"Tell me where he is, Mr. Parker." Gordon's voice was colder than ever, revealing an unsettling mania that anyone could perceive.
Peter also understood that lives were at stake. Gordon could possibly be one of the rare righteous detectives able to confront Kingpin amid chaos; he needed Gordon to stay rational.
But Peter had no idea where this girl named Barbara was, let alone which safehouse Kingpin was currently hiding in. That guy had numerous lairs within New York, totalling in the hundreds. With the merging of the two cities now, it was even harder to locate him.
Peter felt a sense of urgency. Just then, an incoming call interrupted his thoughts. It was evident that once his consciousness returned to the real world, time began to flow again.
"What's going on? Is your signal bad?" Constantine's raspy voice echoed in Peter's ear.
Peter had no choice but to disengage his mind again, transforming into the Fog Guest to confront Constantine. Suddenly, he was reminded of his deal with Constantine, sparking an idea.
"Next question," Constantine said. "Which university did Sophocles graduate from? I'd appreciate some precise details about his faculty as well. Of course, you can likewise give more specific information to your question."
Peter instantly felt confident and responded.
"All Souls College, Oxford University. He is one of the seven honorary research fellows."
Constantine gasped.
"Now it's my turn." Peter took a deep breath and asked, "Where is Barbara Gordon, the daughter of Gotham Police Department Chief James Gordon, currently? I desire an exact location."
Constantine was taken aback for a moment then quickly realized and asked, "Do you have other believers who need help?"
Peter did not reply. He was never good at indirect communication, fearing he would be drawn into a trap, so he chose to remain silent.
"Wait a moment," Constantine immediately knelt halfway.
In Peter's astonished gaze, Constantine slit open his palm. Using the blood left behind, he drew a rune on the ground and smudged the end of it with the fingertip of his other hand, drawing many more intricate patterns.
After the entire magical array was completed, Constantine in front of him burst into flames, eventually transforming into an ash-gray paper man. Peter heard his last words, "Follow me."
Peter took a step forward and found himself entering another world. In an instant, everything around him receded, lights and shadows spun, presenting a bizarre landscape.
"You can enter the Spirit Realm?!" Constantine, who was traversing ahead, looked genuinely surprised. However, while continuing to lead the way, he turned his head to address the Fog Guest who was flying forward with him, "You have a soul. Were you human before? But that's not right..."
Peter was immersed in the magical experience of traversing the Spirit Realm and ignored Constantine's probing.
Constantine stopped quickly, raised his hand, and the space plummeted rapidly. Before Peter could react, they both fell into a room.
They were standing on the ceiling at this moment with everything around still broken and strange. However, they could see a red-haired girl tied to a chair.
Peter wanted to rush over, but Constantine stopped him, saying, "Don't move, rookie. This is the Spirit Realm and we can't interfere with the real world. Moreover, if we rush out recklessly, we'll get a gun pointed at our foreheads."
Indeed, the next second a strong figure, quite familiar to Peter, walked in from the doorway. The red-haired girl glared at him fiercely and said, "What do you really want? Don't think you can threaten my father with me."
"No one wants to threaten anyone." A smile appeared on Kingpin's plump face as he said, "I never resort to stupid tactics like kidnapping and threats because as long as people still see hope, they always harbor unrealistic fantasies."
"Only bloodshed and death can make them face reality, making them understand that there are no benefits in defying me. Miss, I'm afraid you'll just have to endure—the pain will be terrible."
Kingpin stepped aside, revealing a figure in a blue-black tight-fitting outfit and a yellow cowl.
Peter's pupils constricted as he gasped out his name, "Hobgoblin!"
Constantine squinted, "Is that his code name? But he's not a demon or a ghost, and he doesn't possess any mystical powers."
"He's not a real hobgoblin," Peter shook his head. "This is just his nickname. His power comes from the equipment on his body."
"That simplifies matters." Constantine snapped his fingers, "I'll help you deal with these two men. What are you planning on giving me as payment?"
"What do you want?"
"Help me cause some trouble for Doctor Sophocles." Constantine revealed a chilling smile and said, "He's investigating things he shouldn't. Trust me, you're helping him."
"I don't kill people," Peter asserted.
"There's no need to kill him," Constantine flicked the ash off his cigarette, sighed softly, and said, "He still has uses. Just keep him busy for a while."
As the demon is getting closer to Barbara, Peter can only say, "Subdue both of them but don't kill them. Rescue that girl and wait for her father to show up, then our deal is done."
The next moment, Constantine steps out, standing straight ahead of Kingpin and the demon.
Both of them were startled by the sudden appearance of Constantine; the demon jumped agilely backward, while Kingpin punched out.
