American comic book: My Father is Superman, am I just an NPC?

Chapter 269 I! Rejected Heaven!
Just as Barry Allen was about to utter "He shouldn't be called Ian Kent," a completely transparent hand, as if sculpted from the purest crystal, reached out from the ground in front of him without warning and swiftly covered his mouth, silencing the fatal word that followed!

Immediately afterward, under the utterly shocked gazes of everyone—including the mysterious girl who had just been born and was choking Batman—a transparent figure, whose outline vaguely resembled that of a boy, emerged completely from the ground with a "pop" sound, looking somewhat flustered and disheveled!

He maintained the position of covering the Flash's mouth and made an extremely exaggerated "shush" gesture to Barry, whose eyes were wide open and who was making "ooh" sounds.

"Is this my father?"

The girl looked at the corpse on the ground, then at the transparent Ian. Her limited understanding froze, and her mind went completely blank, as if it had crashed.

"Shh~~~"

Seeing that the Flash's eyes were still wide open and that there was a villain who was about to expose his identity, Ian did not hesitate and directly made his transparent hand point like a knife.

He casually tapped the Flash on the back of the neck. Barry Allen felt an irresistible force surge through him, his vision went black, and he collapsed to the ground.

He temporarily lost consciousness.

Physically, the Flash was not actually injured; it was just a spiritual attack on another spiritual being, and the effect was even more remarkable—Ian gave his 165th friend, Uncle Barry, a baby-like sleep.

They are all acquaintances.

He doesn't intend to charge a fee.

After doing all this, Ian's transparent figure seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, patted his non-existent chest, and then turned to the stunned crowd. If one could see clearly, he revealed an extremely wicked, Lucifer-inspired, crooked smile on his face, and asked in a smug tone.

"How about it? Surprised? Unexpected?" His voice had an ethereal echo, as if it came from another dimension, or rather, he truly existed in another dimension.

"what?"

Everyone was still in a daze.

Ian glanced at his own corpse, then at the vanished corpse of Doomsday. Before anyone could react, he immediately turned his gaze to the purple-clad girl who was still clutching Batman but was also bewildered by his appearance, and gritted his teeth as he made a furious threat.

"You ate it all by yourself! All the delicious food I painstakingly cooked was eaten by you! You didn't leave me a single bite! How awful! Is this how you treat me?"

"I'll settle the score with you later!"

He seemed to have adopted the demeanor of a qualified protective father. The girl in purple, after being glared at by him, did not understand the specific meaning of "settling accounts" and "pretending to be cool," but instinctively felt a pressure from the level of life itself, as well as an indescribable feeling of guilt as if she had done something wrong and been caught by her parents.

"Let go of my nephew Bruce first! Didn't you hear he's family with us?" Ian pretended to glare at him, but his words actually concealed some ulterior motives.

However, Batman doesn't know much about him yet and can't figure it out for the time being.

"Huh? Okay, okay, sorry, I'm sorry." The girl was very flustered. She subconsciously loosened her grip on Batman's throat and even took a few steps back. She looked helplessly at the transparent being that had suddenly appeared, whose aura felt both strange and incredibly familiar to her.

"Cough! Cough cough cough..." Batman finally caught his breath, collapsing to the ground, clutching his neck and coughing violently, greedily inhaling the long-awaited air. Diana and Superman immediately stood guard in front of him, their gazes shifting uncertainly between the transparent Ian and the girl in purple.

Ian (transparent version) cleared his throat, if souls had voices—he looked around, taking in the shocked, confused, and wary expressions on everyone's faces.

Then, the sunny and cheerful young man nodded in satisfaction.

He spread his arms and spoke in a solemn yet somewhat flamboyant tone, as if announcing momentous news: "Mortals! Put away your astonishment, calm your fear! Yes, as you can see, I am indeed dead! In the great feat of perishing together with the embodiment of destruction, I have generously given my life, and my life has returned to silence!"

He paused, seemingly choosing his words carefully, before continuing, "But! Death is not my end! I am now an existence that has transcended the boundary between life and death through my own willpower!"

“You can call me—Ghost Ian! No, that’s not imposing enough… Call me the God of Ghosts! Or… the Invincible God-King Who Defeats Death for Earth!” He finally chose the latter two titles, which sounded more imposing, and his transparent chest puffed out a bit.

Is Ian dead?
He is, of course, dead.

Life ended along with the perfect doomsday.

This is beyond question. The authority of the [All Things Return to One] skill is not to be challenged; it represents the end of the conceptual level. To say that we perish together means that we die together, without any falsehood.

but.

If Ian can't even exploit a loophole or deceive the rules by using his mere professional skills to create a "death" state, what will he use to fool the grander and more complex time and history?!

He's daring.

She is also very meticulous.

