outside the palace boiled and roared, and the blood clouds in the sky churned as if stirred by an invisible giant hand, forming a massive vortex!
“ROAR—!!!”
At this moment, a roar capable of shattering mortal souls and annihilating lesser demons erupted from Sangong Mo’s fanged maw. The terrifying sound waves transformed into tangible shockwaves, instantly turning weaker demon servants outside the palace into basic negative energy particles!
“My clone… my projection on Earth… has disappeared?! Not banished, not sealed… but devoured! Annihilated! Not even a trace of information pheromones to return to the main body was left behind!” Sangong Mo’s voice was like the collective wail of billions of wronged souls, filled with disbelief and immense rage.
He could clearly feel that the clone he had sent to Earth, carrying a portion of his power and will, had been completely, cleanly, and utterly erased from existence! Even its final moments and memories were blurred due to some powerful interference.
Only some fragmented pieces remained.
Because of this.
Sangong Mo poured all his effort and mental energy into a concentrated, precise probe, forcefully piercing the dimensional barrier to capture and interpret the fragmented information stream from his clone’s last moments.
A golden giant… a power that devours all… a strange dark dimension… forced live broadcast… an exaggerated performance… and a name…
A name that his clone deeply remembered, filled with disgust and revulsion.
The fragments pieced together like a puzzle within his vast consciousness.
“Ian… Kent!!!”
Sangong Mo let out another, even more terrifying and venomous roar! The entire Hell dimension he ruled trembled under his wrath at this moment!
Utter humiliation!
This was an unprecedented, utter humiliation for Sangong Mo since his birth!
He, an ancient and powerful dimensional demon god, had been defeated and “digested” by a human boy from the prime material world in such a humiliating manner!
This was not just a loss of power, but a trampling of his dignity!
“Insignificant ant! How dare you… how dare you do this!!!” Sangong Mo’s massive demonic claws clenched violently, and dark red lightning that tore through space erupted from his fingertips.
“You think you can rest easy just because you hide in the prime material world and possess some strange abilities?” He still didn’t fully understand what his clone had encountered with Ian.
Hence his extremely aggressive demeanor.
His six eyes of evil fire burned with the most malicious and maddening flames of revenge.
“I, Sangong, swear in the name of the Abyss and Chaos!” His voice became a rhythmic rule, echoing in every corner of Hell, resonating with the most primal curse power. “No matter the cost! No matter how many dimensions I must cross! I will find you! Ian Kent!”
“I will extract your soul and imprison it in eternally burning demonic fire, to hear your ceaseless wails for a billion years!”
“I will strip your flesh inch by inch and feed it to the most vile ghouls!”
“I will turn everything you hold dear to nothing before your eyes!”
“I will make you understand that the price of angering a dimensional demon god… is eternal torment far more terrifying than death!”
Terrifying vows echoed through Hell, and countless demons trembled in submission before the monarch’s wrath, foreshadowing the interdimensional bloodshed that was bound to descend.
At this moment, Ian, who had just lain down to catch up on sleep, unconsciously smacked his lips in his dream, turned over, mumbled a dream word no one could understand, and continued to sleep soundly – as if the ancient demon god’s immense rage and malevolent curses were less important than a steak that appeared in his dream.
