Chapter 831

After leaving Arkham Asylum, Bruce did not choose to take a car, but put on his long-lost Bat-suit and returned once again to the night of Cat Getan.

Walking outward along Arkham Asylum, one could reach the edge of the East End. Following the edge all the way south, one arrived at the territory of the Tail-End Gang. This could be said to be the secondary center of the East End, an emerging active area besides the Living Hell and Green Street.

The water on the main road had basically been drained, but in the alleys near the street, there were still many places with puddles. When boots stepped on them, they could splash up high water sprays.

Cat Getan's roads were actually not enough to carry so many overweight trucks, so many places were crushed beyond recognition. Some truck drivers, in order to take a shortcut, specifically looked for alleys to walk in. The road quality here was worse, and there was more accumulated water.

The children of the Tail-End Gang were all sent back to their territory, and no one looked for trouble with them. Jason was sent to the hospital, but perhaps he had already been discharged by now. Standing on the wall of an alley, Batman's gaze searched aimlessly. He wanted to see an acquaintance, but Jason did not appear in his sight.

He knew he couldn't just enter the territory of the Tail-End Gang and rush into their base to find Jason, because he was not a child now, and he didn't belong here. Destroying the rules here would only bring deeper disaster to the children.

Walking further east from the Tail-End, one reached Green Street. This was where the East End gangs started, and also the wealthy area where the most prominent gang families once lived.

But that was a long time ago. Now all the mansions here looked exceptionally old, sparsely populated. At the entrance of several nightclubs at the end of the street, the bouncers guarding the door were bored; they hadn't seen guests worth flattering for a long time.

Batman walked past the balcony above their heads, followed the lit neon lights, and all the way arrived around the Living Hell. It was bustling here at this time. From a long distance away, one could see the iconic building of the Living Hell, which was the entire residential building that was integrated into one.

The entire Living Hell area was one whole building. They were connected to each other, crisscrossing, like an independent world.

Standing at the foot of the steel giant, Batman could see figures coming and going, shuttling through all kinds of narrow corridors.

He was sure he saw smiles on the faces of the residents here, but this made him feel exceptionally absurd. The living conditions here were fundamentally not good; the per capita living area was less than ten square meters, and the passages for walking were relatively narrow due to the structural building, and in some places, one even had to bend over to pass.

But the people here seemed to feel very happy, even feeling very proud. Why was this?

Batman thought, perhaps it was because they lived better than anyone else here, so they would have more happiness.

Batman felt this was very unfair, because the people here had never seen a broader world since they were born. They didn't know what a truly happy life should look like. The happiness brought by "not enough to compare with the top, but more than enough to compare with the bottom" was false; they had too many unmet needs.

But Batman knew that the first phase of the Living Hell renovation project had emptied almost all of Wei En Enterprises' liquid funds at the time. It could be said that this building, which could be called a wonder, had his blood flowing in its body.

By rights, he saved so many people, improved their lives, and made them feel happy. He should feel very proud and should feel that his compassion had been satisfied.

After all, he paid so much. He didn't need to do these things at all. These people dying here, rotting here, had nothing to do with him. And now, he saved them, and they wouldn't express gratitude, wouldn't even remember. Perhaps when they saw the newspaper, they would even follow along and scold him twice.

Batman's reason told him that he did these things without meaning, but an emotion sprouted from his heart. At this moment, he suddenly understood a sentence Clark had said to him.

"Because I am stronger, smarter, and can fly than them, they treat me as a god, but I don't like this very much, because being a god isn't just about being strong, smart, and able to fly."

"If a person can save everyone and let everyone obtain the happiness they want, then he can be called a god. I can't do it, so I don't hope anyone calls me a god."

"Or rather, I feel afraid of this title. If they hold such expectations for me, but I can't do it, they will feel disappointed, and I will also feel ashamed."

Batman didn't know if Clark realized he could actually save all of humanity when he said this, but now, when he read this sentence, he knew he had this ability.

Then why didn't he do it immediately?

What was the emotion rising in his heart now?

What was the thought that hindered him from giving Schiller a definite answer?

Perhaps it was human nature, Batman thought, perhaps it was the most instinctive self-protection as a human. This emotion was telling him that he didn't want to lose the luxurious Wei En Manor, the Batcave with all kinds of high-tech equipment, the Wei En Enterprises that could provide him with a steady stream of funds...

Is it worth it to use these to exchange for the small happiness of every stranger who has nothing to do with him?

While thinking about these questions, Batman felt as if he had been nailed to a cross. When one wedge after another was nailed into his body, the hypocritical, selfish, and greedy human nature flowed out along with the blood.

In the process of traveling through the East End, Batman felt that he had embarked on a pilgrimage. Some negative emotions in his heart were worn away by the wind and sand, and more light shone out from the cracks in the walls of his heart.

Continuing south from the Living Hell, he was about to approach Cat Getan Cathedral. In a slum residential area very close to here, Batman stopped his steps outside. He remembered he had been here before.

He followed the trail of the killer who killed his parents and came to an attic, where he met the elderly Louis. In his hand, he held an empty salt shaker; there was nothing left in it.

Batman climbed this building again and jumped from the roof to the attic balcony. When he looked in through the window, there was no one inside, only messy sundries left.

This was not surprising, because at that time, Louis's physical condition was already on the verge of collapse. He couldn't have survived three years in this place. After he died, this place didn't seem to have been rented out again, but turned into a storage room.

