Chapter Summaries

Qin Wei, now calling himself Will, woke in Gotham with no memory and tried to find Batman, hoping he could protect him. At the police station, Gordon told him Bruce Wayne was dead and threatened to send him to Arkham.

• Qin Wei woke from a recurring dream in a squalid boarding house and reflected on arriving in Gotham three months earlier with a stab wound and no memories.
• Qin Wei wandered naked through the East End with a newspaper covering himself, asking about Bruce Wayne, and police arrested him.
• At the station, Qin Wei told the interviewer he might be called Will and showed his wound to explain his amnesia.
• Qin Wei recognized the interviewer as Gordon and asked him to take him to Batman, then offered information about the Joker and asked to see Bruce Wayne.
• Gordon decided to contact Arkham staff, but Qin Wei panicked, and Gordon explained that Bruce Wayne had died in Crime Alley with his parents.

Qin Wei joined Oswald’s gang, the Roman, after Oswald broke him out of jail, and spent three months working as his underling. Before a security job at Maroni’s casino, Qin Wei found a Batman comic that predicted a deadly attack and decided to go with Oswald anyway, determined to find a way to survive.

• Oswald recruited Qin Wei for the Roman and freed him from the police station by knocking out a guard.
• Qin Wei spent three months working for Oswald in the Roman, collecting rent and guarding gang establishments.
• Oswald told Qin Wei they had a security job at Maroni’s casino, where they would earn two hundred dollars each.
• Qin Wei found a Batman comic in his suit pocket that described Dr. Hugo Strange attacking Maroni’s casino with three Biomans.
• Qin Wei suspected the comic predicted their deaths, but chose not to abandon Oswald and tucked it into his waistband before leaving.

Qin Wei intervened when three thugs attacked an old man on the train, but Oswald and the Roman’s men took brutal revenge by throwing the attackers off. The old man returned home, revealed he wore a human-skin mask, and spoke to the mummified corpse of his wife, Jenny.

• Oswald warned Qin Wei not to show sympathy to outsiders after the old man accepted Qin Wei’s hot dog.
• Three drunken young men attacked the old man, and Qin Wei stepped in to stop them.
• One attacker tried to stab Qin Wei, but Oswald disarmed him and the Roman’s men subdued all three.
• Oswald ordered Mori to open the train doors, and the men threw the three attackers onto the road below.
• Qin Wei and Oswald left the train in the city center, while the old man gathered the ruined cake he had brought for Jenny.
• The old man returned to his apartment, removed his human-skin mask, and tried to make the mummified Jenny smile.

Qin Wei heard Oswald recount Joker’s bomb-vest scheme and watched Oswald clash with Richie Panton at the casino. As gambling began, Oswald heard a disturbance in Mr. Maroni’s room next door.

• Oswald told Qin Wei about the former Red Hood Gang leader who kidnapped Mr. Falcone and forced Mr. Maroni into a bomb-vest dilemma.
• Qin Wei recognized the lunatic as Joker and guessed that the bomb had been fake, surprising Oswald.
• Richie Panton mocked Oswald’s height, and Oswald agreed to divide casino security duties rather than argue.
• Oswald vented his anger by smashing a toilet and told Qin Wei he wanted to kill Richie.
• Oswald heard something happening in Mr. Maroni’s room next door and gestured for Qin Wei to stay quiet.

Qin Wei exposed Selina Kyle as Catwoman and escaped the casino with her and Oswald just before Dr. Hugo and his Biomen massacred everyone inside. The chapter ended with Gotham police discovering the bloody scene.

• Qin Wei recognized the disguised waitress as Selina Kyle, and Oswald was shocked by a booby-trapped phone before Qin Wei knocked him out.
• Qin Wei and Selina lowered Oswald from the window, then Selina confronted Qin Wei about how he knew her name.
• Dr. Hugo arrived with his Biomen, and Qin Wei fled with Selina while carrying Oswald.
• The Biomen killed everyone left in the casino, including the Roman Empire Gang members who had not escaped.
• Gordon and the police cut through the casino doors and found blood, entrails, and filth covering the scene.

