Godhood Unlocked: I Choose Sci-Magic Dual Cultivation

"Was it that obvious?"

Clark looked himself over.

Officer Owens merely smiled without answering. The young man before him looked like an utterly decent person—someone like that could never possibly be from Gotham.

"My name is Clark. I just arrived in Gotham City, and I'm looking for someone."

Owens did not press further. His question had merely been a professional habit; he had not actually intended to interrogate him.

At that moment, a young man walked over. He looked even younger than Clark, perhaps not even twenty yet.

The young man wore a deeply worried expression, and Owens seemed to know him.

"Hey, Jason, why are you out? I remember your family has a curfew," Owens teased.

Jason forced a smile and casually brushed him off. "I have something to do..."

Owens grinned with an expression that said, I get it. Who had not snuck out when they were young?

Clark casually glanced over and noticed that, despite his youth, the other man was exceptionally fit.

Conservatively speaking, he was strong enough that even three to five burly men would not be able to get near him.

Clark was somewhat curious. What was this young man's background?

Jason seemed restless. He kept lowering his head to check his watch, as though he were waiting for someone.

Suddenly, his phone rang. Jason took it out, and his expression became even uglier. Clark could not help becoming more curious as well.

"I'm here already. Where are you?"

Jason kept his voice low.

Clark silently murmured, "Sorry," then quietly activated Super Hearing.

He heard the voice from the other end of the call. He could not quite describe it; it sounded utterly deranged.

"Ah, my dear Jason. Today, I snapped another one of your mother's fingers. She cried so loudly that I nearly couldn't resist killing her."

"Stop it, you devil!"

Jason cursed furiously, but he could not hide the unease and weakness in his heart.

"Come quickly, Jason. Oh, right, I forgot—I just moved into an abandoned warehouse near Arkham."

"You know where that is, right? Why don't you use Little Bat's computer to look it up properly?"

As he spoke, another shrill scream sounded from the other end. Jason knew that was his mother's voice.

"Enough, enough! I understand. I'll come alone. Please, stop torturing her."

Clark was so furious his lungs felt ready to explode. He wished he could fly over there immediately and rescue them.

But since he had no idea where the caller was, he could only suppress his anger helplessly.

Still, he made up his mind. In a moment, he would definitely follow this young man and rescue both him and his mother!

Joker

Jason hung up and left the restaurant with his head lowered.

Seeing this, Clark hurriedly followed, not even caring about the waffles and bacon he had ordered.

Along the way, Clark discovered that the other man was extremely skilled at counter-surveillance. Even with Super Vision and Super Hearing, he had nearly lost him.

But he could tell that the young man had been leading him in circles. He must have noticed Clark.

With no other choice, Clark finally took advantage of the darkness to fly into the sky and follow him from above. Only then did Jason resume heading normally toward his destination.

Clark looked baffled. Was this Gotham?

Even a kid under twenty had such abilities. This place really did have a lot of talented people.

Soon, Jason arrived at an exceptionally remote location. This was presumably the place mentioned on the phone.

Clark took one look through X-Ray Vision and sucked in a cold breath. A small Cyclone suddenly formed in the sky, shifting the clouds aside.

The inside of the warehouse looked like a fortress, with patrols every few steps and sentries everywhere.

There were no fewer than a hundred people hidden inside, all fully armed. Pistols, rifles, magazines, grenades, and even RPGs—everything was there.

Was this a military base?

Clark's expression grew grave. To be honest, although he knew he was invulnerable to blades and bullets, as a good kid and a good citizen, he had never faced the muzzle of a gun in his life.

Seeing this situation now, he could not help feeling uncertain.

But when he thought of the innocent mother and son still waiting inside the warehouse for him to save them, Clark resolutely decided to go in.

Meanwhile, inside the abandoned warehouse.

Jason followed an armed Joker's Gang member inside. When he reached the depths of the warehouse, Joker, dressed in a purple suit, stood there grinning widely at him.

His face was pale as a ghost, yet his lips were red as blood. His green hair gave off an indescribably evil feeling. Every inch of him radiated incomprehensible madness and chaos.

He was Joker, the world's most vile criminal and madman, feared by both heroes and villains alike.

"My dear Jason, you finally came. I've been waiting so long, so very long."

Jason shifted his gaze to the other side. A woman was tied by both hands to an iron pipe.

Every finger on both her hands had already been broken. She was in an utterly miserable state.

"Mom!"

Jason's heart ached beyond measure. Although he had been separated from his mother long ago, the moment he saw her today, all his past resentment vanished like smoke.

"What a touching reunion, isn't it? But I have some good news to tell you."

Joker burst into laughter. "Jason, the great Batman's assistant, Mr. Robin—do you know who revealed your identity to me?"

He pointed at the injured woman, and his words froze Jason's heart like ice.

"It was this woman—your beloved mother! Isn't that hilarious?"

"She recognized you at a glance because you're her son. You probably didn't know, did you? She's actually one of Joker's Gang too! Hahahahaha!"

Joker covered his face and laughed so hard he could barely catch his breath.

