I, V, Gotham Legend

Just then, someone suddenly walked in from the door. They were wearing neat suits and hoods like gangsters.

"Whatever activity you want to hold, hurry up and finish it. The boss only agrees to rent it until 11 o'clock tonight, and the time is up in less than half an hour."

The Penguin thugs warned Black Flame Deacon in a loud voice, which made the cultists extremely disappointed for a moment, and many of them glared at the gangsters with dangerous eyes.

However, the Penguin thugs did not care about the opinions of this group of people. They felt that every one of these cultists was mentally retarded, no different from the cerebral palsy people who were fooled by Anazi a few months ago.

But he would not say this directly. In order to rent the activity base and get the protection of the Penguin Man, Butler Black Flame paid a lot of money, and now the Penguin Man is short of money, even to the point of being starving and having no choice but to eat.

"The heretics just need to watch from the side." Deacon Black Flame was very disrespectful. If the Penguin Man didn't have some power, he would not bother to pay attention to these short-sighted bastards.

However, this also reminded Butler Black Flame that although there was still some time before the agreed sacrifice was delivered, it was a little abnormal that there was no news from the hunting team at all.

After thinking about it, Butler Black Flame took out his cell phone and called the hunting team.

……

A buzzing ring sounded, and Valerie, who was still looking at the map, made a "huh" sound in her throat.

"The calling card you gave me made a sound," Valerie said somewhat abstractly.

"It must be a call from the cult's top leaders." Batman understood Valerie's meaning very well.

After interrogating the Black Flame Butlers and revealing their whereabouts, Batman seized their calling cards and gave them to the useful Valerie.

Valerie can insert a phone card around her neck and directly scan and analyze the information and communication records in the phone card to collect intelligence, allowing Batman to concentrate on driving.

"Shall I take it?" Valerie asked.

"Keep him steady and tell him that the plan went well. Don't alert the enemy." Batman opened the alloy wall separating the cab and the trunk and handed Valerie a PDA. "And take this. It's already been debugged."

Valerie took the PDA and held it up to her face. She could see a satellite map on the screen.

"This is?"

"I have already improved the positioning device for communication signals," Batman explained simply.

"Oh... it has located a bathhouse. Ah, this must be the Chinatown!" Valerie exclaimed, "That's great. It seems the driver didn't lie."

"Saves us a lot of time," Batman concluded.

Although torture is very useful, it is difficult to guarantee its authenticity. The truly reliable core plan is to defeat the important action team and snatch the phone cards, wait for the target to call in person and then track the location of the communication signal.

"Hush, I'm going to answer the phone." Valerie said, lowering her voice.

But she still considerately turned on the speakerphone.

"Where is the goods?" When the phone was connected, a hoarse voice asked straight to the point.

"He's on the way, Deacon. He's tied in the trunk and looks very energetic." Valerie looked up at the carport and spoke in a deliberately hoarse voice.

"..." Black Flame Butler was silent for a moment, "Woman? Why didn't Kao answer the phone?"

Kao might be referring to the original truck driver. Valerie thought of an excuse: "He was a little reluctant. After all, he was sending a life away with his own hands."

"Foolish! For the sake of God's coming, this kind of meaningless compassion should be thrown aside. Even burying a baby alive should be done with pious feelings." The voice on the other end of the phone reprimanded sternly.

Valerie sighed a little. While listening to Black Flame Butler's nagging, she secretly sent a message to Batman via text message.

Batman stared at the road, the screen on his forearm showing a whisper from Valerie.

[He is just a worthless wretch. Can I kill him later?]

Batman pursed his lips speechlessly, and whispered: "I will stop you."

His voice was quiet, and wouldn't be picked up by the hands-free, but Valerie's keen senses could hear it.

"Okay." It sounded like a rejection, but Batman said it ambiguously.

Valerie let out a breath and continued to ask the person on the other end of the phone, "Anything else you need? Deacon, we are not far from our destination. It's estimated to be five minutes away."

"Something's wrong." The Black Flame Butler's voice suddenly turned cold. "There are still fourteen minutes left. Didn't you follow the plan?"

"What plan?" Valerie blurted out subconsciously, and then immediately covered her mouth.

But it was too late, Butler Black Flame hung up the phone.

"..." Valerie pouted, "I think I messed up."

"Whatever." Batman put his hand on the button on the Batmobile console, "We're almost there."

