Seeing a pile of pale bodies rolling in oil at midnight always gives a weird feeling, but this concept doesn't exist in Batman's understanding.
After making the monster slip, he immediately took a small metal tube from his belt, pressed the Bat Button on it, tipped it back and forth to mix the two colored liquids inside, then approached the struggling monster and poured the mixture onto it.
No one knows what exactly this liquid is, but it quickly reacted with the air, and just a little bit of it engulfed the entire monster in flames.
A familiar aroma of roasted chicken wafted over, although theoretically, the human gene proportion in this monster should be larger.
But with no self-awareness, it doesn't count as human.
The Windbreaker Warrior pocketed his switchblade, straightened up, dusted off his coat, the firelight illuminating some inconspicuous stains on his windbreaker.
"What next?" he asked Batman.
"I have other matters to attend to, you head home."
Batman replied, as this night was destined to be a long one, and with the Windbreaker Warrior's level, encountering certain villains was quite dangerous.
Coincidentally, the rest of the Bat Clan had vanished somewhere and were completely unreachable.
"Go home? You must be joking," Windbreaker Warrior spread his arms, letting Batman see his determination: "I'm not dressed like this for fun; I'm here to protect Gotham."
"The situation here is beyond your ability," Batman retorted sternly, taking out a rope to tie up Eggman, with Ah Fu ready to transport him to Arkham Asylum via the Bat Plane.
The Warrior sniffed, a @_^ pattern wrinkled on his mask: "Then let me follow you; an extra hand shouldn't be a bad thing, right?"
Batman quietly gazed at him, as if to see through him entirely, then shook his head after a moment.
"No, I don't need it."
Having said that, he walked towards the rooftop's edge, planning to fly away alone.
"Hey! Wait, Batman, if I have something you need, would you take me along?" The Windbreaker Man pulled out a notebook from his pocket and opened it, holding it up; it was filled with strange symbols.
Batman halted: "...."
The Windbreaker Man's fingers, clad in brown leather gloves, flipped through the pages, making a rustling sound: "You probably don't know where the fugitives are yet, do you? I have my info channels, and for those who escaped from Arkham, I know at least dozens of clues."
"Give me the notes." Batman extended his hand decisively; the notes might be useful, but the man wasn't, and both couldn't be trusted.
The Windbreaker Warrior tossed the notes over but pointed to his head: "Useless, the record code I use is my invention; you don't have time to crack it now, only I recognize it in the entire world."
Batman glanced at the notebook, indeed, the symbols inside looked like Pac-Man, all arc-shaped hieroglyphics, uncrackable in a short time, with no reference to compare either.
"Why do you want to follow me?"
The Warrior took back the notebook, lowered his head, and flipped through the pages: "Is this a Batman-style joke? Bro, in Gotham's superhero circle, who wouldn't want to act alongside Batman? Justice League member, a top-tier Superhero, can you even understand our sentiments as lower-tier heroes?"
Mental issues, that was Batman's new definition for the Windbreaker Man.
Batman had seen lower-tier Superheroes before, Gotham always having some new activity, taking on tasks like catching thieves, helping people find cats or dogs, or mowing lawns.
Yes, Midtown's Lightning Clan liked to do that kind of thing, helping elderly widows or disabled people with the lawn, tidying up, making a hearty lunch...
Anyway, with Divine Speed, these tasks take no time and are good deeds.
But in Gotham....doing such things come with high risks; maybe one second you're on an old man's lawn, the next you've taken a shotgun blast. Next, the old man skillfully scavenges your belongings, then tosses the body into the sewer.
The old man hasn't gone crazy; it's just the lunatic has aged.
Overall, the surviving lower-class Superheroes now have better all-around qualities in Gotham than elsewhere, with at least a good understanding of darkness.
What Windbreaker Warrior just said was simply not true.
.................
There was a prize questionnaire activity at the Hall of Justice, rewarding participants with a hero T-shirt after completing the quiz.
One of the questions was: "If you became a Superhero and joined the Justice League Community, who would you want as your partner?"
Statistics afterwards were unsurprising, with 33% choosing Superman, followed by Wonder Woman, Supergirl, The Flash, Green Lantern Hero, Magical Girl....
And Batman's ranking is only in the middle range, many people find it difficult to accept his style of operation. Perhaps some people understand Batman, but not many are willing to partner with him.
Because Batman's partners or sidekicks often become targets for kidnapping by madmen, and if their luck isn't strong enough, few survive those madmen.
Investigation results show that people hope their teammates have strong superpowers, at least not like Batman who sometimes has trouble even defending himself as an ordinary person.
And if the level of superpowers is about the same, beauty comes first, as humans are still visual animals as always.
