Chapter 180: Bats all over the sky

A few minutes ago.

"This is an urgent report from Jiangdu Daily. The chaos in the central square is still ongoing, and a large number of unknown creatures are gathering in the center of the square. Secret Service is maintaining order and controlling the situation. There's also intelligence that they saw a suspected Batman flying over... 

...Oh wait! There's a new situation from the front line; a giant creature has appeared in the central square..."

It was an aerial shot from a helicopter. Although the distance was very far, the clarity of the details in the picture was unaffected.

Suddenly, the ground of the central square collapsed, and the surrounding buildings seemed to be dragged down by invisible hands.

Black things drilled out of the ground, with smoke and dust swirling around.

At first, it looked like some kind of cylindrical object, and it was completely impossible to see its original appearance through the surging dust and thick smoke.

But when the smoke dissipated and the camera zoomed in, it was revealed to be shaped somewhat like a tree trunk, twisted and knotted, yet its overall body shape and texture clearly resembled some kind of creature.

It had no apparent head but had six arms. The distorted body at the top of the trunk opened a single eye, resembling a huge, warped mirror. The wrecked streets, swirling dust, and debris were clearly reflected in the mirror, and indifference was written all over it.

"God, I've never seen anything like this..."

The reporter opened his mouth but was speechless, as if he had temporarily lost the ability to speak. This was something people should never face. Not just because of its size, nor simply due to its unsettling physique. Looking at it felt like staring directly into fear itself, sending chills down people's spines for no apparent reason.

Even viewers at home, watching this thing through their TV and computer screens, felt extraordinary horror. You might find a magical creature with a design a hundred times more terrifying in movies and TV shows, but the shock you feel when looking at this thing directly with your own eyes is incomparable.

"I... don't know how to describe it." The reporter struggled to control his emotions, forcing himself to speak again with professionalism. "We can only pray for the heroes who are fighting on the front line..."

The editor-in-chief of the newspaper, Wang Zuo, fell silent for a moment as he saw the scene captured by the reporter from the front line. Then he suddenly picked up his cellphone and made a series of calls.

"Yes, it's me... Remember our little event next week? The preparations should be in place, right?" He paused. "Yes, that's right, it's now... yes, I'm not crazy." 

"My nephew was on that runaway train, and that vigilante named Spider-Man saved him. So if there's anything we can do... I think now is the perfect time."

"…"

In just a few minutes.

A building collapses on top of Wolverine. Although Uncle Wolf didn't lose much blood because of his tough skin and muscular build, he was trapped in the rubble in a bad position. Of course, he could dig himself out with his claws, but Chu Cheng didn't bother.

Chu Cheng switched to Batman, activated the Allen mode, and flew out using shock and penetration.

Uncle Wolf's mission was over. Although his sharp claws were indestructible, giant creatures like this were obviously not in his area of expertise, and more professionals needed to take over.

The number of ghouls emerging from the ground was increasing, which put more pressure on Luo Yajun's team. Although reinforcements were on the way, it would obviously take some time.

The fastest reinforcements to arrive were a fighter jet from Division Nine. From a distance, it launched two missiles at the largest and most prominent target, creating bright explosions on that massive, twisted body. Immediately after, the plane swooped down, and a series of machine gun bullets rained down, causing sparks to fly from the dark figure.

But honestly, a single small plane trying to take on a super-giant creature felt familiar to Chu Cheng. Visually, it looked like the giant of light was taking a shower with missiles before making its appearance. It seemed like bombing was meant to show off how tough the monster was.

Sure enough, after the wave of firepower, it really was just a scratch. 

After finishing the job, one of the giant's six palms suddenly opened, and a tentacle shot out like a whip, slicing through the air. Half of the fighter's wings were severed, and it fell, trailing black smoke. Then came the usual scene of pilots ejecting and parachuting down, with the plane crashing to the ground.

Chu Cheng immediately recognized what was happening. Oh, Feiyan No. 1, right? Even with a different design and new paint, I still know it.

Of course, although the plane was donated, it wasn't without purpose. Besides proving that the monster Li Changcheng referred to as Latos seemed tough and hard to damage, it also helped Chu Cheng gather data.

While Batman soared with the armor's power, Chu Cheng kept the first-person scan in detective mode running, sending the results back to the bat computer for analysis with Friday's assistance.

