Zod's move was both insidious and vicious.
Those two deadly crimson beams of light weren't aimed at Clark at all.
The target was the crowd of civilians dozens of meters away, who were watching the excitement and filming with their phones!
"Holy crap! Run!"
Deadpool shrieked, grabbing Spider-Man's arm next to him, wanting to make a run for it.
At this distance, at this speed, who the hell could dodge it?!
Just as those two Heat Visions were about to split the crowd in two.
A figure appeared out of thin air, blocking everyone's path.
It was Tel-Rol.
He merely raised his left hand languidly, palm facing the two destructive beams, and golden energy glowed.
The two Heat Visions, powerful enough to melt through aircraft carrier steel, hit Tel-Rol's light and dissipated directly.
They didn't even cause a ripple.
Tel-Rol slowly lowered his hand, stretched his neck, and a series of "cracks" sounded.
He slowly turned around, the playful smile on his face gone.
"Hey."
"I'm playing a game here."
He turned his head to look at Zod, who was being choked by Clark.
"Are you a sore loser?"
"How dare you interrupt my fun."
The threat Zod felt even surpassed Clark, who was choking him.
Among the seven terrified Kryptonian soldiers nearby, one of them hadn't processed what was happening.
He saw Tel-Rol move, thinking the 'Red Light, Green Light' game was over.
Or perhaps it was his only chance to save the General.
"For Krypton!"
He roared, transforming into a dark shadow, and charged at Tel-Rol!
"Idiot."
Tel-Rol didn't even raise his head, just impatiently flicked a beam of light at the shadow.
"Whoosh!"
A tiny purplish-gold speck of light flew from his fingertip.
The Kryptonian soldier, halfway through his dive, suddenly froze.
A small blood-hole appeared in the center of his forehead, clear through and through.
The next second, he crashed to the ground with a "thud," kicking up a cloud of dust.
The remaining six Kryptonians nearly wet their pants.
What kind of devil was this?!
"The game isn't over yet."
Tel-Rol's voice came faintly.
"Anyone who moves again will suffer the same fate."
After speaking, he no longer paid attention to the six Kryptonians who had almost turned into statues, and redirected his gaze back to the giant pit.
He grinned at Clark.
"Cousin, don't get distracted."
"I've got the audience covered; you focus on your business."
"Vent your anger properly; don't hold back."
Zod's sneak attack not only failed to create an opportunity for himself but also completely ignited the last thread of rationality in Clark's heart.
Threatening civilians!
Using the people he had to protect to threaten him!
Clark's breathing stopped for a second.
The world seemed to halt around him, only Zod's triumphant face magnified infinitely in his eyes.
The suppressed rage, pushed to its limit, erupted into a roar from deep within his throat!
"Ahhhhhh—!"
"Boom!"
Zod's body slammed against the pit wall, the hard rock layer forming a huge human-shaped indentation, with countless cracks spreading out.
Clark pushed off with both feet, transforming into a red and blue phantom, arriving first!
The moment Zod slid down the wall, he had already rushed in front of him!
A simple, unadorned straight punch!
"Bang!"
The punch accurately struck Zod's chest. The terrifying power penetrated the Kryptonian armor, shaking his internal organs, and his entire body was forced backward, embedding him deeply into the rock wall once again!
Clark didn't stop.
His fists were like the most precise war hammers—fast, accurate, and ruthless—yet deliberately avoiding all fatal vital points.
"Bang! Bang! Bang!"
The dense sounds of impact merged into a continuous roar, like the most furious drumbeats.
Each punch carried enough force to shatter mountains, systematically destroying Zod's ability to resist.
Zod tried to resist; he raised his hand, attempting to grab Clark's fist.
Clark directly delivered a hand chop to his elbow joint!
"Crack!"
A crisp sound of bone breaking echoed, and Zod's right arm twisted at an unnatural angle, hanging limply.
He opened his mouth, trying to attack with Heat Vision.
Clark's other hand was faster, slapping him across the face, fiercely pressing his head against the adjacent rock wall!
"Boom!"
Zod's head was smashed into the rock, his vision blurring. He was completely dazed; the combat skills and absolute power displayed by Kal-El, whom he had seen as merely a farm boy, now filled him with fear from the depths of his soul.
"Why... cough cough..."
He spat out a mouthful of blood, his voice fragmented.
"We... are clearly of the same race..."
"You don't deserve to utter the words 'same race'!"
Clark grabbed his other intact arm, his eyes icy. Zod looked at him in horror, thinking his left arm was also about to be broken.
But Clark merely swung him forcefully, like throwing a broken sack, tearing Zod out of the rock wall and slamming him hard into the center of the giant pit!
"Boom—!"
The earth shook again. Zod, deprived of the ability to resist with his arms, lay collapsed on the ground like a pile of mud, only guttural sounds escaping his throat.
Clark looked down at him, his chest heaving violently, the burning rage in his eyes seemingly capable of incinerating everything. He slowly raised his foot, aiming at Zod's head.
With this one kick, Zod's head would explode like a rotten watermelon. He could then completely end this threat, once and for all.
Tel-Rol, watching from a distance, was thoroughly entertained and even let out a whistle.
"Alright, cousin, that's intense!"
He shouted to Deadpool and Spider-Man in the nearby ruins: "See? Beat him up good, but leave him alive; that's art!"
Deadpool shrank his neck, whispering to Spider-Man: "How come I feel like this blonde guy is even scarier than the dark Superman..."
In the giant pit.
Clark looked at his dying compatriot beneath his foot, the flames burning in his eyes slowly beginning to waver.
Kill him, and Earth would be safe. Lois and Mom would never be threatened again.
But... the kind faces of the kent family appeared in his mind.
"You are destined to change this world, Clark."
Jonathan Kent's words still seemed to echo in his ears.
His foot paused in mid-air.
"Tsk."
Tel-Rol, at the edge of the pit, clicked his tongue in displeasure.
"Here it comes again, this damned savior complex."
He muttered to himself: "Never mind, cousin, the dirty work you're unwilling to do, I'll do it for you."
As he spoke, the purple power stone in Tel-Rol's right palm glowed brightly, and violent energy began to converge.
However, just then.
Zod, lying on the ground, used his last ounce of strength to let out a low, eerie laugh.
"Heh heh... heh heh heh..."
"Kal-El... do you think... you've won?"
Clark frowned, looking down at him.
"The World Engine... has already activated!"
Zod roared out these words with all his might.
"Soon... this planet... will become a new Krypton!"
"And you... you traitors who have adapted to Earth's filthy air, and all the lower life forms on this planet... will die!"
"You will all die!!"
As Zod's maniacal laughter echoed, a colossal beam of light, reaching from heaven to earth, struck deep into the seabed of the distant Indian Ocean!
At the same time, on the other side of the city, another massive Kryptonian Spaceship descended from the clouds, also emitting an identical beam of light!
The two beams of light headed straight for the Earth's core.
The entire Earth began to tremble violently!