In the movies, without his gadgets, Batman is just an ordinary man.
However, in the comics, he possesses various suits of armor, similar to Iron Man, such as the Fenrir Armor or the famous [Anti-Superman Armor].
Unfortunately, at this point in time, Batman seems quite weak in a certain "son's" eyes. So, out of filial duty, the son gifted his father some unusual abilities.
Regardless of how ridiculous it looks, at least for the moment, Batman dodged the witch's fatal blow.
Now, it's Atreus's turn.
*"Boom!"*
With a sudden stomp on the ground, a big bald man flew forward like a cannonball.
Atreus flew so close to the ground at high speed that his body was almost parallel to it.
The witch immediately noticed Atreus's presence.
To ordinary people, his approach was just a spectacular sight.
But to a highly perceptive sorceress like the witch, it was a completely different scene. As Atreus charged forward, it seemed as though a massive wave of red blood suddenly engulfed the rubble before her. The previously clear view became a blur with his arrival.
The landscape in her soul-vision was shredded into pieces, turning into smears of oil paint, eventually forming a blood-red vortex. Then, this vortex rapidly expanded, accompanied by a series of wild roars that shook her spirit. It transformed into a huge mouth, swallowing her whole.
"You vile soul-devourer!"
The witch screeched and raised her dirty hands. In the next instant, before the clouds could gather in the sky, a blinding bolt of lightning, guided by her, struck directly at Atreus.
Lightning flashed!
Everything happened too fast. Even Atreus only had time to instinctively raise his arms in a defensive stance.
In that brief moment, he felt an overwhelming heat surge through him. His mind went blank, followed by a sharp pain that almost burned his brain to ashes.
For a moment, Atreus felt like he saw hi mother in heaven...
From the outside, Atreus was surrounded by lightning. The electricity disturbed the air around his body, causing light to refract, making it look like his skin was being gnawed at by invisible teeth. The scene was both terrifying and violent.
In fact, every muscle fiber in Atreus's body and every bit of his magic was being intensely squeezed.
It felt like an eternity had passed.
In reality, it was only about half a second.
Finally, the system notified: [Host has been struck by (Witch's) Thunderbolt attack... Resistance check in progress... Host passed the resistance check, receiving only 5% of the damage! (Lightning Reversal) skill check in progress... Check successful... (Lightning Reversal) activated!]
At that moment, many people thought Atreus was done for.
Several gasps of shock could be heard from a distance.
Just as everyone thought Atreus (Kratos) would be reduced to a pile of ash, they were shocked to see him bring his arms together, raising them high in a fist-like grip. In the center of his grasp was none other than the bolt of lightning the witch had just sent his way!
Time seemed to freeze.
To Bruce and Tony, the sight was that of a god-like figure.
The bolt of lightning Atreus held aloft looked like a giant Christmas tree, with each smaller, dazzling branch representing the smaller offshoots of the main bolt.
No one expected that Atreus, with a forceful shove, would send the very lightning that should've killed him right back at the witch.
"Ahhh—"
A piercing scream echoed through the sky!
The bolt struck the witch, and her torso exploded. A dark green flame shot out from her chest, ascending into the sky. Then, the remaining half of the witch's body exploded entirely.
The blast wave scattered the thick dark clouds summoned earlier, followed by a strange and blinding flash, as if a bizarre, miniature green sun was rising from the ground, threatening to consume the world.
The witch's final self-destruct would have been terrifying.
But Atreus finished her off.
With two Chaos Blades, he stabbed the witch through her forehead and chest.
Only Atreus could see the large red souls pouring out of the witch's body, all of which he absorbed.
"Damn… soul-devourer!" The witch's decaying jaw fell from her skull. Her dirty, rune-covered arms twitched, trying to grasp at Atreus one last time, but it was too late. Her body turned to ash.
A gust of wind blew, and she vanished into the breeze.
Nearby, Iron Man had been holding off Bane while Atreus dealt with the witch, allowing Atreus to quickly glance at the system notifications.
[Congratulations, host! You have killed the witch (Enchantress) and successfully absorbed and purified 57% of her soul.]
[Congratulations, host! You have gained the following attribute upgrades: Intelligence +12, Perception +13, Willpower +7.]
[Congratulations, host! You have gained the following skills: All-Element Mastery Lv5.]
[Congratulations, host! The following skills have been upgraded: Wind Element Mastery upgraded to Lv11, Fire Element Mastery Lv6. Energy Absorption upgraded to Intermediate.]
[Host has acquired the Elemental Branch Skill (Blink): Host can ignore physical presences of up to 30 energy levels and transform their body into elemental form, enabling short-range teleportation up to 10 meters. Cooldown: 5 minutes.]
"Phew!" Atreus exhaled deeply.
That was a huge profit!
Master of both magic and combat!
No real weaknesses—this is the benefit of the god-slayer template.
The only regret was not completely destroying the witch. The witch was a special entity—her heart wasn't within her body. If she had hidden her heart before coming to fight, she couldn't be fully destroyed.
If not for Atreus's ability to devour red souls, even if someone destroyed her body, she would remain unharmed.
"Boss! Are you okay?" The female hunter was the first to rush over.
Atreus looked around. "I'm fine. You guys… clean up the bones around here."
The battle had shifted again.
The disgusting portal had reopened. This time, not only did it revive the surrounding zombies, but the witch had also 'revived'!
She was no longer fighting alone; now, she was attached to the giant Bane's left shoulder, her spine fused with Bane's shoulder blade.
In a raspy voice, she commanded Bane, "Kill the bald guy first!"
"No! Kill Batman first!" Bane shouted, throwing a huge rock at Batman. But Batman, now evolved, elegantly dodged the attack.
Oddly, the two, sharing the same body, began to argue.
Atreus suddenly remembered a ghost story:
There once was a weak but wise man who prayed to an evil god for a strong body, so the evil god stitched him together with his strong but dumb brother.
This scene wasn't quite the same, as Bane wasn't lacking in intelligence, but it certainly had that feel!
(End of Chapter)