Batman was still too green

The engine the Roar, propelling the fully loaded 30-ton fighter jet forward at breakneck speed, before it steadily left the runway and soared into the deep night sky.

Two minutes later, an even larger bomber, carrying nearly ten tons of the Mother of All Bombs, struggled to take off from the end of the runway.

Meanwhile, an army artillery battalion temporarily launched live-fire training, following the map to their designated gun positions and beginning preparations for long-range artillery fire.

At another abandoned military base, five armed helicopters took off in succession, forming a formation with another Black Hawk helicopter carrying the Death Cross Squad.

The Death Cross Squad, also known as the Inverted Cross, is a Esper Powers squad that was developed during the conflict between the Court of Owls and the Papal Court because the Fukurou Talons were insufficient to fight against the Papal Court's Crusaders.

Because it involves Esper Powers individuals, the number of members in the Death Cross Squad is uncertain, and their strength fluctuates. At its worst, they were reduced to a single organizational unit with no official members.

Due to the recent increase in the number of Esper Powers individuals, the Death Cross Squad has gradually reached full strength of nine members, and even has two reserve members.

But the Court of Owls knew that its team of Esper Powers could at most fight against one or two hundred armed men, which was a completely different level from the power of "Sky," who could ignore hundreds of armed Security Guard.

The purpose of sending the Death Cross Squad this time was certainly not to encircle and kill "Kong," but to collect his body and confirm the results of the battle.

The weapons used tonight are all powerful war machines.

In particular, a certain judge used his connections to mobilize a nearly defunct Mother of All Bombs, a thing capable of destroying several communities and enough to wipe out an entire Forest.

Logically, once the attack is completed, "Kong" should have absolutely no chance of survival.

But the Court of Owls has a 150-year history and has weathered many storms, so it has some heritage and tradition. They all know that to commit murder, one must see the body, even if it's just a few teeth or pieces of flesh, otherwise one cannot be certain of success.

Therefore, ground infantry must be deployed to search the area after the attack to confirm success.

Even if it doesn't succeed in the end, this step must be taken.

The judges in the Court of Owls were confident of victory, and some were already considering the troublesome aftermath.

As the Court of Owls ' attack was on its way, Shazo was curiously observing the arriving Batman.

His mocking gaze was like a searchlight, making Batman feel extremely uncomfortable.

Shazo asked with a grin, "Oh dear, Batman has actually come knocking on our door. Have you already prepared to deal with me, or have you successfully developed the Anti-Shazo Armor?"

Batman, suppressing his discomfort, replied earnestly, "No, I have some questions I'd like to ask you."

"Heh, you seem to have a big face." Shazo tilted his head and asked in a disdainful tone, "Why do you think I have to answer your questions?"

Batman said in a deep voice, "The question I want to ask is related to the Court of Owls. Once I know their information, I will take action against them, which will also be good for you."

Shazo laughed, "Hehe, not at all."

He looked Batman up and down and continued, "You're still too green. An incomplete Batman isn't qualified to understand the Court of Owls; that will only get you killed."

"Now you can get lost, you stinky bat."

Batman clenched his fist, suppressing his anger and rage, and said, "No one can kill Batman. Batman is the Nightmare of all Evil Person."

Shazo: "----"

He never expected that the young and inexperienced Batman would look so awkward and pretentious when he tried to act cool!

In that case, it would have to be said by a great person with profound life experience, a majestic demeanor like the Five Sacred Mountains, who can convince people with just one glance, to be a suitable match.

Only a ruthless person who has been immersed in the Bitter Sea or Blood Sea for many years and exudes a terrifying aura can barely maintain their intimidation.

These days, talking about Batman is like trying to balance a huge vat with a toothpick.

My eyes hurt from the spiciness!

However, this kind of Batman is quite good.

Shazo smiled as he looked at Batman in front of him. His emotions were too easily revealed, which meant that his thoughts were not deep enough. Superficial thoughts would easily dissipate with time.

In other words, if you bully Batman now, he won't hold a grudge, at least not for a long time.

