Deadpool

The relationship between these two sworn enemies was rather delicate. They were mortal foes, yet often worked together. Catwoman always managed to slip from Batman's grasp, but occasionally lent him a hand.

This female thief who walked the line between black and white was also Batman's inexplicable confidante.

"Cut the crap. I will never hand over the disk." Catwoman stuffed the disk into her bodysuit and lifted her chin. "In our line of work, honoring contracts matters most." "Then don't blame me for getting rough."

"Come on, come on, don't hold back~" She deliberately batted her catlike eyes. "Let me make this clear: if you can snatch the **disk today, I'll immediately change my name to Batman's good daughter."

Batman's face immediately darkened beneath his mask.

This old rival was as despicable as ever, actually resorting to such a vicious tactic.

Was this what they meant by—I treat you as a comrade, yet you want to be my daughter?

### "Forward stance punch!"

"Forward stance punch!"

"Forward stance punch!"

Batman closed in like lightning and directly used standard combat techniques.

As an ordinary man without superpowers, he had undergone grueling physical and mental training since the age of eleven. Through extreme physical conditioning, scientific dieting, and biofeedback systems, Bruce Wayne had reached the pinnacle of human physiology—his strength, agility, endurance, and neural reflexes all surpassed Olympic gold medalists. To maintain peak condition, he never touched alcohol.

He could catch arrows fired by Hawkeye with his bare hands, burst forward as fast as a hundred-meter sprinter, outlast decathletes, hold his breath underwater for five minutes and fifteen seconds, and match gymnasts in flexibility. In an ordinary world, he was practically a walking specimen of superhumanity.

Even more astonishingly, he had mastered 127 fighting styles from around the world: from Muay Thai to Brazilian jiu-jitsu, from Siberian combat techniques to Japanese sumo, from Shaolin kung fu to Jeet Kune Do, even including all known **killing arts.

"Foul! We agreed to use only military boxing!"

Smack—

A restrained straight punch struck Catwoman's cheek, leaving only a faint red mark on her porcelain-white skin. It was nothing like the red-clad punk from before, who had been knocked unconscious on the spot.

Buzz, buzz—

Umbrella Corporation's extraction helicopter was circling above City Hall's rooftop, its rotors whipping up gusts of wind.

Seeing that she could not defeat Batman head-on, the nimble Catwoman immediately put her escape plan into action.

"I'm done playing. Farewell~"

"Don't even think about running!"

Batman lunged forward, his iron arm locking around Catwoman's slender waist. With an over-the-shoulder throw, he slammed her heavily toward the ground.

"Ow..." Catwoman gasped in pain.

"Hand over the disk, and I'll spare your life."

"In your dreams!"

She endured the pain, rolled over, and sprang to her feet, racing toward the circling helicopter. At this distance, even Batman could not match her speed.

"Batarang!"

Batman struck the golden tactical belt at his waist. All manner of equipment gleamed coldly under the moonlight: miniature explosives, neural **, grappling guns, respirators... Without hesitation, he flung an electrified dart, blue arcs tearing through the night sky.

Umbrella Corporation absolutely could not be allowed to obtain that biological weapon data!

The dart struck Catwoman in the back just as she leaped toward the helicopter cabin. The high-voltage current stiffened her entire body. That graceful figure was about to fall from a height of a hundred meters—

"Damn it!"

Batman leaped from the rooftop, firing his grappling hook during the descent to anchor it to the wall. With his other hand, he barely caught the falling Catwoman. The two of them hung outside the tenth floor in the biting night wind as flakes of concrete crumbled from the wall.

"Why did you save me?"

"Enough talk. Hand it over!"

"Nope~"

"At a time like this, you're still talking about thief's honor?!"

"Because..." Catwoman smiled slyly. "The disk was never on me."

"What?!"

"It's simple. You saw two disks in my hands earlier, right? I switched the real and fake ones. I left the real one behind and took the fake one with me, while you foolishly chased after me."

