Barry, with a face full of shock, stared at the figure before him who had the same appearance as himself. His eyes were filled with disbelief.
"Don't be surprised. We are essentially the same person, just existing on different timelines."
The figure, upon seeing the younger version of himself, appeared much calmer.
"Different timelines? Is that really true? This is unbelievable!"
The younger Barry still found it hard to believe all of this.
"If all of this is true, then where exactly are we? And why are we meeting here?"
Although he was struggling to accept the situation, Barry was even more curious about why he had suddenly arrived in this strange place and encountered another version of himself from a different timeline.
"There's no need to be anxious. We are currently in the Speed Force dimension!"
"What? The Speed Force dimension? Is this real?"
Since gaining superpowers, specifically the Speed Force, Barry had been exploring its incredible mysteries, but this was the first time he learned that within the Speed Force, there was a unique dimension.
"Indeed. The Speed Force is far more mysterious and powerful than we know… and our understanding and application of it are still quite basic."
As one of the fundamental forces in the DC Universe, the Speed Force possesses immense power. The Speedsters' understanding and application of the Speed Force have not yet reached their peak.
"So the Speed Force is this mysterious?"
The younger Barry finally began to grasp the mystery of the Speed Force.
"But I still don't understand why I suddenly appeared here and met you…"
Even with the mystery of the Speed Force becoming clearer, Barry struggled to understand why he had suddenly ended up in this mysterious Speed Force dimension and encountered another version of himself from a different timeline.
"To understand this, we need to start from when I was brought to another universe and prepared to reverse that universe's timeline on the brink of destruction…"
The more mature Barry, with a serious expression, began to explain why they were meeting here.
...
Not long ago, when Barry's companions from his original universe were preparing to open a portal to another universe to rescue him, he had already experienced the failure of the plan to reverse the universe's timeline.
Eventually, looking at the eerie dark eye in space, which covered almost half of Earth's surface, Barry did not hesitate and agreed to help the people of this universe complete their desperate plan.
Soon, everything was ready.
Barry once again stepped onto the treadmill.
But this time, unlike before, the treadmill he was on was specially created by the people of this universe to save their world. Its purpose was to gather Barry's Speed Force to activate the Speed Force Cannon, which was built on the foundation of the entire space station.
"Barry, thank you for all your efforts for our universe!"
Once everything was ready, Superman looked at Barry standing on the treadmill with gratitude.
Barry did not belong to their universe, yet he was willing to make such a significant sacrifice to save their universe, which they deeply appreciated.
"No need to thank me. Like you, I cannot bear to witness the destruction of an entire world firsthand."
Barry shook his head, not fully accepting their gratitude. His simple goal was to do what he felt was right.
As a hero, it was natural for him to strive to save the world. Regardless of whether it was his original universe or not, every life deserved to be saved.
"Alright, everyone, I hope your plan will truly succeed..."
Barry hesitated for a moment, then put on his mask again, his gaze resolute and full of determination.
Zzzz!
In an instant, a brilliant golden lightning flashed in Barry's eyes.
The next moment, the lightning flowed along his body, enveloping him entirely.
For a moment, the surrounding space-time seemed to freeze.
"For the sake of this world, and for the future of the entire multiverse, I must stop that dark force from consuming everything!"
Barry's mind echoed with the terrifying vision of endless darkness swallowing the entire multiverse, extinguishing all infinite lives across universes.
At this moment, Barry's resolve was unwavering. He not only aimed to save this world but also to prevent the darkness from consuming the universe and save the infinite lives of the multiverse.
"Now, Barry, run with all your might!"
His firm resolve seemed to fill Barry with immense power.
Golden lightning surrounded him.
Boom!
As Barry took his first determined step, he instantly began to run at incredible speed, becoming a blur.
Around him, a massive Speed Force energy gathered.
This time, the Speed Force energy did not dissipate into the air as usual but formed a visible layer of tangible energy.
It enveloped his body, completely encasing the entire cosmic treadmill and gradually forming a golden circular shield.
"Great! The cosmic treadmill is working, and the Speed Force barrier is being constructed!"
Cyborg, monitoring everything, shouted with excitement.
Everything was progressing according to their expectations.
...
As time ticked away, the entire space station was enveloped in silence.
Everyone watched with anticipation, eyes fixed on the blurred figure sprinting on the treadmill.
Endless golden lightning flashed from behind him, merging into the surrounding golden energy barrier.
Gradually, as the Speed Force continued to gather, the golden energy barrier became more solid.
After a full three minutes, the golden Speed Force energy barrier completely obscured the running figure of Barry.
However, the Speed Force energy continued to accumulate, indicating that Barry had not stopped running.
"Excellent. The Speed Force energy Barry is releasing has exceeded our original estimates. It's more than enough to activate the Speed Force Cannon..."
Cyborg watched as the Speed Force energy gauge continued to rise, already surpassing their expectations and reaching the threshold required to activate the Speed Force Cannon.
This naturally filled him with immense excitement, as it meant their plan to save the world had a real chance of succeeding.
"Good. Since Barry has lived up to our expectations, we must not falter."
"Everyone, continue to follow the original plan and take care of your tasks..."
Superman, seeing that Barry had completed the most challenging step of their plan, showed a hint of excitement.
After speaking to everyone, Superman's gaze slowly shifted from the shining golden Speed Force barrier to the direction outside the space station.
