Sanctuary Amid the Wind and Snow

The smell of blood on the rooftop was quickly scattered by Gotham's night wind. Bruce looked at Selina, the woman who had just fought at his side. She was now lazily licking nonexistent blood from her clawed blades, her eyes still alight with post-battle excitement.

"Looks like our date tonight has to end early." Bruce's voice had returned to calm.

"Hmph. Every time I'm with you, we run into this kind of trouble." Selina retracted her claws, swaying her slender waist as she walked up to him. She raised a finger and lightly traced it across his solid chest, her tone carrying a hint of displeasure and coquettishness. "You're going off to play the great hero again, aren't you? Leaving the mess to me?"

"Not a hero." Bruce caught her wandering hand and looked at her seriously. "It's a... business deal I can't refuse. Do me a favor. While I'm gone, 'keep an eye on' Gotham. Don't let those little rats turn my territory upside down while I'm away."

Selina looked into his deep eyes and knew that whatever he was going to deal with was far more serious than she had imagined. She pursed her lips, but in the end, she nodded.

"Fine... for the sake of that kiss tonight. But you have to promise me you'll come back soon. Gotham's nights would be awfully boring without its bat."

"I promise."

Leaving behind that promise, Bruce melted into the darkness and vanished over the edge of the rooftop.

After returning to the Batcave, Bruce immediately began making preparations. He knew that this journey to Nanda Parbat would be one of the harshest challenges he had faced since crossing over. Ra's al Ghul, the "Demon's Head" who had lived for over six centuries, possessed unfathomable wisdom, resources, and martial power. The League of Assassins was an enormous underground empire with deep roots and a presence across the globe. He had to be prepared for anything.

First, he placed the demon emblem into the Batcomputer's spectral analyzer. With the supercomputer's immense processing power, the concealed miniature beacon within the emblem was swiftly cracked. Precise coordinates appeared on the main screen—the Himalayas, an uncharted region that had never appeared on any map.

Next, he began preparing his equipment. Rather than choosing the cumbersome Arkham Knight Armor, he had the mechanical arms retrieve an all-new, unused custom combat suit from the armory. Predominantly dark gray, it was made with the latest memory fibers and temperature-regulating materials. It could withstand both polar cold and high-altitude oxygen deprivation, and it also contained a miniature life-support system. Hydraulic power-assist mechanisms were embedded in the suit's joints, ensuring that his strength and speed would remain completely unaffected even at high altitude.

He loaded every piece of high-tech equipment—his multifunction grappling gun, miniature explosives, electromagnetic pulse device, and the three pieces of Kryptonite securely stored in lead cases—into his tactical belt one by one.

At the same time, he contacted Alfred and Lucius Fox through an encrypted line.

"Alfred, Lucius, I'll be leaving Gotham for a while. My destination is the Himalayas."

"Good heavens, sir. Are you planning a mountaineering holiday?" Alfred's voice carried a trace of concern.

"I'm going to see an old friend." Bruce offered no further explanation. "While I'm gone, Gotham is in your hands. Activate the Sentinel Protocol. Have Wayne Enterprises' satellite network monitor abnormal energy fluctuations worldwide around the clock. Deathstroke will serve as ground insurance and remain on standby. Stay in contact with me through the quantum communicator on my suit."

"Understood, sir. I wish you... a pleasant journey."

With everything ready, Bruce stood at the center of the Batcave, looking at the snow-covered white mountain range on the screen. His gaze became incomparably resolute.

Ra's al Ghul wants me to become his heir and inherit the League of Assassins... he thought. That truly is an enormous temptation. An underground empire passed down for centuries, spread across the globe, possessing countless resources and loyal warriors... If I can seize complete control of it, my plan to purge evil across the world will take half the effort and achieve more than ten times the results!

But Bruce knew better than anyone that it would never be that simple.

That old monster's ultimate philosophy is to use destruction in exchange for so-called "balance" and "rebirth." He would not hesitate to unleash deadly plagues or provoke world wars to "cleanse" what he considers decayed and fallen modern civilization. That fundamentally conflicts with my bottom line.

What I need are his resources and his empire. But I cannot, and will never, accept his path.

So this meeting will be the ultimate contest of will and ideology. What I need to do is not become him, much less be assimilated by him... but... replace him, then use my will to completely reshape everything he has built!

Having made up his mind, he hesitated no longer. He strode toward the Batcave's landing platform, where the Batmobile, shaped like a futuristic fighter and equipped with the highest-grade stealth capabilities, was already waiting silently.

Piloting the Batmobile, Bruce left Gotham without a sound. Like a black bolt of lightning, he tore through the night sky and flew toward the other side of the world.

After several hours of supersonic flight, the aircraft arrived above the Himalayas. Near the coordinates, Bruce activated its automatic hover mode, opened the hatch, and leaped from an altitude of ten thousand meters.

He trekked through the perilous, snowstorm-ravaged wilderness. Relying on physical strength far beyond that of an ordinary man and an iron will, he overcame avalanche after avalanche, glacial crevasses, thin air, and countless other natural hazards. At last, after nearly two days on foot, he stopped before a vast valley hidden behind both ancient illusion magic and a high-tech force field.

As he swept aside the illusion before him, the legendary sanctuary of the League of Assassins—Nanda Parbat—finally unfolded before his eyes.

It was entirely different from the frozen hell outside. Within the valley, spring-like warmth filled the air, birds sang, and flowers bloomed, as though it were a true paradise beyond the world. Temples and palaces imbued with classical Eastern charm rose in orderly layers along the mountainside, their upturned eaves and ornate brackets creating a majestic sight. Countless League of Assassins members in uniform were undergoing brutal, near-inhumane training in the massive drill grounds, their battle cries shaking the heavens.

This was the kingdom of Ra's al Ghul, the "Demon's Head."

The moment Bruce stepped into the valley entrance, a group that had been waiting there approached him.

At its head stood a young woman who appeared to be barely over twenty. She wore an exquisitely tailored silk robe embroidered with golden cloud patterns, while long, glossy black hair cascaded down her back like a waterfall. Her features were as delicate as the most perfect work of art, her skin as white as snow. Yet her beautiful eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, carrying an innate pride and authority.

Behind her stood a squad of elite guards, their presence as heavy as mountains and their eyes as cold as blades. Every one of them seemed no weaker than the ninja captain Bruce had defeated on the Gotham rooftop that night.

The young woman walked gracefully up to Bruce and stopped before him. Her sharp eyes openly swept over him from head to toe, filled with scrutiny, curiosity, and a deeply concealed trace of... appreciation and fighting spirit.

"Welcome to Nanda Parbat, Bruce Wayne."

Her voice was cool as an icy spring, yet it carried a distinctive charm.

"My father, Ra's al Ghul, the 'Demon's Head,' has been waiting for you for a long time."

She was Talia al Ghul, Ra's al Ghul's most cherished daughter, the princess of the League of Assassins, and the woman destined to inherit the title of "Demon's Head."