The golden cake in the backpack was still dripping blood, but Su Ming didn't care—a lot of it was brain matter, and Strangulation would clean it up.
It hadn't feasted on brains for a few days; now it could have a good meal.
To prevent any revival, he casually stripped Doctor Fate's body on the ground, at least taking the Silver Beetle Talisman and the uniform.
These things held some value; the body, however, was useless, so he blew it up directly with a grenade.
The issues of the Magic Realm were resolved, Diana was safe, and the mission from Olympus was also completed.
Su Ming gained a form of casting ability in the DC World, 'inheriting' the talisman and uniform from Doctor Fate, and now both Olympus and the Magic Realm owed him a favor.
The benefits were overwhelming; just thinking about it felt like hitting the jackpot.
Collecting the final payment from Olympus could wait; there were still a few hours until dawn on the East Coast of the United States, and he could have a proper rest.
As for the Totality problem and the Sleep God's disappearance, the clues were insufficient; the Justice League should investigate further for now.
Once they had any findings, Su Ming could get the intel from Barry.
A gorilla walked out from the wall on the side, and Barry somehow found him a bucket and mop. He looked like a Cleaner, carrying them over to start mopping.
Yet Doctor Fate's body was blown to pieces by the grenade, making it incredibly difficult for him.
He originally wanted to verify if Kent was really completely controlled by Naboo or if it was like being bitten by a zombie.
But Deathstroke came in and destroyed the evidence with a wave of his hand.
This...left nothing to say.
The relationship between Doctor Fate and everyone else wasn't particularly good or bad. His stance of upholding order kept him distant from the majority.
Would Bo Bo question Deathstroke just for a dead, unfamiliar Warlock?
He wasn't that idle. Battles among Warlocks had always been life-or-death.
Might as well pretend to know nothing, dutifully cleaning up, to avoid Deathstroke silencing him later.
Donna went to the corner and lifted Zatanna like carrying a sack, preparing to take her back to the Hall of Justice for treatment.
Albella was more direct; she walked up to Su Ming, stretched out a fair, slender hand, and lightly rubbed her fingers together.
With things over, she wanted her payment now so she could go home and sleep soundly.
She thought for a moment, deciding not to get involved in the Sleep God's matter; with Lucifer missing, she'd best watch the situation unfold.
But she had a gut feeling that all this might be related to God's changes.
"Barry, Donna, I'm leaving this to you. I'm taking Albella to collect the money."
With that, Su Ming picked up Albella and flew towards the Fire God's place, where his money was temporarily stored.
Albella had been very obedient during the mission, offering many useful suggestions; hence, Su Ming generously gave her a few extra bills.
As Albella counted her money, she expressed her fondness for a boss like Deathstroke, insisting that he must call her for work next time as well.
The cash made her forget past unpleasant incidents, like getting flirtatious in front of Deathstroke and being hit for it.
Then the two parted ways in the volcano, Albella using the Hell Teleportation Gate to head home, while the Fire God cornered Su Ming, inquiring about the Divine Gold Gauss.
Once Albella left, the rugged Fire God ceased his questions, giving Su Ming a peculiar look.
"I heard you defeated Athena."
"Seems like it. She was too weak; just a casual hit, and she fainted."
The Fire God patted his belly, shook his head, and laughed, "If I hadn't seen Athena fight before, I'd think you were telling the truth. So, really, nothing happened between you two? Did she just let you off that easily?"
Su Ming removed his helmet, lit a cigarette for both himself and the Fire God: "If the Divine Speed was sufficient, even Zeus could be knocked out by me, let alone Athena."
"Tsk, tsk... In any case, most things you did were seen. Hermes knows you killed Pan, and now he's spreading stories about you and several goddesses everywhere."
"Looks like I need to set a trap, get him to reunite with his son..."
Su Ming stroked his chin, too busy of late—even his beard lacked sheen. Perhaps a trip to Marvel to find Monac? Get some Magic Beard Wax?
The Fire God smacked his head, as if suddenly recalling something.
"Oh right, where exactly did you send Pan? Hades says he's never seen him, and when Hermes asked, he couldn't produce him. This has already reached Hera."
"A nice place, where he can emerge reformed."
Su Ming laughed, patting the Fire God's arm, which was thicker than an ordinary person's thigh, and turned to take money from a box.
The Fire God was purely driven by curiosity, not actually having any serious business, so Su Ming didn't bother saying much. He took out more money, ready to splurge.
In the DC world, where's night's entertainment most vibrant?
This question hardly needed thinking to find the answer.
................
In the basement of the Iceberg Restaurant lied a luxurious hidden office.
The Penguin Man patiently cut his cigar, while on the large TV on the wall, the miserable plight of the Riddler was being replayed, especially the bat mark on his butt, which the cameraman captured repeatedly.
To know, this is the 4K high-definition era; the cameras captured everything in minute detail, and after these past few days of news rolling, Kobert even memorized the number of hairs on Nigma's ass.
This made the Penguin Man very uneasy.
He asked himself, if Batman dealt with him in the same way, could he face living on?
No, the answer was a definite no.
Let alone continuing to be the boss, even the courage to live would be utterly destroyed.
Too scary; the Penguin Man was sleepless, fearing Batman might use this trick on him.
He had already canceled a scheduled arms deal set for tonight, deciding to lay low for ten days or so and see how things would turn out.
The Joker had contacted him recently, chuckling as he invited him to stir some trouble in Gotham together, offering a lot of money.
The Penguin Man merely smiled without agreeing to it.
Where the Joker got his money was a story for another time, but now wasn't a good moment; Kobert wasn't foolish despite his success till now.
Batman had resorted to unprecedentedly underhanded means, indicating some major change must have happened.
The Riddler was the one who stood out, his end served as a lesson to all.
Not only the Penguin Man thought this way, even the usually reckless Black Mask had gone dormant, giving his chemical plant a week's break.
Everyone in the underworld knew it was a drug factory disguised under the government's cover with the facade of a chemical plant.
Now they claimed it was a break to celebrate the United States' Independence Day. Seriously? Independence Day was still two months away.
But one had to admit, Batman's new tactics instilled deep fear in them, as if exposing their true weakness.
They weren't the Joker, who could laugh even with his pants down.
They were mafia bosses. If stripped and hung by the roadside with a bat dart mark on their rear, there would be no life for them afterward.
"Boss! It's not good! Batman is coming!"
As he reshaped his cigar in the icy office, pondering his business's next steps, one of his underlings came rushing in, stumbling with a terrified expression.
The Penguin Man's hand shook, dropping the cigar, which rolled away far away.
```