God's power was the most unreasonable force in the world.
The surface of the grayish-white membrane dented beneath his palm for an instant. Then the depression rapidly expanded, spreading outward along the membrane's texture. At the same moment the dent appeared, the figure's body tilted slightly backward, as though it were bearing a force beyond what its internal structure could withstand.
"Roar!"
Darkseid's corroded shell let out an angry roar.
Its hands reached forward, trying to seize Ian's arm, but before they could touch him, the grayish-white membrane on its forearms and palms began to change as well—first fading, then dispersing into tiny dustlike particles that receded from the edges toward the center.
The same transformation spread across its torso, beginning at its chest and radiating outward. First, the color faded from the center outward. Then the surfaces around the edges began to turn transparent, losing their original texture and contours. All that remained was an increasingly thin outline, like a covering being drawn out from the inside.
Its head was the last part to change. The membrane's outline lingered over the figure's head for a moment before becoming transparent as well, its edges gradually dispersing. Its jaw, lips, and nose blurred in sequence. Then the entire outline lost its shape in an instant, leaving only a layer of dissipating grayish-white particles drifting slowly through the air before vanishing completely.
Everything disappeared without a trace.
Nothing remained where Darkseid had stood. Only a faint mark was left on the grayish-white ground, slowly contracting until it faded away as well, as though nothing had ever existed there.
Smallville Superman stood several meters away, looking at the patch of empty ground. "How did you do that just now?"
"I dismantled its outer layer from within," Ian said. "It relied on that layer