Chapter Summaries

Qin Wei fought the mysterious armored man in the alley, but the man outmaneuvered him and won the brutal fight before police arrived. Qin Wei was taken to the hospital, while Gordon examined the devastation and questioned who had made the crater in the wall.

• Qin Wei ambushed the mysterious man and hammered his armor with punches, but the man escaped his mount and battered him with powerful strikes.
• Qin Wei tried to flee, dodged the mysterious man's Batarangs, and caught the grappling hook with his hand to pull his opponent toward him.
• Qin Wei's punch missed when the mysterious man released his utility belt, and the man took Qin Wei down with a rear takedown.
• Police sirens sounded, and the mysterious man left the alley without finishing Qin Wei off.
• Qin Wei was taken to the hospital, while Gordon surveyed the bodies and damaged walls and wondered who had left the fist-shaped crater.

Qin Wei woke in the hospital, helped Gordon investigate the fake Batman, and left despite his serious injuries to resume his plans. In a sewer laboratory, Dr. Hugo revealed that the masked figure looked exactly like Qin Wei and placed him in a cultivation tank while plotting to fix his failed experiment.

• Qin Wei woke beside Oswald, and Gordon questioned him about the fake Batman’s custom utility belt.
• Qin Wei told Gordon to look for Alfred Pennyworth, reasoning that Alfred’s presence in Gotham could prove Bruce Wayne was alive.
• Qin Wei pulled out his IV, changed clothes with Gordon’s help, and left the hospital to speed up his plans.
• Selina arrived with dumplings after Qin Wei had already left and angrily set the food beside Oswald.
• Dr. Hugo removed the fake Batman’s mask, revealing a lifeless man who looked exactly like Qin Wei, then sent him into a cultivation tank.

After receiving the down payment for his manor, Qin Wei recruited Royce to drive him around Gotham and used a briefcase full of cash to win him over. The pair headed off to find a place where Qin Wei could stock up on weapons.

• Qin Wei received ten million dollars as the manor’s down payment and called Royce to serve as his driver for the day.
• Royce drove Qin Wei to Gotham Central Bank, where Qin Wei withdrew two million dollars.
• A nervous robber entered the bank with a revolver, but a security guard slammed him into the reception counter before he could finish his threat.
• Royce again tried to refuse the driving job, but Qin Wei persuaded him by tossing stacks of cash onto his lap.
• Royce accepted Qin Wei’s offer and asked where they were going next; Qin Wei wanted to find weapons to fill his trunk.

Qin Wei went to Falcone’s black-market port to buy weapons for a planned bank robbery before the Node Event, but Victor said the available stock had already been reserved. Falcone refused to break his business partner’s reservation, though he made clear the cargo would no longer be under his protection once it left the docks.

• Qin Wei drove to Miller Bay with Royce and heard from Oswald that he had survived the fake bat’s attack.
• Victor greeted Qin Wei at the port, and Qin Wei asked him to recommend weapons for robbing a bank.
• Victor told Qin Wei that the port’s powerful weapons had been reserved the previous night and pointed out the buyers loading the crates.
• Qin Wei called Falcone to ask for the reserved weapons, leaving Royce alarmed that he now knew about the robbery plan.
• Falcone refused to betray his business partner but told Qin Wei that the reservation holders would be unprotected after leaving the docks.

Qin Wei persuaded Royce Ben to help him intercept a weapons shipment for his plan to rob Maroni’s bank and expose his crimes. Royce’s history with Maroni ended with the revelation that Maroni had killed the Wayne family.

• Qin Wei asked Royce Ben to identify the men with the weapons shipment and where it was headed, then explained that he planned to bring down Maroni.
• Qin Wei told Royce that he would rob Maroni’s bank in twenty-eight days and needed the shipment to arm his crew.
• Royce asked why Qin Wei trusted him, and Qin Wei said Royce had reason to hate Maroni and might otherwise warn him.
• Royce recalled meeting and marrying Jennifer, then witnessing Gotham’s riot with her while worrying about Maroni.
• After the riot, Maroni came to Royce and confessed that he had killed the Wayne family.

