One wave hadn't settled before another arose

Hum!

With the faint whirring of propellers, three full squadrons totaling forty-eight drones took flight from the wilderness, circling as they flew toward Downton.

At the same time, feeling numbness and pain radiating from every direction, Downton's eyes rolled back in his head from the electric shocks.

He couldn't move—he couldn't move at all—and he couldn't even pinpoint what was electrocuting him.

It definitely wasn't a simple taser, and the road ahead looked perfectly normal, showing no signs of any traps.

Yet, in this environment that appeared completely ordinary, Downton felt as if he were being jabbed by dozens of electric batons; he felt as though his skin were on the verge of charring.

Downton admitted that this sensation was indeed quite painful, but compared to death, everything else was just child's play.

When death can no longer be your weakness, your willpower will far exceed your imagination!

Just like that, after being tortured by the current for a full dozen seconds, Downton even began to gradually adapt to the feeling of being shocked.

He forced his body to exert effort, and while steadying his footing, he successfully controlled his eyeballs to look toward the distance.

Although it couldn't be called a sky-darkening swarm, the sight of over forty medium-sized drones flying over together was quite spectacular.

Downton watched helplessly as the drones circled him at a distance of about eight meters, then proceeded to fire something at him.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

After a series of sounds cutting through the air, Downton felt every muscle in his body spasm instantly.

He, who had just barely been able to stand, was forced to curl up in an instant, controlled by the electrode needles that had pierced into various parts of his body; his hands also uncontrollably clutched his own head.

Hiss...

A sound like a leaking balloon suddenly emerged, and a faint breeze seemed to blow across Downton's face. Following the direction of that wind, Downton looked toward the asphalt road five meters away.

Countless particles, as fine as a breeze and invisible to the naked eye, gradually aggregated, then converged into a coin-sized metal ring that hovered faintly above the road surface.

The moment this metal ring fully formed, Downton could no longer feel the electric current.

So, he had been shocked into this state by something like a keychain?

Whose technology was this?

It was surprisingly fierce!

He had never seen these things in any movies!

Meanwhile, inside the command vehicle, General Lane clapped his hands with particular excitement as he watched Downton curled up and motionless.

"The trial equipment provided by the LexCorp bid is truly excellent, though it's a bit too delicate, and the power is a little too mild.

But it's a coincidence, isn't it? When facing a guy who will respawn in another location the moment he dies, this type of equipment is actually just right!"

As he spoke, the driver of the command vehicle stepped out of the cockpit and asked the General in the cabin.

"General, should we head over?"

"Of course. Since we have him under control for the time being, there's no need to bring him into the small town.

A madman like him—heaven knows what he's capable of. It's safer to deal with him out in the wild."

As the words fell, General Lane's command vehicle began to move. While steadying himself in the speeding cabin, Lane stared blankly at Downton on the monitor.

And Downton.

He squatted boredly beside the Maybach, trying to move his limbs while opening his mouth.

"Ahem."

After a light cough, Downton smiled. Being unable to move his body was nothing; as long as he could still talk, it was fine.

And so...

"Fuck it."

Downton cursed with a smile.

"What kind of junk is this? How come I never saw you guys pull out these gadgets when dealing with anyone else?

But when it's my turn, well, all sorts of bizarre things start popping up!"

As he spoke, Downton rolled his eyes. He even began to doubt Liv's intelligence.

Was it really the United States military that was ambushing him? After all, the military in DC comics and movies usually relied on brute force, throwing nothing but nukes and missiles.

Where on earth did they pull out these magical little tools today? Did they steal the magic prop box from Mickey Mouse Clubhouse?

These tools didn't feel like the military at all; they had more of a DEO or A.R.G.U.S. flavor. Could there be other departments behind today's military attack?

Had these bastards set their sights on his immortality so quickly?

But they shouldn't be working with the military, right?

While pondering, Downton turned his eyes toward the drones.

"Hey!"

He smiled at the drones.

"Can your drones talk? You can't just leave me here waiting. Send someone who can chat so we can have a word."

"Believe me, I'm very easy to talk to. Just find someone with a sexy enough voice to flirt with me, and I'll definitely cooperate with you, haha!"

Laughing loudly, Downton tried to move his hands and feet.

The metal spikes the drones had driven into his body were using electric currents to control his muscles, but having died so many times, his physique was far from that of an ordinary mortal.

Bracing himself against the Parkinson-like paralysis and intermittent sensations, Downton pushed off the ground and forced himself to stand!

Seeing Downton's abnormal state, General Lane in the command vehicle gasped in shock.

"Damn it, didn't LexCorp say this thing could even control rhinos and elephants? Could it be that Downton is even stronger than a rhino or an elephant? Wesley, switch the controller to maximum power!"

"Copy that!"

Not far away, the young soldier operating the drone swarm nodded and turned up the power on the controller.

As he adjusted it, the soldier Wesley added to General Lane.

"At maximum power, the electrode control can only last for about eight minutes. It will be difficult for us to arrive within eight minutes. Should we administer deep anesthesia to Downton?"

"I'm not even sure if Downton can teleport away right now; he might just be toying with us for fun. If that's the case, administering anesthesia early might alert him, and our entire operation would be a complete waste of time! Although we can't arrive within eight minutes, the squad stationed at the entrance of Smallville Town can reach Downton in just one minute. Leave it to them to handle."

General Lane rejected Wesley's suggestion and then nervously watched Downton's condition.

As the current continued to intensify, Downton's body, which had just straightened, began to curl up again. Even though Downton tried his best to resist, he was eventually forced back into a ball.

Meanwhile, in the sky high above Smallville, a man with a cold, stern face looked at the footage transmitted to his tablet and swiped across the screen with an expressionless face.

A moment later, the aircraft he was in suddenly spewed two bursts of flame, and he whispered to himself.

"A rebirth I haven't witnessed with my own eyes is not enough to make me believe. Prove it to me, Downton. I hope the news Jonathan sent can truly give me a surprise, and I hope Gotham is indeed a city with infinite potential."

Having said this, the cold, stern man closed his eyes and listened silently to the sounds coming from the tablet.

One second, two seconds...

BOOM!!!

A violent explosion erupted from the tablet.

On the ground, Downton looked at the two incoming missiles with a bewildered expression.

Just before he was completely swallowed by the explosion and flames, he suddenly laughed.

"Haha, talk about brute force—this is how the U.S. military should do things. Getting bombed by missiles, huh? Now this is the right flavor, exciting!!!"