Superman's Saiyan little brother

In the Avengers base, Martian Manhunter and the others looked silently at the remains of Lars, which were gradually turning to dust. They were unaware that Lars had already been reborn at his stronghold. Martian Manhunter's powers surged as he tried to locate Lars's soul.

In Martian Manhunter's view, even if Lars had died, his soul shouldn't have disappeared so quickly. Even if Lars had made some strange pact with a dimension, ensuring his soul's immediate transfer there upon death, Martian Manhunter should still sense some dimensional energy.

It's worth noting that Martian Manhunter had been in the next room, yet if it hadn't been for JARVIS's alert, he wouldn't have noticed Lars's sudden death. This indicated that no external force had been present when Lars died...

"Even if it was a suicide, his soul shouldn't have dissipated so quickly..." Martian Manhunter mused, shaking his head after a while, indicating to Tony Stark and the others that he hadn't found anything unusual.

"JARVIS! Pull up the video from earlier!" Tony Stark commanded. JARVIS soon projected a recording showing Lars just before his death.

However, even with the footage playing before them, the Avengers couldn't determine how Lars had died. Throughout the recording, Lars didn't open his eyes, and he quickly died after his body began to tremble slightly...

"It seems we can't discover anything here. Let's check on the Joker. He's our key target this time. As for this unnamed guy, his mask is in our hands now. If he's dead, he's dead..." Tony Stark said softly as the video ended with Martian Manhunter phasing through the wall.

It's not that Tony Stark didn't want to investigate Lars's death further, but they had no way to uncover the truth right now. They needed to focus on the Joker because if he also suddenly died, this operation would be a complete failure.

The Joker's life wasn't valuable in the eyes of the Avengers, but the source of his Dark Dimension powers was crucial. The Avengers had to be cautious, as any dimension attempting to invade Earth was their enemy. They needed to sever these threats and make the invaders fear to attack again.

"Is everyone here? Hmm? Didn't you capture two people? Why is there only one presence?" Robert appeared before the group as they exited Lars's cell, looking puzzled toward the Joker's cell.

"Why are you only here now? Hmm? Where's Kara?" Tony Stark frowned, pointing to Lars's cell. "This guy suddenly died. Can you see what happened?"

Tony Stark had notified Robert almost simultaneously with Peter Parker, so Robert should have arrived much earlier. Tony Stark wondered what had delayed him.

"Kara's resting..." Robert shrugged. Nothing delayed him other than comforting Kara. Until he could turn her steel body to clay, Robert had little chance to step out.

As for Tony Stark's earlier notification, Robert wasn't overly concerned. Clark was available to help, and Robert knew the strength of the Shadow Masks. Without higher-tier Dark Dimension beings, the Avengers could handle the situation.

"Suddenly died? This cell only has traces of Martian Manhunter's energy, no other force..." Robert raised an eyebrow, walking toward Lars's cell. He paused upon seeing the already weathered remains, "Did this just happen?"

"Yes, and his body decayed rapidly after death..." Martian Manhunter nodded. "Also, I couldn't sense any dimensional energy taking his soul. It just vanished."

"This effect is similar to the life force drain seen in animal warriors, but they don't decay as severely. As for the soul, it might have withered. But even if it escaped, it's insignificant. What's this guy's power level?" Robert's eyes gleamed as he reviewed the footage.

"At his peak, with the mask, he was stronger than Morbius with the mask. Without it, he's about a high-tier super soldier," Tony Stark quickly provided the answer, darkening Morbius's expression again.

"Then it doesn't matter. If he's not dead, he still can't match any of you. Let's see the other guy who got Dark Dimension powers without a mask. His aura is familiar..." Robert nodded, looking toward the Joker's cell. He couldn't see through walls but sensed the familiar yet different presence of the Joker.

"Is it really him? But why does his life force seem the same, while his core aura is different?" Robert questioned upon seeing the Joker, recognizing him but puzzled by the differing auras.

"Besides, when he became Mephisto's vessel, didn't we completely kill him? How did he come back? Did Mephisto create this body? If so, how did it get Dark Dimension powers?"

