Ch.102 Timely Arrival

The fierce battle underground between the two of them was like popcorn popping in a microwave—its tremors could be felt even on the surface. 

Slade bent down, touching the ground. The epicenter of the vibrations wasn't far away.

The shaking soon stopped, and without needing to calculate, Slade knew Hal had been defeated. The Dawnbreaker's light-extinguishing protocol was too much for him. Although Hal was a formidable fighter, his strength came entirely from his Green Lantern Ring.

Slade removed the automatic rifle from his back, slowing his breath to steady his heart rate, preparing himself.

Just a few seconds later, he saw a gray-green light shoot up into the sky. It was Dawnbreaker, using the energy from his ring to dangle Hal by his legs, suspending him in mid-air. Hal hung there motionless, his face covered in blood, his condition uncertain.

Slade immediately took aim. A series of calculations flashed through his mind, and he calmly fired a three-round burst.

The divine metal bullets, activated by the power of the Forge God, streaked toward the sky, leaving trails of flames.

He hit the airborne target precisely from hundreds of meters away. Whether Dawnbreaker was injured was unclear, but Slade could see him wobble and come to a stop.

The power supply from the Dawnbreaker Ring was interrupted, causing Hal to plummet from the sky.

"Barry, catch him!" Slade shouted.

In fact, as soon as Slade had fired, Barry had already noticed what was happening in the sky. Seeing someone fall, Barry immediately tapped into the Speed Force.

Catching someone falling from such a high altitude with just his hands would be difficult. He zipped back to Slade and grabbed Diana, allowing her to intercept Hal in mid-air and bring him back.

Slade continued to fire his rifle, forcing Dawnbreaker, who was planning to pursue, to dodge instead. Slade's ability to predict his movements was formidable; he could see the dark figure in the sky hesitating and jerking as he was hit repeatedly.

Diana caught Hal. Although he was conscious, he was completely drained and unable to struggle.

"Hey, Diana, Barry." Hal smiled through his bloodstained teeth, greeting them weakly. "You guys missed my concert."

"Heh, looks like you were just the opening act because the big stars haven't taken the stage yet," Slade said without even looking at him, keeping up his suppressive fire on Dawnbreaker in the sky.

"I hate you, Slade. Cough, cough," Hal spat out a mouthful of blood, struggling weakly as he leaned against a nearby wall.

"Rat-tat-tat-tat-tat."

The gunfire rhythmically echoed as Slade kept changing magazines, while Diana drew her sword and shield, flying upwards with the intent to at least knock Dawnbreaker down.

"Click."

Slade dropped the rifle; the ammunition was exhausted. He had been given five hundred rounds by the Forge God, and after spending some on the Merciless, he had used up all his remaining ammo in the relentless barrage just now.

A gun without bullets was nothing more than a glorified stick. Now, it was up to Diana to handle Dawnbreaker.

Diana's combat skills and strength far surpassed Hal's, and she wasn't afraid to use deadly force. If Dawnbreaker got hit by her sword, a crash landing would be inevitable, and Slade was already prepared to have Barry bring the Nightfall Greatsword over.

But it seemed that Dawnbreaker understood the situation. He immediately activated the light-extinguishing protocol, plunging the entire Coast City into darkness.

"Slade! Hal! Where are you?" Barry called out immediately.

"Don't shout, I'm three meters to your left. Did you think we disappeared?" Slade said calmly, taking out a cigarette and lighting it, though oddly, he couldn't see the flame of his lighter.

"Uh, haha, I just got a bit worried. This darkness is totally unscientific," Barry said, scratching his head in embarrassment and cautiously moving a few steps to the left.

"You're trying to talk science with a ring? A ring that can turn your thoughts into reality. I think it's more like a ring-shaped magic wand," Slade took a drag of his cigarette, quietly waiting. He wasn't concerned about Diana's combat skills; after all, fighting blind was a technique every warrior should master.

Blind fighting, as they called it in the East, meant using sound to locate enemies. At the very least, avoiding an enemy's attack shouldn't be a problem.

The premise was that Diana remained calm and fought cool-headedly.

"In brightest day, in blackest night," 

"No evil shall escape my sight," 

"Let those who worship evil's might," 

"Beware my power, Green Lantern's light!"

A green light shone brightly as Hal, leaning against the wall, managed to stand. Although his legs were as weak as noodles and his hands couldn't leave the wall, the oath strengthened his resolve, making the Green Lantern light shine once more.

Slade nodded approvingly. His fighting spirit was indeed strong. Judging by his appearance, he had at least a dozen fractures and internal bleeding, not to mention a severe concussion. The fact that he could still stand was impressive.

Hal, of course, noticed Slade's youthful face but knew now wasn't the time to dwell on that. He tried to fly but was told by the ring that he was low on power.

This was awkward. Ever since he merged with the ring, he relied solely on his willpower to recharge it. The Power Battery was too cumbersome, so he'd sent it back to Oa for maintenance.

And now, his soul felt like it was about to be knocked out of him. His head was buzzing, and if he could make the ring light up without throwing up, it would be a miracle. He couldn't focus enough to get back to Oa to retrieve the battery.

"Well, looks like we have some light now." Slade tossed his cigarette aside and crushed it underfoot, glancing at Hal with a half-smile. The look made the Green Lantern feel even more frustrated. "It's about time, Barry, where's that special thing we brought back from Earth-11?"

"Special thing?" Barry tilted his head, not recalling any special items. They had only brought back a Lasso of Truth, which was broken during the fight with the Merciless.

"The Fear Toxin. I remember getting a bunch of it from the black market." Slade held out his hand.

"Uh, you consider that a special thing?" Barry rummaged through his belt and handed the remaining seven or eight vials to Slade.

In the right circumstances, that stuff was definitely special. Slade took out a syringe, drawing all the toxin into it.

"Be careful, don't touch me, and don't talk."

With that, he injected the toxin into his neck, sending over a hundred milliliters of Fear Toxin straight into his bloodstream.

Fear, as tangible as it was, surged through Slade's mind. Even his strong rational thinking almost couldn't resist the overwhelming rush. He could only feel himself starting to tremble. Though his mind remained clear, his body was responding instinctively.

It was human nature: faced with fear, hair standing on end, pupils dilating, adrenaline surging, muscles trembling.

Even a super-soldier couldn't avoid it because he was still human.

Slade wrestled with the fear, and in a daze, he realized the scene before him had changed.

The fear that had been confronting him suddenly vanished, and he found himself in a space of pure white.

There was no sky, no ground—just white all around. He was the only being there.

He took a step forward, but nothing changed around him. He couldn't even tell if he was really moving.

He looked at his hands and touched the wound on his chest.

"Interesting, an inner consciousness space..." He realized he was in peak condition, with his armor and wounds completely gone, and he was floating in mid-air, stark naked.

He sat cross-legged, contemplating, realizing that something was indeed not right with him...