Chapter 446: Prelude to the Cold Wind (Part 3)

Soon, the three began their actions. Facts proved that the Joker was able to gain an advantage in the early stages only because he caught them off guard. Even Bruce hadn't expected his arch-enemy to find his way here, so at the beginning, they were chased somewhat miserably by the agents.

But this situation lasted for a very short time. Even if the Joker possessed surveillance equipment like a cheat code, it was still difficult to resist the joint efforts of Bruce, Lex, and Clark.

Bruce was both offensive and defensive, Lex had invincible wisdom, and Clark was invulnerable. Although they were all "youth versions" that hadn't fully grown, the three of them coordinated, and even if the ordinary agents had high-powered weapons, it was difficult to deal with them.

Soon, the agents chasing behind them were played around by them using the delays in surveillance and communication, and most were knocked unconscious.

However, shaking off the agents' pursuit was not their primary goal. Now they had a common goal, which was to investigate the manor's underground.

Bruce was there to deal with the Joker, Clark was there to find the radiation source that could affect him and possibly Metropolis, and Lex wanted to find the treasure and the things Schiller left behind from the underground. Although the detailed goals of the three were different, the big goal remained unchanged: they had to head underground first.

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But to head underground, they had to find the entrance first. The entrance must be on the ground floor, which was the first floor.

The structure of the first floor of the entire manor was different from the other floors. In the center was a banquet hall, and walking to both sides were two large doors that could lead to the central courtyard. However, there were other buildings on both sides, and among these buildings were other rooms, all of which the few had not explored.

The main building of the mayor's mansion was very large, not the kind of manor for a private residence. To fully explore this place, if the three stayed together, it would probably take a whole day. So for efficiency, the three decided to split up.

This was also based on evidence; most of the agents had been dealt with by them on other floors. The remaining ordinary agents on the first floor were all performing their duties; they hadn't received special orders on who to deal with and were just patrolling their respective posts.

Bruce and Lex both had official identities, and if they were bumped into, they could bluff their way through. Clark was even more so; his speed was fast, and the agents might not even be able to see him. Therefore, even splitting up wouldn't be too dangerous.

The only problem was that Bruce and Lex couldn't fully trust each other. When making this decision, Bruce said first: "You must promise me that if you find the entrance first, you must notify us, instead of going down alone."

"Even if I promised, would you believe it? I don't trust you either."

Lex also stared at his face and said. When two extreme skeptics met, they didn't trust any of each other's words or actions.

"Please! Is this the time to talk about this?"

"Under the largest building in Metropolis, there might be a huge radiation source! Once it leaks completely, the entire city will be in danger!" Clark said very helplessly.

The two were about to say something else, but Clark reached out to stop them and said: "Don't forget, that madman is still watching us. If we argue here, he will definitely laugh very happily!"

Clark's original intention was just to tell the two not to be laughed at by others, not to let those close to them suffer while the enemy rejoiced. But it had to be said that he had an innate talent for dealing with people, and his words hit Bruce's heart exactly.

After knowing that the person might be the Joker, Bruce had raised his vigilance to the highest level. He was a bit allergic to the words "madman" and "laugh" now. When these two words came out of Clark's mouth, Bruce felt as if he heard that crazy laughter ringing in his ears.

He could almost imagine how happily the Joker, sitting in the surveillance room, would laugh after watching the few argue. Just thinking about this, Bruce felt his mouth twitch, and he immediately said:

"We can cooperate temporarily and start acting immediately."

After speaking, he turned and left, as if he didn't want to delay another second. Lex snorted coldly, watched his departing back, and said to Clark in a low voice: "There is astonishing darkness behind him. Even if he acts righteous, don't forget, he comes from Cat Getan..."

"Cat Getan is full of madmen."

After the words fell, he also left, leaving only Clark in place. Clark scratched his head and shrugged his shoulders, seemingly not quite understanding the hints in Lex's tone.

In fact, he was very uncomfortable with this kind of communication between smart people and didn't want to think carefully about the hints in their words. In the process of communicating with Bruce and Lex, Clark always felt that he was a bit stupid.

After separating from the two, Clark felt more relaxed. He chose a direction different from both and walked over, passed through the banquet hall, and arrived at the east corridor.

Clark thought that the door to the underground shouldn't be in the corridor; it must be hidden in some room. Therefore, he planned to use the exhaustive method to check room by room.

He pushed open the door of the first room, which was a very ordinary utility room. Because the door hadn't been opened for too long, a burst of dust rushed over when he opened it. Clark waved his hand, walked in, checked, and found nothing.

The next few rooms were the same, and Clark couldn't help but feel a bit disappointed. Moreover, the deeper he walked into this dark corridor, the quieter it became, with only the cold light from the window at the end.

