"Bang!"
Adrian fired his Heat Vision, blasting apart the massive rocks pinning Batman beneath the rubble.
The earth-shaking battle that had just taken place felt no more difficult than an appetizer to him. He had barely exerted himself before completely crushing Batman's attempt to reverse the situation.
Batman lay severely wounded on the ground, unable to rise.
Most of his armor had been destroyed. The chest plate and leg armor had suffered the worst damage, covered in dense cracks that spread like spiderwebs. Torn sections of the suit exposed his bloodied body beneath.
Every breath brought him agony.
He struggled repeatedly to stand, yet each attempt ended in failure.
The physical injuries were devastating, but the pain in his heart was even worse.
Had he truly failed?
"I should commend you, Bruce. Your ability to stay alive continues to surprise me."
Adrian looked down at Batman with cold, indifferent eyes, as though he were staring at a corpse.
"Now tell me, where is Rachel?"
Batman exhaled heavily.
"Sorry. This isn't the time to discuss that."
His voice grew firmer.
"Because our battle isn't over yet."
A brilliant white light suddenly erupted from his palm.
The dangerous energy attack shot directly toward Adrian's chest.
Boom!
The beam struck with terrifying force.
Although Adrian had been momentarily surprised, his instincts reacted immediately. He shifted slightly, narrowly avoiding the attack.
Ordinary attacks could rarely touch him if he had no intention of being hit.
The superheated energy projectile carrying Kryptonite energy passed by him.
A violent explosion struck the wall behind him.
Green smoke rapidly spread throughout the area.
Using the Kryptonite's influence on Adrian, Batman forced himself back to his feet.
"Do you think using drugs this time will produce a different result, Bruce? Everything has changed, and it isn't only your strength."
Adrian slowly walked out of the Kryptonite smoke.
He had never removed the psychological restraint he had placed upon himself regarding Kryptonite. As a result, his body felt slightly sluggish and weaker than normal.
Even so, his remaining strength was more than enough.
Batman stood opposite him, taking advantage of the smoke's effects.
In his hand was a pure white energy pistol created within his private laboratory.
"Some things change, while others never do."
As Adrian emerged from the smoke, Batman aimed the weapon at him.
"Homelander, you appear powerful, but you're actually the weakest person on this planet. You rely solely on strength and possess no real willpower. I know you far better than you realize. The only thing you believe in is power."
His damaged armor barely held together, and one leg was nearly unusable, yet his eyes remained steady.
"When you're hurt, you become a frightened child. You try to control the world because you're terrified of losing control."
Blood flowed from the corner of his mouth.
"This is what never changes. Your weakness will always remain."
He raised the weapon.
"Your powers are limited by Kryptonite. I don't know why you can sometimes overcome it while Clark cannot, but it always affects you. This weapon was the final component of my armor."
Batman glanced at the gun in his hand.
"It fires concentrated Kryptonite energy. It's powerful enough to burn through your body."
He pulled the trigger.
A brilliant green beam shot toward Adrian.
However, Adrian had already moved.
The instant the attack was fired, he vanished from his original position.
His speed approached light itself. As long as he chose to avoid an attack, almost nobody could strike him.
Although the Kryptonite dust weakened him psychologically, avoiding the attack posed no difficulty.
Bang!
The beam slammed into the ground, burning a massive crater.
The moment Adrian evaded the attack, his eyes glowed crimson.
Whoosh!
Heat Vision struck the weapon in Batman's hand.
The energy gun instantly melted into foul-smelling molten metal.
Batman grunted in pain.
The liquid metal seeped through his damaged gauntlet and severely burned his hand. Unable to endure the pain, he dropped the ruined weapon.
In a single moment, Batman's final trump card had been destroyed.
The battle once again turned against him.
Nearby, Black Canary watched Batman's counterattack fail.
"What a shame. It was so close."
Her anxiety increased as she prepared to assist him.
However, the moment she moved, someone blocked her path.
"Your opponent is me, Black Canary."
Wonder Woman's fist shot toward her.
Black Canary was forced to evade, abandoning any hope of helping Batman.
"Surrender, Black Canary. You have no chance."
Wonder Woman frowned.
"You know I don't enjoy hurting you."
Black Canary sneered and threw a punch.
"You murderers actually think I care?"
Wonder Woman caught her fist.
A fierce expression appeared on her face as she drove her own punch into Black Canary's jaw.
The impact sent Black Canary flying.
"Fine."
Wonder Woman walked toward her fallen opponent.
"I take that back."
Elsewhere in the maze, Shazam confronted Harley Quinn.
Harley held her oversized hammer and grinned.
"You've got a cute name. Shazam, is that an acronym?"
Shazam blinked.
