Chapter Summaries

Barry uncovered evidence that Batman’s death and the Joker’s takeover of Wayne Enterprises had distorted the timeline, but he hesitated to tell Clark after seeing him reunited with Jonathan. He went to Gotham to find the Joker, where a powerful headache warned that the timeline was overwriting his memories, and he learned the Joker had locked himself in Arkham.

• Barry used Gideon to trace the world’s changes to Batman’s death and the Joker’s takeover of Wayne Enterprises, then copied key records to a drive.
• Barry found Clark happily living with Jonathan and chose not to disrupt their reunion, deciding to investigate the timeline himself first.
• Barry reached Gotham and found the city transformed by the Joker’s businesses and advertisements, while a severe headache signaled the timeline’s influence was growing.
• Barry confronted the man calling himself Kingpin in the Long Live Gotham Group headquarters and learned he was only a front man for the Joker.
• Kingpin told Barry that the Joker, also known as Mr. Jack, had rebuilt Arkham on the outskirts and locked himself inside.

Barry Allen questioned a terrified Joker in Arkham and learned that a mysterious figure called Drummer had taken over his identity. After Barry left to investigate, the free Joker revealed that he had staged the encounter and was preparing to infect his identity with a different virus as Batman approached a Flashpoint of his own.

• Barry forced Kingpin to reveal Arkham's location, then raced to the asylum and found Joker in a cell.
• Barry searched Joker for weapons and demanded to know why Batman had killed four children.
• Joker claimed someone had stolen his face and identity, then named Drummer as the one who had imprisoned him.
• Barry left for Central City to have Gideon investigate Drummer, while the imprisoned Joker revealed that his panic had been an act.
• A second Joker emerged from the shadows wearing a feather from the Eldest Son of God and explained that he had chosen to let the Joker identity be infected by another virus.
• The free Joker turned his attention toward the past, where Batman was about to create a Flashpoint without a Speedster.

Pollution from Ian’s blood pushed Batman toward experimenting on Arkham’s prisoners, so Bruce injected himself with Ian’s original blood and died from the effects. Lady Death returned him to life, while Ian sensed that Bruce had acquired his bloodline and joked that he had become Batman’s new father.

• Bruce tested three agents refined from Ian’s blood on rats and mice, and each caused a dangerous mutation or death.
• Pollution drove Bruce to consider using Arkham prisoners as test subjects, but fear of losing control made him reject the plan.
• Bruce injected himself with Ian’s untreated blood, suffered catastrophic bodily reactions, and died in the Batcave.
• Lady Death forced Bruce’s soul back into his body, reviving him and telling him the second life was both a reward and a price.
• Ian sensed his bloodline had fused with Bruce and realized he had become Batman’s new father.

Ian discovered that Bruce Wayne had fused with his bloodline and sensed a second, more alarming bloodline resonance in Gotham, so he rushed there. Meanwhile, his new Homecoming dimension entered the DC Universe’s fundamental structure, drawing the attention of Darkseid and the Endless as Destiny watched his book being rewritten.

• Ian sensed that Bruce Wayne had fused with his bloodline and worried that the change would disrupt the timeline.
• Ian detected a second, twisted bloodline resonance in Gotham and embedded his dimension into the DC Universe before racing toward the city as Speed Force lightning.
• Homecoming became part of the universe’s basic structure, and Darkseid ordered Grail to analyze it; Grail died after sensing the dimension’s poisonous energy.
• The Endless gathered to discuss Ian and his growing influence, while Lady Death promised to reveal something more incredible.
• Destiny watched Ian’s name and branching timelines appear in his book as its existing chapters were overwritten.

The Monitor and Anti-Monitor detected Ian Kent’s new Land of Soul Return dimension embedding itself into the universe’s structure, but both avoided direct intervention. In Hell, the Demon Kings recognized Ian as the new Satan and chose to tolerate the diverted souls, leaving the dimension’s expansion unopposed for now.

• The Monitor discovered Ian’s dimension entangled with Heaven and Hell, but his verdict had no effect and his attempts to observe the incident were blocked by the narrative layer.
• The Anti-Monitor sensed the dimension’s contradictory energy and decided to watch for conflicts he could exploit.
• Beelzebub and Mammon accused the new dimension of stealing souls, while Crowley revealed that its creator was Ian Kent, the bearer of Satan’s authority.
• The Spectre identified Ian as Hell’s new Satan, and the Demon Kings hesitated to challenge him because of his power and his backing from Lucifer.
• Mammon, Lilith, and Baal argued that the dimension filtered souls and represented an internal adjustment, then the Demon Kings agreed to stay quiet and adapt.

