Chapter Summaries

Chen Tao, as Batman, tried to recruit the First Lantern to help stop the Anti-Monitor by obtaining the Great Heart and Source Lantern Ring and learning to control the Emotional Spectrum. When the First Lantern resisted, Batman offered him a way to find Earth-15 and the corpses of the Guardians of the Universe as proof of his sincerity.

• Batman revealed the First Lantern hidden in the Grim Lantern Ring and asked him to help stop the Anti-Monitor.
• Batman asked the First Lantern to locate the Great Heart, bring him the Source Lantern Ring, and teach him to connect to the Light of Creation.
• The First Lantern mocked Batman and refused to help, expecting Batman to make an empty promise to free him.
• Batman told the First Lantern he could help him find Earth-15 and transmitted his discovery about the timeline blocking the First Lantern from reaching his homeworld.
• Batman offered the First Lantern the corpses of the Little Blue Men, which he could use to create avatars and speed his escape.

Chen Tao persuaded the First Lantern to share his experience in exchange for a chance to create escape-enabling avatars, then traveled with him to the Shadow Cabinet. There, Chen Tao deceived the Little Blue Men guarding it and had Supreme Superboy knock them unconscious so he could reach the First Lantern's power.

• Chen Tao convinced the First Lantern, Huo Rong, to accept a deal by offering to seal avatars that could help him escape after Chen Tao defeated the Anti-Monitor, while making no promise about saving his homeworld.
• Chen Tao went to Kent Farm, transformed into the Blood Butcher Bull's host form, and carried a cow through a Boom Tube to Justice Hall.
• Chen Tao reclaimed the Grim Lantern Ring, put it on, and traveled with the First Lantern to the Shadow Cabinet inside a purple vortex.
• Chen Tao opened the Shadow Cabinet's Green Lantern energy chains and used Little Blue Man corpses to impersonate returning comrades and distract the guards.
• Supreme Superboy struck the Little Blue Men guarding the Shadow Cabinet unconscious while Chen Tao prepared to seize the First Lantern's power.

Chen Tao freed First Lantern’s power to create Third Legion monsters, then forced First Lantern to share his knowledge of the Emotional Spectrum. He began preparing William Hand for the coming battle against the Anti-Monitor, admitting that time was running out.

• Chen Tao and Supreme Superboy found First Lantern’s cocoon in the Shadow Cabinet, and Batman used the Guardians’ corpses to help First Lantern rebuild his flesh.
• Chen Tao transformed a cow into a Third Legion monster, but Supreme Superboy caught the two monsters when they tried to escape, and Chen Tao sealed them back onto First Lantern’s cocoon.
• Chen Tao read First Lantern’s memories about the Light of Creation and the Emotional Spectrum, then punished him for attempting to escape.
• Chen Tao failed to persuade the imprisoned Little Blue Men to join his plan and instead brought William Hand the knowledge needed to control the Emotional Spectrum.
• Chen Tao told William Hand to train with Supreme Superboy rather than join the battlefield, then admitted that time was almost up and urged preparation for battle.

Chen Tao sent Supreme Superboy into the sun to regain his strength and dispatched William Hand to cultivate near it, while Lex Luthor described how he had infiltrated Owlman's plans. Luthor reported that his preparations were complete and Owlman still trusted him.

• Chen Tao ignored Superwoman's demands to know what had happened to her son, whose power Owlman had preserved and remotely retrieved.
• Chen Tao told Supreme Superboy he would put him to sleep, send him into the sun, and accelerate time until he regained his original power.
• Chen Tao used the Purple Lantern Ring to enclose Supreme Superboy in an energy cocoon and carried him into the sun.
• Chen Tao sent William Hand into solar orbit aboard a heat-resistant spaceship so he could cultivate and resonate with the Emotional Spectrum.
• Lex Luthor explained that he had gained Owlman's trust, learned his technology, and prepared a way to act when the two universes overlapped.
• Luthor told Chen Tao that everything was ready and Owlman had no suspicions about him.

