Chapter 483: Talent Emerges in Arkham! (Part 1)

As previously mentioned, Gotham's first law is that no matter how correct and proper the beginning of any event may be, the people of Gotham will always mess it up horribly; and Gotham's second law is that the people of Gotham believe in no ghosts, demons, or gods.

It's hard to say that citizens of a city on America's East Coast are all staunch materialist warriors, yet the fact remains that when the people of Gotham encounter anything they cannot understand or that defies common sense, their first thought is never supernatural events, divine punishment, or natural disasters—they do not scream and flee.

In such situations, every native of Gotham has only one reaction: grab a gun, pull the trigger, empty the magazine, then step forward to confirm whether those incomprehensible things are truly dead.

This is also a manifestation of natural selection, for those who panic and run cannot survive in Gotham City.

Thus, after the first eyewitness—the fisherman—in the previous haunting incident shouted those words, every gang member on the third-floor corridor of the psychiatric hospital opened fire at once; the muzzle flashes lit up, and white beams shot straight out from the windows at both ends of the corridor, illuminating the dark night like giant searchlights.

How to describe the intensity of the firepower at this moment? Simply put: Batman and the Joker fled in terror, the Penguin and the Scarecrow scrambled away on all fours, and Hellblazer Constantine nearly boarded the direct train to Hell.

Gotham's gangsters, though ugly in appearance, are no better inside.

That night, they were first awakened by a ghost for no reason, then provoked into a fierce gang war; after hours of fighting, they realized they'd been tricked, and now had to painstakingly clear the building and hunt down the ghost—they were already fed up.

Pulling the trigger and unleashing bullets is the simplest way to vent inner rage; never mind whether they can kill the enemy—when bullets, fueled by fury, burst forth, the violent instinct ingrained in Gotham's people ignites, the rage grows hotter, spiraling into madness, and everyone attacks relentlessly anything green within sight.

This gave the newly arrived Green Lanterns not a single moment to react; they didn't even activate their shields, relying only on the flickering green light on their bodies to deflect the bullets.

The green energy clinging to their skin did block the bullets, but not the blast waves; when the first rocket screamed in, everyone except Hal, who had anticipated it, was blown backward.

And when they got up, their first action was not to counterattack, but to flee.

True, Green Lantern energy is powerful, but those wielding it are still sentient beings—and as long as one has intelligence, one feels fear.

The Green Lanterns knew internally that human bullets and explosions were well within the defensive range of Green Lantern energy; theoretically, even standing at the heart of the heaviest fire, they'd face no mortal danger—but theory is only theory.

For example, humans know geese are unlikely to kill them, yet when a flock of large geese charges at you flapping their wings fiercely, you panic just the same and run just the same.

The Green Lanterns had barely landed when they encountered furious gangsters, chased like ducks, scrambling blindly down the corridor like glowing headless flies.

"Don't run! Don't run! Get back and organize a counterattack!"

Officer Carol shouted loudly, but the Green Lanterns, having never seen such a scene, were truly panicked; they fought individually, darted into every opening, desperately seeking cover, their formation in complete disarray.

Finally, Hal used Green Lantern energy to phase through walls and pull them all back, barely holding the line.

"Damn it! Didn't you just finish training?!" Carol roared angrily: "Didn't the instructors tell you?! When under attack, form a defensive line immediately—unite your shields!"

But beside him, Hal turned and asked: "They 'just finished training'? Don't tell me they're all new recruits??"

Carol cursed and said: "You should've figured it out—the squad leader didn't take your words seriously; the Second Squad is made up of total new recruits; they might have less experience than you!"

Hal said despairingly: "Don't run! Don't run! Hold the line! Unite your shields! Can't you even look at the tactical manual inside your rings?!"

Yet several Green Lanterns still tried to flee through the windows; their faces were young, clearly new Lanterns, and since they resembled humans closely, they likely came from civilizations similar to humanity's—and thus understood the danger of heavy firepower better.

After much effort, Carol and Hal finally stabilized everyone; true to its nature, the Green Lantern ring, symbol of willpower, allowed this group to overcome their fear of bullets and explosives in mere seconds, forming a fragile united shield at the corridor's end.

Having withstood the first wave of fire, the next step was defense and counterattack; soon, waves of green energy shot down the corridor, blasting several gang members backward.

The lead fisherman, burning with rage, raised his gun and roared: "The ghost is fighting back! Punish them! Kill them! Send them to hell!"

All gang members were furious, advancing relentlessly, indifferent to casualties, only wanting to inflict maximum damage on the other side.

The newly arrived Green Lanterns had no idea what was happening when they faced such fierce assault; even though Green Lantern energy was powerful, the gangsters outnumbered them, carried more weapons, and had overwhelming firepower—forcing the Lanterns into a slow, fighting retreat.

Yet even this wasn't enough; the fisherman kept firing and shouted behind him: "Send someone upstairs, call everyone down, and tell those kids to deliver a message to the North District—we need deadlier firepower!"

"Cobblestone has already sent people!" came a voice from behind: "Young Falcone has called the Godfather—reinforcements are on the way!"

As they continued firing, the Green Lanterns finally snapped out of their panic, abandoning scattered tactics and launching organized attacks.

The gunfight in the hospital corridor was a form of urban warfare, even tighter than alley combat; the space was too narrow to deploy lines, and elevation differences were nearly nonexistent, so many human weapons couldn't be used—because guns, cannons, and grenades all risk friendly fire.

