Chapter 1075: Clark Under Control
Added 2025-01-06 20:00:03 +0000 UTCBecause both dimensions and the universe have their limits, the top-tier dimensional beings naturally didn’t want anyone else reaching their level.
The more top-tier fighters that emerged, the fewer benefits the original top-tier beings would receive. Thus, they secretly hoped Clark and Darkseid would annihilate each other in this battle—or at least severely wound each other.
If Clark and Darkseid were indeed severely injured, these top-tier beings wouldn’t miss the opportunity to strike. Moreover, the corpses of such powerful fighters would be valuable resources.
Just like the Celestial’s head in Knowhere, if Clark and Darkseid died and left behind any remains, it wouldn’t be impossible for those remains to develop into a unique, independent dimension.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
Under the watchful eyes of these top-tier beings, Clark and Darkseid had already escalated their fight. Both bore injuries, but it was clear that Clark’s wounds were more severe, causing the golden glow around him to dim.
The solid golden barrier Clark had earlier created had already been shattered in his battle with Darkseid.
So, Clark knew there was still a gap between his strength and Darkseid’s, though it wasn’t insurmountable. Otherwise, Clark wouldn’t still be able to fight Darkseid and even inflict damage on him.
What Clark didn’t know was that while Darkseid was furious, he hadn’t yet used the ultimate power of the Anti-Life Equation. He was only using the rules within the Omega Energy and the chaotic rules of the Anti-Life Equation to gradually wear Clark down.
Darkseid’s goal was to lower Clark’s guard and deliver a fatal blow when Clark’s injuries became severe enough.
Of course, there was a risk in this approach—Clark might not continue fighting once his injuries reached a critical point.
But Darkseid trusted his judgment. He knew that while Clark wasn’t as battle-hungry as Robert, he wasn’t someone who would easily give up.
Moreover, Darkseid could sense that Clark’s power wasn’t entirely stable. Clark had only recently gained his new strength, and this battle was also beneficial for him.
So, even if there was some danger, even if he was battered and bruised, Darkseid believed Clark would persist until he could deliver the final blow.
"Things don’t seem to be going well," Sentry, standing beside Robert, said hesitantly. He had a clear view of the battle between Clark and Darkseid, and his voice carried concern.
Due to Clark’s identity as Superman and the similarity between their powers, Sentry had a lot of goodwill toward Clark.
Even without that goodwill, Sentry wouldn’t want Darkseid, the cosmic warmonger who invaded other planets, to emerge victorious.
"Indeed," Robert nodded, watching the two in the battlefield. "But as long as he isn’t killed outright, it’s fine."
Robert could see that Clark’s power had reached its limit. In other words, Clark was already using his full strength.
Moreover, Clark’s energy was starting to wane. This was because Darkseid had inflicted too many injuries on Clark, causing his strength to deplete rapidly.
On the other hand, Darkseid’s energy seemed to be rising. The injuries Clark had dealt to Darkseid hadn’t affected him fundamentally.
Although Darkseid was known as the Dark Lord and his new power contained many dark, negative emotions, he wasn’t a conventional dark-side entity. He wasn’t inherently weak against light-based abilities like Clark’s.
This was different from entities like the Dark Dimension or other dark realms. But Robert wasn’t worried about Clark’s safety.
After all, with Clark’s current level of strength, killing him wasn’t an easy task.
Even when Clark was in a weakened state during his sleep, it had taken the weakening effects of Kryptonite to bring him to the brink of death. Otherwise, his previous injuries wouldn’t have nearly killed him.
Now, even if Darkseid was far stronger than Doomsday and slightly more powerful than Clark, as long as Clark had even a breath left, Robert could save him with a single healing technique.
"That’s good to hear," Sentry sighed in relief. What he didn’t know was that Clark’s determination to continue fighting Darkseid was also due to Robert’s presence and the safety net of his healing abilities.
Even though Clark had fought Robert while not fully conscious, he now clearly understood that Robert’s strength had surpassed his own.
But Clark didn’t know how Robert compared to Darkseid, who had gained new power. Clark wasn’t just trying to familiarize himself with his own strength; he was also testing Darkseid’s limits and depleting his energy.
Of course, in Clark’s view, if Darkseid’s power was only at its current level, Robert should be able to defeat him. Even if killing Darkseid was difficult, sealing him with the Mafuba technique wouldn’t be a problem.
It had to be said that both Clark and Robert were confident. But Darkseid was equally confident because Clark and Robert didn’t know the true power of the Anti-Life Equation.
