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Chapter 349: That's Our Emotional Entity
With a single, heart-ripping strike, he instantly killed one. Orin Vale's figure flickered, continuing to slice through the curtain of the storm.
The remaining Brainiac machines struggled to lock onto his direction as extremely cold cyclones continuously assailed him. But he wove an S-shaped path, his body shuttling nimbly and freely between the blizzard and the energy beams.
An afterimage flickered before one machine, which extended its arm to grab at him. White mist churned in the machine's palm, an ice-crystal cyclone aiming straight for his face, seeming to freeze the very air it passed through. But the grab only tore through an afterimage crackling with electric arcs. Orin Vale flew past its side, a flying kick landing squarely on its abdomen. Sparks flew as the mech was instantly split in two at the waist by the force of the kick.
"Data error. Severe inconsistency with assessment," Brainiac was still muttering to himself.
According to his original calculations, the low temperature he had generated should have been enough to weaken this Ultraman to the point he could be captured, or even defeated. But clearly, the current reality was somewhat different.
"Assessment of the target's maximum speed is erroneous. It is speculated that the previously collected data did not represent the target's maximum speed, or that its limit has increased since collection."
"Re-collecting assessment data."
Meanwhile, Orin Vale had already flashed at high speed in front of the mechs behind. Two machines attacked in unison, their hands emitting an extremely cold frost as they reached for him. But Orin Vale ducked low, shattering one's arm with a swinging punch. Then, lowering his center of gravity, he weaved aside with supersonic speed to dodge the second machine's grab, his counter-punch streaking under its arm. Accompanied by electric arcs, the blow shattered its chest, sending ice crystals flying.
"...Assessment failed," Brainiac continued. "Unable to assess maximum speed."
Watching that blur of afterimages flash back and forth between the squad of mechs, with a mech occasionally being blasted into the air and severed, sparking limbs flying about, Hal was at a loss for words.
Did Brainiac's low-temperature tactic not work? Maybe he used some method to neutralize the interference from the extreme cold?
Or perhaps...
...even if he was weakened, he was still this fast?
Looking at the high-speed afterimage that even a Green Lantern's Power Ring couldn't track, he couldn't help but think, wasn't the weakening effect completely pointless?
"Is that your friend?" asked the Guardian next to him, who had also been relegated to a spectator's role.
"Ah, I guess so," Hal nodded. "A colleague from Earth."
The Guardian watched the afterimage that was on a rampage, was silent for half a second, then asked, "Has he always been like this?"
"Pretty much," Hal said, crossing his arms and nodding. "I'm used to it."
A moment later, the last machine was scrapped, its remaining metal head pinned under Orin Vale's foot.
"Cryo-tactic failed. Re-planning required."
*Crunch.*
The last head was also crushed underfoot, and Brainiac's deep-freeze squad was completely neutralized.
"Temperature is rising," Hal's Power Ring reported.
The extreme low temperature on this planet was an anomaly caused by Old Bu's black technology to begin with. With all his machines dealt with, the temperature naturally began to rise slowly.
However, it was unlikely that this planet could sustain life normally anytime in the near future.
Orin Vale hovered in the air, looking down at the metal debris scattered on the ground, lost in thought.
First, it was Sinestro's Yellow Lantern Corps, then the modified Manhunters capable of absorbing the energy of the Emotional Spectrum, and now it seemed even Brainiac wanted a piece of the action.
It truly felt like something major was brewing in this universe. War was coming... no, perhaps it had already arrived. A front line dominated by green and yellow, if it continued, might stretch across every sector of the universe, sweeping countless galaxies and civilizations into the flames of war.
Such was the nature of a war between Lantern Corps. Every Power Ring, every Lantern, possessed combat power comparable to the warship fleets of advanced civilizations. The scale of a battle at the Lantern Corps level was easy to imagine.
Unless someone could extinguish the flames of war before that happened.
Finally free, Hal began to locate his frozen Lantern comrades one by one. As he thawed them out, he finally had a chance to ask the question on his mind.
"Why are you here?" he asked Orin Vale.
