Chapter 315: Barry's Confusion

When walking into the Star Hall of the Star Laboratory, Joe saw Dr. Wells smiling and approaching in his wheelchair, while Cisco and Caitlin, upon seeing Barry, showed clear signs of happiness; obviously, the relationship among the young people was quite good.

But he currently had no patience to be kind to others, so he cut straight to the chase and launched his questioning.

"The person affected by the particle accelerator explosion wasn't just Barry, was it?"

Hearing this question, Professor Wells frowned; he turned his head to look at Cisco and Caitlin, and the three quickly exchanged glances—Cisco and Caitlin were still somewhat young, and their faces couldn't help but show the expression of "Oh no, we've been discovered."

How could such an expression fool an old detective like Joe? With a single sweep of his eyes, he saw their guilt; just as he was about to continue questioning, he was stopped by Barry.

"Doctor, you said the particle accelerator explosion is over, and there will be no more danger in Central City now." He shook his head: "But that's wrong, Doctor. Judging by everything I've seen today, the situation is getting worse and worse."

Wells frowned: "What happened?"

"You explain clearly first, what exactly happened that night." Joe interrupted Wells' question: "Then we'll decide whether to tell you about the matter."

The Doctor looked at Joe's face, which held a hint of anger, and seemed to understand something, so he nodded and operated the microcomputer beside his wheelchair armrest a few times.

The large screen in the hall lit up, and a simulated scene appeared on it—precisely the accident simulation of the particle accelerator explosion that night.

The Doctor's voice sounded at the right moment, narrating what happened at the time: "Accelerator activated, accelerator running, we celebrated for a short while—and then the accelerator exploded."

"A spatial barrier between dimensions was broken, and unknown energy gushed from that gap into our world; call it whatever you want—antimatter, dark matter energy, Element X."

"But these are just theoretical speculations in the scientific community."

"Mr. Allen, when no one can determine a truth, we can only move toward the truth based on inference." The Doctor replied calmly: "Don't assume they must be false just because they are inferences, because a few days ago, you were also an 'impossibility'."

Barry fell silent.

"In short," the Doctor continued: "We have already conducted investigations in the urban area of Central City, but we cannot determine what this energy actually is, nor can we determine who has been affected by it; in fact, we have been looking for other 'superhumans' like you."

Barry and Joe exchanged a glance.

He sighed and said to the Doctor: "We met one today, uh, according to your terms, we met a 'superhuman'—he was originally a bank robber, and now he can even control the weather."

"Oh," Cisco, hearing this news, couldn't help but have his eyes light up: "This is getting cooler and cooler."

"He robbed a bank, Cisco." Barry emphasized with a bit of a headache: "Although no one has died yet, this guy is an absolute thug; he once shot a detective when he had a gun in his hand, and now, having gained even greater power from that explosion, he is still at large."

"He is, very, dangerous."

"Oh."

Seeing the anger and seriousness on Barry's face, Cisco obediently sat back down on the stool.

"We have to stop him."

Hearing Barry's words, Dr. Wells adjusted his glasses, and a hint of a smile flashed in his eyes. "Mr. Allen, that is the police force's job."

"I am also police force personnel."

"You know what I mean."

The Doctor continued unhurriedly: "You are the police force's medical examiner assistant, but you are now clearly wanting to rely on superpowers to fight criminals—don't argue, your meaning is too obvious, it's all written on your face."

Hearing this, Joe, who had originally wanted to say a few words for Barry, suddenly fell silent; he and the Doctor exchanged glances, and the two instantly reached a consensus—they both did not want Barry to go to the battlefield.

"Doctor, you bear responsibility for this matter." Barry advised: "You should help us catch him together, not stop me."

"That superhuman criminal is unimportant, Barry." The Doctor refuted expressionlessly: "But you are different; you are a thousand times, ten thousand times more important than him."

"You can blame me however you like; I won't shift the blame, but you shouldn't take risks for my mistakes."

"I have already lost everything—my company, my reputation, my legs that can walk freely; in a sense, Wells is now insignificant."

"But you are different, Barry—your very existence is a huge contribution to humanity—remember? Before, we tested your speed; you hit an obstacle, and your arm broke."

"Three hours later, your cells regenerated at a speed dozens, hundreds of times faster than normal people, and your hand bones healed directly."

"Do you know what this means? If combined with genetic technology, your cells could help humanity discover a brand new gene therapy, vaccines, medicines, special techniques for rapid wound recovery; these are wealth, Barry, the wealth of all humanity!"

"You could easily make a fortune with it and be written into world history, Barry—don't take such a huge risk just because you want to play the hero."

"Don't give up the beautiful life that was originally within your grasp; don't go playing the hero, Mr. Allen; you were never a hero."

Wells' tone was cold and rational: "You are just a young man struck by lightning, that's all."

As the words fell, silence filled the laboratory hall; Dr. Wells' words coldly and ruthlessly tore apart Barry's passion. From any angle, his advice was the most beneficial to Barry; from any angle, Barry indeed seemed to just live his life quietly and enjoy the good fortune this lightning had brought him.

Both Joe and Barry were somewhat confused by Wells' words at this moment; Joe, who originally didn't want Barry to take risks, naturally felt these words sounded right no matter how he heard them, and Barry's expression couldn't help but become confused; he asked himself over and over in his heart: "Do I really have to insist on using my superpowers to fight? Maybe Dr. Wells' advice is indeed better?"

"Barry." Joe patted his shoulder and said to him: "I think the Doctor's words do have some merit."

"I'm sorry, Joe." Barry shook his head, turned, and transformed into a streak of light and shadow, running out of the Star Laboratory.

"Barry! Barry! Come back!"

Joe's voice echoed in his ears, but Barry didn't want to return.

Under the night sky, he ran wildly along the streets of Central City; the entire city seemed to become exceptionally quiet at this moment—when he ran past the streets where he lived as a child, a feeling of grievance surged in his heart.

So he ran while shedding tears.

(End of this chapter)