Volume 1: Welcoming Gotham Chapter 29 Since we are already friends...
In the underground hiding place at Pier 7 in Miller Harbor, Catwoman personally used the truth serum that she hated so much to interrogate the diehard member of the Penguin Gang.
Kite Man assisted and tried to get close to this "famous figure" in Gotham City's criminal circle.
Mason stood in the cleared sewer outside his hideout.
He found a quiet and dark place and held the scumbag Dark Mage's Eye of Hell in his hand. He didn't know where the scumbag black magician was now, but his voice was coming out from the small pendant:
"Your curse is really tricky. I even had to trick Xiao Zha into helping me. You bastard made me bear a debt of conscience, and this should also be included in my reward!
Did you hear that? "
"I despise you for cheating on your ex-girlfriend, and I doubt how you can feel guilty about something you don't even have."
Mason said rudely.
He knew that Zack was a man who would not give up until he saw the coffin, so he took out the magic book of Voldemort from the suitcase and held it in his hand. He removed the fingers covering the Eye of Hell and waved the magic book over the eyeball of the pendant.
He knew that Zha Kang could use this thing to see the environment he was in.
Sure enough, after the real thing was taken out, Zha Kang's impatient voice immediately became gentle and tolerant.
He explained:
"We will talk about your slander later, my dear friend, first let me talk about your curse. I am not exaggerating the difficulty of this job, it is indeed different from all the curses I have seen before.
I couldn't even get a hint from my friends who lived 'down there' and had to ask Zack for help.
She has a family tradition in this area.
Anyway, I found something similar in Xiaoza's library, which may explain the cause of your curse."
After whetting Mason's appetite, Constantine paused and then spoke:
"According to the 'Grimoire of the Underworld' in my hand, the tattoo on your arm must have come from the power of an evil god who is no weaker than the lords of the Nine Layers of Hell. Moreover, it must have come from another dimension and rarely appears in the dimension of our world.
I find it hard to understand why that kind of being would notice you.
But I must inform you with compassion that the ghost claw tattoo on your arm is just the 'beginning' of this evil god's curse."
"start?"
Mason frowned and said:
"What do you mean by start? Do you mean, will it change after that?"
"Yes, this is a rare 'growth curse'."
Zha Kang explained in a very academic tone:
"The ghost claw tattoo you see now only means that the evil god regards you as his 'follower' or 'pig in the farm'.
It depends on which statement is more easily accepted by your fragile self-esteem.
After meeting certain conditions , it will autonomously "evolve" to the next stage on your body. According to the rare examples I found here, the tattoo will become "complete" little by little.
It will show different degrees of the devil's torso and reflection in different stages until finally, a complete devil tattoo will appear on your arm.
If you reach that level, you can basically be regarded as a "son of the devil".
I know, kids your age might think that’s cool…”
"No! That's not cool!"
Mason interrupted Zha Kang and said:
"I know this is not a good thing even if I use my toes to think about it. Is there any way to solve it?"
"Why do you think with your toes when you have a brain?"
Zha Kang made an unfunny joke and said in a long voice:
"No, I have only found its type. I haven't even figured out its cause. Mason, as a serious magician, how can I dispel something I don't understand at all?
You have to give me some time.
Or a little motivation.
Actually, there are still some things I haven’t told you... you know."
"How can I give you something?"
Mason asked with a cold face, and the unscrupulous laughter of Zha Kang was heard from the other side.
Then, along with the sound of Zha Kang chanting strange spells, a ball of green firefly floating like a ghost fire appeared on the Hell's Eye collar pin and soon burned into a floating flaming hand.
It opened its five fingers towards Mason, as if asking for something.
The young man opened Voldemort's spellbook, opened it and tore off the first page, and placed the first page on the flaming hand amid Zha Kang's shouting.
As the flames faded, five fingers raised a middle finger and swore at Mason before exploding into a ball of fire.
Zha Kang was very unhappy and cursed:
“A magic book of that level is a rare magical item in itself. Each carefully crafted page has its own unique power. How can I use it now that you’ve torn it off?
You are an unlearned pharmacist!
Can you be more professional? "
"Well, that's your problem, not mine, Constantine."
Mason waved the locked magic book in his hand and said in a long voice imitating Zha Kang's tone:
"In order to protect this precious book from being destroyed by an unlearned bastard like me, you should speed up and get the original copy before its dark magic dissipates.
Tell me all about it! "
"Wait a minute, I need to distinguish the authenticity!"