At this time, Butler Black Flame, who was still in the Chinatown bathhouse, put down the phone, his back already soaked with cold sweat.

He was glad that he had planned the plan down to the minute, and even if the hunting team caught the prey in advance, it had to be delivered within the specified time.

This rigor allowed him to discover the flaws of the mysterious enemy who was approaching him. However, there were less than five minutes left for the enemy to reach him.

What should I do? I can still escape by myself, but...

Deacon Black Flame looked up at the flagpole. The statue of the god was tied to it. Although its head was drooping, it still looked indescribably sacred.

I am the Black Flame Deacon blessed by God! All of this is a test from God!

Deacon Black Flame turned around like a possessed man and spoke to the believers in the courtyard: "Get ready! Guests are coming."

The believers looked at each other, wondering what the leader suddenly said. At this moment, a sharp vibration sound was heard.

Before people could even raise their eyebrows, the wall of the enclosed bathhouse was blown through and a black "tank" emerged from the gap.

NO28. Have you been possessed by another spirit?

The large yard of the Chinatown Bathhouse was designed to accommodate at least a hundred people, but after the Batmobile rushed in, the yard seemed extremely small.

The cultists watched in horror as the Batmobile rushed towards them. They forgot to run away for a moment and watched helplessly as they were hit by the car.

But they were not crushed into pieces. When they were about half a meter away from the hull of the Batmobile, purple lightning suddenly flashed on the car. The extremely powerful electric shock knocked the cultists unconscious and sent them flying.

The Batmobile rushed to the center of the yard and blocked the crowd. The cultists were blown everywhere like fireworks.

The others who were still standing finally reacted, but no one dared to approach the terrifying tank. They fled in all directions, looking for places where they would not be affected.

"Come back! You have forgotten your piety to God!" roared the Black Flame Deacon.

Batman opened the cockpit and jumped in front of the Batmobile: "You are surrounded, Blackflame."

"I am protected by the gods, and you will only die here." Butler Black Flame shouted while standing in the iron cage, and then he pulled the lever next to the wheelchair.

"Zizi..." The electric current climbed up the iron wire, making the iron cage glow like the sun throughout the night.

Deacon Black Flame felt much more at ease. He felt that he was very safe hiding in this electric shell.

"You are Batman? You blasphemer!" Butler Black Flame stared at Batman and said in a condescending tone, "You will eventually die under God's punishment."

Batman suddenly raised his hand and threw out a bat dart. The speed of the movement made it impossible for everyone to react.

The bat dart passed through the gaps in the wire mesh, even bringing with it blue lightning. It passed through the iron cage, brushed against the cheek of the Black Flame Butler, and was finally caught by a small white hand.

Valerie stood behind the Black Flame Butler, holding the bat dart. The blue electric current climbed up Valerie's body along her fingers, but she didn't seem to feel uncomfortable.

There was a big hole in the top of the iron cage. Valerie cut the cage open and crawled in with a movement that no one saw, as if time had stopped.

"You're pretty quick." Valerie shouted to Batman.

"I said I would stop you," Batman responded.

"I know. You just said you would stop me. You didn't tell me not to kill anyone." Valerie threw away the batarang and grabbed the head of the Black Flame Butler. "Of course, even if you ask me to do that, I won't listen. Come and fight me if you can."

Batman had no idea what Valerie was angry about, so he took a few steps forward, but before that, the cultists finally seemed to react, and they approached Batman with all kinds of weapons.

Batman leaped back onto the cockpit of the Batmobile and reactivated the Batmobile's abilities.

The Black Flame Deacon also acted almost at the same time. He ignored the fact that his head was still being grabbed and swung the obsidian dagger in his hand towards Valerie.

The old man's speed was too slow for Valerie. She grabbed the Black Flame Deacon's wrist and broke the bones of his forearm with her backhand. As expected, the Black Flame Deacon's palm lost strength and the dagger fell weakly to the ground.

Then, Valerie lifted the Black Flame Deacon's head and pressed it against the iron cage.

"Ziwuwu..." The Black Flame Deacon's vocal cords trembled from the electric shock, and the barrier that originally protected him became a device of torture.

Valerie kept the scan running, and just when Black Flame Deacon was on the verge of fainting, she lifted him up.

