Lights, Lights, Lights, Lights, Lights, Lights, Lights (Part 3)

The moment Schiller finished speaking, everyone was enveloped in Gray Mist. Gordon was the first to disappear. After a moment of disorientation, he found himself in a magical place. Beneath his feet was a floor interwoven with black and gold, and above him were endless buildings.

Standing before him were two Schiller, one of whom was the Schiller he knew, and the other Schiller with green hair. Next to these two stood another green-haired man with Joker makeup.

"You're planning to let him go first?" Joker Jack circled Gordon twice, clicked his tongue, and said, "Well, this guy seems like the opposite of Batman, always clinging to his ridiculous kindness and hope..."

Schiller ignored Jack and explained to the somewhat bewildered Gordon, "Currently, even if all of our consciousness power is combined, it is not enough to completely destroy this monster."

"Firstly, the egg with its mouth wide open in a laugh may have very special properties. If one's rank is not high enough, it will be difficult to completely destroy it. Secondly, Parallax one of the sources of power for the Yellow Lantern Ring, and it is inherently difficult to destroy."

"So what do you plan to do?" Gordon looked at Schiller, then glanced around at the surroundings, and said, "It seems you already have an idea?"

"That's right. The High Tower you see is actually my Mind Palace, and just now, I modified it to become an 'amplifier'."

"Amplifier? What's it used to amplify?" Gordon asked, puzzled.

"Emotions." Schiller gave a clear answer, saying, "There are all kinds of Emotional Spectrum in the universe. When a certain emotion reaches its peak, it will attract a mysterious force, which is the Lantern Ring."

"I will use this High Tower to amplify your emotions infinitely and send them into the universe, actively attracting the Lantern Ring so that you can fight with the power of the Lantern Ring."

"Okay, but why me?"

"Each different Lantern Ring represents a different emotion, and only those who possess these emotional qualities can attract the Lantern Ring."

"Although my Mind Palace can amplify certain emotions, I am still born with strong feelings, which makes it easier for me to succeed."

"And you, Detective Gordon, please focus now and recall those scenes in your heart filled with light and hope..."

Although Gordon still had some doubts, he did as instructed, and scenes began to appear in his mind.

He worked day after day in this city of despair, returning home exhausted in the pitch-black night, only to be driven away, insulted, and even hunted down.

He recalled the scene of being chased, on that rainy night, he was running for his life, the pain and the smell of blood rushing up, trying everything to get rid of the killer, jumping out of the window and landing in the garbage heap, the cold rain slapping his face.

A surge of unwavering determination welled up within him. Even if only one person truly wanted to save this city remained, it would be him, it would be Gordon.

A surge of hope coursed through High Tower's mind and into the universe. Soon, a muffled voice reached Gordon ears, as indistinct and unclear as if separated by a thick wall.

"Fearful days, sorrowful nights"

The raging fire subsided,

All were lost in the ravages of war.

Looking up at the stars—

The light of hope will never be extinguished!

"Intelligent being identified: Jameson Gordon from Earth. You have the ability to instill unwavering hope in others. Welcome to the Blue Lantern Corps!"

Schiller turned to look at the walls of the Mind Palace, as if looking beyond the walls and dreams into reality.

In reality, a ring emitting a blue glow floats quietly above the sleeping Gordon's head.

The blue light Lantern Ring, representing hope, was drawn to the magnified image of hope, but it was momentarily stunned upon arrival.

It could sense that its future host's consciousness was immersed in a dream, but how could it accept the Lantern Ring if the host didn't wake up?

If the host does not actively accept the power of the Lantern Ring, then the Lantern Ring cannot recognize its owner. Just like in the original comics, Batman simply refused to wear the Lantern Ring, and the Lantern Ring could do nothing about it.

But you tell me, now that it's already here, can it just go back like this? The ring emitting blue light hesitated for a moment, then decided to get closer to the host's consciousness.

However, the ring was a tangible object and could not merge into Gordon's body. So, the blue light gradually detached from the ring and then entered Gordon's forehead. The ring, having lost its power, fell to the ground with a "thud".

Only the Blue Lantern's energy entered Gordon's body, while the physical ring did not, because it was drained of power and went into standby mode after running out of electricity.

As a crisp "click" sound rang out, a blue Lantern Ring appeared in front of Gordon in his consciousness space. Gordon examined the ring and said, "This is the Lantern Ring you were talking about? Should I wear it?"

"Of course, Detective Gordon, but don't let yourself be controlled by that power."

"Don't worry, I understand. I've never liked being overly dependent on external things." After saying that, Gordon stretched out his hand, and blue light flew onto his fingers.

When Gordon emerged from the Towering Babel, he was completely transformed. His entire body shimmered with blue light. Hal stared at him in disbelief and exclaimed, "That's the power of the Lantern Ring?! The Blue Lantern Ring?! How can you possess the power of the Blue Lantern Ring???"

Before he could finish wondering, Victor disappeared into the space again, clearly having also entered the Towering Babel.

"This is a bit troublesome, because perhaps the Violet Lantern Ring, which represents 'love,' is only for women..." Schiller said to Victor.

"What is this based on? The human soul? What if my inner self is feminine..."

"Stop talking, just think of yourself as a transgender person, and it definitely won't dare not come!"

A moment later, a distant voice came:

"Fear and confusion connect our two hearts."

The Darkest Night are hard to come by.

