Federal Government Building

"Attention all units, attention all units. Target confirmed inside 'The Nest.' Target is extremely dangerous. We have authorization for devastating weaponry. Once the target appears, all units are cleared to fire."

The middle-aged man in the military uniform, sitting in the co-pilot seat of an armed helicopter, repeated the announcement three times before putting down the intercom and taking a deep breath. At this moment, all the forces of the entire base had been deployed outside this hemispherical building named "The Nest." Fighter jets, tank formations, and hundreds of gun barrels were all aimed at the single exit. Yet, such a formidable display was solely to deal with one person inside.

Even with this grand formation, the man still felt a lack of confidence, and he knew his team felt the same. The female adjutant sitting beside him asked in a low voice, "Sir, I heard the intruder this time... is it him?"

The man didn't answer, his gaze fixed unblinkingly on the door.

"But that's impossible, right?" the adjutant asked, as if talking to herself. "He's already dead. Superman is long gone. It can't be him."

The man glanced at her and said sternly, "We are soldiers. On the battlefield, we only need to follow orders. Don't think about anything extra."

"Yes, sir."

But even as he said this, when the familiar figure they all knew appeared at the wide doorway, the man, like his subordinates, was inevitably stunned. The deep blue battle suit, the almost glaringly conspicuous 'S' emblem, and the bright red cape that fluttered like a battle standard, once a guiding light for countless people.

All the gun barrels and cannon muzzles were pointed at the figure, but they didn't immediately pull the triggers.

The man gritted his teeth, making the decision for his team: "Fire!"

The roar of a tank shell kicked off the fierce battle. Bullets rained down like a deluge, sweeping towards the blue silhouette. Missiles from fighter jets and heavy artillery from tanks followed, exploding on impact, transforming into light and heat. Flames erupted, forming a wall tens of meters high, as if an amorphous demon writhed within the inferno and smoke.

Jay stood at the epicenter of the firepower. Countless shrapnel fragments grazed his body and face. The scorching shockwaves billowed his cape, but couldn't budge him an inch.

He turned his head, looking inside the building. His spaceship still lay there quietly. The artificial intelligence, Hygeian, stood with its hands clasped in front, like a butler awaiting his master's command.

But he couldn't take it with him, not yet. He knew very little about this alien technology spaceship, and besides, he couldn't just leave it in his backyard, could he?

"I'll come back for you," he said softly amidst the deafening roar of gunfire and explosions, utterly convinced Hygeian heard him.

The soldiers' eyes widened, as if they couldn't believe what they were seeing. Flames and black smoke were torn apart by blades of wind. A red and blue afterimage, trailing a spiral of black smoke, shot skyward like a rocket. He was like a god, completely disregarding the barrage of fire and the disrespectful mortals, leaving the scorching smoke behind as he rocketed into the boundless sky.

Everyone stopped firing, staring blankly at the sky for a long time. Their attacks were meaningless; they hadn't even garnered his attention.

"I think that was him, sir," the female adjutant in the armed helicopter said, her eyes showing an undeniable hint of excitement.

World Federal Government Headquarters.

The location of this building wasn't exactly a secret; it was situated within New York City. It was a skyscraper encased in an iron-black glass curtain wall, nearly two hundred stories high, making it the tallest building in all of New York.

Jay changed into casual clothes, trying his best to appear inconspicuous as he circled the building's exterior. He scanned it with his X-ray vision. Unfortunately, apart from the lobby, the entire building was filled with lead structures, which obstructed his vision.

In fact, he hadn't decided what he was doing here. Confronting Mongor and beating him up? He wasn't even sure if he could win against Mongor.

After much deliberation, he felt that barging in so rashly was a stupid idea. At the very least, he should find someone with a clear head to talk to. Although Batman was currently uninterested in matters outside of Gotham, Jay thought that if he told him about this astonishing discovery, perhaps he would take action.

Just then, a familiar voice interrupted his thoughts: "If this is your disguise, then I have to say you have no talent for it. Did you notice you've been suspiciously loitering around the Federal Government building for five minutes?"

Even before turning around, he recognized Helena's crisp voice, which couldn't have been more welcome at this moment. Jay turned and saw Helena, dressed in a stylish leather jacket with her hair tied in a single ponytail, appear silently behind him.

"Helena?" Jay exclaimed in surprise. "What are you doing here?"

"The same reason as you, I guess," she said. "Since you're already here, I assume you know about Mongor's existence?"

"If you're referring to an ugly, alien brute who ruled our world for five years without us realizing it – yes, I'm very unfortunately aware of it."

"Good, that saves us the trouble of exchanging intelligence," Helena nodded. "That means we can get straight to work."

"Get to work?" Jay asked blankly. "Well, you haven't explained anything specific yet. What exactly are we going to do? Go in and beat up Mongor? We don't even know if he's on Earth."

Helena shot him a look: "Is that your plan for coming here?"

"I... uh, I don't have a plan yet," Jay admitted somewhat awkwardly.

"Then use my plan," Helena said, pulling him along without further ado.

As Jay followed her, he asked, "Wait, you still haven't told me what your plan is."

"Infiltrate the building and find evidence of Mongor controlling the Federal Government," Helena said. "He's been hiding for so long; server data, files, alien communication interfaces, or alien soldiers stationed on Earth – he can't erase all the evidence."

"Hmm, that makes sense. But isn't that building over there? We seem to be heading in the opposite direction."

"That building is rigged with traps from top to bottom. Even the glass is covered with various sensors for motion, heat, and more. Floors one through ten are ordinary offices. To go any higher, you need card authentication, and they also scan your gait and heart rate. Even with Super Speed, it's impossible to sneak in without triggering any sensors. And if you trigger even one sensor..."

"We'd have to go to war with the World Military, which would be terrible. I get it," Jay said, raising his hand like an eager student. "So what do we do now?"

"We enter the building's absolute restricted zone through the sewer system," Helena said. "I've searched all the data on that building and found an absolute restricted area that even the Prime Minister of the World Government cannot enter without going through a series of complex authorization procedures. What's in that area is completely unknown. My friend helped me hack into their internal network, and there wasn't even any data recorded."

Jay swallowed: "That sounds... thrilling."

"It's very risky, but it's our only chance."