Chapter 970: Battle for the High Tower (Part Four) (Patreon)

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Before Batman's eyes, numerous scenes continued to flicker, the images of many people's deaths overlapping, leaving him feeling somewhat mentally disoriented.

Batman was not someone who could calmly accept death, especially the death of others. The scenes of witnessing the death of his loved ones had inflicted significant trauma upon his psyche.

Such trauma would gradually heal over time but could never completely disappear. Therefore, when he saw the image of Schiller's death, his brain had almost no room to consider any other questions. The re-experiencing symptoms of his traumatic stress disorder constantly urged his brain to replay those dreadful scenes.

Fortunately, at that moment, Zatanna proposed another possibility. She suggested going to hell to find Schiller's soul, which diverted Batman's attention, preventing the immediate outbreak of symptoms of his traumatic stress disorder.

Afterward, they entered Hell's Edge. When Batman saw Schiller's soul, he believed that everything had taken a turn for the better. However, shortly after, Schiller jumped down.

Batman didn't know what compelled him to jump down as well. Perhaps it was those dreadful images lingering in his mind that made him feel he had to do something.

Because once he quieted down and had nothing to do, loneliness and fear would engulf him, just like when his parents died.

Truly arriving in hell, Batman saw the high tower had collapsed on the ground. Seeing countless souls of Schiller rushing out from the high tower, his initial reaction was that there was still a chance to rectify this tragedy, and he must attempt to do so.

During the tragedy of his parents' death, what he most resented was his own inability to change anything. But this time, his Professor and mentor died first and then fell into hell. He witnessed it all with his own eyes and was no longer as helpless as he was in his childhood.

So, he urgently wanted to do something and felt nervously excited about it, which was actually a manifestation of his traumatic stress disorder, though he himself did not realize it.

As he stared blankly at Schiller in front of him, Schiller got up from the ground, shook his head vigorously, and muttered under his breath:

"Damn, it's so high, miscalculated..."

Then, he took a deep breath, extended his right hand, touched his back, and furrowed his brows deeply.

Straightening out his slightly wrinkled suit and readjusting his tie, Schiller finally noticed Batman standing in front of him.

"Are you alright?" Batman asked.

"Me? I'm more than alright," Schiller replied. He straightened his tie, coughed twice, and then said, "I successfully retaliated against Constantine, deprived him of his ability to use magic, and threw that group of scheming folks in the high tower into hell. They shouldn't have prevented me from boarding the ship and fighting without me, right?"

Schiller seemed to feel a bit tired standing up, so he walked to a large rock at the edge of the hillside and sat down, then began to ramble about his complete plan.

There were many targets for Schiller's revenge, the chief culprit being Constantine, who caused all the trouble. As he had said before, he had a sharp blade for dealing with good people, that is, guilt.

Without a doubt, Constantine was a rotten person, but at the same time, he was also a good person. Although he often betrayed his friends and teammates, most of the things he did were actually for the greater good of saving the world, and the debts he owed were his alone.

His friends had sacrificed a lot for him, but he had sacrificed even more himself. Through his daily interactions with him, Schiller could see that it was precisely because of this that Constantine could avoid the condemnation of his conscience.

While his friends lost their lives, he suffered great physical pain out of necessity, which could alleviate his inner guilt. So, Schiller simply helped him eliminate this pain.

Originally, Constantine could divert his attention through physical pain, but once all debts were settled, and all wounds were healed, he would have no means to escape reality and would have to face his inner guilt head-on.

Of course, besides these old debts, Schiller also added two new debts for him.

He intentionally let the agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation stab him in front of Batman and let Batman witness his corpse, all to make Batman feel guilty.

Once Batman felt guilty, then, with Batman watching, Schiller fell into hell, and when he jumped, Batman would surely jump.

And jumping into hell together with Batman was a double blow to Constantine, akin to stabbing the major artery. Schiller thought that Constantine must be going insane in reality right now.

At the same time, by bringing his soul into hell, he could also retaliate against Superego for not letting him board and Marvel Schiller for gloating. "I can't take a vacation, and neither can anyone else."

As Schiller's thoughts turned to this, his mood improved somewhat, and his adverse reactions eased a bit. Just as he turned his head to observe the surrounding environment, Batman spoke up, "Since you're okay now, let's go."

Schiller inquired, somewhat puzzled, "Go? Where do you plan to go?"

