Standing before him was none other than the original Homelander.
He had immaculately slicked-back blonde hair, the fake smile that often graced his face, and his hands clasped behind his back.
His dark blue uniform, paired with the American flag on his back, made him look exactly like Homelander from The Boys.
"Surprised?"
Homelander saw Eric's astonished expression, shrugged, and shook his head, "Most of the time, I thought I'd be the one surprised, after all, I'm seeing a clone of myself."
Homelander's lips were twisted into his usual chilling, fake smile.
"That is indeed surprising."
Eric's lips curled into a faint smile, "Because it's been a long time since I've encountered anything this interesting."
Homelander brought his hands from behind his back to the front and scrutinized Eric.
"You, Eric Kent, are not only using my abilities but also my name. You've pirated my title and are even trying to replicate the meaning of my existence. I must say, a thoroughly fake guy like you has no reason to exist, because you have always been my copy."
Homelander seemed to have no immediate intention of attacking. After walking up to Eric, his eyes stared directly at him.
"You're not Homelander, I am! You're full of weakness and have never learned to fully utilize your abilities. You're just a guy holding a pile of gold and silver treasures, trembling every day, afraid of dropping even a single piece of wealth. You've never considered how to use the gold and silver in your hands to earn more money."
Seeing Eric's silent expression, Homelander sneered and continued, "You're a complete fake! And you'll never become me! I'm the real Homelander, and I can do whatever the hell I want!"
After mocking Eric, a sarcastic look appeared in Homelander's eyes. He took a step back, scrutinized Eric, and said, "Your heart is beating a bit fast, Kent. Is it because of fear or anger?"
"If it's because of anger, I can try to spare your life, perhaps by making you my personal servant. You know, as a beloved superhero, I'm never alone."
"John, I'm sorry, but I have to refute one thing you said."
Eric looked up at the living Homelander before him.
"What?"
"You got one thing wrong, and that is—no one loves you. Madelyn, Storm, Maeve, they don't love you, they fear you. As for me, someone loves me, and—"
Eric gave Homelander a faint smile, "I have a mom, and you don't. That's our biggest difference."
Hearing Eric's somewhat malicious words, Homelander's face immediately clouded over. He gritted his back teeth, glaring at Eric with a ferocious look, as if ready to devour him.
The next second, Heat Vision shot from Homelander's eyes towards Eric.
Eric's feet left the ground, and with a whoosh, he flew into the air.
The laser sliced the furniture behind Eric in half, then continued its unchecked trajectory towards a wall.
Seeing Eric dodge the laser, Homelander suddenly crouched down, then leaped with a boom. The ground beneath his feet crumbled, and he shot into the sky like a rocket.
Boom!
The ceiling was directly punched through, and stones and other building materials crashed to the ground with a loud noise.
At an altitude of 200 meters above the ground, Homelander expressionlessly approached Eric and unleashed a punch.
The punch, roaring like a cannon, heavily struck Eric.
The air shockwave tore through the air, stirring up turbulence. Eric extended his fist to block, stopping the punch Homelander launched at him.
He then threw a punch, his right arm muscles bulging, gathering all his strength, aiming directly at Homelander's head, and unleashed a punch.
Homelander was directly knocked down from the air by a single punch, smashing into the ground, piercing through two layers of reinforced concrete, and was directly slammed into the roof, creating a large crater.
With a boom, he charged towards Homelander again.
Boom!
The uncatchable fist struck down like a meteor. Homelander's body took another punch and was directly sent smashing downwards.
Several consecutive punches directly rendered the opponent completely unable to retaliate.
Everywhere they passed, countless reinforced concrete, furniture, office desks and chairs, and water pipes were all twisted, cracked, and shattered by the aftershocks, finally landing on Homelander in the basement.
"You're not Homelander."
Glancing at the gloomy sky, a hint of moonlight flickered in Eric's eyes.
"I forgot to tell you, once night falls, my eyes can see more existences hidden in the darkness. No existence or disguise can escape my eyes."
Stepping on the brick and stone debris on the ground, Eric walked towards "Homelander."
"I can give you a small hint: when you said a lot of things and started to get angry, I saw your true form. So, these subsequent developments were just for a bit of fun, to make you play a show with me."
Eric walked up to "Azu" with a mocking smile.
The battered Homelander, lying motionless in the ruins, suddenly opened his eyes and transformed into a small boy in a striped shirt.
The next second, the little boy appeared behind Eric, his eyes flickering with complex light.
"I can see your dark heart, what you fear, Eric Kent!"
The little boy spoke words clearly unsuited for his age in a childlike voice.
"Is that so?"
Eric turned around, a curious look in his eyes.
"There's one thing I need to remind you of. Although you've transformed into a child now, I'm sorry, in my eyes, I can still see your true form. Are you a demon from hell?"
