Max clenched his teeth, sweat dripping from his face as he performed handstand push-ups ,with a seventy-ton boulder balanced on his feet. The massive stone, which he'd carved out of a mountain, bobbed up and down with each push.
"591… 592… 593… 594… 595… 596… 597… 598… 599… 600!"
With a final grunt, he coiled his body and flung the gigantic rock high into the air. The moment it came down, he braced himself and caught it with a thunderous bang that cracked the ground beneath him. His feet sank several inches into the earth under the crushing weight.
"Man… this shit is hard," Max muttered between ragged breaths, straightening up and placing his hands on his hips.
He looked up at the sky, an idea forming in his mind.
Since I have Ki… theoretically, I should be able to use the Kamehameha, right?
He spread his legs, cupped his hands together, and began to channel his Ki. A faint hum filled the air as energy swirled between his palms—only, instead of glowing blue, it turned deep purple.
"The hell?"
Before he could finish the thought, the energy exploded violently, engulfing him in a shockwave that sent dust and debris flying in all directions.
When the smoke cleared, Max stood in the middle of a shallow crater, his clothes shredded, parts of his skin charred and burned. The wounds quickly began to close, the flesh knitting itself back together until only smooth skin remained.
"That… was not a good idea," he muttered, sighing.
It would take a lot more than raw power to master something like the Kamehameha. His current abilities from Goku Black's template were limited to basic Ki blasts and flight—though he hadn't used the latter much, preferring to teleport when convenient. The next move he expected to gain from the system was either the Ki Blade or Divine Punisher.
Even if he completed the template, he doubted he'd ever get techniques like the Kamehameha, Spirit Bomb, or Instant Transmission,those were Goku's signature moves, not Zamasu's. When Zamasu took over Goku's body, he only inherited the flesh, not the man's memories or combat instincts.
Still, he had grown powerful,absurdly so. Physically, he was sure that if he opened the Eighth Gate, the one that granted a five hundred fold boost, he'd become the strongest man on the planet,without even factoring in his other abilities or hax.
But one question haunted him: just how strong would I really be… with the Eighth Gate fully open?
His system interface flickered to life before him, displaying an old notification:
[One-Time Eighth Gate Activation: Non-Lethal]
Warning: Use with caution.
Max stared at it, hesitating. If he activated it now, the next time he wanted to open the final gate, he'd have to do it manually,something he could manage, but the real problem was closing it. Even with his regeneration, keeping the Eighth Gate open indefinitely might very well kill him.
But curiosity burned in his chest.
"Ah, who am I kidding? It's not worth it," max muttered, giving up on the idea.
Sure, he'd gain some insight—maybe even figure out how to better utilize the Final Gate or develop new techniques to use with it—but it still wasn't worth it. Losing his free pass from the full negative effects of opening the Final Gate would only put him in a tough spot when he actually needed it one day.
He had considered asking Thena to hand over the Time Ring, but quickly decided against it. If she truly wanted him to have it, she would've given it to him already.
That left him with only one plan aside from grinding his way to the top.
Hell.
Yes, he was planning to go to Hell. And the first person who came to mind who could take him there was, John Constantine. That's why he had sent Zetsu to look for him.
The reason was simple,Max wanted to test his theory of using demons as substitutes for the Tailed Beasts to feed the Gedo Statue and revive the Ten-Tails. Along the way, he might even run into some powerful opponents in Hell, which would be a bonus.
And if he was lucky,really lucky,he might even meet Lucifer, just like his future self once had.
Later that day,Watchtower Briefing Room
The atmosphere in the Watchtower was unusually relaxed. The League members were scattered around the conference table, waiting for one particular Amazon to arrive.
"So, is Diana coming or not? We can't wait for her forever," Hal said, leaning back in his chair and propping his boots up on the polished table.
"Relax, Hal," Superman replied calmly. "She'll be here soon."
"Where is she, anyway?" Shazam asked, tilting his head curiously.
Barry leaned back in his seat, arms crossed. "She's probably with her daughter."
Hal blinked. Then blinked again. "...No. Freaking. Way." He said jumped out of his chair. "Diana has a daughter now?"
"Believe it or not, she does," Cyborg said, grinning as the others stared at him.
Hal gawked. "Hold on. How did that even happen? I wasn't off-planet for nine months, was I?"
"It's complicated," Barry said, smirking. "And you wouldn't believe who the father is."
"Superman?" Shazam guessed immediately.
Superman sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "Why would you think it's me?"
