Chapter 243: Boss, It Was All the Perverted Bicycle Hero's Doing

PS: I'll release one chapter first; the second will come later.

High above on the seventy-third floor, the Riddler scanned the circle of super-villains around him with a grim expression.

Solomon Grundy, Mr. Freeze, Killer Croc, Two-Face, Deadshot, Deathstroke, Man-Bat, Poison Ivy, the Perverted Bicycle Hero.

Except for Firefly and Mr. Zass, who had just charged forward, all the others stood still, not moving a single step.

"I told you to kill them," he said coldly. "Are your ears deaf?"

"Boss, you know me," Ma Ma Zhaodi shrugged. "I'm the crucial insurance policy to ensure we don't get wiped out, and I have no combat power anyway."

"Nigma, you know me," Two-Face tossed the black-and-white coin. "Only the coin's result can decide my actions, and this time, fate has me staying put."

"Riddler, you know me," Poison Ivy sighed. "I helped you only to prevent the so-called 'scorched-earth strategy.' Since the Joker is no longer a threat now, there's no need for me to waste any more effort."

"Friend, you know me," Deathstroke idly twirled his dual blades. "From the moment my mission failed, our employment ended. I only came this time to hold the fort, as a sort of after-sales service for a failed mission."

"Don't look at me," Man-Bat's voice was hoarse. "I never wanted to be a villain anyway, and I hate killing. I'm just here to fill a number."

"Solomon Grundy, born on Monday." Grundy stood blankly in place, reaching up to scratch his head, as if pondering what the Riddler's words meant.

With every word they spoke, the Riddler's expression grew darker; he knew these people would no longer obey his orders.

"You betray me?"

"Don't put it so harshly," Deadshot raised his gun, aiming it at Mr. Zass beside him. "I'm a mercenary; I just take money and do the job. Pity you were a step too late. But don't worry, I'll return the money you paid this time."

The Riddler laughed in extreme anger: "Very good, very good. I see it now; each of you possesses unique skills."

"Don't blame us," Mr. Freeze also pointed his freeze gun at Firefly. "His offer was better than yours."

"Higher than a billion? Higher than all of Gotham?"

Killer Croc stepped forward two paces, revealing his sharp claws. "Some things are more important than a billion and all of Gotham."

Nigma no longer looked at them; he turned his head to look at Ma Ma Zhaodi beside him.

"Mr. Thaw," he said. "Tell me, tell me: who bribed you? Who do you serve? At this point, there's no need to hide anymore, is there?"

"Sorry, boss, but I'm a professional super-villain; I would absolutely never betray—"

"Stop pretending, Mr. Thaw."

The Riddler gritted his teeth, cutting off Ma Ma Zhaodi's words: "Didn't you already sell quite a bit of my information?"

"Huh? You knew?"

"I discovered it from the start. A small fry like you, both incompetent enough to seek protection from super-villains like Two-Face, and greedy enough to sell information to the Joker. I originally thought someone as worthless as you could only serve as a contingency for passing false intelligence, and if Batman caught you, you might play a slightly larger role."

"Later, I found my thinking was correct. You were very useful; your connection with Batman indeed benefited me, even helping me trade pieces to eliminate the Joker's super-villains. So in the final battle, I sent you to the Joker's side. Without my intelligence, Batman naturally couldn't capture my people. From that moment on, my victory over the Joker was a foregone conclusion."

"But?"

"But on the night I dispatched Firefly and Poison Ivy, Batman still arrived at the scene in time."

The Riddler stared coldly at Poison Ivy: "I didn't expect that with only three of my subordinates left, one would be a traitor. Even more unexpected, the traitor turned out to be Poison Ivy."

"So, Mr. Thaw, tell me," he said. "Perhaps they won't be willing to speak, but someone as greedy as you would surely sell everything for money. Bruce Wayne's billion still has half left, and at this point, it's useless to me."

"Now, tell me that name."

This scheme was truly clumsy. Kite Man shook his head; he could see that Ma Ma Zhaodi was a good person with ideals, and also very smart. The Riddler's assessment of him was completely wrong. He was not a fool who would sell out for money. Five hundred million dollars might be a lot, but he wouldn't expose himself for it—

"It's the Perverted Bicycle Hero! Boss, it was the Perverted Bicycle Hero who bribed the others!"

Kite Man:?

At that moment, Ma Ma Zhaodi beside him had fallen into a frenzy of joy; he only knew that a business trip might earn a big sum, never expecting to earn such a huge one.

And upon hearing his answer, the Riddler's reaction was the same as Kite Man's.

The Riddler:?

"You? It's you?! Impossible! Impossible!"

Although he said so with his mouth, when the Riddler saw the others around him, saw the expressions on their faces, and saw them tacitly accepting Ma Ma Zhaodi's answer, he suddenly understood: this was the truth.

In other words, you are the mastermind behind my betrayal, and then you bring this news to me to claim a reward?

The Riddler immediately felt dizzy and lightheaded; he clenched both fists, his murderous intent surging in his heart, and only after a while did he manage to suppress himself.

"Impressive, Mr. Perverted Bicycle Hero," he said, his venomous gaze fixed tightly on Ma Ma Zhaodi. "I know you've spoken with many people: Two-Face, Killer Croc, Deathstroke. But I never expected your eloquence to be so formidable. It seems your disguise is even deeper than I thought."

"But I don't understand; you and Poison Ivy clearly had no interaction at all, you barely ever spoke." He asked, "Why would she betray me too?"

Poison Ivy beside him smiled.

In fact, Ma Ma Zhaodi had conversed with her the most; it's just that no one could understand, because the language of plants is silent—except for the holder of the plant magic power known as "Green of All Things," who else could understand the words relayed by a single seed?

From the very beginning, after she obtained that seed from the lighter, Ma Ma Zhaodi's communication with her had already started; so in reality, Poison Ivy was the first person to be turned.

"What I didn't expect even more is that you could even hire Deathstroke and Deadshot, and even turn Mr. Freeze. This isn't a matter of price at all. Who exactly are you?"

"Boss, I think you'd better not know," Ma Ma Zhaodi answered seriously. "Sometimes, knowing too much only brings unhappiness."

(End of this chapter)