The Green Lanterns' advantage was that Green Lantern energy caused no friendly fire; whether energy blasts, energy weapons, or energy shields, they affected only those without Green Lantern energy—so they didn't need to worry about firing lines, simply pouring forward.

Soon, the situation grew stale, then the Green Lanterns gained the upper hand; the gangsters' line began to waver, then slowly retreated.

At that moment, a beam of light descended from the sky, and Constantine landed before the Gotham gangsters.

His golden hair stirred without wind, his coat flared, his hands glowed brilliantly; with one sweep of his arms, a massive silver shield appeared before them all.

He waved his hands again, drawing smooth arcs in the air; a complex magical array ignited beneath his feet, and several magical missiles shot from his hands, piercing through the Green Lantern shields and striking the center of the Lanterns' formation.

"Bind!"

As Constantine's deep voice echoed, the missiles transformed into chains wrapping toward the Green Lanterns; Carol, undaunted, solidified green light into a blade and slashed through the chains in seconds; the other Lanterns copied him, severing the chains one by one.

But then Constantine smirked wickedly; the broken chain fragments became more magical missiles, exploding against the Green Lanterns like a sudden blizzard, forcing them to raise their arms to shield their eyes.

The gangsters pulled triggers again, unleashing more fire; the distracted Lanterns' shield cracked open.

"Boom!" The third-floor ceiling collapsed, sending up clouds of dust, obscuring the corridor's end.

Deprived of sight, the gangsters slowed their fire; Constantine waved his hand, and several whirlwinds shot from his side, clearing the dust.

One blow after another prevented the Green Lanterns from fully maintaining their shield; the gap healed slowly. Carol turned and shouted: "Focus! Channel your will! Heretics and rebels, tremble before my divine light! Green Lantern endures, eternal radiance!"

"Green Lantern endures, eternal radiance!"

As they chanted, the lead fisherman asked, puzzled: "What are they shouting? What's 'heretics and rebels'?"

"They're calling us heretics and rebels???"

"We're human, they're ghosts—and they're calling us heretics and rebels?! Are ghosts fucking arrogant now?!"

"Shut up and shoot!"

At that moment, the Green Lantern light flared brightly, turning the entire corridor a deep green; the Lanterns strengthened their resolve, their power surged, and they rose into the air, unleashing all manner of energy beams at the gangsters.

Officer Carol charged ahead, floating mid-air; all bullets and explosives halted and froze within half a meter of him. His deep roar echoed through the corridor, radiating unmatched authority:

"For justice!"

The light grew stronger, dense green energy coalescing on his right arm; he extended his hand, aiming at the gangsters in the corridor.

Thought Catalog

The thin energy beam suddenly "hummed" and swelled enormously—but the expected scene of everyone being blasted away and scattering did not occur.

Constantine raised both hands; magical radiance engulfed his entire body, the array beneath his feet expanding, its color shifting from silver to a sinister, deep crimson.

Rolling magma surged from the center of the array, then vanished instantly—like foam collapsing on contact, like a fleeting illusion—but simultaneously, a towering figure rose, smashing through two floors of ceiling: a Hellish Demon of Hatred, its body writhing with evil energy.

A monstrous, deafening voice echoed through the corridor: "Who… summoned me…?"

Constantine swung his arm and slapped the demon's calf: "Me. Stop wasting time. Beat them."

"Fuck, Constantine, why aren't you dead yet?! When are you gonna die?!"

The towering demon lowered its head, its massive vertical pupils fixed on Constantine; just then, the green energy beam struck. The demon waved its hand, igniting a wall of flame that shot down the entire corridor.

As the fire passed over Carol, the green energy shield blocked the heat and dark energy—but left behind glowing runes on his skin.

These runes had no offensive power, but marked him as claimed by a demon; any being capable of communicating with demons could trace him by this mark. And because the mark was non-aggressive, the green energy seemed unable to dispel it.

The demon turned its gaze from Constantine to Carol, moving toward him as it spoke: "Constantine, you'd better prepare your sacrifice quickly…"

As it spoke, it spat fire and lunged at Carol with claws of molten lava; Carol, undaunted, activated his green shield, unleashing an energy blast straight into the demon's eyes.

As the Green Lanterns battled the demon, a maniacal laugh echoed from the hole in the collapsed ceiling; they heard a shrill voice cry:

"The Joker's surprise has arrived! Rejoice!"

"Boom!"

!

With a thunderous crash, the main building of Arkham Asylum collapsed entirely.

The Joker was an expert at using explosives against buildings; even the sturdy, multi-layered defenses of Wayne family structures couldn't withstand his bombs, let alone an old, battered psychiatric hospital?

The instant the Joker's laughter rang out, Constantine teleported everyone away; they appeared beside a highway some distance from the asylum.

Watching the slowly collapsing building, Constantine grinned wickedly.

But soon, his smile vanished; in the pitch-black Gotham sky, a streak of light like a meteor slid across the horizon, growing larger in view—missile exhaust blazed, turning the entire sky as bright as day.

In Schiller's estate, Merkel had just settled the two overnight guests in their rooms when Dick, about to sleep, felt the floor beneath him tremble.

He turned curiously, eyes wide in shock: outside his bedroom window, above the city skyline, fire erupted—and a massive mushroom cloud rose into the sky.