Chapter 234: Your Black Hand Is Not In Service!
The Emotional Spectrum throughout the universe began to tremble violently. The spectrum of Lantern Rings erupted with an abnormal agitation, far exceeding anything seen before.
An astonishing, multicolored light tore through the universe's darkness, dispersing the gloom and coalescing into a dazzling splendor.
Volthoom, after a billion years, had finally appeared in the Main Universe once again. Within his translucent body, the kaleidoscopic blood flowing through countless vessels constantly flickered with a mesmerizing radiance. In terms of the Emotional Spectrum, this was the most direct display of power.
Looking across the current Main Universe, aside from Kyle—who had just mastered the seven rings of visible light, successfully advancing to become a White Lantern, and was currently leading numerous corps to Oa—no one else could single-handedly wield the colored light of all wavelengths.
But what was a monumental task for others was as simple as eating and drinking for Volthoom. He was the Emotional Spectrum itself; his will was the will of the Emotional Spectrum.
After a billion years of imprisonment, Volthoom had undergone a transformation, becoming even more terrifying. His fusion with the Emotional Spectrum had reached its ultimate stage.
Myriad rays of iridescent light erupted from Earth, suffusing the universe, yet they could not conceal the cold faces of the Guardians.
"A miscalculation. I didn't expect Volthoom to escape so quickly."
"Every time we used his power, we were helping him break his cage. I was well aware of this, but we still underestimated the effect our energy extraction had on him."
"Hmph, there is another explanation. Volthoom has grown far too strong. Merely siphoning a fraction of his power provided him with the opportunity to escape."
The Guardians present showed no emotional fluctuation, naturally feeling no shock or anger. They simply stared indifferently at Volthoom, prepared to either fight or flee.
Fighting him was out of the question. Even if they were stronger now than they were a billion years ago, they no longer had the Supreme Green Lantern and a group of transmigrated Green Lanterns to help them besiege a Volthoom who was far more powerful than before.
How could the Guardians use the Emotional Spectrum to deal with the First Lantern?
But Volthoom paid them no mind. Instead, he flew into the sky, gazing at the green figure speeding toward him. The astonishment in his heart surpassed his resentment for the Guardians.
"Who is that? A Green Lantern? Hal and Sinestro are already dead. We killed Guy. Could it be Kyle, who escaped? But he should be on his way to Oa right now."
"Something's not right. This green light feels very wrong, incredibly evil. It must be a mutated ring of the Green Light of Will."
The Guardians exchanged a glance, intending to flee, but Volthoom had anticipated this. With a single slap, a massive beam of colored light pressed down upon them, pinning the Little Blue Men who had just leaped up to scatter.
Volthoom was no longer in a hurry to kill these guys. "I never expected," he mused, "that something so interesting would happen while I was sealed away... That part of my soul I cut away back then is actually still alive, and it came to the Main Universe to find me?"
Volthoom was extremely surprised. The moment he perceived the Power Ring speeding toward him, he roughly understood what was happening. After all, the entire Emotional Spectrum was within his perception.
Frank had indeed flown over, stopping in front of Volthoom. He first glanced quickly at the huddled Guardians and spat. "Pah! You filthy beasts, you've caused such a massive disaster! But it looks like you've run into something unexpected yourselves. Your retribution has come."
"The one using my ring now is you? Frank?" Volthoom sized up Frank, even more astonished. If he had been given some time to choose a suitable underling, he might very well have taken an interest in Frank, because this fellow's aptitude with the Emotional Spectrum was indeed somewhat interesting.
But that was only a possibility. The universe is vast, and there are many life forms with astonishing potential.
In fact, if not for Du Wa's interference, the very same Volthoom who could dominate everything in the Main Universe—after being one-shotted by a Hal who had joined forces with Black Hand—would have, during the long wait for his complete resurrection, chosen and manipulated Frank to be his spokesperson, sending him to steal the Phantom Ring secretly forged by a Little Blue Man who had long since defected from the Guardians' faction.
And now, Du Wa had preemptively recruited Frank, who had desperately sought a Green Lantern Ring to no avail, placing him in direct opposition to Volthoom.
"You know me?" Frank looked down at his ring cautiously. "I don't believe you could breach the Power Ring's database in an instant."
"There's no need to breach it. I have no interest in the information recorded in the Power Ring, but reading the state of your ring is a simple matter. It is a part of me." Volthoom opened his hand.
