Chapter 5775: Chapter 4798: Murderous Intent on a Rainy Night (5)

It really is like this. When Arkham Batman ran up the spiral staircase and looked back, he saw Shiller just opening the door to enter. This made Batman realize that the game’s balance was rather meticulously designed, with the ghosts seemingly getting stuck by various things, giving them time to escape.

"Playing with doors" is a good tactic, which made Arkham Batman decide to circle around Shiller in the castle. There were many doors here, and also many obstacles, which should slow him down in the real world.

He sprinted up to the third floor, randomly chose a room to hide in, and didn’t linger in the bedroom for long. Instead, he rushed to the balcony and started checking the camera. The balcony was a good place to either attack or retreat — if Shiller entered from the room, he would jump down; if he saw him outside, he would retreat into the house.

Picking up the camera again, Arkham Batman’s view interface showed a new photo, depicting Shiller walking to the door with a knife. There was also a skill icon and some descriptions on the photo:

"Bloodthirsty Blade: After hitting a tracked target for the first time, gain 30 Frenzy Hunting Points; if this hit triggers the ’God of Frenzy Hunt’ state, cancel the next ’Hunting Mark’ skill cooldown, with a 50% speed bonus and a 20% damage bonus; if the previous target is hit again, ignore all of their damage immunity effects and blood volume, putting them in a dying state."

Arkham Batman looked at the camera for a long time and let out a deep sigh. No wonder it took so long to load. Doctor Manhattan must have carefully examined Shiller’s abilities to write this exhaustive set of skills for him.

Even with just this skill description, Arkham Batman could see that the ghost’s skills seemed to be much richer than the humans’, at least Arkham Batman had no energy bar for something like frenzy hunting.

As it currently stands, Shiller should be using the "Hunting Mark" to track down the desired prey, slice it once caught, which accumulates Frenzy Hunting Points; once enough has been accumulated, he can unleash his ultimate, with increased speed and damage; and once two successive slices are made, the second slice will be fatal.

Just now, Shiller must have activated "Bloodthirsty Blade," rushed to Black Widow, and struck her with a blade, gaining just enough points to activate the frenzy and attempt two quick strikes. But the pair reacted quickly and broke it immediately. If the second blade had struck, Black Widow would have been dead.

However, the skill description says "dying," which means that a death shouldn’t lead to an immediate game exit, perhaps leaving some chances for recovery, which is somewhat gracious of the planners.

But Arkham Batman was also puzzled: if the ultimate can be so easily interrupted, then ghosts aren’t actually advantaged. After painstakingly accumulating points, a small skill could interrupt it, and the doors and obstacles also slow them significantly, which is unfair for the ghost.

Arkham Batman was convinced that Shiller must have more than this one skill set, otherwise, the elevator wouldn’t have loaded for that long. He still couldn’t let his guard down.

Arkham Batman examined the camera again, and after opening it, there was a 10-minute countdown, likely a cooldown time; and the skill he just used also had a 12-minute cooldown, much longer than the other two puzzle-solving skills. He still needed to be cautious and avoid being caught by Shiller with an empty skill period.

Arkham Batman was worried since Shiller had already sought Black Widow, which perhaps indicated that Number 1 had already died. Initially thinking that death meant game over, it now seemed that even if hacked to death, there might still be hope. Arkham Batman pondered whether to find Number 1 and see if they could be saved.

Just then, a figure jumped to his side; it was Scarlet Spider-Man. Arkham Batman quickly handed the found photo to him, then said, "Go check around this window for any clues."

Scarlet Spider-Man took it, raised an eyebrow, then said, "I’ve seen this window on the second floor of the east tower. But it’s very narrow, and if encountered, there’s no way to run."

After a moment’s hesitation, Arkham Batman said, "I’ll go with you. I have puzzle-solving acceleration skills, and you keep watch while I solve it. If he arrives, you run." 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Scarlet Spider-Man nodded, saying, "But I already know I’m not Number 1, but Number 2. He probably won’t rush to kill me."

Arkham Batman’s heart sank: so now Number 1 could only be Rorschach or Constantine. Either of them being Number 1 was terrible news, as they likely couldn’t stall Shiller effectively. No wonder Shiller quickly went after Natasha.

But after another thought, Natasha was Number 4, so logically they should have sought out Scarlet Spider-Man, Number 2, first, or was it merely a coincidence running into her?

In that case, he couldn’t let Spider-Man guard the door; otherwise, it would be more likely to draw Shiller here. He told Scarlet Spider-Man, "Number 1 may have already fallen, you are likely his target now. Can you hold him off for a while?"

"No problem, I’ll lead him westward. You hurry up and solve the puzzle." Scarlet Spider-Man nodded.