"Let her go, and I... I'll do whatever you want."

Jason's voice was low. Despite the betrayal, he still wanted to save his mother.

Tears rolled from the corners of the injured woman's eyes. In a hoarse voice, she softly murmured:

"Run, Jason. Run."

"What profoundly moving family love."

Joker put on an expression of being touched and pulled a bloodstained crowbar from a pile of junk nearby.

"Let's see just how far your love for your mother can go."

The crowbar rose high, then crashed down hard, shattering Jason's collarbone. He held back his voice, unwilling to let Joker enjoy the process.

Sure enough, Joker muttered in dissatisfaction and continued striking with even greater force.

For a time, the warehouse was filled only with the sounds of steel, bone, and flesh breaking apart.

Jason's mother cried silently. All she could do was whisper over and over:

"Please, please, let him go. Let my son go..."

Boom—!

At that moment, Clark, dressed in the Blue Suit, descended from the sky and blasted a clean hole through the warehouse ceiling.

"What. The. Hell. Is. That?"

Joker had been enjoying himself when he was interrupted. He cursed furiously at the dust-filled area.

"That's enough, sir."

Clark stepped out of the smoke with a serious expression. This was his first appearance, and he felt a little nervous inside.

Up in the sky, he had been too shocked by the revelation that Jason's mother had betrayed him, so he had arrived a moment late and allowed Jason to suffer some superficial injuries.

Jason struggled to open his eyes. Seeing the man in red cape before him, he felt puzzled. Did Gotham have someone like this?

But he had arrived just in time. Jason looked toward his mother and struggled to move his body in her direction.

After getting a clear look at Clark, Joker mocked, "Who are you? A circus clown?"

Clark looked at him speechlessly. How did he have the nerve to say that?

"Unlawful imprisonment and intentional assault, sir. You belong in prison."

"So it's a scout. Shoot him!"

At Joker's command, the Joker's Gang members immediately pulled their triggers, their semi-automatic rifles firing high-speed rounds.

The copper bullets struck Clark's developed chest muscles, flattened into copper discs, and clattered to the ground. Other than a slight itch in his chest, Clark felt nothing.

Joker and his subordinates stared wide-eyed, looking as though they had seen a ghost.

Even Jason, wriggling nearby, widened his eyes in shock.

"What kind of bulletproof vest is that?"

Before he could voice the question, he saw a bullet strike the man's face, flatten into a copper disc as well, and bounce away.

He shut his mouth. At that moment, he looked at Clark as if he were looking at a god.

Joker quickly regained his composure. His eyes spun as he came up with a good idea.

"Quick! Shoot those two on the ground!" After saying that, he immediately fled.

His subordinates were still faithfully carrying out his command. They lowered their guns and aimed at Jason and his mother.

Clark's expression changed. Using Super Speed, he shielded Jason and his mother from the bullets.

Once the other side had finished a round and started changing magazines, he decisively stepped forward and smashed every gun apart with a wave of his hand, removing their grenades and spare weapons as well.

He had never learned joint locks, so he did not know how to disable people's movements. He could only use nearby iron rods to pin everyone in place.

Only after finishing all that did he turn back toward the mother and son, who were now holding each other.

But just when they all thought it was over, several rows of vents suddenly opened along the warehouse walls, spraying out a cloud of smoke.

Clark carelessly inhaled some of it. He immediately held his breath, but it was already too late.

After holding it in for a while, he suddenly burst into laughter. That laugh seemed to flip a switch, and the entire warehouse filled with bizarre laughter. Everyone was terrified, yet they were all laughing.

This was Joker's Laughing Gas!

"Die laughing, baby!"

Joker's cackling laughter came through the broadcast system.

Clark's Super Hearing suddenly picked up beeping countdowns from every corner of the warehouse. His heart jolted as he immediately realized they were bombs!

He wanted to save everyone, but the Laughing Gas occupied most of his focus, making it difficult for him to control his strength.

If he stubbornly insisted on saving everyone, he might make a mistake and kill them instead.

After an internal struggle, he ultimately decided to save only two people. That gave him enough control to suppress the effects of the Laughing Gas.

Having steeled himself, Clark hesitated no longer. He grabbed Jason and his mother, one in each hand, and shot into the sky.

The instant they left the warehouse, the bombs exploded. Massive tongues of flame surged upward, licking at Clark's feet and stretching into the sky until they could no longer reach him.

Clark found an open area and set Jason and his mother down. He took a deep breath, inhaling a massive amount of fresh air into his lungs to dilute the Laughing Gas in his body.

After a while, he finally stopped laughing.

But when he looked at Jason and his mother, they were still under the effects of the Laughing Gas, laughing so hard they could barely breathe, tears streaming from their eyes.

Clark's X-Ray Vision showed him that their laughter was worsening their injuries, but there was nothing he could do about it.

With no other choice, Clark finally called Dane's phone number.

"This is Dane."

"Dane, it's me, Clark."

"Oh? Aren't you in Gotham? Why are you calling me?"