Clark could not precisely describe how he felt at that moment. After all, he had not truly faced danger, nor suffered the loss of a loved one. But he understood that this was the fundamental difference between him and Batman.
Batman had also lost family in an immensely tragic way. Yet at least judging from the outcome, it seemed he had done nothing. Clark did not know whether he had been powerless to act or simply unwilling to. He only knew that if the same thing had happened to him, the world would surely have changed.
And even now, though he had not suffered such a painful experience, he was gradually changing the world. Sky Eye might disappear because of him, Lex Luthor might have the chance to create more inventions, and every faction might reevaluate its relationship with aliens.
Would Batman accept such changes?
More importantly, could Clark accept Bruce becoming a sacrifice for those changes?
In the past, Clark would not have hesitated in the slightest. He would only have done what he wanted to do. But now, he was no longer certain. If Batman truly tried to stop him, he did not know whether, after weighing it over and over, he would choose to give up.
Clark could not accurately summarize how Batman had shaken him. At first, he had realized Batman was a mortal who could be hurt and bleed. Then, amid his own struggles, he had gradually witnessed Batman's formidable power. For some reason, Clark was more willing to see himself as the climber challenging the gods. Perhaps that was indeed the truth.
Defeating gods and replacing gods were necessary steps on the path to control and change. But Clark did not want to imagine Bruce falling. Deep within him was an instinctive resistance and