Royce used Harvey Dent’s identity to question beggars about two bodies and joined their suspicious loading crew, while Qin Wei discovered a heavily armored vehicle and negotiated with Victor to buy it. Victor revealed the car was an obsolete Wayne Enterprises prototype, leaving Qin Wei to name his price.

• Royce approached two Beggar Gang members, posed as Harvey Dent, and asked about the masked beggars found dead by the river.
• Royce paid the beggars for their clothes and joined the laborers loading the suspicious shipment.
• A forklift accident sent a heavy armored car crashing out of its container in front of Qin Wei.
• Victor kicked away the forklift operator who threatened Qin Wei and introduced the vehicle as a Wayne Enterprises armored prototype.
• Qin Wei challenged Victor’s claim that the dusty, five-year-old vehicle was the latest model, and Victor asked how much he would pay.

Qin Wei bought the Batmobile and a container of Wayne Enterprises equipment from Victor, then followed Royce onto a truck carrying weapons and beggars. As armed men opened the truck, Maroni interrogated Oswald about how Will contacted Falcone.

• Qin Wei tested Victor’s discretion, inspected the equipment, and negotiated a deal for the Batmobile and the container in exchange for eight million dollars and his Ferrari GT.
• Royce obtained beggars’ clothes, and Qin Wei and Royce disguised themselves to board a truck leaving the port with dangerous goods.
• Qin Wei discovered the truck carried crates of shotguns, while Royce posed as Harvey Dent and warned the beggars that the gang planned to kill them.
• The truck reached the countryside, and armed men unlocked its rear door as Qin Wei and the others waited inside.
• Maroni threatened Oswald and nurse Gloria while demanding details about how Will contacted Falcone.

Oswald revealed how Qin Wei and Falcone communicated after Maroni threatened Gloria, while Qin Wei and Royce escaped a Joker Gang ambush with a truckload of weapons. The Joker Gang pursued them toward Gotham City as Qin Wei and Royce headed to transfer the cargo.

• Oswald gave Maroni the details of Qin Wei and Falcone's calls after Maroni threatened Gloria's life.
• Maroni lowered Gloria from the window and told Oswald that Qin Wei had withdrawn ten million dollars from the bank.
• The beggars stampeded out of the weapons truck, and Royce shot the Joker Gang leader while Qin Wei joined him in escaping the ambush.
• Qin Wei told Royce they needed another vehicle for the weapons, and Royce arranged to meet his men behind Wayne Manor.
• The Joker Gang learned the truck was on Brown Bridge and pursued it toward the city.

Qin Wei and Royce drove a truck carrying explosives through a tunnel, where an encounter with an armed granny gave way to a pursuit by the Joker Gang. As Qin Wei tried to free the truck from the gang’s hooks, Sal Maroni prepared a scheme to draw Falcone to a cocktail party.

• Qin Wei and Royce rode nervously in silence as they approached the tunnel with their explosive cargo.
• A silver-haired granny shot at their truck, and Royce retaliated by blasting a tire on her Beetle and firing into the tunnel ceiling.
• Three Joker Gang pickup trucks caught up with the truck and used hooked steel cables to slow it down.
• Qin Wei climbed onto the cab roof and moved toward the cargo to deal with the hooks while the gang fired at him.
• Sal Maroni wrote invitations to a cocktail party and told Benny to personally deliver Falcone’s invitation, explaining that he planned to lure Falcone with an offer to buy the harbor docks.

Quinn recounted how losing his job, family, and place in society led him to become the Joker Gang’s leader, while the gang’s unseen members waited for Joker to contact them. After Joker called with orders to buy up the weapons at Miller Bay Harbor, Quinn killed a woman who had been coercing him and embraced the madness he planned to spread through Gotham.

