thefictionvixens Page 1406
Page 1406
Helena stopped and turned her head toward him.
“Yes,” she said, “so I need you to do me a small favor.”
Chapter 1769 Stealing Secrets
The next few days were quite peaceful for Xu Fu: aside from studying and his fascination with superheroes, he focused his energy on the collaborative project with Novenda. The project was progressing smoothly, and the company's two new technologies were being tested with Xu Fu and Kara's help. The department head was eager to report the results and hurriedly planned a meeting within a week.
To show her goodwill and sincerity, Newinda generously gave the two evangelist staff a substantial allowance before the launch ceremony, which became the seed fund for Xu Fu's next steps.
In fact, he was not interested in starting a business and did not know much about running a business. Although he took all the business courses on the first night after the company officially opened, he still did not intend to devote too much energy to starting a business.
He didn't want his company to become a multinational corporation like Lexcorp or the Wayne Group—not only was it too large, but it wasn't necessary. All he wanted was to establish a source of funding, enough for himself, or rather, for his parents, to allow them to spend regularly for a period of time to come.
For a giant like Lextar Corporation, changing eight or nine digits of an account is just a small ripple in the data world, like a pebble thrown into the ocean, which doesn't even notice.
Xu Fu had never had any particular interest in money. When the bearded leader of Nuind grabbed his hand, tears welling in his eyes, and then ordered a long string of money to be credited to Xu Fu's account, he could not share in his brother's joy.
He flew home for the weekend, and as he landed at his doorstep, he unconsciously heard Mr. and Mrs. Xu arguing inside. Their voices sounded low, but they still penetrated the walls and door clearly into his ears. He could hear Mrs. Xu complaining that her husband hadn't been promoted in years and his salary had never increased. There was also the mortgage and the ever-rising housing prices.
Perhaps such conversations have taken place many times over the past few years, without Xu Fu even realizing it. Even without the ever-present threat of flying objects capable of moving mountains and filling seas, or destroying the world, life has become increasingly difficult.
He didn't know before, but he knows now.
Xu Fu took a deep breath and deliberately knocked loudly on the door.
The arguing quickly stopped. A few seconds later, the armored door opened, and his parents appeared behind it, both wearing casual smiles. Xu Fu had to admit that they were masters of disguise; everything seemed perfectly orderly.
How many times have they done this? Showing their brightest smiles to their children, while shouldering the burden of the family alone in a corner where he can't see them.
But this situation won't last long.
Xu Fu didn't laugh, but pretended to say, "I'm sorry, I think... I must have forgotten my keys again."
“Oh, you silly boy, you’re always like this.” Mrs. Xu Fu smiled and took his backpack. “Come in, I’ve prepared your favorite pie for you.”
As Xu Fu entered, the security door behind him slammed shut. The yellow light shining through the living room window seemed to envelop the entire building in warmth, lingering around it as if it could be seen with the naked eye.
Cisco spent a full week finally managing to remotely implant a backdoor into Amanda Waller's office computer, an idea he had repeatedly complained to Elena about as insane. If he could manually activate the backdoor in Waller's computer, he would have at most three minutes to steal top-secret data without alerting the firewall.
Of course, this violated the rules, but Helena knew what to do.
They officially began their operation on Saturday. Helena slipped into the monitoring room and replaced the images with yesterday's footage, while Cisco took the opportunity to sneak into Waller's office and work on her computer. Helena was familiar with this kind of operation; since becoming a government agent, she couldn't remember how many superiors had stolen her files, and she had violated most of the rules in the agent's operations manual. But this was a first for Cisco-Raymond; he was extremely nervous, his fingers trembling violently as he repeatedly inserted the flash drive into Waller's computer port.
“My God,” he muttered as the initial screen appeared, “if we expose Waller,....
"You won't be exposed." Helena's voice in the earpiece was as cold as a machine, yet it carried an indescribable confidence. "Did you go in?"
“Try... to get in,” Cisco wiped non-existent sweat from his forehead. “I only need three minutes... I hope it only takes three minutes, because if it takes longer than three minutes, the game is over.”
"Less talk, get to work." Helena shifted her gaze to the video displayed on her wrist terminal screen. The elevator stopped at Cisco's floor, the doors opened automatically, and Amanda Waller's short, stocky figure appeared outside, walking briskly towards her office.
"Waller is here," Helena whispered a reminder...
"What? Cisco reacted as if he'd been thrown into a vat of boiling oil: 'What? What? What if she finds me in her office...?'"
"Stay calm and focus on the work at hand." Helena had already left the observation room and was hurrying towards her office. "I'll stall her..."