Gordon and Bullock investigated a gruesome casino killing while Qin Wei and Oswald were taken to meet Maroni. Qin Wei searched his comic for a way to survive as they were left waiting in Maroni’s study.

• Gordon and Bullock examined the casino massacre, finding huge primate-like claw marks and a hair on a blood-soaked playing card.
• Bullock told Gordon that Harvey Dent was arriving from New York, and Gordon worried that the honest prosecutor would not survive Gotham.
• Gordon and Bullock inspected a large hole in a restroom floor and considered searching the sewers.
• Oswald woke in an alley, and Qin Wei lied about Catwoman escaping before they headed back toward the casino.
• Maroni’s bodyguards seized Qin Wei and Oswald and took them to Maroni’s study, where Oswald recognized the room and Qin Wei searched his comic for clues.

Qin Wei convinced Maroni that Dr. Hugo Strange had stolen the casino money and was responsible for the massacre, but Maroni forced him to pursue Hugo by threatening Oswald's life. Qin Wei learned that Oswald was Penguin and accepted the future the comic had shown him.

• Maroni beat Oswald and demanded answers about the casino massacre and stolen money.
• Qin Wei promised to recover the money in three days and accused Dr. Hugo Strange of using Biomen to raid the casino.
• Qin Wei cited Panton's remarks about Hugo's laboratory, and Maroni confirmed the money was stained with blood under a UV lamp.
• Maroni ordered Qin Wei to deal with Hugo and threatened Oswald to keep him from fleeing.
• Maroni revealed that Oswald's nickname was Penguin, and Qin Wei accepted the comic's prediction that he would one day rule Gotham's underworld.

Qin Wei recruited Selina to help him find the five million dollars Maroni had ordered him to recover. They planned to search the sewers for Dr. Hugo and the Biomans.

• Qin Wei feared he could not find Dr. Hugo’s hideout and retrieve Maroni’s stolen money in time.
• Selina returned to the Senate and asked Qin Wei who he was.
• Qin Wei guessed Selina’s grudge against Falcone and lied about his background to win her trust.
• Selina agreed to work with Qin Wei and nearly fell from the window when he called her back.
• Qin Wei told Selina he needed help finding five million dollars and proposed searching the sewers for the Biomans and Dr. Hugo.
• Selina finished her beer and agreed to leave with Qin Wei.

Gordon and Bullock searched Gotham’s sewers for the murderous monsters, while Qin Wei and Selina tried to evade a Bioman on a lower level. Qin Wei tested whether the unseen pursuer was only a product of fear, but the chapter ended as two figures fell into the sewer beside them.

• Gordon and Bullock entered the sewers, following the monsters’ claw marks while Bullock marked their route.
• A small figure erased their marks, and the disoriented detectives heard a monster approaching before falling through a drainage opening to the next level.
• Qin Wei concluded that the unseen Bioman might not exist and stopped running, warning Selina to leave if he was wrong.
• Selina joined Qin Wei as they approached the corner, where they found nobody and the terrifying smell disappeared.
• Two muffled thuds sounded, and two figures dropped into the waterway above Qin Wei and Selina.

Qin Wei, Gordon, Bullock, and Catwoman agreed that the sewers’ drainage current was their only chance of escape, though Catwoman chose to stay behind. The three men prepared to follow the current toward the outlet while Selina remained in the tunnels.

• Gordon recognized Qin Wei and moved to arrest Catwoman, but Selina knocked him down and took him hostage.
• Qin Wei persuaded Gordon, Bullock, and Selina to cooperate against the danger in the sewers, and Selina took Gordon’s gun and handcuffs.
• After learning none of them had a map or knew the way, Qin Wei proposed following the current to the drainage outlet and out to sea.
• Gordon accepted the dangerous plan, and Bullock agreed after seeing his partner’s decision.
• Selina decided to remain in the sewers and search for another way out, and Qin Wei gave her his flashlight before the three men set out.

Qin Wei, Gordon, and Bullock reached the sewer outfall, where three Biomen blocked their escape. Qin Wei led the group in a desperate jump to the shaft’s bottom, but the metal mesh held, leaving them trapped with the creatures.

