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Chapter 383: The Will of Earth
It was clear that the quality of this group of free-range cannon fodder was indeed concerning. Perhaps it was due to a lack of regular drills—or more likely, they lacked any awareness of the sort. It wasn't until a full five seconds after the intrusion alert sounded that these people finally realized their backyard was on fire.
However, when Dilano yelled that there was a mole, Orin Vale found it amusing.
What gave you the confidence to think there was only one mole?
Besides, the identity of that blond man was unknown; there was no telling which faction had planted him here. But after a scan, Orin Vale confirmed he was just an ordinary person. If his identity was exposed, things would likely go south for him.
A secret investigator, deep in the lion's den, whose infiltration is exposed, leading to his capture...
Putting these elements together would mystically compel certain Japanese netizens to open their browsers. It was just a shame that instead of a buxom, long-legged beauty, it was a rough, muscular man.
But to think that being a muscular investigator would save him from that fate was a bit naive. With the astonishingly rapid updates of the human experience point system, the era had long since been updated from "a girl must learn to protect herself when she's out" to "a muscular man must also learn to protect himself when he's out." Who knew what this brother would have to face if he fell into enemy hands.
With the determination of "if I don't go to Hell, who will?", Orin Vale decided to take the heat for him first. It wouldn't be too late to beat this group of Apokolips Believers to a pulp and then question them one by one.
Who would have known that just as Orin Vale was about to step forward and generously admit, "That's right, I'm the mole," the blond man would beat him to it.
A sudden burst of green light illuminated the entire room. The blast of energy sent a Believer flying, and he tumbled through the air before slamming into a side wall. The metal inner wall of the underground structure was dented, and the ceiling let out a hum as if it were about to collapse.
Everyone stared in shock at the muscular blond man. Even Orin Vale was a little surprised.
A green flame seemed to ignite in the center of the room, wrapping around the man's entire body as if it had a life of its own. The green light transformed into a tangible uniform, clinging to his well-defined muscular physique to become a one-piece green battlesuit.
A green eye mask covered his cheekbones, and behind it, his clear eyes burned with a verdant flame.
"Dammit, I told them it would've been easier to just start fighting. All this infiltration nonsense is such a pain..."
The man hovered within the green fire, letting out a lazy yawn as if he wasn't fully awake.
By now, the Believers' faces had changed drastically.
"It's a Green Lantern!" someone shrieked. "It's a goddamn Green Lantern!!!"
As the words fell, a green light impact had already formed into a massive fist and smashed directly into the man's face. He was sent flying backward, tumbling twice before hitting the wall.
"Didn't your mother teach you to use civilized language, you asshole?" the man cursed.
Alan Scott, the Green Lantern of Earth-2.
The underground stronghold was now in utter chaos as the Believers roared and began to fight the Green Lantern. Orin Vale silently took two steps back, calmly observing the changing situation.
He was a little surprised and also quite curious. Now that he recognized this was Alan Scott, he understood why this undercover agent had seemed so amateurish. Green Lanterns, after all, are brutes across the myriad realms. And he was originally a mortal who had chanced upon a supernatural opportunity, so being unprofessional was normal.
The problem was, when his ultra vision had briefly swept over the man just now, it had detected no sign of any superpower whatsoever. Even if he wasn't wearing his Power Ring but was hiding it on his person, Orin Vale should have been able to spot it at a glance.
However, Orin Vale soon figured out his secret.
The Green Lantern Ring was never on Alan's person to begin with. It had materialized out of thin air on his hand the very moment he launched his surprise attack.
Connecting this to the lore of Earth-2's Green Lantern from the comics, Orin Vale was beginning to see why.
Earth-2 has no Green Lantern Corps, and the Lantern Ring is not some peacekeeping tool for interstellar police. In the post-N52 Earth-2 setting, the Green Lantern was established as an existence akin to "the Will of Earth."
With the invasion of Apokolips imminent, Earth faced a crisis of annihilation. At that time, not only humans, but all the forces of Earth spontaneously united to resist the external enemy. The will of Earth itself, unwilling to be outdone, personally entered the fray.
Its name was "The Green."
Although it shared a name with The Green of the main world, it was not the same thing. The main world's The Green is the embodiment of the universe's plants, whereas Earth-2's The Green is the representative of Earth's will. It chose Alan Scott as its messenger, using the Power Ring as a vessel to carry the power of Earth.
Harnessing this power, Alan gained the title of "Green Lantern."
Gaia and Agul from the Ultraman Universe, the two seniors known as the "Mountain and Sea Shock" duo, would have called this their area of expertise.
At this moment, this parallel world's Green Lantern had already begun his assault. A large number of enhanced Apokolips soldiers surrounded him, but a single glance was enough to tell that the two sides were not on the same level at all.