Zha Kang said angrily:
"Do you think I've been around for nothing all these years? You can't be careless when dealing with a cunning guy like you. Give me a few minutes and I'll contact you later."
After saying this, the eyeball on the Hell's Eye lapel pin in Mason's hand closed.
The young man pulled up his sleeves in the dark and took a look at the ghost claw tattoo on his arm. Combined with what Zha Kang had just said, this thing seemed even more ominous.
He didn't know about the existence of this thing when he burned Old K's body, and he didn't check whether there was the same thing on Old K's left arm, but it was not difficult for him to guess that this growth curse itself should be one of the means used by the Stars to control or monitor their members.
The most troublesome thing is that the triggering method of this thing is unknown.
This made Mason feel constrained when doing things, for fear that he would accidentally break a taboo one day and lose his life in an instant.
"Boss, are you busy?"
The voice of Charles the Kite Man sounded from behind. Mason pulled down his sleeves, adjusted his expression, and turned back to say:
"What's wrong?"
"I found out."
The kite flyer came out of the darkness, his face uncertain, and whispered to Mason:
“The Veritaserum ran out, but it was worth it.
What they are planning is shocking. In addition to hunting you and Ms. Selina down at all costs, they are also gathering people to prepare for a prison break and rescue the Penguin.
It's not just the Gotham Police Department that has their people.
According to that guy, the Assassin's League already has a considerable number of vanguards infiltrating various places in Gotham, and the Penguin Gang has provided them with logistics and weapons.
A large number of the backbone members of the major gangs in Gotham that were previously destroyed by Batman have also been won over.
It is said that the Falcone family mafia is also in contact with the other party.
They also know that Batman is not in Gotham right now.
So they planned to release all the prisoners in Blackgate Prison after the prison break . If possible, they wanted to start a riot in Gotham to facilitate their larger-scale operations later."
"Prison break...when?"
Mason asked, rubbing his chin. Kite Man looked at him and said:
"Tomorrow night! The Penguin Gang will be responsible for storming the prison and diverting the police. The elite members of the Assassin's League will sneak into Blackgate Prison with enough weapons to arm all the prisoners and turn it into a temporary riot base."
"Tomorrow night..."
The young man's fingers moved, and he asked again:
"Can Catwoman contact Batman?"
"got engaged."
Speaking of this, the kite flyer was a little excited. He said:
"I was listening in, and Batman said he would be back as soon as possible before the riot, but he also said that the Bat-Family members in Gotham would help until he got back."
"That means the master may not be able to come back on time?"
Mason's eyes suddenly lit up.
"master?"
Kite Man was surprised at the special name the boss gave to Batman.
But if you think about it carefully, there is actually nothing wrong with this slightly exaggerated title. Considering Batman's status in Gotham, there is nothing wrong with calling him "Master".
"Do you have a plan, Boss?"
Charles asked, Mason glanced at his suitcase, nodded, and said:
“Perhaps we don’t have to wait until the riots start before trying to turn the tide. Perhaps we can end this catastrophe with simpler and more violent methods.
But Batman must not know.
He would never like the way we acted, so the key to the problem is timing! The right time is very important, and there must be a reasonable ending to avoid getting into trouble.
let me think again.
You go take care of that guy."
"oh."
The Kite Man nodded, pulled out a pistol from his waist and loaded it with a click.
Although he is not a vicious person, as a well-known third-tier villain in Gotham City, Charles has no psychological pressure to execute a veteran gangster who has committed many crimes.
But when he turned to leave, Mason stopped him.
"Don't use bullets, use these!"
The young man took out a bag of colorful potions from his bag. These were the "accidental products" from his previous alchemy practice. He handed the potions of strange colors to the kite flyer and said:
"I don't know their exact effects, so perhaps the gangster boss who is loyal to Oswald can help me explore the mysteries of alchemy.
You need to record the entire process and the specific effects of the medicine.
They are all primary potions, and their effectiveness and duration of action will not exceed thirty minutes.
So it is tentatively scheduled to be one hour per round. Remember to rinse his mouth every time to avoid affecting the experimental results."
"Well……"
The Kite Man looked at the strangely colored medicines in his hand. He couldn't help but shudder and whispered:
"Isn't this a bit inhumane?"
"It's not poison!"
Mason glared and scolded:
"Am I the kind of heartless bastard who takes human life lightly? Don't worry, these things will at most make him seriously ill, but it won't be a big deal."
"All right."
Kite Man had no intention of arguing with his boss. He took the potion and walked away, leaving Mason alone in the dark, thinking.
After several minutes, the eyeball of the Hell's Eye collar pin that he was playing with in his hand opened again.
