"Did you get what you wanted?"
Outside Blackgate Penitentiary, Catwoman leaned against the Bat-cycle, quietly waiting for Batman to return.
Although his mind was in turmoil, seeing Catwoman constantly by his side, a warm current still flowed through Bruce's heart.
His voice involuntarily softened.
"I found it. Clayface was involved in this."
With Clayface's abilities, it would be entirely possible for him to stealthily steal the Wayne couple's coffins from the back mountain of Wayne Manor.
But the question is, how did he know?
Or, to rephrase the question, why was the man named Hush so familiar with him?
He not only knew his true identity but also his true weakness.
Batman, of course, understood that his opponent stealing his parents' coffins was meant to disturb his thoughts.
But he was not a robot; it was impossible to completely eliminate emotions. At this moment, he was only barely suppressing his anger.
He tried hard to think, who exactly was it?
Who knew him so well? Who was so meticulously planning to kill him?
He and Catwoman had been pondering this question on their way back.
"Bruce? Bruce!"
Catwoman's anxious voice roused him from his contemplation. He had actually spaced out.
The Batman of the past would never have been like this.
"What is it, Selina?"
"Look, look in front of you!"
Batman looked as instructed, only to see a figure at the end of the road.
He used the in-car display to zoom in on the image. After seeing the person's face, his body suddenly trembled.
"Talia..." he murmured.
The person who had arrived was Damian's mother, Talia al Ghul, daughter of Ra's al Ghul.
Talia stood there quietly, as if saying something. Batman couldn't hear her in the car, but he could read her lips.
"Long time no see, my dear."
Then, he saw her suddenly throw a few palm-sized discs. Batman quickly snapped back to reality and immediately slammed on the brakes.
But he couldn't dodge them. The discs slid under the Batmobile's chassis and magnetically attached to it.
With a "bang!" the Batmobile was directly flipped over.
As it tumbled, the roof suddenly opened.
Batman seized the opportunity, curled his body, and leaped out of the opening in the roof, spinning once in the air before landing steadily.
"Your skills are as excellent as ever, my dear." Talia smiled, watching his performance.
"Why are you back here, Talia?" Batman stood up, questioning in a low voice.
"Of course, for us, and for our child."
At this moment, Catwoman arrived on her motorcycle.
She had just heard this and looked displeased.
She couldn't help but interject, "Your behavior just now showed no sign of being well-mannered."
A cold glint flashed in Talia's eyes, her killing intent overwhelming.
"We are talking, what right do you have to interrupt?" She didn't say these words; she was accustomed to acting directly!
So Talia, without a word, drew her Katana and slashed at Catwoman.
Though startled, Catwoman remained calm. She pulled out the whip from her waist and lashed it out, but Talia nimbly dodged.
She was the daughter of Ra's al Ghul, trained by the League of Assassins, completely different from Catwoman's more informal style.
She wielded her Katana like the wind, her movements elusive and unpredictable. She saw the trajectory of Catwoman's whip clearly.
Like dancing on a tightrope, Talia moved freely through the whip's shadows.
Soon, she closed the distance to where her Katana could threaten Catwoman.
Several quick diagonal slashes forced Catwoman to only defend.
Before long, Catwoman began to be at a disadvantage, showing signs of defeat.
At this point, Batman could not stand by and watch.
Seeing Talia's attacks constantly aiming for Catwoman's vitals, he had no choice but to intervene, stopping Talia's killing blow.
His forearm met Talia's Katana, the "small teeth" on his gauntlet catching her downward-slashing blade.
At this moment, in a place Batman couldn't see, Catwoman gave Talia a triumphant smile.
This almost drove Talia mad with anger, so she struck Batman with heavy force.
"Enough, Talia, stop!"
Because of Damian, Batman's feelings for Talia were somewhat complex.
Although he had never openly acknowledged Damian's identity, he knew in his heart that Damian was his son.
He just didn't know how to be a good father.
So Batman only blocked throughout, never retaliating.
But Catwoman took the opportunity to attack Talia, hitting her several times with her whip.
The scene looked as if Batman and Catwoman were working together to fight her alone.
This only fueled Talia's jealousy and dissatisfaction.
She suddenly stopped, sheathing her Katana.
Then she said to Batman:
"Since you've chosen this woman, then I'll take Damian back. Let's just pretend he never had a father!"
After saying that, she turned and walked away.
Batman, in a moment of urgency, quickly chased after her.
He was unwilling to admit it verbally, but in his heart, he had already decided that Damian was the future heir of the Wayne Family.
How could an heir of the Wayne Family stay in a place like the League of Assassins?
Was he to let Damian become another Ra's al Ghul in the future? That was absolutely unacceptable!
Talia and Batman moved too quickly; Catwoman couldn't keep up and could only stomp her foot in frustration.
"Damn rich people!"
Compared to them, who could scale walls and swing between skyscrapers with high-tech gear, Catwoman's travel speed was indeed very slow.
As someone who grew up in the League of Assassins, Talia's stealth skills were exceptional.
Even Batman would be hard-pressed to say he could do better than her in this regard.
So, he quickly lost track of her.
Thinking of what Talia had just said, Batman couldn't help but worry.
So he immediately called Wayne Manor; Alfred answered.
"Master Wayne."
"Is Damian home?"
"He should be resting in his room at the moment. Please wait a moment."
Batman waited patiently for a few minutes, but Alfred's panicked voice soon made his heart sink.
"Young Master Damian is missing!"
Indeed! Batman clenched his fists.
"I'll find him, Alfred." With that, he hung up the phone.
"First Dick, then my parents, and now Damian?"
"What's next? Who else is next?"
Barbara? Or Alfred? Or... Batman suddenly remembered someone!
"Selina!"
He immediately turned back, constantly calling Selina's phone along the way, but it kept showing no answer.
"Damn it! Was Talia also part of this plan?"
He thought about Talia's very strange appearance tonight. It was as if she was certain they would pass by that spot.
It was all planned!
Soon, he returned to the scene of the overturned car; Catwoman was long gone.
Only her frequently used long whip remained on the ground.
At this moment, Batman's heart was filled with both the rage of being fooled...
And the chilling realization of being outmaneuvered at every step. These two emotions tormented him to no end.
Almost everyone he cared about was leaving him in some way.
And he still hadn't figured out the true identity of the culprit.
But he wouldn't have to ponder this question for much longer, as an unknown video call came in.
He didn't hesitate long before answering.
"It's been a long time, Bruce."
"Ra's al Ghul..." Batman's pupils contracted as he looked at the man on the screen.
"You're not even willing to call me 'teacher' anymore. That truly saddens me."
"I believe you are looking for something. I think you might want to come over and have a chat with this old man."
"Did you do all of this?"
"Don't always ask, think more, child."
"I will wait for you at the old ACE Chemical Factory site."
At the ACE Chemical Factory.
Ra's al Ghul hung up the video call. At this moment, a man with a bandaged head next to him spoke up.
"Everything went smoothly, didn't it?"
"Yes, everything went smoothly," Ra's al Ghul replied with a smile.
Behind them was a green pool, a combination of Lazarus Water and modern technology.
Above the pool, two mud-stained coffins hung.
On the other side of the pool was an empty space, and above it...
The unconscious Selina was suspended there.
------------------------
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