"An acronym?"
"Like SCUBA or BOOM."
Before finishing her sentence, Harley threw the giant hammer toward him.
Shazam caught it easily.
"Boom isn't an acronym, Harley."
Harley smiled mischievously.
"You're adorable when you fall for it, Shazam."
Shazam stared at her in confusion.
His teenage mind could not follow Harley's strange games.
Harley raised her fingers like a pistol.
"Boom."
The hammer exploded.
A violent blast launched Shazam backward.
His body smashed through the maze wall.
Harley looked genuinely innocent.
"See? That's the kind of boom I meant. I warned you."
Below them, Clark was fighting Detective Chimp, Bobo.
The explosion above caused Clark to look upward.
When he saw Shazam blasted away, his expression darkened.
"Superman, you used to stand with us," Bobo said. "You know betrayal is never accepted. I don't understand why you made this choice."
Clark showed no desire to fight.
"He's my family. I can't abandon him."
"Even after everything he's done?"
"Perhaps Adrian has made mistakes, but you've crossed lines too."
Bobo adjusted his hat.
"What lines?"
"You kidnapped my sister."
Clark stepped forward.
"That crossed my limit."
His eyes hardened.
"Sorry, Bobo, but now I'll have to use force."
Bobo swallowed nervously and slowly backed away.
Meanwhile, at the lowest level of the maze, the battle between Batman and Adrian approached its conclusion.
Batman's carefully prepared Kryptonite weapon had been destroyed.
Holding his burned hand, he retreated.
In an instant, Adrian appeared before him.
He seized Batman by the damaged armor.
"What happens next? Will you surrender, or die as a hero?"
His expression remained completely unreadable.
From beginning to end, he had never truly considered Batman a threat.
Unless Bruce somehow obtained divine power again or drew strength from Hell itself, escape was impossible.
"No."
Batman's voice emerged from beneath his broken mask.
"This isn't over. I won't surrender."
"Really?"
Adrian lifted him into the air.
"You always seem so certain. Sometimes I can't tell whether it's determination or arrogance."
Suddenly, a brilliant beam of light descended from the sky.
It enveloped Adrian completely.
The light contained Kryptonite energy mixed with powerful magic.
Green radiance flooded the entire area.
"What is that?"
The surrounding heroes stared upward in horror.
Clark's expression changed immediately.
A terrible feeling spread through him.
Weakness began to consume his body.
At the center of the battlefield, Adrian felt his strength falter.
The combination of magic and Kryptonite affected him simultaneously.
His brows tightened.
Power rapidly drained from his body.
Batman used the opportunity to escape his grip.
Clutching his chest, he staggered backward until he reached the wall of the maze.
Blood dripped onto the ground.
Breathing heavily, he looked at Adrian.
"I never intended to defeat you outright because I knew it was impossible. Even if you destroyed my weapon, that outcome was expected."
He forced himself to continue.
"The battle exhausted you. The Kryptonite attacks forced your body into an abnormal state and dulled your senses."
"When you grabbed me, you lowered your guard because you believed you had already won. Now the Kryptonite energy combined with magic is weakening you even further."
Batman clenched his fists.
"You can't fight like before."
Using the final enhancement provided by the Super Serum, Batman charged.
But the attack failed instantly.
Bang!
He was sent flying and crashed to the ground.
"Ugh…"
Batman lay there, trembling.
His fingers dug helplessly into the dirt.
"You still don't understand the true source of my power, Bruce."
Adrian stood above him.
His expression remained emotionless.
"That's why you're lying there while I'm still standing."
He removed a tiny piece of Kryptonite from his belt, no larger than a grain of rice, and held it before Batman.
"You think a few rocks can weaken me? Do you really believe all my abilities come from Krypton?"
He laughed softly.
"What an ignorant assumption."
He looked down at Batman.
"Depending on Kryptonite has become your weakness."
Batman's muscles spasmed.
Blood seeped from his wounds.
One hand clutched his chest while the other reached weakly toward Adrian.
Adrian slapped it aside.
"You're not like Clark," Batman said painfully. "You're not even Kryptonian. You're a lie. The biggest lie of all."
His breathing became uneven.
"I should have realized it from the beginning. That feeling never disappeared."
His eyes locked onto Adrian.
"Who are you?"
Adrian's eyes began to glow red.
"I assumed you had already figured it out, Bruce. You're always so prepared. You even created this entire plan specifically for me."
Heat Vision gathered within his eyes.
He aimed directly at Batman's heart.
"Now, Bruce, choose."
"Die, or surrender and tell me where Rachel is."
His voice echoed through the green light.
"Otherwise, I will send you back to Hell right now."
"And this time, without the Joker to save you, your death will be permanent."