Lord Superman looked at Bruce with a hint of suspicion. He was about to speak but realized his question was a bit rude. Regardless, he no longer cared about politeness and asked, "Your parents...um, you're Batman from another universe, so..."
"What's wrong?" Bruce looked somewhat confused.
"I mean, since you're Batman, what made you become Batman?"
"Tourism revenue from Gotham City." Bruce looked a bit embarrassed, he grinned and added, "And perhaps the mayor's loud voice too."
Lord Superman seemed to have suddenly realized something. He muttered to himself, "That's right, although every universe has a Batman, their reasons for becoming Batman might be different, could it be..."
Lord Superman struggled to continue. He looked deflated as if the air had been let out of him, unable to maintain his usual serious demeanor. After standing dumbfounded for a moment, he turned his head towards Bruce and asked, "So, is Martha still around?"
"Both of them are gone." Bruce shook his head, "They probably thought I was too annoying, so they went on a vacation."
Lord Superman took a deep breath, opened his mouth as if he wanted to say something, but in the end, he remained silent.
His mood became more complex because he suddenly realized something: his previous understanding of the parallel universe was a bit narrow.
He knew that each parallel universe had its counterpart of himself and Batman, that they were one-to-one correspondences, but he had not considered that even if their identity and background were the same, their experiences could be completely different.
For example, Lord Superman had heard Batman of his universe talk about some of his experiences. Actually, Batman didn't talk about them voluntarily, it was Lord Superman - or rather, back when he was still Superman - who kept asking and occasionally could discern hints from Batman's reactions.
He knew Batman's parents died very early, and during several visits to Wayne Manor, he also learned from the butler that this was probably the main reason Batman became Batman, without a doubt.
In recent times, Lord Superman often thought about how wonderful it would be if Batman was not Batman. He couldn't help but think about how great it would be if the tragedy had not happened and Batman was just a rich, second-generation heir with a brilliant mind.
But he knew this was impossible. A tragedy that has happened cannot be reversed. Even if Superman had the ability to travel through time, Batman would not allow it. He had been stuck in this vicious cycle for too long.
Now, it seemed that not every Batman in every universe became Batman because of the death of their parents. Did only the Batman of his universe have such bad luck?
So, why? Lord Superman felt a sense of oppressive irritation accumulated in his chest. Why do some people avoid tragedies just by doing nothing, while others are destined to fall into an abyss from which they cannot escape?
But beyond this frustration, Lord Superman could not help but wonder, if the tragedy were to be compensated for, would there still be a chance to salvage the situation?
What triggered Batman to wear that costume was the death of his parents. So, if Batman could see his parents again, could he break free from the endless whirlpool of pain and return to the right path?
Superman's far superior senses allowed him to feel Batman's pain clearly, but his powerful strength was useless in alleviating this pain. This made him deeply empathetic, and he often felt as though he was plunging into a grand abyss.
In trying to save Batman, Superman always felt like he was punching cotton.
Like the metaphor they had used before, they stood on the shore, desperately encouraging drowning Batman to swim to the surface. They did not want to take actual actions, it's just that they could not find where the lifebuoy was.
Now, Lord Superman felt like he had found it.
His gaze on Bruce became even more impassioned, because he knew he had to find a way to persuade this kid. At least let the Batman of his universe see Thomas and Martha again.
Once Lord Superman saw a potential benefit in Bruce, his attention was no longer simple curiosity. He began to genuinely want to understand Bruce.
Bruce, who was talking to Arthur at the time, felt Lord Superman's gaze. Sensing its intensity, he slightly curled up the corner of his mouth.
At this moment, Molecule Man Owen, standing on the stage, shouted loudly and waving his arms, "Hey, esteemed guests, may I interrupt your conversation and have a moment of your time? Our first round of betting is about to begin!"
Everyone turned their gaze onto the stage. Owen was observed by such a large crowd for the first time, it made him nervous. He cleared his throat and then said: "Ehm, in the upcoming game, the duellists will encounter an illusionary environment. Our bet will be on who escapes the illusion first."
The audience fell silent.
Owen seemed a bit embarrassed. He waved at everyone and said, "Next, you can ask me questions about the details of the next game to help you place your bets."
Spider-Man looked around and was the first to raise his hand, "What kind of environment is it? Will it be terrifying?"
"Not terrifying, but very deceptive."
Spider-Man wanted to continue questioning, but Owen pointed a finger at him and said, "Sorry, each person can only ask once."
After thinking for a bit, Constantine asked, "What is the key to breaking the illusion?"
"A single key item."
Constantine nodded. Then it was Bruce's turn. After pondering for a moment, he asked, "Can the illusion be broken by destroying the environment?"
"No." Owen shook his head and added, "Not even by destroying the world. So, whether it's killing people, destroying things, or causing explosions, none of these will let you leave the illusion."
