Plant Crisis

The call was from the Ventriloquist, and he brought Chen Tao some bad news:

Deathshot was throwing a tantrum, threatening to break up the team and go back to Gao Village. Chen Tao just felt exhausted.

He once again deeply realized that reality wasn't an online game, and there were no ridiculous settings like "[Recruit soldiers and see their loyalty]."

The guys he'd recruited were all more troublesome and bizarre than the last.

Gordon stood by for a while, noticing Batman wasn't leaving his side to take calls as usual. He then consciously moved to the side and shrunk back.

Chen Tao had the Ventriloquist hand the phone over to Deathshot. He then calmed himself, thought briefly, and switched his voice to Deathshot's own.

"OK, OK, even if you don't want money, you need to save your own life and reunite with your daughter. I respect your choice, I bless your life, but I still have a few things to say."

"Are you satisfied with just this?"

Deathshot on the other end of the line had a strange look on his face. The other person using his own voice to persuade him was inexplicably creepy.

"Listen, Lawton, I've investigated you. Your daughter's adoptive parents are just an ordinary family, aren't they? They don't have the ability to give your daughter a good education."

"Your daughter is still in elementary school now. Next, she'll be in the community, attending the worst public middle school, surrounded by dyed-hair, smoking, tattooed, brawling hoodlums. Then she'll go to the crappiest high school—if your daughter doesn't go bad. And then what?"

"One day, she'll get pregnant by some redneck scumbag? And become a single mom, huh? Working as a cashier in a supermarket, her body out of shape, her skin loose. Is this the life you've planned for your daughter?"

"Shut up! You bastard!"

Deathshot's anger was easily ignited. He shouldn't have been such a hot-tempered and irritable idiot, but no matter who it was, when family was involved, they couldn't stay calm.

"Ah—yes—that's right—his dad is the infamous Deathshot, a murderer wanted by over a dozen countries. Zoe and other slum girls are only different because her awesome dad will shoot dead any bad guy who gets close to her. Plus, he has some savings from his years as a mercenary. But what's the point?"

"No matter how much money you have, the real upper echelons of those aristocratic schools won't open their doors to Zoey. Besides, if you want to launder your black money, they'll directly vaporize half of it."

"Your money can be laundered, but what about your identity? Where do you want to take Zoe to live? The Sahara Desert or the Great Rift Valley in East Africa?"

"This dear mercenary, you don't want your daughter to be unable to receive a good education, do you?"

"Enough, stop talking!"

Deathshot's voice had an unusual tremor, as if he were biting his tongue to stop his heart from bursting out of his mouth.

"I can get you a recommendation letter from Gotham's top academy, either from Bruce Wayne or Jim Gordon."

"I can turn your 200 million dollars into Zoe's legal income through financial operations."

"I can plan a perfect life for Zoe."

"..."

Silence.

Deathshot on the other end of the line sighed. He hadn't expected to change his mind and surrender completely within minutes of making a decision.

He didn't ask if the other party could help him launder his identity. He knew that even if they could, they wouldn't do it for him.

What they needed was a fighter who could fight and charge, not a battle-hardened soldier who was always thinking about retiring.

"Okay, I understand. I'll help you..."

"What did you call me?"

"Boss."

The matter was resolved.

Provide facts, present leverage, complete the transaction.

Honestly, Chen Tao couldn't be bothered to think about whether the other party was deliberately trying to raise the price, because it was meaningless.

Once Bane was dealt with, his cooperation with these mercenaries would immediately end. Money exchanged, promises fulfilled, and then they'd go their separate ways to their own wonderful lives, never to see each other again.

At least for now, he had Deathshot completely in his grasp, and that was enough.

Moreover, the National Guard had already been mobilized. Could Bane really destroy an entire army by himself?

Thinking optimistically, perhaps Batman wouldn't even need to intervene.

Chen Tao ended the communication and looked at Gordon, preparing to discuss how to deal with Bane. He still held—wait, the other party seemed to be on the phone too.

Jim Gordon turned his head, wiping the sweat that had seeped from the creases on his forehead onto his salt-and-pepper brown hair.

His expression was extremely serious.

"Wait for me a moment, Batman."

He said.

He hurried away from the rooftop entrance to the stairwell. A few minutes later, Commissioner Gordon returned, holding a document bag. He handed one of the documents to Chen Tao:

"Look at this first. I'll explain. Three days ago, STAR Labs was attacked, and a living person was abducted: Harold Goldbloom, a chemistry professor, a leading figure in GothCorp's chemical research department, an expert in biological warfare weapons, with top-tier intelligence in biology, botany, and toxicology..."

He took out a photo and showed it to Chen Tao. It was a balding man with graying hair, who looked extremely intelligent.

Chen Tao's heart sank when he saw it.

"This was a very serious matter, but at the time, Firefly had just set a fire at Elmer's Wharf."

Chen Tao followed up, "And Firefly, that pervert, was getting off while watching the wharf turn into a torch, and then..."

Chen Tao paused. He suddenly realized that in the original timeline, Batman had arrived at the scene immediately and beaten Firefly to a pulp, forcing him to flee in embarrassment.

But at that time, he had just transmigrated and was still trying to activate the [Alfred Protocol] with toilet paper from the Batcave, so--

"Firefly had a fierce clash with the boys who rushed over."

(The boys Gordon was referring to were his subordinates, the police)

"Besides Firefly, there was also Amygdala, Ogre, Two-Face..."

Gordon rattled off a string of names like he was reciting a menu, then continued, "Bane released too many people from Arkham Asylum, so the matter with Poison Ivy was delayed."

"But just 10 minutes ago, I received a report. Forensics used technical means to repair the destroyed surveillance, and we suddenly discovered that Poison Ivy didn't rob STAR Labs alone—"

Chen Tao took the photo Gordon handed him. Standing next to Poison Ivy, named Ivy, was a horrifying-looking treant.

"Following that, we found out Professor Goldbloom had just developed a large-scale biochemical weapon for GothCorp. If Poison Ivy and this inhuman monster plan to replicate this weapon and use it in the city..."

Chen Tao examined the photo carefully for a moment.

"I know him. This guy is a plant master, Jason Wood," he said with certainty. "He replicated the accident that created Swamp Thing, Alec Holland, and turned himself into a walking plant, becoming a low-level avatar of the magical power [The Green]."

"The Green? What the hell is that?"

"An elemental essence, representing plants. Along with [The Red], which represents flesh-and-blood animals, and [The Black], which represents decay and death, they are known as the three fundamental powers."

"Okay, wait," Gordon said. "You just said magic, right?"

"I don't know why our discussion suddenly jumped from a crime drama to a superhero magic brawl."