• Five years earlier, Quinn lost his job at Ace Chemicals after Red Hood fell into a chemical vat, then lost his home and family and became Maroni’s parking attendant.
• Quinn sexually assaulted and strangled a convenience store clerk, and his face twisted into a grotesque smile as he laughed.
• Madmen across Gotham gathered into the Joker Gang, whose members scattered through the city and occasionally carried out small robberies.
• Two weeks earlier, Joker called Quinn and ordered him to buy up all the weapons at Miller Bay Harbor so Gotham would become less peaceful.
• Quinn killed the woman who had been coercing him, then showered and declared that he would season the world’s boredom with madness.

Qin Wei used the Bat Utility Belt to attack the Joker Gang’s convoy in the tunnel, taking down several vehicles and their crews. Badly battered and out of supplies, he continued fighting the remaining gang members as the chapter ended with the convoy still under assault.

• Quinn ordered the Joker Gang to box in the lead pickup, but Qin Wei stunned the nearby gang members with flashbangs and grappled onto their vehicle.
• Qin Wei attacked the lead pickup’s crew and cut the rope restraining Royce’s truck, allowing it to speed up.
• Two rear pickups shot Qin Wei, but he survived behind his bulletproof vest, used a mine to injure two attackers, and leapt into their truck to finish them off.
• With the convoy nearing the tunnel exit and his belt supplies depleted, Qin Wei used the Grappling Hook to swing into another truck and beat its crew.
• Qin Wei jumped to the next pickup, fought its driver for control, and dragged him from the cab with the Grappling Hook.

After escaping the Joker Gang, Qin Wei and Royce encountered a trap on Kane Bridge and came face-to-face with Joker. Joker knew Qin Wei’s real name and held a gun to his temple, leaving Qin Wei in immediate danger.

• Qin Wei called Gordon to report the Joker Gang attack in Novick Tunnel, and Royce asked whether he could take Gordon’s place as commissioner.
• Qin Wei and Royce found a pickup truck blocking Kane Bridge and discovered a reflective, oil-coated wire set to decapitate their truck’s occupants.
• Qin Wei realized their hidden opponent could have killed them already and called out Joker.
• Qin Wei approached what looked like Joker leaning against the pickup, but discovered it was a mannequin.
• Joker emerged from the pickup’s cab, pressed a gun to Qin Wei’s temple, and addressed him by his real name.

Qin Wei tried to kill Joker after Joker offered him weapons and revealed he knew Qin Wei’s plans, but Joker escaped. After returning with Royce’s men and arranging their payment, Qin Wei learned that Maroni had invited Falcone to an investment reception and was tasked with uncovering Maroni’s intentions.

• Joker met Qin Wei and offered him a truckload of weapons to use against Maroni’s banks.
• Qin Wei seized Joker’s gun and fired, but it only produced a joke flag; when Qin Wei and Royce attacked, Joker escaped into the brush.
• Qin Wei blamed Royce for missing Joker, then continued with him to Wayne Manor and arranged a cash bonus for the men who moved the weapons.
• Qin Wei rode back to Gotham, remembered he had left his car and money at the port, and took a taxi toward Oswald’s hospital.
• Qin Wei’s calls to Oswald went unanswered, and Falcone told him that Maroni had invited him to an investment reception and might be planning to act against him.
• Qin Wei changed his destination to Maroni’s manor to investigate the reception before Falcone’s deadline.

Qin Wei told Maroni that Falcone had contacted him and learned Maroni planned to assassinate Falcone with a bomb, but Maroni confined him and took his phone. Trapped together in Maroni’s mansion, Qin Wei and Oswald argued about their situation, leaving Oswald unsure whether Qin Wei still intended to help Falcone.

