Chapter 251: Hellbat Requests to Enter the Battle!
Across the various universes, word of Du Wa's existence had gradually spread. Many superheroes, using means such as magic and high technology, also discovered that Du Wa had once altered the history of the Multiverse, forcibly inserting the Xenomorph race—which should not have existed—onto the Earth of every universe, making them seem like a species that had naturally lived there all along.
They also knew just how terrifying the great battle initiated by Du Wa was, having destroyed an untold number of things.
With an unprecedented crisis observed and at hand, it was naturally time to act.
The Main Universe was definitely off-limits. It had clearly become the universe that the God of Xenomorphs was focused on developing, and it also had the mysterious Doctor Manhattan.
Thus, the universe second in importance only to the Main Universe—the New 52 Universe—had clearly become the final safe zone for some.
The Darkseid of the New 52 Universe had been killed by Du Wa. Furthermore, with beings like Ghost and the Phantom Stranger paying close attention, the Xenomorphs there were not yet a formidable force.
If Du Wa were to begin developing the Xenomorphs of the New 52 Universe on a grand scale, the numerous Gods and heroes there would absolutely not sit idly by and await their doom.
"It's finally complete. To think... I originally believed creating this thing would be a long and arduous process, but I never imagined it would be successfully completed so quickly."
New 52 Superman looked up at the blood-red armor before him and let out a sigh, then turned to his old friend with an encouraging look. "Batman, it's your turn now. You will pilot it and unleash its truly immense power, enough to protect our world... You will be even more powerful than I am."
Nearby, Cyborg also commented, "The electronic system of this armor is incredibly complex. It would be a massive undertaking even for me to process it all. Was someone else helping you perfect it? You played a suspiciously significant role in this armor's creation."
"That's right. I received help from others. Some individuals from a parallel universe are trying to arm us, giving us the ability to resist Du Wa. They don't want the Multiverse to become Du Wa's territory, and they hope that should they face disaster in the future, our universe can serve as a fallback and a chance to turn the tables."
New 52 Batman said in a deep voice.
Without the crisis of Darkseid's invasion, they had only now managed to gather a few heroes and awkwardly establish the Justice League.
If not for this whole affair with Du Wa, who knows when they would have formally established a hero team.
Notably, every hero present was wearing a strange helmet.
New 52 Batman glanced down at the encrypted computer in his hand, deciphering the latest information that had just arrived.
The successful creation of this Hellbat armor was the result not only of the New 52 Justice League's efforts, but also those of the New 52's Lex Luthor, and the Main Universe's Batman and Lex Luthor.
There were others as well, but it wasn't convenient for them to reveal themselves before Superman and the others. Due to their status as Xenomorphs, they had to use various encryption methods and even had to deceive themselves, endlessly modifying their own memories and cognition to transfer the information.
This was incredibly difficult; they were clearly putting everything on the line.
To this day, New 52 Batman still didn't know which Xenomorph from which universe was providing him with aid, but analyzing its way of thinking, it was highly probable that it was also a Batman.
Batman thought to himself, "A tyrant's rule can never last. An endless stream of righteous individuals will rise up in resistance. Even if this tyrant is a fearsome deity, he still won't be able to suppress the rebellions that flare up continuously across the entire Multiverse..."
A Multiversal God wasn't omnipotent. At least, from the looks of it, Du Wa couldn't perfectly perceive the scheming of every single Xenomorph. Methods such as self-deception and self-deleting memories could still fool the God of Xenomorphs.
But that made sense. The Multiverse is vast, filled with an astronomical number of Xenomorphs, all with incalculable thoughts in their minds. There was no way Du Wa could monitor and interpret it all in real time.
Flash began to charge the Hellbat armor. "I'll admit, this armor is extremely powerful. It must be incredibly fast! Batman, if you wear this, you'll have an unimaginable 'superpower,' and you won't have to worry about being killed by a stray bullet on the battlefield."
"That's right," Green Lantern Hal chimed in, also raising his ring to charge the Hellbat. "Though I don't understand why Superman is putting all his hope in you, that brain of yours is really something—it's just a shame you don't have any superpowers yourself."
