"What's going on?"
Even Batman couldn't help but voice a question filled with disbelief.
In front of him was another Hall of Justice, more magnificent and grand than the current one. White doves flew in the sky, as if telling him that peace had arrived.
But it wasn't this that surprised him. What amazed him was the appearance of another Justice League before him. Though they looked older, there was no doubt that the team welcoming them in the plaza was the Justice League.
Bai Wally in a white lightning suit, with Barry's shadow in the divine speed lightning behind him.
John, now a White Lantern Hero, with seven different colored Lantern Rings on his fingers.
Batman in a black trench coat, with a red bat mark on his chest, dripping blood.
And the aged Cassie, inheriting Diana's battle armor.
Of course, there was Ron and Hawk Woman with a child, looking very happy.
"It's simple, Bruce...." White Superman smiled and spread his hands, showcasing the city and everything before them: "We won. Now, please come in, and I'll tell you how we saved the cosmos."
Batman and Wonder Woman exchanged a glance and stepped forward. Everything around them was so peaceful and quiet, as if darkness no longer existed in the world.
................
Meanwhile, in another unknown place.
"Ron? Can you hear me?" Superman stumbled in the darkness, where there wasn't a trace of light, as if only endless darkness existed: "Justice League? Batman?"
Yet no one replied; he felt an unprecedented loneliness.
Without the sun, although he could still maintain his superpowers for a while with the energy stored within his body, it hadn't been a day since Zhen Hai Commander polluted him with seawater. Strictly speaking, he was still a patient recovering from a serious illness.
Even Superman wasn't an exception.
He flew for a long time, but the darkness seemed to have no boundary. Flying aimlessly only drained his stamina, and his stored energy was about to run out.
He landed on the ground, continuing forward on foot, and the consequences of his exhaustion manifested upon him.
His breathing was rapid, and his steps were unsteady, much like a Wanderer who hadn't eaten in a long time, akin to an ordinary human.
"Ugh."
He suddenly tripped over a stone on the ground, tumbling down a slope like a ball in the darkness. He couldn't see anything but felt he had fallen into a deep pit.
But the bottom of the pit wasn't what he imagined. Not only was it not hard rock, but also something soft cushioned him. When he reached out, he could feel something like fur.
Superman's heart tightened, forcing his body to mobilize energy once more, firing heat sight from his eyes, melting the rock behind him.
Under the glow of the magma, he finally saw the environment he was in.
It was a mass grave, filled with corpses, his corpses.
Some were skeletons, some decomposed; seemingly they didn't perish at the same time. For example, the hair he touched belonged to another Clark's scalp.
Superman forced himself to stay calm. He wasn't frightened by the corpses, but he knew the Troublemaker had deceived him, deceived them all.
This was a trap, a trap aimed at him.
He had to leave, find a way to notify everyone. But despite trying repeatedly, he couldn't escape the dark region.
No matter which direction he flew or what abilities he used, he inevitably returned here, with the other Clarks' corpses, just like another Superman about to die.
"No!!!"
He thought of his family and everyone in the Justice League, crying out in anguish.
.................
"What the hell?"
Su Ming and his companion hadn't yet emerged from the pitch-black tunnel when they suddenly saw a red light igniting in the distance. His heart stirred, and he immediately rolled to the side, while Green Arrow utilized the flash move similarly.
Right beside the two of them, practically brushing against their cloaks, the distant red point came rushing like a roaring train, arriving in a flash!
A massively large red energy pillar flashed past where they just were.
"Is that... heat sight?!"
Oliver instantly grabbed his weapon and shot an explosive arrow towards the end of the passage, but there was no echo except for the sound of the explosion and the blast wave.
"No mistake, it seems Laughing Bat plans to grind us to dust." Raising his hand, Bruce cut a triangular cat-ear hole beside the corridor with a Great Sword and hid inside to peek out.
"I'll go....."
"No, Oliver, you come in, I'll go." Bruce rejected his suggestion, as Oliver, although enhanced, was still not Batman's match when facing the prepared Laughing Bat.
Just take this thick Energy Beam, it was used by employing the principle of Heat Sight; Laughing Bat has surely been waiting here for a long time.
Indeed, being chased relentlessly by Bruce and unable to do anything smoothly, it wasn't easy for him to hold out until now.
"Be careful."
Oliver did not dwell on who should go first but rather nodded seriously.
Bruce estimated the distance and raised his hand to create a Teleportation Gate, intending to bypass and backstab his opponent with the Great Sword.