• Qin Wei told Maroni that Falcone had contacted him, and Maroni revealed his plan to plant a bomb beneath Falcone’s seat at the reception.
• Maroni asked Qin Wei for the code he used to communicate with Falcone, and Qin Wei said they had no code and that Falcone only asked questions he could answer yes or no.
• Maroni confiscated Qin Wei’s phone and locked him in a windowless guest room, ordering Benny to watch him until Falcone called.
• Qin Wei persuaded Benny to massage his feet by invoking Maroni’s instruction to accommodate him, while Benny’s colleague brought Oswald into the room.
• Oswald regretted telling Maroni about the code, but Qin Wei told him they should focus on saving themselves rather than worrying about Falcone.
• Oswald remembered Qin Wei’s previous lie to Falcone and wondered whether Qin Wei intended to abandon him and switch sides to Maroni.

Maroni held Qin Wei captive while arranging Falcone’s assassination, and Qin Wei told Falcone that Maroni posed no threat. After Royce spent three days anxiously waiting for his missing boss, an unseen attacker nearly killed him in his hallway.

• Maroni waited with Qin Wei and Oswald for Falcone’s deadline, planning to use the reception to assassinate him and later decide Qin Wei’s fate.
• Falcone called Qin Wei and asked whether Maroni intended to attack him; Qin Wei answered no while Maroni pointed a gun at him.
• Falcone confirmed he would attend the reception and warned Qin Wei that his killers would hunt him if anything happened to him.
• Maroni kept Qin Wei imprisoned to prevent him from leaking information, leaving Royce without contact from his boss for three days.
• Royce threw his ringing phone in frustration, then picked it up, narrowly avoiding an attacker who had withdrawn a bloodstained scalpel from behind his neck.

Royce caught Dick Grayson raiding his kitchen, fed him, and treated his infected wound while trying to recruit him. At a secret auction, Maroni secured the Robinson Park redevelopment rights, then blew up Falcone’s car and declared himself Gotham’s king.

• Dick Grayson abandoned his attempt to assassinate Royce and raided his kitchen for food.
• Royce caught Dick, tied him up, and offered him a place in his organization, but Dick refused to join The Roman.
• Royce treated Dick’s infected wound with Hydrogen Peroxide, causing him to pass out.
• Gotham’s wealthy factions divided municipal projects and leases at a secret auction; Falcone paid for the Miller Harbor black market lease, while Maroni took the Robinson Park redevelopment rights.
• Maroni watched Falcone’s car explode and declared himself the king of Gotham.

Qin Wei outmaneuvered Maroni and reassured Oswald that they had been allies all along, while Royce prepared to trade Dick for a chance to kill Maroni. The chapter ended with Qin Wei and Oswald returning to the Senate and reuniting with Royce.

• Maroni offered Qin Wei the right to run an Italian leather shoe company as a reward, while he focused on verifying Falcone's death.
• Qin Wei left Maroni's manor with Oswald and explained that his apparent betrayal had been part of a plan, though he had kept the code secret from Oswald.
• Royce stitched Dick's wound, then headed to the Senate intending to hand Dick over to Maroni if he could not find Qin Wei.
• Qin Wei and Oswald arrived at the Senate in a taxi and asked Royce to lend them money.

Qin Wei assigned Royce and Oswald tasks for recruiting and preparing a venue, then learned Dick was alive and arranged for Royce to care for him. The next morning, Selina angrily hung up on Qin Wei, who realized she was upset because she thought he had brought Oswald food in the hospital.

• Qin Wei told Royce to distribute recruitment flyers and asked Oswald to find a roofed workshop for training recruits.
• Qin Wei planned to obtain a detailed bank map and considered using Dick for the infiltration, but Royce revealed Dick was staying at his apartment.
• Oswald explained to Royce how Qin Wei had helped cause the Lower District commotion, and Royce agreed to keep caring for Dick while he recovered.
• Qin Wei called Selina to ask for help, but she angrily hung up after questioning whether he only contacted her when he needed something.
• Oswald said Gloria had told him Qin Wei brought him food in the hospital, and Qin Wei realized this was why Selina was angry.