Chapter 1002: Battle for the High Tower (37)

Batman, a dual genius at the strategic and tactical levels, the chosen one who descended to hell to save the demons.

The script he received should have been to use the Qishan Mine as the first base, gradually expand steadily outward, force Belial to expel the conspiracy Shiler beside him in the name of clearing the monarch's side, then gradually nibble away at all of Belial's territory, and then continue to fight constantly until unifying hell.

But as the saying goes, a clever woman cannot cook without rice. If a person is unlucky, even drinking cold water will get stuck in their teeth.

Batman had just received a part of Belial's territory that was not very good in strategic position and had few resources, and he was besieged by all countries from all directions.

What was even more terrifying was that these countries were not demon kingdoms still stuck in the Middle Ages. During the time Batman unified the Qishan Mine, other Shilers who went to apply for jobs with demon lords were not idle either.

The vast majority of Shilers successfully gained the trust of the demon lords. Many, like the conspiracy Shiler, even alienated all the confidants beside the demon lords, monopolized the power of life and death, and began reforms with great fanfare.

The Shilers also knew the method Batman knew. Even some Shilers had more experience in infrastructure than Batman. After all, he came from a country that had once been even poorer.

The conditions of various kingdoms in hell were not good, but in fact, several larger kingdoms were relatively wealthy and had complete systematic technology trees and a group of magicians with decent levels. Although the quality of soldiers could not compare to modern armies, because demons were naturally better physically than humans, it made up for the lack of education and could be considered usable.

For Shiler, not having to start the technology tree from scratch, not having to develop education from literacy, and not having to be so poor that even steel had to be repeatedly smelted, wishing to dig gold out of scrap iron that had been smelted a thousand or eight hundred times, was already a quite good start.

So, during the time Batman was fighting in the mine, many countries around him began vigorous reforms. Although they couldn't improve much in terms of people's livelihood for a while, they did make rapid progress in terms of liberating war potential.

And the result was that Batman, who had just sold out of the novice village, met the true Tyrant Sunset Lobster at the village entrance, and there wasn't just one, but several dozen.

The land Batman occupied had a relatively unique geographical location. He bordered Belial, Astro, and Azazel on three sides. At the same time, the largest rift valley in the southeast of the territory went straight into Beelzebub's territory, which was almost impossible to defend.

It couldn't be said that he was kept in the dark, but it could also be said that there was no wind or waves.

What was even more terrifying was that originally, these parties were fighting fiercely, but as soon as Batman came out, all countries instantly showed an attitude of friendly consultation.

Astro and Beelzebub turned hostility into friendship on the spot, and Belial and Azazel joined hands to think back on the years of friendship for hundreds of years. Simply put, it was one sentence: the war can be lost, but Batman must die.

Batman didn't need to think to know who was instigating behind the scenes. And what was even more outrageous was that some demon lords who were relatively far from these people's territories and did not border Batman also wanted to participate in this war.

It just so happened that these demon lords, who were usually suspicious, sang "My door is always open" one after another, saying that if they wanted to borrow the road, they would borrow the road, and if they wanted to borrow troops, they would borrow troops. In short, all demons twisted into a rope, swearing to strangle Batman's heretical power in the cradle.

At first, Batman didn't realize the seriousness of the problem. He thought that these demon lords bordering him would definitely attack him. Thus, he began to shrink his defensive line, formulate defensive strategies, hold the city, and fight conservatively.

At the beginning, this method was indeed useful. The defensive side was always easier to fight than the offensive side. Plus, the railway lines in the country had been completely connected, and the transfer of materials was very fast. As long as the materials were sufficient, holding the city for a few years was not a problem.

But as several other countries fired at full power, reforms deepened, and infrastructure gradually improved, their speed of mobilizing resources and soldiers was also very fast. And in itself, their armies were much larger and much more elite than Batman's. Less than seven days after the war began, the defensive line declared a total collapse.

