Chapter 989: Battle for the High Tower (24)

When the tremor of the ground came, Batman glanced at Merkel. Merkel covered his mouth, but the next second, he turned around and greeted the demons, saying: "Retreat! Listen to me, retreat!"

Once this syllable came out, all the demons were like being turned on a switch, immediately putting down the work in their hands, and began to gather together, and then proceeded in an orderly manner to rush into the mine tunnel. The speed of the action and the quickness of the reaction made Batman feel somewhat amazed.

Merkel also ran towards the depths of the mine tunnel. Batman followed behind him. Because the reaction was too fast, the magma had not even had time to erupt, and all the demons had retreated into the escape tunnel underground.

The escape tunnel was also above the magma, but because their speed was too fast, after all the demons passed through the escape tunnel, the magma gradually erupted, destroying the internal space of the Third Mountain.

Retreating into the mine tunnel underground of the Second Mountain, everyone had not yet caught their breath when a Shuttle Snake Demon immediately poked its head out from the tunnel and said to Merkel: "Is it Comrade Merkel? Comrade Alfred sent me to support you. The amazing victory you achieved in the Third Mountain made the comrades in the Second Mountain feel exceptionally encouraged..."

Hearing this Shuttle Snake Demon speak a mouthful of Soviet underworld slang, Batman covered his eyes. He looked back at the demons behind him who were still in shock and whose consciousness was still somewhat scattered, and suddenly felt somewhat difficult to move.

Batman really did not want to bring this group of demons he brought to Alfred, just like he did not want to bring his report card back to him.

But there was no way, Merkel had already walked forward, and Batman could only walk forward. When he saw Alfred, he was directing a group of Lava Demons to move huge logs to the top floor of the mine tunnel as support, reinforcing the structure of the mine tunnel.

Alfred was also very happy when he saw Batman. He smiled and said: "I saw the central mine collapse. It's good that you are okay. Being able to persist there for so long is really already a miracle."

Batman was stunned. He did not expect Alfred to praise him so straightforwardly. He paused, but still said: "Actually, I borrowed from..."

"No matter what you borrowed from, being able to hold back the elite demon soldiers according to local conditions for so long is enough to show your outstanding level in tactical layout and strategic arrangement."

The praised Batman did not look too happy, because he was actually full of questions now. Alfred saw his state. He gave a wink to the Shuttle Snake Demon beside him. The Shuttle Snake Demon took Merkel and his army, as well as Batman's army, to the deeper mine tunnel.

In the center of the mine tunnel, only Batman and Alfred remained. Alfred led Batman to the side of the log pile, where a bonfire was lit. What was different was that there was also an rock slab used for frying and roasting, on which was a steak with just the right heat.

"Eat something. I swiped this from the foreman who manages the canteen. The taste is not bad." Alfred cut a piece of meat with a sharp mineral and pushed it to Batman's side.

Batman paused, but did not eat. Alfred shook his head and said: "Since you were young, you have been like this. If you are in a bad mood, you don't eat. This will make your stomach face a very bad situation."

In front of Alfred, Batman appeared more fragile and more childish. He stayed away from the rock slab like he was sulking. Alfred smiled and said: "I guess you are puzzled by the results Merkel achieved, feeling that you are clearly smarter than him, but you can't lead this group of demons well."

Batman opened his mouth and closed it again, but then still opened his mouth and said: "Well, this is also one of the questions, but actually it is not this matter."

"Then what is it?" Alfred cut the steak with a dagger, then forked it with a fork made of logs, and sent it into his mouth.

"Actually, you have always... I mean, you have never given up on your ideals. You have long wanted to do this, right?" Batman looked at Alfred and asked.

Alfred lowered his head, but then nodded and said: "A person can never truly give up on his ideals. If he says he has given up, perhaps it is just burying the ideals in the deepest part of his heart, unwilling to mention them to others."

"But this is not because he no longer believes, nor because he is ashamed to speak, but because a mature person should realize that when the timing is not mature enough, shouting many times, shouting loudly, is useless."

"Why don't you..." When Batman just said this, he seemed to feel that his tone was somewhat aggressive, becoming like he was questioning, so he softened somewhat and opened his mouth to say: "Why have I never heard you mention these things?"

Alfred looked into Batman's eyes and was silent for a long time, until his silence made Batman feel somewhat creepy, Alfred sighed and said: "When Thomas and Martha were still here, I would not hide from them and instill certain concepts into a child who knew nothing. That is unrighteous."

"And after they passed away..." Alfred was silent for a while again, Batman kept staring at him with his eyes, and then he heard Alfred say: "Your mental state is really not suitable for any more in-depth philosophical thinking."

Alfred said the words very tactfully, but Batman had already understood his meaning. He just wanted to open his mouth, and Alfred said: "I know, at that time, you had many questions, you urgently needed someone to answer, but I could not let you walk on this path at that time."

"If you are learning this kind of thought because you need a universal answer, treating it as the only life-saving straw, and really feeling that you have obtained salvation from it, then actually, this is no different from you going to believe in God."

