Chapter 281: The Plot Takes a Sudden Turn (Part 1)

A gray glow appeared before Batman, followed by Schiller's voice, as usual, as if he could see what Batman was thinking; Schiller said to Batman: "I pulled everyone's consciousness into a dream, then amplified their emotions within the dream to attract the Lantern Rings…"

"But the Lantern Ring must gain the host's consent to bond; once I draw their consciousness deep into the dream space, the Ring will find that the body it has chosen holds no awareness—and to locate the host's true consciousness, it must enter the dream itself, meaning the Ring's physical form cannot enter, only its power can."

"Thus, these people never truly wear the Ring—they merely receive energy reinforcement from the Lantern Ring. I fused this energy together and forged a new Lantern Forge within the dream world, creating an entirely new Lantern Beast…"

"But likewise, this is confined to the dream space; this gray Lantern Ring has no physical form, so it cannot function in the real world. Once you wake from the dream, it will be as if nothing ever happened."

"Or rather, this is not a newly recognized Lantern Ring at all—it is merely a dream we have made."

"Then what good is it?" Batman asked.

"Right now, the Laughing Egg can feed on the dark energy deep within you, accelerating its hatching exponentially, while you have almost no power to draw upon."

"If this imbalance continues, the monster born from this egg will kill you, seize your body, and then step into the real world."

"The gray Lantern Ring, having absorbed the energies of several other Lantern Rings, can provide you with energy to counter it…"

Batman slowly extended his hand; the gray glow flew toward his palm. Before he slipped the Ring on, he asked: "I heard Hal say each Lantern Ring represents an emotion—what emotion does this one represent?"

"Formless, indistinguishable from illusion, encompassing all things… Chaos."

The instant the gray Lantern Ring touched Batman's finger, his entire body was wrapped in layers of gray mist; the gray dragon that had flown from the Lantern Forge let out a deafening roar that shook the entire consciousness space, spread its wings across the sky, and arrived above Batman's head.

Batman suddenly felt a mysterious link form between himself and the Dream Dragon; with a thought, the gray dragon shot toward the Fear Joker.

The Dream Dragon drew countless gray mists behind it, while the Fear Joker's back unleashed endless black tides; when the two forces collided, they produced a blinding point of light like a cosmic explosion, followed by countless massive ripples spreading outward.

This vast, staggering battle was no longer something one or two individuals could control; all other consciousnesses retreated to the edges of the dream.

Since the Lantern Rings' power had been swallowed by the gray mist, the light on their bodies had vanished; Victor's tone, however, was surprisingly calm: "Thankfully, it didn't last long. Actually, that power gave me a strange feeling…"

"What feeling?" Schiller asked him.

"Like something is watching me—or rather, it wants to control me, to make some emotion inside me explode."

"That's normal. The Lantern Rings originate from the emotional spectrum; your inner emotional energy can complement the Ring's power…"

"Hey, what the hell is going on?" Hal walked over, interrupting Schiller and Victor's conversation; his green glow had also vanished.

Hal's voice carried a hint of panic: "What did you do to me? Why has my Green Lantern energy disappeared?"

"I merely absorbed all the energy from the Ring you're currently wearing. You can recharge it back at the Lantern Forge later."

Hearing the power wasn't permanently gone, Hal exhaled in relief—but Schiller's next words plunged him into silence: "Don't you think you've become too dependent on this energy? Are you controlling it—or is it controlling you?"

At this moment, the battlefield grew even more intense; the combat had shifted from visible physical struggle to a deeper, more mystical contest of spirit and will.

The gray mist representing Batman and the black tide representing the Fear Joker churned into a spindle-shaped vortex at the center of the battlefield; Batman and the Fear Joker, in their physical forms, clashed within this colossal whirlwind, engaging in a mental duel.

Currently, Batman remained at a disadvantage; not only did he have to suppress the monster's movements and attack its core, he also had to divert part of his strength to restrain the creature struggling to crawl out of the embryo. Batman's sharp intuition told him: if this monster fully hatched, everything was over.

Thus, a tendril of gray mist tightly coiled around the newly emerged hand, forcing it back into the shell, while a thin layer of mist wrapped the eggshell, continuously thickening its outer wall.

Just as the battle reached a stalemate, a tendril of gray mist traveled along the spinning vortex and touched the very tail end of the Fear Joker's body; at that moment, Batman, linked to the gray mist's consciousness, received an emotion flooding into his mind.

It was a brainwave carrying information—but wildly chaotic. Batman deciphered its message: "I am Parallax. I want to cooperate with you…"

Batman quickly deduced what was happening: clearly, Parallax had never intended to cooperate with the Laughing Egg.

Although Parallax was a chaotic entity with thinking patterns utterly alien to humans, due to its inability to act independently, it had spent long periods interacting with human-like intelligences, developing a certain unspoken understanding.

Parallax could be seen as another kind of symbiont: without a host, it could not remain in the real world for long. It must reside within a Yellow Lantern host, and the host must possess independent wisdom and consciousness to move freely—thus, it was highly adapted to coexisting with its host's consciousness.

