"You're in shock," Batman, like a real mind-reader, once again hit the nail on the head. He continued, "You're shocked that I understand greed so well. Of course, you know that arrogance didn't reveal this to me because you never told him."
"Yet it's precisely what you said to me earlier that led me to glance into a forgotten cage. Therefore, I remembered why I initially locked away my own greed, as it caused me pain."
"My present life is unsatisfactory, and the thought that this unsatisfactory life will one day end, that everything around me will one day end, my greed spawns endless pessimism. What greed wants is the eternal 'having', not the inevitable 'nothingness'."
Suddenly, Batman paused, and then said something that made Greed's heart tremble.
"But now, I remember this cage and can open it without burden, releasing a certain amount of controllable greed to better accomplish what I want to do."
"Your persuasion had some effect, but more importantly, I have determined that indeed a group of people want my universe to reach the end that they have planned, and that end is not what I want."
"So, I should be more proactive…" Batman's voice was very soft, not so much speaking as muttering.
However, Greed was anxiously watching him and asked, "Since you already know that greed can bring about terrible pessimism, why are you able to release it, and why do you think you can control it?"
"Because I have found something that truly never ends." Batman's tone suddenly became a little lighter, which was very rare, and Greed felt his heart jump into his throat.
At this moment, Greed felt a sense of alertness. He felt that Batman was leading his thoughts. Of course, Greed knew the gap between this mature bat and the young one was as wide as a mountain from an abyss.
In a certain sense, Batman is also a master of psychology. He may not be an expert in theoretical knowledge, but he is absolutely proficient in practice.
He could always convince the people he wanted to convince at the right time, in the right place, and in a very clever manner. This, in fact, made him the epitome of the application of psychology.
Just like Jason from the Prime Universe said, the purpose of applying psychology is to convince others, or to understand why others can convince oneself.
But even knowing this, Greed still felt curious. He thought, if Batman gave an absurd answer, he would just not believe it. Of course, he had that kind of discernment.
"What is this never-ending thing that you mentioned?"
"Knowledge."
Greed hesitated for a moment.
Batman rose from his seat in the theater, using both hands for support on the armrests. He walked to the front, just like a teacher would, and began pacing in the middle of the room.
He didn't seem cold at all. On the contrary, there was an air of elegance and dignity full of wisdom about him that made people anticipate his explanation of the answer unconsciously.
"Stars will one day fade out, the universe will one day be destroyed, people will die, we all know this day will come."
"But I think, as a psychologist like yourself must have heard, the true day of a person's death is the day the world forgets him."
"If we trace it backwards, all the traces left by a person in the world while he is alive are what constitute him."
"After the physical body ends, the social values he realized, the changes he brought about in this world, have a lasting influence."
"Certainly, these changes will also end one day, but the knowledge we can decipher, unearth from these changes, and pass down, will not end. There will never be a day when it is exhausted."
"We can always get information from the operation of the universe, seek the truth, as small as what change a person brings about, as large as what path a group takes due to its behaviors, this knowledge is endless."
"Searching for the truth about the laws of everything has no end. Even those gods who can restart the universe at will do not master the truth. What they hold is power, not knowledge."
Greed truly felt somewhat fascinated. He seemed to see a road extending before his eyes, also the first time he did not see a vague end when a road appeared before his eyes.
He knew that the god of the DC World possessed endless power, and he also knew that in the Marvel World, the OAA could control everything. But did these beings know where their power came from?
Looking at it from the reader's perspective, their power comes from the editors, so where do the editors' inspiration come from? Art? Social culture? History? The evolution of the brain? And where do all these things come from? The movement of the stars? The birth of life?
If one keeps tracing back, there's only one conclusion: No one possesses the whole truth right now. Even if one part of it is understood, it's not the whole picture. There's no formula that can explain the entire world.
"You might feel that there's not much left to explore in psychology. Your theories and applications have reached their peak and are sufficient to answer your and others' questions around you," Batman started, stating an obvious fact. But then his tone changed, looking at Greed and said, "But with a small change, you'd be able to establish never-ending security and solve your current problems."
Greed looked at him, a bit confused.
Batman stretched out his hands and said, "If you were able to produce research that would pique Iron Man's interest, he'd naturally be willing to exchange his plans, wouldn't he?"
"You mean…"
"What's your level in mathematics?"
"Uh...I can count."
"Arithmetic?"
"If it involves money, yes."
"Then now, you have an incredibly valuable opportunity." Batman stepped up the staircase, once again standing in front of Greed, and declared,
"The doors to another track are opening for you. Neither Iron Man nor I could grasp even one-thousandth of the truth. The magnificent world of natural science, filled with infinite knowledge, awaits for you to explore it."
Greed stared fixedly at him, swallowing a lump in his throat. He felt like he was making a risky decision, but he was consumed by endless Greed for that endless road. He was, after all, Greed - incapable of refusing, unwilling to refuse. The degree of danger was totally beyond his consideration.
"So, you can…"
"Of course, I can."
Batman squinted. The lightness in his tone was no illusion. "After our souls are in sync, we can decide whether to share the knowledge in our brains. I've already gotten the permission… let's begin." He said.
Greed was about to object when Batman snapped his fingers. "Whoosh," countless shadows descended from the theatre's ceiling.
In an instant, the entire theater was swamped with endless books and papers, and Batman's voice rang out again,
"We can start with basic mathematics…"
A hand reached out from a mountain of books. Greed struggled from the heap of books and asked difficultly, "…Is this basic mathematics???"
"...the table of contents." Batman added,
Greed was stunned. He picked up the nearest book and turned to the first page.
Soon, Arrogant, who was resting in his room, had a smirk on his face. He heard a familiar scream echoing in the Tower of Thought,
"WHAT IS THIS?????!!!!!!!!!!"