Ian sensed that his new dimension had challenged Heaven and Hell, but both realms stayed silent as their leaders avoided responsibility. In Gotham, he found that his altered bloodline was changing Bruce and Damian, then realized Crime Alley held a trap tied to his destiny.

• Raphael kept angels working on Ian's assembly line, while Michael livestreamed for gifts and Gabriel hid from Heaven's problems.
• Heaven and Hell made no move against Ian's new dimension as he flew toward Gotham to deal with his descendants.
• Bruce discovered that Ian's blood had transformed him and that Damian's body was undergoing the same change inside a hibernation pod.
• Ian sensed that Bruce's altered bloodline was affecting Damian and worried that history had changed dramatically.
• Ian felt an existential warning in a Gotham alley and recognized the Crime Alley sign, realizing someone had set him up.

Ian realized that someone had arranged Batman’s transformation and lured him to Crime Alley to graft a fatal destiny onto him. Lady Death and Lady Paradox watched their plan unfold as the Saint of Killers arrived, and Ian drew his Colt.

• Ian concluded that Bruce should have died from his blood but instead became his descendant, making the transformation seem like part of a larger scheme.
• Lady Death and Lady Paradox discussed their plan, using Batman’s bloodline transformation as an anchor and releasing a forgotten person as a catalyst.
• Ian realized that someone was trying to make him inherit Thomas Wayne’s fate and die in Crime Alley.
• A mysterious cowboy entered the alley and asked Ian if he was God in hiding.
• Ian recognized the Saint of Killers, drew his Colt first, and put on a cowboy hat.

Ian faced the Saint of Killers in Crime Alley and tried to escape after shooting him with the Colt, but the gunslinger returned and mistook Ian for God. Lady Paradox framed Ian by placing Genesis in his hand, while his blood spread through Gotham’s sewers.

• Ian drew the Colt and shot the Saint of Killers in the forehead, but the gunslinger and his revolver began to disappear before Ian could claim them.
• Ian tried to flee Crime Alley, but the location’s rules dragged him down and the Saint of Killers emerged from the ground to seize his ankle.
• Ian failed to cut through the Saint of Killers’ wrist and tried sawing through his own leg as the gunslinger recovered his revolver and aimed at him.
• The Saint of Killers insisted Ian was God, and an unseen force placed Genesis in Ian’s hand, strengthening the gunslinger’s conviction.
• Lady Death confronted Lady Paradox about framing Ian, while Ian’s blood flowed through the sewers and began spreading across the city.

Ian was shot between the brows by the Saint of Killers, who believed he had killed God and left Crime Alley. Lady Death and Lady Paradox then discovered that Ian’s body had vanished and his blood was spreading faster, suggesting his death had not taken effect as expected.

• Lady Paradox warned that Ian’s amber-gold blood was spreading through Gotham’s sewers and could contaminate the city’s water and soil, while Lady Death insisted the effects would fade once Ian died.
• Ian tried to seize the Saint of Killers’ gun with the Speed Force, but the Saint’s shot bypassed every possible dodge and struck him between the brows.
• Ian’s powers and awareness faded, and he collapsed as the Saint of Killers declared, “God is dead,” then walked away.
• Lady Paradox expected Ian’s death to begin undoing the changes he had caused, but Lady Death sensed that his death had not been completed.
• Lady Death and Lady Paradox found that Ian’s body had disappeared while his blood remained active and spread faster, leading Lady Death to realize he had anticipated this outcome.

Lady Death explained how Ian escaped the Saint of Killers’ certain-death bullet by transforming his existence into countless possible selves distributed through matter and reality. She concluded that Ian had become a member of the Endless Family and could potentially revive anywhere, leaving Lady Paradox unable to complete his death.

• Lady Paradox and Lady Death discovered that Ian had vanished, while Ian’s blood spread through Gotham and showed signs of life.
• Lady Death revealed that Ian had not resisted the bullet but had transformed his existence at the moment of death, making every part of his body a potential Ian.
• Lady Death explained that the bullet killed the specific Ian it had targeted, while countless possible Ians remained dispersed through the blood and matter he had touched.
• Lady Paradox proposed scanning and erasing every carrier, but Lady Death said Ian’s death had entangled his possibility with particles, energy, information, and possibilities throughout the universe.
• Lady Death declared that Ian had become part of the Endless Family and could re-form anywhere, then decided she needed to seal Lady Paradox’s mouth.

