The Flash from thirty years in the future suddenly appeared and told Liu A'dou that the future needed his help to be saved. Liu A'dou felt a lot of pressure: "What's going on?"
"I'm the Flash from thirty years in the future, here to take you to the future world to save it," the Flash explained.
"Wait, does this mean I'm dead in thirty years?" Liu A'dou thought to himself. He had lived for a long time, but the idea that he might die in thirty years was something he couldn't easily handle.
"You haven't died, but the situation is complicated. When we get to the future, I'll explain it all to you," the Flash said. He then pulled out a small capsule, which Liu A'dou recognized. It transformed into smoke, and from the smoke emerged a strange machine.
Liu A'dou quickly realized this was the Dragon Ball world's Capsule Corp's capsule. "This… this?"
"This is something you created thirty years from now," the Flash explained.
So it was something he created himself. Liu A'dou breathed a sigh of relief, thinking he was just about to be scared by someone from the Dragon Ball world. But then, he was left wondering how powerful he would be thirty years from now, even able to create such a thing as the universal capsule.
"I can only travel back to the past, not the future, so I brought this time machine," the Flash continued, looking at Liu A'dou.
From the look in his eyes, Liu A'dou could see admiration, so he uncertainly asked, "Did I make the time machine too?"
The Flash nodded with a smile. "Let's go inside now."
To travel to the future, they had to freeze themselves and accelerate time. But the Flash could only surpass time, making time slow down or even reverse, taking them back to the past.
Liu A'dou didn't move. "I should say something to the others first."
"No need. Once you save the Earth, I'll return you to the moment you disappeared. Everything will be as it was," the Flash reassured.
"You're going to the future, right? So why come back to this world?" Liu A'dou was still unsure. After all, he had a family and couldn't just leave them behind.
"You've proven the theory of parallel worlds. Each branch is a different world. Every world has its own version of you. This is quite complex and can't be explained in just a few words, but I can guarantee that when you return here, everything will be the same. Friends will still be your friends, and your wife will still be your wife," the Flash explained.
Liu A'dou, seeing the Flash's sincere yet anxious look, gritted his teeth and decided to trust him this time. "Alright, let's go."
"Move a bit," Liu A'dou said. He hadn't expected the cockpit to be so cramped. And the person accompanying him was a big muscular guy. He was pressed into a corner and couldn't move.
"Hang in there," the Flash said. "I'm starting the time machine now."
"I'm ready, let's go."
The Flash pressed a button, and Liu A'dou immediately felt his whole body being squeezed as if surrounded by distorted two-dimensional animation. It was an indescribable sensation, as if he could live without breathing. Though, in truth, it felt more like being alive but not truly alive—it was almost the same as being dead.
The time machine appeared in mid-air and slowly descended to the ground.
"Welcome to New York, thirty years from now," the Flash said as he squeezed out of the cockpit.
Liu A'dou stood on the time machine, looking around. What he saw was a wasteland—ruins of buildings. The only thing that seemed intact was a group of statues in front of him.
In the darkness, towering statues stood, white as snow, stretching for several meters high. There were so many of them that a person couldn't count them all with two hands. But in the center of this group of statues, there were five that stood out the most.
From left to right, they were Batman, Superman, Kaitou Kid, Captain America, and Iron Man.
Yes, these statues were of superheroes, but the one in the middle was a statue of a thief. Honestly, standing among these superheroes made Liu A'dou feel a bit pleased, but it still felt strange. Even Kaitou Kid himself thought it was odd. Surely, the others would feel uncomfortable seeing a thief stand among them, right?
Liu A'dou wanted to ask who decided the placement of these statues, but the more important question was what had happened to New York: "Is this New York?"
"This is New York, thirty years from now," the Flash said. "We don't have much time. We need to hurry before dawn."
Liu A'dou jumped off the time machine, and the Flash immediately transformed it back into a capsule. "Quick, let's go."
It was clear the Flash was in a hurry, but he didn't use his super speed. Instead, he carefully led Liu A'dou forward, as if something monstrous was lurking in the shadows, ready to awaken at any moment. The night was eerily quiet.
Liu A'dou's gaze even fell on severed hands and feet buried in the rubble, as if he were witnessing the aftermath of an apocalypse. He couldn't help but ask why the superheroes didn't protect this place.
The rugged path led them to the edge of a lake, where the Flash pressed a button on his wristband. The rippling water immediately transformed into a smooth, mirror-like surface, and a circular object appeared in front of them.
"Follow me," the Flash said as he walked onto the surface of the lake and approached the circular object.
Liu A'dou felt as though the ground beneath his feet was as solid as any flat surface, thinking to himself how unimaginable thirty years of technological advancement had been. The circular object shot out a beam of light, pulling them into it.
