The deeper Batman explored, the more certain he beca that Constantine's speculations were correct. Although the pathway seed to be a straight march forward, it was like being in an underground maze ga where the protagonist's vision was always limited to the front, with all other directions engulfed in thick darkness, making it nearly impossible to discern direction.
If they continued this way, the inevitable outco would be exhaustion of strength, thirst, and hunger, eventually collapsing within the labyrinth.
Constantine sighed lightly and said, "If I could still use magic, I could take you through the Spirit Realm, which is not hindered by the real world, and maybe we could find a way out."
But Strange was sowhat dismissive, "Don't you know that those so-called interstices between worlds are even more significantly affected by power than the real world? If this dark power is truly a rule-level force as you say, then falling into the Spirit Realm is seeking death."
Constantine did not argue with him, as he indeed could not deny this possibility. Diana, however, looked worried as she said, "Then should we not have co down so rashly?"
"Don't worry," Constantine said, looking at Bruce.
Bruce stepped forward. At that mont, a bright light overwheld everyone's sight, nearly blinding them. The Power of Light filled the entire space, instantly dispersing all darkness.
Without the pervasive dark power, the place beca an ordinary maze. Coupled with Clark's super strength, they reached the center of the maze like cutting through butter.
Unfortunately, there were no treasures or cages to be found, just what looked like an abandoned sacrificial site.
In the center of the site stood four huge pillars, with a towering bonfire between them. However, the flas in the bonfire were not ordinary but a thick mass of dark energy.
Batman stepped forward and looked up. Flashes of mories passed before his eyes, reminding him of the strange ambiance he once felt among those mob-ravaged buildings.
It was raining that day, amidst the ruins, which would indeed seem likely to make one feel down and depressed. But Batman's will was stronger than steel, and feeling such common sensations was unusual for him.
Now, standing before this mass of dark energy, Batman felt even more acutely that it was not a natural phenonon.
Clark, however, turned his gaze toward the monstrous sculptures coiled around the four pillars.
The first pillar featured a giant dragon coiled around a dark pillar, its eyes glowing as it raised its head to stare at the only illuminated door above.
On the second pillar were northern blizzards, flutes, and drums, with a dark, towering figure standing in front of a pyramid, bending over to bid farewell to a giant bird, nurous tentacle-like arms extending from his back.
The third pillar displayed endless spheres, large and small, cramd together – so were eyes, so were doorways, and countless tentacles stretched forth from them.
The fourth pillar was bare, but if one looked closely, the texture was noticeably different from the first three; it was rough and the granulation varied in intensity, giving the feeling of stepping into a fog.
Batman had also noticed these four pillars, and then they found four sentences at the bases of the pillars. They read: "Dark Source," "Slinking Chaos," "Key of the Gateway," "Naless Existence."
"Dark Council?" Constantine realized a na.
The others looked at him, and after clearing his throat, Constantine said, "Not to keep anything from you, but there's a legend circulating in hell recently. It speaks of a mysterious Dark Council, existing within the Dark Source of the cosmos, plotting to invade our universe."
"Elaborate," Batman said.
"That's all I know. I can't use magic anymore, and I only knew about this from a researcher at Oxford University, who is a mystic scholar, the theoretical type."
"Magic has a purely theoretical side?" Strange asked with so confusion.
"Of course, there are those who trade with demons seeking power, and similarly, there are those who thirst for knowledge. The theorists are mostly like that; it's not that they don't practice, but compared to material pleasures, they are more intent on exploring the essence of the world."
"Sounds even more dangerous," Batman comnted.
"Perhaps so, because if you only gain power, the destruction one can cause is limited. But if you crave knowledge, you never know what kind of entity you might provoke. However, it is also a double-edged sword."
Constantine, stroking his chin, said, "They can be considered among the most well-inford in the mystic world, easily hearing whispers from Heaven and Hell, and both angels and demons love to chat with them."
"But I couldn't find out more, only that the Dark Council has four mbers, each of significant weight."
Then he looked up again at the four pillars and said, "It seems they have been conspiring for a long ti, otherwise why would people be worshiping them here? I'm afraid this dark power is also obtained through such sacrifices."
Batman's expression visibly grew heavier, as he thought of more implications.
The Court of Owls' success involves esoteric factors, which is undeniable, and the fact that Gotham is perpetually irredeemable adds even more esoteric weight to this matter.
Batman had always considered the Court of Owls the main culprit, but it now appeared that what was thought to be esoteric factors were not rely rules or natural phenona; there was an organization pulling the strings behind the scenes.
Things were getting complicated, Batman thought.
"We need to find a way to block the outflow of dark power," Strange said. "Otherwise, that waste upstairs will just keep wailing."
"I really don't understand how he dares to gather the power of plants in Gotham," Bruce said. "Does he think he's the first deity to co here?"