Batman sat in the command center of the Qishan Mine, just like a firefighter without water in a water gun. The battle reports coming in showed fires everywhere, but he didn't have many cards in his hand, and he lost one for every one he played.

And he understood that he had no trump cards to show. He also knew that all Shilers knew this. Therefore, once he showed weakness, it would not lure the enemy deep, but would only usher in even crazier attacks. He couldn't sing the Empty City Strategy.

Batman's elbows rested on the table, his palms covered his forehead, and he closed his eyes to take a nap for a while. Just then, Merkel walked in in a rush, holding a battle report, and said: "The western front line has retreated to the point where there is no retreat. Beelzebub's army in the Great Rift Valley is still marching, and it is less than a day's journey from our defensive line. Where exactly should our third battalion group be deployed?"

Batman woke up suddenly from his dream. Merkel glanced at his complexion. Now, Batman looked very embarrassed because he hadn't had any rest for seven days.

Hell indeed almost didn't need to eat, drink, or sleep, but this didn't mean that after seven days of high-intensity mental labor, no rest was needed.

After Batman's genius brain ran at the highest speed for a few days, from so far away, Merkel could already smell the burnt smell of parts overloading.

He hesitated, but still didn't tell Batman the bad news that the southern front had just been broken. Batman took the battle report from his hand, opened his eyes hard in a daze, and Merkel said: "I think you should go rest for a while."

"Those Shilers think so too." Batman opened his mouth, his voice already hoarse to the bottom. He said: "They are just waiting for an opportunity, waiting for me to make a mistake, and then it will collapse completely. And I cannot give them this opportunity."

"But you cannot keep forcing yourself like this." Merkel frowned and said: "The body is the capital of revolution. Haven't you noticed that your soul strength is constantly declining?"

"That day, I heard the Great Mage of Sandbar City say that the human soul is the most precise of all races. Ordinary methods cannot replenish our soul energy; it can only rely on natural recovery."

"If you exhaust your body, it will produce all kinds of negative effects, and it is very likely to affect the condition of your body after returning to reality. This kind of influence is permanent."

"But I must win this battle first before I can return to reality." Batman shook his head gently, staring at the sand table on the table, and said with focused attention: "Although they are constantly attacking our defensive line, the attacks also have waves, which means that as long as we can block one wave of attacks, then theoretically, we can block all waves."

Merkel sighed and said: "But that is only theoretically. Do you know what this theory of yours means?"

"It means that no one can make a mistake." Merkel tapped the table lightly with his finger and then said: "This is unrealistic. More importantly, you cannot make a mistake. Can you really not make a mistake?"

Merkel pointed to the sand table on the table and said: "Now, we are being attacked from five directions: east, west, south, and north, plus the Great Rift Valley that goes straight into the territory. The western battlefield is the shortest defensive line, but on one defensive line, we have to withstand at least 50 impacts a day."

"In other words, we have to withstand more than 200 attacks every day, and the tactical level of our grassroots command personnel is still stuck in the original demon war era. We cannot expect them to formulate any strategies above the average level. Being able to understand orders and execute them is already the most perfect situation."

"In other words, all the decision-making pressure in these 200-plus attacks is pressed on you alone. 200-plus attacks a day, we still have to hold on for at least ten days."

"In these 2000-plus decisions, you cannot make any decision wrong, nor can you have any deviation. Even when there is a deviation in execution, you still need to save it."

"All the decision-making pressure will be pressed on you alone." Merkel shook his head and said: "I believe in your wisdom, and I also believe in your willpower, but you know, with this intensity of pressure, if there is no motivation to drive you forward, you cannot hold on."

Batman took a deep breath and said: "I know, of course, but let's talk about this problem later. Let's solve these strategic problems that need to be solved urgently first."

Batman discussed with Merkel for a while and initially set the subsequent defensive strategy. Just as Merkel said, although the major kingdoms in hell had carried out certain reforms, productivity had improved, and combat methods had changed, they had not yet completely transformed into modern warfare.

