Blackgate Penitentiary

"Time-Space Gate: Cooling Down (7h-3m-21s)"

The silent corridor turned right at an obtuse angle in the long passageway.

"The people here sure aren't friendly."

Li Zu raised his hands shackled by "silver bracelets" and wiped away the blood trickling from his nose.

He did not look to be in good shape. Having just regained his freedom from the Lasso of Truth, the divine power's erosion of his mind was severe.

Even so, his naturally familiar personality had not settled down.

"The people here are murderers, robbers, rapists. Of course... not all of them prey on women~" The prison guard looked at Li Zu with malice, clearly implying something.

"That's why I prefer blue-and-white clothes. Yellow just happens to be my least favorite color," Li Zu said with complete seriousness.

"Is that so? What a pity." The guard pursed his lips and said nothing more.

The two passed through two sections and entered an office.

Before going in, Li Zu had deliberately noticed the name written on the plaque.

Warden Joseph.

Upon entering, he saw a man in a striped suit seated behind a desk.

His dark face and lips so thick they looked ready to break into a rap at any moment made it difficult for Li Zu to find any memorable trait in the warden.

After thinking it over carefully, he realized that "warden" was the man's only defining characteristic.

Warden Joseph was leafing through a newspaper.

A television was mounted on the wall to his left.

It was playing an interview with a Gotham celebrity.

"Mr. Bruce Wayne, how are you planning to spend this evening?"

"When will TV news stop being tabloid news?" Warden Joseph picked up the remote in annoyance.

He changed the channel.

"Calendar Man has been arrested. It is said Batman was responsible, Commissioner Gordon?"

On a snowy day, a microphone was held before the resolute-looking middle-aged man.

"There is no Batman in this world. That is merely your imagination!" Commissioner Gordon righteously denied the reporter's claim.

"I'm so glad you're still alive~" Li Zu murmured to himself in relief as he watched the figure on television.

The last time he had seen the man, Gordon had been lying in a pool of blood.

Li Zu could not quite figure out his old boss, the Joker, either.

If Li Zu himself was trying to experience chaos, then the Joker was chaos itself.

"Then, sir...?" Warden Joseph turned off the television. He frowned at Li Zu, who was covered in blood and looked miserable. "Can you tell me how you ended up here?"

He lifted the steaming coffee from his desk and dropped two sugar cubes into the cup.

The teaspoon stirred softly.

"I don't believe anyone would deliberately escape to Blackgate Penitentiary and choose to spend Christmas Eve in this hell." His gaze remained on Li Zu's face, his expression calm and composed.

"Is this hell?" Li Zu asked curiously.

He had just left one hell.

But he still cooperatively answered the warden's question. "Flash. I think he was supposed to send me back to Arkham Asylum."

Li Zu pondered it. "But it seemed like something was wrong with his head? For some reason, he sent me here." "If someone runs too fast, maybe their brain stops working properly."

"Flash?"

Warden Joseph's response surprised Li Zu. "Who is that? I've only heard of Batman... Actually, two years ago, I preferred Christmas Eve rumors about Santa Claus over rumors about some caped freak."

"Arkham Asylum? If you want to go to an asylum, you need to fill out documents and submit an application. But they don't work on Christmas Eve."

"Is that so..."

Li Zu fell silent, unable to stop the corners of his mouth from lifting.

Why had Flash sent him to Blackgate Penitentiary instead of Arkham Asylum?

Did Flash know Li Zu was not insane?

Of course not!

Then why?

There was only one other explanation.

Even though Flashpoint had been changed, Flash had still inevitably affected this world.

For example, Batman was still only an urban legend at this point in time.

After the world had been altered, Flash's memories had inevitably been "altered" as well.

So in Flash's "memories," Gotham had only Blackgate Penitentiary and no Arkham Asylum for housing "talent" at all.

Perhaps everything had yet to begin, or perhaps everything was completely different.

"Then, sir, can you answer my earlier question?" Warden Joseph set down his coffee cup.

"I forgot. Maybe I killed someone? Or maybe someone kidnapped me and brought me here?"

Li Zu spread his hands.

There were still more than seven hours before he left this world.

For the time being, doing nothing was the better choice.

"Can I go back and stay in my cell?" he asked.

"You're the first person who has wanted to move in here," Warden Joseph said. "But this is your last chance to leave. If you give up your chance to explain, Blackgate Penitentiary won't mind gaining another permanent resident serving life."

Compared to hearing someone explain their origins, Warden Joseph was probably more interested in the Christmas Eve snowstorm.

"Can I eat my Christmas turkey portion early?" Li Zu asked instead. "The portion that belongs to me."

"Take him back. We'll have another long-term resident from now on." Warden Joseph waved his hand, telling the guard to take Li Zu away.

Bang. The office door slammed shut.

Warden Joseph rubbed his brow. "What a lunatic... How did he get in here? But I have another problem to deal with now!"

Li Zu returned to his "room," a new "room."

He was specially permitted to take a hot shower and change into a new set of clothes—a yellow prison uniform, the color he hated most.

Someone outside began singing Christmas carols.

Others joined in harmony.

Li Zu turned over in bed.

Sleep for seven hours, then say goodbye to this "repaired" world.

But sleep never came as expected.

So he rolled over and got up, moving to the bars to greet the one-eyed middle-aged man imprisoned behind iron bars across from him. "Merry Christmas~"

Hearing him, the one-eyed middle-aged man stopped what he was doing and glanced at him.

He had been doing push-ups, his feet braced against the bed.

One after another, each full of power.

"Have you heard of Toyman?" Li Zu asked familiarly.

The man turned his one eye away too, too lazy to spare Li Zu any attention.

"I am one. I should have been quite famous a few dozen minutes ago, but in this world, I can't guarantee there isn't another Toyman." He gripped the iron bars, as though deep in thought.

After a long pause, he said, "Do you like toys?"

"Hmph!" That was the one-eyed man's final response.

He stopped exercising, lay down on the bed, and closed his eyes to rest.

His expression clearly said, "Don't bother me."

But in the neighboring cell, a muscular bald man built like a little giant roared at Li Zu, "Shut your mouth, yellow-skinned pig!! You're disturbing my sleep!!"

"Hehehe~" Li Zu smiled and obediently shut his mouth.

Thanks to "Santu Chuan Nailuo" for the 500 Qidian Coin donation, thanks to "The Pen Is Yours_You Write" for the 100 Qidian Coin donation, and thanks to "Fan Shi Meng" for the 500 Qidian Coin donation.

(End of Chapter)