Chapter 162: Another Redemption?

David rushed down from the sky, his two fists, carrying world-shattering energy, colliding fiercely.

Bang!

The deafening roar echoed as David descended, his fists, imbued with earth-shattering energy, colliding. The blast wave boomed, as if a million tons of high-explosive ordnance had been detonated, with energy ripples laced with lightning spreading outwards like a tide for miles. The land collapsed, the grassland turned into a sinkhole, and waves of earth blasted skyward.

Before he could recover, amidst the energy surge, David remained unmoving in the air, his body like an anchor.

Redemption was startled. He hadn't expected that even with his power surging uncontrollably, he still couldn't knock David away. In the next second, he fiercely threw another punch, his terrifying strength and speed tearing through the air with a piercing shriek. David steadily caught his mountain-splitting, earth-shattering fist, and lightning erupted from his palm.

"God doesn't even govern his own Heaven, you think he cares about you on this little Earth?"

Ah!

Suffering the pain of a thousand lightning strikes, Redemption roared and shot out a torrent of energy from his hand, pushing David back. He grabbed fiercely.

"How dare you disrespect the Lord!"

The powerful gravity pressed David down, his body feeling the weight of mountains. He stabilized himself and looked around. He had never imagined he would one day experience being suppressed by gravity himself; it was always he who used the same move against his enemies.

"You think you're the only one?"

With a blank expression, immense and terrifying gravity descended upon Redemption. Redemption grunted and opened his mouth.

Buzz!

A deep blue, scorching energy breath shot out, hitting David hard. David raised his hand to shield his face, like facing a raging typhoon, and was pushed flying backward by the surging, violent power.

It was like endless heat and energy, so much so that it seemed capable of evaporating a supervolcano.

Even David's ability to manipulate energy couldn't absorb it all. After absorbing some, he had to use his powerful physique to block the remaining energy.

He waved his hand, and a gust of wind blew away the last traces of the scorching breath.

"In the data, I've never seen you use this move. Is it because, like a savage monster, you were afraid it would affect your credibility as God's messenger?"

"Shut up, I am God's chosen one!"

Mocked for playing the role of God's messenger, a hint of rage appeared on Redemption's fierce face. He charged forward at extreme speed, engaging David in battle. Their fists and feet, carrying world-shaking power, collided like two gods fiercely clashing, creating shockwaves that spread for miles, energy erupting, and lightning flashing everywhere.

"Hand over the mask!"

Boom!

David summoned lightning to strike Redemption away. Beams of thick cosmic energy shot from his eyes.

"I'm not wearing a mask. It's where it should be."

He raised his hand to block the beam and was sent flying back. Redemption stabilized himself, his energy flames flaring up again, emitting a terrifying heat that distorted the light. His form seemed to transform into a supernova as he shot into the sky. Breaking through the clouds, he then sharply turned downwards, propelled by endless energy, like a comet from outer space crashing into David.

Even towering mountains were leveled by his charge.

"Where did you put the mask?"

David reached out and tore the ground apart, lifting a large piece of land, the size of a small island and spanning several miles, to hurl at Redemption.

Bang, bang, bang!

Redemption, with an unstoppable momentum, pierced through the thick earth like an unstoppable arrow.

As his vision cleared, David had vanished from below. He reappeared with lightning speed and landed a punch on Redemption's head, sending him flying.

"It seems you don't have super-senses, and your control over gravity is also crude."

Merely blocking his vision caused him to lose track of the enemy's position.

The faith of billions of Catholics had caused Redemption's power to surge to a level where he could contend with David, but some things wouldn't change even if he mastered more energy. His control over his abilities hadn't improved; instead, it had worsened.

Bang!

Under the impact of terrifying force, Redemption's head tilted as he flew out, his body smashing into the ground, creating a small canyon. He lay at the end of the gully, somewhat disheveled, with raging anger in his eyes. Pushing himself up with his hands, he charged at David again.

"The Lord watches over me, I will never be defeated!"

The two clashed again, fighting from the sky to the ground, and from the ground back to the sky. Wherever they went, the atmosphere tore apart, and the earth shattered, as if two nuclear bombs constantly exploding were colliding.

The shockwaves scattered the clouds in the sky, and animals on the grassland—zebras, hyenas, and buffalo—were vaporized by lightning and energy in their fear.

Clark and the others watched in horror from a great distance.

"Is this your limit?"

