[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of-":3,"chapter-built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--chapter-1":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","Starting from Scratch: Batman Shatters My Get-Rich Dreams",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":18,"prevChapterSlug":19,"totalChapters":20,"novelImage":21},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":12,"translator":16,"content_hash":17},2215949,3926,"Chapter 1: Who the Hell Would Want to Find a Legal Job in Gotham","built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--chapter-1",1,"\u003Cp>Cold, trembling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A clanging sound came from his ears, and Ma Zhaodi, half-asleep, was jolted by the ground's shaking until the back of his head ached.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sir.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Between sleep and wakefulness, a voice seemed to echo beside him again and again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who is this?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sir!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Who is this voice calling?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Wake up! Sir!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cold and damp air rushed in, filling Ma Zhaodi's nostrils; this air seemed to carry a hint of blood and a strange sense of danger.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This scent seemed to travel straight from his nose to his soul, and Ma Zhaodi's mind, like being dragged from the deep sea to the surface, became instantly clear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He suddenly opened his eyes and saw an unfamiliar ceiling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, not a ceiling.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The ground swayed rhythmically with clanging sounds, thick dark clouds outside the window beside him were moving at high speed, rows of seats lined both sides, and he was lying on the corridor between the seats.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was on a train.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But why was he in such a place?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just awakened, Ma Zhaodi pushed himself up from the ground; around him were rows of empty train seats, and a conductor stood beside him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Sir, are you all right?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why was a foreign conductor asking him questions in English?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When the hell did he get on a foreign train?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No, no, he wasn't originally on a train.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi shook his head hard, trying to confirm that everything before his eyes was not an illusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Unfortunately, everything before his eyes seemed incredibly real; the slightly cold air, the icy train metal, the scratches and damage details on the carriage, and the roaring sound of the moving train all proved the reality of this world to him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"But wasn't I originally staying up late typing?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi tried hard to recall his last memory; it seemed he fell asleep while typing and collapsed onto the keyboard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Maybe I was too tired from staying up late and fell asleep, and now I'm dreaming. Or perhaps some boring variety show crew is pranking me?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He thought this.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While thinking, Ma Zhaodi stood up and sat on the seat beside him. At this moment, the conductor was still asking about his condition nearby; seeing that this Asian passenger remained silent, the conductor felt a slight fear in his heart.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ordinary passengers were naturally nothing to fear, but the train had only one last stop, the final destination.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That final destination was called Gotham.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Normal people might go to Gotham City, but it was unlikely for normal people to go to Gotham City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He gritted his teeth and asked again, but that passenger still did not respond, only staring at him with a strange, eerie gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That gaze was incredibly chilling; having been looked at once, the conductor could no longer bear the psychological pressure, said \"sorry,\" and fled in panic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the conductor leave, Ma Zhaodi turned his head, his gaze directed at the train window on one side; on the slightly misty glass, he could see the gray sky outside, and the city in the darkness beneath the rain clouds, the towering clock tower, the skyscrapers standing in close rows, the strange Gothic architecture, and the vaguely visible dirty, low-rise building clusters in the distance, along with English slogans and signs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Clock tower? Slums? English signs?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Judging by the style of these buildings, this city was clearly not in Dongda.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Where the hell did this send me? Is this still domestic?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi murmured unconsciously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Woo—\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Just as he was still thinking about why he was dreaming of going abroad to a place he had never visited, the train's whistle sounded, then it began to slow down, and immediately entered the platform.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Looking at the unfamiliar platform style, and the Western faces with blonde hair and blue eyes standing nearby, Ma Zhaodi stood stunned by the window.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Clang\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The train doors opened, and passengers carrying luggage and large and small packages walked out of the carriage toward the platform outside.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi was swept along by the crowd toward the outside of the train; at this moment, he only felt like a rootless duckweed, drifting unsteadily toward an unknown distance.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Why won't I wake up? Why won't this dream end?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He walked off the train in a daze, and after taking only a few steps, he suddenly stopped, staring blankly at the English text on the platform above his head.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Gotham City\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi, who had originally wanted to deceive himself for a while longer, instantly broke down; although the English he knew was not much, he had watched some superhero movies and naturally knew the weight of this English word.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Damn it, which heartless bastard sent me to this ghost place!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ma Zhaodi, nearly desperate, raised both hands to cover his face; he strongly suspected he would be skinned and dismembered by criminals in dark alleys on the very first night entering this city, eaten clean. As one of the cities with the highest crime rate in the entire United States, normal people here could be called rare gems, while upright and honest people could be called non-existent.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If a simple thief were placed in another city, he would undoubtedly be an ordinary criminal; but if a person in Gotham City only stole without robbing, killed no one, and set no fires, he would fully qualify to campaign for the title of Good Citizen in Gotham City.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seventy percent of the people in this city were gang members; besides them, there were some world-class terrorist organizations, world-class assassin groups, and the remainder were some children, the wealthy, capitalists, and some lone super-criminals, finally adding the biggest psycho in all of Gotham.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And world-class unlucky people, those who knew nothing about this city and accidentally wandered in, pure bystanders.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As for the police? Not a single officer in the police station had never cooperated with gangs or psychopaths. This was a city soaked in darkness; if there was any place in this city that was not black, it might only be Ma Zhaodi, who had just arrived here.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Ding\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Self-made System has finished loading. Please work hard to earn money and become wealthy through diligence. As the saying goes, money can move gods; before you are penniless, you will always have a chance to continue.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Current asset count: seven dollars\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Current mission: Rely on your own hands to find a job in Gotham City and earn your first pot of gold after transmigration.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Newbie benefit options are as follows:\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Available for purchase:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Basic English proficiency\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Price: 1 dollar\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: How do you spell \"abandon\"?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Local identity\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Price: 1 dollar per copy\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: A Gotham lord is a lord; all day long it's nothing but gunfights and slashing people, nothing else!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Rapid life recovery\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Price: 1 dollar\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: If it works, come back; next time, a 99.999% discount\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Save point\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Price: 1 dollar\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Note: A hundred million in acting fees; can't afford to pay next time\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Please note, you can only earn assets through legal work. Stay grounded and get rich through diligence.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Seeing the system and its contents, Ma Zhaodi's mood rose and fell like a roller coaster, a thousand tangled thoughts, finally turning into a single sigh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"What kind of madman would think of finding a legal job in Gotham?\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>(End of chapter)\u003C\u002Fp>",1223,"2026-06-17T10:01:11.760Z","Qwen3.5 122B","256fb81d57ebf359e320bc940f75016bebd067da642d596ef2f86755a9452dcf","built-from-scratch-batman-shattered-my-dream-of--chapter-2",null,10,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fstarting-from-scratch-batman-shatters-my-get-ric-cover.jpg"]