In the lab of Gotham University, the stalemate continues, with Lex now having the upper hand and the advantage was indeed too great.
The Joker leverages Batman's vulnerability to mental attacks, while physical attacks are managed by Mr. Freeze's technology. Lex's wisdom harmonizes the two, creating a perfect battle strategy. As a result, Batman is now in a very difficult situation.
At Lex's wave of the hand, a chilling mist engulfs Batman, slowing his movements. He barely dodges in time as an ice cone grazes his waist, slicing open his bat suit and leaving a large gash.
The insane laughter makes Batman's head spin, and coupled with the freezing temperature, he feels his thoughts lagging behind.
Dodging the ice cone, Batman shifts his body sideways, but loses his balance due to the slippery ground. He stumbles, hitting his shoulder against a desk, and lets out a low grunt.
"Batman! Hahahaha! Batman! Is this all you've got? Who is weaponless now? Who's continuously losing? Do you intend to save Gotham like this? What a joke, hahahaha!!!"
Lex verbally assaults Batman while launching physical attacks. Although he is not as insane as Jack, his physical attack is far better, making Batman's situation even more dire.
Batman's tactics against the Joker mainly focus on those like Jack, whose mental attacks are high but physical attacks are low. The outcome of focusing only on defence against mental attacks and not physical ones is that Batman can only dodge when faced with a physically piercing enemy.
However, one detail went unnoticed, a small figure that was in the lab earlier was now missing. Cobblepot had quietly slipped out, but he was not escaping for his life.
To avoid the icy mist, Batman's energy was depleting faster and faster. Finally, he could no longer keep up and stumbled, falling onto the ground. Meanwhile, Lex laughed manically and raised his ice cone.
Suddenly, the lab door opened again, "Whoosh, whoosh", before even the two combatants could react, they were frozen into ice sculptures.
A somber Victor appeared at the doorway. Looking at the devastated lab, his rage burned like fire, ready to burst from his heart.
No researcher would tolerate their lab in such a mess. Regardless of Batman or Joker, Victor didn't care.
Now, all he saw were two mischievous students who, out of personal vendetta, had turned their teacher's lab into such a wreck. They disobeyed the rules and held no respect for their teacher.
Victor took a deep breath, trying to calm his murderous intent, and walked between the two ice sculptures.
He glanced to his left at Batman, who was still lying in a falling pose, appearing like a victim of bullying. He then glanced to his right at Lex, wielding an ice cone high above his head, looking extremely fierce.
Victor crossed his arms, standing between them and said, "Would anyone care to explain what on earth you two are doing?"
"You! What's your name again? Lex, right? It's your first day in my lab and you dare to mess it up like this, and you still want to spend four years at this university!"
"My God, I should look up your parents' phone number at the communications office, and tell them to withdraw you immediately!"
"And you, Bruce..."
As soon as Victor said this, Batman's mouth moved slightly. Based on his lip movements, he seemed to be saying "Please call me Batman".
"All right, Batman, if you insist I call you that." Victor understood Batman's intentions. He said: "But I hope you understand that no matter what you call yourself, you are still a student of Gotham University. You need to abide by the school rules. Not initiating fights on campus is a basic behaviour expected of every student!"
Having said that, he turned his head toward Lex and said, "What were you planning on doing with that thing in your hands? Should I take it that you were bullying? How dare you do this as a freshman? If it wasn't for Cobblepot finding me, what else were you planning on doing here? causing a fatal accident?"
As for Cobblepot, who snuck out to alert Victor, he was sitting on a chair nearby, gloating over the scolding that the other two were receiving, showing an unusual happy smile.
"You two listen to me, tomorrow... No! Right now! I'm going to call the faculty of education! Let them come here, and register disciplinary actions for you two. Don't even think of talking back to me!"
"Oh, there's another one here, isn't that you, Thomas? You were previously involved in a murder case which landed you in jail. What, you want to come back here and add more years to your sentence?"
Victor got to this point when there was a knock at the door. He turned around to see Cobblepot getting up to open it; Shiller appeared in the doorway.
Shiller nodded at Cobblepot and entered the lab. He was momentarily stunned by the sight of the two large ice sculptures in the room. He asked, "What happened? Why is it so lively in here?"
"Shiller, you came at the right time!" Victor approached Shiller, pointed at the two ice sculptures, and said, "Look at these two fine students you've taught!"
"Him! On his very first day in my lab, he destroys the most expensive and critical equipment in the lab, and he even attempts to bully on campus!"