351-355

Chapter 351: Rapid Development 

Cisco and Caitlin felt a little bewildered at this point. 

Of course, the doctor was also quite bewildered; he was the most bewildered of all, but he was calm enough to instinctively ask, "How did you get a sample of the gas?" 

However, Barry had already vanished from the lab again. 

"Barry ran into that gas man on the street," Caitlin had to explain. "He was tracking a female judge, and Barry rescued her." 

"Such a coincidence?" 

"That's what shocked Caitlin and me too," Cisco shrugged, then turned and went into the lab with the gas bottle. "I'll analyze the gas so Caitlin can make an antidote later." 

"I'll pull up the elevator surveillance footage from the mall," Caitlin also turned and rushed to the computer. "To confirm that metahuman's true identity." 

"..." Wells watched the busy Caitlin and Cisco, feeling a sense of unreality. 

"Just one morning, and we have a gas sample and the killer's identity?" he mused. "This is the first time we've solved a metahuman case so easily – was the gas mask on Barry's head your idea too?" 

"Oh, of course, you need some protection when dealing with a gas metahuman," Caitlin interjected. "But that idea actually came from inside the mall—" 

"Guys!" Barry's voice interrupted Caitlin. "I just thought of something." 

"What is it?" Wells asked, rolling his wheelchair to the microphone. "Caitlin and Cisco are busy, so I guess this idle old man can probably help out too." 

"We don't have anywhere to contain that guy, do we?" Barry asked. "Even if we figure out how to defeat him, we can't send him to Iron Heights Prison – with his abilities, breaking out would be as easy as eating and drinking." 

"That is indeed a problem." 

Wells frowned and thought for a moment. "That metahuman is chasing you right now, isn't he?" 

"Yeah, I deliberately slowed down, but if he decides to stop chasing me, I don't really have a way to make him." 

"We can't find a space that's airtight enough but won't harm him," Barry said, a bit helpless. "A breathable space won't prevent him from escaping, and an airtight one would suffocate him." 

"What do we do…?" 

They both frowned simultaneously. 

"Oh, facial recognition has a match!" 

Caitlin spoke up. "In that online video, he was wearing a prison uniform. I used the face from the elevator footage to compare it with the prison database and found nothing, but I found his identity in the police archives – Kyle Nimbus. He was… he was executed on the night of the particle accelerator explosion! He was supposed to be dead! No wonder he wasn't in the prison records!" 

At this moment, Cisco ran out of the lab, holding the small bottle with a look of horror on his face. 

"Ba-ba-Barry, I found something too!" He forced down his nausea, holding the bottle up for everyone to see. What was inside made everyone's skin crawl. 

It was a piece of flesh, though it was impossible to tell from which part of the body. 

"The molecular model for the gas is out. It's hydrogen cyanide plus a sedative, but right after I finished testing it, this stuff turned from gas into… ugh! Into a piece of meat!" 

Cisco couldn't help but retch, causing Caitlin and Wells to frown in unison. 

But they didn't react further; after all, Caitlin was medically trained, and Dr. Wells was always composed, rarely letting anything cause him significant emotional shifts. 

"My God, those are the chemicals used for executions in gas chambers." Barry, still running, looked back at Nimbus behind him. "I took a part of his gas, which means I took a part of his body… if this guy had any worse luck, a part of his heart or brain would already be in that bottle..." 

"Alright, Barry, you don't have to keep going…" 

Cisco was really struggling at this point. He placed the small bottle far away on a nearby table and practically fled to Caitlin's side. "There's still his DNA in the gas in that bottle. I checked – oh, you've already found his identity." 

"I also found out he was a hitman for the Dabbin Rock crime family," Caitlin rubbed her shoulders as if warming herself. "When I watched the surveillance, I just felt his eyes were off, like a killer from a TV show, giving me goosebumps." 

"Dabbin Rock? Those ten-plus people poisoned yesterday were all from the Dabbin Rock crime family. Why would he murder his own family members?" 

"When he went to court, it was his family members who came forward and testified against him – he was sold out as a scapegoat." 

"Wait, wait." Barry suddenly spoke. "That guy's gone. He's not chasing me anymore. I can't see him… Did he go back to Judge Howard?" 

"Theresa Howard?" Caitlin flipped through the files. "She was the one who handed down the verdict, sentencing him to death in court." 