The Anti-Life Equation was indeed composed of various dark, negative emotions and human-understood rules. But its ultimate effect was to corrode and consume everything it touched. Once a living being heard or came into contact with the Equation, they would lose their free will.
In other words, Clark was gradually being exposed to the rules within the Anti-Life Equation. Once his injuries reached a certain point, he would fall under Darkseid’s control!
In a sense, this effect was similar to the Mind Stone.
But when facing the Mind Stone, if one’s strength was sufficient, they could maintain their consciousness even while controlled, like Thor, who could resist the Mind Stone’s power.
The Anti-Life Equation was different. It seemed to amplify the controlled individual’s dark side, causing them to lose their self-awareness entirely. They would adopt a dark mindset while submitting to the Equation’s user.
In terms of effect, the Anti-Life Equation was indeed darker. It wasn’t just a result of mental manipulation; it was more like transforming the controlled individual into a different personality.
Of course, if someone was already dark-sided, being controlled wouldn’t change their personality much, though they would theoretically still obey Darkseid’s commands.
"Boom!" In the dimensional realm, as Clark and Darkseid continued their battle, Clark felt the pressure mounting. He noticed that his injuries were healing unusually slowly, which made him wary. But at that moment, a red light flashed in Darkseid’s eyes, and he punched Clark.
Instead of being sent flying, Clark remained in place, standing before Darkseid. The red light in Darkseid’s eyes didn’t fade, nor did he use the Omega Beams. Instead, he silently activated the power of the Anti-Life Equation.
"Huh?!" Robert, watching from the sidelines, immediately sensed something was wrong. He vanished and reappeared in front of Darkseid, kicking him away.
"Whoosh!" But at the same time, Robert felt a gust of wind behind him. When he turned, he saw that Clark’s demeanor had completely changed. The golden aura around Clark had turned black, and his eyes glowed with a sinister red light.
The red light in Clark’s eyes was different from when he used heat vision. It was a terrifying, predatory gaze, as if he wanted to devour everything in his path.
The most significant change was Clark’s aura—a dark, violent desire to destroy life emanated from him.
Even Clark’s attack style had changed. Instead of his usual punches, he extended his now-blackened claws, aiming to grab Robert’s head!
"So, this is the ultimate effect of your power? Controlling your target?" Robert raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise in his eyes. He vanished again, reappearing behind Darkseid, who had stopped to watch the spectacle, and launched an attack while asking.
"Boom!" Darkseid was nearly caught off guard but managed to block Robert’s strike. However, his earlier satisfaction at controlling Clark instantly vanished.
Darkseid had planned to use Clark’s control to psychologically impact Robert and then have Clark fight Robert to deplete his energy. But he had forgotten that Robert’s instant teleportation allowed him to ignore Clark’s attacks and gave Darkseid no chance to recover.
"Roar!" On the other side, seeing his attack miss and Robert appearing next to Darkseid, Clark let out a beastly, almost zombie-like roar. He transformed into a black streak of light, charging toward Darkseid.
Even though Darkseid hadn’t given Clark new orders, Clark strictly followed the previous command: to kill Robert at all costs!
"Boom!" Seeing Clark charging again, Robert punched Darkseid, sending him flying directly into the path of Clark’s black streak.
But Clark reacted quickly, dodging Darkseid’s body and continuing toward Robert.
"Whoosh!" However, Robert had no intention of fighting Clark in this state. He teleported again, reappearing next to Darkseid and continuing his relentless assault, giving Darkseid no chance to recover.
As Robert had previously assessed, even though Darkseid had grown stronger after mastering the Anti-Life Equation and surpassed Clark’s golden state, he was still no match for Robert in his Super Saiyan God form, especially with Robert’s destructive power.
If Clark had just entered the cosmic entity level, Darkseid was a step above that. But Robert was already strong enough to defeat Galactus, one of the top cosmic entities. There was still a gap in their strength.
Moreover, this time, Robert wasn’t holding back. He used his destructive power, and with each punch, he destroyed parts of Darkseid’s flesh.
Even with the Omega Energy and the Anti-Life Equation, Darkseid could only slightly reduce the damage, unable to fully counteract Robert’s destructive force.
"So, this is your true power?" Darkseid’s expression changed when he realized this, especially when he saw Robert’s Super Saiyan God transformation. The different color and aura told Darkseid that Robert hadn’t been serious during their previous fight.
"Unfortunately, you were too weak before," Robert’s cold voice echoed in Darkseid’s ears as he delivered another punch, destroying more of Darkseid’s flesh.
This was just the beginning of the battle. With his instant teleportation, Robert could keep up his relentless assault, giving Darkseid no chance to recover…