Although its origin was different, his ability as a Green Lantern was similar to his main world counterpart. Alan's willpower drove the Power Ring, and the Earth energy it released could be shaped by his imagination into various Constructs.
Take now, for instance. The Apokolips Believers were fighting a host of giant shovels, forks, and wrenches. One unlucky soul had his leg broken by a flying Holy Sword of Physics and was rolling on the ground, howling in agony.
"His energy level is stronger than an ordinary Green Lantern from the Lantern Corps... but it's hard to say when comparing him to Hal," Orin Vale mused, stroking his chin.
He figured that this world's Green Lantern benefited from not having any teammates. As the saying goes, "one Green Lantern is better than five." Alan, fighting solo, was still top-tier. It was hard to say who was stronger between him and a regular Hal, though that was of course referring to their Green Lantern states.
The Hal from the other universe had already evolved into Ion, so his power level was on a different dimension. Overpowered individuals are generally not part of the discussion.
Orin Vale turned his head and noticed that the few guides who had initially led him in hadn't joined the fight at all. They were all cowering behind him, trembling.
Orin Vale was amused.
So you've studied "The Art of Getting Carried," have you? The first rule of a team fight is to find the strongest player, right?
However, he wondered if these people had forgotten that they weren't on the same side.
Just then, someone sent flying by the Green Lantern came screaming toward him. In Orin Vale's eyes, time slowed, clearly tracing the trajectory of the man's contorted face.
Unflustered, he kept his hands in his pockets and calmly sidestepped.
Time returned to normal. The man screamed as he crashed headfirst into the group cowering behind Orin Vale. They were instantly sent tumbling like bowling pins.
The "housewife" type who was hiding at the very back was sent spinning by the impact. As she fell to the ground, it instantly caused a magnificent spectacle of surging, turbulent waves.
Orin Vale's hands remained casually in his pockets, as if nothing had just happened.
The battle was over quickly. Or, to be more precise, it was a one-sided steamroll. A group of Apokolips cannon fodder was hardly a match for a Green Lantern, and they were all down on the ground in a matter of moments.
After finishing the job, the Green Lantern shook his arm, looked around, and his gaze naturally fell upon Orin Vale, whom he had previously missed in the corner.
"Hm?" he muttered to himself, clenching his fist as he floated over. "Missed one here..."
It's just... this Believer watched all his teammates get taken down, so why does he still look so calm?
(end of chapter)
It was clear that the quality of this group of free-range cannon fodder was indeed concerning. Perhaps it was due to a lack of regular drills—or more likely, they lacked any awareness of the sort. It wasn't until a full five seconds after the intrusion alert sounded that these people finally realized their backyard was on fire.
However, when Dilano yelled that there was a mole, Orin Vale found it amusing.
What gave you the confidence to think there was only one mole?
Besides, the identity of that blond man was unknown; there was no telling which faction had planted him here. But after a scan, Orin Vale confirmed he was just an ordinary person. If his identity was exposed, things would likely go south for him.
A secret investigator, deep in the lion's den, whose infiltration is exposed, leading to his capture...
Putting these elements together would mystically compel certain Japanese netizens to open their browsers. It was just a shame that instead of a buxom, long-legged beauty, it was a rough, muscular man.
But to think that being a muscular investigator would save him from that fate was a bit naive. With the astonishingly rapid updates of the human experience point system, the era had long since been updated from "a girl must learn to protect herself when she's out" to "a muscular man must also learn to protect himself when he's out." Who knew what this brother would have to face if he fell into enemy hands.
With the determination of "if I don't go to Hell, who will?", Orin Vale decided to take the heat for him first. It wouldn't be too late to beat this group of Apokolips Believers to a pulp and then question them one by one.
Who would have known that just as Orin Vale was about to step forward and generously admit, "That's right, I'm the mole," the blond man would beat him to it.
A sudden burst of green light illuminated the entire room. The blast of energy sent a Believer flying, and he tumbled through the air before slamming into a side wall. The metal inner wall of the underground structure was dented, and the ceiling let out a hum as if it were about to collapse.
Everyone stared in shock at the muscular blond man. Even Orin Vale was a little surprised.
A green flame seemed to ignite in the center of the room, wrapping around the man's entire body as if it had a life of its own. The green light transformed into a tangible uniform, clinging to his well-defined muscular physique to become a one-piece green battlesuit.
A green eye mask covered his cheekbones, and behind it, his clear eyes burned with a verdant flame.
"Dammit, I told them it would've been easier to just start fighting. All this infiltration nonsense is such a pain..."
The man hovered within the green fire, letting out a lazy yawn as if he wasn't fully awake.
By now, the Believers' faces had changed drastically.
"It's a Green Lantern!" someone shrieked. "It's a goddamn Green Lantern!!!"
