Chapter 276: A Sharp Turn in the Plot (1)


    A gray light appeared before Batman''s eyes, followed by Schiller''s voice. Just like before, it seemed as if Schiller could see what Batman was thinking. Schiller said to Batman, "I pull everyone''s consciousness into a dream, and then attract the Ring of Lights by amplifying their emotions in the dream state..."


    "But the Rings of Power can only be imed with the consent of the host. Once their consciousness is pulled into the deep dream space, the Rings of Power will realize that the physical bodies they found are devoid of consciousness. To find the consciousness of the hosts, they must enter the dream. As a result, the true essence of the Rings of Power cannot enter, only their powers can."


    "In this way, these people haven''t actually worn the rings. They only gain the power of the Rings of Power. Ibine these powers together to create a new power source in the dream world and bring forth new Ring Beasts..."


    "But keep in mind, this is limited to the dream space. This gray ring has no physical form, so it won''t have any effect in the real world. Once you wake up from your dream, it will be as if nothing happened."


    "Or you could say that this isn''t a recognized new ring because it was merely a dream we had."


    "So, what''s the use of it?" Batman asked.


    "Now, the Laughing Egg that you''re up against can nourish itself using the dark energy deep within you, thus greatly elerating its hatching process. Meanwhile, you have very little power to draw upon."


    "As this continues, once that monster hatches and kills you, it will take over your body and even venture into the real world."


    "But with the gray ring that has absorbed the energies of various other rings, it can provide you with energy to counterbnce it..."Batman slowly extended his hand, and the gray light flew toward it. Before he put on the ring, he asked, "I heard Hal say that each ring represents an emotion. So, what does this ring represent?"


    "Intangible, ambiguous, all-epassing... chaos."


    The moment the gray ring touched Batman''s finger, his entire body was enveloped inyers of gray mist. The massive gray dragon that emerged from the power battery let out a thunderous roar, shaking the entire realm of consciousness, as it pped its wings and soared overhead.


    Suddenly, Batman felt a mysterious connection between himself and the dream dragon. With a single thought, the gray dragon flew towards the Laughing Demon of Fear.


    The Dream Dragon guided countless gray mists that followed in its wake, while the Laughing Demon was apanied by an endless tide of darkness. When the two forces collided, they created an incredibly bright explosion, followed by countless massive ripples expanding outward.


    This immense and intense battle was no longer within the control of one or two individuals. The consciousness of everyone else retreated to the edge of the dream.


    Since the power of the rings was consumed by the gray mist, the light emanating from the others vanished. However, Victor''s tone remained rxed. He said, "Fortunately, it didn''tst long. In fact, that power gave me a peculiar feeling..."


    "What kind of feeling?" Schiller asked him.


    "It''s like something is observing me, or rather, it wants to control me and make a certain emotion within me erupt."


    "That''s normal because the rings originate from the emotional spectrum. The emotional energy within you canplement the energy of the rings."


    "Hey, I mean, what''s going on here?" Hal walked over and interrupted Schiller and Victor''s conversation, and the green light surrounding him also disappeared.


    Hal''s tone carried a hint of panic as he said, "What did you do to me? Why did my Green Lantern energy disappear?"


    "I just absorbed all the energy from the ring you''re currently wearing. You can recharge itter in thentern battery."


    Hearing that the power wasn''t permanently gone, Hal breathed a sigh of relief, but Schiller''s next words left him silent: "Don''t you think you''re a little too dependent on this power? Are you the one controlling it, or is it controlling you?"


    At this point, the battle on the field became increasingly intense, shifting from a physically visible fight to a more mysterious contest of spirit and will.


    In the midst of the battlefield, a swirling tornado in the shape of a spindle emerged, created by the gray mist representing Batman and the ck tide representing the Joker. Within this massive whirlwind, Batman and the Joker''s essence engaged in a mental duel.


    At present, Batman found himself at a disadvantage. Not only did he have to restrain the monster''s actions and attack its physical form, but he also had to divert some of his power to suppress the monster that was about to hatch from the embryo. Batman''s sharp intuition warned him that once the monster fully hatched, it would be all over.


    Consequently, a strand of gray mist tightly wrapped around the just-extended hand, striving to force it back into the shell. Another portion of the mist enveloped the eggshell, continuously thickening its outer wall.


    As the battle reached a stalemate, the swirling tornado carried a wisp of gray mist that came into contact with the tail end of the Joker''s body. In that moment, Batman, connected to the consciousness of the gray mist, felt an emotional transmission in his mind.


    It was a brainwave containing information, albeit chaotic. Batman managed to decipher the message behind the brainwave: "I am Parax, and I want to cooperate with you..."


    Quickly, Batman inferred what was happening. Clearly, Parax had never intended to cooperate with the Laughing Spawn.


    Although Parax was a chaotic creature with a thinking process vastly different from that of humans, its inability to act independently resulted in prolonged interaction with humanoid intelligent beings, fostering a sense of understanding.


    Parax could be seen as a different form of symbiote. Without a host, it couldn''t stay in the real world for long. It had to reside within a host from the Yellow Lantern Corps, one possessing independent intelligence and consciousness, enabling it to move freely within the host''s mental space.


    However, when a third consciousness entered the host''s mind, Parax would undoubtedly feel difort. It was akin to a pet dog sharing a house with its owner but being unable to ept the neighbor''s dog moving in.


    Moreover, this neighboring dog had suppressed its consciousness, seized control of its body, and bestowed upon it an unsightly appearance.


