I became light in American comics

"It's not necessary."

Shen You skillfully interrupted the chanting, simultaneously and subtly dodging to the side. His timing was perfect; almost at the same instant, Maxima deliberately leaned towards him. Unexpectedly, he dodged too quickly, and the princess missed her target, crashing headfirst into the wall.

Shen You asked expressionlessly, "So, when did the Apocalypse People first appear?"

"It's been a while."

Maxima pulled her head out of the hole she'd smashed in the wall, looking completely unfazed, as if nothing had happened.

After surrendering, Zazo was quite cooperative, answering all questions, whether asked or not. But to be honest, he didn't know much.

It's somewhat similar to the situation when the International Gang cooperated with Apokolips. Apokolips always prefers to send a representative; equipment transport and technical support all rely on the blast tunnel. Basically, they'll suddenly open a door, show off, and make their presence felt, sometimes dropping off some equipment before leaving.

Meetings are entirely dependent on opening a portal, so asking these supported puppets where the other party is is pointless.

However, Zazo did describe the other party's appearance. The contact seemed to be a high-ranking official of Apocalypse, wearing a robe, with a desiccated, emaciated face that was extremely unsettling.

“Disad?” Shen You immediately associated that image with the high-ranking officials of Apocalypse.

"Who is that?" Maxima asked curiously.

"The new god of the Apocalypse is not particularly strong, but he is full of cunning." Shen You frowned slightly.

If he had a choice, he would rather have Darkseid's clone as his opponent than Dessaid. Villains like that, who hide everywhere and devise one scheme after another, are much more troublesome to deal with.

“I need to search Almeric, a thorough search,” Shen You said. “Send word to your men and tell them not to get in the way. I need to confirm that Disad isn’t hiding here.”

“No problem.” Maxima patted her chest, then collapsed silently. “You’ve done so much for our country, there’s simply no way to repay you, except…”

Shen You shifted to the side without even turning his head, and Maxima missed again.

"Oh, and while you're at it, get me a lab too," Shen You said.

He figured since he was already here, he might as well gather some knowledge about the Almeric technology tree to enrich his database. Although this place certainly couldn't compare to advanced civilizations like Brainiac or Apokolips, it was still quite formidable in the galaxy, and learning from their technological systems to expand his inventory wouldn't be bad.

“Of course, no problem. You can look at all our labs and all the equipment inside,” Maxima said casually, then winked. “Even, if you want to see things outside the labs, that’s fine too.”

Shen You once again dodged her next sneak attack with an uncanny sidestep, while nodding seriously: "Then thank you very much."

A new recruit passing by saw the princess's actions and couldn't help but rub his eyes.

"I must have been blown up more badly than I thought on the battlefield," he muttered to himself.

An old soldier patted him on the shoulder from behind: "It's okay, this is normal. You'll get used to it."

Their princess's eyes would light up at the mere mention of a capable man; this wasn't a new habit, and they were used to it.

Meanwhile, outside of Almeric.

The massive spaceship moved almost silently through space, its near-perfect camouflage system concealing it completely. Several scanners swept across the planet repeatedly, transmitting massive amounts of data along tentacle-like cables into a spherical device at the center of the ship.

That was a chair.

The warship's master, a semi-biological, mechanical being, sat upright in the center of the chair, his head and seat riddled with thick, black cables. Countless intricate data rolled across his eyes as he analyzed and processed them.

He is a collector of civilizations, a renowned collector in the universe, whose name strikes fear into the hearts of countless worlds.

He is Brainiac.

He visited Earth once. That could be considered an avatar, but it could also be seen as his true self. Because Brainiac never had just one specific body; he was a combination of biology and programming, a life form born from artificial intelligence.

Therefore, every invasion can be considered as his personal presence.

His previous setback on Earth piqued his interest as a collector. But not in Earth's civilization itself, but rather in the various aliens who had coincidentally ended up on that planet.

Of course, especially that unknown race called Ultraman.

Now, it was the same trajectory of light that attracted Brainiac—or rather, it was a body that happened to be nearby that brought him here.

"He became stronger and faster. The way he projected light outwards, shaping it into any desired form, is interesting, similar to the application of the emotional spectrum."

Brainiac's eyes gleamed as data and information flashed through his mind.

“It hasn’t been long, but he has clearly become stronger,” Brainiac murmured. “No, it’s not just his strength and basic qualities that have improved, but also his energy manipulation that has touched upon some other higher-level laws?”

The data is too limited and requires further observation; this part is pending.

But it has indeed become stronger, both in physics and in terms of knowledge, that's undeniable. The data updates show that the target not only possesses formidable talent, but more remarkably, a learning ability comparable to artificial intelligence.

Brainiac, as a top-tier intelligence who destroyed the creator, firmly believed that living beings are inherently flawed in their intelligence and can never reach the level of top-tier intelligence. Therefore, when he said it was "comparable to artificial intelligence," it was already a very high compliment.

In the DC universe, intelligence is actually a basic attribute, with a maximum of twelve levels. Furthermore, intelligence is not simply equivalent to computer-like thinking speed and brain capacity. For example, Superman possesses a super brain, enabling him to think quickly and learn a great deal of knowledge rapidly, but his intelligence score on his talent panel is not high.

Brainiac is one of the few beings in the entire multiverse to possess a level 12 intelligence.