At the last corner of the building where her office was located, Amanda Waller was stopped by the huntress, who wrapped her arms around her and looked at her coldly, saying, "I've been waiting for you for a long time."
Waller raised an eyebrow: "Do you have a problem, Huntress?"
“No, nothing special,” Helena replied casually. “It’s just a continuation of last week’s theme.”
Helena took a step forward and stood in front of her.
"You say I'm just your agent, that I shouldn't ask or think anything except obey your orders—if you really think I'd say that, then you don't know me at all. My name is Vane, and my family has a fine tradition: we never give up, and we always know how to find the light in the darkness."
After saying that, she walked forward, paused for a moment as she passed Waller, and then whispered in her ear, "So don't get too comfortable. Whatever you're hiding from me, I won't give up looking, and I'll find a way."
“Are you threatening me?” Waller turned his face away and said coldly, “Know your place, Agent Wayne. I have all your and your father’s secrets, and once I reveal them…”
“Dream on, but I’m not afraid of what you say, Waller.” Helena grinned. “If you could, you would have condemned my father long ago. But you can’t, right? Or rather, you don’t dare. His influence on you isn’t just about the mystery of his identity; I believe much of it is more explosive than the question of who Batman is. You’re afraid of him.”
Waller's face flushed even redder. If her gaze were a knife, it would surely have pierced Helena's heart by now, but it wasn't. Helena finished speaking and ignored her, walking out of the corridor, her cloak fluttering in the gentle breeze.
“Wait, Waller.” “I’ll find out your little secret, whatever it is,” she said finally, then disappeared around the corner.
Waller stared at the direction where her figure disappeared for a moment, then strode off toward his office.
What a filthy and insidious girl, that's why she hates men who dress like bats... The whole thing is so annoying.
Waller opened the door and walked into his office. The black-screened computer sat quietly in its place; the room was empty.
Chapter 1770 Superman's Plan
Cisco performed at least three different thorough scans of the stolen data before running them on the computer, and only after ensuring that no defenses would expose his intrusion on Waller did he slowly open the contents.
“I still don’t think this is a good idea,” he muttered softly, but Helena immediately ignored this faint suggestion.
In three minutes, only a very limited portion of Waller's computer was copied, but there was no doubt that it contained many little secrets. As Cisco clicked the mouse wheel, his facial expression grew increasingly tense; just looking at the folder names that signified top secret was unsettling.
Task Force Program, JLA Project, Superhuman Surveillance Act... He couldn't even fathom the secrets behind these names. Cisco instinctively looked away from the screen, watching Elena warily. She was staring at the screen, her expression saying, "It's just a joke."
What she saw was entirely expected; she would not be surprised if someone like Amanda Waller didn't have a dozen or eight dozen similar obscene plans on their hard drive.
But that wasn't her focus today, so she temporarily ignored the other folders. Cisco stopped when a project called "Superman Pre-programmed" appeared on the screen.
This looks like her target.
The "Superman Project," as it's called, is actually quite simple: a series of weapons designed for Kryptonians. These weapons come in a wide variety of styles, many of them completely innovative in concept, and most possess deadly firepower. It's hard to believe that the designers of these weapons came up with so many ideas targeting Kryptonian weaknesses; they must have been constantly thinking about new ways to kill these invisible aliens.
For the Kryptonians, this is far more than just "vigilance." If all the conceptual weapons here were produced, it would be enough to arm an entire army. Amanda Waller's hidden plan here cannot be called a plan; it is a proposal to wage war.
Cisco couldn't help but ask, "My God, is Waller thinking of... declaring war on Superman?"
Helena, equally expressionless, said, "The situation is worse than I imagined."
In addition to weapons information, the archives also show the distribution of project-related facilities, three of which are located in the metropolis, including the headquarters of the fortification series, one of which is the site of the explosion caused by unidentified intruders last week.
The striking feature of the attacked facility was that it contained an "old friend" of Superman, a humanoid weapon specifically designed to deal with Kryptonians.
John Coburn, originally a journalist, transformed his body into a purely metallic structure by wearing artificial skin, concealing cold metal beneath the fabric, after a potentially fatal accident.
The transformed John Colburn is known as "Metal Man." His alloy body grants him bulletproof abilities and superhuman strength, but that alone wouldn't be a major problem for Superman. What poses a challenge is the source of his body's power—a kryptonite heart residing within his metal ribcage. Normally, his body doesn't allow kryptonite radiation to pass through, but once the diaphragm in his chest opens, the kryptonite radiation flows freely into his body, instantly draining most of the kryptonite's power.
John Colburn harbors an intense hatred for Superman, and even for anyone wearing an "S" on their chest. After becoming Metal Man, he made killing Superman the sole purpose of his mundane life. Unfortunately, he disappeared from the scene of the explosion and is now hiding in Metropolis.
