The scene shifts back to Gotham City, at this moment Su Ming and Thomas are still sitting in the mezzanine of Wayne Tower drinking, but the only snack available is spicy strips.
Since the others left, Thomas and Deathstroke have been sitting in this dusty room, chatting intermittently and drinking non-stop.
Seeing that Deathstroke seemed about to open another new bottle, Thomas was the first to reach out and stop him, asking the crucial question.
"Are we just going to do nothing?"
Su Ming shrugged, continued to twist off the cap, and drank by himself. Alcohol almost had no effect on him; the strongest drink was just like soda, drinking only for the taste.
"Dr. Wayne, things aren't that simple. Besides dealing with another crazy Bruce, we also have to handle a big bald guy and his subordinates. If you want to ask who the other enemy is, you can just ask directly, no need to beat around the bush."
"But there's no exposure issue if you use magic to transfer."
Thomas indeed wanted to know what others went to do. Su Ming leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, put the bottle on his lap, and tilted his head back, speaking weakly:
"Magic has a price. I've paid a lot, and now I'm mentally exhausted, feeling terrible all over."
Thomas didn't believe this nonsense at all. It's very possible that magic requires a price; he's not from the Magic Realm, but he can understand, after all, Alchemy was once popular in the West, and the principle of equivalent exchange is like that.
But this Deathstroke isn't just any regular warlock. During previous actions, various magics were thrown around as if they were free, not at all like someone who feels terrible.
When a person feels bad, they can't eat particularly spicy things, let alone drink heavily. Thomas already saw through the truth.
"What are you waiting for? You might as well just say it."
"There's a lot to observe. I'm just waiting for the other side to slip up. Everyone's hiding in the dark now, everyone has satellites and such, it's all about who loses their cool first."
Su Ming smiled, still half-dead like as he leaned back in his chair, using the old chair like a rocking chair, with only two chair legs on the ground, making a creaking sound.
"Information and clues won't just deliver themselves." Thomas expressed helplessness at Deathstroke's sudden laziness.
Su Ming's fingers tapped on the slender neck of the bottle: "This world actually has another Deathstroke, an old man. For him, his thoughts are quite similar to yours."
"Oh?" Thomas made a questioning sound, but his face showed no expression.
"You trust no one besides Ah Fu, and he trusts no one besides Holly. You both like to do things yourself to feel at ease. I, however, sometimes prefer to leverage the strength of others."
Su Ming spoke lightly, paired with his current demeanor, he seemed more like a rich second generation than Bruce.
"Leverage? Or exploit?"
"Depends on the circumstances, doesn't it?"
Su Ming raised the bottle towards Thomas, now the Humiliation Squad and Shadow Contract Team are searching and scanning Gotham City for the Laughing Bat's whereabouts. He found it hard to predict Joker-fied Batman, so finding people was purely a matter of physical labor.
With or without his involvement, it was about the same.
However, Su Ming did have a plan, a simpler one.
As the conversation between the two shifted, a figure suddenly rolled into the room from the window, clad in black and yellow armor, with a red monocle, looking just like Deathstroke in a mirror.
"The person you're talking about has arrived." Thomas had no intention of getting up, just sitting aside watching the show.
"Wrong again, the old man I told you about, after turning into a Fish-Man, I hit him with a shield. Even with his self-healing ability, with so many broken bones, you can't recover in a night."
Su Ming stood up and extended his hand to the newcomer.
"Then who is this?" Thomas sighed, thinking how fast the world is changing.
"Earth -11's best mercenary, Cindy Wilson." The newcomer Deathstroke removed her helmet and tucked it under her arm, then brushed her golden short hair, smiling as she greeted Thomas: "Nice to meet you, old man, you guys got a nice spot here."
"..." Thomas was speechless, "Old man" as a term?
Cindy didn't find anything wrong. After greeting, she pulled the Nightfall Greatsword from her back and returned it to Su Ming, while Su Ming pulled the Godslayer from his belt and handed it to her.
"Be careful, this weapon is not very trustworthy, make sure you're using it, not the other way around."
When the two Deathstrokes exchanged weapons, Su Ming cautiously advised, the Godslayer would enhance the user's bloodthirsty instincts, and if left to develop, it would control the mind, turning a person into a mindless beast.
If Cindy gets injured, triggering the side effect of the healing factor, and then gets controlled by this weapon, it would be troublesome.
"Got it, I'm thinking of getting myself some good weapons too." Cindy took the Godslayer, merely frowned for a moment, then calmed down, controlling it to change into several forms.
As she spoke, she effortlessly pulled a drawing board from her backpack and handed it to Su Ming. Neither commented on the drawing board, as if it were just a casually brought gift.
"With money, what can't you get? If this works out, Senagang Planet in the Main World should undergo massive reconstruction. We can bridge through Hawkman and get alien-made N-Metal weapons from the Hawkman Queen, just exchange for goods. As long as aliens are carbon-based lifeforms, they still need food and water."
Su Ming smiled and spoke to her, casually suggesting an idea. With the Wave Rider of the Legends of Tomorrow Team, getting to Senagang isn't difficult.
"Oh? I heard Hawkman was turned into a vegetable. Has he woken up yet?"
Cindy put away the Godslayer and asked with interest.