The voices of discussion immediately flooded into Liu A'dou's ears, chaotic and indistinct. It seemed like everyone was having an intense debate. Too many voices, too disorganized, making it hard to make out anything clearly. But he could make out the faces: Batman, Iron Man, Captain America, Wonder Woman, Thor, Green Arrow, Aquaman, Professor X, Magneto, and many others, both famous and less known. Some looked exactly as Liu A'dou remembered, some were familiar from recent meetings, like Wolverine, while others appeared much older, like Iron Man and Batman. If it weren't for their superhero costumes, Liu A'dou might have struggled to recognize them.
"Is this a meeting?" Even someone as bold as Liu A'dou felt a little nervous. He cautiously turned to the Flash. Could this be the gathering of heroes?
The elderly Professor X rolled his flying wheelchair toward Liu A'dou and said, incredulously, "Flash, you really brought him back?"
Professor X's life had lasted longer than even he had expected.
"Mission accomplished," the Flash replied, though he wasn't entirely sure. It was only his second time using the time machine, and he still couldn't be certain it would work. Of course, he wouldn't tell Liu A'dou that.
"Professor, what's going on?" Liu A'dou was still somewhat confused.
Professor X placed his fingers on his temple. "Close your eyes. We'll communicate telepathically. It'll save time, and we don't have much left."
Liu A'dou immediately complied and shut his eyes, but there was no darkness. Instead, he saw the professor standing right in front of him.
"Liu, my old friend, I know you have many questions, but listen to me first. Three days ago, a group of enemies known as the Intergalactic Travelers appeared on Earth without warning and began causing massive destruction. They didn't make any demands; they just destroyed. Superheroes rose to fight, but we lost. The Hulk was killed, Martian Manhunter was killed, Ant-Man was killed… we lost many comrades."
Liu A'dou couldn't help but ask, "What about Superman?"
"Please, let me finish," Professor X said, not wanting to waste any more time. Everything Liu A'dou wanted to ask would be answered. "Later, Batman discovered that the Intergalactic Travelers weren't alien invaders but Earth-born creations." The professor's voice trembled with shock. "I never imagined that humans could create something so powerful, capable of absorbing the energy of stars and reproducing infinitely. Like cancer cells in the universe. They destroy during the day, and at night, they sleep and split. Each day they grow bigger. We tried to track down the mastermind, and when we finally made the discovery, we were stunned. The creator of the Intergalactic Travelers was you, Liu A'dou, the Moonlight Magician, the greatest inventor in the world."
Liu A'dou gulped. "You don't want to kill me and change the future, do you?"
Professor X smiled gently. "No, although you created the Intergalactic Travelers, your contribution to Earth has been far greater. We just want to protect the planet, not harm you."
"If I created them, I should know their weaknesses. Didn't you ask the version of me from this time period? Or did I already die by now?"
"No, you didn't die. You just aren't in this time period. Liu, I know you have many questions, but please listen to me," Professor X said. "A year ago, you and Ada returned to the 1980s to look for your daughter. That's when you created those terrible things. The Intergalactic Travelers, after 60 years of traveling through space, returned to Earth and became our enemies."
Liu A'dou stood stunned, not knowing what to say. But the professor continued, "Superman is about to reach the Sun. When the sun rises, he will extinguish it, forcing the Intergalactic Travelers to leave the solar system and search for other stars. Afterward, Superman will sacrifice himself to reignite the Sun. We don't have much time. You need to go back to the 1980s and stop yourself."
"Stop myself? How do I do that?"
"Actually, the Flash went to the 1980s to find you, but by then, you had become very unreasonable, stubborn, and injured the Flash, sending him back. So, we decided to carry out Wolverine's plan."
"Wolverine's plan?" Liu A'dou asked, bewildered.
"Wolverine once carried out a mission. Even though we have no memory of it, he did send his consciousness back to the 1970s and replaced his past self's consciousness. We've found the version of you before you changed due to your daughter's disappearance. We hope to send your consciousness to the past to stop the future you from creating the Intergalactic Travelers."
Liu A'dou realized the situation. "That sounds like the experience Wolverine went through in X-Men: Days of Future Past."
Professor X nodded. "That's right. But the circumstances are different now. As long as I bring the enhanced brainwave amplifier, we can send you back." The old man spoke with certainty.
"Liu, the fate of all of us, the entire Earth, is in your hands. Please, go back to the past, find your daughter, and bring back the optimistic and cheerful Moonlight Magician that you once were. Please, you must do this."
Liu A'dou felt the weight of the responsibility. He had only saved a city or stopped a genocide in the past. How could he suddenly be asked to protect the entire Earth? But Liu A'dou wasn't one to shy away from a challenge.