Dodging a glancing beam by tilting his head, David's expression was calm. He waved his hand and unleashed a massive wave of divine power lightning, dense like an ocean tide, hitting Redemption. Redemption flew into him furiously, but David easily dodged him, grabbed his cape, and flung him away, shattering a low mountain range in the distance.

Realizing David's power, Redemption stopped holding back and went all out. Waves of energy surged one after another, but they still couldn't overwhelm David.

The power and energy he displayed made even him tremble, fearing he would be torn apart by the terrifying energy he unleashed. Yet, even at his peak, he was only equal to David.

"It is indeed a powerful ability, but that's all it is."

David punched, tearing through the atmosphere.

Gravity manipulation made Redemption sway and wobble like a ship on rough waves. David calmly dodged Redemption's clumsy attacks and delivered heavy counter-blows.

Redemption's attacks, crude in David's eyes, and his rough application of abilities widened the gap between them. His power and energy were ultimately a surge that came too quickly.

"Super-regeneration?"

Blown back hundreds of meters, he stabilized himself and turned around, wiping the fresh blood from the corner of his mouth. Redemption's bruises healed at a visible speed. Hearing David's words, he chuckled coldly.

"What, surprised again!"

Let alone after his power had surged, even when the Redemption Church was first founded and his power was at its weakest, he had never been injured. Thus, no one knew he possessed this ability.

"I can resurrect and regenerate like Lazarus in the Bible; this is God's gift!"

Redemption fiercely raised his fist and charged at David again.

He was invincible. If he didn't get the mask, he wouldn't rest. He was determined to let the Lord's glory shine everywhere in the world. The flames of faith blazed in his eyes.

"It seems I need to spend a little more time on you!"

David's expression was indifferent. Dazzling lightning descended from the sky like a divine judgment, attacking him.

Having seen Redemption's life experiences, he knew Redemption was likely brainwashed, walking a path arranged by others, becoming a tool for others to strengthen their church—much like some of the Crusaders in European history. But he had no interest in tolerating Redemption's fierce attacks everywhere, trying to persuade him with words and bring him back to the right path.

It was simpler to resolve this quickly.

"Although I haven't figured out who Haituo Hua is, there are some things I can do—Found him!"

A coordinate on the map projected on Cyborg's wrist was locked. That was Haituo Hua's location: a remote small church in Yasir's capital. He was online, leading the global followers of the Redemption Church in prayer for Redemption.

A team of extremely powerful, even luxurious, network experts was helping him mask his signal and evade tracking.

But it only took him a few minutes to crush their firewall like a landslide.

"I've interrupted his broadcast and issued a statement online to those who are unaware. I hope it helps."

"Let's go."

The earth shook incessantly, and shockwaves swept for tens of miles. Within the fortress formed by willpower, Hal Jordan exhaled.

As teammates, they couldn't just watch from the sidelines forever. They could finally help a little.

Redemption's frenzied attack on the Transcendent who had repeatedly saved the world in his attempt to seize the mask was reason enough to act against the Redemption Church!

"Who exactly is this Father Haituo Hua, and what is his purpose?

Since we can't find out, we can go ask him ourselves."

Batman's gaze was focused. Only Clark and Diana remained behind. He, along with the others, rushed towards the location Cyborg had found, preparing to confront Haituo Hua directly. This was also to prevent the one manipulating everything from behind the scenes from escaping quietly should Redemption be defeated by David.

After observing the situation, he confirmed that Redemption had no chance of winning.

Minutes earlier, Redemption had basically been unable to land any substantial attacks on David.

He clearly didn't possess Brainiac's terrifying computational ability to neutralize David's gravity manipulation in real-time. His performance was even worse than that of an ordinary person who understood martial arts.

When Redemption punched, David only needed to manipulate gravity to add some force at the precise location to distort his movements, making him appear like a drunkard stumbling and attacking wildly.

Even with super-regeneration, the outcome of this battle was foreseeable!

"Aaaargh!"

Unable to hit David for so long, constantly getting injured himself, Redemption roared impatiently, trying hard to correct his movements to strike David.

He clearly had the ability to injure or even kill David.

But he couldn't even touch the corner of David's clothes. This feeling drove him mad!

"Impatience will only make the combat situation worse."

Dodging Redemption's energy attack, a bolt of lightning knocked him down. David said calmly.

"Your combat experience is even worse than some street thugs."

After gaining immense power, Redemption had only faced terrorists and soldiers. He had never encountered anyone close to his power, or even anyone who could slightly resist his abilities. When facing them, he was as powerful and invincible as a god, sacred and majestic in the eyes of his followers.

