"Who?"
The fat clown devil was startled.
The voice appeared unexpectedly close to his ear, catching him off guard as he hadn't realized when an enemy had approached.
"Kamar-Taj, someone from the New York Sanctum?"
Given his knowledge of New York, an idea quickly formed in his mind.
But as a strong wind blew his way and he turned to look, in the pitch-dark sky under the moonlight, a figure was magnifying until it stood mid-air, eyes fiery and locked onto him, exuding an air of authority.
The fat on the clown devil jiggled, his face immediately taking on a serious expression.
"It not Kamar-Taj, not those damn magicians... it actually a superhero."
"Shazam?!"
The fat clown had been lurking on Earth for many years.
He had observed many changes on Earth.
In recent years, the booming culture of superheroes could not have escaped his notice.
Among them, what attracted his attention were not the likes of Batman but rather the magical heroes of the Justice League.
John Constantine.
Shazam.
Wonder Woman.
Constantine roamed the edges of Heaven and Hell, yet thrived on Earth, cleverly manipulating both Satan and God.
However, as a minion of the lord of Hell, the fat clown devil had a far greater understanding of Hell and Heaven than the ignorant humans of Earth.
He was very clear that there was no such person as John Constantine in this world.
At least, not in this universe.
And following right behind, Shazam, or rather the little boy Billy...
That was even more nonsensical.
In the stories published by DC, Shazam powers come from six deities, with this strength inherited from the mysterious great wizard—Shazam.
By simply calling out the wizard Shazam name, Billy could possess all the wizard powers and transform into a superhero.
It did sound like some sort of summoning ritual.
But still, the self-proclaimed well-informed clown devil knew very well that there was no powerful wizard named Shazam in this world, let alone this wizard powers coming from the six gods of Greek mythology.
And Wonder Woman, she reminded him of ancient figures from Greek mythology.
Having appeared early on and even clashed with Thor of Asgard, even entering Asgard, this did make the clown devil somewhat uncertain.
Initially, aside from Wonder Woman, the fat clown devil did not regard the other two characters, namely Constantine and Shazam, highly.
In his view, they were just humans boasting of some magical powers.
What alarmed him most was not even these superheroes, but rather the damn magicians from Kamar-Taj.
Especially since he had been hiding in New York, the guardians of the New York Sanctum often tracked him down, forcing him to constantly change locations to evade their capture.
It wasn't that he was afraid with his power, he was not yet fearful of human magicians.
Except for the legendary Sorcerer Supreme.
Mainly, his mission on Earth was not to destroy, but to guide Simmons, returned from Hell, to fulfill his mission.
This man chosen by the lord of Hell was key to destroying everything and reshaping the Earth.
The clown devil was merely a guide.
However, soon, while waiting for Simmons to return from Hell and evading capture by the guardians of the New York Sanctum, his disregard for Constantine and Shazam underwent a significant change.
Half a year ago.
A battle erupted in Los Angeles, the tremendous demonic energy catching his attention.
It was the power of Mephisto, accompanied by the Witchheart Demon, and several other demonic presences.
According to information the clown devil learned afterward, Constantine had turned everything around.
Mephisto was played by Constantine, the Witchheart Demon and his subordinates were completely obliterated, forever remaining on Earth.
The clown devil even sensed an aroma as ancient as Mephisto.
"The Sovereign Lord..."
Once one of the most powerful of the eight great demons, he too had become a human captive in this event, never to be heard from again.
Then later.
In a distant country, Italy, the scent of Hell emerged strongly.
The clown devil felt it intensely.
He thought a demon was about to emerge, but the situation was quelled once again.
After learning the details, it was Shazam who had acted, sweeping everything away with the force of thunder, along with other superheroes, obliterating Hydra European base and sealing a creature from Hell.
Following these two incidents, the clown devil was forced to revise his opinion of Constantine and Shazam, taking them more seriously.
For thousands of years, human development had actually been of considerable interest to Hell.
