Chapter 203: Honorary Title: Darkseid Hunter
Author: Great Demon Spirit
Darkseid had arrived, and he brought his vast army with him.
"This is Earth? The planet where Darkseid once tasted defeat?"
Behind Darkseid stood Steppenwolf, a deity of Apokolips.
The Darkseid of this universe had attacked Earth when he was eight years old, only to be defeated by the Olympian Gods, the Green Lantern Corps, and the natives of Earth.
"You are making a dangerous attempt, Steppenwolf. A subordinate god should not challenge Darkseid's authority in this manner. If not for Darkseid's mercy, you would still be wandering the universe," reminded Desaad, who was clad in a black robe like a sorcerer.
"This isn't a provocation, but curiosity. Before Darkseid gave the command to conquer Earth, there were no signs. It was as if he suddenly made a major discovery... Is it related to the previous great shift? If I'm not mistaken, a brand new timeline was also generated, attempting to overwrite our own, but it was stopped by some force."
Steppenwolf could be dismissive of Desaad, but toward the brutal Darkseid, he had to hold the utmost reverence. More than that, however, he wanted to confirm one thing.
Did the main body from the Sphere of the Gods issue a command to this universe's Darkseid?
If so, what role should he, Steppenwolf, play? Had the Steppenwolf from the Sphere of the Gods communicated with this universe's Darkseid?
"I only call that fellow the 'main body' for convenience."
Darkseid extended a large hand, grabbed Steppenwolf by the neck, and violently dragged him forward like a baby chick. His eyes glowed red, ready to fire at any moment. "But this doesn't mean I am the main body's executioner! The 'me' from the Sphere of the Gods merely took a step ahead, luckily gathering most of the godhood fragments. But I am still me. No matter which world's version I am, I am the one and only Darkseid! My uncle, you should have absolute loyalty and trust in your master."
Darkseid's godhood had been shattered in a great war long ago. Most of the fragments gathered to form the main body in the Sphere of the Gods, while the scattered pieces spread across the multiverse, becoming Darkseid's clones in each universe.
One of the main body's important missions was to absorb all the clones back into itself and piece the godhood back together completely.
At this moment, the intensity of the Omega Beams skyrocketed. In just an instant, they could blast Steppenwolf's head apart, which terrified him.
"There's a reason Steppenwolf was exiled from Apokolips, but we still need him for the invasion of Earth," Desaad's voice was low and hoarse, as if whispering. And then Darkseid actually let Steppenwolf go.
Desaad, no matter on which world's Apokolips, was always the number two or number three deity. His position was similar to that of Ebony Maw at Thanos's side.
"The Mother Box is also on Earth. I will retrieve it for the great Darkseid!"
Steppenwolf, carrying his great axe, was the first to leap from the starship. Behind him, a great swarm of Parademons poured out, blotting out the sky.
Parademons are a specialty of Apokolips, powerful swarm-warfare weapons. Generally, they are mass-produced by combining the native life from conquered planets with the technology of Apokolips.
If Darkseid wished, he could also use the Omega Effect to directly corrupt a large number of weak life forms, transforming them into an incomplete version of Parademons. This strategy of fueling war with war allowed them to be quickly deployed on the battlefield as cannon fodder.
"Steppenwolf is no fool. He must have other ideas," said Desaad. "Let's hope it wasn't His Excellency, the Steppenwolf from the Sphere of the Gods, who gave him the direct command."
"I don't believe my main body would be so weak as to be unable to control Steppenwolf. He would only lose control if my father broke free from the Source Wall, but we all know that's impossible."
A clone of Darkseid is also Darkseid. Apart from the main body, which could directly influence him, he and the other clones were independent beings with memories and experiences that were not shared.
This was the reason why multiple Darkseids of different forms appeared, sometimes killing each other and sometimes fighting together.
Every Darkseid could absorb more godhood fragments to strengthen himself. Every Darkseid knew this, yet they wouldn't deliberately attack their other, weaker selves to achieve this goal, because ultimately, they were all him. The arrogant clones of Darkseid generally wouldn't use such a method to increase their strength; it was ugly and sullied the name of Darkseid.
Of course, if different Darkseid clones were enslaved and driven by different multiversal gods, causing them to kill each other, that was another matter entirely.
