Chapter 2182: Battle of the Two Cities! (Part 60)

"That's how it is, ma'am, I'm very sorry..."

Peter's voice came intermittently from the hospital room. Martha seemed to be speaking intensely to the doctor about something.

Batman stood outside the hospital room door. He knew that the person inside the room was the Batman from the universe beneath his feet.

According to previous investigations, Batman understood that this was another fledgling Bruce Wei En, likely around the same age as Schiller's student, yet he had almost no professional training. The prologue of the Joker's plan had completely broken his defenses.

But Batman didn't expect him to have broken down so thoroughly. Just now, he heard the doctor inside the room say that this Bruce was very likely suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and it wasn't mild; he was in urgent need of treatment.

Now Thomas and Martha had even more to do, but the first to suffer would be Batman.

"Bruce Wei En!" Thomas slammed the hospital room door shut with a dark face. The moment his full name was called, Batman knew he was in trouble, but he could only follow Thomas to another room because Martha was watching him from behind.

"Listen, Bruce, I have expressed countless times that I don't want you to become Batman. Yes, that's exactly what I think. This profession is both dangerous and not meaningful enough."

"Don't be in a hurry to refute me. Answer me one question: why not take more extreme measures to restrict that lunatic called the Joker? You let another version of yourself get hurt."

Martha sighed softly, walked over, reached out to stroke Batman's resolute face, and said, "I don't know if the Bruce in every universe suffered the tragedy of our departure, but at least I see them as my children, as you at different stages of life. I don't want them to get hurt."

"The consequences are much more serious than I imagined." Martha's gaze became somewhat sad. She said, "If you tell me you are powerless to do it, I will never force you. If it puts you in deep danger, then don't demand such harsh responsibility of yourself."

Batman could hear that Martha also wanted him to quit. She was worried that Batman would also be hurt by the Joker, while Batman was thinking about another question.

Originally, he thought Bruce was like him, not wanting to stop the dog-eat-dog situation below, so he returned to Wei En Manor to kill time. But now he realized—this kid might be aiming at him.

Whether it's being a better father, a better child, or now bringing up a Bruce driven mad by the Joker—what is this? Showing off that you're doing better?

When this thought flashed through Batman's mind, he felt it was a bit incredible, because this kind of speculation was too childish, feeling as if a desk mate dropped an eraser and it happened to fall by your feet, so you speculated that she liked you.

Bruce didn't come to look for trouble with him proactively, and Batman only vaguely felt that something was wrong. There was insufficient evidence, so he decided to observe a bit more.

After Thomas and Martha returned to the hospital room, Bruce also went in, and then Batman heard him say from outside the door.

"... Why can't I handle it? I will definitely make that lunatic look good! I will make him understand the price of doing evil!"

"What? Danger? Where is the danger? If you don't believe me, go ask Damian. I often play cards with the Joker in our universe; he can't even cheat well."

"... No, he's a truck driver. People have proper jobs; how would they have time to play cards every day? Cat Getan has become the logistics distribution center for the East Coast; the truck drivers are busy to death..."

A few dozen seconds later, Thomas's roar came: "Bruce! You come here!"

Batman knew this was calling him again, so he had no choice but to walk in. Thomas stared at him and asked: "What is that Joker's job?"

"What?"

"I'm asking what that Joker's profession is?"

"He is the Joker."

"I know he is the Joker! But can he earn his meal money by putting you in the hospital?! What does he do to earn money?!"

Batman really wanted to say that usually, it was him putting the Joker in the hospital, but he knew he couldn't say that. After thinking for a moment, he replied: "... He robs banks."

"So he's a robber?"

"Occasionally a thief too."

"Why don't you let him do some proper work?! Like driving a truck or working in a circus or something."

Batman opened his mouth. If the Joker could really do some proper work, he wouldn't be the Joker. But if you want the Joker not to be the Joker, you have to make him do some proper work, but if the Joker does some proper work, he wouldn't be...

Batman chose to shut up.

He walked out. Before leaving, he looked at Bruce with slight suspicion. Was the situation of the Joker in his universe revealed by him on purpose?

"You're not much better either." Thomas's roar continued, "As a Wei En, you actually owe a truck driver 100 dollars and still haven't paid it back. Do you know how ashamed I was when he found his way to our house?!"

Batman's departing footsteps paused. He decided to listen.

"I was wrong."

"Thomas, don't say that to him. Do you remember he's still on medication? The side effects of the drugs are severe enough. His physical impairment makes him unable to even tie a knot properly. You can't pressure my child like this."

Batman turned and left.

"Bruce!!!"

Thomas's roar came again. Batman had to return to the hospital room again. Thomas waved his fingers behind his back with hands shaking from anger and said: "Go, handle the hospitalization procedures for the one lying on the bed, handle the follow-up checkup procedures for the one standing, and book a mental health checkup for yourself. Go quickly!!!"

"I don't need a mental health checkup..."

