Starting from scratch, Batman crushed my dream of getting rich

Chapter 433 The Difference Between Worlds

Ma Zhaodi was sweating profusely at this point.

Yes, he had considered the possibility that Nora Allen might become a "combined mother" of the two Barries, but before things unfolded, there were always multiple solutions. His original plan was to temporarily place Nora Allen in Gotham City to prevent her from meeting Barry from this universe. Later, when Barry from the other universe was able to travel between the two universes, he could visit his mother from time to time.

In a sense, this was the most perfect solution in his mind. Nora wouldn't have to die in another timeline and could live peacefully anywhere except Central City, while Barry could visit his family in this universe regularly and finally escape the fate of "The Flash can never save his mother".

But what he didn't expect was that the two universes were so parallel and perfunctory in the details related to The Flash. Nora could make a phone call to Barry in her own universe, and Barry in her own universe would naturally rush over immediately.

So after Bruce's visit today, Ma Zhaodi had to come up with another plan. His idea was to first explain things to Barry in this universe to avoid him mistaking his mother in his excitement. As for the rest, things could proceed as usual.

Although Nora will eventually realize the differences in the historical trajectory and daily life details between the two universes, and she will also notice the changes in the scenery and technology around her, these things can be explained to her by Barry when he arrives, or she can simply make up an excuse. These are all minor details and not of high priority. It's just that Nora needs some time to adapt to the concepts of parallel universes and time travel.

At least until he saw the second Barry appear outside the door, Ma Zhaodi thought that the second plan was proceeding smoothly for the time being.

The only problem is that plans never keep up with changes.

"Following the traces of your Speed ​​Force across the universe to get here to me." Ma Zhaodi looked at Barry, who had smuggled himself into the universe, and couldn't help but laugh angrily: "Does the Speed ​​Force mean you can do whatever you want?"

“No, actually only I can do this,” Barry explained. “The wormhole space opened by the Speed ​​Force is actually filled with the Speed ​​Force. Your traces will dissipate rapidly here and merge into it. It’s just that I found a very familiar feeling at the end of a certain wormhole branch. A portion of my Speed ​​Force was taken away from this universe from there. If it were any other speedster, they wouldn’t be able to detect it.”

"You're really becoming possessive of your food."

"Mr. Ma Zhaodi? Who's at the door?"

The voice of Barry from this universe suddenly rang out from behind him. Ma Zhaodi's pupils contracted sharply. He immediately reached out to try to pull the Barry from another universe aside so that he wouldn't be seen, but the Barry from this universe was too fast. Before Ma Zhaodi could even reach out his hand, the Barry from this universe had already appeared behind him.

At this moment, the atmosphere on the field became subtly silent for a few seconds.

The two Barries suddenly fell silent. They stared at each other across Ma Zhaodi, exchanging glances without making eye contact or attacking each other.

They were simply stunned.

"Barry, who's at the door? What are you standing there like an idiot for—"

When Henry's voice rang out from behind, Ma Zhaodi's expression completely crumbled. When a third pair of eyes joined the staring contest on both sides of the door, the two Barries finally realized what was happening. The alien Barry outside the door immediately vanished in a golden light, while the real Barry quickly adjusted his expression, shaking his head as if in confusion.

"I don't know. There's no one at the door. I don't know who's just randomly knocking on the door."

This was, of course, meant for Nora and the children inside the house, while Henry, who had stared into the eyes of the alternate-universe Barry for several seconds, was certain he wasn't hallucinating. Combining this with what Barry had just typed on his phone, he quickly understood the situation—the Nora inside the house was the Nora of another universe, so the Barry outside was obviously the Barry of another universe.

He just never imagined that his son would be the Flash in both universes.

Henry glanced casually at the door a few times, then patted Barry on the shoulder nonchalantly: "Never mind, it's probably just some bored kid or homeless person knocking on the door. It's fine, let's go back inside first."

Nora, who was inside the house, heard their conversation and her expression returned to calm.

"Well done." Barry silently gave his dad a thumbs up in his mind. Now was not the time to confront Nora directly. It was best to tell her the truth little by little to avoid upsetting her too much.

"Uh," he suddenly said, "Dad, I just remembered that Iris and I were supposed to go on a date and see a movie this afternoon, but now that this happened, the plans have to be canceled. I need to call her and explain."

"Oh." Henry nodded immediately in understanding. "No problem, go ahead."

"And who is Iris?" Nora suddenly asked. "The little girl from the Joe family? The one who gets along so well with Barry? Are they dating now?"

"Huh? Right, no." Henry was momentarily speechless upon hearing Nora's question. After a pause, he hesitantly asked, "And who is Joe?"

“Joe, Joe West, the single dad.” Noralton exclaimed in surprise, “You know, the black detective from the police station? You two were such good friends, how could you forget him? Isn’t his daughter Iris West?”

"Uh, no, Nora, that's not how it is."

As Henry answered Nora's question, he became increasingly aware of the differences between the two universes: "Iris's father is Ira West, not Joe, and they're not a single-parent family. Iris's mother is Nadine West, and all three of them are white—don't say anything out of line next time you see them."

Nora was immediately struck by an unbelievable sense of absurdity.

"Henry, what nonsense are you spouting?"

She couldn't accept that her world had suddenly become unrecognizable, but the thought of seeing Barry now as a young man in his twenties made her start to doubt herself.

"Iris went on a date with Barry," she thought to herself. "They've all grown up? They've all become adults? But why do I only remember them looking like they were seven or eight years old?"

"Is there something wrong with me? Have I lost my memory? Or have I gone mad?"

At this moment, Nora felt an even greater urgency to go to Central City to see whose memory was malfunctioning.

(End of this chapter)