The Power Ring immediately erupted with a strange green light, trembling, showing a faint tendency to leave Frank's hand—normally, this is what would happen.
But the green light from the Power Ring coalesced into another Volthoom—one with a human appearance.
"My apologies, Main Body," Power Ring Volthoom said, looking at Volthoom with shock and uncertainty, stunned. "We meet again after countless years, but I cannot return to you... because I have pledged allegiance to a new master."
*Such a ferocious, multicolored being... is another me?*
"Hmph. The God of Xenomorphs..." Volthoom sneered. "As an appendage I cut off for an experiment, you actually pledged yourself to a deity completely unrelated to the Emotional Spectrum. When I had Mordru create the Power Ring back then, I certainly didn't give you the mission to pledge allegiance to other gods."
"You also didn't give me a mission *not* to pledge allegiance to other gods!"
"Then I'm giving that order now, because I am now a God!"
Volthoom reached out, grabbing for the Power Ring. It was a seemingly ordinary motion, but in Frank's eyes, it was utterly unavoidable. As a wielder of the Emotional Spectrum's power, he was completely locked down by Volthoom in that instant.
But fortunately, Frank also possessed the power of the Xenomorph. He let out a roar, unleashing a powerful aura, and barely managed to shift his body and retreat rapidly.
"Your Main Body is this impatient and tyrannical? No matter how I look at it, you don't seem like a savior searching for a way to save our homeland. You're more like a domineering butcher," Frank communicated with the Power Ring. Facing an opponent of Volthoom's caliber right from the start was somewhat beyond his comprehension.
However, thanks to the Xenomorph within him, he was able to remain as calm as possible at all times.
Power Ring Volthoom was also filled with fear toward Volthoom. "People change. I became an evil program for an evil Lantern Ring, and he became a madman overflowing with negative emotion... Volthoom is a man, born an ordinary human, not a god."
Ordinary people are the creatures most easily influenced, especially when it comes to their emotions.
At this moment, Main Universe Superman and the others also arrived. They had originally come to deal with the Guardians, but now it seemed Volthoom was the greatest threat. The man could unleash terrifying power with every gesture.
Those silver Xenomorphs, even the ones possessing special abilities that had been converted from superhumans, had no way to resist Volthoom. They were eliminated with a single glance from him.
"You cannot hope to use my power to kill me. If you hadn't used my power to fuse with the Xenomorphs, I could have destroyed all your work in an instant." Volthoom completely disregarded the Justice League.
This had nothing to do with the strength of the Main Universe's Justice League; it was only related to his certainty of his own immortality.
As long as the Emotional Spectrum existed, he would never truly die. Instead, he would be resurrected from it time and time again, always returning.
A massive, chaotic battle erupted.
Volthoom repeatedly tried to take back the Power Ring and reabsorb the part of his soul he had once lost.
"You can't do this! I am the program of the Power Ring now, and also a servant of the God of Xenomorphs!"
"You should have stayed obediently in Universe 3; I might have overlooked your existence then. But you just had to come to the Main Universe. Now that you're here, don't even think about leaving." With one blow, Volthoom knocked Main Universe Superman to the ground. He looked up at the approaching Ultraman and the others and felt things were becoming a bit troublesome.
These guys just kept coming, more and more of them. This would cost him a few extra seconds.
"I came to the Main Universe to save you! I learned from Du Wa that you were sealed in this universe, which is why I did everything I could to pledge myself to the God of Xenomorphs, even going so far as to help him lure Black Hand to Universe 3! It was all to borrow a powerful army from him to defeat the Guardians and the Green Lantern Corps and rescue you! That has nothing to do with me rejoining you!"
Power Ring Volthoom was furious and shrieked, "I risked being destroyed by Du Wa and Black Hand to save you, all so you could go and save our homeland! But what are you doing? Your head is full of nothing but the Main Universe! Do you have any feelings left for Universe 15?"
Of course he did, but not many.
A billion years ago, Volthoom had absorbed all the emotions stripped from the people of Maltus and had long since gone mad, becoming a rational madman brimming with emotion.
As for his homeland, Earth-15 in the 31st century? Heh, maybe next time.
He would deal with these guys in the Main Universe first, and then find the culprit who destroyed Earth-15.
Vengeance was far more important than salvation.
