Chapter 4930: There Is No Batman Here (Thirty-Five)

"Wait," Tim called out, "this time we're not taking a car."

He and Dick, one on each side, pulled Jack straight onto the sofa. "We've got something to tell you."

Tim briefly explained the Doctor Manhattan situation to Jack. After listening, Jack frowned and said, "So he pulled a sleight of hand? But with that kind of ability, why not just poison directly? Why use ice?"

Tim shook his head. "I haven't figured that out either. Unless the poison he used has to be preserved in a low-temperature environment. Or it needs to use the melting ice to release slowly — dumping it all in at once won't work. Or maybe he wanted to kill two birds with one stone, poisoning while striking at Cobblepot?"

Jack shook his head, clearly not buying any of those explanations. He said, "Using ice like that — I'm afraid it wasn't to fool the people of our universe."

"You mean..."

"Batman," Jack lowered his voice, "Brainiac was attacked. Batman will definitely investigate. Especially since Robin might be involved this time — he'll absolutely want to figure out who did it."

"On the surface, it was Xilei and them throwing bodies into the lake that caused Brainiac's malfunction. That counts as a truth. But Batman's investigation won't stop there. Because anyone with eyes can see that even if that lake monster had pollution, it's unlikely to have the power to corrode an AI. Those two things don't match at all."

"The deeper truth is Jonathan Crane. As Scarecrow, he's released too many lethal toxins into Gotham's water bodies. At the same time, the corrosive agents he can concoct can indeed deal lethal damage to Brainiac's server rooms. If Batman doesn't take this seriously, the investigation more or less ends there — the truth he uncovers will be Scarecrow poisoning."

"But if Batman takes it very seriously and keeps digging, he'll trace it to Cobblepot."

"But what motive would Cobblepot have?" Tim couldn't help asking.

"Our universe's Cobblepot doesn't have one. But would Batman believe that? In the multiverse, reformed Jokers outnumber reformed Penguins. Cobblepot is a businessman at heart. Brainiac restricts commerce and finance — they have a fundamental conflict. Under those circumstances, Batman won't fully trust Cobblepot."

"I get it. Doctor Manhattan wants to frame Cobblepot. He uses two layers of surface truth to guide Batman's investigation, so the final 'real culprit' he finds looks more credible. But there's still a question — why frame Cobblepot instead of you?"

Tim paused, then said, "If you were the one transporting that batch of ice, the Joker could be dragged in too. Compared to Penguin, Batman would definitely suspect Joker more. Your suspicion would be more solid. Right?"

"The problem is, Doctor Manhattan probably doesn't want Batman and Joker to get entangled either — that would never end." Jack said, "The mastermind's target isn't Batman, and it isn't Joker. It's Brainiac. He went around this bend to make Batman go after Brainiac."

"Then why frame Cobblepot?"

"That's where his brilliance lies." Jack laughed. That familiar smile still sent a shiver through the main-universe crowd — though clearly it was just their PTSD acting up.

"For Batman, Penguin might not be a good guy. But is Brainiac one? Brainiac's governance of Earth might be decent, but that can't hide his ambition to rule the multiverse as an AI."

"Cobblepot moving against Brainiac isn't a crime. On the small scale, it's ideological difference. On the large scale, it can even be called the human race resisting an evil AI. Brainiac isn't on Batman's protection list."

"So even if Batman believes Cobblepot really struck at Brainiac, he won't seek justice for Brainiac. On the contrary, he might take the opportunity to kick him while he's down."

The main-universe Robins frowned. Jack's wording wasn't exactly flattering — it made Batman sound like a cunning opportunist. They wanted to retort, but then remembered who they were facing. You can't exactly nitpick that with the Joker, can you?

"You've always had a mental blind spot," Jack said. "Brainiac isn't just, and he's not protected by human law. In no situation is he a victim, and he falls outside Batman's jurisdiction."

"On the contrary, because of his frequent moves across the multiverse, he's already drawn Batman's wariness. Once there's a chance to suppress Brainiac's development, Batman will definitely act."

"I see," Harley said. "Doctor Manhattan actually wants Batman to know Cobblepot exposed a flaw in Brainiac, so Batman can strike while the iron's hot. One in the open, one in the dark — teaming up to suppress Brainiac."

"That's also why Doctor Manhattan moved against the main-universe Robin," Tim added. "This gives Batman a legitimate revenge motive. No matter what, endangering Robin is unacceptable. Next up: Superhero Batman vs. Evil AI Brainiac."

"I still don't see the reason for dragging Cobblepot into it." Pamela shook her head.