The vulnerability had already been exploited. If we rewind time by about ten minutes, we can clearly see what happened at the very moment Ian activated [All Things Die Together], ending his life along with Perfect Doomsday, and the two bodies began to fall towards Earth.

At that moment, Ian's soul lightly detached from the body clad in the black Kryptonian suit. He looked down at the azure Earth below, then at the remnants of Doomsday beside him, lifeless yet still radiating unsettling energy. A knowing smile curved his lips in his soul form.

"I won!"

In the invisible realm, Ian's soul actually lingered for a few seconds, but Superman couldn't see it. He knew very well that Doomsday was not truly "perfect".

Doomsday possesses a body capable of infinite evolution and near-immortality, and an instinct to devour energy and adapt to all things, but it lacks only the most essential element of a complete life—a soul.

Even if it becomes the so-called ultimate life form, it is still the day of destruction. Just like being a gangster for a day and being a gangster for a lifetime, some things cannot be changed.

Perfect Doomsday still has the irreversible weakness of Doomsday, which is that it is just an empty shell programmed with the instructions of "destruction" and "evolution".

It is a distorted aggregate of genes and energy.

It was precisely by grasping this fatal weakness that Ian resolutely chose "all things perish together." On Doomsday without souls, the end of life is true and utter annihilation, with no possibility of rebirth. But for Ian Kent, the loss of life doesn't mean he's gone, his curtain falls, and he's exited the stage.

He also has an immortal soul! He can go to heaven to enjoy bliss or retreat to hell to reign supreme; all roads lead to Rome, so no matter how you look at it, he's the winner!
"This wave can be called being incredibly prescient."

Ian's wisdom is indeed remarkable, as he has discerned such ingenious methods of combat. However, he cannot foresee or calculate everything.

According to his plan, with the merits he had accumulated from his many "saving the world" deeds, he should at least be a VIP customer of Heaven and be able to directly check into the Cloud Suite through the fast track.

He even has God's throne.

However, when he excitedly flew toward the gates of heaven, invisible to mortals and radiating a warm, holy light, he was embarrassed to find that the magnificent gates of light were tightly shut to him.

There wasn't even a crack.

"It's probably because there are no angels inside anymore. It's okay, I forgive them. I can open the door myself." Just as Ian was about to push open the gates of Heaven and go inside.

"Boom~"

Suddenly, an unexpected change occurred. An extremely powerful and irresistible suction force came, and his soul was instantly pulled into the opposite dimension—Hell.

The scene before me shifted, no longer filled with holy light and clouds, but rather... a well-ordered, peculiarly styled hellscape. There was no eternal wailing of lava pools here, but rather what resembled... a giant, highly efficient, steampunk-style industrial city.

The sky was a perpetually dusky yellow, but the streets were clean and tidy, and the streetlights cast a steady glow. Various hellish creatures and human souls dressed in uniform prison attire went about their business.

The enormous furnace no longer burns souls, but smelts a metal that shimmers with runes. A sign stands beside it: "High-Quality Atonement Ingot Production Workshop - Production Capacity Achieved, All Employees Receive a 10% Bonus." The instruments of torture that were once used to inflict cruelty have been transformed into various production tools or fitness equipment, and many souls are undergoing "labor reform" under supervision.

These are all former criminals, and it's reasonable to subject them to labor reform, since Ian is practicing a new era of distinctive capitalism.

In layman's terms, it incorporates some of the creativity of a major Eastern power.

The sinners are incredibly efficient.

In principle, they don't need to eat yet.

It can be called a perpetual motion machine.

Forget Hanyang and Tianjing rifles, they're nothing compared to what's produced here—these are hell-made! Every time a sinner completes a certain amount of work, a counter on their wrist will "ding."

That's the movement to increase the "atonement money" a little.

This is something very useful.

Banners hung everywhere in the city: "Save one million atonement coins to exchange for a one-way ticket to 'Heaven's Express'! The sooner you reform, the sooner you'll be free!"

In addition, there are even shops lining both sides of the street. Seventh Prison Convenience Store - accepts Atonement Coins; Sloth Ring Cafe - Today's Special: Invigorating Latte.

Of course, you should spend the money you earn.

The city also boasts a Greed Bank, offering savings in Atonement Coins and low-interest loans. There are even little devils in suits and briefcases giving speeches on the streets: "Join our 'Honesty and Fraud Repentance Class' to learn the importance of honesty and integrity, and increase your Atonement Coin earning efficiency by 30%!"

The hell dimension where such a scene could occur is undoubtedly the territory that Ian once visited and took over, the hell city managed by old Thomas.

"Not bad, not bad, very vibrant! These sinners have accumulated quite a bit of atonement coins. It seems it's time to launch a one-day trip to the human world. The interest rates at the banks also need to be lowered a bit."