"Go see the ghost"
Upon seeing the latter part of the document, Helena, without bothering to read it further, suddenly stood up and walked out, simultaneously taking out her phone and dialing a number.
The busy tone lasted only a few seconds before Xu Fu answered the phone: "Wow, that's rare. I mean, you called me first..."
“No time for fools,” Helena said as she walked towards the exit. “Anyway, you might be in danger now…”
At this moment, the Metropolis
Another workday begins. The sun lazily rises above the horizon, casting golden rays upon the sleeping city, as if waking a baby from a cradle. People dress neatly, leave their neighborhoods, and head to work. Traffic becomes busy, the subway winding its way through the knee-deep crisscrossing sidewalks, its carriages packed with people heading to the start of a new day.
At 8 a.m., a subway train experienced a minor malfunction on one of the tracks.
For some unknown reason, the underground train went out of control. It rushed past the platform where it was supposed to stop, accelerating forward amidst jubilant shouts. It even ran onto tracks that weren't its own, hurtling forward at speeds far exceeding the regulated limits, as if a steel spirit had suddenly awakened and decided to cause a ruckus.
In other cities, the consequences of such an accident could be far more severe. The train would likely crash into something at the end of the tracks, passengers and cargo would be reduced to scrap metal, and the fully loaded train would become part of tomorrow's headline casualty statistics.
Fortunately, they are in the Metropolitan Area.
The screams of the passengers, mixed with the angry roar of the tires, reached the ground and also the ears of Superman, who had just flown through the air. So he turned around, used the red and blue drill to drill through the ground, and plunged into the dark underground tunnel.
The subway was twice as fast as usual, but it still wasn't fast enough for Superman. In an instant, red and blue figures whizzed past the windows of each carriage, catching up with the front of the train, 080, in the blink of an eye.
Superman changed his posture, placing his hands on the left and right sides of the train engine, and slammed his red boots onto the tracks, bringing the accelerating monster to a halt.
His method quickly worked; the train emitted a sharp and piercing roar, accompanied by the screeching sound of tires rubbing against the rails, and burst forth with a large number of dazzling sparks that illuminated the dark tunnel walls.
Two deep handprints were left on the locomotive, and the windshield was shattered. By the time the train reached its final stop, the locomotive was so badly deformed that it was unrecognizable. You could only form your own opinion based on the few remaining features among the crumpled scrap metal.
Fortunately, he eventually stopped without veering off the highway or hitting anyone, and no one was injured.
The matter was resolved. Superman breathed a sigh of relief, released the ugly metal can he had been squeezing, took a half step back, and was about to fly into the air as usual when a beam of green light shot out of the car through the shattered windshield and hit him squarely in the chest.
Superman let out a "Ah!" as if all his strength had been exhausted in an instant. He staggered a couple of steps, then fell backward, as weak as a person with a cold.
John Colburn pushed his way through the crowd, jumped off the carriage, landed in front of Superman, and grinned: "Hey, Big Blue Man, remember me?"
Chapter 1771 Metal Man
Early in the morning, the sidewalk was violently torn apart, and Superman flew out of the crack like a pinball, crashing backward into a car parked on the side of the road.
The attackers followed closely behind. John Colburn, or as we should call him, the Metal Man, leaped out of the crack, his metal claws digging deep into the concrete. His face was ripped in half, revealing a pair of glowing green mechanical pupils, and his clothes, along with his skin, were peeled away, revealing the glittering kryptonite in his chest cavity.
Metal Man is one of Superman's most hated enemies. This isn't because he's incredibly powerful; there are many enemies stronger than him. It's because Metal Man has a Kryptonite heart. Whenever Superman faces him, he feels an unprecedented sense of helplessness, as if he's been deprived of any chance to retaliate.
John Colburn has been hiding in Metropolis for a week since the "Superman Project" facility was destroyed in the fire. In this dark corner of the city, ignored by everyone, he has been searching for parts to repair his damaged body and regain his shape so that he can take revenge on Superman once again.
The time has come.
The metal man approached with a smug smile: "Feeling good? Bathed in the lights of your home, I bet you feel great right now."
Superman placed one hand on the hood of the car behind him, tensing his body in an attempt to steady himself, but involuntarily squeezed the hood into a ball. He staggered, instinctively taking two steps back, seemingly trying to avoid the scorching green halo.
He mustered his remaining strength, lifted the car behind him with all his might, silently apologized to the owner, and hurled the entire vehicle at the metal man. The metal man stopped abruptly, his arms outstretched, but only hit the ground, slid back a few meters, and then stopped, reassured, and drove away.