"She might have gone home. Give me her address!" 

"Sending it now." 

Neither Cisco nor Caitlin noticed that Wells, watching them, had a faint smile on his face – S.T.A.R. Labs hadn't been this chaotic yet organized in a long time. Watching the trio interact, Wells felt a sense of renewed youth. 

He gently tapped the armrest of his chair, getting their attention. 

"There are already some well-developed antidotes for hydrogen cyanide – Caitlin, hurry. We need to be prepared for the worst." 

"On it." 

"Cisco, you and I will go check on the particle accelerator. We need to convert it into a metahuman prison." 

"Good idea!" 

"And we need to be fast. The faster, the better." 

Barry spoke again at this point. "Guys, Nimbus isn't at Judge Howard's house. The judge seems safe." 

Cisco scratched his head. "Then who would he go after?" 

"Following his revenge pattern, check who arrested him back then." 

"No problem." 

Barry hid in an alley, waiting for news from Cisco, but there was no reply for a long time. 

"Cisco? Are you there?" 

"Cisco's brain is a bit overloaded, Barry," Dr. Wells' calm and steady voice came through the earpiece. "I need you to go find Joe immediately, alright? Run at full speed." 

"What?!" 

"It was Joe who led the team that arrested him." 

Barry felt like he'd been hit by a heavy punch, his mind blank for several seconds. 

He ran all the way to the police station, changing back into his suit at top speed, but he searched the entire station and couldn't find Joe. 

He simply pulled out his phone and called Joe. 

Chapter 352: This Little Box is Your Forever Home, Isn't It? 

The phone kept ringing, but Joe, standing on the street, just glanced at it, silenced it, and slipped it back into his jacket pocket. 

"Aren't you going to answer that?" Cody asked, casually bagging a burger from his food truck. Today was the most normal day he'd had since starting the truck, selling the usual fast food items – though his patties and sauces were homemade, of course. 

"Ah..." A flicker of discomfort crossed Joe's face as he spread his hands to Cody. "It's Barry calling. Probably just rambling about case updates... It can wait until I get home." 

"Alright, here's your burger." 

"Thanks." 

Joe paid and his eyes caught sight of a white appliance hanging by the food truck. He raised an eyebrow. "What's this?" 

"New vacuum cleaner. One of the new appliances I bought today. It's cordless and supposedly really powerful. That's why I'm setting up shop near the mall – gotta make back what I spent." 

"That's impressive..." 

After a brief chat, Joe didn't say much more. He got back in his car, intending to continue towards Iron Mountain Prison. 

However, a man's shout interrupted him. 

"Detective, do you remember me?" 

"Who?" 

Joe pulled down his car window in confusion, trying to see who it was. But the moment he saw the person, his confusion turned to shock. 

"Nibbers..." Joe couldn't process the situation. "You should be... dead." 

"It's too early for me to die." The bald Nibbers smiled at him. "But your death day is today." 

His body abruptly dispersed into a cloud of thick green smoke, surging towards Joe. 

"What the hell is this—" 

Joe quickly rolled up the car window. The police car was a sealed space now, and Nibbers couldn't find a large enough crack to enter all at once. But in an instant, he transformed back into human form and slammed his elbow into the car window. 

Crack! The crisp sound of shattering glass echoed, but at the same moment, Joe had already pulled out his gun from the driver's seat. He fired three shots at Nibbers outside the window, but the latter instantly turned back into a mist. 

"You're dead, Detective!" 

A blurry human face emerged from the thick green mist, and Nibbers roared, charging fiercely at Joe, seeking revenge for his "death." 

However, life is full of misfortunes, and plans often go awry. Today, Nibbers faced his biggest setback yet. 

Bzzzzzt! A loud, piercing hum erupted from the food truck nearby. The noise from the high-powered vacuum cleaner was almost deafening, but it was matched by its incredibly strong suction (ad space available here for GG). 

"What the hell is this thing— Arghhhhh!" 

Nibbers, in his green toxic mist form, shrieked as he was swept into the vacuum cleaner's powerful airflow. He struggled desperately to escape, but in his gaseous state, he was completely powerless. With part of his body already sucked in, he didn't dare transform back into human form immediately. 

