PFC Chapter 4323 Body of Steel (28)
Chapter 4323 Body of Steel (28)
Chapter 4323 Body of Steel (Twenty-Eight)
At that moment, Clark suddenly discovered the wonderful feeling of being superior to others through his own knowledge and experience.
Luther seemed completely unaware that his mindset was malfunctioning and exhibiting severe regressive behavior. But Clark knew, which meant that until Luther also realized and controlled his emotions, Clark would remain invincible.
With this in mind, Clark felt more confident. He calmly said to the person on the other end of the phone, "Don't rush me. You have to tell me what you want to see me about, right?"
"you……"
Luther seemed unaccustomed to his sudden change in mood, choking back his own words. He stammered for a while before finally saying, "You country bumpkin, don't you watch the news?! Luther's Hotel collapsed!!!"
“I know,” Clark said, picking his ear. “I’m a journalist, after all, and I’m not slower to get the news than you are. Besides, without me, it wouldn’t have been as simple as just collapsing.”
"You know?! Then you..."
"Don't tell me that because the Luther Hotel collapsed, I should be heartbroken, immediately call to comfort you, express my sympathy for your plight, and then do everything I can to help you. Lex Luther, I'll ask you one more time, what is our relationship?"
There was a long silence on the other end of the phone. Clark was absolutely thrilled. He suddenly realized that dealing with a crying baby with the demeanor of a mature adult could indeed satisfy a certain desire for control and bring him pleasure.
“You have to come.” Luther seemed to have finally regained some composure, and he said in a low voice, “There are videos all over the internet now of you saving the Luther Hotel. You have to stand up and clarify for the Luther Group that the incident wasn’t as terrible as the media portrayed it, and that not that many people died!”
Clark scoffed inwardly. Sure enough, here he comes. He thought he needed something from him; apparently, he just wanted him to testify.
That makes sense, though. At the time, the only people who could be considered truly present were him, the military, and the aliens. The military obviously couldn't step forward, otherwise their intentions would be exposed. If Clark didn't come forward to testify, could the Luther Group really find aliens to vouch for them?
The various factions present should all know that the accident wasn't that serious. Even those in the hotel or on the street could guess that nothing serious had actually happened. But they couldn't come forward to say it.
Now, the media has created a palpable atmosphere of mourning, the entire internet is in mourning, and people have already placed white tulips at the foot of the building. If someone suddenly jumps out and says, "Actually, not many people died, there's no need to be so sad," just wait and see if they get criticized.
The reason Superman can say this is because he has saved people; most people are safe only because he saved them. He has inherent moral capital to step forward and quell public opinion.
But his moral capital is his own, why should he lend it to Luther as if they have a great relationship?
“Sorry, I don’t have time,” Clark said. “I’m busy raising the average IQ of the planet right now, so I don’t have time to care about your crappy corporation.”
"Clark Kent!!!!!!!!!"
“Thank you, I like my human name, but you don’t have to call me that so many times.” Clark said with a smug look on his face. “There’s always a consequence for doing bad things, my mother was right.”
Then Clark heard a series of smashing sounds. He snorted again and said, "Watch out, Lex Jr., if you break your thumb, Luther Corporation will be finished."
beep - beep - beep -
After a busy signal, Clark handed the phone back to Diana. Diana looked at him and said, "I never expected you to be such a sharp-tongued person."
“It depends on who you’re talking to,” Clark said, getting a glass of water. “I never hold back my praise for my friends. But Luther… humph.”
Diana didn't try to persuade him, but instead sat down next to him and said, "Although I don't think you need to do anything for Luther, I think you should think about it more. I have a feeling that this matter is not so simple."
Clark quickly recovered from his smugness and glee. As Diana had said, things weren't that simple. Schiller deliberately chose Luther Tower as the accident site and forced Luther to beg him, all to provoke Luther and drive him insane. But why drive him insane?
Clark had discovered that the method of reasoning by finding details didn't suit him. His memory was indeed excellent, but his associative abilities and logical thinking weren't as strong. Often, he would see specific details but wouldn't know where to connect them, or which details should be related to which. He could only try simpler methods.
Who benefits from Luther being driven mad?
First, rule out the military, because they've already obtained the gems. Whatever happens to Luthor, it's none of their business. Even if the Luthor Corporation falls, they won't benefit much.
The federal government wouldn't stand idly by and watch the Luther Group fall apart; they'd still try to profit from it, otherwise the situation on the East Coast could become extremely unstable. While they might gain some benefits from a slow, inevitable demise, that would be far too slow.
Looking at it from all angles, Luther's madness actually benefits him the most; at least he can vent his anger.
But after thinking about it, Clark realized something was wrong. Actually, Luther becoming like this was most beneficial to the aliens.