"I don't know," Shazam said, shrugging. "You two just had that… thing going. Y'know, the 'power couple' energy."
"Well, we're not,a power couple" Superman said flatly.
"Then who is it?" Hal pressed, eyes narrowing. "Come on, spill it."
"It's Max," Cyborg said simply.
The room went dead silent for a moment. Then.
"What?!" Hal and Shazam shouted in perfect unison.
"Like I said," Barry continued, laughing, "it's complicated."
"You've gotta tell me the details," Hal demanded.
"Yeah, dude, don't leave us hanging!" Shazam added, leaning forward eagerly.
Barry waved a hand dismissively. "It's a long story. I'll tell you another time."
Hal wasn't satisfied. "Alright, fine. But how's that working out? I thought she hated Max. Or was that just her way of hiding her feelings?"
Barry chuckled. "You'd think so. Every time she's here it's 'Max this, Max that.' Honestly, if you didn't know the backstory, you'd think they were married."
"Oh man, I really shouldn't have left," Hal groaned.
"Why were you called back anyway?" Cyborg asked, clearly trying to steer the conversation elsewhere.
"There was a meeting in the Green Lantern Corps," Hal said, his tone turning serious. "Apparently someone's been conquering planets—wiping out entire populations."
The room fell quiet again, the light mood fading.
"How are they planning to handle that?" Shazam asked cautiously.
Hal shrugged. "They told us to call for backup if we ever run into him. Supposedly, he's got a really strong fighter under his command."
"Who's the person?" Superman asked.
"The Guardians didn't say. They were pretty tight-lipped about the name," Hal replied.
A moment of heavy silence followed—until Batman, who had been quiet the entire time, finally spoke.
"Gossip time's over," he said in his usual gravelly tone. "We'll fill Diana in on the way. Let's move on to why we're actually here."
The chatter died instantly. Cyborg straightened in his seat and activated the holographic display, a faint blue light washing over their faces.
Just as Cyborg was about to start the briefing, the door slid open with a soft hiss.
"Sorry I'm late," Wonder Woman said, stepping inside. Her presence drew the room's attention instantly. She took her seat with her usual composure—until she noticed Green Lantern and Shazam exchanging looks her way, their expressions full of barely contained curiosity.
"What?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.
"I just have to ask—how—" Hal began, but was immediately cut off.
"Save it for later," Batman interjected sharply, his voice like a blade through the air. "Cyborg. Continue."
Cyborg cleared his throat, his expression turning serious.
"Earlier today, a naval submarine was sunk in the mid-Pacific. I went down there to inspect the wreck and identify the cause... but I was attacked by unidentified assailants."
He tapped the console, and a holographic display lit up above the table. Blue light rippled across their faces as footage appeared,Cyborg underwater, surrounded by murky shadows and darting, fast-moving figures.
"Pause," Batman ordered. The image froze mid-motion.
"Observations?" he asked.
"They avoided his line of sight and struck from the shadows," Wonder Woman said calmly, studying the projection. "They seem to be trained warriors."
"Agreed," Batman replied. "Resume."
The hologram continued, showing the attackers moving with inhuman speed.
"Pause."
Batman stepped closer, eyes narrowing. "Magnify."
The image zoomed in on one of the assailants,its silhouette vaguely human but... off. Gills lined the neck.
"Gills?" Shazam asked, blinking. "As in... mermaids?"
"As in Atlanteans," Wonder Woman corrected.
Her eyes shifted to a weapon displayed in the footage,a long, jagged spear glinting in the light. "Where is this?" she asked.
Cyborg opened a compartment on his thigh and pulled out a corroded weapon fragment. "Right here."
Wonder Woman accepted it, her gaze tracing the markings etched along the metal. "I recognize these symbols," she murmured. "They're from the ancient tales of Atlantis. I was told stories about it as a child… how it was once a great island kingdom that sank beneath the sea. Its people survived only because the King's Trident transformed them irreversibly into creatures of the ocean."
Hal crossed his arms. "That's just a fairytale."
"I believe you," Superman said quietly.
"Where is its location?" Batman asked.
"I'm afraid its location has been lost to time," Wonder Woman replied.
Hal frowned. "Then what would a mystical sea empire want with missiles?"
"They obviously want to attack us," Batman said bluntly.
"I'd like to believe you're right," Hal said, "but you've got no proof. Still… however you look at it, this is bad. So I'll assume the worst."
Superman nodded. "But we can't exactly do anything without knowing where Atlantis actually is."
"I think I know someone who can help us," Shazam said suddenly, a confident grin forming on his face.
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