Arkham Batman appreciated his straightforward nature, but he still reminded him: "Don’t let him hit you with a second blade; if you can’t hold on, run back to me, I have control skills."

Scarlet Spider-Man nodded and then left. Arkham Batman headed towards the eastern tower. That location was fairly easy to find because it extended from the third floor; he just needed to walk all the way to the far left on the third floor, enter the door, and then go up the narrow spiral staircase.

Arkham Batman was cautious, not surprising when he’s strategizing against the air—who knew if Shiller would restart the frenzy hunt? The speed earlier was truly terrifying, covering approximately 100 yards in less than two seconds; the blade itself was about 15 yards long. Essentially, the moment he stepped forward, the blade was already at his face. It was absolutely unsettling.

Arriving at the door, this place actually required a key. Arkham Batman sighed deeply: Doctor Manhattan, well done, but please don’t tell me the key is in a box that requires solving math problems.

It turned out he was right. This time, instead of math problems, it was spot-the-difference. Beside the door to the tower, there was another door with the same pattern overlay, but it could be pushed open. Inside was a library, with large bookshelves covering three walls. Arkham Batman needed to identify the differences in each row of shelves, pull the books out, and finally found the key behind one bookshelf.

Although such puzzles can’t be sped up, Arkham Batman had the "important clue flying" skill, which could be used on books as well. He solved it in less than two minutes. But just as he stepped out of this door, he looked through the atrium on the third floor and saw the black figure entering from the main entrance.

Arkham Batman also held his breath. Despite his rapid movements, could Spider-Man not hold for even five minutes?

Still, Spider-Man’s high mobility indicates his frontal combat capability isn’t that strong; most of the time, he must avoid battles. Having him face Shiller upfront was too challenging.

But as Shiller stepped in, Arkham Batman smelled not only the moist rain but also a strong scent of blood. He didn’t think too much of it, as Shiller’s aggressive manner earlier was unforgettable; not getting smeared with blood would be odd. The scent of blood was quite normal.

Arkham Batman hurriedly used the key to open the door and went inside. Although he had time to run now, if Shiller initiated a big move earlier, his points wouldn’t be enough. As long as there isn’t a fatal strike, Arkham Batman can find ways to maneuver.

He quickly ran up the narrow spiral staircase to the top floor of the tower and, sure enough, in the room at the top, he saw the bizarrely patterned window. More miraculously, the room contained a magic array.

Arkham Batman sighed, hoping he doesn’t have to find any items to place there, knowing Shiller was probably almost at the tower now. If he spent time looking for items, he’d likely turn into sashimi.

Fortunately, the game balance was decent. As soon as Arkham Batman stepped into the magic array, the runes started to spin and combine. It required some time, but it undoubtedly could be completed instantly. Arkham Batman breathed a sigh of relief.

However, at this moment he hesitated slightly: his focus skill offers more benefits the closer the ghost gets, and conveniently, Shiller was almost there. Once he started the skill, the sealing should be completed quickly. After sealing, Shiller would certainly be weakened, and at that time, escape should be possible.

Arkham Batman planned this way, calculating Shiller’s time to ascend, activating the skill upon hearing footsteps. Sure enough, those runes spun rapidly, and when Shiller’s silhouette stood outside the door, they already cast shadows.

As the background music played, the sealing was completed instantly. But contrary to Arkham Batman’s expectation that "Shiller would become weakened," there was indeed a burst of white light on Shiller, but he seemed unaffected and continued to advance relentlessly.

This room was already small, with nowhere to hide. Shiller didn’t even need to confirm an exact position, just slashed directly. Arkham Batman rolled, but unfortunately, it didn’t have any forced dodge effect, merely changed what would have been a chest slash into a shoulder graze. Technically not a direct hit, it sliced a big gash across the shoulder blade.

Arkham Batman couldn’t even care for it; he spun around and swung his cloak. As cape dizziness struck, Shiller was stunned for two seconds, allowing Arkham Batman to dash past him swiftly. After rushing out, he didn’t forget to shut the door, trying to wedge it against Shiller.

Just as he sprinted two steps outside, he heard "click click," seeing the knife’s cold blade pierce through the door panel, followed by a "bang," shattering the door.

Arkham Batman took a light breath: Can Shiller still break the door???

Wait. Arkham Batman suddenly realized a problem; although the background story stated a devil possessed the Vale family’s eldest son, it didn’t mention Shiller as the eldest son. What if he is the devil?

Logically, sealing the devil should save the eldest son, but sealing the devil simultaneously damages it. And Shiller would invariably have a skill that grows stronger when injured—sealing the devil would effectively strengthen Shiller?!

The plot has betrayed me! Arkham Batman lamented in his heart.