Slaying the Master! The Birth of a New King

Facing Ra's al Ghul, who had personally stepped down from his throne with his fighting spirit rising to its peak, Bruce slowly withdrew the blinding glow of the Yellow Lantern Ring. The hall fell dim once more, leaving only the assassins writhing and wailing across the floor, and the nearly tangible killing intent clashing between the two men.

The Yellow Lantern is the most efficient choice against these fodder. One strike is enough to shatter their resolve. But against Ra's al Ghul, I need to use the thing he prides himself on most—martial skill—to crush him completely. Bruce's thoughts were cold. What I want to crush is not only that body of his, soaked in the Lazarus Pit for six hundred years, but also that self-righteous pride rooted deep in his bones.

Bruce did not draw a weapon. He merely slowly assumed an opening stance. This was the Arkham Knight Combat Technique bestowed upon him by the system, a martial art that combined the essence of countless fighting styles and existed purely for the most efficient killing. Combined with the overwhelming predictive ability of his Tactical Mastermind Mind, he was now the most precise humanoid killing machine imaginable.

In terms of presence, he was not inferior in the slightest to the martial arts grandmaster before him, who had lived for six centuries.

"Before we begin, I have a question." Bruce's voice was icy and devoid of emotion, as though he were merely stating a fact. "My former partner, Jason Todd. Where is he?"

Ra's al Ghul held a long blade, its tip angled toward the floor. At the question, a contemptuous smile appeared on his face, as though he were mocking Bruce for still caring about a "failed product" at a time like this.

"You mean that child Joker beat to death with a crowbar?" He spoke the cruelest words in a flat tone. "Talia did indeed revive him in the Lazarus Pit out of a trace of pity. However, the boy apparently could not endure the madness and hatred brought on by the waters. His mind was unstable. He did not remain in Nanda Parbat for long before leaving on his own."

He paused, then added with a malicious look at Bruce, "Perhaps he is hiding in some dark corner of Gotham right now, weeping as he hates you for your helplessness and for abandoning him to die. After all, you were the one who made him face Joker alone."

Behind his mask, Bruce's eyes did not waver in the slightest, but inwardly, he had already confirmed the answer.

As expected... Jason had already become Red Hood. Ra's al Ghul, you have no idea that those words not only failed to provoke me, but made me reach my final decision. Once I settle matters here, the game in Gotham should enter its next stage as well.

"Are you done talking?" Bruce spat coldly.

"Hmph!"

Ra's al Ghul snorted and said no more. The next second, his figure vanished from where he stood!

Fast! Fast beyond measure!

His seemingly aged body erupted with a terrifying speed wholly at odds with his years! The long blade in his hand became a streak of silver lightning, shrieking as it tore through the air and stabbed straight for Bruce's heart!

This thrust contained the essence of every sword technique he had learned across the world over hundreds of years. Its angle was vicious and tricky, its momentum ruthless, sealing off every path of escape!

Yet before Bruce's Tactical Mastermind Mind, all of it moved as slowly as a snail.

At the instant the blade tip was about to touch his suit, Bruce moved! His body tilted slightly at an unbelievable angle, narrowly avoiding the fatal strike. At the same time, his right hand shot out like an iron clamp and seized Ra's al Ghul's sword wrist with perfect precision!

"What?!" Ra's al Ghul was shocked!

His proud speed and swordsmanship had been countered so easily!

Before he could change his move, Bruce suddenly exerted force with his wrist!

Crack!

A crisp sound of breaking bone rang out! Bruce crushed Ra's al Ghul's wrist with sheer force!

"Urgh!" Blinding pain shot through him. Ra's al Ghul grunted, and the long blade fell from his hand.

Bruce kicked the blade away and surged forward, instantly engulfing Ra's al Ghul in a storm of attacks!

Fists, elbows, knees, and legs!

Every one of Bruce's strikes landed precisely on the most vulnerable joints and vital points of the human body! There was not the slightest flourish to his attacks; they were filled with overwhelming power and pressure. Every punch seemed capable of smashing through steel plate, every kick carrying the force to split mountains and shatter stone!

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

Dull impacts rang out in rapid succession throughout the hall!

Ra's al Ghul was, after all, a martial arts grandmaster who had lived for six hundred years. Even with his wrist ruined, he still barely held on through his vast combat experience and formidable physical condition. He tried to counter with ancient grappling techniques, but Bruce's fighting skill seemed to completely restrain him. Bruce always anticipated his movements before he could make them and answered with even fiercer retaliation!

Even amid the fierce battle, Bruce still had the leisure to wield the power of the Yellow Lantern Ring.

He did not use the Lantern Ring to create monsters. Instead, he formed small, invisible fields of fear. These fields constantly disrupted Ra's al Ghul's mind, causing visions to flash through it: the madness of the Lazarus Pit consuming him, the passage of time reducing him to dry bones. Tiny flaws began appearing one after another in his once flawless fighting rhythm!

"Now!"

After more than a hundred exchanges, Bruce sharply caught the infinitesimal pause in Ra's al Ghul's strength caused by his disturbed focus!

That was the moment!

Bruce's gaze sharpened, and all his power erupted at once!

His heavy punch, carrying tremendous force, struck after Ra's al Ghul's attack yet arrived first, slamming solidly into his chest!

"Pfft—!"

As though struck by a sledgehammer, Ra's al Ghul flew backward like a kite with its string cut. He spat out a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs, staining the obsidian floor red!

Bruce's figure followed like a shadow, appearing instantly above his fallen body!

He gave him no chance to catch his breath or speak!

Squelch!

Expressionless, Bruce brought the fingers of his right hand together like the sharpest blade and, without hesitation, cleanly drove them straight through Ra's al Ghul's heart! Warm blood gushed over his arm!

Ra's al Ghul's body jerked violently. His eyes widened in utter disbelief.

It was not over!

Bruce's other hand shot out like lightning and clamped around his throat!

Crack!

A crisp, teeth-grating sound of shattered bone rang out!

The neck of Ra's al Ghul, the "Demon's Head," was cleanly twisted by Bruce into a grotesque angle! The life in his eyes rapidly faded, and he died completely.

In the most direct, brutal, and unquestionable manner, Bruce ended the life of this six-hundred-year-old legend.

After finishing all this, Bruce slowly pulled out the arm covered in blood and bits of flesh, allowing Ra's al Ghul's corpse to collapse limply to the floor.

He turned toward Talia, who had stood at the entrance of the hall and witnessed everything from beginning to end. Her face had long since gone pale, and her body trembled in fear. In a voice calm to the point of terror, he asked:

"How should your father's body be handled?"

Talia looked at the man before her, covered in blood like a demon god, then at the corpse on the floor that she had once revered beyond measure. There was no grief on her face. Instead, she wore a complicated expression mingling relief, fear, and morbid fervor.

She walked toward Bruce step by step, her voice carrying an uncontrollable tremble and allure.

"Leave him alone, my... beloved." She stopped before Bruce and looked up at him, her eyes blazing like fire. "The Lazarus Pit... will bring him back again. But next time, he will face a brand-new League—one ruled by you... ruled by you."