Darkseid stood with his hands behind his back. He first glanced at Steppenwolf's figure, then looked away. He didn't care if Steppenwolf lived or died; he was just a useful tool. He was more concerned about his other self on Earth.
His appearance was slightly different and his figure was similar, but his attire was very unusual.
Was he a corrupted Darkseid clone from some parallel universe? Who knew what this fellow encountered to end up in this wretched state, to the point of casting aside the dignity of a dark lord to change his form and sense of dress.
If Darkseid hadn't confirmed the aura of his own godhood fragments and the Omega Effect on the other party, he would have thought it was a shoddy imitation.
"Forget it. Whatever that guy has been through, it seems he has no intention of communicating with me. In that case, I'll find an opportunity to kill him and take back his godhood fragments," Darkseid stared coldly at Thanoseid.
Thanoseid was also staring at Darkseid. Feeling the instinctive throb within his body, a terrifying smile spread across his face.
Very good. As he adapted to this world, his 'sure-hit' beams were instinctively strengthened, officially upgrading into Omega Beams.
"It seems the Omega Effect is a specialty of this multiverse. It couldn't take effect in my Universe 9602, which is why my strength has always been limited."
Thanoseid was very happy. He didn't spout nonsense like how he could have defeated Du Wa back then if he'd been able to use the Omega Effect, because he knew he couldn't have done it even if he had it.
"I thought you would make excuses for your failure in another multiverse," Lex Luthor said with his arms crossed, asking in a serious tone.
"I won't. Because in that universe, Du Wa must have enslaved even more troublesome characters. He could have crushed me with sheer numbers alone." Thanoseid clenched his fists, grinned savagely, and was the first to attack.
In the eyes of those who didn't know better, Thanoseid was fighting for Earth, heroic and fearless, even though they didn't recognize him.
Superman, Wonder Woman, and the others watched, feeling utterly stifled. But then their bodies charged out uncontrollably, making them feel even more so.
"We're helping one invader fight another, and no one truly cares if the planet we protect is actually being sheltered." Wonder Woman's eyes were dull. Under the influence of the Xenomorph larva, she could even eat and drink normally to maintain her stamina. Her complexion wasn't pale; on the contrary, it had become even more rosy.
It was an awful feeling. Not even Ares, the God of War from Olympus, had ever made her so broken and desperate.
"Get out of my way! You ugly insects, you have no idea what you're facing!"
Steppenwolf roared, sending Wonder Woman flying with a swing of his axe. But in the next second, he was kicked hard by a full-speed Flash, causing his knees to buckle.
"You're the speedster who created the Flashpoint. You have no more value now." Steppenwolf swung his axe cruelly, but Wonder Woman charged at him again, wielding the Godkiller Sword.
Superman also made his move. He descended from above and threw a punch, sending Steppenwolf staggering.
A group of heroes who should have been the Justice League now began to gang up on Steppenwolf. History was astonishingly similar.
However, there was one difference: these heroes didn't need to spare any effort to clean up the Parademons because a large swarm of Xenomorphs had already rushed out, crashing into the Parademons that flew in like mosquitoes.
Compared to the Parademons, the similarly mass-produced Xenomorphs were at a disadvantage as they couldn't fly. However, their blood could also be used as a weapon, and since they were fighting on home turf, they efficiently cleared out the Parademons.
Unless Darkseid moved the entirety of Apokolips here and threw all the countless Parademons—created from the innumerable planets he had conquered in the past—onto Earth at once, only then would it be possible to overwhelm Du Wa with sheer numbers.
Relying on just these Parademons was a hopeless endeavor.
"Xenomorphs... Hmph. This creature is certainly something. No wonder it could give birth to a conceptual god. But it has an upper limit. This is why you, as a fellow outsider, cannot compare to The Endless." Darkseid watched this scene from afar, quickly grasping information about the Xenomorphs.
"It's true that I can't compare to the conceptual gods of The Endless, but you also can't compare to the Darkseid clones in other universes. Even possessing the Omega Effect is useless for you," Du Wa's tone was very calm. He wouldn't waste his breath on someone who was about to die.
Thanoseid had already shot out from Earth, charging toward Darkseid.
