Starting from scratch, Batman crushed my dream of getting rich

Chapter 474 I think I am

Upon hearing that Superman's abilities seemed to be inferior to Homelander's, Starlight's voice betrayed a hint of disappointment.

This is easy to understand. From most people's perspective, Superman perfectly matches their imagination of gods in every aspect. If there really is a character in the world with supreme wisdom and ability, and who is close to God, then He should look like Superman. Otherwise, it is His own problem, not Superman's problem.

However, Starlight's disappointment did not last long. She was not an opportunist, and her criteria for making friends did not include factors such as "ability" or "status".

"Superman, thank you for what happened yesterday."

"It's nothing. Any normal person would stop it if they saw it. There's no reason for someone to be a hero and then be timid and hesitant. If being a hero means I can't do good things, then I might as well quit the company."

"That's good. Did Barrett arrange your schedule? I'm looking at that packed schedule, and it seems a bit outrageous."

"I'm not that fast. After all, I'm a new member who was suddenly added to the plan. I have to complete the ability test first before I can get any plans or anything. I just hope the Homelanders won't be angry."

Why is he angry?

"Because he might feel that I stole the business deals and endorsements that originally belonged to him, after all, our abilities are very similar."

"He won't. I met him today, and I feel he's a pretty perfect hero."

"I hope so."

After exchanging a few more words, Clark took the initiative to leave.

Seeing that no other messages were coming in, Ma Zhaodi said directly into the headset, "Okay, I understand."

At this moment, Superman's phone remained silent, but instead, a small area on his suit that was pressed against his skin felt three faint electric currents flash.

Clark walked out of the Water Tower with a normal expression.

He still remembered what Ma Zhaodi had told him before.

"Clark, from the moment you entered Vought and joined the Seven, Vought will definitely pay utmost attention and surveillance to you, this suddenly appearing, powerful superhuman."

"We can't appear to be the kind of friends who can share everything. We have to be discreet and careful when we contact each other, and it's best if no one notices. If it's not necessary, it's best not to meet at all—at least not at sensitive times."

“I have a general idea of ​​Vought’s surveillance methods, but Vought doesn’t know about mine. In this day and age, it’s easy to transmit intelligence using mobile phone technology, so they will most likely check every text message you send, every phone call you make, every time you go out, the people you meet and the places you go—so we just need to avoid these channels when we communicate.”

"Having avoided these, what means of communication do we have left?"

"Oh, that's much more than you think."

Ma Zhaodi waved his phone: "I made some modifications to your phone's program. It allows certain special communications to bypass Woot Corporation's signal capture—the way to trigger the communication is simple: you unlock your phone's password."

"It's normal for a normal person to occasionally mistype a six-digit number, but only we know that you won't mistype it because you are a superman. You have strong enough control over your body, and your brain and body will work together without any mistakes."

"Every time you enter the wrong password, your phone will automatically connect to me, but not via text message, phone call, or any other social media app. It's a communication method I've specially programmed into your phone; you won't see any indication of it on your phone. Even if someone from my homeland or someone else is watching you use your phone and enter the wrong password, they won't realize you're actually communicating with me." "This communication method is one-way; I will only listen, not answer. You just need to be aware that I'm listening to the sounds around you."

"That's a brilliant idea." Clark's eyes lit up. "It sounds a bit like Mission: Impossible, or some other high-tech method from a blockbuster movie. Are you a genius hacker?"

Ma Zhaodi glanced at his Master-level Computer Proficiency skill list and shrugged.

"I think I am."

"In short, I will use this method to receive what you want to tell me, but this communication cannot be kept on 24 hours a day. Not to mention that it will consume a lot of power, and Vought will check your phone hardware, you yourself cannot accept the strange thing of being monitored by an ally 24 hours a day. You have your own life."

"Is it impossible for me to accept this?"

Clark's expression was somewhat complicated. In the Dark Multiverse he had seen, the good deeds Batman did to his allies were basically all clearly visible in the timeline.

"Don't get used to this stuff beforehand." Ma Zhaodi guessed what Clark was thinking and couldn't help but rub his head. "Batman is crazy to do this, you know? Don't get used to this kind of behavior. You have to strongly protest, you know?"

Clark nodded.

But Ma Zhaodi had every reason to suspect that he hadn't listened at all.

"In short, when I've finished receiving your message and am about to finish, I'll send you an instruction. This is another one-way communication process, and you can only receive, not reply."

Ma Zhaodi handed Clark a small, round blue patch, only the size of a mung bean, and so thin as to be negligible.

"This thing is quite advanced, a nanobot, a technology that doesn't yet exist in this era. Stick it inside your suit, and when I transmit a message to you, it only means one of three things."

"One flash, two flashes, three flashes represent my affirmation, my denial, and my understanding, respectively. These three things are generally enough for me to communicate with you."

“If something happens that you absolutely need to tell me in person, then just come find me directly—after all, we used to be good friends, it would be strange if we never saw each other.”

Clark was amazed by Ma Zhaodi's arrangements.

After hanging up with Clark, Ma Zhaodi thought for a moment about what he should do next.

"Go to my own apartment first, settle in a bit, and then check on the butcher's movements later tonight."

"He trusts me a little too little. The villain affinity talent seems to have no effect. I feel like he won't let me into the team unless I put some pressure on him."

He rode his three-wheeled motorcycle to the new apartment. The landlord, a middle-aged man with a puffy build, gave him a key, briefly explained the tenant's rules, and then left.

Ma Zhaodi opened the surveillance footage on his phone and then calmly began tidying up the room.

(End of this chapter)