"Its body has a similar composition to what was just called 'Tis Shield'," Friday quickly reported. "But the scan found that its purity isn't high; it's mixed with many impurities from other standard materials, which should reduce its defensive performance."

"Are there any impurities?" 

"Yes. I compared it to the black armor on Leng Ji I encountered in the underground ruins before. By comparison, this should also be a type of 'Tis Shield,' but of lower purity. Even his mass-produced clones are covered in similar materials, but they have lower purity."

Friday continued, "The 'Tis Shield' used by Li Changcheng is close to the purity of the creature in front of us. It's stronger than what was used in the Leng Era before. It's very hard, but still mixed with impurities, so it's not completely indestructible."

"Is that so?"

To be fair, when Li Changcheng mentioned that he was going to shake something similar to the old gods, he was momentarily taken aback. Then, he felt something so large and slightly heavy emerge from behind him, which was quite surprising. Judging by Li Changcheng's confident reaction earlier, he might not even realize that the thing called Tis Shield in his body wasn't pure enough. 

Of course, even so, it was still quite tough. 

Batman swooped in, getting close enough to throw a Batarang. The Batarang exploded into a ball of fire on the giant's body with a loud bang, but it didn't cause any significant damage. However, this time it clearly caught its attention. Lytos turned around, and the bats flying in mid-air reflected in his massive single eye. A thick arm swung at him with surprising speed for its size. Batman instantly activated the hardening of his cloak, folded his wings, and dropped his head and arms, accelerating straight downward in a free-fall position, deftly dodging the opponent's grasp. 

In the next second, he re-energized the cloak, spread his wings again, and took off with a smooth glide before slapping an electric shock device onto the giant, but that, too, had little effect. 

During this time, Liang Ye at Captain America also freed up his hands to deal with this most formidable foe. Thunder crashed from the sky, and lightning roared, exploding against its pitch-black skin, but it still had little effect.

"Adamantium can penetrate that coat," Friday reminded.

"Yeah, adamantium can go through anything. But it's a bit too big for claws."

While speaking, Chu Cheng controlled Batman to dodge the giant's grabbed arm with a set of dazzling aerial stunts. After regaining his balance, he continued to accelerate forward.

"We need real heavy firepower. I've called in the Batwing..."

Before Chu Cheng could finish, a loud bang interrupted him. It sounded like a massive fist striking the ground, echoing like a thunderous explosion that changed the air pressure throughout the square. The gust of wind roared like a storm, and the ground erupted as if it were under immense pressure. A huge crater was blown into the earth, and the shockwave crushed a group of ghouls near the impact zone into pieces.

Batman was caught in the whirlwind. The wings he used to glide made him more vulnerable to the winds, so he quickly retracted them into his cloak, turned off the propulsion engine, and shot out a grappling hook. He swooped down from the air like a pendulum, smashing into a lamppost with a loud thud, then hit the ground amidst a shower of sparks.

The entire square shook as underground pipes burst, sending torrents of water soaring into the sky. Ghouls and agents from the service were thrown about, as if the fierce battle was taking an unexpected intermission. Many ghouls were instantly taken out by this wide-ranging blast, but the damage wasn't enough. More ghouls crawled out from the cracks in the ground, while others swarmed in from nearby buildings and rooftops. It felt endless.

Lytos loomed overhead, watching the small humans stumbling around with a trace of contempt in its massive, single eye. Even after all this time since it had awakened, and despite the changes in the rulers of this planet, humans still seemed weak and insignificant. Even in its less-than-ideal state, it could easily sweep them away.

But then, Lytos froze for a moment. With a hint of confusion, it lifted its enormous eye to the sky. 

In the nearby urban area, a faint but striking golden light shot into the night, forming a radiant circular beacon against the dark, abyss-like backdrop. In the center of this glowing mark was a bat-shaped silhouette—the Bat Signal.

Chu Cheng blinked in surprise. 

Bat lights? 

He had drawn the Bat Signal from the prize pool a while ago, but it wasn't his doing. His Bat Signal was still tucked away in his backpack. 

Almost immediately, a second light beamed into the sky from another part of the city, creating another circular mark that also depicted a bat. 

Then came the third and the fourth...

Soon, the entire city was illuminated with bat signals.