The night on the West Coast was ethereal and dreamy, unlike the bustling rhythm of the East Coast. The dim sunset was veiled between the delicate branches and leaves, while the shadows in the iron jungle were elongated at a rapid pace under the bar lights, making the shadows of the drinks look like intercontinental train tracks.
When a slender hand set down the wine glass, it was with an angry force. Lucifer put down his phone with his other hand, his brow furrowed deeply as he picked up his wine glass again and drank the remaining wine in one gulp.
"What's wrong with Shiller?" He asked somewhat puzzled, "He was talking nonsense and then suddenly hung up on me."
Leaning against the bar counter, Lucifer gently tapped it with his fingers. He looked up as if gazing at something nonexistent in the air. After a few seconds, he widened his eyes.
"What the hell?!" Surprise thickened in his voice.
"Why did Shiller... oh, wait, what's going on? Goodness, so that day was just the beginning. Are they both sick? How could they..."
"Oh, my God! Batman! What have you done? You messed up Shiller's exams and even sent him to prison? That's a bit too much!"
"Hey, hold on, so, did Shiller's other identity do this?"
"Oh, so Batman had guessed... That's right, Shiller often said that communication is the best way to solve problems... "
"Wait a minute, why was Shiller returned? What on earth is Batman up to..."
Lucifer's expression went through several changes, but in the end, it settled on deep puzzlement.
No wonder Lucifer was confused. The average person would indeed find it difficult to comprehend the series of actions between Shiller and Batman.
In fact, Lucifer was not a particularly controlling person. He didn't have many friends but he did his best to solve their troubles. However, he didn't interfere with their beliefs or try to persuade them too much.
Generally speaking, unless a friend came to him for help, he would not interfere with their affairs on his own accord.
So even though he knew that Shiller was in trouble because of Batman, if Shiller didn't take the initiative to speak up, he would feign ignorance.
But this time, Shiller had taken the initiative to call him. Without warning, he said a few words but Lucifer couldn't figure out what was going on between Shiller and Batman who were stabbing each other in the back.
At least, Lucifer confirmed that things were not going well for Shiller, and that the phone call was more than just a catchup. He probably needed help.
But in most cases, Lucifer was quite cautious. He felt he needed to think about how to help.
He could indeed rush over, beat up Batman, and then rescue Shiller from prison.
But if that were the case, Shiller didn't need to say such incomprehensible things on the phone. He could have just directly cursed Batman. After all, Shiller often cursed at Batman during their normal phone conversations.
Lucifer thought carefully about the phrase "a child has gained the power of his father" that Shiller uttered.
At the same time, he tilted his head back and carefully read all the events that had happened to Batman lately again.
Soon, Lucifer's face turned cold, he narrowed his eyes and lifted the wine glass. The wine in the glass filled up again, and he gently placed the transparent cup edge to his lips, murmuring:
"Paternal authority... Paternal authority..."
Lucifer seemed to have fallen into deep thought. After about ten minutes, his thoughts returned to reality. He studied the wine glass in his hand, gave a cold smirk, and said:
"Arrogance and I are the same, arrogance is my nature. Batman, why don't you understand?"
"Arrogant as we are, we constantly feel pain and sadness about bowing to another person, but we still can't break free from the shackles of paternal authority. It's not that we can't, just that we don't want to."
Lucifer slowly closed his eyes, his golden eyelashes trembling. His Adam's apple slid down like liquid drops spilling from the cup. Then he took another sip of wine and said:
"So, let us see whether it is because you are stronger than us that you can so effortlessly and without any scruples use cruel means to rebel against your father's authority, or is it because you don't love him enough."
When Lucifer put down the wine glass and stood up, what lay before him was no longer the bar counter, but a cosmic star disc surrounded by constellations.
The spherical universes were neatly arranged together, with each universe's story playing out in order, bustling with activity. Huge angelic hands held the star disc as if cradling a small baby.
A faintly visible light, reflected in his jade-like eyes. A streak of light, almost imperceptible, skimming between two universes, was caught by Lucifer.
He gave a mysterious smile, extended a hand, and picked up the streak of light with his fingertips.
Next, Lucifer turned his head to look at a unique universe at the edge of the star plate. All the universes in the star plate take on a spherical form, except for this one, which is a faintly luminescent blue cube.
Lucifer knew, the light blue cube on the surface of the universe is not under his jurisdiction. It's a creation from another universe, which Shiller calls "Universe Cube".