Once that Batman in front of you matures, he'll hold a grudge for eternity and might suddenly retaliate in a brutal way.

That wouldn't be fun.

It might not hurt much or cause much injury, but it will definitely be disgusting.

Just as Shazo was thinking about how to bully Batman, his [Mantra] revealed malicious intent towards him, as well as a high-speed target that shouldn't have appeared.

In a flash of thought, Shazo Zuo activated [Mantra] to its maximum, carefully searching through the shallow memories of these potential targets.

He quickly understood what was going on, and then he burst into laughter. "Hahaha, it's true that timing is everything!"

"Batman, the revenge from the Court of Owls is here. You'll soon see just how powerful and insane they are."

Batman frowned slightly and began to look around the forest, wondering. "The revenge of the Court of Owls?"

Shazo shook his head and said, "No, no, don't look around, look at the sky. Their attack is coming from the sky."

"Huh?"

"There's even a longer-range attack! How can it be so fast? This is... 155?"

"That's right, it's a 155mm howitzer!"

"How interesting, they actually used that as their opening line. Let me see what their real main weapon is."

Shazo's mouth gradually widened: "The Mother of All Bombs— "

"Hahaha, this is so funny, it's been a huge help to me."

"I was just worrying about how to expand the core area of Forest, and here comes such a great gift."

"I won't torture you anymore. I'll let you rest in peace without pain as my way of thanking you."

Batman looked at the gesticulating Shazo in front of him and heard his incoherent words, and a bad feeling welled up in his heart.

Suddenly, Batman felt a sharp, instinctive alarm, as if someone had pierced his head with a needle.

The next second, a 155mm howitzer shell exploded in the tree canopy, sending leaves and branches flying everywhere.

But the most lethal element was the more than 9,000 Steel Balls inside the shell. Propelled by the explosion of 16 kilograms of high-energy explosives, they rained down with power far exceeding that of bullets.

The speed and power of the exploding shells are extremely high, Superman physiological response.

Batman was able to see all of this because Shazo raised his hand and activated [Electromagnetic Control], using Electromagnetic Force to control the bullets and stop them five meters above the two men's heads.

Before Batman could say anything, he heard a second explosion, a third explosion—the explosions rang out eight times in a row.

The canopy of the large tree in the center of the Forest had been blasted to pieces, revealing a clear sky.

Batman's head was buzzing, and he blurted out, "Eight consecutive 155mm howitzer shells—that's the firepower of a Howitzer Battalion."

"How did the Court of Owls manage to deploy such overwhelming firepower in the suburbs of Gotham City? How dare they do this?"

Shazo laughed, "Is the madness and power of the Court of Owls far beyond your imagination?"

"Did they scare you as soon as they made a move?"

"Bat Boy, it's still early days. This is just an appetizer."

Batman broke down; his expression shifted from a furrowed brow to a wide-eyed, incredulous stare at Shazo.

His voice even trembled slightly. "You mean, they have follow-up attacks, even more powerful ones?"

Shazo nodded. "That's only natural."

"I can single-handedly break through a hundred-strong protective encirclement, and I can also single-handedly destroy a fortified villa. Of course, I should be treated as a regimental-level unit in the army."

"So guess what weapon will follow the 155mm shelling?"

Batman answered the question blankly, "Missiles, air-to-ground missiles, or 1,000-pound aerial bombs."

Shazo snapped his the Snap: "You guessed right. This shows you're very knowledgeable, but it also shows you're still a young man."

"As a true adult, you would say you have both, because adults never make choices; we always want it all."

Before Shazo had finished speaking, Batman heard the sharp explosion of an aerial bomb and saw the trajectory of a missile changing from level flight to dive.

The aerial bombs and missiles had the same target: a clearing in the middle of the Forest.

This is a weapon that Batman cannot resist; he is not only immature in personality and intelligence, but also technically immature.

The Bat Armor that would later become famous throughout the Universe was something Batman didn't even have the inspiration to develop.

So after witnessing the attack of these two weapons, he knew that his life was no longer in his own hands.

