"Hmm... It seems that little Ika is not behaving well, but no matter, it's not a big deal if Ika is naughty. What's most important now is dealing with that little bat. I wonder if the little bat can still bring me more surprises?" Seeing Ika's consciousness playing dead, The Joker shook his head and once again shifted his attention back to Batman.
After all, with the Ika mask on The Joker's face, Ika's consciousness couldn't escape even if it wanted to! The Joker could deal with Ika anytime without any issue, especially now that he had full control over Ika's power...
In fact, The Joker could feel that the power he possessed had already surpassed Ika himself. Behind the mask seemed to connect to an endless dark world, continuously granting The Joker immense power. It seemed the more evil The Joker's heart became, the more power he would gain.
Although The Joker was curious about the power behind the mask, he was more interested in clashing with Batman. In front of Batman, everything else took a backseat! Under The Joker's special care, the number of shadow warriors in Gotham City kept increasing, even surpassing the number of humans out at night.
Initially, these shadow warriors hid their tracks, but later they started appearing openly on the streets, as their purpose shifted from robbery and murder to attracting Batman's attention.
Later on, the shadow warriors also discovered the presence of the small machines. Given the limited ammunition of these small machines, when the shadow warriors moved in groups, the machines couldn't eliminate them all, making it problematic for them to hide or return to the Batcave.
Of course, as more shadow warriors appeared, Batman realized he couldn't let the dispatched machines return to the Batcave, risking exposing its secret location, which would be a loss rather than a gain!
Therefore, Batman quickly modified these machines into one-time self-destructive devices. When their energy was about to be exhausted, these machines would scan for nearby shadow warriors. If shadow warriors were detected, the machines would self-destruct, and if not, they would enter a dormant state, waiting for the shadow warriors to appear.
Afterward, Batman showed what it meant to be wealthy beyond measure! The term "financial power" came to life as one after another, these costly self-destructive machines were secretly dispatched by Batman, self-destructing together with the endless shadow warriors.
Even if the night in Gotham City was a bit chaotic, as long as it could maintain peace and safety in Gotham City, the expense was nothing to Batman.
Thus, the clash and games between Batman and The Joker began, a collision of supernatural abilities and financial power.
Of course, with the reminder from his butler Alfred, Batman also tried to find the mastermind behind the shadow warriors, even visiting The Joker and other criminal patients in Arkham Asylum.
"Yo! Isn't this the famous Batman? What brings you to Arkham to visit me? Miss me, your old friend?" When Batman finally met The Joker, The Joker, wearing a retro suit and with a calm expression, sat there mocking Batman without any trace of the mask on his face.
"I heard Gotham City has been rather restless lately, with countless ghosts claiming lives at night, and some costly machines fighting against ghosts. Isn't it ridiculous? Ghosts have come out, does this world really have ghosts?"
"Do you believe in ghosts?" Batman looked deeply at The Joker and asked in a serious tone.
"Of course not. If there were, people like you and me would be haunted by ghosts every day," The Joker chuckled disdainfully, his gaze scanning Batman's face.
At this moment, The Joker seemed eager to try something. He wondered what would happen if he replaced the bat mask on Batman's face with the Ika mask he had under his control. Would Batman be controlled by the mask, or like him, recognize the darkness within and in turn control the mask? The Joker hoped Batman wouldn't disappoint him!
"What are you looking at?" Batman, feeling a strong threat from The Joker's gaze, stared directly at him and asked.
"I'm thinking, you wear the same mask every night, don't you get tired of it?" The Joker smiled gently, joking with Batman like an old friend.
"I don't have such strange habits," Batman slowly shook his head, then suddenly asked, "Did you do all this?"
"Me?" The Joker also shook his head, looking at Batman with a somewhat amused counter-question, "Where would I get that kind of power? But I'm quite happy that it bothers you."
"Do you really not have that power?" Batman looked deeply at The Joker and asked again.
"If I had that power, why would I still be locked up here? I'm just an ordinary person, just like you, Batman." The Joker sighed lightly, spreading his hands and saying to Batman, "Little bat, I know you're eager to solve this issue, but sorry, you've come to the wrong place and found the wrong person."
"Of course, if you wish, you can let me out to help. Just say the word, and I'll do everything in my power to solve this problem, to deal with those so-called ghosts!"
"Then you'd better stay right here! Staying here is the biggest help to me." Batman spread his cape, leaped towards the window, and vanished into the night.
"It's him! Things have gotten a bit tricky, this guy might have obtained supernatural powers, and he feels even more dangerous now. The previous plan for him probably won't work anymore, we need to find a new solution!" After leaving Arkham Asylum, Batman looked towards The Joker's room direction, a thought flashing through his mind.
"Oops! Looks like I've exposed myself... But, what does it matter? Right, little Ika..." After Batman left, The Joker suddenly smiled towards the direction Batman left, took the mask from his behind, put it back on his face, and whispered.
Theoretically, the mask that could only be removed by special means now seemed like an ordinary mask in The Joker's hands, whether taking it off or putting it on, there was no hindrance.
"The game has just begun! Can you find a way to deal with me and this mask? Or when the mask is placed in front of you, will you put it on?" The Joker murmured expectantly.
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