Desaad had already retreated silently. He was not one to charge out like a berserker; he was now quietly waiting for Darkseid to make his move.
As the master of Apokolips, one could have all sorts of flaws, but one absolutely could not show the slightest hesitation when facing a challenge.
The two rock-like behemoths had roughly the same fighting style. They started by blasting each other with Omega Beams. The red rays twisted and turned through space before finally colliding. The seemingly ordinary beams incinerated space at the moment of impact.
Immediately after, Thanoseid was the first to act. He swung a fist capable of shattering countless planets, smashing it into Darkseid's head like an exploding black hole.
"There's a part of your body that doesn't belong to me. No wonder I found it so strange. So you're a hybrid, a product from some unknown world... A Xenomorph?"
Darkseid took the hit and, as if nothing had happened, gave Thanoseid a punch in the same manner.
"Even without the Xenomorph, you would still be conquered by me!"
"Judging by the fact you just mastered the Omega Effect, you come from outside the multiverse. But I never knew my godhood fragments could actually drift to other worlds."
Even if they were small worlds, this didn't seem right.
No matter how small the fragment, it was still essentially Darkseid, not some inanimate, unfeeling object. It should have immediately sought out a nearby world to settle in.
The main body had never told him about this, which meant there was clearly a secret involved—a secret he was not qualified to meddle in.
"The main body... has found a way over the Source Wall? Is it you?" Darkseid bared a mouthful of teeth, looking rather terrifying, but was immediately blasted in the face by an Omega Beam and sent tumbling.
"Maybe, maybe not. Du Wa and your main body know more than I do. I don't care what the truth is." Thanoseid hammered away at Darkseid, taking a beating himself in the process.
But Thanoseid had the upper hand. He had everything Darkseid had, and what Darkseid didn't have, he had too—Thanos and the Xenomorph. The former didn't matter much, but the latter was extraordinary. The Xenomorph Du Wa used to parasitize him naturally possessed a transcendent gene, which in turn brought new power to Thanoseid.
At the very least, it was enough to suppress Darkseid.
Boom!
With another punch, Thanoseid followed up with a roar, once again blasting Omega Beams from his eyes. He had now completely familiarized himself with the power of the Omega Effect and unleashed it all on Darkseid.
Darkseid's battle suit was already severely damaged, revealing his scar-covered body. As powerful as Darkseid was, he was gradually losing ground against such a powerful Thanoseid.
"The loser has everything taken by the winner! Your Omega Effect, your godhood, give them to me!"
Thanoseid grabbed Darkseid's head, and with a sudden exertion of force, dug his thumbs into Darkseid's eyes. With a squelch, accompanied by a large amount of red light flowing like liquid from the sockets, Thanoseid, at the cost of grievous injury, had finally made a decisive breakthrough.
He had won. The winner takes all. He immediately and eagerly began to dismember Darkseid, extracting the power of his godhood.
This was the key to his rebellion against Du Wa's rule. In the future, he would absorb even more Darkseids to complete himself, and finally, using some means he dared not fully imagine, he would eliminate the threat of Du Wa in one fell swoop.
"No, Darkseid actually lost... No, wait, the one who won is also Darkseid."
Steppenwolf was being brutally ganged up on, the battle not going in his favor. His eyes widened at this, and in his carelessness, he was pummeled by Superman again.
"I am not Darkseid, but Darkseid is me—Thanoseid!"
Thanoseid exultantly absorbed the godhood, strengthening his own power. But it wasn't enough. He wanted to leave this universe and hunt Darkseids in other parallel universes.
Desaad flew over, intending to pledge allegiance to Thanoseid. Only the strongest had the qualification to be the master of Apokolips, even if this master was also being controlled.
But Thanoseid gave Desaad no chance at all. With one punch, he blew up Desaad's head, then followed with another blast of heat vision that pierced through Steppenwolf's body.
"Du Wa..." Thanoseid's gaze flickered. He finally, slowly, retracted his Omega Beams. He had absorbed one Darkseid, but he still had no confidence in confronting Du Wa. It must be because this Darkseid was too weak.
It wasn't enough. He needed to hunt more!
Just a few more, and a mere Du Wa would be nothing!
(end of chapter)