"God." Martha rushed over and covered Batman's mouth, gently patted his arm and said: "Don't anger your father. The family doctor said his blood pressure is very bad. Go quickly, Bruce, I'm begging you."

Martha pushed Batman out the door. After closing the door, she lowered her voice and said to Batman: "During this time, we need to take care of the other you. Pay more attention to the company's affairs. The children are not small anymore; they can help you, especially Damian. He has a talent for this."

"Keep an eye on production, manage the funds, you understand. Go."

Batman watched Martha's back as she returned to the hospital room. He turned and left. After taking no more than two steps, he discovered a figure following behind him.

Batman stopped his footsteps and turned to look at Bruce behind him. Bruce was hugging his arms, looking at him, then lowered his head and smiled, walked up, and looked into Batman's eyes and said.

"People often say that blood relationship is the closest bond. You think so too, right? You feel secure in your relationship with them, thinking they are your parents, and only yours."

Batman narrowed his eyes.

"The sense of security you have in this relationship..." Bruce lifted his lips to reveal his teeth, then raised the corners of his mouth to reveal a malicious smile, "is a bit unrealistic from now on. Bruce Wei En isn't just you. Whose parents they are depends on one's own ability."

The corners of Batman's mouth sank.

He really was doing it on purpose. Batman now knew whose target Bruce's sniper rifle was aimed at.

"You should go for your checkup."

Batman turned and left. He could feel Bruce's gaze remaining on him; the aggression in it was almost enough to stare a hole through his clothes.

Incredibly childish. Did he think this was what, a battle for parents?

Meaningless.

Batman returned to the Wei En Group building. He had to check the recent financial statements. Even though Thomas had been managing the Wei En Group since the Waynes returned, Batman still had to ensure there were no abnormalities in the operations.

The one that worried him most was the unknown funds flowing to Mexico. During the time he was still on Earth, he was busy focusing on the cosmic war and had no time to investigate what was happening in Mexico. Now that the entire island of Cat Getan had flown away from Earth, he couldn't investigate Mexico's affairs either.

But Batman could still infer what Thomas had been doing recently through the flow of funds.

Several small amounts of funds were distributed to unknown Mexican accounts, and some fund flows were to military accounts or accounts that were clearly black gloves.

Traces of historical fund flows through Mexican accounts indicated that they had also purchased arms from the Wei En Group. In other words, Thomas gave money to certain people in Mexico, letting them come to the Wei En Group to buy arms. What was this for?

Wait, arms. What would Mexicans buy arms for? There was no war breaking out there.

Batman had a bad premonition. He immediately returned to his universe through the portal beneath the floating island, and then he saw on the front page of international news that a people's democratic revolution had broken out in Mexico, and the Democratic Alliance Army was fighting a great war against the Guadalajara government army.

Batman slapped his forehead with one hand.

Thomas had actually started the business of an arms dealer, giving money first, letting the other party take the money to buy their arms, and then selling more arms after inciting a war. And with this, he actually had the nerve to scold him for being Batman?!

But Batman also instinctively felt that something was wrong. Thomas was a businessman, it's true, but he knew his father wasn't the kind of arms dealer who had lost his conscience, otherwise, he wouldn't have been shot in the back all those years ago.

As the investigation deepened, Batman found Thomas's personal account in the Wei En Group's computer. It was an independent folder used to record certain things.

Batman found a photo there.

The photo was of the skyline of a prosperous city, with high-rise buildings standing in great numbers, roads filled with heavy traffic, and winding overpasses and the central roundabout all shining under the sunlight.

That was Cat Getan.

Batman almost immediately recalled the incomparable shock he felt when he saw Bruce through Schiller's Tower of Thought, seeing Bruce and that Cat Getan of his that had sunlight.

And Thomas had been in it, experiencing it personally.

Batman found more pictures in this folder, most of which were manuscripts, and it could be seen that they were renovation projects for certain cities.

Batman could remember all the details in this city, so he knew that the buildings drawn on it didn't belong to the Cat Getan he was in, so it must be the Cat Getan Bruce was in.

Flipping further back, Batman could clearly see that the renovations in the manuscripts had become the street blocks of the Cat Getan he was in. Some methods based on previous architectural renovations were awkwardly applied to the buildings Batman was familiar with.

Thomas wasn't an architectural master, and even his drawing was something he had learned when he was young, far from any professional level. But Batman could see his twelve-point effort from these manuscripts.

One of the manuscripts depicted the Wei En Tower where Batman was, surrounded by some buildings that Batman wasn't familiar with, clearly in Thomas's imagination, as well as the only blue sky and white clouds that had been painted with a background color.

Now Batman knew what Thomas was doing, selling arms and speculating in real estate, tiring himself out until his blood pressure had problems. What the money he earned was intended for.

The battle for parents was truly meaningless. Batman turned around.

But the Joker was right; it was time to go all out and see the true worth of Schiller's excellent graduates. ===== CHAPTER 2183 =====