Black Mask

This incident at Arkham Asylum directly exposed the shortage of police manpower and lack of equipment in the Arkham District.

More than thirty officers did not even have enough basic bulletproof vests, and the only suppressive firepower available was the long guns in the two sheriffs' vehicles.

"Damn it, that bastard Wei Fei actually expects us to wear this crap!" A second-class officer grabbed the bulletproof vest that had just been issued and angrily threw it to the ground.

That slum surrounded up ahead was a death trap. Who the hell would dare go in and fight wearing this kind of useless garbage?

Inside a police car farther back, Nygma, wearing a bulletproof vest, held a laptop and restored the map model of the Arkham District. But it was useless in the haphazardly constructed slums here; it could only determine a rough direction.

"Edward, why don't you head back first? We'll handle things here."

Jerry wore a bulletproof vest and held a shotgun in his arms. "Otis is gathering the rats. Once Miao Mu gets back, we can take this place."

"You're underestimating them!"

Nygma stared at the screen, having lost his usual calm as he pulled up detailed information from the asylum database.

"Look at this! The Werewolf is here. Can your gun handle him?"

Nygma turned the laptop screen toward him. Jerry looked at the Werewolf in the surveillance footage, over two meters tall, and the corner of his mouth twitched.

It felt like a villain from a fairy tale had suddenly leaped out, more astonishing than Superman from Metropolis.

"Stay calm! Surround the area and wait for reinforcements! The Gotham Police Department has dispatched the Special Action Team, and support from the surrounding areas will arrive soon!"

Chief Wei Fei stood at the very back, shouting through a loudspeaker as he gave the Arkham officers an emergency pep talk.

"Chief, what about the people inside? There are still living people in those cars!"

Deputy Chief Laido pointed at the police cars on the road ahead, his face full of anxiety. Hearing that, Wei Fei scratched his head. What could he do? Wait for reinforcements...

"What was that sound?"

Someone heard an unusual noise, like... the sonic boom of a fighter jet cutting through the air.

"What is that!!!"

An officer suddenly turned and pointed behind them. A black war vehicle charged straight at them, slamming into the wall with a crash.

The not particularly sturdy wall was smashed to pieces by the black war vehicle, which crushed through it like an unstoppable bulldozer.

"Is that reinforcements?" Jerry frowned as he looked over.

Nygma, who had also poked his head out from the car, smiled with a hint of excitement in his eyes. "Jerry, what flies through the night without using its eyes, but its mouth and ears?"

"I don't know..." Jerry immediately shook his head without even thinking for a second. Miao Mu had told him not to expect to solve riddles when he was with Nygma. It was better to just play dumb.

"The enemy of the Gotham police, that big black bat, has arrived. You can tell Otis not to rush so much."

On the steel bridge leading to Arkham, Miao Mu sped along in his Hummer.

There were quite a few police cars on the road rushing toward the scene. The key was that Red Hood No. 1 had escaped.

If he had not been diagnosed with severe mental illness, they would not have sent him here in the first place. Who would have thought that the heavily guarded, inescapable Arkham Asylum would be raided?

Miao Mu stepped on the accelerator and sped up again. The city Hummer overtook the police cars rushing to provide support and sped toward the scene.

In the slums, Red Hood No. 1, who had escaped from Arkham Asylum, trembled all over as he was injected with a syringe.

"This stuff really works..."

A man wearing a black wooden mask looked at the emptied syringe and casually tossed it to the ground.

"Cough, cough! Ahhh... Don't hit me!!!?"

Red Hood No. 1 woke up as if from a nightmare, staring around him in terror, especially at the man in the black skull mask before him.

"B-Boss? Is that you? Sioni..."

"Shut up!"

Black Mask barked in a deep voice. The mask seemed fused to his face. If Miao Mu had been here, he would definitely have cried out in surprise.

This was the person he had previously asked Riddler to search for in the Gotham Police Department database: Black Mask, Roman Sionis.

A member of Gotham's wealthy Sionis Family, he had been obsessed with collecting all kinds of masks since childhood and had even been Bruce Wayne's classmate.

And he was also... an orphan. In Gotham, anyone who still had both parents intact was lucky.

However, legend had it that Black Mask had personally pushed his parents into a fire and burned them to death. He had inherited billions in assets because of it, but his temper was violent, and he ran companies as though he were running a gang.

Before long, his company faced bankruptcy due to poor management. Then Wayne Enterprises acquired it, turning him into a penniless pauper.

He dug up his parents' graves and used ebony from their coffin lids to make a black mask that represented rage.

"Jelafo, I didn't pull you out of the asylum just so you could be scared here. Give him a weapon!"

Black Mask tilted his head toward the side.

A mercenary wearing a black hood and dressed like a robber threw an AK rifle to Jelafo, Red Hood No. 1.