Dark style is definitely a minus for a partner, even the lovely Raven's ranking isn't high, just because she's often silent and her magic choices are tentacles or black smoke, having killed quite a few people.
Watching from afar when it's not your concern is fine, but being a partner with such a dark style can drive people mad.
By the way, currently, Green Arrow Hero has the lowest vote in the statistics, no one is willing to partner with him, or they simply forgot who he is.
Oliver only received three votes; Batman suspects these are 'family votes' from Himeko, Shea, and Dina...
Batman doesn't care about these things; it's just Ron's scheme, claiming it's meant to draw the public closer to the Justice League, and making 'partner assumptions' can give people hope and a sense of belonging, and if someone accidentally awakens superpowers, they might choose to join the community.
Although most of the time the government and Justice League are in the same trench, don't forget that Celestial Eye Association is the direct force controlled by the nation, and Amanda Waller isn't easy to deal with; that woman is always recruiting.
Besides Suicide Squad, Celestial Eye Association also has Black Orchid, Golden Vanguard, Chronos, Dale Gunn, Darwin, Dr. Guang, Dr. Peril, Eta Candy, Major Nicholson, among others.
During the Omega Giant God's invasion, it was also Celestial Eye Association's 'Mind Assault Team' that hacked Brainiac's brain.
Compared to the loose structure of the Justice League, Celestial Eye Association clearly offers better benefits. As part of a military system, superpower users joining directly gain school-level military ranks, the government provides houses, cars, tickets, all life guarantees, helicopters for transport, and countless soldiers as subordinates.
If you're a pauper, then joining the Justice League still makes you a pauper; Batman won't support others, at most a subsidy in the cafeteria.
But a pauper joining Celestial Eye Association can turn their life around as long as they follow orders and their superpower catches the government's eye; the state covers all living needs, like winning the US Dollar lottery.
Completing tasks earns a bonus, killing enemies also earns a bonus, and the government crucially provides insurance with retirement guarantees.
Because of this, Batman is not optimistic about Ron's idealistic plan; compared to real-life conditions, the Justice League doesn't have as much appeal to the public.
Being a superhero gains good reputation but can't sustain living; humans need to live.
It's not that Batman doesn't have money; he could easily surpass Celestial Eye Association in benefits, buying each member of the Justice League Community a villa and a car is no issue.
But what does that represent? You deliberately challenge government organizations? Hinder national army development? Are you trying to be independent or aiming for the sky?
Batman has no intention of civil war with the United States Government; maintaining the status quo is fine.
Those with the heart for justice and ideals rather than matter should join the Justice League, while those seeking living conditions and enjoying the taste of rights should go to Celestial Eye Association.
Ultimately, it's the cooperation of both to prevent superpower users from joining villain organizations.
Assassin Alliance, Poisonous Lizard Association, Skull Gang, Royal Flush, among various villain organizations, some of which offer equally good conditions and are forever recruiting.
Especially the Poisonous Lizard Association that came out of nowhere and within a year became an espionage organization on par with Celestial Eye Association, with seemingly endless resources. The benefits offered by Celestial Eye Association can be doubled by them, with extra rewards directly settling in gold and diamonds, very lavish.
Fortunately, as both are spy agencies, their direct enemies are Celestial Eye Association and the United States Government, Justice League has never been harassed by them, and if not for their recent terror activities, Justice League might not even notice them.
Their members wear green uniforms with goggles resembling cold-blooded animal eyes on their helmets, their technology is very advanced. Spies who fail tasks or have their identities exposed frantically commit suicide, shouting in German "Hail Basilisk!", meaning "Long live Poisonous Lizard" before dying.
Batman always feels that there are many Poisonous Lizard Association spies in Celestial Eye Association, and the government has also been infiltrated, possibly remnants left from World War II...
No evidence, just a hunch, Batman's hunch.
..................
The identity of the Windbreaker Warrior before him is a mystery, Batman suspects his identity, and the other party clearly doesn't trust Batman either.
But the information he holds is what Batman currently needs; he doesn't have much time to waste. So he turned to the edge of the rooftop and said in a deep voice, "Lead the way."
The Windbreaker Warrior's steps clearly became lighter, he walked to the edge of the rooftop, flipping through his little notebook: "Ah, with your addition, I can handle more villains; why don't we start with the ones we disagree with?"
"Disagree with..." Batman looked at the warrior.
"Yes, you're firmly committed to the no-kill policy; I adhere to the indifferent policy of killing or not killing, and in Gotham City, there's another team adhering to the must-kill policy..." The Windbreaker Warrior shrugged, drawing circles on his notebook with his finger, looking at Batman meaningfully.
Batman knew what he was talking about, a team of anti-heroes detained at Arkham Asylum.