Catwoman smiled smugly, delighted that she had managed to fool Batman.

As an international thief, such a little trick was as easy as breathing for her.

After all, Batman could not be sure whether what she carried was real or fake.

"...You really are a clever little thing."

"Why, thank you."

"If I'm not mistaken, Umbrella Corporation's people have already taken the genuine one."

Batman rubbed his temples and looked up at the sky.

A helicopter was circling away with a man in black aboard.

"This time, I won."

"Idiot! You've caused a huge disaster!"

"Isn't it just a disk?"

"My investigation found that Umbrella Corporation has been researching immortality technology, but it failed—those infected with the virus turn into walking corpses, like the zombies in movies."

"That isn't funny."

"I'm not joking. They were originally only one technical hurdle away, and now their most crucial biological data has been stolen."

"Uh..."

Catwoman looked embarrassed.

She had thought it was ordinary information. She never expected that, through a series of coincidences, she would cause such a terrible catastrophe.

"You should know Umbrella Corporation's first test site, right?"

"If I remember correctly... Raccoon City?"

"Good. Let's go."

"Hey, I'm not going! Umbrella Corporation has a huge number of mercenaries."

"You caused this mess yourself, and now you expect someone else to clean it up?"

"Fine, fine. Where are we going? Raccoon City?"

"No, we're going to... the League of Heroes!"

"So that was why you came to the League of Heroes?"

Li Chen returned to the chairman's office carrying two cups of coffee. He sat on the sofa and examined Batman across from him.

He had not expected Umbrella Corporation to be researching bioweapons in the Marvel Universe as well. He wondered whether it was a butterfly effect brought about by the League of Heroes.

Still, it was not a major problem. Bioweapons had limited combat power; their infectiousness was merely more troublesome.

This hero from Gotham did surprise Li Chen somewhat.

Even though the League of Heroes was renowned, there were still a few independent-minded heroes who refused to join.

Li Chen had long grown accustomed to this. Other than a few exceptionally powerful lone wolves, local heroes were free to act as they pleased as long as they did not interfere with the League's operations. "Would you like some coffee?"

"Thank you."

Batman accepted the steaming cup of coffee and first scanned ** with his built-in detector before taking a small sip.

A rich, mellow fragrance bloomed across his lips and tongue. The cells throughout his body seemed to ignite like sparks, and surging vitality boiled within him.

"Mm—"

The muscles beneath his nano-suit suddenly swelled. His activated cells instantly raised his physical capabilities by thirty percent. "What kind is this? It resembles no known variety."

"Active Coffee, a fantasy ingredient from the New World." Li Chen shook the filter pot. "Don't worry. Other than a fifteen-minute boost to your physical abilities, it has no side effects."

Even Gotham's richest man, who had sampled the world's finest coffees, had never experienced such a surreal creation—not only could it overturn one's understanding of flavor, it could also catalyze physical evolution.

"Can it be sold? Price is not an issue."

"The League doesn't lack funds." Li Chen glanced at the financial figures flashing across his watch. "After all, we control twenty percent of America's tax revenue."

Wayne Enterprises' assets were merely a drop in the bucket before the League.

"However..." Li Chen suddenly pushed over a gilded canister. "If you're willing to wear the League's uniform, supplies will naturally be unlimited."

"Join... the League?"

Batman's pupils narrowed slightly beneath his cowl. Memories poured down like Gotham rain—

That night when he returned from watching Zorro with his parents, the gunshots that erupted in the alley, the scattered pearl necklace.

To sever the cycle of crime, Bruce Wayne traveled across all seven continents: tempering his will atop the snowy peaks of the Himalayas, honing his martial skills in ** underground arenas, and finally using Wayne Enterprises' technology to arm himself, becoming Gotham's legend of the night.

By day, Bruce Wayne was the wastrel playboy everyone believed him to be; when night fell, he became the dark guardian who made criminals tremble—Batman.