With a slight movement of Lucifer's hand, the spherical universe floated out from the cube. Lucifer threw the streak of light in his other hand towards the spherical universe. A thin flash of light burst forth, and the streak of light was sent into the universe.
After a moment's thought, Lucifer placed the universe back into the Universe Cube, along with the Universe Cube, he moved them to a new location, not on the edge of the universe, but closer to a more prosperous center.
Seeing the exciting events unfolding in the nearby universes, Lucifer revealed an interested smile, seemingly anticipating something.
And under his gaze, the streak of light that invaded the universe, at an extremely fast speed, passed through the dark cosmic space. Like a bug fallen into a toilet, it succumbed to the dark vortex, heading towards the evil sewer without resistance.
Gotham, 9 pm. The radio in the Ford car emitted two crackling electrical noises. The exuberant voice of the radio host resounded in the car:
"Hey, good evening, folks! Welcome to 'Gotham Totally F***ing Doesn't Welcome You to the Car and Travel Guide Channel.' I'm your host Mike!"
"We've been meeting for a month. Today's good news is — there is no good news in this goddamn city!"
"Oh, yeah. I hear some kid named Black Pelican Beak has been voted the East Coast's new hip-hop sensation. Let's congratulate him, and hope he survives this weekend's gang crossfire!"
"What else? Oh, right! The damn central roundabout is jammed again, and I don't need to repeat this fact! When you hear Mike's voice on the radio, remember that the roundabout is always jammed because it never isn't!"
"And recently, out-of-towners have been calling me, asking why insurance companies don't cover damages caused by shotgun blasts. It's simple, you go find the person who shot at your car, give him some money, and ask him to fire at the insurance company's glass. The insurance company will then reimburse everything."
"Wow oh wow! And of course, the news that gals are most concerned about, the most exciting Gotham gossip, the Batman with his hot body, sexy chin, and firm ass - where on earth is he?"
"Go on, ladies and lads. Go to the places where you can see the top of Wayne building. Yes, tonight he will be there!"
"Let us cheer, Gotham's nightfall belongs to — Batman!!!"
A hand, clad in a black glove, pushed a button on the radio. As the name Batman comes through, wrinkles of age rise from his veins on his hand's back.
The dusk in Gotham is one of the few clear moments in the city. Before the nightfall announced on the radio, a tall figure appears on the roof of the Wayne building.
"A bit to the right, a bit to the right! Yes, yes, yes. Stand just right of the sunset. Lower your head a bit. Yes, right. Lift your head a little ... OK, this angle is just right. Let's take a few shots, how about we title this 'The Dusk Hero'?"
"Clark, I must remind you, Wayne Enterprises own the rights to Batman's image. This is the reward Bruce Wayne deserves for funding Batman. You can't use any of the photos you take for profit."
"Oh my God! You're a vampire, a cunning capitalist!" Clark lowered his hand, complaining helplessly.
The cloaked Batman standing near the roof edge stepped aside to avoid Clark's sudden charge. He turned to look at Clark floating in mid-air and said, "No newspaper in Metropolis has the legal rights to use Batman's image. If Wayne Enterprises sued them, guess who would get docked pay?"
"Please, not like this!" Clark flew to Batman's side, circling him a few times. With a hopeful gaze, he said, "By promoting Batman's image, I'm also contributing to Gotham's tourism industry. You can't be so heartless!"
As he finished, Clark tried to grab Batman's cloak again but Batman, still expressionless, dodged.
After tomfooling on the rooftop for a while, Batman crossed his arms and said, "No kidding. You should talk to your editor about the licensing fee issue. This can test how much they value your work."
Clark, holding his camera by his side, said "Don't hold high hopes there. Everyone at the newspaper knows how stingy my editor is."
"I plan to cooperate with the Luther Group and operate a series of Gotham tourism and cultural industries represented by the Batman image." Batman, looking into the distance, said: "He will reclaim all copyrights related to the Batman image in Metropolis. Your editor would not want to go to court with the Luther Group."
"You're going to cooperate with Lex??" Clark opened his mouth wide in surprise but then stuttered, saying:
"Oh, I understand now. You are going to sue the infringing media and collect copyright revenues, right? Actually, you are reminding me to remind my newspaper to quickly take down those magazines with you on the cover. This way I – who first reported on Batman – won't be implicated."
"Bruce, I knew I had not misjudged you. You're really nice; you're really loyal to your friends!"
"Call me Batman."
"Of course, Bruce!"