[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-my-life-as-a-mental-mentor-in-marvel":3,"chapter-my-life-as-a-mental-mentor-in-marvel-my-life-as-a-mental-mentor-in-marvel-chapter-978":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","My Life as a Mental Mentor in Marvel",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2323546,4544,"Chapter 978: The Battle for Gao Ta (13)","my-life-as-a-mental-mentor-in-marvel-chapter-978",978,"\u003Cp>Batman did not know what Schiller’s original profession was, but he knew it certainly wasn’t anything good.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Batman had gradually noticed Schiller’s anomalies; Schiller was no longer as weak as he had been at first, and instead had begun to grow increasingly excited, his soul becoming more and more active in its spectral form.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This was no good omen. Batman knew that whether Schiller was weak or excited, it did not mean he was healthy or normal—when his spirit was weak, he became more insane; when his spirit was excited, he might commit even more insane acts.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Beyond completing the task of linking the shadow monsters, Batman knew he must keep watch on Schiller to prevent any terrible transformation after leaving Hell and returning to the mortal world.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After the meeting ended, Batman returned to his dormitory, where Liu Jiao was still awake, and the two began talking again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Liu Jiao spoke incessantly, his logic disjointed; to Batman, he seemed more like a child, his intellect underdeveloped, making him especially easy to extract information from.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>During the subsequent conversation, Batman learned that Liu Jiao was indeed a newborn—he had only awakened his consciousness less than a hundred years ago, making him an infant compared to the lifespans of Hell’s races.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But perhaps his earlier acts of revenge had stimulated him, keeping his spirit in a state of high excitement, and he revealed many secrets of the mines to Batman.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No one understood these mines better than the shadow vines that had lived here for thousands of years; Liu Jiao told Batman that the entire continent’s crust rested atop magma, and beneath the mines lay a sea of molten lava—extremely dangerous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The sea of molten lava would recede, exposing rocks called magma stones; those who erred in the mines were sent to carry these magma stones.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Freshly erupted magma stones were of extreme heat—even hotter than magma itself—and most races of Hell could not endure such temperatures, including the magma demons born from the lava.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Moreover, Liu Jiao described, in a tone of deep dread, the executions he had witnessed: overseers would whip the slave miners toward a cliff at the very bottom of the central mine, then shove them into the sea of molten lava to be burned to ash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Batman occasionally asked his own questions; some answers Liu Jiao did not know, but Batman inferred possible conclusions from his reactions.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thus, throughout the entire second half of the night, Batman drained all of Liu Jiao’s knowledge—which was not much, since this newly born little monster had never left the Seven Mountains Mine.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the start of the next day, Batman clearly sensed the atmosphere in the mine had changed; everyone was tense.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even before Batman had fully woken, the overseers violently burst through the door, dragging every slave miner out of their cells and into the courtyard.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Once all the slaves were crammed into a line, the overseer cleared his throat and said: “I have news—starting today, we have a major task ahead!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This morning, the great Emperor Belial declared war on Aistro!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Our armies have reached the border, and endless supplies of armor and weapons from the rear will be the key to victory!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“General Putrid Heart, who governs the Seven Mountains Mine, has assured His Majesty that although this is the second-largest mine under His Majesty’s rule, it must produce the highest output!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>【Recommended: Download Huanyuan App for reading novels—it’s truly excellent. Try it now: huanyuanapp.】\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Starting today, all rest periods are canceled. Meal breaks are canceled. You must work day and night in the tunnels until you meet your quota—no one is allowed to leave the mine until the target is achieved!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I know some weak demons cannot survive without food, but understand this—if you fail your quota, your fate will be worse than starvation!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“To monitor your efficiency, General Putrid Heart has borrowed many eye demons from his kin—they will watch you throughout the mine…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The demon overseer snorted, and Batman saw a massive eyeball rise from the center of the mine into the air.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Dozens of smaller eyeballs flew out from its back, spreading to every corner of the mine, connected by purple nerves—everything each small eye saw would be transmitted back to the large one.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“General Putrid Heart watches you all from his palace atop the Great Eye Demon. Whoever dares slack off—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Instantly, all slave miners trembled, but their fear was primarily of the death promised by the overseers, not of what lay ahead—yet Batman had already foreseen it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As expected, once inside the mine, eye demons were everywhere, staring fixedly at every miner who entered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Many demons, still unaware, picked up their picks as usual and began working—but soon after, a squad of overseers stormed in.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You! And you!” the overseer leader, whip in hand, pointed at two small demons with a monstrous glare: “The eye demons saw you two slacking off—carrying empty baskets twice! Come with us!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Both overseers were humanoid demons—one with blue skin, one with red; the red-skinned demon was towering, and when he lifted the two small demons, they could not struggle at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Where are they taking him? What’s happening to him?