The meta-human assassin who had wiped out all high-ranking members of the Dabbin Rock gang in one night was defeated by a brand-new vacuum cleaner in a matter of seconds. 

Joe, still reeling, stayed in the car for another minute or two, slowly regaining his composure. When he finally climbed out, he saw the muffled angry curses coming from the vacuum cleaner in Cody's hand. 

"Joe, I think your work stress might be a bit too much lately..." 

"No, in my last ten-plus years on the job, I've never encountered a crazy person who could turn into smoke trying to kill me. At most, they'd have a few guns..." 

Joe eyed the noisy vacuum cleaner in Cody's hand nervously, then gave him a thumbs up. "Buying your burger today was one of the smartest decisions I've ever made. This guy tried to kill me." 

"Yeah, I can see that." 

"He can't possibly get out of the vacuum cleaner, right?" 

"Probably not. Powerful vacuum cleaners usually have good airtight seals," Cody shrugged. "Unless this guy can transform back into human form inside and burst it open – but I doubt this canister is big enough to hold a human body. If he forced himself back... I don't know, maybe he'd become 'Person.zip'?" 

Joe didn't quite get the dark humor, but Barry, who had just arrived, did. In fact, everyone at Star Labs heard that dark joke. 

"Pfft—" 

"Cisco, was that you laughing—" 

"Not me, I didn't, it was Caitlin." 

Caitlin's eyebrows shot up. "Cisco, you?!" 

Barry didn't continue watching the feed. He instantly changed clothes and came over to the food truck. 

"Oh, Barry, what a coincidence!" Cody greeted him. "You might not know the situation, but Joe just ran into a meta-human criminal here. But he's fine." 

Barry, with exaggerated acting, widened his eyes. "Huh? Where's the criminal?" 

Cody looked down at the vacuum cleaner, from which the prisoner's angry curses were conveniently emanating. It was clear that having his seemingly invincible power messed with twice in one day was taking a toll on the cold-blooded killer's composure. 

"You f**ing internet cafe grass with the hairdryer, you let me out! When I catch you, I'm gonna ***" 

"As you can see," Cody explained, "he's in the vacuum cleaner." 

"That's truly... astounding." 

At this point, the killer inside the vacuum cleaner was still cursing, his voice growing louder. Cody sighed and leaned down, trying to reason with him. 

"Stop cursing, stop cursing. Let me give you some advice. As the saying goes, life only has about thirty-six thousand days; there are countless types of minor villains, with only three to five lines of dialogue; to sum it up in four sentences: your character design is like a fresh flower in a pot, the editorial department is a complete mess, no matter how good your powers are, the script will kill you in two lines; this little box is your forever home, isn't it?" 

"I'll f*** your mother!" 

Cody sighed. "This person's mental state isn't very stable. I should have bought a smaller vacuum cleaner." 

Barry and Joe exchanged glances. 

They had only known that this food truck owner's cooking was excellent, but they had no idea about his mental world. However, when they encountered a meta-human criminal today, his reaction seemed... not quite normal. 

If Barry were to describe it, it was a sense of calm madness. 

"You... aren't afraid?" 

"What are you talking about, kid?" Cody replied. "Do I look like I'm not afraid?" 

"...Hard to say." 

"Barry, I'm afraid your small talk will have to stop for now," Dr. Wells spoke through the earpiece. "Have you noticed Nibbers' condition?" 

Barry instinctively turned to look at the vacuum cleaner. Only then did he realize that the curses coming from inside seemed to be getting fainter. 

"He's running out of oxygen, Barry," Dr. Wells calmly explained. "And if you keep chatting for a bit longer, oxygen will be the least of his worries." 

Chapter 353 From Small Box to Big Box 

"Well, Cody, maybe we should chat some other time." 

Upon hearing the doctor's words, Barry quickly pulled Joe, bidding farewell to Cody. He explained, "We need to get this criminal back to the precinct as soon as possible. You know, the police department has already established a..." 

"Ah, I know, I know," Cody waved his hand, beaming as he saw them off. "Just come patronize my business more often in the future. I wouldn't mind if you wanted to send me a banner of appreciation." 

Barry managed an awkward but polite smile. 

He took the vacuum cleaner from Cody's hand and noticed there didn't seem to be any gear adjustment buttons—it was an industrial-strength vacuum cleaner. 

"Kyle Nimbus is truly pitiful..." 