Arthur, sitting with his head down, clicked his tongue then asked, "Believing in one's memory and adhering to one's personality are the keys to breaking the illusion, correct?"
Owen was taken aback.
Then he shouted somewhat frustrated, "How would you…"
Bruce smiled and said: "You have mentioned that illusions are highly deceptive, meaning that people in them may not be aware they are in an illusion, or that the illusion can make them believe it is the real world. Therefore, they have to choose whether to trust their memory or believe in the illusion."
Owen stood in place with a sad expression, and Lord Superman said with a frown: "I won't ask anymore. Let's start betting."
"Swish swish swish" four sounds, four projections were displayed in front of the stage, the four contestants of this round. Owen then stretched out his arms and shouted: "Start betting! Starting at one duel point, the winner gets three points. You can bet repeatedly, but if multiple people bet on the same target, the prize money is divided equally. If the bet fails, there is no refund."
"Tsk." Constantine let out a disdainful sound, he said: "I thought you would play something more interesting, like winner takes all. Aren't you and the match organizer from earlier teachers from the same school?"
Owen was about to get angry, but Spider Man raised his hand saying: "I bet on Doctor Schiller."
After he finished speaking, a spot of light flew out from the pattern on the back of his hand and landed on the projection above Schiller, displaying an Arabic numeral "1".
"I also bet on this doctor." Constantine also raised his hand and said, "Psychiatrists often have stronger control over their own memories than others. If he is truly a master of psychology, he will be able to break through the illusion faster than others."
Superman hesitated for a while and then also followed with a bet on Schiller. Owen's gaze fell on the last two people who had not yet bet.
Arthur raised his hand, but the light went directly towards Batman from the Prime Universe. He pursed his lips and said, "He is the most humorous among them, I think highly of him."
When only Bruce had not yet made a bet, all eyes were on him. Bruce stretched out his hand, but the spot of light did not fly towards Schiller, instead it landed on Natasha's head.
The crowd was surprised.
Bruce revealed a mysterious smile, but did not offer any explanation, just cast his gaze on the screen.
In the dim white light, Schiller opened his eyes. What appeared before him was a softly lit room, and then he heard a gentle call.
"Schiller, Schiller, are you okay? Can you hear me talking?"
As his vision gradually focused, the figure in front of Schiller swayed twice in his sight before finally becoming clear.
It was a female doctor with brown hair and a pair of gray-green eyes, looking at Schiller with worried eyes.
"You were distracted again during treatment, Schiller. How do you feel? Are you still fantasizing about lecturing to students?"
Schiller finally fully recovered his senses, he looked at the female doctor with slightly sharp eyes and asked, "What is the treatment about? What do you mean by fantasy?"
The female doctor showed a helpless expression, but quickly composed herself, and explained proficiently: "This is the Hansonville Mental Health Center in Colorado state, and your name is Schiller Rodriguez. We took in a patient who suffers from schizophrenia and fantasy syndrome seven years ago, my name is Evelyn Preston, your attending physician."
"Since your admission, you have always claimed to be a psychology professor, possessing PhD degrees in psychology from numerous famous universities, and teach at many universities. You also believe you have many superhero friends and are constantly improving their mental problems."
"It is now 1:32 in the afternoon on July 18, 2006. You are sitting in my office for the routine checkup and treatment three times a week. You were distracted for about two minutes. Are you clear-headed now, Schiller?"
Schiller looked at her intently, and after a while, he said, "You mean I am a mentally ill patient suffering from delusional disorder, and you are my psychiatrist responsible for treating me?"
Doctor Evelyn Preston nodded.
"Which university did you graduate from?" Schiller asked.
"Schiller, continuing to fantasize that you are a prestigious psychology professor is not helpful in our treatment..."
"Answer me, then I'll answer you."
Evelyn, as if she knew Schiller would say this and had heard him make such a request countless times, answered smoothly but somewhat reluctantly: "I graduated from Columbia University, and then I went to Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine to further my study, obtaining PhD degrees in both Psychology and Psychiatry."
"What do you want to ask?" Schiller looked at her expressionlessly and said.
"Have you been taking medication on time recently?"
"Would you believe me if I said so?"
Doctor Evelyn Preston looked even more helpless.
"Who were your masters and doctors' supervisors?"
Doctor Evelyn Preston named a few, which sounded familiar to Schiller, basically were those he knew from the journals.
Then he looked into Doctor Evelyn Preston's eyes and said: "You should be a very good psychiatrist, right?"
Doctor Evelyn Preston gave a calm smile and said: "Probably not as good as you in your fantasy."
"Good."
"What?"
"Please systematically review how in Bandura's social learning theory's interactionism, the conclusion that interpersonal factors and social environmental factors appear together as determinants in interaction corroborates the formation process of its observational learning theory part."