Zha Kang's voice also rang out, as stubborn as ever:
"I saw that vicious thing called a Horcrux , it's just like that, just average."
"Oh, you are not satisfied?"
Mason pouted and said:
"So I burned this book as firewood?"
"up to you."
Zha Kang snorted.
Mason could even imagine from his nasal voice that this guy was scratching his ears.
For a master of dark magic at his level, the Horcrux itself might indeed be an unorthodox method that is not worth mentioning, but he definitely needs the forbidden technique that can safely divide the soul.
Only strength has different levels of strength, but knowledge has no such distinction.
"Okay, I'm barely satisfied with this deal, so listen carefully to what I'm going to say next."
Zha Kang coughed and said seriously:
"The curse doesn't actually bring you all bad things. Although the evil gods don't care much about the lives of their followers, if they create such a curse in order to recruit followers, they will often give the followers a little 'sweetness' while inflicting the curse, in order to win over those with weak wills.
In other words , you have now been cursed, and in theory you also have a share of the 'blessing' of the curser.
But I've really never encountered this kind of curse before, so it's hard for me to give you specific advice on how to stimulate that power. If you can, you need to meet with me in the near future.
I'm going to run a few tests on you to verify this."
"Want to meet?"
Mason narrowed his eyes suddenly when he heard this suggestion. He wiped his arm and was silent for a few seconds. He seemed to have made up his mind, and then he said to Zha Kang:
"Sure, I'll be in Gotham for a long time, so come over whenever it's convenient for you. Remember to let me know in advance so I can arrange a place where I won't be disturbed by others."
"Oh, you are really underestimating me, the master of magic, Mason."
Zha Kang immediately boasted:
"As for your Gotham, I can come and go as I please..."
"You know, I'm being watched by Batman."
Mason's words were the winning move, and Zack immediately shut up. At the same time, curses of "Fuck Batman" were heard from the other side.
After a few seconds, Zha Kang's tone changed and he continued:
"Speaking of Batman, has he not been in Gotham recently?"
"Why do you ask that?"
Mason asked back.
Zha Kang had nothing to hide and said directly:
"I hate that guy. He refuses to allow any outside heroes to enter his Gotham as if it were his own garden. He also treats us academic researchers as thieves. What a disgusting guy.
However, the city of Gotham is one of the earliest immigrant cities on this continent, and the pioneers hundreds of years ago were not just ordinary people.
Many spellcasters who fled from Europe and other parts of the world left their secrets here.
As far as I know, there are actually a lot of great things buried underground in Gotham, but because of Batman, I can't get close to them.
Mason, we're already friends, right?
Just tell me, did Batman leave his city?"
"Where are all those things you mentioned?"
Mason asked, and Zha Kang snorted and said:
“There are many places, such as the abandoned Gotham Orphanage, the underground of Nahe Island, near Blackgate Prison, and Arkham Asylum on the outskirts of the city. Places where supernatural events often occur often have this kind of thing.
But I don’t recommend you go looking for them, you’re not a professional.”
"Well, is there one near Blackgate Prison?"
The young man was stunned for a moment, then grinned and said to Zha Kang:
“Well, since we are already friends, I will reveal some inside information to you, Constantine. According to my contact with Nightwing, Batman is indeed not in Gotham.
But he is already on his way back and will definitely be back by midnight tomorrow at the latest.
So if you want to dig for treasure in Batman's backyard, do it quickly.
Also, I think this information is enough to repay you and Zack for saving me from the dark wizard's cage that night, so don't use this matter to threaten me in the future."
"Who are you? You're just calling my girlfriend by her nickname?"
Zha Kang scolded in dissatisfaction:
"Be a little respectful, okay? You can't call someone Xiao Zha! Bastard...Oh, honey, stop knocking, I'll be out of the bathroom right away! Yes, yes, I know we're going to have dinner soon, wait a moment.
That's all for now, Mason.
Next chat!"
After saying that, Constantine interrupted the magic, and the eyeball of the Eye of Hell in front of Mason closed strangely. The young man inserted the collar pin into his collar, picked up the suitcase beside him and turned to his hiding place.
As he walked out of the darkness Mason touched the pin on his collar and thought:
"Zha Kang's appetite will only grow bigger and bigger. I don't have that many resources to fill the black hole in his heart, so I have to think of a way to make Zha Kang feel the pressure and move himself.
Well, since we are already friends...
Then please take the blame for me and allow me to take up a little of your time to introduce you to the glorious Star Club, my dear John."
