Chapter 986: The Battle for Gao Ta (21)

Batman saw that the pupil of the Elder Serpent-Scale was gradually losing its vitality, but in that final fleeting glance, he understood: he was not the only one who learned from history.

In every world, there are always the first to awaken—those who look upward at the long river of history, emerging from the misty earth, and look downward to warn the myriad beings, forging a path of thorns.

Batman closed his eyes where he stood, teeth clenched tight, repeating in his heart that phrase ten thousand times again—don’t think you’re the only smart person in this world, don’t see yourself as a savior.

If there is a savior in this world, those saved will never understand the truth: never tie your life and death to others.

To truly save them, everyone must learn to save themselves; to grant them true fairness, they must seek fairness themselves.

To give them freedom, they must first gain selfhood.

The Elder Serpent-Scale’s body, as its last breath faded, slowly turned to ash; the Serpent-Scale demons gathered around him began chanting an ancient lament in a sorrowful melody.

Batman slowly stood up, glanced around at the demons surrounding him, their expressions stunned, and said to them:

“Let’s go. Find a safe place.”

Batman walked forward in silence; all the demons followed behind him. In truth, they were now stunned, terrified, and lost—only able to follow the figure ahead, unaware of where they were headed.

Batman led this band of broken troops toward the Third Mountain, closest to the Central Mine. These two peaks belonged to the Mother-Son Mountains; the Third Mountain was in fact an extension of the Central Mine, about two-thirds smaller, yet very near.

For some reason, the elite demon forces that should have been stationed everywhere now seemed disoriented, as if oblivious to the collapse of the Central Mine. Batman noticed this, but had no time to investigate—he moved as swiftly as possible, slipping into the Third Mountain amid the chaos.

He came here for another reason: this was the mine where Merkel worked. He could bring Merkel along—he’d have at least one ally.

The Third Mountain was not large, and its tunnels were few—only about a dozen. When they first entered the first tunnel, not a single demon was inside; the silence was terrifying.

Batman ordered the main force to rest there, then went alone deeper to find Merkel.

The terrain of the Third Mountain was extremely simple—almost a straight line, no branches—so Batman quickly found Merkel’s trail. Just as he reached the center of the tunnel, he heard Merkel’s voice from ahead:

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“Why do we need to learn? Here’s the perfect example: the First Squad used what they learned in class to successfully set a trap. You saw it—the overseer, armed with powerful weapons, was brought down by collective cooperation…”

“Rolo was once the weakest, smallest demon on the Third Mountain. Yet this very demon—a newly born, utterly frail female—used the stiletto in her hand to kill her oppressor!”

“Many may not know, but Rolo has thirty-two children. In truth, she should have had more. Her previous two offspring, born barely two days ago, smaller than a common demon’s fist, were taken by an overseer high on drugs for amusement…”

At that moment, Batman heard a shrill cry coming from the tunnel. Merkel’s voice fell silent, replaced by another voice—sharper, louder, filled with such fury it sent a shiver through Batman.

“Those damned green skins!!! The most cruel, vile green monsters in all of Hell!!! They dragged my two newborn children right out of my nest!!!”

“They grabbed my children by their tails and threw them farther than anyone else. My poor babies—they could barely walk—were hurled against the walls, smashed into pulp…”

A collective gasp echoed through the tunnel. Though this was Hell, it still had order. Even here, such cruelty was horrifying.

The shrill cries multiplied—small demons were jumping, wailing, recounting how their relatives and children had been tortured.

Batman knew this wasn’t fabricated. The number of small demons was simply too great—their odds of suffering persecution were far higher than other demons’.

Overseers grew angry and took it out on them. High on drugs, they used them for sport. The dirty, exhausting work fell to them. Wherever they went, they were kicked.

Demons are not emotionless beings. As creations of the same God, demons, humans, and angels share similar mental structures—reason and emotion coexist, logic and feeling intertwined. Fear is human nature; so too are anger, envy, and grievance.

Then Merkel’s voice rose again: “Faced with such persecution, can we not resist?! Answer me, small demons! If you had a chance to escape this suffering, never endure such humiliation again—what would you do?!!”

“Kill them! Kill them!! Throw them into the lava!! Let them feel pain deeper than ours!!!”

“Kill them all!!!!”

The small demons began shouting again; the tunnel’s atmosphere grew feverish. Many demons, stirred by emotion, roared in unison—but Merkel stepped forward and doused it with cold water:

“But you are the weakest demons in Hell. Look at yourselves—dozens of you bundled together aren’t as thick as another demon’s arm. Those powerful demon soldiers could crush you into paste with ease.”

