mesbooks Chapter 130 Despair
Chapter 130 Despair
Chapter 130 Despair
The screams, gunshots, and footsteps of the citizens mingled together, creating a symphony of despair.
Finally, he rushed to the pickup truck, quickly opened the door, and carefully placed Bruce in the back seat.
He didn't have time to fasten his seatbelt. He immediately started the engine, slammed on the gas, and the pickup truck shot off like an arrow.
The mercenaries behind were still in pursuit, bullets striking the back of the pickup truck with a series of "bangs."
Li Wei constantly changed directions, using the vehicles on the street as cover to shake off the mercenaries' pursuit.
The pickup truck drove away from the city center and sped towards the Bat Cave.
As Li Wei drove, he took out his phone from his pocket and quickly dialed Alfred's anonymous number.
The moment the call connected, his voice trembled uncontrollably, filled with deep guilt and urgency.
"Alfred, Bruce—Bruce is in trouble. I'm on my way to the Batcave."
Alfred's rapid breathing came from the other end of the phone, along with the sound of something falling.
"How is he, sir? Is he alright?" Alfred's voice was filled with deep worry and fear.
"He's badly injured, his spine might be broken, he's been unconscious, and he's covered in blood." Levi's voice choked with emotion. "I couldn't stop Bane, I—"
"Enough, Mr. Levi," Alfred interrupted him, his voice strained with forced composure. "I'll be waiting for you at the entrance to the Batcave. Please come as soon as possible."
After hanging up the phone, Li Wei threw his phone onto the passenger seat, gripped the steering wheel tightly with both hands, his knuckles turning white.
Looking through the rearview mirror at Bruce, who was unconscious in the back seat, he was filled with endless guilt and anger.
He witnessed Batman's downfall but was powerless to stop it, and this sense of powerlessness almost consumed him.
The pickup truck sped along the mountain road, its headlights piercing the night and illuminating the rugged road ahead.
Li Wei's eyes welled up with tears, but he forced them back, trying not to let himself get distracted.
Bruce in the back seat remained motionless, his breathing weak, and the blood at the corner of his mouth had dried, leaving dark red streaks.
The mask fell to the ground beside him, revealing his lifeless face, a sight that tugged at the heartstrings.
Li Wei recalled the first time he met Bruce at the police station; Bruce was wearing an expensive suit and looked very confident.
He recalled the footage he saw in the Bat Cave surveillance camera: sitting in a wheelchair, staring blankly at his parents' photos.
He recalled being knocked to the ground by Bane in the abandoned amusement park, his eyes filled with resentment and despair.
Now, he lies lifelessly in the back seat like a broken doll, making it hard to believe that he was once the dark hero who protected Gotham.
Pickup finally arrived at the entrance to the Batcave, where Alfred was already waiting, his face as pale as paper.
He saw Levi carrying Bruce out of the car and immediately rushed forward, his eyes filled with tenderness and worry.
"Sir—" Alfred's voice choked as he reached out to touch Bruce, but was afraid of hurting him.
Levi carefully handed Bruce to Alfred, his movements gentle, as if afraid of aggravating his injuries.
Alfred, holding Bruce in his arms, turned and walked deeper into the Batcave, his steps steady and firm.
His silhouette appeared exceptionally lonely under the lights of the Bat Cave, yet it exuded an indomitable strength.
Li Wei stood at the entrance of the Bat Cave, watching their figures disappear into the darkness, a complex mix of emotions welling up inside him.
Guilt, anger, worry, and resentment intertwined, making it almost impossible for him to breathe.
He slowly turned around and walked towards the pickup truck, his steps heavy.
The night wind blew by, carrying the chill of the mountain forest, which made him more awake.
He knew that Batman's demise was only part of Bane's plan.
Gotham will face an even greater crisis, and he must shoulder this responsibility, protect the city, and wait for the day Bruce wakes up.
Li Wei started the pickup truck and drove towards the police station.
Outside the car window, the lights of Gotham still flickered, but they carried an unprecedented sense of despair.
He gripped the steering wheel tightly, his eyes growing increasingly determined.
Even if Batman falls, Gotham cannot fall. He will continue to protect the city in his own way, waiting for the light to return.