"Oh, I just ran into your corps leader and helped him get rid of some Yellow Lantern interference," Orin Vale said. "Your leader is quite polite. He insisted on inviting me to Oa for a visit..."
Hal looked at the Guardian, dumbfounded.
A Guardian? Inviting someone back to Oa for a visit? Did I hear that right?
His gaze toward the Guardian grew suspicious, and he couldn't help but say, "He's a very good friend of mine from Earth. If you have some ulterior motive for taking him to Oa..."
"I really don't, Lantern Jordan," the Guardian said dejectedly.
He wasn't stupid. He had seen what this person could do; the entire Green Lantern Corps combined couldn't beat him. What ulterior motive could he possibly have?
Besides, the "warm invitation" hadn't exactly been his own idea.
To be fair, the Guardian remembered only expressing the necessary gratitude out of respect for the man's power. Then he heard the other party say things like, "It was nothing, don't mention it," and, "Oa is the Green Lantern Headquarters, a military stronghold. It wouldn't be appropriate for an outsider like me to just drop by. You're too kind," and so on.
The Guardian was stunned at the time, first thinking to himself, *When did I invite you to Oa?* Yet, the words that came out of his mouth were, "Please, you must grace us with your presence."
And so, Orin Vale received a warm invitation from the master of Oa. After repeatedly declining, he found the hospitality impossible to refuse and had no choice but to grace them with his presence and observe the legendary Green Lantern Headquarters.
Orin Vale had now mastered the powers of three different Lantern colors—Blue, Yellow, and Violet—and was becoming interested in the Green Light, which was at the center of the spectrum and the core of the DC Lantern Corps' story. Green is the color of balance; if one wanted to master the power of the entire spectrum, Green would be the indispensable center for achieving this chain of balance.
Fortunately, the Green Light was also the most fully developed and technologically mature of all seven Lantern types. The entire planet of Oa was built almost entirely on Green Lantern technology, and Orin Vale had long been looking for an opportunity to check it out. It was a rare chance to be so warmly invited by one of the Little Blue Men, a perfect opportunity to go and learn.
"Warning. Enemies approaching."
The Green Power Ring suddenly reported.
Hal had just found and thawed half of his accompanying Green Lantern comrades, and his expression changed slightly.
"Who? A follow-up from Brainiac?"
"Negative. Detecting Fear Spectrum energy reaction..."
As the Power Ring reported, it marked a large number of yellow dots on the projected radar.
Hal narrowed his eyes. "Sinestro's lackeys again. No problem, I'll go meet them—"
"No need."
Orin Vale crossed his arms and waved a hand, showing no intention of flying up to face the enemy himself.
"My people are handling it."
Hal was taken aback. "Your people?"
Outside Planet Avadelle, a large group of Yellow Lanterns was approaching the atmosphere.
"A stranded squad of Green Lanterns! They ran into Brainiac's trap, so their Power Ring energy levels must be low!"
The lead Yellow Lantern shouted.
"Everyone, stay in formation! This is our chance to prove our worth to the great Sinestro—WTF!?"
All the Yellow Lanterns slammed on the brakes. The ones at the back of the formation nearly broke their noses on their teammates' backs.
They stared, stunned. Right outside Avadelle's atmosphere, directly in their path, a cloud of golden, burning mist was coalescing. Within the chaos, the body of a behemoth seemed to be hidden.
A terrifying, extremely distorted being—something that could make one lose all will to fight just by looking at it—lit up a pair of horrifying eyes from within the yellow mist. Its gaze was like someone sizing up ingredients for dinner.
Even stranger, their Power Rings seemed to be reacting to that thing.
"Warning. Fear energy loss. Current Power Ring energy level at 90%... 80%... 70%..."
"That thing is draining our energy!" a Yellow Lantern shouted in terror.
The leader was even more dumbfounded. His expression twitched in terror, his facial muscles contorted, and he spoke with a dry throat.
"That's... that is..."
"Parallax!"
More Yellow Lanterns recognized the terrifying creature and couldn't help but scream.
"That's our fucking Emotional Entity!!!"