Barry sighed as he got into Joe's car. This was the easiest battle he'd ever had against a metahuman. He'd barely exchanged blows and wasn't even injured much—though the gas was later identified as hydrogen cyanide, which can be absorbed through skin contact, that requires liquid hydrogen cyanide. In its gaseous state, he hadn't been significantly affected. 

What he didn't know was that Kyle Nimbus, who could transform into a toxic gas, wasn't actually his easiest opponent. Denton Black was. They hadn't even fought; Denton's fate had already been set straight by Cody. 

Of course, since it deviated from his original life, you could also say it was twisted onto a different path. Cody didn't really care about such things. 

As long as the timeline doesn't kick me out, it means what I'm doing is fine. What isn't forbidden is permitted. 

Joe drove, turning into a quiet street corner, leaving Cody's sight. 

"Joe, I called you," Barry said, "You didn't answer." 

Joe remained silent. 

"If Eddie hadn't told me where you were, I wouldn't have even found you. You almost got killed by Nimbus." 

"I'm fine, Barry." 

"But I'm angry." 

"What do you want me to say? Barry, I was planning to go to the prison to see your father, my old friend who was wrongly imprisoned, the one I personally led the team to put in jail?" 

At this, Joe sighed deeply. 

"I can't do that, Barry. We're all your father... I don't want you to suffer that kind of psychological torment, and I'm also afraid you'll do something foolish." 

Hearing this, Barry's expression also dimmed. After a moment, he replied, "You have to trust me, Joe." 

Their conversation was temporarily interrupted as Wells spoke up. 

"I apologize for interrupting your father-son talk, but Barry, did you forget there's still a person inside that vacuum cleaner?" 

"I don't know, Doctor..." Barry answered distractedly, "But I feel like there's no movement inside the vacuum cleaner." 

Upon hearing this, Cisco couldn't help but quip, "...Doesn't that mean he's almost dead?" 

"Stop talking nonsense, hurry and bring the vacuum cleaner back. Although the metahuman prison isn't ready yet, we've found another temporary place for him." 

"Another place?" 

Hearing those words, Barry instinctively recalled Cody's rhythmic patter from earlier. He subconsciously asked, "Not a small urn for ashes, right?" 

"It's a temporary sealed compartment, goodness, Barry, what are you even thinking...?" 

"Sorry..." 

Barry quickly said a few words to Joe, then disappeared down the street with the vacuum cleaner. 

"Quick, quick, let him out!" 

"I'm letting him out, I'm letting him out..." 

From inside the opened vacuum cleaner, a weak green gas floated out, slowly settling onto the floor, finally coalescing into a bald human form. 

"Hey, he's alive!" 

"Don't say such scary things." 

"Is this guy about to lose consciousness?" 

These were the last three sentences Nimbus heard before completely blacking out. 

When the bald man's eyes rolled back and he fainted, the four people in the lab all breathed a sigh of relief. 

"Barry, take him to the compartment," Wells instructed Barry, removing his gas mask. "While he's still unconscious." 

Flash! In a blur of electricity, Nimbus was confined inside the specially designed compartment. As Barry ran out, the compartment door swiftly closed. 

"Can this hold him?" 

"This room is sealed, so it can at least ensure he's contained for a short period. The oxygen inside the room should last him about seven hours." At this point, Cisco also removed his gas mask. He shrugged, "After that, the first metahuman prison will be built." 

"That fast? Where are you building it?" 

"Right beneath our feet, a lab repurposed from the particle accelerator's pipelines." 

At this, Barry secretly glanced at Caitlin. He knew that Ronnie had been turned to ashes by the flame stream in the pipeline the night the particle accelerator exploded. And since noon, Caitlin hadn't said much on the comms. 

Caitlin's eyes were faintly teary, but she seemed emotionally stable. Ever since her mood had gradually brightened nine months ago, the impact of that nightmarish memory seemed to have significantly lessened. 

"Don't worry about me," she replied, "I'm fine, I just miss Ronnie a little." 

Cisco patted her shoulder. 

"But how are we going to transfer him to the new prison then?" Barry asked, "It's not very safe to let him out, is it?" 

"Oh, that's simple," the doctor said with a calm smile. "We won't even need the vacuum cleaner—we just wait for the oxygen to run out and let him pass out from hypoxia again." 

