amaotonovel Chapter 4145 When the Pumpkin Ripens (27)
Chapter 4145 When the Pumpkin Ripens (27)
Chapter 4145 When the Pumpkins Ripen (Twenty-Seven)
Jason leaned closer, intrigued, and whispered, "What do you mean?"
"If it really was Darkseid who instigated it, Darkseid should have known that their team's progress was so slow. If he were watching Earth and learned that there was something here that he wanted even more, wouldn't he try to steal it?"
“Not necessarily,” Jason said. “It depends on how important this thing is to him. Otherwise, he might not be willing to risk exposing Earth’s power to get his hands on it.”
“We know what’s most important to him. Every Darkseid in every universe wants the Anti-Life Equation. If we tell him there’s an opportunity to get the Anti-Life Equation, he’s very likely to take it. If he does, it proves it’s him. After all, not many people truly understand the Anti-Life Equation; it can’t be Batman, can it?”
Jason nodded and said, "That's a good idea. But it's precisely because he knows so much about the Anti-Life Equation that it's hard for us to fool him. How can we convince him that the Anti-Life Equation is really in our hands?"
“Don’t lie to him, because the Anti-Life Equation is in our hands.” Tim glanced at the arrogant umbrella placed by the door. Jason also glanced at the umbrella, and the two looked at each other, shouting in unison, “Professor—!!!”
"No way." The arrogant man, who was chopping vegetables, didn't even lift his eyelids. "Don't touch my umbrella."
“Oh my God, my dear professor,” Tim floated to the island platform like a ballerina, and lay down on it, saying, “we won’t touch your umbrella, we just need the graffiti on it…”
“No.” Arrogance refused decisively, then he said, “If you’re too idle, go to the backyard and turn over the soil.”
Tim and Jason exchanged another glance. Tim gave Jason a look, and the two went to the backyard together.
Just then, Arrogant's phone rang. He answered, "Good afternoon, Batman. What's up?... Yes, he's a fairly reliable sorcerer. I think this will be helpful to your research. Yes. Okay, see you tonight."
"How did it go?" Greed asked.
Arrogance shook his head and said, "We didn't figure anything out. Maybe the time was too short, and there isn't enough professional equipment here. I wonder what Brainiac is planning."
"We'll figure it out eventually," Greed said.
Night fell quickly. Guests arrived one after another. Dick and Raven were also early. Arrogance went out to greet them. Raven, however, frowned and looked around.
"What's wrong, ma'am?"
Raven pursed her lips, as if she wanted to say something, but then stopped. Dick gently touched her arm and said, "Are you feeling unwell? It's okay, maybe you can go upstairs and rest for a while."
"No. I sensed a very peculiar power around here, but it was very faint. Maybe it was just my imagination," Raven said uncertainly.
“Oh, that’s not surprising. The headmaster came looking for us earlier today because of the unusual energy fluctuations,” Arrogance said. “Perhaps you were feeling the same kind of fluctuations.”
The raven breathed a sigh of relief and said, "That scared me to death. I thought today's main course would be some kind of special moose again."
Her words made Dick a little worried. He looked at Arrogant and said, "Really, Professor?"
"Don't worry, it's not like that," Arrogance said helplessly.
Hearing his assurance, both of them breathed a sigh of relief. As they walked towards the backyard, Raven whispered, "I knew this power was quite peaceful, without any sense of resentment or anger. I thought the professor's methods today were more humane..."
Then came Victor and his wife, and Billy. Billy seemed to sense something too, but he was, after all, just a child, and a bit oblivious. Seeing someone turning over the soil in the yard, he ran over shouting.
Bruce and Selena arrived together, along with Aisha. Arrogance hugged Selena and then said, "How are you feeling now, ma'am?"
“Much better,” Selena said with a sigh of relief. “After Aisha moved up a grade, the parents became much more considerate. I finally don’t have to deal with all that trouble anymore.”
He gave her an arrogant smile. Bruce peeked out the back door and asked, "Tim's here too? Is he done with his work?"
"I heard Drake's company is fully automated now, so he should be able to relax for a while. Have you considered suggesting he get a degree or something?"
“I do have that idea. But even if he does go, I reckon he'll choose to go to a European university with Jason. In that case, Alfred will definitely choose to take care of them and then ask me to send Dick and Elsa there too. We might as well just immigrate to Europe together.”
“No way!” Selena immediately objected. If she were truly a cat, she would have already activated her Spinosaurus form. She yelled at Bruce, “You’re not going to make me adapt to the cloudy skies of England after escaping the gloom of Gotham!”
“I thought you’d miss those days,” Bruce said, putting his arm around her as they walked toward the back door.
"Damn it, who would miss a cloudy day? I go to the garden to sunbathe every day now. If you want to go to England, you can go by yourselves, Elsa will come with me."
"I didn't say I was going..."
Then the main universe's Batman arrived. He talked about the research on the Mother Box, saying, "At the moment, we can't see anything special, except for a very peculiar power fluctuation. Because this power shields the internal structure, it's quite difficult to probe without damaging the box. Brainiac and I are looking for a solution."