(end of chapter)
With a single, heart-ripping strike, he instantly killed one. Orin Vale's figure flickered, continuing to slice through the curtain of the storm.
The remaining Brainiac machines struggled to lock onto his direction as extremely cold cyclones continuously assailed him. But he wove an S-shaped path, his body shuttling nimbly and freely between the blizzard and the energy beams.
An afterimage flickered before one machine, which extended its arm to grab at him. White mist churned in the machine's palm, an ice-crystal cyclone aiming straight for his face, seeming to freeze the very air it passed through. But the grab only tore through an afterimage crackling with electric arcs. Orin Vale flew past its side, a flying kick landing squarely on its abdomen. Sparks flew as the mech was instantly split in two at the waist by the force of the kick.
"Data error. Severe inconsistency with assessment," Brainiac was still muttering to himself.
According to his original calculations, the low temperature he had generated should have been enough to weaken this Ultraman to the point he could be captured, or even defeated. But clearly, the current reality was somewhat different.
"Assessment of the target's maximum speed is erroneous. It is speculated that the previously collected data did not represent the target's maximum speed, or that its limit has increased since collection."
"Re-collecting assessment data."
Meanwhile, Orin Vale had already flashed at high speed in front of the mechs behind. Two machines attacked in unison, their hands emitting an extremely cold frost as they reached for him. But Orin Vale ducked low, shattering one's arm with a swinging punch. Then, lowering his center of gravity, he weaved aside with supersonic speed to dodge the second machine's grab, his counter-punch streaking under its arm. Accompanied by electric arcs, the blow shattered its chest, sending ice crystals flying.
"...Assessment failed," Brainiac continued. "Unable to assess maximum speed."
Watching that blur of afterimages flash back and forth between the squad of mechs, with a mech occasionally being blasted into the air and severed, sparking limbs flying about, Hal was at a loss for words.
Did Brainiac's low-temperature tactic not work? Maybe he used some method to neutralize the interference from the extreme cold?
Or perhaps...
...even if he was weakened, he was still this fast?
Looking at the high-speed afterimage that even a Green Lantern's Power Ring couldn't track, he couldn't help but think, wasn't the weakening effect completely pointless?
"Is that your friend?" asked the Guardian next to him, who had also been relegated to a spectator's role.
"Ah, I guess so," Hal nodded. "A colleague from Earth."
The Guardian watched the afterimage that was on a rampage, was silent for half a second, then asked, "Has he always been like this?"
"Pretty much," Hal said, crossing his arms and nodding. "I'm used to it."
A moment later, the last machine was scrapped, its remaining metal head pinned under Orin Vale's foot.
"Cryo-tactic failed. Re-planning required."
*Crunch.*
The last head was also crushed underfoot, and Brainiac's deep-freeze squad was completely neutralized.
"Temperature is rising," Hal's Power Ring reported.
The extreme low temperature on this planet was an anomaly caused by Old Bu's black technology to begin with. With all his machines dealt with, the temperature naturally began to rise slowly.
However, it was unlikely that this planet could sustain life normally anytime in the near future.
Orin Vale hovered in the air, looking down at the metal debris scattered on the ground, lost in thought.
First, it was Sinestro's Yellow Lantern Corps, then the modified Manhunters capable of absorbing the energy of the Emotional Spectrum, and now it seemed even Brainiac wanted a piece of the action.
It truly felt like something major was brewing in this universe. War was coming... no, perhaps it had already arrived. A front line dominated by green and yellow, if it continued, might stretch across every sector of the universe, sweeping countless galaxies and civilizations into the flames of war.
Such was the nature of a war between Lantern Corps. Every Power Ring, every Lantern, possessed combat power comparable to the warship fleets of advanced civilizations. The scale of a battle at the Lantern Corps level was easy to imagine.
Unless someone could extinguish the flames of war before that happened.
Finally free, Hal began to locate his frozen Lantern comrades one by one. As he thawed them out, he finally had a chance to ask the question on his mind.
"Why are you here?" he asked Orin Vale.