Luther explained his plan to turn Owlman's universe-crossing system against him, intending to bring the Planet Heart, the Anti-Monitor, and Owlman's forces into their universe while trapping them with a Speed Force storm. Batman warned that they were out of time, and the chapter ended with the battle set to begin in one hour.

• Batman stopped Luther from jinxing the plan, and Luther explained how Owlman’s Propulsion Towers used the Planet Heart and cosmic overlords to move an entire universe.
• Luther said he had secretly altered the towers so the transfer would bring the Planet Heart, its power sources, the Anti-Monitor, and the baby in Superwoman’s womb into their universe instead.
• Luther described plans to bring their allies home, use the Speed Force generator to trap Owlman and the Anti-Monitor, and send Supreme Superboy against them.
• Batman questioned whether Owlman had discovered Luther’s sabotage, but Luther insisted his tampering would work even if Owlman learned of it.
• Batman told Luther they had used too much Speed Force preparing for Supreme Superboy and could not steal more from ordinary people.
• Batman ended their conversation, saying the Anti-Monitor would arrive in minutes and the battle would begin in one hour.

Darkseid decided to help Batman stall the Anti-Monitor, hoping to seize the Anti-Life Equation and preserve his escape option. As the Justice League prepared to fight on Qward, Batman concealed that he had no way to control Supreme Superboy, and the Anti-Monitor appeared before them.

• Darkseid reconsidered Owlman's request and chose to help Batman until Supreme Superboy returned from the sun, while keeping his escape plan in reserve.
• Batman briefed the gathered heroes and Rogues on their plan to buy time, but Shazam questioned what would happen if Supreme Superboy could not be controlled.
• The League received an alert that Qward was approaching, and its members left Justice Hall to prepare for battle.
• Arthur told Batman that Orm and the Atlanteans were ready to fight, while Diana agreed to share a meal with Batman after the battle and led the warriors out.
• Batman worried that he had no way to control Supreme Superboy, then followed the others through the Boom Tube to face the Anti-Monitor on Qward.

Batman and the Justice League launched a coordinated assault to hold off the Anti-Monitor until reinforcements could arrive. After the Anti-Monitor killed Supreme Superboy and turned on the Rogues, Darkseid joined the battle as Batman’s ally, and the two attacked together.

• Batman and the Justice League attacked the Anti-Monitor while the Rogues altered the battlefield and shared information about their traps.
• Hal Jordan summoned Lantern Corps reinforcements, and the combined assault forced the Anti-Monitor to fight back.
• Supreme Superboy charged the Anti-Monitor but was killed, while Batman used the Speed Force to slow the Shadow Demons and protect the others.
• The Anti-Monitor opened a gate into the Red and prepared to attack the Rogues, but Darkseid struck him with Omega beams.
• Darkseid and his Parademons joined the battle, and Batman punched the Anti-Monitor alongside him.

Chen Tao and Darkseid fought the Anti-Monitor while waiting for Owlman, but Chen Tao grew suspicious that the Anti-Monitor’s killings were bypassing the Alfred Protocol. In the Owlman Universe, Owlman stopped Lex Luthor’s rebellion and revealed Grail as a replacement for Darkseid; when Owlman failed to return, Chen Tao reassured Darkseid that he still had a trump card.

• Chen Tao noticed Supreme Superboy’s death and the absence of any Alfred Protocol response, and questioned whether the Anti-Monitor had also evolved.
• Chen Tao and Darkseid attacked the Anti-Monitor together, and Darkseid mistook Chen Tao’s gaze for a signal before they coordinated another strike.
• Lex Luthor tried to seize control of the Propulsion Tower, but Owlman used its magical components to restrain him and summoned Grail as Darkseid’s replacement.
• Chen Tao realized Owlman was not coming back, and Darkseid recognized that Owlman had abandoned him while the Anti-Monitor counterattacked.
• Chen Tao told Darkseid to keep fighting and claimed he had a trump card, and Darkseid immediately believed him.