"To save you," Batman replied, turning to walk ahead. Schiller, somewhat perplexed, asked, "Save me? But I'm right here, aren't I? I've told you, I'm fine. There's no broccoli in hell, maybe my allergies will soon subside..."

"I mean the other you and that high tower," Batman continued walking without looking back, leaving Schiller to catch up. Furrowing his brows and squinting, Schiller said incredulously, "You mean, you want to save my other personalities and that high tower?"

"Batman, have you ever considered one thing? Me, jumping into hell, wouldn't it be unlucky for me?"

"Is there a possibility that those personalities and the high tower don't need you to save them? Look at how eagerly they're rushing out, does it seem like they need someone to save them?"

"Moreover, this is hell, filled with powerful demons. Your combat skills you've learned won't be of much use here."

Batman kept walking forward, and Schiller hastened his steps to catch up, turning his head to look at Batman's face. He noticed that under the mask, Batman's expression seemed somewhat stiff, and his fingertips trembled.

Schiller raised an eyebrow, speculating that Batman might be experiencing symptoms of traumatic stress disorder. After all, his rationality might tell him that Schiller wouldn't easily die, but the impact of witnessing death scenes firsthand was significant. His condition hadn't fully healed, and further stimulation could indeed trigger another episode.

Schiller approached Batman and stopped him, saying, "Calm down, Batman. You should have realized that your current mental state isn't quite right. You need some psychological treatment. I think we should find a safe place first..."

Before Schiller could finish, Batman bypassed him and continued walking forward. Schiller furrowed his brows deeply, evidently irritated by his rudeness, but he took a deep breath and said softly, "Alright, considering you jumped down here to save me..."

"Listen, Batman, this is just one of my plans. A plan, you understand? Whether it's being taken away by the Federal Bureau of Investigation's agent, being stabbed by him, or dying in the telephone booth, my soul going to hell, it's all part of my plan to retaliate against those who acted recklessly and narrowly minded..."

Batman stopped and turned to Schiller, saying, "You make such plans because you think I can't do anything, right? All those who dare to harm others think the same..."

Schiller shook his head, saying, "No, it's just that when I want to retaliate against someone, anyone can be used, including myself, and including you."

"In fact, you already realized at that time that I might be up to something, didn't you? Your rationality was telling you that all of this might be my plan, me jumping into hell, and hell might be dangerous."

"Just like now, your rational judgment tells you that neither the high tower nor my other personalities are in any danger. My personalities are rushing toward the demons, and the unlucky ones will surely be the demons."

"But, there's still a voice in your heart urging you to come and save me, even if I don't need it... Batman, haven't you realized? You've never left that alleyway."

Schiller slowly walked up to Batman, looking into his eyes and saying, "You're sick, but you refuse treatment, just like many ignorant backward people who consider mental trauma as an unspeakable, unmentionable scar, unwilling to face it directly or accept scientific treatment..."

"If this continues, one day, the scar will be revealed in a more bloody manner. By then, unless you never show weakness, once everyone knows it's your weakness, you will pay tenfold, a hundredfold..."

"It's you who needs treatment." Batman looked at Schiller and said, "You'd rather harm yourself than play with people's hearts, enjoying watching others being manipulated by your plan..."

"Correct, but knowing that I'm crazy, why did you jump?"

Batman turned around and continued walking toward his goal. Schiller behind him shook his head and muttered softly, "The road to treatment is long and arduous..."

At that moment, there was a rumbling sound from the ground, startling Schiller. He staggered, turning to look back, but as soon as he did, he saw a gaping mouth.

A massive demon sandworm emerged from the ground. Batman turned back, bent his knees to stabilize himself. Just as the dust settled, he saw the sandworm open its circular mouth, lined with spiral teeth, and swallow Schiller in one gulp.

Batman's eyes widened instantly, and he rushed forward at lightning speed. Using the height of the nearby hill, he jumped onto the sandworm's back, seized the sharp horn on its head, and punched it in the eye.

The sandworm recoiled in pain, swinging its body in mid-air but didn't open its mouth. Instead, it plunged headfirst into the sand.

Accompanied by the faint traces on the sandy ground, the enormous sandworm disappeared into the sand, fleeing toward an unknown destination.

[Read at www.patreon.com/shanefreak, and thanks for the invaluable support!]

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Next Chapter>>Chapter 971: Battle for the High Tower (Part Five)