And without the three-dimensional attack mode of sea, land, and air and the information warfare mode, then the vast majority of wars were still mainly based on sequential charges. Theoretically speaking, as long as you block the strongest wave of offensive attacks, you can block the remaining attacks.

It was just that in the subtle battlefield, every situation that might occur, every tactic that needed to be arranged, needed to be decided by Batman, and he had no fault tolerance. One wrong move, and the whole game was lost.

Hell had no clear day and night, but during a certain period, the magma flowing down from the sky would become dim. This was what hell called night, but the river of lava on the distant horizon was still bright. Batman stood on the top of the mine mountain and looked at the smoke rising from the river of lava in the distance.

On the horizon, the silhouette of a castle was particularly eye-catching. That was the castle where General Fuxin originally lived, and now, that was Shiler's residence.

For the past few days, Shiler had never appeared, and when Batman left last time, Shiler's state was not very good. Thinking of this, Batman jumped down from the top of the mountain. A small black shadow leaped between the huge mine mountains, and after a while, he arrived at the castle gate.

After thinking about it, Batman did not enter from the front door, but went around to the back of the castle and climbed over the wall.

As soon as he landed, he heard a voice sound above his head: "Pity, this castle has no garden, otherwise, perhaps I could appreciate the scene of you being hung up on the awning again."

Batman looked up and saw Shiler standing on the balcony of the second floor of the castle looking down. Batman walked in from the back door of the front hall, walked up the stairs to the door of the bedroom, and knocked on the door.

But at this time, he saw that the demon named Claude was fully armed, holding a spear in his hand, looking like he was about to go out. Shiler opened the bedroom door, and Batman walked in.

"Are you leaving here?" Batman asked.

Shiler nodded. He glanced at Batman's state and then said: "Yes, I have other things to do."

"It is very dangerous for you to leave now." Batman's tone did not change. Shiler looked at Batman's pale complexion. He knew what had happened recently. Before Batman could open his mouth, Shiler said: "I already said, I came to hell, the one in danger will never be me."

Shiler raised his head, but afterward, he turned his head and stared at Batman, saying: "You were right before, my own emotions are relatively weak, but I can keenly feel the emotions of others."

Shiler closed his eyes, sighed, and said: "When you asked me the first question, I felt that you were concerned about me, but are you really concerned about me?"

Suddenly, Batman saw Shiler reveal an extremely manic smile, and then he stepped forward, face to face with Batman, staring into his eyes, and said: "Do you know why other personality traits want to target me?"

"Why?"

"This is a competition." Shiler raised his voice and said: "And the prize for victory is the qualification to float up to the conscious mind to control the body. In other words, the winner can replace me."

Shiler stared into Batman's eyes and said: "If you lose, you will never see me again... Good news, right?"

"Let me hear, are you feeling happy and relaxed?"

Batman tilted his head slightly. He clearly felt that in a moment, a ball of fire in his chest was ignited, like a bright lamp bright enough to illuminate hell.

What exactly could support him to complete the impossible task, obtain the great power he had never possessed, and become the true chosen one?

Is it justice? Is it revenge?

No, Batman thought, perhaps, it is salvation.

Saving the person in this world who is most impossible to be saved, his enemy, his mentor, the one they are about to merge into one—Shiler Rodriguez.

However, whether it is Shiler or Joker, they both express resistance to concern, and they will never respond. People who care about them are like performing for the air, like a true clown.

But Batman doesn't care. On any issue, he is more paranoid than others.

... Wait, will Shiler really not respond?

At this time, Shiler had already brushed past Batman, intending to leave, and at this time, Batman's voice came from behind him.

"Then, why are you leaving?"

Shiler's back paused for only a moment, then continued to move forward.

Batman looked at his back. He thought, this is really a very classic Pride and Prejudice. ===== CHAPTER 1003 =====