My slender fingers entered the ring to exchange for your beauty.

A solitary love fills the world with purple light!

"Intelligent being identified: Victor Fris from Earth. You possess a deep well of love within you. Welcome to Star Sapphire!"

A moment later, Victor, radiating purple light, appeared in the consciousness space. He and Gordon exchanged a glance, and then looked at Hal beside them.

Immediately afterward, Alberto disappeared, and soon after, a deep, angry voice rang out:

"Hot-blooded, scarlet fury,"

Taken from the still-warm bones

Deep-seated hatred burns through one's heart and soul.

"You will pave the way to the Yellow Springs!"

"Intelligent Life has been locked on. Alberto Falcone from Earth, your heart is burning with rage. You belong to the Red Lantern Corps!"

After Alberto emerged, glowing red, the sight of one green, one blue, and one purple figure was no longer surprising.

The last one called in was Cobblepot. He had the illusion of being called to the teacher's office after class. After he went in, Schiller explained the principle of the attraction Lantern Ring to him, and then said to him, "I think the orange light is very suitable for you because it represents Greed."

Greed? Greed for what?

"That's up to you." Schiller stared at Cobblepot, looking him into the eyes. "Don't you want endless...power?"

Two minutes later, Cobblepot emerged, glowing orange all over. Now, everyone on the field except Batman was glowing with colorful light.

Looking at the other colorful Lantern in front of him, Hal finally understood the meaning of Schiller's question, "Are you the only Lantern on Earth?"

There is indeed more than one Lantern on Earth now...

There are five Lantern here!!!

Stop staring and get to work.

In an instant, colorful figures rushed towards the Fear Laughing Demon.

The individuals empowered by the Lantern Ring became even stronger. More importantly, they could use the emotional power of the Lantern Ring to attack the Fear Laughing Demon. This was crucial because emotions remain a very powerful force within dreams.

Even without the power of the Lantern Ring, Batman was not at a disadvantage, partly because this was his consciousness space, and partly because his willpower was strong enough to overcome all emotions.

Suddenly, Batman stopped moving, his voice echoing in everyone's ears. "Stop."

The others were somewhat confused, but they all stopped what they were doing and floated in the air. Looking at the monster in the center, Batman squinted and said, "That egg is moving; it looks like it's about to hatch..."

"Incubation?"

The group looked at the giant monster's head. Sometime during the day, some hideous blood vessels appeared on the gray egg, as if it was about to explode. The wide-open mouth's smile became increasingly eerie, and some blood-like traces even flowed from the corners of its mouth, making the entire head more and more terrifying.

"It has been absorbing those black tides," Batman said in a deep voice. "It's a power I can't control, but now it seems that it can become its nourishment."

"We can't let it hatch!"

Hal said, "The Mysterious Person who brought me into this dream told me that if he showed up, he would destroy the entire lantern display! Even if he was exaggerating, we can't let such a terrifying monster out..."

"I know this better than you do."

As he spoke, Batman appeared above the monster. He tried to touch the egg, but was flung away by Parallax's long tail. Hal shouted, "It might have already taken control of Parallax! We have to stop it! Hurry!"

Several people who had obtained the power of the Lantern Ring kept attacking the monster, but the Parallax controlled by the Laughing Egg was not only powerful, but also very cautious, and all its actions were to protect its head.

With the three-way conflict resolved, the Laughing Egg and the Parallax merged into one, revealing the monster's true terrifying nature. Endless fear began to rise in everyone's hearts as wave after wave of black tides surged forth, a large portion of which was absorbed by the egg.

A soft "crack" sounded, and several cracks appeared on the top of the Laughing Egg, followed by branch-like patterns that spread outwards. With the eggshell shattered to this extent, everyone understood that its hatching was irreversible.

A suffocating tension rose in Batman's heart. His intuition warned him to the limit. He could barely move and could only stand there watching the egg burst open, as if time itself had frozen.

In that instant, the eggshell cracked, and a pale, thin hand emerged from the egg.

There was no sound, no movement, but everyone heard a most maniacal laugh from the silence, "Hahahahahahahahahahaha!"

But what followed was not a monster emerging from its shell, but a familiar yet somewhat indifferent voice.

"Stop laughing, it sounds awful."

Suddenly, the colorful glow that had appeared on everyone trembled, and a thick Gray Mist enveloped them. The various colors of light were drawn out from their bodies and blended into the endless Gray Mist.

Completely incompatible Spectrum struggled endlessly, wreaking havoc in a cloud of gray mist, clashing, exploding, rubbing, shattering, and merging...

Ultimately, the gray mist floating in mid-air, after a mixture of various colors, turned out to be neither black nor white, but a chaotic gray.

In the endless silence, suddenly, the gray mist began to condense and take shape, gradually forming a circular lamp.

A resounding dragon roar rang out, and the head of a giant dragon emerged from the mist, followed by a scaly neck and wings. An enormous dragon, composed of gray mist, flew out from the gray furnace radiating energy.

A deep, resonant voice came from the horizon:

"The ashes flowed freely, the fog was thick and boundless."

Where has reality gone? Where have dreams gone?

Pillars of thought, Hall of the Mind Stone

A thousand stars shine together, ten thousand Watson!

"Intelligent Life has been identified, from..."

"Never mind, the rest of the words are too long, anyway—"

"Batman, here you go."

This book is also known as "The Days of Creating Giant Watermelons in American Comics".