Barry: "..." 

Nimbus: Someone speak for me! 

"Oh, right, Barry, Joe just messaged, asking us to tell you to wait for him outside Iron Heights Prison." Cisco paused here, then asked hesitantly, "Are you and Joe... okay?" 

"Since he wants me to go to the prison with him, then everything's fine." Barry gave a wry smile. "At least this time, we can go see my father together." 

"That's good. I was actually thinking, if Joe was already at Iron Heights, I'd have to help you sneak in there to rescue someone..." Cisco laughed awkwardly. "It's my first time planning something illegal like this, and honestly, I'm a little nervous." 

Barry, however, shook his head, "If I really had to infiltrate Iron Heights, I could do it myself. I've been trying to sneak in to see my father since I was eleven. I practically know the layout by heart." 

"Joe said he was afraid I'd do something foolish, he was worried I'd use my powers to help my father escape, but he doesn't need to worry... I could have done it a long time ago." 

"But I won't do that. I want to prove his innocence and have my father walk out of prison with his head held high." 

Hearing Barry's words, Cisco and Caitlin both gave him encouraging hugs. 

Only Dr. Wells sat quietly to the side, a strange light flickering in his eyes. 

Chapter 354: Who Are You, Beautiful? 

Since the Gas Man was locked away in Iron Heights, Central City has been pretty quiet. So far, Cody is really enjoying the manageable level of villains here. He's even starting to think the Drake couple's move was a smart one – if only they hadn't run into trouble. 

It's worth mentioning that after all this time searching, his "lieutenants" still haven't found any news of them. Besides dumping historical facts and cat pictures in the group chat, they mostly share urban legends. You know, stuff like a "Landmine Girl" escaping a military lab, or a broke Iron Man working in a factory, or The Flash, high as a kite, sneaking into a power plant at night to steal electricity. 

It's a vibrant, thriving scene, full of life. 

"Yeah, I get it, Central City citizens are all pretty 'skilled' themselves," Cody muttered, scrolling through the group chat messages. 

But the skilled citizens aren't his main concern right now, at least no one's died in these urban legends. He's more worried about where the Drakes have vanished to. 

"Even Sanbunzi hasn't found them. By that logic, they're probably not in Central City, but the system said they were..." 

As time passed, Cody started to form a theory. 

"They probably hopped to another universe..." 

If those two are indeed in another universe, Cody can't do much about it for now. He's not too worried about their safety; after all, if Drake could make it in Gotham, surviving in another universe's Central City shouldn't be any harder for him. 

Right now, he just needs to push things along. Once he's familiar with this universe's timeline, he can activate his "smuggling" ability again and search for Drake in other universes. Or, he could wait for Cisco's powers to awaken; dealing with him would be much simpler than messing with timelines. 

So far, he's helped deal with three metahuman villains: Weather Wizard, Denton, and the Gas Man. This has earned him 15% progress in timeline recognition. Following this pattern, he probably needs to tackle another seventeen villains to fill the rest – though, of course, some really big bads might offer extra progress. 

But that's not something he needs to worry about yet. Barry isn't fast enough right now, and Sanbunzi's data model is still iterating and upgrading with his speed – it can't target speedsters faster than Barry. 

As Cody scrolled through his phone, a figure approached his side. 

"Selling burgers today?" 

"Huh?" 

Cody looked up, stuffing his phone back into his pocket. "Yeah, figured I'd try selling some fast food for a bit, see if I can knock off early. You're out bright and early today?" 

"8 AM. Just finished my morning run." 

"Still punctual, I see... Didn't bring your sister out today?" 

"Lisa went on a trip to Coast City. Heard the scenery there is nice. You looking for her?" 

"Not really. Just confirming the time." 

"What?" 

"Nothing." 

Cody looked up and smiled at his old regular customer. 

"Snart, how many burgers do you want?" 

Leonard Snart checked his watch. "Four should be enough. Got things to do later, can't be too full to move. Can you make them in three minutes?" 

"Sure, give me one minute, eight seconds." 

Snart's lips twitched into a small smile. He'd been coming to Cody's food truck for about nine months now. At first, it was because Lisa wanted to try something new, but later it was because Cody's cooking was genuinely addictive. No matter what the food, Cody always made it taste good. It was a culinary skill that transcended dietary habits and personal preferences. 