"You did a great job. Next time, don't," Volthoom sneered. "You brought more Xenomorphs into the Main Universe, sparked a war between the Third Army and the native Xenomorphs, and allowed the God of Xenomorphs to enter the Main Universe. You've done more than enough. Now, just become a part of me again and complete my soul."
"You don't understand anything at all." Suddenly, Power Ring Volthoom was no longer angry. Truth be told, he was no longer that human with innocent thoughts, but a distorted, living program.
He had already done everything he was supposed to do. What happened next would depend on the conversation between the gods.
The "communication" between Du Wa and Volthoom.
The Main Universe plunged into a new round of violent tremors. Once again, it was a great battle related to the Emotional Spectrum.
The White Lantern Kyle, rushing toward Oa, now sensed the fluctuations in the universe with shock and uncertainty. It wasn't just him; the other Lantern Corps had noticed it too. The Lantern Rings in their hands were all trembling, transmitting intermittent information.
"How could this be? It's happening again... and it's lasting so long this time."
"Some incredibly terrifying beings must be fighting, and it must be related to the Emotional Spectrum! Have the Guardians done something again? Isn't it enough that they created these monsters that are spreading across the universe like a plague?! Look at the planet ahead! It's already crawling with soldiers of the Third Army!"
Kyle led the others to look at a nearby life-bearing planet. It, too, had been invaded by the silver Xenomorphs. Logically, it would soon fall completely, its entire population transformed into silver Xenomorphs.
Previously, upon seeing such a sight, they wouldn't have just stood by. They would have dispatched a few Lanterns from their ranks to quickly exterminate the spreading silver Xenomorphs, saving the planet before rejoining the main force.
They knew this was only treating the symptoms, not the root cause. It was possible that just a few hours after they left, new silver Xenomorphs would arrive and assimilate all life on the planet. But it was all they could do.
Should they leave a few Lanterns behind to stand guard? Don't be ridiculous. They would be swarmed and buried alive by the sheer number of silver Xenomorphs.
Just as Kyle was about to assign missions, he suddenly shuddered.
All the Lanterns watched in astonishment as the ordinary people on the planet, who should have been incredibly weak, instantly gained immense strength. Each one became incredibly brave, howling as they engaged the silver Xenomorphs in battle.
"It's Xenomorphs. Creatures called Xenomorphs have appeared out of thin air inside their bodies. That's a race from Earth. The source of the Third Army's soldiers, created by the Guardians, must also be the Xenomorphs from Earth."
"Hey, wait, I have a very strange feeling. It's like if I just think it, I can... I knew it! Something is trying to enter my body, but my Lantern Ring is blocking it!"
"Xenomorphs! It's the Xenomorphs!"
More and more Lanterns fell into agitation. The current situation was completely beyond their comprehension.
Similar events were happening on more life-bearing planets. What should have been a battle between the Lanterns and the Guardians' creations had turned into a battle between Xenomorphs and the spectrum-based Xenomorphs.
Kyle's expression was grave. "Things are getting out of hand. If everyone in the entire universe is parasitized... even if we deal with the Guardians and defeat the Third Army, it will be difficult to return the world to how it was."
Just then.
The communication system on everyone's Lantern Ring activated, and a cold voice came through.
"This is Sinestro. I have returned from the Dead World. Now, tell me, where is Volthoom!"
At the same time.
In the Dead World, this was Black Hand's domain.
"That bastard Sinestro created an illusion of Carol to shake my will, used a Green Lantern Ring to escape, and left me here all alone..."
Hal stood on the edge of a cliff, looking down into the endless abyss.
He was in the world of the dead, but he wasn't truly dead yet.
If he jumped, he would truly die. Then, he would be qualified to wear a Black Lantern Ring, become a Black Lantern zombie, and command the power of Black Hand.
And so, Hal jumped. He had no other choice. Without a Green Lantern Ring, he couldn't escape this place, which was cut off from the world of the living. His only option was to kill himself.
And then, Hal really died.
"That's right, this is it, this way I can..."
In a daze, Hal's last remaining consciousness felt his body shatter into pieces, his blood splattering far and wide.
Sure enough, a surge of death's power washed over him, eventually coalescing into a black ring.
"Hal Jordan of Earth. Resurrection—failed. Black Hand is en route to the Main Universe."
"Fuck!"
(end of chapter)