"If needed, I can go back to that sewer and retrieve the book."
Professor Morbius spoke with enthusiasm. Seeing that Batman had no desire to retrieve the book personally, he decided to set off himself.
But before he could take even half a step, his shoulder was heavily pressed down by Batman.
Professor Morbius turned his head in astonishment, only to see a trace of coldness radiating from Batman's already expressionless mask.
It wasn't just Batman; even Doctor Otto, whose four mechanical tentacles were incredibly busy, and Dr. Banner, who was chatting with Venom Robin, looked over. There were subtle signs that they were stepping closer.
"What is it?" Professor Morbius was immediately confused.
He reached out to scratch his cheek, but the sensation of skin clinging tightly to bone and the glimpse of grey-black claws in his peripheral vision made Professor Morbius realize what was happening.
There was only one reason Batman stopped him, and why Doctor Otto and Dr. Banner were on alert: Morbius himself was a hidden danger.
In the last two days, between the arrival of the Moon God Khonshu, the birth of Venom Robin, and the dispatching of the Lizard to guard the neighboring North Brother Island...
There was a lot going on, but no one had forgotten about Professor Morbius's situation.
Until a substitute for human blood was developed, no one could guarantee that if Morbius were thrown back into human society, he wouldn't go feral again and kill living beings.
"Sorry." Professor Morbius's excitement vanished without a trace, his expression dimming.
With his grey-black skin and gaunt appearance, where skin wrapped tight against his skull, his dejected look seemed somewhat eerie.
"Do you want to return to human society?" Batman didn't comfort Morbius, but simply looked at him and asked.
"Do you want the truth or a lie?" Professor Morbius asked.
Dr. Banner and Doctor Otto's gazes shifted over once again.
On South Brother Island, they didn't have to worry about food or drink, and there was a complete scientific research environment.
But humans are social animals. Doctor Otto and Professor Connors had their own families, and Dr. Banner was still thinking about his ex-girlfriend.
They couldn't stay on this island forever.
Batman didn't speak; his eyes, faintly glowing white, stared at Morbius.
"Of course I do," Professor Morbius felt creeped out by Batman's stare. "But at the very least, I have to wait until I can fully control this current state, right?"
Batman nodded slightly.
"Correct, but it goes beyond that."
The words spoken by the Moon God Khonshu inside the Egyptian Hall last night still lingered in Batman's ears: "Darkness will surge like a tide..."
A long time ago, when he settled Dr. Banner and the others on South Brother Island, Batman had entertained the idea of establishing an organization similar to the Justice League.
This thought had always been there, but Khonshu's words last night made Batman decide to accelerate the implementation of this plan.
"What are the specifics?" Dr. Banner left Robin and came over.
"After Professor Connors returns, I will ask for everyone's opinion together," Batman said.
Dr. Banner was clearly unsatisfied with this answer, but just as he was about to press further, Doctor Otto interrupted him.
"All done."
Relying on his four mechanical tentacles, Doctor Otto had completed the construction of the moonlight platform.
"Then... shall we begin?" Dr. Banner dragged Venom Robin over. "Do we need to call Khonshu?"
"No," Batman looked at Dr. Banner. "But I need the Hulk."
A unique, honest, and simple smile appeared on Dr. Banner's face. He took off his glasses and tossed them aside, then took off his white lab coat.
Besides the lab coat, there was a jacket, a shirt...
Finally, Dr. Banner had removed all his clothing except for a pair of extremely loose purple boxer shorts.
Batman frowned slightly at Dr. Banner's loose shorts; they were simply big enough to wrap half of Dr. Banner inside.
But with a series of sounds like popping beans as bones grew, Dr. Banner's body took on a shade of green. Extremely developed muscles and taut skin transformed him once again into the Incredible Hulk.
Those loose shorts became well-fitting with the appearance of the Hulk.
"Big Lizard..."
As soon as the Hulk appeared, he turned his head looking for Professor Connors. Seeing no sign of him in the laboratory, he looked at Batman.
"What did you do to my Big Lizard?"
"Your Big Lizard?" Doctor Otto turned his head away and snickered.
"He is on a mission." Batman faced the Hulk, a faint smile appearing on his face—one he hadn't shown to others. "Hulk, I need you to help me guard this place right now. When necessary, act according to my orders."
"Hulk hasn't smashed in a long time." The Hulk huffed twice. "I want to find Big Lizard."
Batman certainly couldn't let the Hulk run to North Brother Island and pick a fight with the Lizard. That would inevitably scare Norman Osborn, who had just started to look like he was returning to normal, into a massive stress response.
"Hulk, do you know what a nuke is?"
"Hulk not afraid of nuke."
"I know, but for humans, it is the final and most powerful ultimate weapon." Batman looked up at the Hulk, who had walked in front of him. "To me, Hulk is like a nuke. You can only be used when absolutely necessary."
The Hulk immediately grinned.
"Stronger than Big Lizard."
"Stronger," Batman said.
Receiving a satisfactory answer, the Hulk clenched his fist and extended it forward, bumping fists with Batman.
"Good eye."
Doctor Otto had been snickering on the side for a while. Seeing the Hulk pacified by Batman once again, he hurriedly coughed to stop his laughter.
"Robin, come here."
Venom Robin didn't like the feeling of being studied. But right now, standing on one side of him was the expressionless Batman, and on the other stood the Hulk, arms crossed over his chest, making his immensely developed arm muscles look even more heinous.
Hesitating for only a second, Venom Robin immediately chose to run toward the moonlight platform Doctor Otto pointed to.
"You don't mind if I tie you up, do you?" Doctor Otto asked with a smile, holding a specially made restraint strap.
"I do mind." Venom Robin scrunched his eyes.
"Hmph." The Hulk grunted in dissatisfaction.
Having already put some distance between himself and the Hulk, Venom Robin stuck out his scarlet tongue at him.
"No need to tie him. Start the experiment just like this," Batman said.
With Batman there, Venom Robin didn't need to be tied up.
As for calling out the Hulk, it was primarily to keep an eye on Professor Morbius, preventing him from getting any other ideas after their earlier conversation.
However, Batman wouldn't say this outright; instead, he led everyone in the lab to believe that the Hulk was there to prevent any accidents during Venom Robin's experiment.
As Doctor Otto used his mechanical tentacles to slowly move the prism, a beam of moonlight slowly shone onto Venom Robin.
Venom Robin let out a comfortable whimper, unable to resist moving the joints simulated by the symbiote all over his body.
Under the moonlight, the pitch-black symbiote on Venom Robin was rapidly entwined by white burial wrappings. Layer upon layer of bandages wrapped him up completely.
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