"For some illusory lie, you let a caterpillar lead you around by the nose, nearly got Clark's mother killed, and almost dragged Clark down with you!"
Solomon looked down at him coldly.
"If you ask me, you might as well get the hell back to Kahndaq and go back to being a slave in the mines! Forget being a superhero! Idiot!"
Adam hung his head, unable to utter another word, immersed in the endless grief of seeing his great dream shattered.
Just then, Martha Kent, standing nearby, could no longer quite bear it. She gently tugged Solomon's sleeve and softly tried to reason with him:
"All right, Solomon, everyone is safe, aren't they? This child... was only trying to save his own flesh and blood. It's understandable. If something ever happened to you or Clark, as a mother, I'd risk my life to try, even if I knew it was a trap."
Seeing his mother speak up on Adam's behalf, much of Clark's anger faded as well.
He leaned close to Martha's ear and muttered quietly:
"Um... Mother, he's actually lived for more than five thousand years."
Martha froze, her eyes widening as she incredulously surveyed Adam, who looked utterly despondent on the ground.
This young man looked about Clark's age. She had never expected him to be over five thousand years old!
Since Martha had personally pleaded for him, Solomon dropped his icy demeanor, giving her every consideration.
"For Martha's sake, we'll let this incident go. But you're no longer suited to wielding Champion Power. Clark will use it from now on. Go back to Kahndaq and think things over."
With that, Solomon gave Clark no chance to refuse. He pointed the Staff of the Gods straight at Clark and swung it sharply!
Boom!
A second, incomparably vast portion