With the talisman confirmed to be in order, Bai Qi put it away and looked at Batman, saying, "Alright, you can let Nabu out now."
Batman remained unmoved, replying, "I've already shown my sincerity. Now it's your turn to show yours."
"Oh?" Bai Qi raised an eyebrow, forming hand seals as he asked, "What sincerity do you want?"
"I want to see Superman first, to confirm his safety."
Bai Qi said nothing more, waving his hand. Shadows enveloped the top floor of the Empire State Building, and the unconscious Superman was brought out, escorted by four Shadow Ninjas.
There was no sunlight in the Shadow Kingdom. Once Superman was brought into it, he could no longer accelerate his body's recovery by absorbing sunlight. Three days had passed. Relying on his powerful physique, he had undoubtedly improved compared to before, but he still looked gaunt and sallow, his head drooping, unconscious.
The reason for this was largely that the iron chain binding Superman was made of Kryptonite.
Yes, Kryptonite.
Although primordial Kryptonite had become extremely rare with the destruction of Krypton, and even fewer had fallen to Earth, they had the exceptionally intelligent Mr. Lex Luthor. Driven by his obsession with Superman, he had managed to develop artificial Kryptonite. While its effects were inferior to the primordial version and its manufacturing cost was not low, as long as one had money and sufficient materials and technology, artificial Kryptonite could be produced in any quantity, just like now.
As Batman saw Superman and instinctively took two steps forward, several Shadow Ninjas appeared, blocking his path.
"This won't do, Mr. Batman. I've shown my sincerity, but you've failed it, haven't you."
As the words fell, the sound of fighting echoed from the darkness not far away, followed by a Troll Ninja emerging, carrying a subdued Damian.
"We agreed you'd come alone, but now you've brought helpers, and a group of children at that. I must say, Batman, your judgment is deteriorating."
The reason Bai Qi dared to openly announce the trading location was that he wasn't afraid of Batman bringing people to set up a rescue beforehand. After all, the Empire State Building was firmly under Bai Qi's control.
This place originally belonged to the former underground emperor, Kingpin. After Kingpin's death, Bai Qi's confidant, Ironhead, took over and became the new underground emperor.
To be honest, in many respects, Ironhead's abilities were far inferior to Kingpin's. But in one aspect, Ironhead had pleased Bai Qi immensely: loyalty. His absolute loyalty to Bai Qi was enough.
Bai Qi had initially thought that Batman would send members of the Justice League for backup. This would not only prevent accidents but might even allow him to rescue Superman and reclaim the Helmet of Fate while Bai Qi was distracted.
To this end, Bai Qi had warned Ironhead early on to be vigilant about strangers during these days, to maintain an outward laxity but inner tightness. If members of the Justice League dared to come, they were to be captured all at once.
Ironhead took Bai Qi's orders very seriously. He not only quietly upgraded the security within and outside the Empire State Building but also recalled many scattered gang members, disguising them as ordinary people or employees and dispersing them throughout the building and the surrounding plaza.
Most importantly, Ironhead's most capable subordinates, the Evil Seven, put down their other tasks and gathered in the building.
But who would have thought that Batman wouldn't call upon the League's superheroes for assistance, but instead brought a group of children? Yes, it was several members of the Teen Titans, led by Robin Damian, including Superboy Conner, Miss Martian Megan, Kid Flash Wally, Artemis, Wonder Girl, the rebooted Blue Beetle, and Beast Boy. The lineup was quite impressive.
It was likely that Batman had the Teen Titans participate instead of calling the League for a simple reason. After all, Doctor Fate Nabu was a member of the League. Regardless of Nabu's reputation within the League or how many friends he had, betraying a League member would undoubtedly chill many to the bone.
Therefore, it was best to let outsiders, meaning the Teen Titans, handle such matters.
Unfortunately, the Teen Titans' experience in covert operations was still too shallow. They thought their infiltration was seamless, unaware that they had long been discovered. The Evil Seven, one for each of them, had them completely handled.
The captured Damian tried to transmit a message to his teammates via radio, but before he could speak, a Shadow Ninja's fist descended. Then, it cleanly removed the radio from his ear; however, it was not destroyed. After all, one person suddenly going offline was tantamount to transmitting a warning of danger to their teammates.
The cunning Shadow Ninja preserved the radio and took it to Ironhead's office.
There, Chameleon was already waiting.
He took the radio, put it on his ear, and then lightly flicked his belt, transforming into Damian's appearance.
His gaze returned to the rooftop.
Seeing Damian captured, no matter how calm Batman was, there would be some emotional fluctuation.
"Don't rush."
Bai Qi waved his hand, and the Troll Ninja holding Damian slowly merged back into the darkness.
"This is because you broke our agreement first. Since that's the case, I can only make some necessary choices. Once I have the Helmet of Fate, I will release your son. Rest assured, I am not like you humans. Demons are the most trustworthy."
Batman did not believe Bai Qi's words, but at this point, what could he do even if he didn't believe them? The hostage was in the opponent's hands. Not only would he risk Damian being harmed by a frontal assault, but he was also no match for Bai Qi in terms of strength. He could only acquiesce.
"Fine," Batman said, taking out a remote for a Boom Tube. "I'll open a Boom Tube. Whether you can get the Helmet of Fate depends on yourself."
With that, regardless of whether Bai Qi was ready or not, Batman decisively pressed the switch. Circles of Boom Tube energy lit up consecutively, connecting to form a Boom Tube.
Less than three seconds after the Boom Tube formed, Doctor Fate Nabu burst out from within, quickly establishing a vantage point in the air. He clasped his hands together and sent a magical greeting towards Bai Qi.
Although Bai Qi easily dispersed the sudden magical beam, he realized Batman's malicious intent at this moment.
Bai Qi's original intention was to use Superman as bait to make Batman fight Nabu, and then hand over the helmet to him. But he hadn't expected Batman to come alone, without regard for Superman's safety.
Perhaps he had calculated that Bai Qi wouldn't harm him or Superman, but there was nothing that could be done. At this point, Bai Qi could only settle for the next best thing and agree to Batman's proposal, to deal with Nabu himself.