American comics: Praising the sun, starting from Gotham!

"Okay, the place is quite spacious, but the decor is terrible and it smells awful. We need to do a thorough cleaning first."

The faint golden light emanating from Xiu En shut out the sticky air and sour smell, creating a small, private space.

"Hmph, you've got a lot of demands. You're the one who jumped into this mess!"

The sunflower shook off its wilted petals.

"I've marked the locations of all those cans. The nearest cell is about 300 meters away as the crow flies, um, it's above my head."

"On your head?"

Xiu En raised his head and looked at the top of his dome-shaped stomach wall, which looked no different from the fleshy pads under his feet.

"Alright."

"Appetizer delivery service, starting now."

He stomped his foot in the direction Ivy was pointing.

The next second, Xiu En's figure soared into the sky and crashed into the dome.

The stomach wall melted upon contact with Xiu En's body from the golden light emanating from him, leaving behind a smooth, circular channel.

Before the bits of meat and digestive juices could even splatter out, they were completely evaporated by the scorching golden light and flames.

Xiu En's figure disappeared into the passage.

Immediately afterwards, a series of penetrating sounds came from above.

All the obstacles between him and the first cell he marked were purified by the high temperature, forming a passage that ran through dozens of layers of flesh and blood.

During this process, Hugh even had the leisure to evaluate the internal structure of the behemoth.

"Hmm... this piece of meat is quite firm."

"Oh, the liquid in this sac is very acidic."

"Xiu En! Can't you just focus on getting on the road? Stop trying to analyze everything!"

"Okay, okay."

"Isn't this about inspecting the ingredients?"

A few seconds later, they landed in a relatively dry place.

This is the first storage compartment marked by Ivy.

A blood pit as wide as a stadium.

On the walls of the cave, there were pulsating mucosal vesicles hanging like a honeycomb, and in each vesicle, one or more figures were curled up.

They remained motionless, their breath of life barely perceptible.

Xiu En examined the vesicles and stroked his chin.

His gaze was fixed on the largest vesicle in the center of the cave, where the life force was the most tenacious in the entire cave.

Even though most of his strength had been drained, his indomitable will remained.

"Let's start with you."

Shuen raised his hand toward the vesicle.

He extended his index finger and gently touched the vesicle.

A golden ray of light pierced the outer wall of the vesicle.

The vesicle quickly deflated, and the liquid inside poured out, carrying the human figure it contained as it crashed to the ground.

He was a man wearing tattered green battle armor, with a full beard, and who looked extremely thin due to prolonged hunger and dehydration.

His messy blond hair was stuck to his forehead with slime, and his whole body was trembling uncontrollably.

But his first reaction after falling to the ground was to use his last bit of strength to instinctively roll over, reach for the empty quiver behind him with one hand, and raise the equally tattered longbow with the other, assuming a defensive posture.

His eyes could barely focus, but the vigilance instinct of a top hunter was still ingrained in his bones.

Beside him lay an unconscious woman in a black bodysuit, her long blonde hair scattered on the ground.

Oliver Quinn, the former Green Arrow, feels like he's having a long nightmare.

He dreamt that he was captured by Superman and thrown into this endless abyss made of flesh and blood along with Diana.

He watched helplessly as one rebel comrade after another was dragged away, disappearing into the writhing tunnels of flesh and blood, never to return.

He thought he would be here with Diana, slowly being digested by this living monster.

He had even completely given up hope.

He only wished to hold Diana's hand at the last moment.

Then, the mucous membrane that was binding him suddenly broke?

The golden light and fresh air momentarily overwhelmed his numb senses.

What did he see?

A man in a black trench coat looked at them with the same eye one would give a canned food item on a supermarket shelf.

On this man's shoulder, there's a living? Moving? Sunflower with a disgusted expression?

What is this?

Are they a new breed of demons sent from hell?

Or perhaps, due to prolonged dehydration, I've started hallucinating?

"Hello!"

The man, gleaming with gold, spoke.

"Can you still breathe? If you can, stand aside and don't block me from opening the next can."

His fighting instincts made him react.

Threat!

This is an extremely dangerous entity!

"Who are you?"

He subconsciously drew the broken bow a little, and a wisp of green light condensed on the bowstring from somewhere.

"Hmph, it's practically pickled into preserved vegetables, yet it's still so energetic."

Ivy commented.

"As expected of a species with strong vitality."

"It's good."

Xiu En nodded in agreement.

He paid no attention to the bow aimed at him; his gaze had already turned to the next, larger sac containing even more people.

Just as he was about to open the can again, he suddenly sensed something and stopped.

The unconscious Dinah Lance beside her let out a painful groan, her body convulsed violently, and her mouth opened.

A sound wave, the chirping of a canary, erupted in the direction of Xiu En!

This was an unconscious act of self-defense!

The ultrasonic waves hurtled towards Xiu En.

The weakened Oliver's face instantly turned paler than paper. He instinctively wanted to rush over and use his already exhausted body to shield Hugh and Diana.

It's over, it's over.