The opponent's true form was wearing a uniform similar to "Doctor Strange," with gray-white skin like cracked tree bark on his face, and pointed ears, like a demon from hell itself.
"I am Devourer of Heaven!"
The entity calling itself Devourer of Heaven, with red light emanating from its eyes, said to Eric, "It seems I've been underestimated by you. I must say, that makes me a little sad."
"Devourer of Heaven?"
Hearing this name, Eric's brows furrowed.
This guy doesn't seem to belong to the "Hecate" faction.
It is said to possess powerful magical abilities, including controlling people's minds, manipulating their consciousness, and seeing into the dark heart of others.
Its combat power fluctuates wildly; it once split the moon with a single blow, controlled the minds of Superman and Shazam, and was also defeated by the third-rate hero Starman.
Despite possessing mysterious and powerful abilities, it has always been sealed within the black diamond of the "dark heart."
He didn't expect the opponent to appear in Smallville.
"You escaped from the black diamond?"
Eric asked with a frown.
"Of course, honestly, I have to thank you. The dark heart was always hidden in the Injustice Society's warehouse. You took out all the members of the Injustice Society, but you didn't loot all the spoils, so I was taken by a little girl. You might know her father, Dragon King. She craved revenge, so we reached a cooperation. I use her, she uses me, and we both have a bright future—"
The little boy explained his origin in a childlike voice, "Heh heh, it was truly a wonderful journey. By the way, I sent her stepmother to hell because we both hated her."
"You also killed Martin's youngest daughter?"
Eric asked him.
"Of course, her father had some past grievances with me—don't misunderstand, it was with my previous host. You know, I've always been locked in the dark heart. For my masters, I have to show them my value."
The little boy grew more excited as he spoke, taking a step closer to Eric and saying, "I can see the darkness in everyone's heart, and I can see yours too—not Homelander, but something even darker."
"Is that so?"
Eric smiled faintly, "I heard you always like to play with people's hearts. Why don't you come closer and take a good look at mine."
"Eric, you are darker than anyone, but also more dangerous than anyone."
The little boy smiled faintly at Eric and said in an interested voice, "Once I devour you, my power will become incredibly strong, and obtaining this world will be within reach."
"Then you might be disappointed."
Before Eric could finish speaking, the Star Scepter was in his hand.
A blinding beam of intense light shot from the tip of the Star Scepter, striking Devourer of Heaven's body.
Boom!
The beam exploded violently, instantly illuminating the entire space.
Devourer of Heaven, struck by the Star Scepter, let out a scream and emitted a ball of black energy, coiling around the Star Scepter in Eric's hand.
The originally dazzling Star Scepter immediately dimmed a few shades.
Eric, with Heat Vision emanating from his eyes, instantly blasted a torrent of energy at Devourer of Heaven.
"Splash!"
The Heat Vision, possessing immense energy, instantly sliced the opponent's body in half.
Blood gushed out with a splash.
Organs and blood all slid across the ground.
Eric walked up to the body, cut in half by Heat Vision, and found that the opponent was a fully armed American soldier.
Lying on the ground with open eyes, he was already deader than dead.
"Was it possessing a human body, then abandoning the host and directly fleeing when danger arose?"
He glanced at the Star Scepter in his hand; its light had dimmed considerably.
While damaging Devourer of Heaven, the Star Scepter also suffered a backlash, and it probably wouldn't be able to exert its full power for a short time.
Eric shook his head and simultaneously used his Super Vision to look at the other ruins in the room.
Beneath the architectural debris lay five soldiers, presumably soldiers who were originally preparing to enter this house for investigation. After being controlled by Devourer of Heaven, they were placed in the shadows of the courtyard.
He didn't expect his sudden intrusion and the subsequent battle to unfortunately bury them all in the ruins.
Are they Amanda's people?
Eric's eyes narrowed. He bowed his head in thought for a moment, then turned and left.
Even if they weren't buried in the ruins, being controlled by this guy probably wouldn't have ended well for them.
Thank me.
For letting you die so quickly.
After Eric walked out of the collapsed mansion, he looked up at the increasingly gloomy sky, activated his Super Speed, and vanished in an instant.
A few minutes later.
From within the buried ruins, Amanda's exasperated voice came from an undamaged radio.
"Falcon Team, Falcon Team, respond if you hear me! Respond if you hear me!"
Bang!
Inside the temporary command center, Amanda slammed her hand on the table.
"All contacts lost! Just a simple investigation mission, and such an uncontrollable accident happened. Just going to Allan Rickman's house to retrieve some documents, I don't know what danger they would encounter! Was my arrangement problematic, or did their stupidity exceed my expectations?"
Amanda's eyes blazed with fury.
Deadshot looked at the furious Amanda and said, "I'll go to the site and check."
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