Unknown “He”

"This is…"

Zhang Ye’s gaze sharpened, disbelief flashing through his eyes.

The pitch-black Batarang had no reflection whatsoever. Reflected in Zhang Ye’s pupils, he stared at the weapon forged from extraordinary materials, and an inexplicable unease rose within him.

Of course, he knew what this thing represented.

It was the fear that spread from Crime Alley, the lingering regret wandering the depths of dreams, and the shadow hanging over all evil as it pronounced judgment in the name of justice.

Pietro and Kara both fell silent, turning their gazes toward the wordless Zhang Ye. Though they did not know what he was thinking, they knew it was best not to disturb him now.

Batarangs were not exactly rare across the many universes of the Multiverse, but their most famous representative was undoubtedly Batman.

The moment he saw the Batarang, Zhang Ye knew it was no imitation. There were no Batman comics in this Marvel Universe, so it was unlikely that someone had been copying a superhero from another world.

But for that very reason, the appearance of this Batarang seemed exceptionally strange.

It should not have been here.

At least, not under normal circumstances.

"Did you find this inside the cave?" Zhang Ye asked, his tone grave.

"Yes. It was embedded deep in the wall, and it looked like it had been there for some time," Kara replied. "Maybe someone left it behind while trying to kill that monster. I can’t be sure."

Zhang Ye nodded, then shifted his gaze to the dried, hardened bloodstains still clinging to the Batarang.

Perhaps some useful DNA could be extracted from it, possibly even clues to its owner’s identity. But Zhang Ye did not think that would be useful. If the person who used the Batarang truly came from another universe, then even DNA would not reveal his identity.

"Could it have been Bruce? I remember you saying there was only one Batman in the Multiverse. This was obviously left behind by him," Pietro ventured.

"It’s not that simple." Zhang Ye shook his head slightly. It was true that there was only one Batman, but the entire Bat-Family used Batarangs. Zhang Ye could not determine the other party’s identity, and besides…

"And if it really was Batman, do you think this mutant would still be alive? Bruce Wayne was ruthless when dealing with monsters that had lost their humanity."

"Could this unknown Batman have lost? That mutant looked pretty strong, especially against an ordinary person—"

Pietro trailed off under the stares of Zhang Ye and Kara.

For some reason, Pietro had always looked down on Batman. Perhaps the old Batman from the Flashpoint world had left him with the impression of a drunkard. But neither Zhang Ye nor Kara thought Batman was that weak. After all, he had utterly crushed General Zod while dragging around an aged body, even if General Zod had been severely weakened.

"Fine, fine, but Batman could have been injured, right? If he was hurt and unfamiliar with this world, then it was possible for him to lose too, wasn’t it?" Pietro argued.

"If Batman did not have absolute certainty, he would not act." Zhang Ye’s voice was low.

This was not blind faith on Zhang Ye’s part. Everyone in the Bat-Family treated caution as their creed. They might be ordinary people; they could take one wrong step and fall badly, or be ambushed and end up confined to a wheelchair.

But every hardship only made them more cautious than before. They would think and reflect, especially after arriving in an unfamiliar environment. Unless success was guaranteed or they had no other choice, they would never expose themselves in broad daylight.

Zhang Ye now understood why Kara had been angry. Someone who used Batarangs had appeared here, yet the beast still survived. That meant only two possible outcomes.

The first was that the person suspected of being Batman had misjudged the situation. He had thought he killed the beast, but he had not. The beast had fortunately fooled him with a feigned death and cautiously survived until now.

But that possibility was far too low. If the other party truly was Batman, then there was no way the beast could have escaped through a fake death. Batman would probably have cut it into several pieces to make sure it was truly dead.

At the same time, if the beast had merely survived by luck, it should have known that its lair was no longer safe. A powerful person out there already knew the location of its base. If news of its survival got out, that person could return at any moment to take its life.

No matter how stupid or inhuman the beast was, it should still possess basic intelligence. It would not allow someone capable of threatening its life to wander outside while it calmly continued living in an exposed lair.

So…

There was only one most likely outcome.

The person from another universe who used Batarangs had already been killed.

He might even have perished here to some unknown danger long before Zhang Ye and the others arrived in this world. If they had not come here, all traces of his existence in this world would have vanished into history, unnoticed by anyone.

"What a pity."

Zhang Ye let out a soft sigh. His feelings were complicated.

"What did you think of?" Pietro turned his head slightly.

After a pause, Zhang Ye reached out and lightly tapped the Batarang. His nail struck the metal with a crisp sound. Dark green magical energy danced across its smooth surface, giving off a faint glow in the dim illusion.

"What a pity. I still can’t refine the Eye of the Watcher into a magical artifact. Otherwise, with the Watcher’s eye that could perceive the world, perhaps I could ‘see’ the identity of this Batarang’s owner."

The Eye of the Watcher was immensely powerful. It was something beyond the ordinary existences of the Marvel Universe. Its ability to see through the "nature of space" could ignore the barriers of reality. Even if the target came from another world, they would still have nowhere to hide beneath that eye’s gaze.

But activating it was no easy task, and Zhang Ye could not yet do so. Perhaps once he restored its energy, he would be able to complete that step.

The appearance of the Batarang made Zhang Ye’s heart pound. The implications it carried were far too great. It was not just the other party’s identity—even the fact that someone from the DC Universe could come to the Marvel Universe was enough to make Zhang Ye take this seriously.

Who exactly was "he"?

How had "he" come here?

Most importantly…

Was "he" the only one?