However, rushing out of the Teleportation Gate, the momentum-driven backslash was firmly held by two thick black metal fingers, captured in a technique like Empty-handed into the White Blade with just two fingers.
Bruce's heart skipped a beat; although this sword was just a probe and not using full strength, the strength after Symbiote Possession was indeed a strong suit.
But Laughing Bat managed it.
Not with his own flesh but by relying on technology and magic.
Up close, in Bruce's line of sight, was a piece of armor approximately over two meters high, looking colorful and somewhat cumbersome. The red Bat Lamp on its chest emitted a dazzling light, and its goggles were also the same, a blood-red expanse, especially with a large red smiley face painted on the face, adding a chilling effect in the darkness.
"Hahaha... look what I've caught?"
Laughing Bat's voice came from inside the armor, sounding quite pleased.
Bruce tried to pull the weapon out, but the Great Sword seemed stuck on the opponent's hand, so he immediately manifested an Energy Beam with the Lantern Ring, fiercely striking the opponent's head.
The opponent did loosen his grip but only leaned back slightly; even combining the power of five Lantern Rings only made the armor slightly cleaner.
That is, it scraped off some of the red paint above.
Bruce jumped back to distance himself from Laughing Bat; this venue was Laughing Bat's choice. He couldn't even land but had to rely on the Magic Floating Cloak to float in the air.
"Hell Bat Armor?"
Laughing Bat raised his arm; the armor's thick fingers made a beckoning gesture for Bruce to continue the fight, while Laughing Bat's voice came through the armor's speakers.
"Ah, yes, it was indeed called that name before, but now it's called the 'Final Smile' armor, hehe... although overusing it could kill even me, tempting, isn't it? Come, try to keep me entangled!"
"An armor made to fight gods; you really think highly of me." Even facing this Legendary Armor, Bruce felt somewhat troublesome.
Laughing Bat controlled the armor to step forward menacingly: "Why not? Clothes are made to be worn; weapons are made to be used. It may be full of flaws when facing your Batman, but for you, it's probably enough."
Bruce jumped onto the ceiling, with the Magic Floating Cloak helping him stand on it with anti-gravity._
"Perhaps Batman designed this armor and knows where the weaknesses are. But your set is just a knock-off, and I'm not Darkseid."
"Well, Superman forged its shell on a fixed star; Wonder Woman asked Olympus to enchant it; Steel Bone and his father, Dr. Stone, took care of the electronic system; The Flash connected it with Divine Speed; Aquaman quenched it in the deep sea; Green Lantern Hero used the Lantern Ring to manifest Bat Wings." Laughing Bat recited the Hell Bat Armor's creation process in a mechanical voice like reciting a text: "So now, is it the same as what you knew?"
"... this was once done by your Justice League for you." At least Bruce guessed the origin of the armor; this isn't the Main World's Hell Bat Armor.
"Mm-hmm, indeed, every world's Justice League would go all out to help their Batman complete this armor. I still remember my Diana saying to me upon its completion: 'We've all contributed, and you know the reason well.' Oh, of course I understand, this is everyone's love and protection for the Justice League's only ordinary person—me, being Batman, hahahaha..."
Bruce circled around with the enormous black armor; as per logic, the Hell Bat Armor would burn the user's life force, Laughing Bat shouldn't idly chat and waste time.
But now he did so, is he fearless? Or really ready to fight to the death?
"So, you killed them all?" Although somewhat puzzled, Bruce's plan of stalling for time to deplete the armor's life-consuming Laughing Bat continued.
In the darkness, the red armor goggles again turned towards the circling Deathstroke, the tiny red dot incomparable to the blood-red expanse, Laughing Bat's impatient voice echoed again with a metallic tone.
"Didn't I tell you last time, we're actually all fictitious characters, the only way to free them is to kill them, I'm doing what's good for them. Look, your Luthor now also understands this, the truth is Papetua is coming, whether dying sooner or later, it's all the same, better to consider more for the future."
"Haha, so you're the most insightful and foresighted, right?" Bruce flexed his wrist, finding no good strategy facing the iron turtle-like opponent in such a short time.
Possibly he could trap or seal, but his desire was to completely resolve Laughing Bat and not leave looming threats for the future.
Last time, careless; who knew upon first arrival in DC that a headless person could survive? But this time it won't be. Laughing Bat won't stop unless sliced to mincemeat.