Owlman exposed Lex Luthor’s remote-controlled Clayface double but failed to capture him, then called in his allies to hunt him down. Meanwhile, Batman tricked Darkseid into escaping through a golden portal that placed him directly in front of the Anti-Monitor, where an explosion struck him.

• Owlman revealed that he had blocked Lex Luthor from controlling the modified Green Lantern army and prepared to imprison him.
• Luthor dissolved his Clayface double, revealed that his real body had stayed elsewhere, and vowed to return and defeat Owlman.
• Owlman ordered Mistress Nyx and his other allies to capture Luthor, then told Grail they were setting sail toward a free future.
• Batman told Darkseid to endure the Anti-Monitor until a Guardian-made explosive charged, then use the Golden Sphere portal to escape.
• Darkseid followed Batman’s instructions, but the portal placed him in front of the Anti-Monitor, who smashed his face before the explosion struck.

Luther infiltrated Owlman’s Gotham and revealed a Kryptonian clone as his last defense, while Batman’s betrayal left Darkseid badly wounded. Luther left with the confused creation, and Batman faced Darkseid’s retaliation.

• Luther disguised himself as the dead gang leader Boss Mark and entered a hidden facility guarded by Otis.
• Luther opened a culture tank containing Specimen B-0, an unfinished Kryptonian clone, and ordered it to kill Otis.
• The clone ignored Luther’s commands until Otis shot at it, after which it killed Otis and Luther led it away.
• Luther covered the murdered woman’s corpse with his coat and left, lamenting that Batman had changed him.
• Batman used a bullet capable of killing a New God to help the Anti-Monitor grievously wound Darkseid.
• Darkseid confronted Batman, who had synchronized with Dark Father, and vowed to kill him.

Lex Luthor recovered his armor and tracked down Nightwing while preparing to search for Batman’s Laughing Serum. Meanwhile, Chen Tao became the Black Racer’s host and killed Darkseid, leaving the collapsing world in need of a new leader.

• Lex Luthor and his artificial creature uncovered his safe house, where he retrieved his green armor and connected to a satellite.
• Lex Luthor located Nightwing Dick Grayson and set out to find him, then Lobo and Batman’s Laughing Serum.
• Chen Tao’s attack gravely wounded Darkseid, who summoned the Black Racer to kill Batman.
• Chen Tao became the Black Racer’s host, retained his emotions, and resisted the Anti-Monitor’s control.
• Chen Tao ran through Darkseid and killed him, causing the world to collapse as Shazam sensed the powers within him panicking.
• Wonder Woman sensed that something was wrong, and Chen Tao recognized that the world needed someone to lead it.

After Darkseid’s death, Chen Tao and several Justice League members inherited parts of his divinity, while Batman’s preparations enabled Thunder Zan-Sha to become the God of the Omega Effect. The chapter ended with the newly transformed Alexander Luthor blind, mute, and without limbs.

• Luther was surrounded by Owlman’s villains in Gotham City and fought back with the artificial being at his side.
• The Black Racer departed after harvesting Darkseid’s life, and Chen Tao realized he had obtained part of Darkseid’s divinity.
• Superman, Thunder Shazam, and Wonder Woman received divine powers, while Batman explained that Diana had inherited part of the Anti-Life Equation.
• Chen Tao became the universe’s God of Wisdom, and Thunder Zan-Sha began transforming as Batman’s Speed Force device channeled power into him.
• A recording interrupted Thunder Zan-Sha’s transformation, and lasers removed his limbs, tongue, and eyes while the Omega Effect continued changing him into Alexander Luthor, God of the Omega Effect.

A swarm of two-headed Earth monsters invaded Graxos IV, transforming its inhabitants into creatures who worshipped Batman Overlord and spreading their love through violence. After absorbing Darkseid's Godhead, Chen Tao became a New God and prepared to propel the universe by infecting its intelligent life, leaving the next step dependent on Luther.