Lady Death tried to keep Lady Paradox from revealing what happened with Ian by proposing a coercive “human fruit loan,” but Lady Paradox escaped in her Blue Police Box. After Death vanished, corrupt Gotham officers found no evidence in Crime Alley and pressured a drunk passerby, who blamed the incident on Batman.

• Lady Death confronted Lady Paradox and proposed binding her to keep the truth about Ian secret.
• Lady Paradox used her Time Shelter Umbrella to resist Lady Death’s conceptual restraints and fled through the Blue Police Box.
• Lady Death let Lady Paradox escape and disappeared from the clock tower, worried about Ian and the uncertain future.
• Four corrupt Gotham police officers searched Crime Alley, found no evidence, and prepared to file the incident as a false alarm.
• The officers tried to pin the shooting report on a drunk passerby, who claimed Batman had attacked a child in the alley.

Bruce analyzed the extraordinary gene shared by himself and Damian, discovered it was marked by Ian and could impose control, and began testing its effects. His research was interrupted by a midnight call from Joker, while Ian received system notifications confirming Bruce and his descendants had become dependents.

• A Gotham drunk blamed a fabricated Crime Alley incident on Batman, and two cops let him go after deciding to pass the report upstairs.
• The drunk went to seek payment from reporters, setting a rumor about Batman eating children in Crime Alley loose across Gotham.
• Bruce found an unstable, unfamiliar genetic sequence in himself and Damian that formed Ian’s initial and seemed to establish Ian as their bloodline source and master.
• Bruce tested the sequence on laboratory mice and found that it could cause mutations and make the animals partially obey him.
• Joker called Bruce on an encrypted phone while Bruce prepared to continue experimenting.
• Ian received system notifications that Bruce had become his dependent and Bruce’s offspring had become dependents as well.

Joker threatened Batman with a video of him taking Damian, Jonathan, and Jordan, then lured him to a wastewater plant where Ian’s blood had contaminated the sewage. As Batman confronted Joker, a mysterious consciousness awakened and discovered Batman had gained the More Children More Blessings System.

• Joker called Batman and threatened to release a video showing him carrying away Damian, Jonathan, and Jordan.
• Joker revealed he was at Gotham’s East End Old City Wastewater Treatment Plant and had seen Ian’s blood in the sewage.
• Batman used emergency protocol Owlman to locate Joker, then raced to the plant in the Batmobile.
• Batman confronted Joker beside the settling tank, but Joker warned that the video would be sent to authorities and media outlets if anything happened to him.
• A mysterious consciousness awakened after receiving alerts that its dependent had developed offspring, and it realized Batman had gained the More Children More Blessings System.

After the Saint of Killers erased Ian’s definite existence, his consciousness dispersed throughout the universe and began gathering experience from Batman’s mutated rat descendants. Alarmed by the spreading plague and Batman’s growing violence, Ian chose Earth as an anchor and began reassembling as Batman killed Joker at the sewage plant.

• Ian’s dispersed consciousness received experience whenever a mutated rat descended from Batman was born in the Batcave.
• Ian realized the rapidly breeding rats had escaped into Gotham’s underground and could spread supernatural mutations, so he decided to reassemble early.
• Ian focused his scattered existence toward Earth and began gathering his particles and possibilities around events at Gotham’s sewage treatment plant.
• Batman used his new ability to emerge from Joker’s shadow and seize him by the throat.
• Batman ignored Joker’s taunts and snapped his neck, killing him as Joker said Batman would become like him.

After Batman killed Joker, Joker’s death triggered a supernatural corruption that began turning Batman into The Batman Who Laughs. Ian intervened by taking Joker’s vacant cosmic role and materialized in the sewage pool, stopping Batman’s transformation.

• Batman realized Joker may have intended to die by his hand, then dropped Joker’s body into the sewage pool.
• A malicious force invaded Batman’s mind and began transforming him into The Batman Who Laughs.
• Ian recognized the transformation and decided to intervene before Batman could complete it.
• Ian drew his scattered particles and possibilities into Gotham and materialized in Joker’s vacant role.
• Ian’s arrival halted Batman’s transformation, leaving him facing the newly embodied Ian.