The Nightfall Greatsword is an N-Metal product, but it was forged by Fire God on Earth, and Senagang, being the original source of N Metal, has the most advanced techniques for utilizing this metal.
Cindy also wanted her own N-Metal weapon, and at the same time, her Holy Statue Armor needed an upgrade.
However, she knew that the reason the Nightfall Greatsword was so powerful was because of the starlike X Metal on it, which was much harder to obtain.
Su Ming's suit started to flow, and the black liquid again turned into solid Black and Yellow Armor, though the mask hadn't been put on yet.
"Hawkman's external injuries are fine now, but Barbatos' prior mind-washing caused mental torment, which is why he doesn't want to wake up. His body subconsciously refuses to wake up and face harsh reality."
Cindy walked over to Su Ming's chair, picked up the wine he had been drinking, and took a few sips, making a satisfied sound: "Ah~~~ So do you have a plan?"
"He's sleeping, right? Then we just need to enter his dream from Dream Country and kick his butt to wake him up." Su Ming provided the answer, needing no medical or psychological means, just that simple.
But now is not the time to do so. After taking care of the Gotham Nightmare, that kind of problem is solved.
However, the huge crack in the sky of Dream Country wasn't caused by the Dark Knight Order. Its destruction is already on the schedule, and now is not the time to demand benefits.
Cindy nodded, having a similar thought. Then she replaced Deathstroke and sat in the original seat, rocking the chair as well:
"Batman hasn't paid me the final payment; you better not let him die."
"Don't worry, Batman from the Main World is tough enough. Only Joker could kill him, but Joker is dead now." Su Ming adjusted his neck, the mask covering his face, a touch of red light lit in the dim room, his tone through the voice changer exceptionally cold: "Besides, the one next to you is Thomas Wayne, Batman's father. If Batman accidentally dies, you can ask him to account."
"Are you ready to take action now?" Cindy asked him, then turned her head and gave Thomas a smile, showing sincerity to a major benefactor.
Su Ming adjusted the position of the greatsword on his back: "If my calculations are correct, the Justice League's meeting should be about over in these ten minutes, and they won't reach a complete consensus. Someone should come to me to discuss the situation, though I wonder if it will be Barry or Oliver."
"Relying on the inertia of the smart ones? Hehe, I guess it won't be Barry. Although we haven't had much contact before, do you remember how much he relied on Briss on Earth -11? Deathstroke is always the second choice."
Su Ming shrugged, what else could he do? The Flash and Batman have known each other for too long. If Barry retains his memory of pre-Flashpoint, they've known each other for at least fifty years.
How long has he known Su Ming? Just a month.
If Barry can listen to Su Ming's words now, it's good enough. If both Su Ming's and Batman's plans seem unreasonable, he would certainly still follow Batman's inertia.
Of course, if the moral high ground is taken, or one seems brighter, Barry would choose the more conscientious side.
Oliver, on the other hand, can think for himself and doesn't care about the means. As Cindy said, he's more likely to come over.
"Your task is to stay here and drink with Dr. Wayne. If you get bored, go for a walk in the city. The Laughing Bat might come looking for you, but I have a higher chance of finding him first."
Su Ming took a drop of X Metal from the Nightfall Greatsword and handed it to Cindy as a communication tool between them.
Cindy accepted the metal droplet and pressed it against her chest armor. The metal spread like flowing water: "But there's also a chance he'll completely hide and wait for another opportunity. Keep in mind, there are many unformed worlds in the Dark Multiverse. If he just avoids for a while, he could quickly pull out another Dark Knight Order."
"Phew... there's nothing I can do about it. It all depends on how Briss' preventive work is progressing, but I don't have high hopes for her Dark Multiverse 'Joint Defense Plan.' Does she know how difficult it is to convince all the other Batman?" Su Ming sighed.
Cindy took out a cigar and lit it, taking a puff of smoke and a sip of wine leisurely: "What else can be done? It's just like the British Parliament, a bunch of bats gathered endlessly meeting...right, if this one beside is willing to participate, maybe it could help Briss gain an advantage."
Su Ming thought for a moment and nodded: "If Briss' offer is reasonable, you can tell her this information, but we won't send people. I want to see how deep her influence is on the Legendary Squad."
"She has hostages, what do you think?" Cindy smiled and patted her thigh, this problem even needed to be discussed.
Thomas remained silent nearby.
He was still here, and the two Deathstrokes were planning to sell him off. Is that really okay? Moreover, what are these young people talking about? He really couldn't understand it, this world is indeed to be left to the young.
The old Batman looked down at the wine bottle in his hand, shook his head, and gently put the empty bottle aside.
Although he thought this way, he wouldn't do that, because he is Batman.
"If you are going to stay to drink with the old man and perform some blinding technique, then you have to tell me about the situation in the Multiverse, what happened over the years, and what's next if you think it's okay to tell."
Thomas looked at Cindy, speaking seriously, seriously, Batman's face remained expressionless as always.
Cindy raised an eyebrow, smiled, and looked at Su Ming, who gave her a slight nod.
So she blew out a puff of smoke, rubbed her thumb and forefinger between herself and Thomas, making a 'shasha' sound: "Of course, if the price is right, Deathstroke never disappoints."