Sewer Monster

Sewer Monster

With his foot on a portrait of the Holy Son, Li Zu stopped at the entrance to the second floor.

The door stood wide open, and rain blew in through the shattered windows.

The air was damp, filled with flashes of lightning and rolling thunder.

Along with the muffled sobbing of children.

After thinking for a moment, he turned and entered the room. A boy and a girl were crouched on the floor, duct tape sealing their mouths.

A corpse lay nearby, its throat slit. It was the man who had rushed in with a gun earlier.

"Mm! Mm!"

When they saw him enter, the two children curled up as hard as frightened kittens.

"Shh~" He raised a finger, signaling for them to be quiet.

He walked over to the corpse, pulled out a phone, and found a number in the contacts.

It was labeled Cobblepot.

"Jim?" The call connected immediately. The voice sounded like that of a gentleman deliberately raising his pitch, but the shrillness at its core was impossible to hide.

"Is this Mr. Cobblepot?"

"Yes. Who are you?" The voice on the other end sounded hostile.

"In Bristol District, Dent's two children are here. If you can drive over—"

"What happened to Jim?"

Click!

Li Zu hung up and pointed out the window at the torrential rain. "Don't go outside. The rain's too heavy. You'll catch a cold~"

Under the gaze of the two children, who were on the verge of a breakdown, he pushed himself up by his knees and swaggered downstairs.

The longer he stayed in this world, the more he understood that there was no such thing as a safe corner.

Passing through the creaking first floor, he glanced at the dull portraits of the Holy Son and angels covering the walls, then strode into the rain.

In an instant, the rain soaked him through.

His clothes grew heavy, but he barely noticed.

"Martha!"

Batman finally caught up to Joker and pulled her into his arms.

Even as she struggled.

"Martha, do you want to change all this?"

"I just want a world without you!" Her voice was hysterical, but Batman's powerful arms left her unable to resist. Like a chick trapped inside an eggshell, she could not break free and could only open her mouth and chirp.

"Even if that world has no you in it?" he asked.

"Martha, long ago, there was a man and a woman. They took their only son to see a movie, then walked into an alley."

"Shut up!" Joker snapped.

But Batman continued, "They encountered a mugger. Bang, bang!"

"Shut up! Shut up! Shut up!" Joker repeated. Her smile, one that could have been cut out with scissors, was twisted with savagery.

"The man and woman died. Their son survived." Batman gripped Joker's arm. "Now I have a chance to change the past and erase the present. So tell me, Martha... what do you want me to do?"

"Thomas, promise me you'll do it." Joker's voice softened. Both of them chose to believe in this thing that had no reason or basis whatsoever.

They kissed, just as they had decades ago, before the tragedy in the alley.

The rain poured down. Not far from them stood a thin figure in a green suit.

He watched the scene unfold.

World exploration progress: 30%

"Tell me, Thomas. In that world, the world after we died, how was Bruce doing?" She was now as gentle as a mother.

"He inherited the family business," Batman said just as gently.

"He became a doctor?"

"No."

Crack~, lightning split the sky.

The tenderness vanished from Joker's face, replaced by terror.

"Bat..."

Her voice stammered. "Oh my God!"

"Ha ha ha!" Madness reclaimed her face.

She used all her strength to shove Batman away and fled into the distance.

The rain was heavy.

The curtain of rain blocked their view.

Joker missed her footing and fell into a pit.

"Martha!" Batman was a step too late. He failed to catch Joker by the wrist.

Joker's corpse lay twisted in the pit.

Batman lowered his head, then slowly turned toward Li Zu.

"Bruce is still alive in that world, isn't he?"

This was the second time they had met since encountering each other on the rooftop. This time, Batman's attitude was vastly different.

Li Zu calmly turned and walked away.

His voice struggled through the rain. The patter of raindrops and the booming thunder overhead drowned out most of it.

Only a faint "Yes" reached Batman's ears.

The exposed corners of Batman's mouth lifted. "Thank you!"

The next moment, he raised his pistol and aimed at the retreating figure in the rain.

Bang!

The gunshot drowned out the thunder and rain.

Splash~

One foot stepped into the mud.

Li Zu hugged his arms to his chest and trudged forward with difficulty.

Blood seeped through the gaps between his fingers, running down his green suit and into the filthy water.

The sewers were filled with the rotten stench of rainwater left to fester, enough to make anyone vomit.

"Pah!" He spat.

"Penguin!"

He gritted his teeth, yet the corners of his mouth rose uncontrollably.

His heartbeat accelerated. The sanity he had only recently regained seemed to be getting swallowed and controlled by the madness in his mental world.

The sewer stretched on endlessly, without any light, completely pitch-black.

Pursuers were behind him. Only by moving forward could he remain safe for the moment.

There was an upward slope ahead. The sewage gradually became shallower, dropping from thigh-deep to calf-deep.

At last, he found a comfortable corner against the wall where he could squat down and rest for a while.

Just an hour or two earlier,

Li Zu had turned to leave when gunfire rang out behind him, followed by Batman's voice. "If history changes, all the evil in this world will disappear. There's no need for me to kill you."

"Of course there isn't. As long as I can leave before I'm erased from this world."

He paused for only a few seconds before continuing onward.

Batman letting him go spared him some trouble.

But the price of watching the show still came due.

Penguin arrived far too quickly, as if he had been waiting all along.

He brought his private police, a fully armed squad. Even though Li Zu reacted in advance and Batman forbade them from firing, one bastard "accidentally" fired anyway. A stray bullet hit Li Zu in the arm, causing him to stumble into a damaged sewer entrance.

Inside the sewer,

From deeper within came the clang, clang of someone pounding on an iron door.

There was also the sobbing of women, like a deranged witch in a dark forest stirring lizards, bats, and spiders in a cauldron with a spoon while making meaningless noises.

His back scraped against the wall as he struggled to stand and continued deeper inside.

He walked for who knew how long.

Light appeared at the end of the darkness.

There was a prison cell here, filled with ragged young women whose spirits were worn down.

Only by sitting on the beds could they temporarily escape the foul sewer water.

When they saw Li Zu, they looked delighted, though their smiles were far less beautiful than their tears.

"Mon... monster!"

They pointed behind Li Zu and forced out the words. It seemed that being imprisoned for too long had robbed them of their ability to speak.

Splash!

Something suddenly burst from the water behind him. The tremendous noise drew Li Zu's attention.

But he had no strength left to react.

A huge hand instantly seized his throat, lifted him up, and forcibly turned Li Zu around to face it.

The enormous figure stood there, with the light illuminating only half its body.

A humanoid creature with gray scales, sharp teeth, and claws.

It opened its mouth, releasing the stench of rotting flesh.

Li Zu understood whose territory he had entered.

Killer Croc!

Thanks to "9527 Hua Xiao'an" for the tip.

(End of Chapter)