This mysterious rescuer is about to die from Dinah's unconscious attack.

However, the sound wave collided with an almost transparent golden light screen a meter away from Xiu En.

The sound waves struck the light screen, disintegrating it silently.

Xiu En frowned unhappily.

"The noise is too loud and it's affecting my appetite."

He gently blew a breath in the direction from which the sound waves came.

A warmer stream of golden light enveloped Diana's body, which was convulsing in pain from overexertion.

The shriek stopped abruptly, and Diana's tightly furrowed brows slowly relaxed, her pained expression gradually replaced by a sense of peace.

Her body, on the verge of collapse, was undergoing repair of countless internal injuries, and her depleted vitality was being directly replenished.

Oliver's mouth was open.

What did he see?

Did he blow Diana's ultimate move back?

Did he even cure her?

Is this... a miracle?

"Honestly, all you do is cause trouble!"

The sunflower head shook, a flash of light appeared, and two round fruits emerged.

The fruit was only the size of a thumb, translucent, with a soft halo around its surface, emitting a strange fragrance that blended sunlight and grass. Just smelling it restored Oliver's strength.

"Take it."

The sunflower head tilted towards Oliver.

"You two canned goods that's practically been pickled are getting a bargain. This is premium nutritional concentrate; one pill will keep you full for three days."

The two golden fruits floated gently to Oliver and Diana's lips.

Oliver hesitated for a moment, but his body’s craving for energy overcame his rational vigilance.

He put the fruit in his mouth.

Life energy dissipated from the tip of his tongue and surged into his limbs and bones.

That feeling, every cell in my body was cheering with joy.

He could feel his muscles, which had atrophied from long-term imprisonment, regaining their strength, and new blood flowing through his dried-up veins.

He then helped Diana, who was standing next to him, swallow another fruit, and her originally pale cheeks regained a healthy rosy glow.

"Are you finished eating? If you are, please move aside."

Oliver snapped out of his daze and saw Shuen turn to his other companions who were still trapped in the vesicles.

"Alright, time to continue opening the cans."

Xiu En flexed his wrists, clearly preparing to begin mass production.

"etc!"

Oliver struggled to his feet. Although he was still a little weak, he was much better than before.

"Who are you? What are you doing here?"

He needs answers.

Before accepting further help, he must know the other party's identity and intentions.

"Me? Well, I'm just a passing sun."

Xiu En raised an eyebrow, turned his head and glanced at him as if he were looking at a customer who had asked an idiotic question.

"I'm here to find offerings. As for you?"

He pointed to Oliver and Diana, then glanced at the cans still hanging on the wall.

"You are all grains of sand that accidentally got mixed into this offering. My job now is to pick you all out, wipe the table clean, and prepare to enjoy my main course."

After saying that, he ignored Oliver's horrified expression, stretched out his hands, and gently patted the dense wall of vesicles in front of him.

An exceptionally subtle golden shockwave spread out like a fan.

Where the shockwave passed, all the vesicles containing the rebel members burst open simultaneously.

The viscous liquid splashed everywhere, but before it reached the ground, it was instantly evaporated by the high temperature that followed.

Dozens of weak and exhausted figures fell from the wall like dumplings, landing on the ground.

Everyone received a share of the golden light and small fruits.

Then, the liberated people saw the scene before them clearly.

Standing in the center of the arena was the godlike Shuen, along with Green Arrow, who had recovered some of his fighting strength, and Black Canary, who had just slowly awakened.

"Oliver! Dinah! You're alive!"

"What happened? We...we're free?"

"Who is that person? Is he some new torture device sent by Superman?"

"But the light around him...it's so warm?"

Diana had fully regained consciousness and leaned weakly against Oliver.

"Oli, I just..."

She wanted to apologize for her unintentional attack.

"I know you didn't mean it."

Oliver patted her hand, but his eyes were fixed on Hugh.

"But...did you hear what he said? Sacrifice? Sand? Main course?"

Diana nodded, her face equally incredulous.

In this man's mouth, these elite resistance fighters who had survived countless brushes with death and fought to the last for freedom and justice were nothing more than a pile of sand that had accidentally gotten into the food.

This was more damaging to their self-esteem than any judgment Superman could have made against them.

Just as everyone was talking at once and in a chaotic mess, Xiu En finally finished his assembly line can-opening operation.

He looked around at the group of chattering sand grains, whose spirits were clearly much better than before, and nodded in satisfaction.

"Great, they've all been picked out, and they all look lively and energetic."

His gaze finally settled on Oliver and Diana.

"Now, you leaders, gather your people together, take a headcount, and find a corner to sit in. Remember, don't run around, don't make any noise, and don't touch anything here."

After he finished speaking, he lifted his foot again and, under the incredulous gazes of the rebels, disappeared in the direction of the next marked cell.

The rebels, who had just regained their freedom and some of their strength, were left alone in the cave, looking at each other in bewilderment.

"He...he's gone again?"

"A member of the resistance asked, stammering."

"Going to open the next cannery."

Oliver's lips twitched as he uttered an answer that even he found absurd.