    This embodiment of fear, the ancient creature, grew unexpectedly furious. Regardless of how it might have interacted with the host in the future, at that moment, it solely desired to eliminate the monster that had encroached upon its territory, alongside the host''s consciousness.


    Batman and Parax maintained continuousmunication through the gray mist, but their orderly human thinking and the chaotic creature''s thought process were onpletely different wavelengths. Despite lengthymunication, they only managed to establish a preliminary intent to cooperate,cking any concrete n.


    Just then, Schiller''s voice echoed in Batman''s ear:


    "The use of the Gray Lantern ring goes beyond harnessing its energy; it is crucial to tap into the power of the dream rules."


    "The power of the dream rules?"


    "Indeed, it refers to the ability to make wishese true."


    "I know that in dreams, you can make anything you wante true. But you and the Laughing Egg are both masters of this dream. You are two sides of the same coin. You want to make him die with your thoughts, and he wants to make you die with his thoughts. At this point, the two of you can onlypete with your willpower."


    "But here''s the thing, he was carved out of your body. You are him, and he is you. So theoretically, he has the same willpower as you. If you continue to stalemate like this, you won''t be able topletely eliminate his existence, and he won''t be able to eliminate yours."


    "So what?"


    "I connected my dream with yours, and using my thinking hall and the energy of other Light Rings, I created the Gray Lantern Ring. This ring represents my conscious space."


    "In other words, when you use this Gray Lantern Ring, it''s like the superposition of my will and your will. With it, you have enough power to erase this embryonic existence..."


    Batman squinted his eyes. He understood Schiller''s words.


    Originally, the battle between him and the Laughing Egg was like a contest between his left hand and right hand. They were the same person, so there wasn''t much difference in strength and willpower.


    The Laughing Egg could tap into Batman''s dark side, like it was his dominant hand. It had slightly more muscle strength than Batman, but not by much. So when Batman used the energy from the Gray Lantern Ring to fight against the ck Tide, they reached a stalemate.


    And now, if Batman''s and Schiller''s wills werebined, it would be like using one hand to hold down the other while a kitchen knife appeared out of thin air, chopping off the held hand. It provided a crucial element that could determine the oue of the battle.


    Those watching from the sidelines suddenly saw the spindle-shaped tornado growingrger. The ck Tide and gray mist became thinner, revealing the situation in the middle.


    They saw that the crack on the monster''s Overhead embryo, facing Batman, was getting bigger. The pale hand extended tentatively, soon followed by the front half, elbow, and upper arm.


    "What''s happening? Is it about to hatch? Is Batman losing?"


    Schiller shook his head. "Batman is letting it hatch. That''s all he can do. The eggshell isn''t just a limit for the monster, it''s also its protective shell. If it only extends one hand, Batman''s attacks won''t be fatal. We have to wait for the cracks on the eggshell to be bigger."


    While they were speaking, the monster''s arm waspletely stretched out, followed by its head. Batman saw a pale head with spiked goggles on the eyes and a wide grin. At that moment, the head was rubbing against the thin membrane inside the embryo, close to fully emerging.


    Suddenly, the entire conscious space began to shake. Dense gray mist, as substantial as matter, descended from the head of the embryo. The moment it touched the hatching monster, the monster''s form began disappearing into thin air.


    It was as if the monster had been frozen in a picture on paper and was gradually being erased, starting from the head.


    However, the monster quickly realized what Batman was trying to do and fiercely resisted. The erasing process slowed down. At the same time, it struggled and tore at the membrane on top of its head.


    But then, the Parax Monster betrayed the monster, simultaneously contending for control inside its body. The Laughing Egg''s actions momentarily stalled due to Parax''s interference. In that moment, half of its arm and half of its head were wiped clean.


    Everything happened silently, yet everyone could perceive the intensity of the battle. Hal held his breath, afraid that any noise he made would disrupt the fight.


    The gray mist above the monster''s head grew thicker, and Batman closed his eyes, focusing all his attention. He maximized his willpower as the gray mist seeped into the cracks of the monster''s shell, erasing its body.


    The Parax continued to interfere with the monster, causing its movements to pause intermittently. Soon, the exposed arm and most of the body inside the eggshell werepletely wiped away.


    At that moment, realizing its imminent defeat, the monster emitted a scream resembling a maniacalughter, and the entire dream began to copse.


    "He''s run out of tricks, it seems he wants to go down with a fight." Schiller''s tone remained calm, showing no sense of urgency as if a crisis was approaching. He turned to the others and said, "Follow me into my realm of thoughts. In case this ce copses, I''ll find a way to send you out."


    After the figures of the others vanished, only Batman and the monster remained in the dream space.


    Finally, Batman and the Parax worked together tounch a relentless assault. Once thest remaining half of the monster''s head vanished, the dream world began to crumble entirely.


    Unbeknownst to Batman, whose spirit and will had been depleted, the yellow body of the Joker, apart from his head, started shrinking rapidly until it disappeared into the partially intact eggshell left behind by the Joker''sughter.


    The gray ring on Batman''s finger autonomously flew off, making its way towards the towering central tower in Gotham.


    Simultaneously, a yellow-glowing egg, carried by the turbulent currents of the dream, drifted to the entrance of the tower.


    Schiller put on the gray ring and sensed the chaotic consciousness emanating from the egg. He paused for a moment before deciding to ce the egg inside the tower.


    Then, Schiller raised his arm, and the gray mist grew incredibly dense.


    At the moment when the dreampletely copsed, Schiller''s voice resonated, "Return to reality."


    The entire tower, apanied by the pervasive gray fog, vanishedpletely from the crumbling debris filled with turbulent currents.


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