The sound of breaking wind brought by his punch echoed in front of Constantine. A flame rose with a whoosh, and Constantine, with his finger snapping hand already retracted, stood behind Kingpin.
A dirty shadow crawled up from the mud, roaring and charging at the two in the room. Constantine stepped out from the shadow in the corner of the wall, shaking his head, "That's why I hate using magic here. No one knows what kind of ghosts could be summoned."
The shadow monster crawling out of the mud under Constantine's feet grew larger and larger, bloating enough to fill the entire room. Its enormous claws dripping with an unidentified black liquid swung continuously, forcing Kingpin and the demon to keep retreating.
Kingpin's proud power of body technique was of no use here, because this thing was not a physical entity. It could hit Kingpin and the demon, but when Kingpin and the demon hit back, they only felt a void.
Kingpin and the demon retreated to the door and started to run as soon as they realized they couldn't handle this strange creature. Armed gunmen rushed in hoping to kill the creature with firearms, but with no effect.
Seizing this opportunity, Constantine untied Barbara, who was tied to the chair. He noticed that her face was pale with pain. As he was about to reach out to help her, she groaned.
Constantine followed Barbara's action and noticed a large blood stain around her waist. As his hand touched the wound, he looked at Barbara and said, "… You've been shot?"
Peter withdrew his consciousness because through the Spirit Vision, he saw the scene outside the window and determined the location of Kingpin's safe house.
"Chief Gordon, I know where Kingpin is. Take a right turn ahead!" Peter shouted.
Gordon jerked the steering wheel, and the car made a sharp turn, heading for the fork on the right.
The street view kept retreating, creating a shift in architectural style. Soon, the density of the buildings increased. Peter realized they had reached the Brooklyn Area, which Gordon referred to as the edge of the Lower city area.
Peter quickly pointed out one of the buildings. Gordon parked the car in front of the building, then charged in with Brock. Peter followed closely.
Although he was worried about exposing himself in front of Constantine, he had no choice at the moment. He saw that Barbara was in a bad state and needed immediate treatment.
But when they stormed into the room, they found no sign of Barbara, only a puddle of black stains, some footprints, and a messy scene.
Gordon's gaze instantly caught an important clue. He rushed to the overturned chair and picked up a hair from the chair back. After examining the hair against the light, he found it was a short red hair, Barbara's hair.
Peter was also stunned. He had clearly told Constantine to stay here until Barbara's father arrived, but he didn't honor the agreement. He took Barbara Gordon away. This might further deteriorate the situation.
But then Brock stepped forward, put his hands on Gordon's shoulders, and said, "Calm down, James. This means Barbara is certainly still alive. Otherwise, they wouldn't need to move her; they could just dump the body here, which would be the best warning to us."
"They didn't do that, which means something unexpected either happened, or they were afraid. Perhaps the Mayor of Gotham has caused them some trouble, and they had to move her hurriedly."
Upon hearing this, Gordon, who was on the verge of breaking down, snapped back into action. His new partner may be flippant, but he is indeed a star detective with a quick response.
Peter also came in to console him, "If a murder took place here, there would be a strong smell of blood. They moved in such a hurry that they wouldn't have time to clean up the scene. Something unexpected must have happened."
Gordon quickly stood up, his gaze locked tightly on Peter's face. He walked over to Peter, put one hand on his shoulder, and said, "I know you're the good kind, Peter, much like my daughter. You have to help me find her."
"Don't worry, Chief, I will." Peter began to pull out his phone from his pocket, then said, "I have a friend who knows Kingpin even better. He had made Kingpin surrender a few times. I am going to contact him now."
"Hello? Night Devil? It's me, I... What?! Alright, I'll be right there!!!"
Peter put away his phone, immediately turned to Gordon with urgency, and said, "Chief, quickly find me a car. I need to get to the east of the Brooklyn area. I have a friend who is injured…"
"I'll take you there." Brock immediately patted Peter's back and turned to Gordon, "Call for backup, James. Now's not the time to be dwelling on this. A city-wide search is the most efficient way."
Gordon took a deep breath. He held onto the doorframe, feeling weak, but still shakily took out his phone.
He didn't call the police station, he called Penguin Man, because only the mayor has the ability to conduct a city-wide search now. For his daughter, he had to bow down to this damned mob boss again.
When will these days end?
For the first time, Gordon felt a sense of despair. He walked out with heavy steps, slowly went downstairs, and stepped out of the door. He squinted due to the bright sunlight.
And within his blurred shaking field of vision, a figure came walking to him. As he approached, Gordon saw clearly, he is a black man, his dark eye patch covering one eye.
"Director of the Homeland Strategic Defense Attack and Logistic Support Bureau, Nick Fury. Nice to meet you, Chief Gordon."