Feeling utterly powerless, Batman could only turn his gaze to Shazo.

He saw Shazo laugh heartily, bright arcs of electricity appearing between his hands, and then a huge electromagnetic net unfolded.

"Batman, I have to thank you!"

"If you hadn't shot me in the head, I wouldn't have even remembered I had that move!"

"No, that's not right either. This move isn't mine, it belongs to another Shazo. Is it from Marvel or Hokage?"

"Oh well, whatever, they're all Shazo, why be so particular? What's yours is mine!"

As Shazo continued his incessant chatter, the electric arc of the electromagnetic network gradually spread and merged, forming a transparent membrane.

[Electromagnetic Control & Electromagnetic Barrier]

This is the protective shield that Marvel Shazo used to withstand the power of a nuclear explosion when protecting the Avengers and members of the Shazo Legion.

After some time, drawing on the techniques of Aries' Crystal, this move was improved and finally perfected.

This is a powerful defensive skill capable of withstanding the core of a nuclear explosion; mere air-to-ground missiles and aerial bombs are nothing more than a drop in the ocean.

Thanks to Shazo's protection, Batman was fortunate enough to witness the entire explosion at the point of detonation of the weapon of war.

The dazzling explosion and the white shockwave terrified him, and cold sweat streamed down his back.

I don't know if it was a few minutes or a dozen minutes later, the terrifying explosions finally stopped.

Batman then realized he had been holding his breath for who knows how long. He exhaled a heavy breath and began to gasp for air.

He murmured, "It's finally over."

Shazo looked over with a grin. "It's over? You're overthinking it. There's something even more ruthless and intense coming."

Batman was completely stunned. "There's more? How is that possible? What weapon could be more ruthless—more powerful—?"

Helicopters swept across the Forest, which was dotted with Kakkō, dropping strings of white phosphorus incendiary bombs.

The exploding white phosphorus bomb resembled beautiful fireworks, with Hundred Plans of sparks flashing brilliantly, trailing white smoke as it wobbled and fell downwards.

It was dazzling and beautiful, like a shooting star falling.

But as Batman gazed at the beautiful sight, his face suddenly drained of color, turning as pale as paper.

White phosphorus bombs are inhumane weapons explicitly prohibited by the United Nations, listed alongside biological and chemical weapons. Naturally, he considered the possibility of being attacked with chemical and biological weapons next.

Shazo reassured him, "Don't worry, there won't be any biological or chemical weapons, because I've already proven that I'm immune to viral and chemical toxin attacks."

"But the next attack won't be easy either; I need to make a hole in myself first."

As he spoke, Shazo Zuo clapped his hands, and thick tree roots sprouted from the ground, turning up the soil and leaving a deep cave.

Without the slightest hesitation, Shazo jumped down.

Because his mind was completely blank, it took Batman a full two seconds to react before he jumped down.

At that moment, he heard a terrifying, muffled rumble from high above, like that of a steam train.

After Batman jumped into the cave, he surprisingly fell flat on his backside without any regard for his image.

But he didn't stand up. Instead, he lay down on the ground, staring at the sky above the cave entrance, muttering repeatedly, "Mother of All Bombs, how could they use the Mother of All Bombs? How dare they? They deserve to die!"

The official name of the Mother of All Bombs" is the GBU-43/B Massive Airburst Bomb, which contains 8.4 tons of high-performance explosives.

The shockwave after the explosion has an absolute destructive radius of nearly 150 meters. The massive shockwave can destroy a reinforced concrete area the size of nine city blocks. If it were Forest or plain, the kill radius would be even greater.

In other words, the homeless people and residents who originally lived in the Forest will face annihilation.

The number of casualties tonight will be horrific.

Batman foresaw the outcome, but he also knew that there was nothing he could do; he needed Shazo's protection even to survive.

He finally realized how ruthless the Court of Owls was, and how much power they wielded.

Neither Bruce Wayne nor Batman are qualified to face the Court of Owls, which lurks in the shadows yet firmly controls Gotham.

Boom-!

The Mother of All Bombs exploded.