The pendant was flashing.
Like a weakly beating heart, it emitted an ominous, dark black light.
It was the exact same color as the evil spirit.
"Did the evil spirit crawl inside?" Ian held the pendant, examining it repeatedly, but couldn't find any crevices to pry into. Even if the evil spirit was hiding inside, he likely couldn't scratch it out with his bare hands.
Just as Ian was completely baffled.
"Ian?"
Clark Kent's voice suddenly came from behind him.
Ian jumped, startled. Turning around, he saw his father, wearing thick glasses, carrying a briefcase as if he had just returned from working overtime.
"What are you doing standing at the door?"
Clark shrugged the shoulder carrying the bag, his tone puzzled. Facing his parent, Ian subconsciously released his opened jacket, covering the pendant beneath his shirt.
He knew.
If Clark wanted to, he could see even his bone cells, but seeing Clark's normal expression, he figured his father probably didn't maintain his superhuman vision all the time.
"I was thinking about something."
Ian chuckled dryly, quickly finding an excuse.
"Don't space out. Come on, let's go inside." Clark seemed to accept the explanation without suspicion, reaching out with a warm hand and patting Ian's shoulder.
He walked toward the front door first.
Ian followed closely behind.
Opening the door, the warm light and the sound of the television instantly rushed out. The two walked in one after the other. In the living room, Jonathan, the eldest brother, was sprawled on the couch scrolling through his phone. Jordan, the second brother, was furiously pressing the controller buttons while playing a video game. Their mother, Lois, was standing by the kitchen door, biting her finger.
Her expression seemed to relax slightly when Ian and Clark entered.
"I ran into Ian at the door on my way back from overtime," Clark said proactively, his tone suggesting he was unaware of Ian's late return, though the two brothers clearly knew about it.
"So, where did you go, kid? Being back so late." Jordan glanced at Ian, then returned his focus to the fighting game on the TV screen.
Hearing this.
Before Ian could answer.
Jonathan cut in, his voice exaggerated, "He must have been on a date, right? Our little Ian is finally figuring things out, learning to hang out with a girl after school."
He winked at Ian, clearly trying to provide cover. Obviously, before Ian returned, Lois must have been upset, perhaps even losing her temper a few times.
Ian felt a warmth inside.
However.
He was already prepared for this.
"No! It was much scarier than hanging out with a girl!" Ian patted his chest. Both brothers were confused, and the entire family's attention instantly focused on him.
"I was actually kidnapped by a taxi driver. A big, scary brute, with an accomplice. He dragged me into an abandoned house and nearly killed me."
"Luckily, I'm quick-witted. I quickly grabbed... grabbed a bicycle and pedaled frantically all the way back." Ian nearly slipped up, almost revealing his *Grand Theft Auto* activities.
That would certainly ignite Lois's temper. Of course, he only slightly altered the truth in this last detail, the things he said before were actually facts.
However, Clark's eyelid clearly twitched several times.
"Kidnappers?"
Jordan put down his controller, his tone surprised. He had been playing a fighting game, using a character named "The Flash" to beat up a character who may or may not have been officially licensed as Superman.
"Hmm?"
Lois also looked at her husband with uncertainty. Clark replied with a rather helpless look, giving his wife a subtle nod.
"This isn't one of your rebellious, exaggerated stories, is it?" Jordan looked at Ian suspiciously. Seeing Ian frown, he determined that his little brother wasn't lying.
"Damn it! And you didn't call the police? What did the driver look like? Do you remember the license plate number?" Jordan was naturally prone to anger. He immediately slapped the table and moved to grab the mobile phone.
"Criminals are getting too rampant these days. What is Superman even doing? The crime rate is still so high after all these years!" Jordan complained angrily while trying to dial 911.
"Hello, how may I help you?"
The operator spoke.
Just at that moment.
Clark, whose mouth had twitched, walked over and pressed the hang-up button.
"Dad? Don't tell me that in this kind of situation, we still have to back down?" Jordan and Clark didn't have a great relationship, so his words to his father were very volatile.
"We will handle this. You all go back to your rooms first." Clark didn't respond, but spoke with an undeniable tone, carrying the unique commanding voice of a parent.
Jordan was about to explode.
Jonathan held him back.
"Is this because the person who kidnapped Ian was targeting you two?" Jonathan's mind was quick, and he was always concerned that his parents' profession as journalists was high-risk.
"Kids."
Lois walked over at this moment. "Listen to your father. Trust us, we will handle this. Ian certainly won't be in any more danger."
"Right, Clark?"
After saying that.
She looked at her husband.
"..."
Clark opened his mouth, wanting very much to tell the truth, but looking at his two older children, he finally nodded, giving all three children his assurance.
"No one can hurt my children."
He looked specifically at Ian, who was trying to pretend to be inconspicuous. Perhaps this reassurance worked, or perhaps the mother's words were more comforting than the father's.
"It better be!"
Jordan glared at Clark, grabbed Ian, and started walking upstairs. "It looks like we'll have to walk you to school starting tomorrow. You can wait for us after school, and we'll come home together."
The high school the two of them attended was indeed close by.
"Uh."
Ian wanted to refuse.
Jonathan also followed along. "You have to tell us how you escaped the kidnappers. That's amazing. If it were me, I'd definitely be dead by now."
Both older brothers were expressing their concern for Ian in their own ways.
Ian felt warmth in his heart.
He quietly went upstairs with his brothers surrounding him. Clark and Lois didn't stop them, they just watched the three brothers leave the first floor.
Once the sound of the children's footsteps completely disappeared.
"So, what's the truth?" Lois immediately turned to Clark, her arms crossed, her expression serious. She knew that both Ian and her husband were hiding something.
"This might be a very scary story." Clark took a deep breath, removed his glasses, and rubbed the bridge of his nose. However, he didn't immediately narrate what he had witnessed.
"Honestly, I still haven't figured out if Ian's sudden change is related to what I encountered this morning." Clark rolled up his sleeve.
Behold.
A gruesome wound traversed his muscle. The edges glowed with an eerie, pale green light, as if some energy was surging within it, preventing his flesh from healing.
***
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