...
Batman had little desire to engage with these two, who constantly jabbed at him for his lack of superpowers.
"But I do have one question," Green Lantern asked in amazement. "You completed the armor's energy system by yourself, in secret. Setting aside its reliability, I want to know what you used for its core power source? Just charging the auxiliary power system nearly drained all the energy from my Lantern Ring!"
And that was just the auxiliary system, used mostly for its weapons. The true core energy system remained a complete mystery.
Batman didn't answer directly. "We need an extremely powerful weapon. It is powerful, and that's enough. Don't ask how I made it so."
"But if you don't tell us, how will we know just how strong it is?"
"I will pilot it to protect our world. When the enemies appear, I will meet them with a crushing blow. You will all see. The point of building this weapon is so you won't have to live in fear of being unable to handle our enemies."
The people present fell silent, looks of bewilderment on their faces.
Will this really work?
They didn't even dare to speak Du Wa's name; even thinking it filled them with terror. They had to force their own thoughts to avoid the keyword, fearing they would be parasitized in an instant.
Batman entered the Hellbat armor. Only then did he dare to breathe a sigh of relief, taking off his specialized helmet and formally activating the suit.
"Good. The scan shows no heroes have been parasitized. That's the best possible outcome." Batman sighed in relief. "I was worried our current technology wouldn't be able to screen for anyone under control in time."
Although he had worked with Pandora, Zatanna, and others to create the helmets using high technology and magic, which could in theory block the near-curse-like parasitic ability, it was still just a theory. No one knew what level of being Du Wa, having advanced to the multiversal level, could overcome if he were to unleash another forced implantation.
The heroes and Gods of the New 52 Universe had no choice. Given that even the Main Universe was suppressed by Du Wa to the point of immobility, the number of reliable methods the New 52 Universe could deploy was far too scarce.
"A pity The Monitors have yet to respond. Perhaps they don't intend to interfere in the specific affairs of the Multiverse. Otherwise, we could have acquired their top-tier technology..." Batman mused, feeling the terrifying empowerment the Hellbat armor granted him. The power to control everything and destroy the rules in an instant was something even he needed a moment to get used to.
"Not bad. Better than I expected. As expected of Batman."
Ghost had returned, offering a cold assessment.
Batman guessed that Ghost had likely been lingering nearby all along, acting as the most powerful safeguard to prevent Du Wa from making a move just as the Hellbat armor was about to be completed and activated.
"It seems you didn't have much hope for me from the beginning. Why? Is it just because I'm not the Batman from the Main Universe?"
"Correct. Only the superheroes from the Main Universe are the strongest in the Multiverse. In terms of strength, Main Universe Superman is the most powerful, his potential nearly limitless. In terms of intelligence, the Main Universe's Batman is absolutely several orders of magnitude above you."
Ghost stated bluntly, "The you of this universe is intellectually outmatched by even your own Lex Luthor. What makes you think you can compare to your Main Universe counterpart?"
If there weren't a better option than the New 52 Universe, Ghost wouldn't be wasting his time here. "Your greatest mission is to help me rescue the Main Universe's Justice League from Du Wa's grasp. Even if the price is your own death, it will be worth it."
"Very cold-blooded. But I'm starting to trust you," New 52 Batman nodded.
He scanned Ghost with the Hellbat armor but detected nothing. Could such a powerful and strange being be unable to confront Du Wa directly?
Just how powerful was Du Wa's true form, then?
And that wasn't all. According to Ghost, Du Wa had already recruited another multiversal-level deity with lightning speed... It was unbelievable. He truly wanted to know how Du Wa had accomplished it.
Batman pondered matters related to Du Wa. Protected by the Hellbat armor, even if he said Du Wa's name and was detected, the armor could certainly block Du Wa's forced parasitism and ensure his safety.
At this point, Batman knew what he had to do. There were no convoluted plans; he just needed to pilot the Hellbat armor, charge into the Main Universe, and extract his targets.