Li Wei lay prone at the ventilation duct entrance, his knuckles digging into the cold metal grille. The sharp edges cut his palms, blood mingling with sweat and sticking to the gaps in the grille, yet he felt nothing. His gaze, drawn by invisible threads, pierced through the gaps in the grille, fixed intently on the two figures in the center of the secret room. His heart pounded wildly in his chest, so fast it felt like it would burst through the confines of his ribs.
He held the modified, simple communicator in his palm. The plastic casing was slippery from sweat, and the lines of his fingertips were embedded in the gaps between the buttons. Every tremor of his fingertips made the buttons make a slight clicking sound, which was completely masked by the dull thuds in the sealed room.
The stench of blood in the air was so strong it was almost unbearable, mixed with the musty smell and the cold, hard scent of rocks. It pierced Li Wei's nostrils, making his throat tighten, yet he dared not even breathe heavily, for fear that the slightest sound would reveal his presence.
He watched as Bane's left hand gripped Bruce's cloak like an iron clamp, his rough fingers digging into the fabric, the black cloth being stretched taut, making a faint tearing sound, like a groan of unbearable strain.
Bruce's already severely injured body was powerless to resist. His arm hung at an odd angle at his side. The excruciating pain from the fracture left him without the strength to even lift his arm. He could only let Bane pull him over, staggering as his back slammed against the cold stone wall once more.
Li Wei's pupils suddenly contracted, and all he could see was the black figure being slammed against the stone wall. The stone was cold and hard, and the moment Bruce's back hit it, it made a duller sound than any of the previous impacts, like a heavy object hitting rotten wood, so muffled that it made one's heart tremble.
Bane raised his right hand high, his muscles bulging with power, the lines beneath his black combat suit as hard as rock. His fist, carrying earth-shattering force, slammed into Bruce's back.
The moment the blow landed, the secret chamber seemed to fall into a brief, deathly silence, with only the dull thud of a fist striking flesh echoing repeatedly among the cold rock walls.
Bruce's body stiffened instantly, a faint, almost inaudible gasp escaped his throat, like the last whimper of a dying beast, before he went limp and could no longer support himself.
Li Wei's gaze was fixed on Bruce's back. The once straight spine now had an extremely unnatural curve. The deformity of the spine was painful to look at in the dim light. Every misalignment of the bones felt like a needle piercing Li Wei's heart.
His fingers gripped even tighter, the metal grille was slightly deformed by his grip, the wound on his palm was torn wider, and blood dripped down the grille, hitting the metal inner wall of the ventilation duct with a faint pattering sound, which was then swallowed up in the boundless silence.
Bane looked down at Bruce, who was slumped against the stone wall like a rag doll. His breathing behind the mask was heavy and mocking. His cold gaze swept over Bruce's lifeless body as if he were admiring a work of art that he had personally destroyed.
He spoke slowly, his voice deep and thunderous, coming through the mask with a chilling edge. Each word struck the air in the sealed room, and also struck Li Wei's heart: "I broke the bat."
These seven words, like a sharp knife tempered with ice, pierced the last glimmer of hope in Gotham, echoing in the sealed chamber for a long time, their lingering sound reverberating around the cold rocks, refusing to fade away.
Li Wei felt as if his blood had frozen instantly. A chill ran from his feet to his head, creeping up his spine and throughout his body, even his fingertips began to tremble uncontrollably. He watched as Bane bent down, one hand gripping Bruce's waist and abdomen, easily lifting the lifeless body. Bruce's head tilted limply to one side, blood still seeping from the corner of his mouth, dripping onto Bane's black combat suit, leaving a small dark red stain.
Bruce's arm still hung at an odd angle, and the torn parts of his suit revealed bleeding wounds and bruises. The unnatural curve of his spine repeatedly tugged at Levi's nerves in his sight, making him almost break free of the shackles of reason and jump out of the ventilation duct.
But he knew perfectly well that he couldn't.
Given his fighting skills, rushing down recklessly would be like a moth drawn to a flame. Not only would he fail to save Bruce, but he would also become a victim of Bane's blade, and Bruce would suffer even more torment due to his distraction.
Li Wei gritted his teeth, pressing them firmly against his lower lip, until he tasted a hint of rusty blood. Only then could he barely suppress the surging impulse in his heart. He watched as Bane, carrying Bruce, turned and walked towards the exit of the secret room.
Bane's footsteps were heavy, his military boots clattering on the gravel and metal parts of the ground, the sound particularly jarring in the silent chamber. His tall figure, carrying the Gotham heroes he had shattered, walked step by step out of Levi's sight, heading deeper into the passageway.
