Bai Qi’s attack was indeed swift. By the time Superman reacted and began to counter, Bai Qi had already finished a set of combined punches.
However, it had to be said that compared to fighting cautiously on Earth, Superman’s overall strength had multiplied countless times when fighting without restraint in space.
Bai Qi had to become serious in his fight against him.
Their battle was silent in the vacuum of space, yet neither was underestimated.
With every clash, the collision of fists generated immense energy fluctuations.
Initially, they fought amidst the wreckage of the Qirui fleet. With each subsequent exchange, they carved out a vacuum zone.
“Too magnificent, truly magnificent.”
On the main ship, Kromitz, watching their engagement, was in a state of ecstasy. His gaze had not left the screen since the fight began.
His adjutant, seeing the prolonged stalemate between Bai Qi and Superman, cautiously asked, “Vice-Captain, should we assist Master?”
Hearing the adjutant’s words, Kromitz’s smile vanished. He said indifferently, “No. Can’t you see that Master is merely playing? If Master were to go all out, this battle would have ended long ago. Why should we disturb Master’s enjoyment?”
This was not mere conjecture from Kromitz; it was based on fact.
Superman had heat vision, and Bai Qi had laser vision. Superman had freeze breath, and Bai Qi had dragon breath. Coupled with super strength and speed, their fight appeared evenly matched. However, this parity only existed as long as Bai Qi refrained from using magic.
As is well known, in DC, Superman's physical attributes were top-tier, but he was at the bottom when it came to magic, possessing almost zero magical resistance. When fighting magical opponents, he typically relied on his tough hide, enduring damage to close the distance and subdue his foe.
But now, his specialties were similar to Bai Qi’s, and in terms of pure strength, Bai Qi even held a slight edge over Superman. Furthermore, with the barrage of magical attacks,
Superman gradually found himself at a disadvantage. If not for being in space, constantly absorbing the yellow sun’s energy to recover his stamina and injuries, Superman would have long since been defeated. In fact, Bai Qi could have conjured a spatial barrier to isolate all yellow sunlight, cutting off Superman’s power source. Defeating him would then simply be a matter of time.
After all, the energy shield Bai Qi had used previously could even trap Keisha. Coupled with the vast amount of stellar energy Bai Qi had absorbed and processed, he understood the sun extremely well.
Finally, and most importantly, Bai Qi was on his home turf this time, with the Black Energy Mother as his backing, giving him a sense of security.
He was engaging in physical combat with Superman solely to test the extent of his current strength enhancement. Now that the test was nearly complete, this meaningless battle was about to conclude.
Just as Superman, enduring magical attacks, finally reached Bai Qi and prepared to throw a few punches at Bai Qi’s handsome face, his fist was raised. In the next moment, Bai Qi casually waved his hand, and a large mass of black, gelatinous substance flew out. It first stuck to Superman’s chest and then rapidly spread.
Facing the disgusting black substance on his body, Superman exerted all his strength, desperate to tear it off.
If this substance were merely disgusting, it wouldn’t have made Superman so urgent to remove it.
The moment it adhered to him, it began absorbing the energy within Superman’s body, using it to further spread and grow. The more it absorbed, the faster it grew, and the faster it grew, the quicker its absorption rate became, creating a vicious cycle.
Without intervention, even Superman would eventually be drained dry.
“Go down obediently.”
Watching Superman ensnared, Bai Qi unceremoniously threw a punch, sending him hurtling back to Earth.
With the gelatinous matter attached, over half of Superman’s body was covered. It not only restricted his movement and absorbed his energy but also blocked the yellow sun’s rays from reaching him.
Superman, now fully enveloped, struggled less and less, eventually transforming into a black cocoon that crashed heavily onto the ground.
Seeing Superman fall and disappear, Bai Qi did not pursue. Instead, his gaze shifted, landing on a black Batwing.
That’s right. Batman had arrived from the moment Bai Qi and Superman began their fight. However, Batman had not intervened at all during their battle, even after Superman was encased in the gelatinous matter and fell.
This was the difference between Batman and Superman: calmness, extreme calmness.
He knew very well that with his mortal body, he could not possibly intervene in a battle that resembled a clash between deities. Even piloting the most advanced Batwing on Earth, he remained as fragile as a piece of paper, swaying precariously from the residual shockwaves of their fight, feeling as if he could be torn apart at any moment.
But why was Batman doing this? He wasn’t helping, was he merely there to spectate?
Of course not. To risk his life just to spectate; only a fool would do such a thing.
The reason for his actions was simple: contingency plans.
As the Dark Knight, Batman’s primary concern was not how to outwit the Gotham City fan club, but rather to investigate the superheroes within the Justice League, gather their information, and develop tailored emergency plans for each of them. This was to ensure that if a superhero lost control, they could be subdued in the fastest and most effective way possible, minimizing damage.
Especially for the elder statesmen of the Justice League, their emergency plans were meticulously refined and updated by Batman. He even carried Kryptonite with him to subdue a rampaging Superman.
A major DC event specifically dealt with this matter. A villain infiltrated the Batcave, hacked into the main computer, stole the emergency plans Batman had created for all Justice League members, and then, following the steps outlined in those plans, easily defeated everyone. It was only when Batman, who had escaped, returned to take charge that everything was resolved.
Given Batman’s caution even towards his own allies, how could he not prepare for Bai Qi, a powerful and virtually immortal demon?
However, during the period after Bai Qi’s revival, he was too reclusive. Once he became more powerful, he entered the "Super God" world, leaving Batman with very little useful information. Now that he had an opportunity, he naturally had to seize it.
As for Superman, who was beaten from start to finish and demoralized by verbal onslaughts, Batman stated that it was all due to his carelessness. After all, Superman was tough and wouldn’t die from a beating. Mental issues were a bit trickier, but it wasn’t a major concern. At worst, he would spend more money later and hire the best psychologist to help Superman recover.