"The best-case scenario is bringing out the entire Justice League," Ghost said gravely. "If you can't do that, abandon everyone besides Superman and Batman. If you still can't manage it, then abandon Batman and bring out Main Universe Superman at all costs—before he gets parasitized by Du Wa! You must be fast and ruthless. I'm genuinely worried Du Wa will be insane enough to go straight for Main Universe Superman."
Even Ghost felt anxious. He found Du Wa's growth rate to be too fast, too absurd. In such a short time, he had already recruited a Quantum Batman, which meant Du Wa's overall strength had instantly doubled!
Give Du Wa a little more time, let him take down a few more Multiversal Gods, and wait until the high-level Xenomorphs can contend with an entire world—like Heaven, where the Old Gods congregate and multiple god-kings preside—or can directly challenge Apokolips and New Genesis... then what would be the point of fighting!
Even Ghost would be parasitized if he charged in!
"This is a truly daunting task. I've somehow become the savior of the Multiverse, destined to single-handedly confront a terrifying pantheon," Batman took a deep breath, calming himself. He looked at the vast amount of physical data appearing before his eyes, a thoughtful expression on his face.
Ghost said coldly, "There's nothing to be done about it. If your opponent wasn't someone like Du Wa, but another Multiversal God, you wouldn't need to do this..."
"I know. If it were the situation you describe, I could simply send a signal throughout the Multiverse, assemble the Justice Leagues or other hero teams from many universes, and launch a joint assault on the Main Universe."
Just imagine: hundreds of thousands, even millions of superheroes, gathering in the New 52 Universe from across the Multiverse. The combined intelligence would be explosive, their power astounding. If they all launched a full-scale assault on the Main Universe without regard for the cost, even a deity would be crippled. Rescuing one person would be nothing.
And yet, this ultimate move was precisely the one that couldn't be used against Du Wa.
What was the alternative? Provide every single hero with anti-parasitism equipment? Or, failing that, build a thought-control device for every single person to ensure they would never think of keywords like "Du Wa" in their minds?
It was completely unrealistic. More people meant more vulnerabilities. The moment Du Wa initiated a forced parasitism, even if tens of millions of superheroes charged into the Main Universe, they would only be adding to Du Wa's military force. In a single instant, the superheroes' offensive would crumble, potentially leading to their complete annihilation.
He had to act alone.
Watching Ghost's figure on the screen, Batman suddenly said, "I know you have a backup plan. I hope you're reliable."
"I know that you know I have a plan, but I can't guarantee my plan will succeed." Ghost also seemed hesitant. Even he had never attempted something so insane. If he was truly pushed to that point, he had no idea if it would be successful.
"I have no choice. Neither do you. You can no longer exert the strength to confront Du Wa head-on, can you? Spirits of Vengeance, the greater your rage, the stronger you become. That means your power is erratic and... temporary."
"I don't like the word 'temporary'!"
"Suit yourself."
Wearing the Hellbat armor, Batman soared into the air and departed Earth immediately.
The heroes on the scene were stunned.
"Hey, wait, where are you going?"
"Didn't we agree to test its basic functions first? Why did you fly directly into outer space?"
"Father, stop, don't do this!"
Batman didn't respond. Through the Hellbat armor, he could access a massive amount of information and data. With Ghost accompanying him, leaving the New 52 Universe to travel to the Main Universe was no difficult feat.
Superman flew up as well, attempting to follow, but he couldn't keep up at all.
"Don't bother," Hal said bluntly. "At that speed, even I can't catch him, so there's no way you can. All we can do is pray that a Batman who has suddenly acquired 'superpowers' still possesses some reason."
Everyone watched on. A few seconds later, they completely lost sight of Batman.
The universal barrier was breached. Within The Bleed, Batman traveled at high speed without any hindrance, entering the Main Universe.
"Don't overthink it. Go straight to Earth, grab your targets, and get out!" Ghost's cold voice warned. "If you let Du Wa drag you into a battle of attrition, you won't have a chance. Even with Flash and Green Lantern having charged your armor, their energy will run out quickly. Then you'll have to start consuming your own life force to power the Hellbat armor, and you'll die before you know it."
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