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why can’t we carry empty baskets? What exactly are we supposed to do now? What’s going on?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Murmurs broke out, but as soon as the eye demons’ gaze swept over them again, everyone fell silent and resumed work.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The overseers came several times, each time dragging away one or two slaves—until near the end of the rest period, when all were led to the mine’s lowest level and saw the group of demons hanging in nets, then they understood what General Putrid Heart intended.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the mine’s lowest level was a vast hollow, with only a small patch of ground at the entrance for standing; opposite lay a cliff, behind which was a tunnel—clearly another path led there.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the cliff’s edge stood a tall pole with a horizontal beam extending over the sea of molten lava; at its end hung a large net, filled with the miners taken earlier that day.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>From Batman’s vantage, the net contained at least dozens of various demons, all struggling and screaming—clearly aware of their fate.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Nearly all the slaves were brought here, herded by overseers into a huddled crowd to witness the execution.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After a moment, General Putrid Heart appeared, slowly stepping onto the cliff’s edge, his silhouette towering against the glow of the molten sea.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a humanoid demon with dark green skin; according to Liu Jiao’s description, he belonged to an ancient demon race, possessing a towering frame, thick limbs, and a head like a fly’s.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was called General Putrid Heart because a glowing green pattern radiated outward from his chest, as if mutated by some kind of radiation.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In his hand he held a weapon like a trident; when he spoke, his hoarse, grating voice made eardrums ache.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Look at this trash! Lazy fools! Criminals who dare defy my orders—they will—”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>General Putrid Heart deliberately dragged out the pause, then raised his voice: “—be cast into the molten lava and burned alive!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Watch well—if you cause me to fail my quota, this will be your fate!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He then lowered the net slowly until it hovered above the molten sea, the lowest demons’ skin nearly touching the lava, screaming in agony, while those above clawed at the net’s mesh, trying to climb up, wailing in unbearable torment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Among the crowd, Batman saw Schiller—yet the professor wore a look of disgust, as if the demons’ screams were too shrill; but Batman suspected Schiller was repulsed by Putrid Heart’s utterly tasteless method.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After dealing with so many lunatics, Batman had learned to judge whether an act aligned with their values from their own perspective.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Such madmen despised slaughter; they saw it as a waste of precious life, and took no pleasure in mass killing of their own kind. On the contrary, they loathed it, calling it “repetitive, boring assembly-line work,” “better left to butchers who slaughter chickens and cattle,” deeming such acts neither beautiful nor artistic.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But General Putrid Heart remained oblivious; his goal of terrifying the masses had been achieved. Now, most slave miners knelt or prostrated themselves, weeping and begging the overseers and general for mercy.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Fear of death is inevitable among sentient beings; before death, whether human, demon, or angel, all life is equal—and so is fear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Yet General Putrid Heart seemed to deliberately torment the condemned demons—he shot arrows at the ropes holding the net, but deliberately missed, grazing the ropes’ edges so the entire net swayed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cries and screams merged into one; in this environment, Batman finally felt the true essence of Hell.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Amid the chaos, only General Putrid Heart’s laughter pierced the mountain, echoing through Hell’s sky—where no sun shone, only eternal rivers of molten lava flowed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With a heavy “thud,” the net finally plunged into the magma; the dying screams of the demons seared into every demon’s heart, so that when they returned to the dark tunnels, all were dazed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Batman knew this execution spectacle had provided him the perfect opportunity—the slaves, drowning in panic, needed someone to calm and lead them.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Batman selected his target, another squad of overseers entered, dragging two empty mine carts along the tracks; their leader spoke:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“By tomorrow morning, I expect these two carts to be full—or you’ll all be thrown into the magma!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Hearing this, all miners froze, staring at the massive carts; many began to cry.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Impossible! This can’t be done! This is the workload of seven or eight days—how could we possibly finish it in one night?!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“There isn’t enough ore here! We don’t have time to dig through the rock layers! Without spike demons or blast-tail demons, we can’t break the rock—even if we could, it would collapse!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Someone save me! I don’t want to be burned alive in the magma!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At that moment, Batman saw a small demon, weeping uncontrollably, collide with his leg. He bent down, picked the demon up, and asked:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Can you really not mine this much in one night?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Of course not! Of course not! It’s impossible!!!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Batman scanned the mine’s interior, silently estimating the quantity of surface ore, then shook his head and murmured:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Perhaps not.”\u003C\u002Fp>",1715,"2026-06-20T16:39:22.658Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","f06040399ae42c2502bd5ada996b3535c8d49570df84b585a3611ae035b519e7","my-life-as-a-mental-mentor-in-marvel-chapter-979","my-life-as-a-mental-mentor-in-marvel-chapter-977",1000,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fmy-life-as-a-mental-mentor-in-marvel-cover.jpg"]