The Void's Temptation

"Am I unable to move on?"

The man dressed as Superman tilted his head, deep in thought. "Not being able to escape" and "not leaving" are two different situations. So, which one was he?

The Void seemed to be using its persuasive skills, constantly spouting seductive words. "I've seen everything you've experienced here. Which do you find more torturous: the blankness of the first seventeen years, or the torture of the last three years?"

"Haven't you ever thought about revenge? You coward! Those bastards who tortured you, justifying their actions in the name of science; and those scoundrels who stood by laughing, unwilling to lend a hand—each and every one of them lives a much better life than you, you know that?"

"What about your resentment? Your hatred? You possess Superman abilities, yet you refuse to resolve these past events. Do you truly love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, as the New Testament says? Foolish!"

"You should find them one by one, kill the men and rape the women, chop up the children and feed them to the dogs and bears, and put the babies in a juicer to be blended and drunk. Retaliate with ten times, a hundred times, their cruelty, and turn yourself into a demon."

"If you can't find anyone, just find a spot and kill them all. Tell everyone to find those who have wronged you, otherwise your insane behavior won't stop."

"What If...? we can't find him, we'll give him ten thousand heads. If we can't find the second one, we'll give him one hundred thousand heads. As long as you're crazy enough, everyone in the entire research institute, including the cleaning ladies, will help you find him."

"Even if you die, your body will be dragged to your face. An even simpler approach would be to learn from those two fanatical nations during World War II."

"Don't look at their ultimate failure; it only proves that they didn't kill enough, weren't ruthless enough, or weren't fast enough. You need to learn from them, become like them, and then surpass them!"

"If you have the power to Destroy the Earth, then you should use that power to destroy the Earth and prove that you can indeed do it. What If...? you find that too much trouble, perhaps you can go and awaken that little baby at the Earth's core and let Him do it for you."

"Don't be afraid to kill them all, because the world has let you down. It's not your fault, it's the world that hasn't treated you well. No one is innocent; their indifference is their sin."

"Hypocrites are more hateful than bad people! Those who spread rumors and cause trouble never realize that the knife in their mouths is just as sharp as the knife in other people's hands. Unfortunately, the law is so weak that unless you can prove that you have been harmed, you cannot make those people receive the punishment they deserve."

"If you ask me, kill those unreasonable lawmakers. Throw those laws that protect them into the trash. Unfortunately, the next successor will also be corrupted by absolute power, so let's just wipe out humanity."

"Only when there are no more people will true world peace arrive, and the great good in your heart be fulfilled. Even if you don't have the heart to do good, you should still punish those who abused you, despised you, cursed you, or even looked at you with disdain."

"Because these people will eventually stand against you and hold opposing opinions. Once they're gone, the world will only have people who support you. Even if someone changes their stance, just keep killing them."

"In the end, you might not have a single person supporting you, but you also won't have anyone opposing you. Don't you think that's what a truly wonderful world is? One person reigns supreme, even if only one person remains."

"Come, come, don't worry about where their souls go, clinging to this planet and unwilling to leave. There are countless demons in Hell, and they can accept all souls equally."

"There's no need to worry about their remains polluting the environment. Bacteria will decompose them, wild Beast will eat them, and they will eventually return to the Void. So..."

The man dressed as Superman suddenly interrupted, saying, "Hmm, return to the Void. Is that what you wanted?"

The Void paused for a moment, then composed himself, calmly saying, "How could this be what I want? Isn't this what you wanted? Don't you want those who have wronged you to suffer an even more tragic end?"

Do you really think that indifferent, corrupt white-collar officials deserve to live? Do you think this messed-up human civilization still has any value to be preserved?

"You have the power to improve all of this, or at least to wipe those injustices off the face of the earth and to extinguish human civilizations that are not worthy of continuing. So why not do it?"

"Because..." In this strange space, the two who had stopped fighting displayed a form of resistance beyond words for the first time. The man dressed as Superman raised his fist, facing the Void, and roared, "I don't want to!"

With a single punch, a man with a horse-like face twisted to the side smashed through the pure white room. The walls shattered like glass, making a crisp cracking sound, then the second, the third.

When Superman's consciousness returned to the real world, the magic that had bound him and the Void now appeared to be collapsing and shattering.

The Void that had been suppressed was also sent flying outside the barrier after being punched, plowing a deep trench in the ground. Even though it hadn't made any punching motions or any subsequent actions.

Although it was nighttime and he wasn't standing under the Yellow Sun, the tiny wounds on his body inflicted by magic were quickly stopping bleeding. Of course, they weren't scabbed over or fully healed yet, but Superman had stopped losing blood.

He looked at the Void rising from the ground in the distance with an even colder gaze. It seemed to have suffered a painful attack, which was why it, which was gradually losing its human form, had slightly retracted some of its tendrils and shadow, returning to a somewhat human-like appearance, although it was still shrouded in shadow.

Superman did not press his advantage, because he saw a familiar figure being held in the Void's arms.

"Look, who is this? Do you think she's real? Or a phantom? Shouldn't she be filming in Australia? How did she end up here? And one last question, what do you think is going to happen?"

The Void self-questioning was indeed a source of doubt in Superman's mind. The girl, however, showed no signs of panic; her expression was more one of bewilderment—not understanding why she was in this place, who the people around her were, or what her current situation was.

Even when she was face-to-face with the man in the red and blue suit, Charlize Theron was completely bewildered. His altered face made her think she was on another film set.

But... didn't that actor have a horse-riding accident in 1995 that left him paralyzed? How come he's wearing a costume again?

No matter how many questions they had, the two people staring at each other couldn't bring themselves to ask them. The sudden hissing sound was like a deafening roar, striking Superman's heart.

Right before his eyes, the Void grabbed the girl by the back of the neck and her left thigh, tearing her into three pieces...