Humans had gradually evolved from a weak species without the means to retaliate into a force that even the lord of Hell had to consider seriously, demonstrating their potential and increasingly enticing the lord of Hell and many other demons to covet the Earth.
"It you..."
The clown devil stared at Shazam floating above him, noticing his fluttering red cape and suddenly sensing that the situation was dire.
The others were stunned.
Particularly Simmonss girlfriend, Wanda Blake, and her new boyfriend, who instantly realized that they had unwittingly been caught in a storm.
They had long since become ordinary people why was this happening to them?
If there was anything unusual, it seemed only...
Could it be...
Wanda and her boyfriend quickly realized, looking at the man in front of them clad in bloody armor, hideously ugly, covered in bone spurs, resembling a demon from Hell.
This man had been lingering at their doorstep for a long time.
"You..."
Wanda hesitated, as if realizing something, and looked at the bizarrely-appearing man, slowly overlapping him with a figure from her memory.
"Simmons..."
She murmured softly.
Transformed into Spawn, Simmons, whose hearing had greatly improved, heard her whisper and was deeply shaken but gave no response.
Although Simmons did not fully understand his current situation, he was very aware that he was no longer the Simmons he once was.
The situation was very dangerous.
He could not recognize himself to Wanda.
Since Wanda was now living happily, he had to learn to let go.
There is a type of love called letting go.
Above their heads.
Under the moonlight, Shazam figure slowly approached, the shadows on the ground stretching longer and bringing a rising sense of oppression, making the clown devil feel an unprecedented tension.
"Shazam, are you going to oppose the lord of Hell?"
The clown devil collected himself, his fat face morphing, his grotesque demonic form solidifying in the ether, a horrifying demonic energy swirling out, its decaying stench nauseating.
"Drop the clown act and show your true form."
Shazam, responding indirectly, said coolly, "Honestly, your clown disguise isn't just ugly, it also makes me a bit delusional."
"Delusion?"
The clown devil was puzzled.
"The kind that makes it seem like any Tom, Dick, or Harry could turn into a clown."
Shazam finished speaking and abruptly raised his hand.
BOOM!
The sky suddenly gathered dark clouds, countless thunders shuttling back and forth, blue-purple lightning streaking across the sky, the massive disturbance drawing the attention of the entire city of New York.
Lightning flashed and thunder roared incessantly, as if heralding the prelude to the apocalypse.
A massive wave of magical energy surged through New York City, causing the clown devil face to drastically change.
This power exceeded his imagination.
In the sky, the thunder gathered among the clouds, forming a bolt as thick as a man thigh. It struck down like a battle axe from the heavens, hitting the clown devil who was too slow to dodge. Locked in by Shazam aura, evasion was futile.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH—"
The clown devil let out a painful howl, his body uncontrollably transforming into a full demonic form.
Crack, crack, crack!
He expanded in size, his clothes ripping apart as flesh and bone erupted from his body, his spine sprouting bone spurs.
His arms and waist elongated grotesquely, while his head resembled that of a wild beast, with a gaping mouth and blood-red eyes that were terrifying to behold.
Drip, drip.
After transforming into his demonic form, dark green blood continuously dripped from his shoulders, clearly a result of Shazam lightning strike.
Then, with immense anger, he glared up at Shazam overhead.
Screams of terror echoed around them.
Aside from Wanda and her boyfriend, the residents of the neighborhood, including Wanda neighbors, were shocked by the loud commotion and came out to investigate, only to see the clown transformed into a demon, sending shivers down their spines as fear grew.
Even Shazam presence did not seem to reassure them.
To be honest.
A simple terrorist attack and an invasion involving mythical creatures like demons are seen as entirely different threats by the people.
Which is more terrifying than an attack on beliefs?
"Do you realize what you've done?"
The clown devil, now more confident in his demonic form, had anger in his eyes that escalated to a breaking point.
The demonic energy was so overwhelming that the nearby residents felt their vision blur as if they were about to faint.
