Chapter Five: Are You Threatening Me?

“There is a dark force lingering in the air of Smallville!”
“It needs us to take action! Are you ready, Clark?”

The blond boy, gripping a toy gun in his hand and draped in a slightly ill-fitting flag cape, spoke with righteous fervor.

The black-haired boy called Clark looked somewhat disgruntled. “That’s not fair, Azor. We agreed I should be the commander this time, and you the soldier.”

Azor, the blond boy, placed his hands on his hips and said, “The commander should be the stronger one. I’m stronger and smarter, so Clark, you’ll be the soldier boy.”

Clark immediately saw through his words. “But last time Aunt Nell gave us a test, and my score was higher than yours.”

“That was because I wasn’t serious, I...”

Azor’s face flushed red, and he quickly changed the subject. “Hey! There’s a monster over there! Watch my fists!”

With that, he dashed into the cornfield.

“John, maybe you should return that flag cape you’re wearing!” Clark shouted after him.

The flag flying atop the farm roof had been appropriated by Azor as a cape.

He worried that if they went back, their godfather would scold them.

Yet seeing Azor’s carefree attitude, Clark had no choice but to follow him into the cornfield.

“Plop!”

As soon as he entered the cornfield, Azor knocked him down.

Just as Clark was about to resist, he heard Azor whisper in his ear, “Don’t move! Listen! They’re coming!”

Azor’s tense tone made Clark nervous as well. He swallowed hard and adjusted the Zorro mask on his face.

“Really?”

“Really. Listen, these dark demon lords are going to attack us. We have to be prepared.”

Clark truly believed that dark demon lords were on their way.

He held his breath and pricked up his ears to catch any sound around them.

At first, there was the rustling of leaves in the wind and Azor’s heavy breathing pressing on him.

Then came a cacophony of sounds flooding his ears.

The rumble of cars passing on the road, the sound of sheep running across the meadow.

Then even more chaotic noises.

He even caught the whispering voices of people nearby.

“Buzz!”

A piercing noise erupted in his ears, causing a sharp pain.

Clutching his ears, he groaned in discomfort.

Startled, Azor scrambled up, looking at him helplessly. “What’s wrong, Clark?”

“My... my ears hurt a little.”

Clark’s pain came quickly and faded just as fast. Soon, he was back to normal.

Still holding his ears, he asked fearfully, “Am I deaf?”

“No!”

Azor snapped irritably, “If you were deaf, how would you hear me talking, you idiot!”

He helped Clark to his feet. “We have to go home, or Dad will be angry.”

Though Azor wanted to keep playing, he had promised his father they’d be home by five in the afternoon.

They chased and tussled each other as they made their way back to the farm quickly.

“Dad! Clark almost went deaf!” Azor shouted as soon as he ran into the farmyard.

But Clark noticed several cars parked around the farm and immediately grabbed Azor’s arm.

Azor noticed too and stopped yelling.

They entered the living room to find Peter talking with several men in suits.

“Dad.”
“Godfather.”

The two boys greeted quietly.

Peter glanced at them and said, “John, Clark, go upstairs.”

“Okay.”

The boys obediently went upstairs.

Once the two “sons” were out of sight, Peter turned back to face the suited men.

Six years had passed since he had found Azor.

Both Azor and Clark had grown into little boys now, yet time had left no mark on Peter’s face.

He looked exactly as he had six years ago.

As Martha said, it seemed as if God had blessed him with a magic of eternal youth.

Of course, the divine blessing was nonsense.

The real reason was the watch on his wrist, which not only enhanced his physical abilities but also greatly slowed his aging.

His strength, endurance, speed, reflexes, and agility had all been significantly improved.

He estimated that his skin could now even withstand the impact of small-caliber bullets.

As time went on, the watch’s enhancements would only grow stronger.

He guessed that if he lived another hundred years, he would certainly become a superman.

Could this be called getting stronger lying down?

Indeed, in any era, the best lifestyle was taking it easy!

The only regret...

He glanced at the watch; the hand had about one-fifth of the circle left to complete.

He had thought the hand would move quickly and the meteor shower would soon arrive.

But after six years, the meteor shower still had not come.

So it calculated time in years?!

If not for the anti-aging power, he feared he would grow old and die before seeing a single meteor shower.

“Mr. Patrick.”

The man with a hooked nose sitting across from him noticed Peter looking at his watch and thought he was impatient.

He smiled and said, “Luthor Energy Group plans to build a chemical plant in Smallville. After thorough site selection, we have determined the plant’s location, which includes your farm.”

“We hope to acquire your farm, of course, with sufficient compensation.”

He pulled a check from his suit and placed it on the table.

Peter gave him a cold look. “What if I say no?”

Though the farm did not hold the same significance to him as it did to Jonathan, the meteor shower would occur there.

If he sold the farm, how could he continue to find superpowered infants?

Besides, he didn’t need the money.

In recent years, he had drained a great deal of black money from gangsters in Metropolis.

With superman-like physicality, dealing with gangsters was as easy as cutting melons.

Hearing Peter’s curt refusal, the hooked-nose man’s smile vanished, his tone turning as cold as steel.

“Generally, Luthor Group does not mistreat collaborators, but for those who refuse cooperation, our methods are less gentle.”

Peter narrowed his eyes, his brows furrowing slightly as he stared at him. “Are you threatening me?”

“No, not at all. We’re a legitimate company. I’m merely referring to normal business competition.”

The hooked-nose man stood and extended his hand.

“I hope you will change your mind, Mr. Patrick.”

Peter did not shake his hand, replying coolly, “My answer will never change.”

Watching them leave, Peter silently sentenced the hooked-nose man to death in his heart.

Meanwhile, at the staircase landing on the second floor, Azor clenched his fists after overhearing the conversation between his father and the hooked-nose man.

A faint red glow flickered in his eyes.