To Qingshui's relief, the two chief stewards of the Bat-Family didn't bring up the matter with him.
"I know, I know, Mr. Watt, we are very grateful for your and your friends' help with Bruce."
Alfred and Lucius stood up and bowed slightly to Qingshui.
"There's no need for that, gentlemen. I just want to know, why exactly have you come to see me?"
Alfred and Lucius exchanged glances.
"It's about Batman and Bruce Wayne."
Alfred began, "Even though Gotham's underworld is nearing unification and the crime rate has slightly decreased, this city still needs a Batman who can act at any moment, terrifying criminals to suppress evil and prevent the crime rate from rebounding."
"You're not trying to make me Batman, are you?"
Qingshui raised an eyebrow slightly.
He had no desire to be like Batman, patrolling Gotham all night, nonstop.
However, if it meant gaining access to some of Batman's valuable resources, he wouldn't mind taking on a temporary part-time role.
"No, we haven't come to ask you to be Batman. That duty will be temporarily taken over by Master Grayson for a while, until Master Wayne returns. We've come to Mr. Watt hoping you could use your transformation ability to impersonate Master Wayne when necessary. Batman can be Bruce Wayne, but Bruce Wayne cannot be Batman. I trust you understand this. And when necessary, to attend events and meetings as the chairman of Wayne Enterprises on Master Wayne's behalf."
Qingshui tapped the table, not answering immediately.
Lucius understood that he was waiting for concessions.
After all, this trouble was ultimately caused by Bruce Wayne himself.
If it were a noble superhero like Superman, they would certainly offer help without expecting anything in return. But the person before them was a capitalist.
A major capitalist ranked among the top thirty wealthiest people in America.
"That's why I invited Alfred here. I thought perhaps Wayne Enterprises could engage in more business cooperation with Watt Group as a form of reciprocation," Lucius said.
Well, isn't this an opportunity!
"Ahem, well, I heard Bruce mention nanobots before. I'd like to know how far Wayne Enterprises has progressed in nanotechnology."
Lucius and Alfred exchanged another discreet glance.
The latter nodded slightly.
"Mr. Watt, while this is a trade secret of Wayne Enterprises, however..."
"Wait."
Qingshui cut off Lucius's ineffective attempt at commercial haggling.
"Speaking of secrets."
Qingshui took out his modified phone, swiped a few times, and placed it on the table.
A holographic projection of the Arc Reactor's schematics appeared above the screen.
"I imagine Mr. Lucius would be familiar with this, but it's a secret of my personal and Watt Group's, a secret among secrets. All related data has always been locked away in my private database, and that database is isolated from external networks. Only I have access..."
Lucius covered his forehead with his hand, speechless.
This time, to clean up Master Wayne's mess, they would have to bleed a little more.
While Qingshui was negotiating with Lucius, In a distant universe, Bruce Wayne felt pain all over his body and opened his eyes.
Hmm.
It wasn't an unfamiliar ceiling, but the familiar sky.
Gotham's sky.
"You're awake."
Hmm? Why does that voice sound familiar too?
Bruce Wayne overcame the pain with sheer willpower and managed to sit up from the ground.
This person was...
Gordon?
Much younger than in his original universe.
"I didn't expect that after all these years of being dead, you'd be resurrected in this alley again," Gordon said, lighting a cigarette.
Is this world... a world without Batman already?
Bruce Wayne looked at Gordon.
He needed to understand this world better.
...
...
Marvel Universe.
Current Fortune Value: 79.3%
Qingshui gazed at the Fortune Value on the screen, which had suddenly increased by a small margin, a thoughtful look in his eyes.
Just moments ago, his Avatar in the DC Universe completed the primary departmental construction of IPEAC and successfully assembled a remarkably effective team.
The Black and White Canary sisters had joined, and Martin Stein accepted Qingshui's high-salary offer to become a scientific advisor and head of the research department for Watt Group and IPEAC.
Qingshui could provide him with world-class experimental equipment and substantial funding for his physics research.
As for Jefferson Jackson, the ideal candidate to merge with Martin Stein, it was even simpler.
He was a former athlete, a quarterback for his high school football team.
However, unlike other athletes, he lacked resilience and didn't possess an indestructible body capable of withstanding a nuclear blast. He was severely injured a few months prior, and his academic performance was heavily skewed, resulting in an overall average score.
His academic grades weren't enough to secure government-sponsored loans from the local state, so he could only try his luck.
Moreover, he came from a poor, single-parent household.
Jefferson's college dream was all but shattered.
When The Flash's team and Martin Stein first found him, he was working as a mechanic at a car factory.
Disheartened, Jefferson refused to join and become Firestorm, only wanting to diligently earn money to support his family.
Qingshui's solution was straightforward.
Since Jefferson was already an apprentice at a Watt auto shop, Qingshui directly promoted him, gave him a raise, and transferred him to Watt Group headquarters.
He would work in the research department, his job being to be researched, while also moonlighting as a hero for IPEAC to save the world, earning double pay.
Initially, the young black man was somewhat reluctant, but when Watt Group's employee benefits reached his home and his mother looked at him with eyes full of pride, he relented.
The Rogues, on the other hand, presented a slight problem.
It wasn't that they were unwilling, as Qingshui offered a lot of money, more than enough for them to squander freely.
This villainous team was as united as a superhero team.
Captain Cold wanted Qingshui to help get his comrades, who were imprisoned in Blackgate Penitentiary, released—they had been defeated and sent there by The Flash and Green Arrow working together.
Qingshui certainly wanted to get them out and add them to his team.
Unfortunately, Qingshui arrived too late.
Those individuals had already been targeted by Amanda Waller and were likely being recruited into the Suicide Squad.
Weather Wizard, Captain Boomerang, Pied Piper, Trickster, and Rainbow Raider—half of the Rogues' core members had been captured.
However, Qingshui promised that if the Rogues helped him secure the position of IPEA director, he would ensure their reunion.
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