As the words fell, a green light impact had already formed into a massive fist and smashed directly into the man's face. He was sent flying backward, tumbling twice before hitting the wall.
"Didn't your mother teach you to use civilized language, you asshole?" the man cursed.
Alan Scott, the Green Lantern of Earth-2.
The underground stronghold was now in utter chaos as the Believers roared and began to fight the Green Lantern. Orin Vale silently took two steps back, calmly observing the changing situation.
He was a little surprised and also quite curious. Now that he recognized this was Alan Scott, he understood why this undercover agent had seemed so amateurish. Green Lanterns, after all, are brutes across the myriad realms. And he was originally a mortal who had chanced upon a supernatural opportunity, so being unprofessional was normal.
The problem was, when his ultra vision had briefly swept over the man just now, it had detected no sign of any superpower whatsoever. Even if he wasn't wearing his Power Ring but was hiding it on his person, Orin Vale should have been able to spot it at a glance.
However, Orin Vale soon figured out his secret.
The Green Lantern Ring was never on Alan's person to begin with. It had materialized out of thin air on his hand the very moment he launched his surprise attack.
Connecting this to the lore of Earth-2's Green Lantern from the comics, Orin Vale was beginning to see why.
Earth-2 has no Green Lantern Corps, and the Lantern Ring is not some peacekeeping tool for interstellar police. In the post-N52 Earth-2 setting, the Green Lantern was established as an existence akin to "the Will of Earth."
With the invasion of Apokolips imminent, Earth faced a crisis of annihilation. At that time, not only humans, but all the forces of Earth spontaneously united to resist the external enemy. The will of Earth itself, unwilling to be outdone, personally entered the fray.
Its name was "The Green."
Although it shared a name with The Green of the main world, it was not the same thing. The main world's The Green is the embodiment of the universe's plants, whereas Earth-2's The Green is the representative of Earth's will. It chose Alan Scott as its messenger, using the Power Ring as a vessel to carry the power of Earth.
Harnessing this power, Alan gained the title of "Green Lantern."
Gaia and Agul from the Ultraman Universe, the two seniors known as the "Mountain and Sea Shock" duo, would have called this their area of expertise.
At this moment, this parallel world's Green Lantern had already begun his assault. A large number of enhanced Apokolips soldiers surrounded him, but a single glance was enough to tell that the two sides were not on the same level at all.
Although its origin was different, his ability as a Green Lantern was similar to his main world counterpart. Alan's willpower drove the Power Ring, and the Earth energy it released could be shaped by his imagination into various Constructs.
Take now, for instance. The Apokolips Believers were fighting a host of giant shovels, forks, and wrenches. One unlucky soul had his leg broken by a flying Holy Sword of Physics and was rolling on the ground, howling in agony.
"His energy level is stronger than an ordinary Green Lantern from the Lantern Corps... but it's hard to say when comparing him to Hal," Orin Vale mused, stroking his chin.
He figured that this world's Green Lantern benefited from not having any teammates. As the saying goes, "one Green Lantern is better than five." Alan, fighting solo, was still top-tier. It was hard to say who was stronger between him and a regular Hal, though that was of course referring to their Green Lantern states.
The Hal from the other universe had already evolved into Ion, so his power level was on a different dimension. Overpowered individuals are generally not part of the discussion.
Orin Vale turned his head and noticed that the few guides who had initially led him in hadn't joined the fight at all. They were all cowering behind him, trembling.
Orin Vale was amused.
So you've studied "The Art of Getting Carried," have you? The first rule of a team fight is to find the strongest player, right?
However, he wondered if these people had forgotten that they weren't on the same side.
Just then, someone sent flying by the Green Lantern came screaming toward him. In Orin Vale's eyes, time slowed, clearly tracing the trajectory of the man's contorted face.
Unflustered, he kept his hands in his pockets and calmly sidestepped.
Time returned to normal. The man screamed as he crashed headfirst into the group cowering behind Orin Vale. They were instantly sent tumbling like bowling pins.
The "housewife" type who was hiding at the very back was sent spinning by the impact. As she fell to the ground, it instantly caused a magnificent spectacle of surging, turbulent waves.
Orin Vale's hands remained casually in his pockets, as if nothing had just happened.
The battle was over quickly. Or, to be more precise, it was a one-sided steamroll. A group of Apokolips cannon fodder was hardly a match for a Green Lantern, and they were all down on the ground in a matter of moments.
After finishing the job, the Green Lantern shook his arm, looked around, and his gaze naturally fell upon Orin Vale, whom he had previously missed in the corner.
"Hm?" he muttered to himself, clenching his fist as he floated over. "Missed one here..."
It's just... this Believer watched all his teammates get taken down, so why does he still look so calm?
(end of chapter)