Noisy sounds came from downstairs. It seemed like a drunkard had knocked over a flower pot, and the owner of the house was scolding him. In a deeper place, there were children's screams, as if someone was scolding him for stealing things.

Batman left this building and walked all the way to Cat Getan Cathedral along the alley, but he met a person he didn't expect on a street next to it: Constantine.

Today, Constantine looked much more sober. He was chewing a cigar and looking down for something. Seeing Batman, he paused, looked him up and down, and said: "You're okay? Originally, I wanted to go to the manor to see you, but unfortunately, your butler wouldn't let me in."

"What are you looking for?" Batman asked.

"I moved recently, but the truck driver who helped me move was a clumsy hand at driving, and it was too bumpy. The materials I used to make the magic circle are gone. I'm looking around..." Constantine put his hands in his trench coat pockets, turned left and right, and searched carefully against the ground.

"Materials? What are those?" Batman asked again.

"Uh, it's hard for me to say. You'd better not know." Constantine stomped his feet in place, as if wanting to divert the topic. He said: "What are you doing here? I remember you seemed to be injured before. Why don't you go to the hospital to recover?"

Batman was silent for a while, then looked at Constantine and asked: "Do you think I can save Cat Getan?"

Constantine paused. He first rolled his eyes, looked at the sky, and then said: "... Should be able to."

"I want to hear the truth." Batman appeared exceptionally concise and straightforward.

Constantine sighed, walked forward, hugged Batman's shoulders, and said: "Bruce, you don't need to put so much pressure on yourself, really. This city doesn't need to be saved, and it can't be saved."

"Why?" Batman asked.

"It's just... look, the people here actually live pretty well, I think. You might have seen too little. There are plenty of places much more bitter than here. The slums in London might be worse than here. Don't worry too much."

Batman turned his head and stared at Constantine. He knew he wasn't telling the truth. Constantine was oppressed by his gaze. After a long while, he let go, rubbed his hands, stomped his feet, and said:

"Alright, kid, you're always so sharp. If you must know, I can only say that you can't save this city, but this isn't because you're not strong enough; it's because of some more mysterious reasons."

"I know you don't believe in fate much, but fate truly exists. Perhaps someone can decide the fate of this city, and he doesn't like it here, so he treats this place as a trash can."

"Look, the world is so big. You don't have to paint the trash can into a house. There must be a trash can in a room, right?"

Constantine spoke a bit incoherently, and during the period, he also mixed in some occult vocabulary, but Batman understood. He said: "Cat Getan becoming like this isn't just for human reasons, right?"

Constantine sighed deeply again and said: "Some things, I can't say too clearly. There are many people watching me. I can tell you this just because you are my friend. I can only tell you, Batman, don't do useless work."

Batman walked past Constantine. Constantine wanted to chase him, but couldn't catch up at all, and could only watch his figure disappear at the end of the alley.

Batman's pace was getting faster and faster, as if chasing something. His footsteps were getting heavier, but also firmer.

The sound of boots stepping on the steps carried a dullness, like deafening thunder. Batman stepped on the steps of Cat Getan Cathedral and arrived in the spacious chapel, but waiting under the statue was not a priest, but Schiller.

Batman slowed his pace and walked slowly to Schiller's opposite side. He saw the halo on Schiller's head, but was not surprised by it. Schiller flipped through the Bible on the pulpit and prayed in a low voice.

Then he asked: "Batman, have you made your choice?"

"I will save this place." Batman took a deep breath and said: "No matter how high the price is, no matter how much sacrifice is needed, no matter if people can remember me, I don't care about these, because I am the night."

"I will certainly save this place. No matter who arranged Cat Getan's predetermined fate, arranged my destiny, and let the tragedies that could have been avoided happen again and again, I will let him know how powerful I am, because I am vengeance."

"I will eventually save this place, using all the resources I can get, using my wisdom and talent, using everything I learned from everyone, to win this war, inevitably win this war, because I am Batman."

When his voice fell, the moonlight that originally shone through the top window of the church and added clothes to the suffering Jesus also fell on him.

And Schiller was still praying in a low voice:

"Merciful Heavenly Father, I repent for my arrogance, because I have not listened to the gospel, have not seen the miracles of your incarnation, and do not believe, do not believe devoutly..."

"Now, you have chosen me, sent your most beloved Son to suffer in the world, to be nailed to the cross, to corrode the skin, to strip away the appearance, to shed all the blood, to let the soul die and the bones disappear..."

Batman lowered his head, because he saw that the wounds on his body were emitting a faint light.

Schiller's low prayer echoed in the cathedral. As his speaking speed got faster and faster, that kind of light became more and more intense, until it turned into circles of halos, lighting up behind Batman, and then returning to his body.

"Those who believe in you on Earth will surely follow you in Heaven. We heard from the Lord that when he died, he was resurrected again. All the suffering he endured was to redeem our sins."

"When he lost everything, let us recognize that he is... the Lord Jesus who lives forever."

After the prayer ended, Schiller looked at Batman and smiled, saying:

"Changing from a god to a human, and then from a human back to a god... Jesus lives forever."

Batman felt that he had not obtained extra power, but something was different. Finally, he heard a low chant from Schiller echoing in the church, carrying a heavy murderous intent he had never heard before:

"Batman Who Laughs, come quickly... Jesus will bless you, Amen."