"Starting today, the Red Hood Gang is disbanded. We are... the Black Mask Gang. Understand?" Black Mask instructed in a deep voice.

"Yes!"

Jelafo stood up with the rifle in hand and nodded repeatedly, then reached out and removed his black-and-white striped prison uniform.

The two mercenaries beside him kicked open a nearby door, dragged out a pile of clothes, and threw them onto the floor.

"Sio... no, Boss, what are we doing?"

Jelafo tucked the rifle under one arm as he quickly changed clothes. A vicious scar was stitched across the shaved part of his head.

"Not me. You. The Miao Mu who caught you is here. Kill him, then draw enough people here!"

Ambition burned in Black Mask's eyes. He had planned everything, including the Werewolf downstairs that he had hired at great expense, and... this.

Black Mask raised his hand and looked at the specially made gas grenade clenched tightly in his palm. It contained a special poison gas that could make people feel fear and instantly lose their ability to fight.

Without this thing's help, Jelafo would not have been sent to the asylum for confinement. That doctor really knew how to make money.

"I understand. I'll definitely kill him!"

A savage expression appeared on Jelafo's face. He would make sure to repay all the suffering he had endured!

Thud! Crash!

The sound of fighting suddenly came from outside, accompanied by a wolf's howl. A black metal grappling hook flew up from below and caught the window. As the rope tightened—

A shadow flew up as well.

Black Mask, gripping the Fear Gas, waved his hand. The three mercenaries and Jelafo immediately raised their guns.

The moment Batman landed on the balcony, fierce gunfire erupted. The yellow emblem on his chest became the perfect target, and sparks burst across the sturdy metal chest plate.

The violent impact sent Batman falling backward, dropping from the building.

Below, the Werewolf stared with red eyes and pounced at Batman with the speed of a massive hunting dog.

Batman had just fallen when the Werewolf's claws instantly raked across his body. Fortunately, he had upgraded his armor, and the claws only scraped out a shower of sparks against the Batsuit.

But the cape behind him was not so fortunate. The Werewolf tore and chewed it into a rag.

"Ahhh!!!"

Batman roared. The exoskeletal gauntlet on his right hand activated, and a punch carrying mechanical kinetic energy slammed into the Werewolf, sending it flying.

Before he could catch his breath, bullets fired from above forced him to flee again.

"What is that? A flying bird?"

With a vicious grin on his face, Jelafo held his AK rifle and fired at the corner where Batman was hiding. The hail of bullets shattered the fragile wall, sending rubble flying and dust billowing.

"Hah... That street vigilante who showed up recently really came after all. Guard this place well. I paid a great deal for you. Three hours, understand?"

Black Mask put away the fear grenade and looked at the three mercenaries. He had deployed eleven mercenaries here and paid off two gangs to fight for him.

"Boss, where are you going?"

Jelafo hurriedly asked, a trace of confusion appearing on his vicious face. He did not understand what Black Mask intended to do.

"I'm going to Blackgate Prison to give this city a big gift! Hahahaha, Wayne! Gotham!"

Black Mask laughed as he left. Arkham would soon gather all of Gotham's police force, leaving even the heavily guarded Blackgate Prison as little more than an unattended place.

Besides, for today, he had found himself a very capable outside helper. Black Mask took out his phone and made a call.

Beneath a dilapidated building, a police car turned on its headlights. Black Mask opened the door and got in, and the police car drove in another direction.

"You can move now." Black Mask's faintly amused voice came through the phone.

Far away at the entrance to Blackgate Prison, a large Black man looked at the prison's iron gates and raised a hand to put on a specially made hood.

"I haven't seen the transfer yet! The money!"

Hearing that, Black Mask swiped his phone. The payment he had prepared in advance was transferred immediately.

The man standing at Blackgate Prison's entrance looked at the payment notification on his phone, and a smile appeared beneath his hood.

He finally had money.

But when he moved, he tugged at the wound on his body and sucked in a cold breath, covering the injured spot with his hand.

"That Superman from Metropolis really was... hard to deal with."

After saying that, he fitted a red monocular sight over the right eye of his hood, drew a nine-millimeter M9 pistol from his belt, and walked forward.

Blackgate Prison resembled an ancient castle and possessed everything a castle could have, such as a moat.

The wind was strong tonight, blowing apart the clouds over Gotham and revealing a rare full moon that shone over the rippling water.

Bang! Bang! Two shots rang out at the entrance to Blackgate Prison.

The two prison guards standing watch at the gate clutched their shoulders and screamed as they fell to the ground. Nine-millimeter bullets had pierced their shoulders, and blood poured from the wounds.

"He didn't pay enough to kill anyone. Tell me, how do I open the gate?"