His ideals of justice resembled those of Navy Admiral Akainu, both carrying a certain extreme tendency. Yet compared with Akainu's ruthless extermination, Batman was better at assessing the situation and understood that gray figures like Catwoman could also be won over as allies.

If Akainu joined the League of Heroes, that obstinate admiral would surely spend every day ** monsters in pursuit of "absolute justice," creating a stark contrast with Kizaru's perfunctory laziness.

"Individual ability has its limits. Teamwork can often create miracles."

"A team... I accept."

After a brief hesitation, Batman accepted the invitation. He recalled that if he had had a partner during this operation, Catwoman's switcheroo would not have succeeded.

"But I have a condition."

"Go ahead."

"Unless it is a major incident, I must remain stationed in Gotham."

"Agreed."

Li Chen readily accepted. Much like Watchdog Man, this Dark Knight possessed a particular obsession with protecting his territory. If this crisis had not affected the entire world, he would never have left Gotham to visit the New York headquarters.

Batman's tactical wisdom was among the best in the world, no less impressive than Iron Man's. He had assessed the situation clearly: if he acted alone, Umbrella Corporation would have every chance to transfer the biotechnology.

"I have no further objections."

"Catch."

The Member Bracelet Li Chen tossed slid across the coffee table. This iconic piece of equipment automatically adjusted to fit its wearer's wrist, and its functional data instantly entered Batman's consciousness.

"An extraordinary technological creation..." The bracelet lightly tapped his wrist armor with a crisp sound. "Perhaps it can truly make up for the limits of my ** mortal flesh." Through the energy point exchange system, this ordinary hero who relied on physical training finally saw the possibility of surpassing his physiological limits.

Batman saw the possibility of transcending himself through the Member Bracelet.

Just as he was studying the bracelet's functions, the automatic robot beside him suddenly sounded an alert.

"Beep beep—"

"Visitor request: Iron Man Tony Stark, Spider-Man Peter Parker, and an unidentified individual request entry."

"Approve?"

Once access was granted, Tony Stark strode in wearing the latest Mark 10 Armor.

This armor had upgraded defense systems and optimized armor modules and visor structure, making it far superior to all previous models. Its abdomen housed dual anti-gravity devices, while its foot thrusters had been enhanced, allowing its flight speed to exceed three times the speed of sound. It was enough to rival Quicksilver in the Marvel Universe—though its maneuverability was still slightly inferior.

"Your armor iteration speed is pretty fast," Li Chen remarked.

"It's actually slow," Tony said, lifting his visor and shaking his head. "Child Emperor at the African branch has already developed the 'Vibranium Dreadnought Giant.' That thing has **-class combat power." At present, the Mark 10 Armor only brought Tony to the upper ranks of Demon Level (B). Even with Vibranium mixed in, it still lagged behind Child Emperor's full-Vibranium mech.

"And you are?" Batman asked coldly.

"New York. Iron Man."

When their gazes met, Li Chen keenly sensed the ** in the air. Both were wealthy technological geniuses and team strategists, and an atmosphere of rivalry immediately spread between them.

"Never heard of you. Dressed like some nocturnal Rogue," Tony mocked.

"Wearing a canned suit has made you lose track of your place?" Batman shot back.

"Your trash-talking is more impressive than your strength."

"Likewise."

Seeing the conflict escalate, Li Chen interjected, "Tony, what brings you here?"

"Peter wants to recommend a friend to join the League."

"A friend?" Spider-Man poked his head out from behind him. "Chairman, he's awesome!"

"Where is he?"

"Hey, buddy, show yourself so the chairman can have a look." Peter Parker, dressed in his Spider-Man suit, gestured behind him.

A red-and-black figure swayed in through the doorway. The details of his suit differed slightly from Spider-Man's, but Li Chen immediately recognized the uninvited guest—Deadpool!