• The two-headed monsters tore through Graxos IV's planetary defenses after the Green Lantern Corps failed to respond, and the planet's officers realized its sister world had already fallen.
• A lion-tiger-headed monster entered the conference room and explained that the invaders served Batman Overlord and intended to turn the planet's inhabitants into anchors to propel their universe.
• The monster transformed an elf operator into a two-headed creature, and the operator and other transformed elves became devoted to Batman Overlord.
• The transformed elf officer received a Purple Lantern Ring and joined the monsters in spreading their worship across the planet.
• Chen Tao absorbed Darkseid's Godhead, became a New God, and prepared to use Earth's population to infect the universe and propel it without Owlman's Propulsion Tower.
• Chen Tao watched the Justice League charge toward Anti-Monitor and concluded that his preparations were complete, with the outcome now depending on Luther.

Lex Luthor and Bizarro escaped Mistress Nyx’s ambush and made their way to Wayne Manor to rescue Nightwing and obtain the Joker-Man virus. They freed Nightwing, but learned that Owlman had already discovered and taken every vial, leaving Luther’s plan in jeopardy.

• Luther’s Bizarro killed Bombshell and the other attackers, but Mistress Nyx ambushed Luther and corrupted Bizarro with dark matter before Luther escaped with him through a Boom Tube.
• After hiding in a sewer, Luther treated his wound and persuaded the frightened Bizarro to keep moving by telling him about his sister and his own fear of failure; Bizarro declared that he would not give up.
• Luther and Bizarro reached Wayne Manor through the sewers, evaded its surveillance, and Luther ordered Bizarro to wait while he entered the manor alone.
• Luther found Nightwing imprisoned in Owl Cave and freed him, then asked for the Joker-Man virus Batman had hidden in Nightwing’s spine.
• Nightwing told Luther that Owlman had discovered and taken every vial of the virus, leaving none behind.

Luther realized Batman’s plan depended on clever people deceiving themselves, then prepared to threaten Owlman with a nuclear launch sequence while hiding the crucial insight from telepathic searches. He and Nightwing headed to rescue Lobo, as Owlman assembled Despero, Mistress Nyx, and an Amazo Mark II to intercept them; Luther arrived openly at the Owl Cave, leaving his plan unclear.

• Nightwing explained that Owlman had found both Joker-Man virus doses and broken through Batman’s mental defenses, while Luther learned Owlman would soon send reinforcements.
• Luther read Nightwing’s memories and realized Batman had planted a plan that clever people like himself and Owlman would overlook by trusting their own intelligence.
• Luther revealed a nuclear bomb in Gotham tied to the universe’s acceleration, claimed it was a threat rather than an attack he would carry out, and took Nightwing to find Lobo.
• Luther secretly erased part of his own memory of Batman’s plan so Owlman could not discover it through telepathy.
• Owlman sent Despero, Mistress Nyx, and an Amazo Mark II to capture Luther, while Lobo silently exchanged a glance with Owlman from his cell.
• Luther entered the Owl Cave openly and triggered its alarm, prompting Despero to wonder why he had come despite facing certain defeat.

Owlman tried to lure Lex Luthor into a trap while managing attacks on his Propulsion Towers, but Luthor’s team reached Lobo’s prison and triggered a hidden plan involving Nightwing’s blood. Owlman headed out to see Nightwing after the Joker-Man virus began to manifest.

• Owlman ordered Despero and Mistress Nyx to leave Lobo’s prison and return to their Propulsion Towers, leaving Amazo to guard the captive.
• Lex Luthor, Nightwing, and Bizarro stormed the prison, and Luther’s psychic barrier shielded them from Amazo’s attack.
• Luther launched nearly a hundred missiles toward Gotham, forcing Mistress Nyx to intercept them while Owlman ordered Grail and Doctor Ivo to protect the Propulsion Towers.
• Bizarro overpowered Amazo by turning its anti-Superman abilities to his advantage as Luther and Nightwing reached Lobo’s cell.
• Lobo stabbed Luther and struck Nightwing, whose blood mixed with Lobo’s and activated the Joker-Man virus; Luther collapsed, and Owlman decided to go see Nightwing.

