bacchusnovels Chapter 556 Batman steps in to infiltrate the anti-surveillance unit, and now he and Batman...
Chapter 556 Batman steps in to infiltrate the anti-surveillance unit, and now he and Batman...
Chapter 556 Batman steps in to infiltrate the Anti-Monitor, now he's truly on Barbatos's side.
In the melting pot of the world.
Barbatos, the dragon of the Dark Multiverse, is savoring the many powers that the Anti-Monitor has gained since becoming Barbatos's dragon.
To be honest, even after turning against the World Forger, Barbatos still knew very little about the true nature of the power of these sixth-dimensional gods.
But this time, the Anti-Monitor's voluntary allegiance brought him not only psychological satisfaction, but also a wealth of knowledge about the nature of the three brothers' power. This knowledge was absorbed by Barbatos through the dragon's status, making it even stronger.
For example, why did the Anti-Monitors launch the Infinite Earth Crisis? Because the three brothers betrayed their mother, the Mother of the Multiverse, Papetua, causing her to become the Origin Wall. The Origin Wall became the boundary protecting the multiverse, which made the original boundary of the multiverse, the antimatter universe, suddenly redundant.
The Anti-Monitor's domain became useless waste, which is why he instigated the Infinite Earth Crisis, attempting to seize control by devouring the Monitor's positive matter universe...
This knowledge, especially on how to enhance one's power by expanding the domain of one's authority, was precisely what Barbatos, the powerful but shallow dragon who turned against his former master, lacked most.
Barbatos has his own plans; he has been plotting to invade the main universe since very early on. (Note: For example, during the Final Crisis, the main universe's Batman was transported back to ancient times... Endgame, infection with the Dionysus factor, and so on. In many events, Barbatos has been constantly infecting the main universe's Batman with metal.)
But for Barbatos, whether it was the Barbatos Dragon creation project or the Dark Knights recruitment project, these projects were nothing more than "side missions" surrounding his steady invasion of the main universe. Even though these side missions provided him with important gains such as the Anti-Monitor's brain, the location of the Monitor, and the Anti-Monitor's puppets, they still could not change the fact that these projects were not his primary focus.
Therefore, after Barbatos granted the puppet controlled by the Anti-Monitor the power, he completely shifted his attention from the upcoming battle back to understanding this knowledge.
Ultimately, Barbatos didn't care about the Anti-Monitors, Batman, or even their plans. Throughout this war, Barbatos remained hidden behind the scenes, sitting firmly on the sidelines.
From the Dark Multiverse to the Bright Matter Universe, no matter how Batman and the Anti-Monitor fight, what does it have to do with Barbatos?
Then Barbatos was caught off guard by the enormous changes in the multiverse.
The future of the multiverse timeline is unknown, like a road that will be resurfaced at any time. Not to mention Barbatos, even Dr. Manhattan cannot say that he fully understands the future development.
(Note: For details, please refer to the DC event "The Doomsday Bell," where Dr. Manhattan VS Superman only saw two possible outcomes, but in fact, a third outcome occurred.)
Most of the time, under Barbatos's observation, he could only see the future of the timeline, but the future of the trans-time flow was shrouded in mystery, like being able to see the end of the road but not knowing when the road would be repaired.
But now, Barbatos suddenly discovers that the future of the multiverse contains a timeline of destruction that has not yet solidified.
?
Barbatos paused mid-eat, devouring the corpse of the World Forger, and even stopped rubbing his claws, which had been constantly pondering the Anti-Monitor experience package.
How come the multiverse is about to be destroyed before he has even invaded it?
He was the one who started preparing first, both in his plans for Batman in the main universe and in forming the Dark Knights. He made so many preparations, but before he could even launch them, how did they suddenly become useless?
???
Barbatos did not appear on that timeline because he had already become powerful enough that he would not intervene unless he chose to.
The problem is that, in that timeline, Parallax Morhal and Superman Supreme, who repeatedly reinstalled the system in the main universe of the multiverse, completely disrupted Barbatos's plans!
Let's see what they've been doing:
They tried to stop Batman's parents from dying, tried to stop Superman's Krypton from being destroyed, and tried to stop Aquaman Arthur's father from dying...
There's also The Flash's mom, Green Arrow's dad, and Martian Manhunter's family. This insane, forced "live the whole family" plan almost shattered DC's main universe.
Due to the underlying logic that crises are inevitable in the multiverse, even if Batman's parents escape Crime Alley, they will always die in different ways every few years. Even if Superman's Krypton doesn't explode due to brute force in a short time, it will eventually become a giant firework in the universe for various reasons.