In an extremely quiet atmosphere, people would involuntarily slow down their thinking speed while strengthening their senses. Just when Clark was undergoing such a change, suddenly, a harsh telephone ring sounded from a room in front.

Clark frowned and walked over. After pushing open the door, it was an empty guest room. At this time, the phone on the telephone stand was ringing non-stop. Clark picked up the phone and said to the other side: "Hello..."

"Hello, hello."

After the other side finished speaking, there was silence for a while. Clark asked somewhat puzzled: "Hello, who are you? Why are you calling?"

"Are you Clark?"

"Uh, I am. What's the matter?"

"Do you know Lex?"

"Who exactly are you?" Clark asked with some vigilance.

"I am a resident living on the 5th floor, and also a participant invited to attend this banquet. Listen, Clark..." The tone on the other side was a bit low.

"But at the same time, I am also an agent of the Central Intelligence Agency conducting an undercover mission. I have encountered some trouble and hope you can help me."

Upon hearing "agent," Clark's brow furrowed. He just wanted to refuse, but the other side said: "I know you might have had friction with other agents, but we are not in the same group."

"I arrived in Metropolis long ago and went undercover. The purpose is to investigate the anomalies of the Luthor Group. We suspect that the serial murders that occurred in Metropolis some time ago might be related to people from the Luthor Group."

"Before, our investigation had no progress. Since Lionel Luthor is the host of this banquet, I came here, wanting to track down more clues."

"After a night of investigation, we have mastered clues about this murderer. He is very likely to be Lionel Luthor's son, Lex Luthor."

"Usually, he appears as an autistic patient to lower others' vigilance. In fact, he does not suffer from autism. On the contrary, he is a high-IQ criminal, an evil genius."

Clark just wanted to open his mouth to refute, but the person on the other side continued to speak at a fast speed: "I know you don't believe it, but we have mastered the evidence. If you go to the washroom of the reception room now, you can see Lionel Luthor's corpse."

"He was killed by his son with his own hands, and Lex even dismembered his father himself."

"Now, I hope you can go to that washroom, take away some of Lionel's tissue fragments, and keep them as evidence to be used to accuse Lex of murder in the future."

"How is this possible?" Clark said in a tone of extreme disbelief: "Why would he kill his father? And dismember him? He is not that kind of person."

Clark really didn't believe it. In his brief contact with Lex, he felt that although this person was very conceited, he was also worthy of the name. And because Clark grew up in a small town, he had no understanding of serial murder cases. In his impression, serial killers were those perverts with fierce faces and hideous features.

But Lex's figure was relatively thin, his face looked quite childish, he looked completely like a kid, and his words and actions basically conformed to the logic of normal people, showing no evil or madness. Clark didn't think he would be a serial killer at all.

Not to mention, the person on the phone actually said that Lex killed his own biological father and dismembered him. How could such a cruel thing be done by a high school student?

"Clark, you have to know, many murderers are not easily arrested because they have very deceptive disguises, and I am in this line of work."

"I said, if you don't believe it, you can go to the scene and see. If things really differ from what I said, you can choose not to help me. I can't force you."

The person's tone was very sincere. He said: "When you were fighting with the agents, I heard what you said in the room. You are a hero willing to speak up for ordinary people. Therefore, I contacted you with limited time."

"I have already checked your information. I know you are just a college student. You have no obligation or responsibility to do such dangerous work, but, Clark... I beg you, help me."

"Of course, if you really feel this is too dangerous, then you can also choose not to go. I won't force a child to go to the battlefield..."

"As far as I know, Lex is not committing crimes alone. He must have accomplices. They are very likely to find me soon. My time is running out... Goodbye, Clark."

After hanging up the phone, a tangled expression appeared on Clark's face.

He had known Lex for a very short time, and he knew this himself. Therefore, he couldn't be sure if Lex's acting was too good and had deceived him.

The tone of the person on the other side was very normal, and what he said also made sense. Clark couldn't help but hesitate. He was thinking, if Lex really was a liar, would more ordinary people be in danger if he was left to act in the manor?

He hesitated for a while and finally decided to go upstairs. Clark felt that it wouldn't hurt to go and take a look as the person said. Even if a trap was waiting for him there, he should be able to escape.

Thinking this, he climbed the stairs, passed through the corridor, and arrived at the reception room. The reception room was still in a mess, and cold wind blew into the room from the broken window. Amidst the howling cold wind, Clark walked to the door of the washroom, twisted the doorknob, and opened the door.

The first thing captured by his keen senses was the thick, nauseating smell of blood. Immediately after, a corpse with its arm cut off came into view, and there was a saw thrown on the ground beside it.

Just as Clark covered his mouth, wanting to dry heave, he heard footsteps coming from outside the reception room door.

He turned his head and saw Lex walking in... and the fresh blood stained on his trouser legs. ===== CHAPTER 447 =====