"On one hand, it's to cover Doctor Manhattan's ambition." Jack continued. "Doctor Manhattan and Brainiac are the same — both are Batman's priority surveillance targets. Brainiac being evil doesn't mean Doctor Manhattan is just. Batman wants to slap them both down. Doctor Manhattan can't give him that opening, so he needs a fall guy."

"And Cobblepot — as said before, most Penguins are pure businessmen. They definitely wouldn't like Brainiac's policies. So even if this wasn't his doing, if Batman comes knocking wanting to team up against Brainiac, he absolutely won't refuse. Doctor Manhattan wants to light a fire in Brainiac's rear."

"This guy really is insidious." Harley said. "Too bad his understanding of our universe is simply insufficient."

"Should say his understanding of Brainiac is insufficient." Jack pointed out. "Brainiac isn't completely unprepared against him. From the moment he learned Manhattan Amusement Park had issues and his own system was about to go live for testing, he was already thinking how to guard against competitors."

Dick seemed to realize something: "His defense method wouldn't be bringing in three Xilei, would it?"

Jack nodded. "The biggest variable is Xilei."

"Anything Xilei participates in has a huge chance of going wrong. For maximum insurance, Brainiac brought in two Xilei, and the Professor joined too — making three. Sure enough, problems arose."

"No wonder. I felt earlier like Brainiac understood Xilei better — turns out he studied him." Harley mused. "He probably wanted to use Xilei against others long ago. This was just a trial run. But Xilei really didn't notice?"

"The Professor doesn't care about that," Barry said. "Brainiac solved 80% of his daily hassles, provided him with good test subjects, and even extended his sabbatical. As long as Brainiac doesn't suddenly go mad and destroy Earth, but maintains this stable status quo, the Professor will stand firmly on his side."

"No wonder the Professor acted out of character and joined this game." Pamela realized. "Even with the storm surge trapping him indoors, he'd rather stay home watching TV than run into a battle-filled game to duel teenagers."

"Brainiac's got a powerful backer now." Tim picked up a piece of grilled meat. "As long as he keeps the Professor's stable life intact, Batman can't touch him either. I'm telling you."

"Thank god." Nightwing not only didn't refute, but expressed agreement. "If he can keep Xilei this stable, Batman absolutely won't move on him. I'm telling you."

"Don't you dare say that." Dick tore meat off the bone and handed it to Damian and Nightwing beside him. "If Brainiac can make Xilei appear less in the multiverse, then him appearing more in the multiverse isn't unacceptable either. After all, he's just an evil AI, but Xilei is Xilei."

Damian picked up the BBQ sauce, pouring it over the meat as he said, "Brainiac's been broken for half a day now. By Doctor Manhattan's plan, Batman should've already discovered it and be preparing to investigate. Why hasn't he messaged us?"

"It's that you didn't message him." Jack cracked open a beer can with a *hiss*. "In Doctor Manhattan's plan, you get trapped, then call Batman for help — that's how Batman learns Brainiac has issues. Result: you weren't trapped, didn't contact Batman, so naturally he doesn't know."

"Makes sense." Red Hood cracked open a beer too. "Batman's busy. Probably doesn't have time to constantly watch a few specific people. So do we tip him off?"

"How do you still understand Batman less than me?" Jack downed a few gulps, stripped meat off the skewer, then said, "Brainiac has precautions. Does Batman not? Against both Doctor Manhattan and Brainiac, he's wary — yet he still let you come."

"You're saying he was prepared for what happened today?" Red Robin frowned.

"Batman is prepared for everything." Tim rolled his eyes. "How do you understand Batman less than me? We don't have a Batman here."

"Those are just stereotypes." Nightwing shook his head. "Precisely because we deal with Batman often, we know — he's not a god. He can't possibly stay on top of everything."

"But the things he can't stay on top of definitely don't include Robin." Harley chimed in. "You don't even understand Batman as well as Harley Quinn does."

Nightwing opened his mouth, but didn't know how to retort. As the saying goes, you can't see Mount Lu's true face because you're in the mountain. It seems in this group's stereotypes, Robin's priority in Batman's eyes is extremely high. They should recognize this, but precisely because they're the parties involved, they can't be certain.

"So what do we do now?" Red Hood asked.

He glanced at the spread before him. On the left, a pile of grilled beef kidney skewers; in the center, a chopped-up chest piece, the portion before Damian doused in sauce; on the right, lamb chops, hybrid cheddar-mozzarella-onion ground pork tacos, salt-grilled shrimp with Gotham-style hot sauce. And Nightwing was just stuffing the last piece of sous-vide beef tenderloin into his mouth.

Brainiac's fate unknown, Professor Xilei trapped in the game system, and here they are eating barbecue and drinking beer. Teammates captured, laughing while farming. This wave — whoever comes, it's a jungle gap.