This is why the World Forgers have always only wanted to forge their own multiverse, rather than trying to modify the multiverse created by their own mother. This is how it is designed from the bottom up, and it cannot be changed by brute force!
Moreover, Parallax Morhal and Superman Supreme's stubbornness far exceeded Barbatos's imagination. Most people would give up once they realized that no matter how they restarted the universe, some things were unchangeable. But the two of them were almost obsessed. Anyway, after I use brute force to modify the universe, I will maintain peace for a few years and then a crisis will occur. So I will just wait for the crisis to occur and then restart the universe again!
This incredibly "clever" plan made rebooting the universe as easy as eating and drinking. This would not only cause Bruce Wayne in the main universe to repeatedly experience the death of his parents in several reboots, but would also cause the entire multiverse to begin to decline.
Batman begins killing, Superman becomes extremely cold-blooded, and Martian Manhunter begins using his shapeshifting abilities to consolidate power...
The disappearance of the bright and moral aspects of heroes is direct evidence of the weakening immune system of the entire multiverse.
Although Barbatos wanted to invade the main universe, he only wanted to establish Barbatos's Order.
After he came under his command, the immune system superheroes of the entire multiverse would be reconstructed by him to become the force protecting him, Barbatos. However, Parallax Morhal and Superman Supreme's actions were completely aimed at destroying the multiverse!
Barbatos's authority and power come from the Dark Multiverse, which means that he is inextricably linked to the entire multiverse.
Forget about grand ambitions and dominance; they all went bankrupt on the spot. Barbatos didn't even bother to gnaw on the corpse of the World Forger; he simply stood up.
"Damn it!"
The DC universe was already severely weakened after the experiment conducted by Dr. Manhattan (who stole 10 years from the DC universe). It was as if a healthy person had been taken in for live experiments. Taking advantage of the weakened immune system of the multiverse, Barbatos originally thought this was a great opportunity to invade the main universe, but now it seems...
Barbatos tried to leave the Worldforge, but he couldn't. On this point alone, he didn't lie to the Antimonitor. Perhaps the Antimonitor thought it was just an excuse to avoid interrupting his absorption of the Worldforger's power, but the truth was far more complex than the Antimonitor imagined.
Barbatos' power comes from the World Forger, whose authority comes from forging the universe in the World Forge.
Only when Barbatos returns to its rightful place can Barbatos fully retain its immense power even after leaving the World Forge. Perhaps the World Forger can leave the World Forge at will, but Barbatos, who has not yet fully absorbed its power, cannot.
Even if he forcibly leaves the World Forge, his power will weaken to the extreme, so what's the use?
But the problem now is that the power of Barbatos's dragon has been split in two, one in the hands of Batman in that dark multiverse and the other in the hands of the Anti-Monitor, which puts Barbatos in a very passive position.
His first attempt was to inflict his own corruption on Batman, more corruption, so that if he could control him, he could merge Batman and the puppet controlled by the Anti-Monitor into one, becoming the complete Barbatos Dragon, thus filling the slot and releasing Barbatos.
In this way, Barbatos could intervene in that timeline of destruction, and even erase that timeline to plant more seeds of his rule over the main universe in the current timeline, pushing the future in that direction as much as possible.
then……
Barbatos's corruption struck a fatal blow against the golden will of numerous heroes.
"Batman swallowed all those heroes?" Barbatos then realized that the current Dark Multiverse Batman was practically a walking immune system.
He not only deceived the heroes who acted as the immune system, but also connected his mind with theirs. Even if Barbatos had the ability to crush the will of these heroes, it would be tantamount to going against the entire multiverse. The multiverse was already weakened by Parallax Morhal and Superman Supreme. If Barbatos killed the last immune cells...
Damn it, when did I, Barbatos, become the savior of the multiverse?
Despite Barbatos's thoughts, he couldn't actually do it. He was rational and had a plan; he couldn't just recklessly act like Hal and Superman.
"What do you really want, Batman?"
When Barbatos saw the grin spreading from Batman's completely dinosaur-like face to his ears, he knew something was wrong.
"I want you to relinquish your authority over the Barbatos Dragon, authority that originally belonged to you, but now you have something better."
"That's absolutely impossible. I'd rather the multiverse be destroyed."
Chen Tao's proposal was immediately and decisively rejected by Barbatos.
Chen Tao's meaning was simple: he demanded that Barbatos relinquish direct control over the "Dragon of Barbatos" and revert to the "Dark Multiverse Dragon" from the World Forger era. He openly told Barbatos that he wanted to usurp this divine status and become a god with complete free will.
