Chapter 223: We All Have a Bright Future

While Batman subdued Clayface and Solomon, the Mad Hatter also arrived at the theater stage.

By rights, a person with a doll-like face hopping about should be somewhat cute, after all, he looks like a child.

But the Mad Hatter was somewhat different; his face was loathsome.

The growth-enhancing drugs he took back then not only ruined his mind but also disfigured his face, making him extremely twisted and ugly. Therefore, when he walked in with that face wearing a gloomy and vicious expression, Ma Ma Zhaodi's spirit perked up, and his previously calmed emotions surged up again instantly.

A thought subconsciously popped into his mind: Where did this pumpkin zombie come from?

But at this moment, the microchip exerted force again, suppressing Ma Ma Zhaodi's second emotional outburst.

"So this is the Perverted Bicycle Hero?" The Mad Hatter ran over to Ma Ma Zhaodi's side, clomping along, looking at Ma Ma Zhaodi as if inspecting goods on a shelf. He waved his hand, and someone brought over a small stool, then lifted him onto it.

The Mad Hatter could only barely reach Ma Ma Zhaodi's height while standing on the stool; he reached out, pinched Ma Ma Zhaodi's ears, pried open his mouth, inspected his teeth, pupils, face shape, and neck. After a moment, he shook his head regretfully.

"No," he said disappointedly, "He can't act anything. There is no role suitable for him in my theater."

Speaking of this, he seemed to become angry again; he suddenly kicked Ma Ma Zhaodi in the chest, knocking him back two steps, while he himself fell straight out. If not for two gunmen from the Falcone family catching him mid-air, he would have fallen directly to the ground.

"This guy is useless! Kill him!"

The Mad Hatter seemed somewhat angry and humiliated; he drew the gun from his hand and pressed it directly against Ma Ma Zhaodi's forehead. A sense of extreme crisis rose in Ma Ma Zhaodi's heart; this feeling made his hair stand on end, and his consciousness instantly cleared up.

"Oh, so it's not a pumpkin zombie; it's the Mad Hatter."

He made no resistance, instead continuing to act dazed, and then, under the chip's influence, returned to a controlled state.

The Mad Hatter did not fire either; he stared at Ma Ma Zhaodi for a few moments, realized he was indeed controlled, and then safely lowered the gun.

"Forget it, my Ding-dong brother was caught by Batman," he muttered, "I just happen to be missing a fighting bodyguard. This guy barely qualifies—Hey, you, bring his black robe over."

"Boss, why put that robe back on him?"

"Idiot, don't you hate those useless wastes who can't play any role on stage? Since he is good for nothing, let him play his own Perverted Bicycle Hero again—At least that looks better to me than a middle-aged man with a big belly."

Thus, two men in black put the black robe and mask back on Ma Ma Zhaodi.

The instant the hood was pulled over his head, Ma Ma Zhaodi's clever intelligence reoccupied the high ground, and his unfocused gaze became clear and stupid again.

I was just waiting for you to put the hood back on.

Of course, if he didn't put it on, it would be fine too; after all, I couldn't die—Before coming in, Ma Ma Zhaodi had already activated the "I Didn't Kill Anyone" skill once, making all attacks within twenty meters of himself unable to kill anyone—this was one of his safety guarantees.

As for the second safety guarantee, it was the skill 【Fake Death】, which had already been used once on Deadshot.

【Fake Death

Note: Literal meaning; can sustain a state of faking death. If fatal damage is encountered within ten seconds of triggering the skill, survival can be maintained for ten seconds, but the body cannot move during these ten seconds.

Note 2: Guo Haihuang gave a thumbs up.】

When encountering a lethal threat, Ma Ma Zhaodi's rudimentary mental resistance would come into play, helping him break free from lower-level control, causing the Fake Death skill to also have a control-break effect at this time.

Of course, Ma Ma Zhaodi had two more backup plans, but if possible, he didn't really want to use them. If the Mad Hatter cooperated a bit and simply put the black robe on him, things could be much simpler.

Fortunately, the other party was indeed very cooperative.

"Alright, that's about it," the Mad Hatter shrugged, "Tell the Joker I've subdued a super-criminal for him as a subordinate—Sigh, this job really has no difficulty."

"What? The Mad Hatter took in the Perverted Bicycle Hero?"

Hearing the report content in the communicator, the Joker's mouth corner drooped even lower.

"That idiot... why didn't he notify me before doing this? Without him, I have to find someone else to provide Riddler's intelligence—the Perverted Bicycle Hero's value staying with the Riddler is much higher than his value running over to be a thug. Or rather, his value comes from the Riddler."

"Only dogs that might betray are worth feeding some bones; dogs that have already betrayed are worthless."

"Sigh, forget it, forget it. Since he has already been taken in by the Mad Hatter, let him play whatever role he can—cannon fodder, assassin, bodyguard, whatever... anyway, he is useless now."

In the Gotham Gazette the next day, a detailed introduction was given to the series of changes that occurred last night, including the news that Solomon Grundy and Clayface were captured by Batman, and the news that the Perverted Bicycle Hero was controlled by the Mad Hatter and joined the Joker's ranks. Basically, everyone thought yesterday's mission was a big win for Batman, a small win for the Joker, and the Riddler was the only loser.

However, in reality, the moods of the three parties were completely different from the thoughts of all Gotham citizens.

As for Batman, no need to mention it; he once again captured two important enemy combatants and brought them back to Arkham, and planted a spy under the Joker. Although he lost one Batplane, this loss was equivalent to no loss for him.

Win!

As for the Joker's side, he still had his mouth corner drooping. Although no one knew he lost a high-level inside man, a precious combat force appeared at this critical moment. The current paper strength of the super-criminals is five versus three; he has five, the Riddler has three, so to speak, he holds all the advantages.

Win!

As for the final Riddler, after receiving the news that "Ma Ma Zhaodi was captured by the Mad Hatter," he directly opened champagne last night and held a celebration banquet. All the super-criminals saw the boss, who was usually serious and never smiled, holding a wine bottle and dancing a flamenco.

Oh, no, he can't be called "boss" anymore. After Ma Ma Zhaodi's baptism, the Riddler has developed PTSD towards this word and requires everyone to consistently call him Nygma or the Riddler.

And others also expressed an understanding attitude towards these two matters; in fact, some even joined him while Nygma was dancing.

There wasn't any special reason; simply wanting to celebrate that the professional team-seller Sol finally left. This made their sense of security increase exponentially.

Win!

Finally, the citizens of Gotham. For them, the victory of Batman and Kite Man meant the possibility of Gotham restoring order increased again.

Win!

Undoubtedly a four-win situation; this night, everyone in Gotham City had a bright future.

(End of Chapter)