The fervor died instantly. Though the small demons still chattered, they could no longer form coherent sentences. Then Merkel spoke again:

“Yet just now, we successfully killed a powerful overseer demon—he even held a powerful weapon—and we lost not a single demon. We tore him apart. Tell me—how did you do it?!”

“Unity! Unity! I know! I learned that word!” One small demon immediately stood up: “We had over twenty demons. We twisted ropes together, blinded him first, tripped him, pinned him with rocks, then stabbed his heart. We’re many—we’re not afraid of him!!!”

Dozens of small demons erupted in cheers, utterly ecstatic—but Merkel adjusted the mood again: “But if you hadn’t learned how to twist ropes, hadn’t practiced aiming for the overseer’s eyes, hadn’t trained to coordinate pushing rocks—could you have done this?”

The small demons fell silent. Each stared wide-eyed at Merkel. Then Rolo, the one just praised, stepped forward and shook her head: “No, we couldn’t. We didn’t even know those plant fibers piled in the corner could be twisted into rope…”

“I studied for two days and still couldn’t figure out how to twist forward, then loop back. But eventually I learned. And aiming for the overseer’s eyes—good heavens, I never even knew where their eyes were. We couldn’t see them!”

“That’s why I say everyone must learn.”

“Learn! Learn! Learning lets you defeat enemies many times stronger than you. Though our bodies are nothing compared to those soldiers, we must use our minds—learn what we never knew before. We know it; they don’t. That’s why they can’t beat us.”

Merkel’s words were blunt, devoid of complex logic. His central message was simple: I know many things. If you follow my orders and learn with me, you can kill anyone, kill as many as you want.

Soon, the tunnel’s atmosphere reached its peak. All demons shouted: “Unity! Learn! Invincible!”

Batman stood still for a moment, then turned and walked back to the demons he had led.

Looking at the group of demons sitting numbly, their expressions still frozen in terror, Batman sighed deeply in his heart, then pulled his mouth downward into that familiar grimace.

He opened his mouth—but no sound came out. He didn’t know what to say next. He stood there, thinking again, then decisively walked toward the tunnel.

Batman knew he had to ask Merkel now: what had he learned at the Butler School?

Merkel was surprised to see Batman. “Oh my, Mr. Wayne, what are you doing here? I heard you led the uprising at the Central Mine?”

Merkel extended his hand to shake, but Batman was unused to such gestures. Yet seeing the sincerity in Merkel’s eyes, and remembering what he intended to do, he reached out and shook his hand.

To his surprise, Merkel stepped closer, speaking with admiration: “Mr. Wayne, though you’re not yet one of us, your astonishing act has fired the first shot of the mine’s liberation. I believe you share our great ideals.”

Merkel turned, gazing at Batman with reverence: “Honestly, Mr. Wayne, I should learn from you. Your tactical mind and strategic vision are entirely beyond me.”

“I’ve just emphasized to my comrades the importance of learning. I must lead by example—on this endless path of study and self-improvement, I must constantly arm myself.”

“Conviction alone, without means, cannot achieve the remarkable victories you’ve won.” Merkel suddenly stopped, stepped forward again, and extended his hand:

“Comrade Wayne—may I call you that for now? I sincerely invite you to give a lecture here. Please share your astonishing victory at the Central Mine, inspire our comrades’ revolutionary confidence, and raise their tactical level.”

“Meanwhile, I will learn from the audience, taking you as my combat model, to win the first battle for the liberation of the Third Mountain, to support Comrade Alfred and our comrades struggling in Mexico, and to deliver a satisfying report on the Hell revolution to the Central Command in Moscow.”

Merkel spoke with forceful conviction, leaving Batman no room to refuse. Looking into Merkel’s burning, sincere eyes, Batman suddenly understood.

He realized why that distant nation had created such astonishing miracles in just decades. To sincerely strive for an ideal—no matter where—was profoundly moving.

Batman looked around and saw that these demons were far more alive than those at the Central Mine. Though still grotesque, they were no longer leaderless.

Small demons gathered in groups, learning rope-twisting from Rolo. Trolls stacked ore beside mounds. Lava demons used sparks from their bodies to melt exposed ore into arrowheads and daggers.

Everyone seemed to have a task. Everyone knew what they were doing—and why.

Batman realized his long-frozen heart had just pounded hard.