• Gordon supported Bullock as the three men followed the current through the fourth sewer level toward the outfall.
• At the outfall, they discovered a metal mesh blocking the exit and three Biomen feeding on debris.
• The Biomen noticed the men and crouched to attack, so Qin Wei ordered Gordon and Bullock to jump down the shaft.
• Gordon grabbed Bullock and jumped with Qin Wei, and they slid down the sloped wall to the mesh below.
• The Biomen landed on the mesh, buckling it without breaking it, and the three men remained trapped.

Qin Wei tried to use Gordon’s handcuffs to escape the Biomans, but they slipped into the darkness, and a Bioman grabbed him. A mysterious woman shot two Biomans and saved Qin Wei, Gordon, and Bullock.

• Gordon and Bullock fought off the Biomans in the darkness while Qin Wei stayed hidden and realized the monsters had poor vision.
• Qin Wei called for Gordon’s handcuffs, hoping to use them against the Biomans, and searched for them beneath the grating.
• A Bioman approached Qin Wei, and mucus from above made the handcuffs slip from his fingers and fall through the grating.
• Qin Wei’s shout startled the Bioman, but it soon grabbed him, while another Bioman struck Bullock down.
• A beam of light and two gunshots killed one Bioman and wounded another, and a woman called out to the men from the Well’s wall.

Selina returned to rescue Qin Wei and the others from two Biomans, but Dr. Hugo appeared and turned the monsters into emotionless killing machines. The group faced the charging Biomans in the lit outlet shaft with no clear way to escape.

• Selina drove the Biomans back and reunited with Qin Wei, Gordon, and the badly wounded Bullock.
• Qin Wei explained his plan to use a Bioman's strength to tear open the filter grate, and Selina agreed it might work with adjustments.
• Dr. Hugo appeared above them and revealed that he had sent the Biomans to kill the group and conceal his hiding place.
• Dr. Hugo recognized Qin Wei's face, said he needed Qin Wei's body, then used a remote to shut off the Biomans' emotions.
• Selina shot one Bioman in the eye, but both monsters ignored the injury and charged the group.

Selina and Gordon fought the Biomen while Qin Wei prepared an escape plan. After Gordon killed one monster, Qin Wei drew the other away from them, leaving himself in its path.

• Selina attacked the Biomen with her whip and dodged their blows until a cramp and twisted ankle left her trapped beneath one of them.
• Gordon rushed in and killed the Bioman threatening Selina with three shots, then helped her to her feet.
• Gordon shielded Selina as the second Bioman recovered, but Qin Wei called them over and asked Selina for her whip.
• Qin Wei provoked the Bioman into abandoning Gordon and Selina and charging at him.

Qin Wei, Bullock, Catwoman, and Gordon escaped the Bioman by jumping into a sewer outflow that carried Qin Wei into the sea, where Selina rescued him until Batman arrived. Qin Wei woke at Gordon's house two and a half days later and realized Maroni's deadline was about to expire.

• Bullock helped Qin Wei tie a whip to the Bioman's corpse, and the charging creature tore it apart as they escaped through the grate.
• Qin Wei jumped into the sewer with Catwoman, Gordon, and Bullock, then was swept through a twisting outflow pipe into the sea.
• Selina pulled Qin Wei above the water, but they began to sink until a bat-shaped fighter jet arrived.
• Qin Wei woke at Gordon's house, learned Selina had left and Bullock was hospitalized but would survive, and discovered it was the night of the thirteenth.
• Qin Wei realized Maroni's deadline would expire in an hour and called the person awaiting him a demon from hell.

Qin Wei searched the abandoned Wayne Manor for Batman but found only an empty mine, then returned to the Senate expecting to die before midnight. Selina arrived with the stolen gambling money, but Dr. Hugo appeared and she injected Qin Wei with a needle.