"What?! This guy isn't a new Joker imitator but the same Joker?!" The Avengers who had fought Mephisto gasped at Robert's words.

Tony Stark's pupils contracted slightly as he looked deeply at the Joker, then at Martian Manhunter. "Could Mephisto be why you couldn't read his memories?"

The Avengers had battled Mephisto-possessed Joker, with Steve Rogers first engaging. That Joker later died at Robert and Clark's hands, leading them to believe this new Joker was an imitator.

Hearing Robert's words, Tony Stark's expression grew more serious. He had suspected the Joker of using some Dark Dimension ploy, but now it seemed there might be both Dark and Hell Dimension influences at play.

Previously, under Mephisto's control, the Joker had caused immense chaos and death. The Shadow Soldiers from the Dark Dimension had also caused significant casualties. If these forces combined, the devastation would be unimaginable.

Tony Stark's worries deepened. He feared the combined invasion of the Dark and Hell Dimensions and wondered how the Avengers could handle it.

Especially since Robert had mentioned the disappearance of the Ancient One, and even if Robert and Clark could fend off the double invasion, the Earth might not survive such a battle between powerful beings.

As Tony Stark's thoughts drifted, Robert's body emitted a mysterious energy. It seemed he was performing a deeper examination of the Joker. Robert's brows furrowed further.

"Something's off! He only has Dark Dimension energy, no Hell Dimension traces. And his core aura isn't singular..." Robert said after a while, looking at Martian Manhunter. "Try investigating this way and see if you find anything new!"

"Okay!" Martian Manhunter responded. He couldn't read the Joker's chaotic memories yet, but examining him was still feasible. Originally, he had intended to examine the Joker before Lars's inexplicable death.

Releasing his powers, Martian Manhunter probed the Joker's secrets. He wasn't as familiar with the Hell Dimension as Robert, but he knew enough.

After a thorough scan, Martian Manhunter also found no Hell Dimension energy in the Joker, nor did he grasp Robert's comment about multiple core auras.

"I didn't find anything. Could there be a connection between the Hell and Dark Dimensions? Did Mephisto create this new Joker with Dark Dimension power? But why create a Joker this weak?" Martian Manhunter speculated, shaking his head.

"It doesn't make sense. Mephisto wouldn't create such a weak Joker. Unless there are more like him, but even then, their power isn't enough to aid either dimension," Martian Manhunter said confidently. The Joker's previous power reached a demon lord's level, but the current Avengers could easily handle him.

Even Tony Stark's latest armors could combat demon lords effectively. Advanced technology made battle strength reproducible, making it possible to mass-produce defenses against non-top-tier threats like the Joker.

Moreover, based on Robert and the Avengers' earlier accounts, Mephisto had previously lost to Robert and Clark using the Joker as his vessel. Knowing their strength, Mephisto wouldn't create a Joker just to lose again.

"It's been a while since I used this trick..." Robert said, releasing his energy while muttering incantations. He didn't perform any odd gestures, relying on his potent soul to cast spells without them.

A mysterious energy emanated from Robert, causing a spectral figure to emerge from the Joker's body. Like Bucky Barnes before, the Joker's body contained more than one soul.

A Joker-like soul appeared in midair, identical to the current Joker, complete with black markings. Another Joker soul emerged, without the black markings, in his original form.

"?!"

"What's this?!"

The two Joker souls, initially dazed, soon turned on each other. The marked Joker glared angrily at the unmarked one, shouting, "You bastard! You imbued me with this strange dimensional power! Do you know how much pain I endured?"

"If you can't handle a bit of pain, why be the Joker? The Joker was born from suffering..." The other Joker grinned with his trademark smile, though it stiffened upon seeing Robert.

"It's you? You killed me. No, you killed me many times, but an old bastard killed me for real... Wait! Who was he? Why am I losing part of my memory again?!"

"So, you are the Joker? Then who are you?" Robert asked, looking deeply at the seemingly mad Joker, then at the marked Joker.

"I'm not the Joker! I don't want to be the Joker anymore!" The marked Joker's eyes shone with regret, his soul appearing to fade, and a green hue began to spread over it...

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