"Update our strategy, reassess our decisions, and accelerate the collection process. Continuing to allow it to continue will only increase the difficulty of containment dramatically."

Brainiac disconnected the link, a red glint flashing in his eyes.

"I need a trap."

298. Chapter 297 Who are you?

Location unknown.

"The Light Chasers have arrived on this planet," a somber voice announced.

The imposing hall exudes an air of antiquity, as if the traces of time have been frozen within this ancient building, a remnant from an unknown era. But those who built it are long gone; now it has become a stronghold for invading foreign powers.

A deity from divine revelation.

The one speaking at this moment was Dessaed, one of the new gods of the Apocalypse and Darkseid's most capable strategist.

“He’s looking for us, and I have no doubt he has the ability,” Dessard said ominously. “This is unexpected; there was no prior indication that the Lightbringer from Earth would come here.”

"So what impact will that have?"

The response was a dull thud. Kalibak, son of Darkseid, was a new god who relied more on muscle than brains. Although his physical abilities were among the best of the new gods, no one envied him, because everyone knew it was achieved at the cost of his intelligence.

“You faced him once, Kalibak, on Earth, remember?” Disad glanced at him. “The outcome wasn’t good. If it weren’t for the Fool drawing fire for you—using his life—and if I hadn’t activated the blast channel in time, you might not be here talking to me right now.”

Kalibak shook his head.

"So what? I lost once, but that doesn't mean I'll lose a second time. Maybe I just didn't try hard enough last time."

As he spoke, he brandished the large stick in his hand, baring his teeth to show his ferocity.

Disadard stared at him silently for a few seconds.

"Are you really brainless?"

“No, why?” Kalibak said frankly, “My father always says that.”

Disad: "."

He completely overwhelmed me, leaving me speechless.

What can I say? I can only say that at least they have a clear understanding of themselves.

At that moment, a female voice rang out from the side.

"I still find it hard to believe that you say he actually defeated the great Darkseid, even if only temporarily."

She was a woman with a figure that was memorable even at first glance, with deep cleavage and a large, prominent waistline—quite striking by human standards.

But her entire body was wrapped in layers of straps, with only her eyes and red lips showing. The straps created a hazy, alluring effect on certain parts of her body, making them appear both visible and hidden. Those familiar with her knew that these were actually deadly weapons, while those unfamiliar might mistake her outfit for some kind of special hotel service package.

Rashina, also a powerful figure among the New Gods, is a member of the renowned special forces unit "Nemesis" under Darkseid.

“No one can defeat the great Darkseid,” Dessaad said dryly. “The last operation was just due to insufficient preparation; they won’t be so lucky next time.”

But before the next one, that person needs some time to regroup. Our task is to ensure that we are fully prepared for the next move during this period.

He squinted his eyes as he spoke.

"We certainly don't want to wait until the great Darkseid is ready to return, only to find that we haven't done any investigation or preparation in this galaxy, do we?"

"But the situation in Almeric has changed, and we are not prepared to fight that creature of light here."

This time, it was another member of the Nemesis team who spoke, a strong woman with green hair. Crazy Harriet, one of the Nemesis, came with Rasina.

“Or there’s a better idea. Let’s take down that… Lightbringer now,” Kalibak said in a deep voice. “Father will be very happy when he comes back.”

Rashina frowned: "Aren't you listening, Kalibak? We've seen his strength; we can't just give up so easily."

“No, wait. This time, what Kalibak said isn’t entirely wrong,” Disad interrupted.

Rashina raised an eyebrow: "Are you crazy? You mean we're going to take action against that guy, the one who once caused that master to fail?"

“Of course, he is very strong, but that’s in a head-on confrontation.” Disadard smiled grimly. “And unfortunately, what I’m best at is not so honorable means.”

At this moment, Shen You had booked a room in Almeric. He was recording and storing the development process and system architecture of various technologies in Almeric at super speed.

Although he only said that he would be happy to have any place to do his research, perhaps on the instructions of the princess, the Almeric people warmly arranged for him a place that was almost like a presidential suite, complete with a double bed and two pillows.

However, it doesn't have much of an impact, since he doesn't need sleep at all anyway.

Although there are no cutting-edge technologies that catch Shen You's eye these days, it is still a unique technology tree, and some of its ideas and concepts can still inspire him.

Immersed in the ocean of knowledge, Shen You suddenly sensed something. He frowned slightly and used his senses to check his surroundings.

Then they discovered something was hidden in the shadows.

It appeared to be using some kind of technology, its form almost blending into its shadow, stealthily approaching Shen You's laboratory. If it weren't for the deliberate scanning, even Shen You might have been fooled.

Thinking of this, he sharpened his vision, saw through the disguise, and recognized the newcomer's identity.

Crazy Harriet, one of the Apocalypse's vengeful goddesses, is a special forces soldier under Darkseid.

Is Apokolips noticing my arrival and preparing to take the initiative?

Shen You became more vigilant, waiting for the enemy to emerge from the shadows.

However, just as Harriet sneaked into his room, Shen You was already preparing to take action and start the fight.

Huh.

Harriet is gone.

This unexpected turn of events left Shen You stunned.

Ran?

He wasn't entirely sure, but in his super-sensory scan, it seemed as if the person had vanished from the shadow in an instant.