• Qin Wei questioned Gordon about who had saved him and Bullock, then borrowed money, a flashlight, and rope to search Wayne Manor for Batman.
• Qin Wei climbed into the well beneath Wayne Manor but found only an abandoned mine, then returned to the Senate and gave the taxi driver his remaining money.
• Qin Wei reunited with the escaped Oswald, and the two waited together on the Senate steps as midnight approached.
• Selina found Qin Wei and showed him nine checks from Hugo Strange that, with the money Hugo had returned, matched the stolen gambling funds.
• Dr. Hugo emerged from the shadows and revealed he had been waiting for Qin Wei, then Selina jabbed a needle into Qin Wei's neck.

Qin Wei and Oswald tried to take the money to Falcone, but Maroni's killers ambushed them and chased them through Gotham until they escaped into the river. At Falcone's nightclub, Oswald accused Maroni, and Falcone pushed a revolver across the table, demanding that only the living tell him what happened.

• Selina gave Dr. Hugo a vial of Qin Wei's blood, and Qin Wei reassured her before Oswald decided to take the money to Falcone and blame Maroni.
• Qin Wei reluctantly joined Oswald in stealing a car, but Maroni's killers opened fire and pursued them through the streets.
• Oswald fought off the attackers as Qin Wei drove, then the car crashed through a guardrail into the Gotham River, allowing them to escape on foot with the checks.
• Qin Wei and Oswald reached Falcone's nightclub, where Qin Wei said Maroni had sent them with the money and Oswald accused Maroni of stealing it.
• Falcone slid a revolver across the table and told Qin Wei and Oswald that he only wanted to hear from the living.

Qin Wei survived Carmine Falcone’s deadly test and persuaded him that he could be useful. Falcone tasked Qin Wei and Oswald with gathering evidence against Maroni, promising Qin Wei Maroni’s money and position if he succeeded.

• Oswald panicked during Falcone’s Russian roulette test, but Qin Wei took the revolver and pulled the trigger six times, revealing that he suspected its chambers were empty.
• Falcone attacked Qin Wei and held a steak knife to his throat, questioning whether he could trust a man who was both smart and brave.
• Qin Wei offered to help Falcone eliminate Maroni, and Falcone put away the knife and called Maroni to explain why his men had come to him.
• Falcone told Qin Wei to gather evidence of Maroni’s crimes, using Harvey Dent’s imminent arrival and potentially giving evidence to Gordon or Bullock.
• Qin Wei asked for a reward, and Falcone promised him Maroni’s money and position and a place as the Roman Empire’s second-in-command if he succeeded.

After narrowly escaping Falcone, Qin Wei helped Oswald recover his confidence and set their sights on taking down Maroni and claiming power in Gotham. Qin Wei later visited his acquaintances and reunited with Selina, ending the chapter as they headed toward Chinatown for dumplings.

• Oswald apologized to Qin Wei for nearly getting them killed, but Qin Wei provoked him into a ten-minute fistfight that helped him regain his resolve.
• Oswald declared that he and Qin Wei would bring down Maroni and claim his seat because they had the strength to do so.
• Three days later, Oswald bought a Ford Mustang with their hundred thousand dollars from Maroni and went to recruit henchmen in the Lower District.
• Qin Wei repaid Gordon, ate a crepe Barbara made, and visited Bullock at the hospital, where he spotted him talking with a woman.
• Qin Wei found Selina teaching at a yoga studio, and she invited him to dinner so she could ask him questions.
• Qin Wei and Selina decided to get dumplings in Chinatown, and Selina followed him on her Ducati Diavel.

Qin Wei took Selina to an authentic dumpling shop in Chinatown, where sharing food and conversation brought them closer. He accepted Selina’s invitation to her home despite intending to refuse, then discovered that another comic had appeared in his pocket, signaling an approaching pivotal event.

• Qin Wei rejected Selina’s choice of restaurant and led her to Spring Fragrance Chiaotzu House for dumplings.
• Qin Wei spoke Mandarin with the owner and explained to Selina how speaking the language helped ease the diners’ wariness.
• Qin Wei and Selina enjoyed the dumplings, and their shared meal brought them closer.
• Selina invited Qin Wei to her home, and Qin Wei accepted despite deciding he should refuse because of her ties to Falcone.
• Qin Wei found a new comic in his jacket and realized one appeared whenever a pivotal event occurred.