In fact, Luthor is very capable. Even without the Infinity Stones, given some time, he might be able to come up with a way to deal with the aliens. Moreover, he is a staunch opponent who is determined not to collude with any aliens. Anyone who dares to cooperate with aliens is a traitor and will be eliminated.
This resistance is not entirely driven by self-interest; he is a man of principle, sometimes willing to lose money and do things that go against his business instincts in order to uphold human supremacy.
As for the other factions, whether it's the military or the federal government, they aren't really staunch resistance fighters. They will definitely resist if their own interests are threatened, but if there's no real danger, they tend to stay put.
In other words, the banner of the staunch pro-war faction has fallen. Not only has Luther lost his mind, but the Luther Group is also facing an unprecedented crisis. He doesn't have time to care about what's happening in near-Earth orbit right now; he's lucky if he can manage things on his own little corner of Earth.
Clark seemed to have vaguely grasped some of the tricks of the trade.
If Luther were still alive, given some time to recover, even without the Infinity Stones, he could have used his intelligence and connections to organize a staunch resistance to fight the aliens. Now that he's gone, there's no one like him left.
So, Schiller wanted the Earth to not resist?
That's not quite right either, because to be precise, Luther wasn't resisting, he was going to war. He wasn't trying to defend and counterattack, but rather to launch an offensive against the aliens until he wiped them all out.
From Clark's perspective, Luther's idea isn't entirely wrong. After all, aliens are invaders who have already attacked the military base, and repelling them is instinctive.
Schiller's actions are baffling. He couldn't possibly be one of the aliens, could he?
Or is there another solution besides fighting a war, and this solution might be better than Luther's method of directly fighting aliens? That's why Schiller dealt with Luther first to prevent Luther from escalating the conflict and forcing the two sides to go to war.
Clark thought about it and it made more and more sense. Although he could understand humanity's need to resist invaders and defend their home, he felt that Luther was too extreme. The resistance organization he led had lost a certain sense of justice. Moreover, it would be fine if he only fought aliens, but he was afraid that Luther would adopt the "pacify the internal before fighting the external" approach, creating an organization to eliminate dissidents and engage in authoritarian politics, ultimately leading to chaos before the alien invasion even started.
Facing a formidable foe, internal consolidation is indeed necessary, but Luther's method of internal consolidation is absolutely unacceptable. This extreme ideology will only drag humanity into the abyss. Clark firmly believed this, so bringing him down first was the right thing to do.
But what's the next step? Whether it's fighting or negotiating, someone has to take the lead. Internally, resources need to be integrated; externally, mediation needs to be conducted rationally yet forcefully. Only in this way can the best outcome be achieved in such a complex internal and external environment.
Where can you find such outstanding talent?
Just then, Diana's phone rang. She answered it, said a few words, and then handed the phone to Clark. Clark took it and said, "Hello? Louise? Are you alright?... I'm fine. You know, Luther just called..."
He vividly described Luther's predicament to Louise, but then he thought about it and realized that it might make him seem like a gloating little person, so he quickly added, "Of course, I'm not saying it's funny. After all, even if no one is actually injured, it's a waste of resources if the building is damaged. And my not going isn't entirely because of my personal grudge against Luther, actually I..."
“You have to go,” Louise said. “The situation has completely escalated. The two parties are arguing fiercely about it, the military is being criticized for its inadequate disaster relief efforts, and even international media is criticizing it. The federal government and the military are extremely anxious.”
Clark frowned; he hadn't expected things to escalate this much. But then again, the reach of modern media is terrifying, and the distortion and exaggeration of information grows exponentially. There haven't been any major news stories in recent years, so this online frenzy is inevitable.
But why did Louise insist on sending him?
There were no casualties to begin with. Although the news exaggerated it a bit and it's not good for America's reputation, its reputation wasn't exactly good to begin with. Let those military officers and politicians be anxious.
Clark didn't think Louise wanted him to forgive Luther; she was just after something profitable at the press conference. He genuinely couldn't see any benefit in cleaning up after these people.
"Think about who I am..." Clark pondered. Who else could he be? He was Clark Kent, a young man from a small-town town in Smallville, Kansas, a superhero codenamed Superman. Was there anything unusual about these identities?
No, that's not what Louise meant. After the aliens—more accurately, his Kryptonian kin—came to Earth, his identity was no longer based on Earthly professions, but on the distinction between two races. He was first and foremost an Earthling, and only then a small-town youth and a superhero.
Yes, he's an Earthling, so what?
Clark was bewildered again. Suddenly, he felt as if struck by lightning. Wait, could Louise be saying that the outstanding talent capable of leading the Earth is me?!
(End of this chapter)