Chapter 88: All Parties in Motion

Chapter 88: All Parties in Motion

Kyle Tower Rooftop.

Edward and Cobblepot crouched beside a small rocket.

"Even Batman has his bad days. This is truly delightful."

"Exactly. He used to be so high and mighty, and now he's utterly miserable."

Gotham's best criminal duo genuinely enjoyed seeing Batman suffer. After all, Bruce had been beating criminals senseless for far too long.

"Shut up, you two."

Damian emerged from the shadows. He had been eavesdropping from a corner and couldn't stay silent any longer after hearing talk about launching a biochemical rocket and mocking his father.

"Launch it now."

Edward pressed the button in his hand.

With a burst of fire, the rocket's thruster ignited.

"I won't forgive you!"

Damian pulled a throwing knife from his belt and hurled it at the rocket.

The magnetized knife stuck to the rocket's surface.

Boom!

A fiery explosion erupted midair.

The blast damaged the rocket's propulsion system, causing it to spiral out of control and crash into a nearby building.

A second, larger explosion engulfed the building's exterior.

"But there's more than one rocket."

Cobblepot pointed to another missile ascending in the distance.

"What the hell are you trying to do?" Damian demanded, gripping his weapons and stepping toward the Riddler and the Penguin.

But the two were already at the edge of the rooftop. Edward wrapped an arm around Cobblepot's neck while the latter raised his umbrella with one hand and clung to Edward's legs with the other.

"Kehehe… Goodbye, Robin."

Using the umbrella as a parachute, they floated away.

This specially designed umbrella not only provided lift but also had jets along its edges for directional control.

Damian could do nothing but rage helplessly on the rooftop.

---

Meanwhile, on another rooftop, Joker—Arthur—was remotely controlling the rocket launches.

"This is just too much fun! Kehehe!"

Just as he was about to press the launch button, an arrow shot through the air and destroyed the remote.

Green Arrow had arrived just in time to stop Joker's madness.

"Kehehe… Are you here to stop me?"

Arthur casually played with his braided hair, his signature grin unwavering. "Too bad. All the rockets I placed have a timed launch. Even if I don't press the button, they'll still take off when the countdown ends."

Oliver didn't waste words. He dashed forward and knocked Arthur down with his bow.

Boom!

Suddenly, fireworks illuminated the night sky.

Above the city's chaos, the rockets exploded in the clouds, transforming into dazzling displays of light.

Arthur didn't resist. He simply muttered to himself, "Too late… You're already too late."

"Tell me everything you know!" Oliver shouted in frustration.

"Kehehe… You've all lost. Only the Comedic Bat and the three Robins are the real winners. Kehehe!"

Arthur avoided answering and instead laughed even more maniacally.

---

A Hidden Location.

The Court of Owls and the Strigoi Priests were conducting a dark ritual.

The vampire invasion of Gotham was merely a smokescreen—just a distraction to keep Batman too occupied to stop their true ceremony.

A blood sacrifice of eighty-one lives was required to strengthen the connection to the Dark Multiverse. The ritual had been ongoing since the Twin Towers Massacre, occurring every nine days.

At the center of the ceremony stood a bat totem, with nine people bound around it.

One by one, the priests slit their wrists, letting the blood flow along carved grooves on the stone pillars, channeling into the mystical runes on the ground.

Life as the foundation. Fear as the guide.

This was the key to allowing Barbatos, ruler of the Dark Multiverse, to precisely lock onto the coordinates of the Prime Universe.

The totem began to pulse with energy.

The members of the Court of Owls, hidden behind their masks, revealed expressions of fervent zeal.

Legends spoke of an ancient era when human perception was different. They could see supernatural entities, which led to the creation of numerous bizarre historical records.

For example, the Eastern Classic of Mountains and Seas described countless strange creatures and kingdoms. While modern geography could align with the text's locations, the beings it described were nowhere to be found.

However, there were always two types of special people.

The first were those born without the limits of normal vision and hearing, allowing them to perceive beings beyond human understanding. These individuals often became mages or sorcerers.

The second were those who awakened after surviving a severe illness, gaining their abilities later in life. These individuals frequently became shamans or priests.

Now, as the sacrifices' blood drained away, the totem turned pitch black.

A single eye suddenly opened.

It gazed upon the devoted Strigoi Priests and bestowed a surge of dark power upon him.

---

At the Vampire Ritual Grounds.

Allen swaggered into the hall, rubbing the shoulders of two vampire women.

The two female vampires wore expressions of pure disgust. The stench of garlic on him was unbearable—it made their noses itch, and they had zero interest in drinking his blood.

"Boss Frost."

Allen, wearing sunglasses and chewing on a sausage like a cigar, smirked. "When you make it big, don't forget about me."

"Don't worry."

Frost promised with a grin, "If I complete the ritual successfully, you'll be well rewarded."

"Haha… I like dealing with straightforward people."

Mwah! Mwah!

"Agh!"

Allen suddenly planted kisses on both vampire women's faces. Instantly, two burn marks in the shape of lips appeared, making them scream and break free.

"You hate me just because I like coffee with garlic? Come on, ladies, if you're in this line of work, you can't be picky about customers."

Allen took another bite of his sausage and exhaled dramatically like he was smoking a cigar. "Boss Frost, your ladies need to be more professional."

"…."

Frost forced a smile. "I'll arrange better ones for you later."

"Now we're talking."

Allen took another bite of sausage before striding over to the near-lifeless Eric.

The once-weak Blade suddenly flared with rage, baring his fangs. "Traitor! I'll tear you apart!"

"You've still got some fight in you, huh?"

Allen blew another puff of sausage-scented air at him. Eric immediately recoiled, struggling not to gag at the overpowering garlic stench.

"Brother, loyalty is for fools. Hahaha!"

Allen laughed boisterously, while the surrounding vampires joined in mockery.

Eric's eyes burned with hatred.

Had he not been betrayed, he wouldn't have fallen into this situation.

And it was all because of Allen.

"I don't like that defiant look in your eyes."

Allen took off his sunglasses and put them on Eric's face.

"Much better."

He then stepped back, watching as Frost commanded his followers to begin the ritual.

Collected blood flowed through the carved channels, quickly filling the ritual circle.

Sharp metal spikes impaled Eric's limbs, pinning him to the stone pillar.

"Hsss… Oh… That's intense."

Allen gleefully commented to the vampire women beside him. They awkwardly smiled, clearly unwilling to entertain a lunatic.

"If it hurts, just scream. At worst, everyone will just laugh at you."

Allen shouted mockingly at Eric.