Earth-3.

This is the universe where the Anti-Monitor is conducting experiments on the Anti-Life Equation.

Metropolis lay in ruins. Buildings stood with broken walls and missing tiles. Years had passed. Endless rain had fallen. Weeds grew knee-high. Dark, damp corners were covered in moss.

After several years, the remaining hundreds of survivors on Earth were now ruled by Alexander Luthor in this broken Metropolis. He had become a local tyrant, a self-proclaimed emperor.

Owlman, who was in charge of communicating with the Anti-Monitor, had always lived here.

After the rain, the sunlight cast a brilliant rainbow across the sky. Fresh air molecules floated in the breeze, bringing a refreshing clarity. Cool droplets clung to Owlman's exposed face, making his pores feel open and alert, his skin sensitive and chilled.

He and Alexander Luthor stood on the surface, waiting to meet Bardi.

With clear dissatisfaction, Alexander Luthor scowled and said impatiently, "Owlman, I won't acknowledge myself as his subordinate. If he can't even match my strength…"

Alexander Luthor's eyes flashed with a savage, greedy killing intent. He was used to ruling with brute strength. There was no way he would willingly serve someone whose power was unproven.

He had already tasted the thrill of doing whatever he pleased. The entire world revolved around his authority. Even if he ruled only 700 people, Earth belonged to him—every woman, every resource. All of it was his. Through his strength alone, the population had grown to over 1,000. In his mind, this was his contribution. His gift to humanity's recovery and survival. All humans were his children.

He had become the father of humanity. How could he be willing to serve another?

The planet of this new civilization should belong to him. Alexander Luthor imagined that as long as the arriving figure wasn't stronger than him, he could kill him, replace him, and become the direct ruler of that civilization.

The thought of controlling an entire civilization, of once again becoming the ruler of Earth across universes, of becoming the god of Earth, made Alexander Luthor's eyes burn with greedy ambition.

"Yes, the boss should dominate everything."

"How could someone like the boss kneel to anyone?"

His two sycophantic lackeys chimed in, flattering Alexander Luthor, making him feel pleased and smug.

Owlman cast a cold glance at Alexander Luthor but said nothing.

In his mind, Alexander Luthor was nothing but a brute—strong, but brainless.

At that moment, the space in front of them began to distort. Under the sunlight, the air bent and swirled, forming a space-time wormhole.

Bardi emerged, wearing his dark golden Emperor's Armor. He stood tall and imposing, like a star in the night sky. His appearance was flawless, sculpted and majestic. The power he radiated was godlike, enough to overwhelm anyone with awe.

The dark golden cape fluttered behind him, the starry sky becoming his backdrop. As he stepped through the wormhole, it was as if he was walking directly out of the cosmos, exuding an aloof majesty that looked down on all creation.

An immense pressure descended. The sky itself seemed to tilt. As Bardi stepped out of the swirling vortex, the force he emitted rolled outward like a tidal wave. The Earth itself felt like it was sinking beneath his weight.

All four people present felt as though they were suffocating. Alexander Luthor's two followers were crushed instantly by the pressure and passed out.

"Welcome, Your Majesty!"

Owlman struggled to breathe. His heart felt as though it had stopped. He immediately dropped to his knees, body stiff with awe, welcoming Bardi's arrival.

Alexander Luthor's face twisted. His eyes filled with rage. He roared, "Mazahs!"

Boom!

Under the sunny sky, thunder cracked from nowhere. A bolt of lightning tore down toward Alexander Luthor's head. The bolt turned pitch-black, enveloping him in darkness.

Arcs of lightning flickered wildly, casting long shadows across the ground.

Alexander Luthor raised his broad chest amidst the lightning storm, standing proudly. The emblem on his chest glowed with the reversed lightning bolt.

The arcs flowed down the back of his black cape and dispersed into the air.

"You want me to kneel? Just this alone won't do!"

Alexander Luthor sneered as he transformed into Mazahs. He now possessed more power than Ultraman. He had absorbed all the superpowers from the original Earth-3 and was stronger than any member of the Crime Syndicate.

He was Earth's master, the true peak of power—except for his lacking intelligence.

If it weren't for the Anti-Monitor possessing the devastating Anti-Life Equation, Alexander Luthor would have believed he could rival even him.

Now transformed into Mazahs, he thrust both hands forward, eyes wide with anticipation. He unleashed a colossal bolt of lightning straight at Bardi. This wasn't just electricity, it was a thunderbolt capable of splitting atoms and destroying half the planet.

Bardi glanced coldly at the oncoming lightning. He was not in a good mood. Ever since Raven had been taken and he'd failed to track Spectre and the others, frustration had gnawed at him.

His expression was indifferent. He lifted a hand, and the dark-gold clawed fingertips of the Emperor's Armor flicked.

Boom.

In an instant, a massive shockwave tore through the lightning.

The thunderbolt clashed head-on with the burst of air. In less than a blink, the lightning scattered into particles, dissolving into ionized vapor before Bardi.

Alexander Luthor's face had just shifted in shock when an overwhelming gust surged at him. He and the earth beneath him were hit head-on. His body began to disintegrate into particles.

It was as though he stood at ground zero of a nuclear explosion. His skin was shredded, revealing red muscle fibers underneath. The muscle fibers disintegrated next, until nothing remained but disintegrating organs and bones. All of it turned to dust in an instant.

Alexander Luthor vanished like dust in the wind, erased by Bardi.

Even the ground was obliterated. It was as though a quarter of a watermelon had been sliced away. Beneath the surface, the bedrock was exposed, and magma could be seen churning deep within a bottomless abyss.

Owlman trembled. Goosebumps rose from the soles of his feet, crawling up his skin like electricity. Every hair stood on end. He dared to glance into the abyss before him—deep, dark layers of earth glowing faintly with lava. The entire region had collapsed into a void.

And he was standing on the edge of that void, feeling a chill despite the sunny sky.

"Who is this idiot?" Bardi asked coldly.

(To be continued.)