Collective Jailbreak

Wild Tiger, the strongest-built of them all, was sent flying by a single punch, proving just how powerful Talon was. Combined with his speed, he was a troublesome opponent.

After knocking Wild Tiger away, Talon followed up with an elbow strike at Bat. With a dull thud, Bat, who had not yet reacted, took a heavy blow to the head and collapsed to the ground as well.

Then he spun, twisted his hips, leaped, and kicked in one fluid motion. Talon swept a roundhouse kick toward Firefly's neck, an attack even fiercer and more powerful than before.

Given Firefly's relatively slight build, if she was hit, her cervical vertebrae would snap instantly. Yet Talon was too fast, and she had not reacted in time.

At that critical moment, Grandpa Rick's combat memories took control of Jude, making him suddenly accelerate and ram into Talon's ribs from the side.

It was as though Talon had slammed into an invisible wall. He hit the ground with a thud, while Jude was sent flying more than three meters by the impact.

However, Talon reacted quickly. He rolled away to create distance, then looked around suspiciously. He had clearly realized that someone else was hidden here. As a warrior, he could tell the difference between hitting a person and hitting a wall.

Jude rubbed his arm and climbed to his feet. He first checked on Ivy, who had been flung away, and found that she was breathing steadily and had not been injured.

Firefly hurriedly asked whether her companions were all right. Wild Tiger's physique was incredibly tough, and he rose while rubbing his chest, but Bat had already passed out.

Throughout this, neither Jude nor Firefly spoke to the other. Maintaining an air of mystery was the only way to pressure their opponent.

After looking around for a while and finding nothing unusual, Talon could only heighten his vigilance before charging at them again.

"You shouldn't have provoked me. This will turn you into a lump of charcoal!"

Firefly shouted as she pulled off her gloves and thrust both hands forward. Blazing fire burst from her palms like a flamethrower, forming a five- or six-meter-long dragon of flame.

Talon was horrified and took the flames head-on. His black clothes instantly turned to ash, while his exposed skin split apart. Within seconds, he was burned until his flesh was charred and mangled.

Firefly laughed when she saw this. "Look at my rotting hands. Now we're the same—burn! Hahahaha..."

But then, before their astonished eyes, Talon's skin slowly began to heal. The burned, rotten flesh started falling away, while fresh granulation tissue kept growing over it, making their scalps tingle.

Firefly roared, "He has powerful regenerative abilities! Attack! Don't stop!"

Wild Tiger stomped heavily on the ground and pounced. His hands transformed into Tiger Claws, stirring up a savage wind.

Talon had not fully recovered and did not dare take the attack head-on. He shifted backward, only to feel a fierce gust strike him a moment later as a tiger tail viciously lashed his leg.

With a sharp crack, Talon's left femur snapped, and he staggered back several steps.

Wild Tiger pounced again, but Talon dodged sideways and punched him in the jaw. Then his fists rained down, instantly dazing his opponent, while his right hand took the opportunity to jab straight at Wild Tiger's eye.

At the crucial moment, Jude acted again. The Laser Gun fired repeatedly. Although many shots missed, one beam pierced straight through Talon's right arm.

His Laser Gun could melt even steel plates in an instant, much less a human body—even one that had surpassed human limits.

Talon's right arm fell to the ground just centimeters from Wild Tiger's eye.

"Get out of the way!" Firefly shouted.

Scorching flames erupted once more, turning Talon into a fireball in the blink of an eye. The pungent smell of roasting meat spread through the air alongside the sizzling sound of grease.

Jude and Wild Tiger retreated far away, leaving only Firefly screeching as she continued spraying fire. Though they could not see her expression beneath her mask, it had to be twisted and deranged.

The flames burned for a full three minutes before Talon finally struggled and fell. He had not made a single sound the entire time, as if he felt no pain at all.

"Whew... Is he dead?"

"He's been burned to charcoal. His organs have been destroyed. He shouldn't survive."

"Then we should get out of here too. Who knows what other monsters are hidden down here."

The word "monsters" sounded strange coming from Wild Tiger. Talon had clearly left a deep impression on him.

Firefly looked up at the surveillance camera and gave it the middle finger. "I'll be back! I'll kill every one of you bastards!"

As she spoke, she made a throat-slitting gesture.

Wild Tiger hoisted Bat and Ivy onto his shoulders. Jude entered the elevator code, and the group quickly stepped inside.

In the command room, the man's expression was ugly as he watched Talon's scorched body.

One of his subordinates quietly asked, "Sir, what do we do now?"

The man suddenly roared, "Notify the surface and have them prepare defenses! Do I need to tell you that?"

The subordinate jolted and hurriedly tried to contact the asylum aboveground, but the communications device rang for a long time without anyone answering.

"S-Sir, no one's picking up."

The man's expression grew even worse. Arkham Asylum had gone out of contact. That was not a good sign. Could things have gone wrong up there too?

At that thought, the man no longer entertained the illusion that he could suppress this riot on his own. Breathing heavily, he dialed a secret number.

Arkham Asylum, half an hour earlier.

After sending Jude underground, Riddler returned to the asylum. However, he had not fled as he had claimed he would.

Nygma was a smart man. He knew perfectly well that even if he escaped Arkham Asylum alone, he would never be able to escape Gotham City.

After all, Gotham still had the Dark Knight, Batman. Before long, that Old Bat would surely come looking for him. He needed more people to draw fire.

So Riddler went to Arkham Asylum's control center. The moment the power was cut and the cell doors opened, all of Arkham descended into a villainous carnival.

The imprisoned villains escaped one after another: Scarecrow, Two-Face, Ventriloquist, Mad Hatter, Clayface, and even the king of villains imprisoned in the deepest part of the facility—the Joker.

Unlike the others, Joker's cell was isolated. Even beyond the high-voltage electric fence, he had been sealed inside an airtight plastic bag, with both his hands and feet tied. Only his head was left exposed.

Even with those precautions, Arkham was still not at ease, because Joker was too dangerous. While the other villains committed crimes with motives, Joker represented true, meaningless chaotic evil. He wanted to plunge the world into chaos for no purpose, no reason—simply because he liked chaos.

That was why, whenever he appeared, not only did the Bat Family get headaches, but even Gotham City's villains feared him. They knew they still retained a little humanity, that there were still things they held to deep down. But Joker had none of that. He had nothing but chaos.

It was precisely this chaos that left Joker without any friends. Though there were many villains, not one was willing to rescue him—except Harley Quinn, of course.

"Mr. J, I'm here to save you!"

Harley Quinn excitedly opened Joker's cell and threw herself at him, wrapping him in a hug.

Joker wore a look of disgust and said helplessly, "Harley, get your face off me. And hurry up and untie these damn ropes."

Harley Quinn showed no dissatisfaction at Joker's rebuke. Her heart was filled with joy at seeing Mr. J again, and she was already imagining a church wedding in her mind.

"Mr. J, I saved you again. When are we getting married?"

Joker answered perfunctorily, "Tomorrow."

As he broke free of the ropes, he laughed wildly. "Batman, I'm back!"

La la la, acting cute and begging for everything!