Ian emerged as the self-proclaimed God-Bane Joker after interrupting Batman’s transformation into The Batman Who Laughs. He knocked Batman unconscious and dragged him toward the Batcave to reverse the bloodline contamination and deal with the escaped mutated rats.

• Ian completed his transformation, adopted the God-Bane Joker identity, and found Batman recovering beside the sewage pool.
• Batman recognized Ian Kent through their bloodline resonance, but Ian denied his identity and blamed Batman for injecting his divine blood.
• Batman tried to prepare a counterattack, and Ian revealed his Speed Force before insisting it was Joker Force.
• Ian struck Batman unconscious and declared himself Batman’s natural counter.
• Ian dragged Batman toward Wayne Manor and the Batcave to change his blood and address the escaped mutated rats.

Ian returned to the Batcave, used his authority over his extraordinary genes to eliminate most of the escaped mutated rats and their contamination, and prepared to remove his bloodline from the unconscious Batman. Meanwhile, Destiny warned Lady Death that Ian’s fusion with the Joker’s cosmic status was rewriting the concept itself, with consequences that could reach beyond a single universe.

• Ian bypassed Wayne Manor’s defenses, carried the unconscious Batman into the Batcave, and discovered that mutated rats had escaped into Gotham’s underground network.
• Ian tracked the rats through their bloodline connection and issued a genetic self-destruction command that killed most of them and neutralized their contamination across several kilometers.
• Ian realized his authority could also destroy Batman and planned to perform surgery to remove his genes from Batman, while a few rats escaped his detection.
• Lady Death sensed Ian’s return to a stable physical form and watched him search through the Batcave.
• Destiny visited Lady Death and explained that Ian had fused with the Joker’s cosmic status, fundamentally rewriting the Joker concept and threatening consequences beyond one universe.

Ian tried to purge his bloodline from Batman with a bizarre mixture of chemicals and visual stimuli, but Batman retained a permanent Mutation Overlord dependent mark. Ian then examined Damian and discovered the boy still carried his bloodline traits as mutated rats began spreading contamination through Gotham.

• Destiny warned Lady Death that Ian's return as the Joker was rewriting the multiverse's story, beginning with Gotham's madness and chaos.
• Ian used an adult magazine and a mixture of neural stimulant, capsaicin, and adrenaline to draw his dark golden blood contamination out of Batman.
• Batman’s symptoms subsided after Ian drained the contaminated blood, though Batman retained enhanced attributes and a permanent Mutation Overlord dependent mark.
• Ian found that Damian still had supernatural bloodline traits and wondered whether they had been inherited through Batman.
• A few escaped mutated rats quietly began spreading contamination through Gotham.

Mutated rats carrying Ian’s genetic information spread contamination through Gotham’s underground and swamp. One rat was eaten by Killer Croc, while a Gene Cyst burst beneath Solomon Grundy’s foot, leaving a trace of the material on his body as he wandered onward.

• A surviving rat’s mutations created Pustule, which spread Ian’s genes through contaminated saliva and urine, Brood Mother, which produced Gene Cysts, and Shadow Thief, which carried genetic material toward other mutated creatures.
• Killer Croc caught and ate a Pustule offspring rat in his sewer territory, then felt unusually sleepy and dismissed the faint changes in his wounds and appetite.
• A Gene Cyst washed into the swamp where Solomon Grundy wandered, and Grundy stepped on it, splashing its contents onto his trousers and ankle.
• A tiny amount of Ian’s active genetic material remained attached to Grundy and faintly resonated with the magic and resentment sustaining his undead body as he continued deeper into the swamp.

After recovering from Batman’s weapon, Basil Karlo absorbed biological markers left by Shadow Thief and began sensing an ancient life force beneath Gotham. When he touched a patch of underground growth, the power of The Green awakened inside him, tainted by Ian’s mysterious genes.

• Basil Karlo recovered in a Gotham sewer after absorbing organic matter and genetic markers from a footprint left by Shadow Thief’s blind creature.
• Basil tested his shapeshifting abilities, vowed to get revenge on Batman, and set out to find unusual substances that could strengthen him.
• Basil descended beneath Gotham and sensed a vast, ancient network of underground life.
• Basil touched a dark green growth, and the power of The Green bloomed inside his clay body, polluted by Ian’s mysterious gene.