As they got to know each other, he started to suspect this owner wasn't just a simple cook, though he hadn't found any proof to back that up yet. Interestingly, the owner didn't seem to mind his strict time-keeping quirks. Even when Snart gave him quite precise demands for order completion, the owner always took them in stride. 

What satisfied him even more was that the other person never asked too many questions. Like today, he bought four burgers and told Cody that the amount wasn't "filling," but old Ma didn't ask anything extra, simply took the money and got on with it. 

All in all, he quite liked buying food from this truck. He even tolerated the owner's annoying habit of moving all over the city – even though, for him, uncontrollable factors should be kept to a minimum. 

Cody was one of the few people he'd make concessions for. Of course, that didn't mean he'd run all over the city trying to find the food truck. That wouldn't be in line with his usual methods. 

He took some time to understand the group of "lieutenants" who regularly bought in bulk from Cody. He figured out the cooperation between the lieutenants and old Ma and then simply infiltrated the lieutenants' group chat. 

This way, whenever Cody announced his location for pickups, Snart could usually get the first-hand information, allowing him to precisely pinpoint the food truck's whereabouts – making uncontrollable things controllable, that's always been his style. 

One minute and eight seconds later, Cody, precise to the second, handed the paper bag to Snart. 

"Alright, your four burgers. Remember to eat them while they're hot." 

"Thanks." 

After Snart took his burgers and left, Cody casually pulled out his phone and glanced at the scene in S.T.A.R. Labs. Dr. Wells seemed to be helping Barry train his mental processing speed. Barry was simultaneously playing chess with him using his superspeed, playing ping-pong with Cisco, and doing medical simulations with Caitlin. 

Barry's speed was constantly increasing naturally, but his brain often couldn't keep up with his body. This is a common problem for new speedsters; the faster their speed grows, the more their mind needs to keep pace, otherwise they'll do something stupid like actively running into bullets. 

"Looks like today should be another peaceful day." 

Just as Cody thought this, another customer arrived. 

"Hello, I'd like to buy a burger." 

"No problem." 

"I'm sorry, I was actually on a diet and exercising recently, but your food truck smells so good, I feel like all my recent efforts have been wasted... Wait, is that you?!" 

"Huh?" 

Cody looked up in confusion at the customer in front of him. He was certain he'd never seen this customer before, as she was strikingly beautiful. 

Long, golden hair tied into a high ponytail, a white blazer, and a soft pink dress underneath. Bright eyes, a perfect smile, well-defined features – she was the kind of beauty that appealed to both Eastern and Western aesthetics. 

She even wore glasses, giving her a somewhat intellectual, studious vibe. 

She looked at Cody in surprise and asked, "Old Ma! How are you here? Where have you been all this time?" 

Cody's brain started working at super-speed. 

Chapter 355: Hands Freezing! 

"Who are you, beautiful?" 

This was the thought buzzing in Cody's head, and a moment later, he actually decided to voice it. 

"Me! It's me! You don't even recognize me?! Did you lose your memory?!" 

"So, who are you?" 

"You've even forgotten my name, oh my god! Do you still remember Oliver?" 

"Oliver Queen?" 

"Oh, good! At least you haven't forgotten everything." 

At this point, a flicker of a hazy TV show memory finally sparked in Cody's mind. 

"You're Felicity?" 

"Ha, looks like it's not severe brain damage after all!" 

Cody's face darkened. This woman was so beautiful, yet she had such a sharp tongue. 

"I heard Barry mention he had a few good friends in Star City. Wealthy Oliver Queen was one, and Felicity was another," Cody explained to Felicity. "But honestly, I don't recall ever meeting his friends." 

Felicity's expression was quite a sight then—a mix of bewilderment, confusion, and perhaps a touch of disappointment. 

"You don't remember anything? Oh my god... What in the world did you go through?" 

"I don't know. I only remember coming to Central City to set up my stall nine months ago. After that, I haven't left Central City." 

"Then the timing checks out. You went missing from Star City about a year ago." 

"What the heck?" 

When Felicity said this, Cody suddenly understood. 

"Am I seriously a time-traveler from the future?!" 

In the Flash universe, any bizarre, illogical, or sudden world changes, even many minor villains and ultimate bosses, typically stem from one source: time travel. 