“Blasphemer…” The pale hair of the Black Flame Deacon stood up, but his tone was still firm. “You will be burned in the doomsday.”

"You'll burn soon." Valerie curled her lips and pressed the Black Flame Deacon back onto the power grid.

The electric current flowed from the Black Flame Butler's head through Valerie's arm, but Valerie did not feel any discomfort except for a numb feeling.

At the same time, Batman readjusted the Batmobile's systems, the original sports car-like structure seemed to be pulled apart, the four tires were divided into four legs, the cockpit sank, and a diamond-shaped composite barrel was raised from the back seat.

Batman activated the riot mode, and rubber bullets were fired from the gun barrel, sweeping in all directions.

The cultists were thrown to the ground by rubber bullets like shooting targets at a festival stall, and the sounds of flesh colliding and screams of pain were endless.

Valerie lifted up the head of the Black Flame Deacon again, and there were obvious web-like burn marks on his face from the electric shock.

"Where did that statue come from?" Valerie lifted the collar of Black Flame Deacon with a cold tone.

“Ahem…are you scared? It’s too late.” Deacon Black Flame panted heavily. The torture did not break his will. “God came to me personally to save me. I carved His face.”

"What?" Valerie was speechless. She realized that she couldn't ask anything more, so she slowly lowered her hand and held it on the chin of the Black Flame Deacon.

"You can't kill me. I am protected by God." Butler Black Flame still shouted as if he couldn't see the reality clearly, but it seemed more like he was hypnotizing himself.

Valerie could feel his pulse in his neck beating wildly, and she didn't know how much of it was from the electric shock.

"I have sensed your devotion to that god." Valerie glanced at the wooden sculpture on the flagpole in the distance, "I will send you to reunite with your god."

As she spoke, the mantis blade popped out from Valerie's forearm and pierced through the Black Flame Butler's neck.

"Ga..." Butler Black Flame widened his eyes and looked at Valerie in disbelief.

He seemed to see something, and awe and fear flashed in his bloodshot eyes. He opened his mouth and wanted to say something, but his vocal cords were damaged and he could only make a whistling sound like water.

The Black Flame Butler died with an incomprehensible expression. Valerie drew out the knife, and the old man's body fell weakly to the ground.

She looked at the frozen expression on the old man's face in silence, with a myriad of thoughts running through her mind.

"Bang!" The sound of the Batmobile firing was heard again, this time it was aimed at the iron cage in front of Valerie, overturning the cage with one shot.

Only then did Valerie notice that there were no cultists left standing outside the cage.

Batman jumped out of the car and walked a few steps to Valerie.

"I will kill this guy without mercy." Seeing Batman's aggressive look, Valerie just put her hands on her hips, with an attitude of "what do you want?"

"...I couldn't save him." Surprisingly, that was all Batman said in response.

"? You've been possessed?" Valerie looked at Batman's face strangely. As far as she knew, Batman was not the kind of guy who would play such word games.

"We are just allies after all, and I will no longer hold you to my standards." Batman's gaze was far-reaching.

Is this what happened while I was away from Gotham?

Batman's unusual appearance made Valerie feel a little uncomfortable, but she felt that it might cause trouble, so she temporarily suppressed the desire to ask.

NO29. The Last Claw

Although it was a good thing that there was no quarrel, Valerie was afraid that Batman might not mind it on the surface, but might be doing something secretly.

Valerie searched herself briefly in front of Batman, and only felt relieved after making sure that there were no small toys on her.

"...I haven't implemented my plan against you yet." Batman saw Valerie's worry.

"I thought you were going to say something like 'I wouldn't do this to a close friend.'"

"If you want to hear it, I can tell you." Batman nodded, "If you really believe it."

"Okay, you have some sense of humor." Valerie sighed. She kicked the body of the Black Flame Deacon again, then looked up at the flagpole in the yard.

"Have you seen that thing?" Valerie said, pointing to the statue on the flagpole.

"There's more than one cult in Gotham, and they believe in all sorts of weird gods. I can't remember every one of them." Batman also looked in the direction Valerie pointed.

"You mean, this is your first time?" Valerie asked.

Batman heard the meaning behind Valerie's words: "Have you seen it?"

Valerie was silent. She looked at the flagpole from afar, a monster that looked like a mixture of a human, a dragon, and a bat.

If she hadn't seen it in Metropolis a few days ago, she might have thought it was Batman's doing.