Alfred looked at Batman with those old eyes, and there was a deep entanglement and pain in his tone.

"At that time, I could hand a key to you as a spiritual sustenance, but the price was that you would never be able to view this kind of thought from an objective perspective again."

Alfred's tone suddenly became somewhat excited. He pinched his hand on the edge of the rock slab, completely disregarding the heat on it. He looked at Batman and asked: "... Do you know what 'liberation' is?"

Batman slowly shook his head. Alfred said very seriously: "The liberation of all mankind that we pursue, in a certain sense, is to let everyone have the right to autonomously make all choices and choose the answers they want to choose."

"I said before, this is not the Bible, it is not that you memorize all the theories, and then there will be a god beside your ear to answer all your questions for you. But if I handed it to you at that time, you would definitely think so."

"I cannot let it become your faith when you are eager to ask the whole world, because this means that you will never be able to understand the essence of this kind of thought..."

"It can answer all questions for all people because it will tell you that it is you who can answer all your own questions."

This series of words from Alfred made Batman recall his mental state at that time. He did not remember the things at that time very clearly. Everything seemed to have become broken fragments, but the only thing he remembered was that he was trying every possible way at that time to find an answer that could alleviate his pain.

And at that time, the person he trusted most was Alfred. If Alfred told him at that time that all this was God's will, he would definitely believe it, and if it were replaced by Marxism, perhaps it would be the same.

However, Alfred said nothing, so Batman now believes in nothing.

Alfred sighed again and said in a somewhat guilty tone: "I know, if I gave you an answer, it would make you feel better, but that would deprive you of the right to make choices."

"At that time, I thought so, but now I still regret it a little, because the consequences caused by this are much more serious than I imagined."

Putting aside the identity of master and butler, Alfred seemed to be able to say more. Batman had never heard Alfred speak to him in such a tone. Alfred continued:

"I only considered the future at that time, but I didn't think about how much trauma you would suffer at that time, to the extent that it would affect your future personality, and even possibly affect education and future generations..." Alfred shook his head, seeming to feel that there was no better way to handle this matter.

When such an accident befalls a genius, it is destined that his fragile emotions, already suppressed by wisdom, will be completely crushed. No matter what others do, it is just mending the fold after the sheep is lost.

But Batman heard some other information from it. He looked at Alfred and asked very seriously: "So, am I really sick?"

Alfred was stunned by his question, and then suddenly became somewhat stuttering. He said intermittently: "Um... that is... perhaps, one of your mentors, I mean, the one who has always been very strict, once expressed some views on your mental state in front of you?"

"I thought he was scolding me." Batman said very straightforwardly: "... I am sure he was scolding me."

"Why did he scold you?"

"There is no why, he scolds whoever he wants to scold." When it came to this, Batman paused, and then continued: "He especially likes to scold me."

Alfred flipped his palm, meaning everything is self-evident. Batman took a deep breath and sighed it out.

To say whether Batman realized that he might have some physiological mental illness, he actually had some awareness, but he mistook all this for his rational thinking overriding emotional thinking, which led to dullness in emotions.

But now it seems that his situation is not just dull. Some of his emotional reactions are beginning to become weaker and weaker, even affecting his empathy.

His reason and logic are telling him whether the other party is happy or sad, but once he substitutes himself into the other party, he finds that, theoretically, this matter should indeed make the other party happy or sad, but he has no feeling at all.

This also leads to his substitution becoming more and more biased, and his judgment on behavior may also appear biased. Batman feels that this may also be the reason why his psychology is always not learned well. He understands the theory, but once he substitutes analysis, it is always a mess.

But then again, he has mental illness, doesn't Shiler have it? Everyone is mentally ill, why can he be a psychology expert?

Batman was puzzled, so he planned to find Shiler to ask. He looked at Alfred and asked: "Where is Professor Shiler now?"

"Him? After he left the central mine, he went to the Seventh Mountain, which is the mountain closest to that big eyeball." Alfred answered, and then he continued: "I just organized the demons to dig a retreat tunnel leading there. When the time comes, we can go there to meet up with him."

Hearing that the mountain where Shiler is located is closest to that big eyeball, Batman had a bad premonition, so he immediately called Merkel, and the two went together from the retreat tunnel to the mine tunnel of the Seventh Mountain.

As soon as the two arrived at the Seventh Mountain, they saw General Fuxin standing on the edge of the mine tunnel, looking down at Shiler lying on the ground.

He raised his harpoon high and then pierced Shiler's collarbone. Shiler hummed, and the demons behind General Fuxin walked up with a ferocious grin.

They took out a huge rusty circular lock, passed the lock through the hole pierced by the harpoon, locked Shiler's shoulders and collarbone, and dragged Shiler, who was covered in blood, away from the mine tunnel.

Merkel was shocked and shouted:

"We must go save General Fuxin immediately!!!"

Batman turned his head and stared at him. Merkel was stunned for a moment, and then immediately covered his mouth, the voice overflowing from between his fingers:

"Uh, I mean, we must go save... Mr. Shiler immediately!" ===== CHAPTER 990 =====