Facing David, who had fought many powerful enemies, he was stripped bare.

As waves of strong winds brushed his face, Clark, watching the two fighting from afar, felt his anxiety slightly ease as David gained a significant advantage in the battle.

It seemed David didn't need help.

He turned his head slightly, using his super-vision to peer into the church where Haituo Hua was located, preparing to provide immediate support in case of any unforeseen events.

"Haituo Hua himself described extremely unusual events on the battlefield years ago. He might not be an ordinary person either."

Suddenly.

"Clark, Diana, back away!"

David's low shout warned them.

Clark turned to look. Diana drew her sword and shield from her back, facing the enemy as if ready for a great battle.

A fierce wind carrying terrifying heat rushed towards them like a fiery meteor. Redemption, with a ferocious and crazed expression, his entire body enveloped in blue energy flames, charged aggressively at the two.

Unable to injure David for so long, he had decided to use Clark and Diana as an opening.

"As long as I capture one as a hostage, I can threaten the Transcendent into handing over the mask. I must complete the Lord's trial!"

...

A remote church bearing the sign of the First Redemption Church in Walifors, the capital of Yasir.

Inside the church, rows of believers bowed their heads in silent prayer.

"Redemption, we believe in Redemption."

Behind the lectern, Haituo Hua, who had been praying with his eyes closed, suddenly opened them. A flash of blue light flickered in his eyes as he looked up sharply towards the outside.

Bang!

The church doors were blasted open, and sand and wind swirled in from outside.

Amidst the terrified cries of the congregation, Hal Jordan and Aquaman entered with a few others.

"Perhaps we need to interrupt."

Flash calmly addressed the startled believers on either side.

"Haituo Hua.

What is your purpose in having 'Redemption' demand the mask?"

Batman stood outside the door, his imposing mecha-suit exuding a silent pressure.

"God created the world and humanity, but today, people no longer remember God's grace!"

Facing the sudden arrival of the group, Haituo Hua's expression was grim, but he showed no surprise or fear. He spread his arms wide and cried out in condemnation.

"We need loyal faith to repay the Lord!"

"Is it 'we,' or is it 'you'?

Isn't this just your biased view?"

Batman sneered, his words piercing, questioning if Haituo Hua had ever considered others' thoughts.

Whether it was due to superior acting or something else, he felt that Haituo Hua, with fanaticism burning in his eyes, was speaking the truth. He had infinite reverence for God and genuinely believed everyone should worship Him.

However, this did not mean Haituo Hua's madness was understandable.

"You seek to distort the minds of people worldwide through the mask, to give God false faith.

If God knew, do you think he would truly approve of this devilish act of yours?"

"Shut up, shut up!"

Haituo Hua, enraged, raised his fists. Fiery energy flared around him. In the dim, secluded church, his radiance even outshone the sun outside. The person before them seemed not like a scrawny old man, but a Titan giant capable of destroying the world!

Everyone felt a crushing weight on their chests, unable to breathe. The air seemed to cease flowing under the pressure of the immense energy, and fear, like a giant hand, clutched their hearts tightly.

"Something's not right."

Flash's voice trembled as he looked at the goosebumps standing on end on his arm.

"I feel like he's even scarier than Redemption!"

Hal Jordan's eyes widened, and he quickly used his Lantern Ring to blast open the roof, bringing the screaming believers out of the building and retreating.

"The energy signature on him is exactly the same as Redemption's, but far more surging and immense."

Cyborg exclaimed, looking at the detected energy fluctuation index before him.

How was this possible? Such powerful superpowers appearing all at once?

Whoosh!

Arthur hurled his trident with ten thousand tons of force towards Haituo Hua's head. Haituo Hua's priestly attire billowed as if in a wind, and as he slowly floated into the air, he casually flicked his hand, batting away the trident that shot towards him with a piercing shriek. His eyes, filled with dark killing intent, fixed on the group.

"You've exposed my abilities. None of you will leave here alive today!"

Seeing the trident fly out and embed itself dozens of meters away, its tip melted into liquid iron, Arthur was shaken. This was the weapon of the previous King of Atlantis, his mother's weapon, and it had been melted by this old man with a casual flick!

"Everyone stay calm, he must have some weakness or limitation to his abilities!"

Batman manipulated his mecha into a defensive posture, shouting to maintain his composure while intently watching Haituo Hua's every move in the air.

He had initially intended to provoke Haituo Hua with words to make him confess his malicious plan against the whole world, but he never expected to provoke another super-nuclear bomb!

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