This was absolutely intolerable to Barbatos.
Doesn't he know how he got to his position?
He was originally a dragon of the Dark Multiverse, and then turned against the World Forger.
If control over this position is relinquished, it would mean that Batman, who has become the dragon of the Dark Multiverse, could also turn against him. Wouldn't this be like Cao Wei first usurping the Han dynasty and then being usurped by Sima, handing over his lifeline to someone else? This discussion could have collapsed from the very beginning.
"I will never allow such a thing to happen, so you should give up on that idea now," Barbatos said. "The status of the Barbatos Dragon cannot be changed, but I can allow you to temporarily merge with the Anti-Monitor to form a complete status. Then I need you to travel through space to the World Forge to take my place and oversee things here, so I can step in and restore the shattered timeline of the future. You are a hero, and you must have the spirit of self-sacrifice."
"I am the villain."
"..."
"Barbatos, I will never allow myself to lose my free will and become your puppet. You must give me a chance to escape your control, otherwise everything I've done will have been meaningless!"
"I object!"
The anti-surveillance voice broke in, he was almost bursting with anger: "Barbatos, you dog, our previous deal was..."
Then Barbatos abruptly cut him off: "Now you're my dog!"
The anti-surveillance man was about to unleash a torrent of curses when his voice vanished from the connection between Chen Tao and Barbatos.
"I can completely hand over control of the body you will take after merging with the Anti-Monitor to you. Once you transform into the Barbatos Dragon and take my place in guarding the World Forge, I will leave there to suppress the destruction of future timelines."
Barbatos said, "Parallax Malfurion and Superman Supreme are indeed very strong, but they are not characters who should have originally appeared in the current timeline. I have the ability to deal with them, as long as I don't confront them directly."
Then the multiverse will be saved, and the timeline will be restored. I will allow you to relinquish your status as the Dragon Barbatos, taking with you a portion of the Anti-Monitor's antimatter energy and the heroes you devoured back to the matter universe. At that time, even I, suppressing the future timeline, will be powerless to stop you.
"You dare use my power to do me a favor?" The anti-surveillance power intervened again: "You filthy, insignificant, cowardly dog—"
His voice was cut off again. In the real world, the Anti-Monitor controlled the puppet, desperately trying to escape the three-way battle between Parallax Morhal and Superman Supreme, and charged furiously at Chen Tao, who was squatting by watching the battle.
"I'll kill you!"
"This deal makes perfect sense. Make your decision, Batman."
Barbatos said, "I've already made the biggest concession I can. If you still don't appreciate it..."
"I agree."
Barbatos was relieved; in fact, he had come out on top. By piecing together the future timeline, he could make his invasion and conquest much easier, even almost a certainty of victory.
Chen Tao was relieved. Look, Barbatos himself came up with a solution; he had complete faith in his own ideas.
First, propose a condition that Barbatos would never accept, and then let the other party come up with a condition of their own—this tactic may be crude, but fortunately, Barbatos doesn't have time to worry about it right now.
The anti-surveillance activist was relieved—he had been furious.
Everyone present got what they wanted, except for him, the Anti-Monitor, who was the only loser. He had invested too much, not only his body but also his brothers, and so much of his power!
He lunged at Batman recklessly, only to find himself unable to move. Barbatos had interfered with his actions. He had willingly become Barbatos's dog, and Barbatos's influence on him was far greater than on Batman.
Then he saw Batman crawl up behind him.
"No, damn it!"
The anti-monitor, its dragon-like bullet head turned to look at Chen Tao: "I'll remember you, I will..."
Immediately after Chen Tao straightened up, the two of them merged into one, like two lumps of melted wax mixing and fusing into a new form.
"very good."
Barbatos said.
He felt he had some control over Batman, but he deliberately relinquished it. He kept his promise, and Batman noticed.
"Open the portal to the World Forge, you surely know what to do."
Chen Tao nodded, then flapped his wings and began to fly towards the Supreme Superman and Parallax Demon Hal, who were facing off not far away.
"Yes, speed up."
Barbatos exclaimed, "The portal is open!"
As a massive golden portal lit up, traversing the infinite universe, the World Forge lay behind it.
Barbatos saw the Batman getting closer and closer.
Then he suddenly turned 180 degrees and slapped Parallax and Superman Supreme, who were still fighting, into the portal.
The deafening roar of their fierce battle instantly echoed within the World Forge. Barbatos, seeing the two gods appear in his home, gaped in disbelief.
"ha?"
Then he heard Batman's words.
"Go for it, Lord Barbatos, the savior of the world!!!"
(End of this chapter)