"No, let's just make the depositors pay management fees." Ian practiced capitalism in Hell, so now that he has returned to his territory as a soul and seen this "thriving" scene, he has unconsciously chosen to let go of his regret about not being able to go to Heaven.

After all, it's only right that the greatest capitalist is destined for hell. Ian may be a bit greedy, but he's still quite self-aware in this regard.

He walked towards the most magnificent building in the city center, the one bearing the sign "Hell's Seventh Level Management and Rehabilitation Bureau." At the entrance, old Thomas Wayne, dressed in a sharp suit and with his hair neatly slicked back, was holding a tablet computer, seemingly checking data, as the administrator.

He saw Ian's soul drift over, paused for a moment, and asked in surprise.

"How come you... came down here at such a young age?" His tone was more like curiosity about how Ian "died" than questioning why he came to hell.

Ian waved his hand, looking like it was nothing: "Don't mention it, I saved your son Bruce's life again. I'll call you back and tell you the details when I get back."

He acted as if he were visiting a neighbor, but his gaze fell on the towering mountain to the side, its peak seemingly endless, as if he were pondering something.

As the soul.

Many methods for traveling back to the human world are no longer usable.

However, this is no challenge for the wise.

He began his operation.

We climbed the mountain!
"what are you up to?"

Old Thomas was a little confused.

Without looking back, Ian set his sights on the mountain and began to climb, leaving behind the words, "Of course, I'll climb back to the human world while my corpse is still warm!"

"Or should I just wait to be reincarnated? Hmm, that seems like a good idea too. I could have another pair of loving parents." Of course, Ian ultimately didn't choose this way of restarting.

The main problem is that the restart speed is too slow. His movements are as fast as lightning, countless times faster than the most agile monkey climbing a tree. His transparent figure moves quickly across the steep, rugged mountain walls covered with forbidden runes and spatial turbulence. His technical guidance is probably learned from some God of War game.

"Kratos wasn't lying to me. This road is difficult, but it's definitely passable..." He muttered to himself as he climbed. Relying on the strength and uniqueness of his own soul, he actually managed to climb back to the human world from the depths of hell along this seemingly impossible road in a very short time!

Just as his soul was about to break free of the earth and return to the material world, he happened to hear the Flash's statement that almost exposed his true nature...

And so, the dramatic scene we just witnessed unfolded. Of course, it's the truth, but the version Ian told everyone was completely different from his actual experience in Hell.

Under everyone's gaze, the transparent Ian even slightly adjusted the refractive index of his soul, making himself look more like a majestic, glowing ghost.

Then, in a deeply emotional tone, he told his story. It was, in short, a classic adventure, a classic redemption, an unforgettable classic.

"Just as the flame of my life was about to be extinguished and my soul was about to step into the eternal kingdom, I came to a boundless land of light—Heaven!"

“There, it was peaceful, warm, and filled with the highest goodwill. Countless angels shining with light rushed toward me. They were moved by my spirit of sacrifice and wept for my heroic deeds. They knelt before me and begged me to let them work less overtime... I mean, they hoped I could stay in heaven.”

Ian almost let it slip.

Fortunately, no one realized this.

"The angels all wanted to marry the Virgin Mary to me, hoping that I could use my radiance and wisdom to bring a different color to that eternal land and add a beautiful ripple."

“However, I refused! I resolutely refused them!” Ian’s voice became impassioned, filled with the tragic grandeur of self-sacrifice.

He pointed to the ravaged land beneath his feet.

He pointed his gun at the still-shaken Batman, the bewildered Diana, the unconscious Flash, and the lost girl in purple—he didn't spare a single one of them.

"I thought of this world that still needs to be protected! How could I be so selfish as to abandon the humans who trust me for my own comfort?"

"That's why I refused the angels' pleas, gave up eternal bliss in heaven, burned the power of my soul, broke free from the shackles of heaven, and after countless hardships, finally returned to earth from the clouds of heaven!" That's why it's called a story; a story is devoid of any truth.

Of course, there were also knowledgeable people present who understood the concepts of Heaven and Hell. No sooner had he finished speaking than Diana couldn't help but raise a question, pointing to the hole Ian had just crawled out of.

"But...you clearly crawled out from underground!" This was completely different from her understanding of how people returning from heaven should descend from the sky.

"It does not matter!"

Ian responded calmly.

"Um, you know you're emitting black smoke? It's making it easier for us to see because of the light refraction." The purple-clad girl raised her hand, hesitating whether she should remind Ian that horns were starting to grow on his head.

"Shut up! You're so mean! You've only been born a few hours! How come you've already developed such a rebellious streak! Did you eat some kind of superfood?! I'm clearly from heaven! I never lie!" Ian's face turned red, clearly exasperated.

His buttocks.

Its scarlet tail was also thrashing wildly.

(End of this chapter)