Barry was suspended in mid-air by Chen Mo like a chick, his head buzzing.
The incredible Speed Force vibrating in unison raged relentlessly at the back of his neck, making even his tongue numb.
"No, Little Red, where did your fierce hand chop go?"
Chen Mo casually waved the Flash he was holding, his tone full of teasing disappointment.
"I thought you were going to give me a Thomas full twist followed by a fatal blow, but you just gave me a performance where you shut down right there."
"Is your battery a refurbished one? It drains like this after just a few steps."
Barry rolled his eyes, but his eyeballs almost popped out from the shock halfway through.
He placed his hands weakly on Chen Mo's wrists, trying to pry open those iron-like fingers.
However, the opponent's strength was ridiculously great, and any attempts to continue vibrating and detach were completely canceled out by the same frequency.
They can't beat them, and they can't even outrun them.
Not only could the opponent physically withstand the impact of the Speed Force, but they could also steal the Speed Force on the spot.
Barry swallowed hard and wisely abandoned any pointless physical confrontation.
"Hey... brother who doesn't know me, how about we make a deal?"
Barry forced a smile that appeared as harmless as possible, his voice shrill because his neck was being choked.
"Look, car doors have been blown off, paving stones are broken. If this Central City's budget is really going to be depleted."
"How about we find a place to sit down? I'll buy you a coffee, and we can have a friendly discussion, upholding the principles of peace and friendship?"
Chen Mo clicked his tongue, looking at this speedster who admitted defeat faster than anyone else with disdain.
"They were just about to handcuff me and take me back for tea, and now they're offering me coffee."
"Is the speed at which you civil servants in tight-fitting clothes change your expressions also related to the Speed Force?"
Chen Mo felt the few strands of red electricity dancing in his palm.
Thanks to Barry, the Doomsday physique, under the intense high-frequency stimulation just now, has already figured out most of the operating code of the Speed Force.
Having gotten the speed boost for free, he had no intention of swallowing this red-headed fly whole.
After all, there's no grudge between them, so there's no need to go on a killing spree in this world full of rules and regulations.
Chen Mo loosened his grip and casually patted the dust off his hands.
With a thud.
Barry landed hard on the broken asphalt, rubbing his aching backside and gasping for breath.
"Alright, since you don't have any new tricks up your sleeve, I won't beat around the bush with you."
Chen Mo looked down at him, hands in his pockets, his posture casual.
"Lead the way, I'm going to check out your Justice League's secret base, and while I'm at it, I'll call Big Super and Batman out for a chat."
He figured that since the Batman Who Laughs was lurking in this universe, asking the local gangsters would be the most efficient way to find out.
However, Barry, rubbing his neck which had been pinched red, slowly got up, but then froze in place.
Barry blinked his big eyes, his face a picture of innocent foolishness.
"Justice... what?"
Barry scratched the small wings on his hood, puzzled.
"Is that the name of the neighborhood committee for your area?"
"And what about this 'Big Super' you mentioned? Who is Big Super? Is he the owner of which supermarket chain?"
"As for Batman, Batman isn't here. He lives in Gotham! I think?"
Hearing this series of sincere questions, Chen Mo couldn't help but twitch his lips twice.
He stared at Barry's undisguised face for several seconds, trying to find a flaw in the kid's acting.
Unfortunately, the other person's pupils constricted slightly, their brainwaves were flat, and they seemed completely innocent, as if asking, "What alien language are you speaking?"
Chen Mo raised an eyebrow and tentatively added a sentence.
"You Metropolis recognize that red cape with his underwear on the outside that flies around in Metropolis, right?"
Barry shook his head vigorously.
"I swear I've never seen anyone fly in the sky wearing red underwear; that would be an offense of public indecency."
"What about that rich Gotham City who drives a modified black car and beats up mental patients in the middle of the night?"
Gotham?
Barry shrank back, his tone carrying a hint of disdain.
"Isn't Gotham City Batman's territory? But he's like an urban legend, a legend, you know? Nobody knows who he is."
Upon hearing this, Chen Mo couldn't help but raise his hand and press it against his temple.
Goodness!
So, the white light world that I painstakingly weakened and inserted into was stuck in such an ancient era.
The Justice League hasn't even created a group yet.
Superman is probably still an intern reporter at a newspaper, Batman has probably only just started figuring out his gear in the Gotham night.
The Flash in front of me is probably a newbie who just recently acquired the Speed Force.
"Fine, forget I asked."
Chen Mo sighed and waved to Barry.
"Let's go. Do you still stand by your promise to buy me coffee?"
Barry breathed a sigh of relief when he saw that the other party had no intention of pursuing the matter further.
"It's a sure thing, of course it's a sure thing! All you can eat is the most authentic cheesecake in Central City."
Barry nimbly slipped into a dead-end alley at the street corner.
A faint red arc of electricity flickered twice, and in less than two seconds, he changed into a simple plaid shirt and jeans and strode out.
"Let's go, let's go! I know a coffee shop two blocks ahead that has really good lattes."
As Barry led the way, he couldn't help but steal glances back at Chen Mo every now and then.
This guy of unknown origin didn't have the same oppressive aura as before; he looked like an ordinary, carefree young man.
But a strange feeling kept creeping into Barry's mind.
He felt as if he had forgotten about something extremely important that day.
Strange, what could it be?
The police lab report was submitted yesterday, and the milk in the Fridge was all gone, so there shouldn't be any missed itinerary details.
Since you can't remember, it probably isn't anything serious, right?
On the other side of the Central City, inside an elegantly decorated upscale Western restaurant.
On the two-person dining table by the window, there were two completely cold black pepper steaks.
The candle flame flickered in the breeze, making the somber expression on Iris West's face stand out even more.
She glanced down at her watch; the hands had already slid to 9:40.
Half an hour had passed since their agreed-upon anniversary dinner time.
Iris expressionlessly pulled out her phone; the dozens of missed call notifications on the screen were particularly glaring in the dim light.
Even more jarring were the couples sitting at several nearby tables, clearly very affectionate.
She took a deep breath and slammed her phone down on the dining table.
" Barry Allen, you're dead."