But when a third consciousness entered the host's mind, Parallax would feel discomfort—like a pet dog that shares a house with its owner but cannot tolerate another dog living there.

Especially when that other dog suppresses its consciousness, steals control of its body, and forces upon it an ugly head.

This ancient being of fear was extraordinarily enraged. No matter how it might coexist with its host afterward, right now it only wanted to destroy this intruder alongside its host's consciousness.

Batman and Parallax communicated endlessly through the gray mist, but human orderly thought and chaotic entity thought operated on entirely different wavelengths; after much effort, they reached only a preliminary agreement—still no plan.

At that moment, Schiller's voice sounded in Batman's ear:

"Using the Gray Lantern Ring isn't just about drawing its energy—it's about harnessing the rules of the dream."

"The rules of the dream?"

"Yes. What's called 'manifesting your desires.'"

"I know—in dreams, you can manifest anything. But you and the Laughing Egg are both masters of this dream, two sides of the same being. You wish to manifest his death, and he wishes to manifest yours. At this point, you can only battle willpower."

"But again, he was carved from your body—you are him, he is you. Theoretically, you both possess the same willpower. If this stalemate continues, neither of you can fully erase the other."

"So what?"

"I linked my dream to yours, and used my Mind Palace along with the energy of other Lantern Rings to forge the Gray Lantern Ring—this Ring represents my consciousness space."

"Meaning, when you use this gray Ring, it's as if my will and your will are stacked together—giving you sufficient authority to erase this embryo's existence…"

Batman narrowed his eyes. He understood Schiller's words.

Previously, his battle with the Laughing Egg was like a man's left hand wrestling his right hand—since they were the same person, their strength and will were nearly equal.

The Laughing Egg could tap into Batman's dark side, acting like his dominant hand, slightly stronger in muscle power—but not by much. When Batman drew upon the Gray Lantern Ring's energy to counter the black tide, the two became evenly matched.

Now, if Batman's will and Schiller's will were combined, it was like pressing down the right hand with the left, then a kitchen knife appearing out of nowhere and chopping off the right hand—providing the decisive factor to tip the battle.

The observers outside suddenly saw the spindle-shaped vortex growing larger; the black tide and gray mist thinned, revealing the scene within.

They saw the crack on the embryo atop the monster widening further; the pale hand was probing outward, soon extending its entire front half, then the elbow and upper arm.

"What's happening? Is it hatching?? Is Batman losing??"

Schiller shook his head: "Batman is letting it hatch. He has no choice. The eggshell isn't just a restriction—it's also a protective shield. If it only extends one hand, Batman's attacks won't deliver a fatal blow. He must wait until the crack grows larger."

As he spoke, the monster's entire arm emerged, then its head. Batman saw a pale skull with steel-studded goggles over one eye and a wide, grinning mouth; it was now rubbing its head against the viscous membrane inside the embryo, just barely missing full emergence.

At that moment, the entire consciousness space trembled. Dense, solidified gray mist descended from above the embryo's head; the instant it touched the hatching monster, the monster's form began vanishing into thin air.

As if the monster had been frozen as a drawing on paper, then erased, piece by piece, from the head downward.

But the monster immediately realized what Batman intended and fought back fiercely; the erasure slowed, and it thrashed violently to break free, tearing at the membrane above its head with its outstretched hand.

Just then, Parallax delivered a betrayal, seizing control from within; the Laughing Egg's movements froze for an instant—and in that instant, half its arm and half its head were completely erased.

Everything happened in silence, yet everyone sensed the ferocity of the battle; Hal nearly held his breath, afraid any sound might disrupt the outcome.

The gray mist above the monster grew denser; Batman closed his eyes, focusing all his willpower to its peak; gray mist flowed through the cracks in the shell, beginning to erase its body.

Parallax continuously disrupted the monster, causing its motions to stutter; soon, the arm exposed outside the shell and most of its body within were erased.

At that moment, the monster, sensing defeat, let out a scream like a laugh—and the entire dream began collapsing.

"The Immortal Wood Miracle"

"He's out of options—he's trying to take us all down with him," Schiller said calmly, showing no urgency despite the impending crisis. He turned to the others: "Follow me into my Mind Palace. If this place collapses, I'll send you out."

After their figures vanished, only Batman and the monster remained in the dream space.

Finally, Batman and Parallax launched a united assault; the moment the monster's last remaining half-head vanished, the dream collapsed entirely.

Exhausted of all spirit and will, Batman did not see the yellow body of the Fear Joker—beyond its head—shrinking rapidly, then fully slipping into the eggshell left behind, still not entirely destroyed.

The gray Ring on Batman's finger detached itself and flew toward the towering spire at the center of Gotham.

Simultaneously, a yellow-glowing egg, carried by the dream's chaotic currents, drifted to the spire's entrance.

Schiller slipped on the gray Ring, sensing the chaotic consciousness emanating from the egg. He paused—then allowed the egg to enter the tower.

Then Schiller raised his arm; the gray mist reached its densest state.

At the instant the dream shattered completely, Schiller's voice echoed: "Return to reality."

The entire tower, along with the swirling gray mist, vanished utterly from the collapsing, chaotic fragments.