Batman looked at him.
"For so reason, our universe's Court of Owls has been eradicated and never existed in history, but has Gotham beco any better because of it? Not really. The progress of Gotham still depends on the efforts of the human race; its existence or nonexistence doesn't make much difference."
"If the Court of Owls had never existed and Gotham still hasn't improved, it ans that without the Court of Owls, there are others. That ans the Court of Owls is just a pawn, and soone else is pulling the strings behind the scenes."
Batman was obviously convinced because this was quite a simple logic. If the Court of Owls were the mastermind, then they would have been erased from existence by a stronger force, then everything should have developed for the better, if not imdiately better, at least the shackles should have been lifted.
But if there are others besides the Court of Owls, then it ans this issue isn't that simple. Organizations who whimsically try to control a city and persist for such a long ti are few, and the more fatal problem is that without the help of mystical elents, they couldn't possibly succeed.
If one is replaced by another, it proves that mystical factors must exist and will always interfere with Gotham. Calling it a natural phenonon makes no sense at all.
Batman was increasingly sure of his speculation. He silently noted down the images and phrases on the columns and said, "Find a way to seal this room."
"We need so help," Constantine said. "Most importantly, we need to subdue that crazy tree above us, or it'll keep ssing around, and we won't be able to do anything."
The others looked at Bruce, who sighed and said, "I really didn't want to..."
Clark had already taken out his cara and, pushing Bruce's back, said, "Hurry up and make an appearance; an angelic arrival is big news. I want to get so shots and send them to the newsroom tomorrow; this light show is going to go global."
Bruce compromised.
The spectators only saw a glowing sword descend from the skies, 140 pairs of wings unfolded in the air, and the light swept across the entire city, almost dispelling all darkness, brightening the night sky for several seconds.
Under the light of the angel, the frenzied tree nymph cald down, its tendrils drooped, and branches swayed.
"What on earth is this?!!" the Tree Committee roared angrily, "You've set a trap for ."
"Sorry, but do you think we really need to?"
With one sentence, the Committee was left at a loss for words.
Truth be told, after sizing up the level of the heroes just now, he found that these guys were really not weak, especially so of the new faces, which were quite extraordinary.
And this guy, who seed to be Batman, turned out to be an angel... How could he be an angel!!! The Tree Committee nearly broke its voice shouting in its heart, God open your eyes and look!!!
Speaking of which, the Tree Committee actually belonged to the side of Heaven. They originally stayed in Eden, but were expelled due to disputes with other elents. Although they did not have as old a standing as Lucifer, they were among the most senior in the Eden factions and knew Heaven's affairs inside out.
Similarly, since they were related to Heaven, they owed the angels so face, but All Things Green just could not wrap their heads around why God would turn Batman into an angel.
However, if Bruce Wayne was an angel, then he really seed to have no reason to set a trap for himself. If he wanted to trouble the Tree Committee, he could just have lured it in and given it a beating.
The Tree Committee thought carefully and suddenly realized that the force that had tornted it just now felt familiar.
"...Barbatos!!!!!!"
The roar echoed throughout Gotham, leaving tourists, locals, and journalists a bit stunned—why did this defeated tree nymph still have lines?
Wait, could this be a series?!
Upon further thought, it seed quite likely. Many people, when reviewing photos and video footage, found that just now, the frenzied tree nymph had a face full of pain, not at all looking like a villain who did evil, but more like soone being controlled.
Could there be soone else behind the scenes?
Where there's intrigue, there's discussion. Originally, everyone was just marveling at how well the special effects were done, and that the city's administration was strong enough to organize an evacuation to deceive everyone, with the live actors put in great effort, and the costus and makeup effects were exquisite, the fighting postures and expressions were quite real.
But unilateral praise was only a montary glory. As soon as people started talking about a plot in this performance, discussions abounded, and keywords like "Gotham Light Show" quickly trended on web pages, with another hot search word being "Barbatos."
The internet wisdom of the era proved to be infinite, as experts soon dug up everything about the na "Barbatos."
The na "Barbatos" actually originated from the seventy-two Pillar Gods of King Solomon, derived from the dieval text "Key of Solomon", and evolved from Hebrew into English vocabulary. Judging by the pronunciation, the na being shouted was likely English Barbatos, almost certainly referencing a na from Solomon's Deity System.
Batman was also investigating this na because he knew if this mysterious All Things Green realized it had been tainted by dark power, then it should know better than any human who had set it up, thus he obtained the na "Barbatos."
Barbatos, as the eighth among the seventy-two gods, wears a green hat and a gray cloak, and what intrigued Batman the most was that according to the setting of the Key of Solomon, when the sun enters Sagittarius, he will appear in the world alongside four other great kings of hell.
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