Only Shazam and the demonized Simmons were unaffected.
Simmons watched the scene unfold before him, dreadful memories surfacing in his mind, accelerating his heartbeat and filling him with unprecedented terror and regret, unable to calm down.
Shazam looked at the clown devil, still indifferent.
"Now, you actually look like a demon, not a clown."
He shrugged, appearing relaxed, as if he were facing a harmless vagrant, "Though I'm not fond of clowns, I have to admit, you don't even qualify to carry a clown shoes."
"Clown?"
The demon roared, "I am the clown."
His muscular legs bent and then sprung up, propelling his towering body like a locomotive into the sky.
To the onlookers, the demon massive body completely covered Shazam in mid-air.
In terms of size, Shazam indeed did not seem imposing compared to the demon.
Then, another bolt of lightning struck.
Shazam attack hit the oncoming demon, causing his body to shudder but not dealing a fatal blow. Instead, it further enraged the demon, his eyes glowing red as his massive hand swatted viciously at Shazam.
Shazam, floating motionless, watched the incoming hand, clenched his fist, and a blue-purple glow emanated from his palm as he struck the demon hard.
Boom, boom!
In an instant, a tremendous shockwave pierced through the demon hand, completely disintegrating his right palm, leaving not even ashes behind.
"AAAAAAHHHHHHHH—"
The demon howled in pain, his eyes filled with terror as he looked at Shazam, the anger previously seen now overtaken by fear.
He had not anticipated that Shazam would possess such formidable strength.
This greatly exceeded his expectations.
Even though he was standing in his own power field, estimating Shazam as highly as possible, it was still an underestimate for Shazam.
Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
Subsequently, Shazam didn't give him any more chances.
The commotion today was already large enough.
Although many people in New York were unclear about what had happened, the residents of this neighborhood would naturally share the event online for all to see.
Had anyone brave enough already started recording?
Despite the unstoppable fear in their hearts, after seeing Shazam easily subdue the demon, curiosity once again took over.
People could already imagine, when they would tell others tomorrow morning about witnessing this battle, the envious and admiring looks they would receive.
Anton had Shazam intervene partly to give Shazam a chance to make an appearance in front of the citizens of New York.
Constantine didn't have the power to kill the clown devil outright.
Wonder Woman had already become a role model for women in the eyes of New Yorkers.
Thus, it was Shazam, this newest DC superhero, who hadn't yet made a public appearance before the citizens of New York.
Although Shazam participated in the siege on Hydra European base in Italy, that was a confidential operation and couldn't be counted here.
For the citizens of New York, home to the Justice League, Shazam was the obvious choice to make a debut.
Let the locals see him first, then show him to others.
After being briefly forced back and having his arm destroyed, the clown devil harbored a deep dread of Shazam.
He no longer dared to act recklessly and planned to leave the area.
If necessary, he was even prepared to return to Hell to evade Shazam.
Even when facing the guardians of the Kamar-Taj New York Sanctum, he had never considered fleeing back to Hell, which illustrated the immense pressure Shazam put on him.
"You have no way out."
Shazam expression was very calm, his eyes sparking with electricity: "Stay here today. Consider this the first gift I send to your lord of Hell, using your life to declare that his plans have failed."
"Stop your bluster! You're not worthy to discuss our lord!"
The clown devil gritted his teeth, and a magical circle lit up beneath him.
Light completely enveloped him.
"I'm leaving, and you can't stop me!"
This was a portal to Hell, and the clown devil couldn't help but smile.
Shazam was expressionless, not attempting to stop him, but instead said calmly, "Indeed, I don't have the ability, but someone does."
"Who?"
The clown devil didn't respond, but the question flashed subconsciously in his mind.
Following this.
His expression drastically changed.
Watching as a figure appeared before him, the teleportation circle light surrounding him gradually dimmed.
"Kamar-Taj, guardian of the New York Sanctum, it you…"
"Damn magician!"