Owlman chose to leave Nightwing to die, but Joker-Man returned and forced him to confront his past and his choices. Meanwhile, Chen Tao’s plan began to work as Owlman’s universe activated, setting up the Anti-Monitor’s expulsion.

• Owlman left Nightwing’s severed body unrepaired and took Luther, while Nightwing relived memories of his bond with Owlman.
• Joker-Man appeared, shot at Owlman without being harmed, and taunted him about Talon Dick and his habit of sacrificing people.
• Owlman reattached Nightwing’s body and returned Lobo’s heart to Luther, allowing both men to recover.
• Joker-Man told Owlman they were alike and accused him of treating people as disposable pieces to save the majority.
• Chen Tao realized Owlman’s universe had activated as the Justice League held the Anti-Monitor in place, and he prepared to expel him.

Owlman gathered the cosmic overlords to use their power to repair the Propulsion Towers after Batman sabotaged them, claiming it was their only chance to escape the Anti-Monitor. As the overlords became conduits for Planet Heart’s energy, Owlman revealed that Batman’s toxin had transformed him, and he turned the energy against them.

• Mistress Nyx and Despero intercepted the nuclear missiles, then learned from Owlman that Batman had sabotaged the Propulsion Towers through Luther.
• Owlman summoned his allies and persuaded them to connect themselves to the towers so Planet Heart’s magic could replace the damaged circuits.
• Despero inspected his tower, found evidence of Luther’s tampering, and joined the others in channeling energy into the network.
• As the energy grew dangerously strong, Owlman claimed his injuries were making it difficult to guide the flow and promised the overlords compensation.
• Owlman revealed that a toxin released after Nightwing’s death had restructured his brain and replaced his moral core with Joker-Man’s.
• Despero realized Owlman had betrayed them, and the magical energy became a beast that drained the cosmic overlords’ power as they screamed.

While the Joker-Man virus trapped Owlman in an illusion, Joker-Man forced him to confront his betrayal of his ideals and the deaths caused by his choices. Owlman woke with the virus’s effects gone, but the universes were still on course to merge, and he chose to press forward rather than turn back.

• Owlman struggled against an interrogation illusion in which Joker-Man accused him of abandoning Dick Grayson and showed him Dick’s beating and death.
• Joker-Man reminded Owlman that he had killed Harley Quinn and that Joker-Man had chosen to kill Dick and die by Owlman’s hand in response.
• Owlman defended his alliance with Supreme Superboy and his execution of Gotham’s opponents as necessary to protect the city, but Joker-Man confronted him with the harm his choices had caused.
• Joker-Man urged Owlman to join Batman against the Anti-Monitor and reclaim the principles he had held as a boy, but Owlman withdrew his hand from his younger self.
• Owlman woke as the Joker-Man virus’s effects temporarily vanished and saw that the universes’ merger was nearly inevitable.
• Owlman flew out of the Propulsion Tower over Gotham City and resolved that he would not turn back.

Drowned Vengeance ended the Dark Knights’ civil war, and Red Death built an observatory connected to the Dark Spire. Meanwhile, Owlman activated his Fail-Safe robot to stop the approaching collision between two universes, only to learn that his backup plan was to repel the Anti-Monitor.

• Drowned Vengeance blamed The Devastator and Red Death for the fight while hiding that her mind had been controlled, and Murder Machine ended the dispute.
• Murder Machine ordered the Dark Knights to build a Dark Spire and help Barbatos destroy the universe; Red Death first forged an observatory from Dark Multiverse materials and linked it to the Spire.
• Owlman learned that the universes would begin overlapping in seventeen minutes and went to the concealed room where he had stored his Fail-Safe plan.
• Owlman activated the Fail-Safe Robot and asked how to prevent the universes from overlapping.
• The robot said Owlman had prepared no plan for stopping the overlap, but offered a potentially matching plan: repel the Anti-Monitor.