“After all, it’s Origin Power; it’s not so easy to deal with,” Arrogance said. “We’ll just have to take it slow. But I heard you created a system to score Brainiac?”
"Oh, yes. The biggest drawback of this kind of being that rules the Earth is actually the lack of external oversight. If a careful assessment cannot be made from a third-party perspective, then once any problem arises, the individuals trapped within it may not be able to react quickly, and may even deliberately indulge in loopholes due to inertia, or simply fan the flames and accelerate the rate of corruption. Therefore, having an external perspective is very important. You are also a member of the multiverse, and I believe I have a responsibility to help you."
Arrogance nodded and said, "That is indeed the best way. After all, there is more than one universe where individuals rule the Earth, and such universes all need human oversight. And you are probably the only one who can gain their collective trust."
“I would be happy to help them,” said the main universe Batman. “Not just Brainiac, but every ruler of Earth, I will assess. If they have any problems, I will use the power of the multiverse to correct and resolve them.”
"Every entity that rules the Earth must possess merits that are acceptable to the people. These merits may even completely outweigh the drawbacks. I firmly believe that humanity is not a lamb to the slaughter, nor can just anyone become the king of the Earth. If the other party is truly a complete scoundrel, then naturally someone will teach him a lesson. And a stable political system must have its merits. I also do not believe that the political system that evolved in the universe I live in is necessarily better than theirs. Both have their advantages and disadvantages, and we should learn from each other's strengths and compensate for each other's weaknesses. My so-called oversight is only because I am not a third party involved, and can bring a clearer and more prudent perspective, not because I am superior to them in ability or morality."
A round of applause erupted from the kitchen. Even while greedily stewing the food, he didn't forget to clap. Then, stirring the food in the pot, he said, "Batman, I advise you not to say these things in front of me so often..."
"why?"
"...if you don't want me to become a multiverse kidnapper." Greed completed.
The main universe's Batman laughed.
Then Pamela arrived. Before coming in, she checked the two trees by the door, nodded, and said, "There shouldn't be any problems."
"I apologize again for the loss of control of the chestnut tree, Professor. I brought some Sri Lankan black tea."
"Please come in, madam."
People gradually arrived. Then the dishes started to be served. Actually, even before they were served, the aroma was so enticing that everyone was shouting, yelling, pounding the table, and silently screaming.
Greed and arrogance conspired to create over a dozen dishes. Some were authentic Chinese dishes, such as boiled fish, stir-fried pork, and poached chicken. Others were modified versions, such as Kung Pao chicken with a stronger sweet and sour flavor, roast goose with plum sauce, fried lamb chops, and lamb soup.
"In the far East, there's a tradition of eating mutton to cool down," Greed said. "Easterners believe mutton is a very nourishing meat, perfect for autumn. This mutton soup has been simmering for several hours. Add your own seasonings and see how it is."
Everyone started adding vinegar, salt, MSG, pepper, and other seasonings to their bowls. They had never done this before, so they were a little flustered at first; some couldn't pour out the salt, and some added too much vinegar. But thankfully, they managed to get it all sorted out.
“And then, this.” Greed picked up a basket containing some types of pasta not commonly found in the West. He said, “This is oven-baked flatbread, meant to be served with mutton soup. This is steamed bun, and this is a kind of flatbread…”
"My God, are you sure this was prepared in one day?" Jason exclaimed in surprise. "Do you have eight arms?"
"Ha, the fact that white people's restaurants have become this appalling is largely due to your laziness. We had almost 12 hours to prepare, how could we not make it?" Greed said with considerable disdain.
Jason was speechless. Then Greed continued, "I know you haven't cooked much, but who told you to study in England? If you study there for another year, your cooking skills might even surpass mine."
"No...no way." Jason was genuinely a little uneasy.
Arrogance gave Greed a look, signaling him not to scare the child. Greed, however, continued, "Oh, how could I forget? You grew up eating white food, so you should be able to adapt."
“That sounds even more hopeless,” Jason said. “I grew up eating white food, and now I have to adapt? How did the British create those inhumane foods?”
“I should reconsider having you as a travel companion,” Tim said, pursing his lips. “I’m going to Italy and Spain, where the sun shines, the food is delicious, and the people are friendly.”
Dick grinned and said, "Luckily I learned French beforehand, I'm definitely going to France. There's plenty of delicious food in France too."
“Oh my god, why did I ever think of going to Oxford?” Jason gulped down a mouthful of soup, slamming the bowl down as if he’d downed a huge gulp of wine. Then he was left with nothing to drown his sorrows in. “Not only are prices high, but the weather is terrible, there’s no good food, the teaching is so-so, and the people are really weird… Help!”
“I warned you,” Bruce said. “You said Alfred’s hometown couldn’t be bad. But why didn’t you think that if it were really that good, why would he be in league with the Soviets?”
Everyone laughed. Jason looked pale. Tim then delivered the final blow: "We all advised you to do a one-year program, but because of your love for classical literature, you resolutely chose a three-year program. If you had done a one-year program, you would be almost graduating by now."
Laughter broke the silence on the table again. Jason picked up his soup bowl and covered his face, looking like a sad albatross.
(End of this chapter)