In this world, where the timeline is incredibly flexible—practically anyone can travel through time whenever they want—at least fifty percent of major crises are caused by speedsters messing with the timeline. The other fifty percent are split among naturally occurring villains. At least, from Cody's perspective, speedsters are almost always the culprits. 

But from the looks of it, he might have done something similar in the future. 

"It must be the System's fault." 

[Please carefully read Disclaimer Clause 1326. This system is not responsible for making final choices; it only provides options. The choice is always yours.] 

"What the f—? Disclaimer? What is that? I've never seen this before!" 

Cody's eyes widened. He couldn't recall ever signing any contract terms. 

[This clause is fictional, meant to scare you, but the final interpretation right does indeed belong to the system.] 

"Get lost." 

Cody adjusted his mindset and handed the burger to Felicity. "Regardless, I genuinely don't remember anything that happened in Star City. As you can see, my life here in Central City is quite peaceful." 

"Whatever our past connection, I've completely forgotten it all. However, if you need any help from me, you're always welcome." 

"You could come back to Star City with me," Felicity was still trying to help Cody recall his currently non-existent memories. "We could use familiar sights to help you remember those things." 

"I'm afraid that won't work," Cody shook his head. "I can't leave Central City right now. I have things to do here." 

"What are you doing—oh, this burger is really good. Your cooking is still amazing." Felicity took a bite of the burger, then continued to gripe, "You've been here for nine months. I can't imagine any villain in the world who could withstand nine months of your continuous efforts—or has Central City been invaded by aliens?" 

"You guys definitely have the wrong impression of me," Cody shook his head. "I'm just an ordinary chef. Stop spreading rumors about me." 

"A chef who can carve through a gang like a hot knife through butter? Yeah, that's pretty ordinary." 

Cody fell silent. 

He thought to himself, "On the bright side, at least I don't have to face Deathstroke head-on. Just taking down a few thugs means my future self still adheres to the 'stay low-key' principle." 

This was a relief to him. 

"I'm not quite following what you're saying," Cody said expressionless. "Like I said, I'm just an ordinary chef. If you want me to venture into other fields—it'll cost you extra." 

"So your money-hungry nature hasn't changed either." 

"..." 

Felicity had come to Central City to find Barry; running into "Old Ma" was a pleasant surprise. After confirming that Cody had no intention of returning to Star City with her, she had no choice but to go search for Barry. 

--- 

Meanwhile, Snart, carrying four burgers, navigated through several winding streets and finally arrived at a safe house. 

Taking circuitous routes was an old habit of his. After confirming he wasn't being followed, he got out of the car and entered the safe house. 

It was daytime, but the windows of the house were tightly sealed, casting the room in dim light and a stifling atmosphere. Three people were inside; one was smoking, and the other two were busy with their backpacks. 

Clink, clink, clink— 

As the two rummaged through their bags, a bullet rolled from one man's fingertips and fell to the floor. Snart casually picked it up. 

"Focus," he said, placing the burger bag on the table and addressing the two. "Double-check your firearms. Count all your bullets and magazines. I don't want any equipment issues when we start the operation." 

Click, click, click— 

The rhythmic sound of bullets being loaded continued. Neither man looked up. Upon closer inspection, one was oiling and maintaining firearm parts, disassembling several submachine guns for inspection, while the other was counting all the magazines and bullets in his backpack. 

"You'll just check it again anyway," the smoking accomplice complained. "But being off by a few bullets, I don't see how that makes much of a difference." 

"It'll affect my mood." 

Snart gave his accomplice a cold look, then checked his watch for the time. "It's 8:20 AM. The armored car will be on the road in an hour and a half. Before that, we'll finish checking our gear, eat breakfast, and then leave immediately." 

"Remember what I told you—when the operation officially begins, everyone must remain absolutely calm. No mistakes, no emotional outbursts, no doing anything outside of the plan." 

"Most importantly, if it's not necessary, don't kill any police or security guards." 

"Understood." 

"Got it." 

"Roger that." 

Their replies were prompt. Compared to typical criminal gangs, Snart's crew undoubtedly possessed higher discipline—of course, this was also because his criminal philosophy itself was quite unique. 

Unlike Gotham City, in Central City, a place with generally decent citizens, even the criminals knew what a bottom line was.