Li Wei immediately realized what was happening and slowly loosened his fingers from the grille. The wound on his palm stung, but he didn't bother to wipe it. He carefully shrank back, pressed himself against the cold metal wall of the ventilation duct, and moved in little by little.
The ventilation duct was narrow and cramped, allowing only one person to crawl forward. The coldness of the metal seeped through the thin clothes and clung to the skin, making Li Wei shiver, but he still dared not stop for a moment.
His movements were extremely light, his elbows and knees moving along the inner metal wall, the subtle sounds of which were masked by Bane's fading footsteps in the passage. He quickly stuffed the modified communicator into his pocket, the blood from his palm smearing onto the fabric of his pocket, leaving a dark red mark.
Climbing out of the ventilation duct and landing on the gravel-strewn ground, Levi immediately crouched down, hiding behind a thick metal pipe, his body pressed tightly against the cold pipe wall, his eyes warily fixed on the exit where Bane had left.
The light at the entrance of the passage was dim. Vines entwined around the edges of the metal cover. Dust on the leaves was kicked up by Bane's footsteps and slowly drifted down into the air. The tall figure quickly disappeared around the corner of the passage, leaving only the sound of his footsteps fading into the distance.
Li Wei paused briefly to make sure there were no Bain mercenaries around before crouching low and quickly following behind.
The passage was narrow and winding, the walls covered in moss and water stains. The musty smell mixed with the stench of blood filled the nostrils, making one want to vomit. Levi's steps were extremely slow, each step landing in the gaps between Bain's steps. He concealed himself in the mottled shadows on the walls, maintaining a distance of several meters from the figure in front of him, neither daring to get too close nor too far away.
His gaze remained fixed on the figure holding Bruce in front of him. Bruce's body in Bane's arms was like a rootless fallen leaf, lifeless. Occasionally, when Bane swayed and his head tilted slightly, it made Levi's heart clench.
Emerging from the narrow passage, one returns to the dilapidated greenhouse. In the darkness, the greenhouse appears even more menacing, with shattered glass scattered on the ground, gleaming coldly in the faint moonlight like a pile of tiny, broken blades.
Vines twined around the beams and pillars of the greenhouse, their withered branches twisting and turning like ghostly hands, casting menacing shadows in the moonlight. The fragrance of flowers had long since vanished, leaving only the stench of rotting plants and a thick, pungent odor of blood, mingling together to make it suffocating.
Bane carried Bruce through the shattered glass, his military boots crunching on the surface, each step feeling like a blow to Levi's heart. A large black SUV was parked at the entrance to the greenhouse; it had no license plates, and the windows were covered in thick tint, obscuring the interior.
Four mercenaries dressed in black combat uniforms stood guard beside the vehicle, their faces covered by black masks, revealing only pairs of cold eyes. They held submachine guns, pointing them around and vigilantly scanning everything in their vicinity.
Upon seeing Bane approach, the four mercenaries immediately stood up straight and gave a uniform salute without making a sound, except for the slight rustling of their combat uniforms as their arms swung.
Bain ignored them, walked straight to the back door of the SUV, grabbed the door handle with one hand, and pulled hard. The door creaked open with a dull thud.
He bent down and gently placed Bruce on the back seat, his movements devoid of any pity, as if he were placing a worthless piece of trash. Bruce's body landed on the seat and swayed slightly, but he remained unresponsive. Only the blood from the corner of his mouth left a dark red stain on the seat.
A mercenary immediately stepped forward to close the back door, but Bane raised his hand to stop him. His gaze, hidden behind his mask, swept over Bruce's lifeless face, and a cold, mocking smile curled at the corner of his lips before he waved his hand, signaling the mercenary to close the door.
The car door slammed shut with a dull thud, as if cutting off the last glimmer of light from Gotham.
Bain turned and got into the passenger seat. The mercenaries quickly got into the car, and the driver immediately started the engine. The SUV's engine roared, breaking the silence around the greenhouse. The wheels rolled over the broken glass and drove towards the street outside the greenhouse.
Li Wei hid behind the vines deep inside the greenhouse, his body pressed tightly against the thick tree trunk. He watched the taillights of the SUV gradually disappear into the night before he finally breathed a sigh of relief. His back was completely soaked with sweat, which clung to his body, cold and sticky.