"Oh, I just ran into your corps leader and helped him get rid of some Yellow Lantern interference," Orin Vale said. "Your leader is quite polite. He insisted on inviting me to Oa for a visit..."
Hal looked at the Guardian, dumbfounded.
A Guardian? Inviting someone back to Oa for a visit? Did I hear that right?
His gaze toward the Guardian grew suspicious, and he couldn't help but say, "He's a very good friend of mine from Earth. If you have some ulterior motive for taking him to Oa..."
"I really don't, Lantern Jordan," the Guardian said dejectedly.
He wasn't stupid. He had seen what this person could do; the entire Green Lantern Corps combined couldn't beat him. What ulterior motive could he possibly have?
Besides, the "warm invitation" hadn't exactly been his own idea.
To be fair, the Guardian remembered only expressing the necessary gratitude out of respect for the man's power. Then he heard the other party say things like, "It was nothing, don't mention it," and, "Oa is the Green Lantern Headquarters, a military stronghold. It wouldn't be appropriate for an outsider like me to just drop by. You're too kind," and so on.
The Guardian was stunned at the time, first thinking to himself, *When did I invite you to Oa?* Yet, the words that came out of his mouth were, "Please, you must grace us with your presence."
And so, Orin Vale received a warm invitation from the master of Oa. After repeatedly declining, he found the hospitality impossible to refuse and had no choice but to grace them with his presence and observe the legendary Green Lantern Headquarters.
Orin Vale had now mastered the powers of three different Lantern colors—Blue, Yellow, and Violet—and was becoming interested in the Green Light, which was at the center of the spectrum and the core of the DC Lantern Corps' story. Green is the color of balance; if one wanted to master the power of the entire spectrum, Green would be the indispensable center for achieving this chain of balance.
Fortunately, the Green Light was also the most fully developed and technologically mature of all seven Lantern types. The entire planet of Oa was built almost entirely on Green Lantern technology, and Orin Vale had long been looking for an opportunity to check it out. It was a rare chance to be so warmly invited by one of the Little Blue Men, a perfect opportunity to go and learn.
"Warning. Enemies approaching."
The Green Power Ring suddenly reported.
Hal had just found and thawed half of his accompanying Green Lantern comrades, and his expression changed slightly.
"Who? A follow-up from Brainiac?"
"Negative. Detecting Fear Spectrum energy reaction..."
As the Power Ring reported, it marked a large number of yellow dots on the projected radar.
Hal narrowed his eyes. "Sinestro's lackeys again. No problem, I'll go meet them—"
"No need."
Orin Vale crossed his arms and waved a hand, showing no intention of flying up to face the enemy himself.
"My people are handling it."
Hal was taken aback. "Your people?"
Outside Planet Avadelle, a large group of Yellow Lanterns was approaching the atmosphere.
"A stranded squad of Green Lanterns! They ran into Brainiac's trap, so their Power Ring energy levels must be low!"
The lead Yellow Lantern shouted.
"Everyone, stay in formation! This is our chance to prove our worth to the great Sinestro—WTF!?"
All the Yellow Lanterns slammed on the brakes. The ones at the back of the formation nearly broke their noses on their teammates' backs.
They stared, stunned. Right outside Avadelle's atmosphere, directly in their path, a cloud of golden, burning mist was coalescing. Within the chaos, the body of a behemoth seemed to be hidden.
A terrifying, extremely distorted being—something that could make one lose all will to fight just by looking at it—lit up a pair of horrifying eyes from within the yellow mist. Its gaze was like someone sizing up ingredients for dinner.
Even stranger, their Power Rings seemed to be reacting to that thing.
"Warning. Fear energy loss. Current Power Ring energy level at 90%... 80%... 70%..."
"That thing is draining our energy!" a Yellow Lantern shouted in terror.
The leader was even more dumbfounded. His expression twitched in terror, his facial muscles contorted, and he spoke with a dry throat.
"That's... that is..."
"Parallax!"
More Yellow Lanterns recognized the terrifying creature and couldn't help but scream.
"That's our fucking Emotional Entity!!!"
(end of chapter)