Perhaps by coincidence, at that moment, a brilliant fireball began to rise from the distant horizon.
The dazzling light covered the Earth.
It was the sunrise, bringing the sun back up from the east.
Yet, even the blinding sunlight could not dispel the immense dark eye looming above Earth.
The area shrouded in darkness still felt as if it were in an eternal night.
"Clark..."
As a beam of sunlight filtered through the space station, illuminating Superman and bathing him in a golden glow, he radiated a divine aura.
Everyone's eyes were on Superman, but their faces showed no joy—only worry.
They knew very well that in their plan, this moment was crucial.
The comrade who had once fought alongside them would now go alone to the brilliant star, immersing himself in the core of the blazing sun, enduring millions of degrees of heat and the sun's burning intensity.
Even though he was called the Man of Steel, such an act was still fraught with danger.
"Clark, you must come back alive!"
As Superman, taking determined steps toward the space station's hatch, slowly walked away, a voice softly echoed.
"Don't worry, everyone. I am Superman, after all."
"Never lose hope, no matter what!"
"The darkness will be dispelled by the light, and peace will return to the world!"
Superman turned his head slowly, a faint smile on his face as he looked at everyone.
The "S" symbol on his chest, representing hope, shone with a brilliant glow, symbolizing the immortality of hope.
The next moment, Superman decisively turned and walked with firm steps towards the hatch.
Whoosh!
Soon, a swift figure shot out of the space station, streaking through the dark starry sky towards the distant fiery sphere, disappearing from sight.
But they knew that figure, like hope, would never truly disappear.
...
"Everyone, continue with the plan as we've outlined. Make sure to check all the equipment thoroughly. Our plan cannot afford any mistakes!"
Watching Superman's figure vanish into the sun's light, Cyborg spoke with unwavering resolve to the others.
Their plan had only one chance and was hard-won, so at this moment, there could be no mistakes.
"Don't worry, we'll ensure everything is in order!"
The others assured him firmly.
Some time passed.
The Speed Force energy gathered outside the cosmic treadmill had reached an enormous level, far exceeding Cyborg's expectations.
This was not surprising, as he had designed the treadmill based on the Flash from their universe.
The Barry from the future, with his superior understanding and use of the Speed Force, had generated energy far beyond their original plan.
"This is great. Such massive Speed Force energy will definitely push the Speed Force Cannon to its limits, unleashing even greater power to obliterate that bizarre dark energy."
At this moment, Cyborg was filled with excitement.
The unexpected magnitude of the Speed Force energy gave him greater hope for the success of their plan.
"The Speed Force energy is almost saturated. It's time to activate the final phase of the plan."
Soon, the cosmic treadmill's gathered Speed Force energy reached its peak.
Cyborg knew they could no longer wait; otherwise, excess Speed Force energy might overwhelm the Speed Force Cannon.
As the saying goes, "Too much of anything is harmful." The Speed Force energy was now sufficient.
"Everyone, has there been any issue with the Speed Force Cannon equipment?"
Cyborg inquired through the communication device.
"No issues at all. We're ready to start the final phase!"
Reports came through the communication device promptly.
There were no surprises; with their careful preparations, the special equipment was unlikely to have any problems.
"Excellent. Now, let's witness the most critical moment for the future of the universe!"
Cyborg's gaze shifted from Barry, still sprinting on the cosmic treadmill, to the distant brilliant star.
Finally, he looked at the eerie black eye hovering above Earth.
Gradually, his eyes grew resolute.
Without any hesitation, he pressed the button to activate the Speed Force Cannon, representing the world's hope.
Buzz!
Instantly, the entire space station seemed to start shaking violently.
At almost the same time, the enormous Speed Force energy gathered outside the cosmic treadmill was rapidly absorbed by surrounding energy transfer devices.
The previously brilliant golden energy barrier instantly dimmed, revealing the figure of Barry sprinting within.
The remaining massive Speed Force energy was dispersed throughout the space station.
The tremendous energy coursed through the energy transfer system in the station, converging from all directions towards the area directly facing the dark eye.
From the outside perspective.
At some point, a gigantic metal cylinder, several meters in diameter, had appeared in front of the space station, aimed at the distant dark eye.
At that moment, the Speed Force energy traversing the space station could be seen shimmering with light.
As countless golden rays flowed around the space station, they ultimately converged on the massive metal cylinder.
Instantly, the gathered Speed Force energy seemed to be imbued with a wild aura.
The Speed Force energy converging from all directions began to spin rapidly.
Along the metal cylinder, it spiraled with a brilliance even brighter than the sun, and with a thunderous roar, shot towards the dark eye above Earth.
"It must succeed!"
At this moment, everyone looked at the spiraling golden beam with hopeful eyes.
Boom!
As expected, the beam hit the massive black eye with precision.
The Speed Force's ability to traverse time and space played a crucial role.
The black energy, which could normally ignore any attack, was finally affected by the Speed Force energy cannon.
The dark eye was instantly pierced and collapsed.
The endless dark energy surged violently, like a lake disturbed by a giant stone.
"Excellent, we've succeeded!"
Cyborg shouted with excitement, as the Speed Force energy had indeed hit the bizarre darkness as they had anticipated.
"Wait, that dark energy doesn't seem to be dissipating from the Speed Force's blast. Instead, it's expanding outward?"
"How is this possible!"
…
(End of Chapter)
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