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Chapter 116: Rose Of Death I

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The man couldn't help but let out a sigh, "More questions than answers... As usual."

"What might be troubling you, my dear? I may be able to help..."

An uninvited guest showed herself, but she seemed to be an inhabitant of the hell realms, so technically, Ian was the one to come uninvited and cause so much destruction in a battle that shall be known as the invasion of the fiend, ironic, isn't it?

Ian faintly eyed the approaching demon, and what a demon she was, fine red wine he could describe her as, but if you take an even small breath of that wine, you will smell it, the scent of seas of poisons within.

Her skin was red like fine red wine. She was adorned in a royal purple dress, tight and seductive, showing much of her ample assets, barely holding her bountiful mountains back.

Her hair was long, silky, and inky black. Befitting of a demon of hell, she had a pair of horns spurting from her head, making her appear more royal but even more of a temptress, almost like a succubus able to suck the souls of even the most strong-willed of men.

Seeing Ian just gazing at her without an answer, the demon released a charming smile, "Excuse my rudeness. You may refer to me as Lady Blaze. Would you like to visit my..."

Her words remained stuck in her throat, speechless as much to her dismay, Ian just shook his head, seemingly considering something else entirely before vanishing.

"In the middle of my spe... You do not even want to hear me out!? Bastard!" Despite the overwhelming anger she felt within her, she quickly hid it and calmed herself down lest he hears her somehow.

She was afraid, but still an opportunist enough to approach. Still, the more she looked at the ashes not far from her, the more fear she felt, but also the more desire and greed... What if she can have such a man for herself? She wondered... Alas, he's gone.

He was far away by this point, constantly teleporting through the realms of hell until he found an isolated area, a death zone of sorts, and of course he saw it as a perfect place to rest.

Strangely, along the way, he barely came across any demon at all, almost as if he was being avoided.

Ian simply couldn't believe the cruelty of hell, leaving him all alone, but he can understand.

A lot of high demons, he made a deal with, and one of the deal statements was that they cannot be involved in any way or another in his death or even harm unless he attacked first.

Such a restriction was actually not that hard to loop around, especially since he's in the realms of hell now, but who's to say that they want him dead? No, they want him away, as far away as possible.

They not only couldn't kill him because that may start a war across all hell realms, but they also had to keep him alive... Until they realized he can not die.

Such an important piece of information was verified once even Ian's close friend, Constantine said as much. The shame they felt of being tricked by the fiend to such an extent was overwhelming, to say the least.

Still, they could do nothing about it but watch the battle though some of them may not be as accepting of the circumstances.

The noblest of demons naturally have their ways, but... Ian has just become more of a fiend.

He found a lair for himself, just a cave in the middle of the death zone with flames of hell spurting from the depths of the ground without stop.

It was hot, extremely hot, but he felt nothing, no pain, no discomfort despite his missing limbs and his miserable state.

His focus was entirely on his newly evolved Death force. The staff of all things was hovering behind him, radiating a blurry light.

He was fully delving into his newest evolution as he sensed a sea of holy energy pouring into his body through the blurry tattoo on his back.

'A tattoo of a petal, and other petals are already showing signs of forming. The end design should be a Rose. Ian Rose... Is it a coincidence? No, it's most certainly not. Someway, somehow, everything correlates to the answers I desire.'

"Rose Of Death," Ian murmured, naming his newest evolution without much hesitation. He then focused on controlling the holy energy to flow throughout his body, to his every cell, and even to his soul.

'Interesting, controlling it feels so much more natural than manipulating through the staff.

If I had to speculate, I'd say that with the Rose Of Magic, It'd take me only about ten minutes to perform some of the hardest spells when it would've taken more than thirty minutes before.'

He let the holy energy flow to all of his wounds, slowly but surely healing him, and getting rid of Etrigan's darkness. It was miraculous.

A genuine smile surfaced on his face, one of pure happiness almost like a kid who has just gotten the toy he dearly desired for so long.

Ian had finally gained some sense of real power, one that belongs to him alone. He can finally feel himself bathing under the warm embrace of light. Whereas to Etrigan, that light was a virus, to Ian, it was the opposite.

The only limitation he saw to this new evolution was the fact that he can only use it on one power at a time. He chose to refer to the form as Rose of said energy.

Now, he was in the form of Rose of light while before at Etrigan's last moments, Ian had Rose of speed force active which led him to a wonderous discovery... The speed force was able to affect his brain, accelerating his thought process massively.

Ian considered his reaction time to be his most notable limitation because it keeps him in the realms of humans, peak human but still a human nonetheless.

Now, however, that was no longer a limitation, but then again, everything is relative, so while his newly heightened reaction time was monumental for him, there are beings out there that don't consider time a thing.

"Hahahahaa... Phew, so fucking happy!" Ian didn't mind showing his good mood as laid back down, eyeing the crimson rock of the cave as if it were the most precious of materials, or he was seeing through it, far into the future.

'The potential is... I can finally use the staff vessels to their full potential.' He may be limited to activating one form at a time at the moment, but he still uses the other forces through the staff, so he could still see no negative effect of the recent evolution.

'The only unfortunate thing is that the speed force doesn't seem to affect my Death force generation... I guess I am wishing for too much.' Too much would be an understatement.

He went on to contemplate the prerequisites of activating the Rose of death because he doesn't feel like he can do the same with the black Rose dimension, at least not yet.

He does however sense such a connection from something else other than his staff, something lying dormant in his dimension since long ago, already corroded by his death force.

'Hmm, so it should work based on energies. The Rose of death may need energies to establish such a connection, but more testing is required.'

His attention soon returned to his current state, better than before due to the holy light, but still a miss.

He was healing very quickly though to the point even his limbs seem to be healing albeit at a much slower rate, seeming like it'd take days to weeks to fully restore.

"Is it stacking?" Ian murmured with a weird look. He was naturally giving away his death force to activate the Rose of light.

That could only mean one thing, he was stacking his healing abilities because he can heal by giving away his Death force and by the holy light, and that gave him a bit of inspiration.

"Magic stacking! That sounds like a brilliant idea... Wait, what if I stack magic stacking with magic spam? Holy fuck I'm gonna faint..." The possibilities were too much for his exhausted brain.

However, he couldn't stop thinking, seemingly obsessed, "And I should go get some souvenirs while I'm at hell. I'm sure Etrigan wouldn't mind giving away a bit of charity... Well, I guess he wouldn't mind giving away everything, so why not? I will at least remember you."

Ian nodded at himself, exhaustion finally catching up to him. He was certainly not exhausted physically as Death force resists that, but mentally, he was losing it, remaining at his peak focus for three days straight was certainly taxing.

And so, Ian entered his dimension and fell dead asleep...

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Chapter 117: Rose Of Death II

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Honestly, Ian has done nothing wrong. He has been brought down to hell as a guest, and the welcoming ceremony was subpar at best, so he naturally felt a bit vindictive.

He was never one not to take souvenirs even in his past life. He had traveled to many places, and never once did he come out the same.

Sure, sometimes that's because he comes out with broken bones, but that's just sometimes. Those little things called souvenirs are memories in solid forms, remembrances of the past.

So he didn't actually feel that vindictive. He just wanted souvenirs and good memories of hell.

"Agh, God, like why are demons so spineless all of a sudden?" Ian loudly wondered with a bit of exasperation.

"Like, things would've been so much easier if they just continued to act like the demons they are. Now, I'm sure I will always see their disgusting faces in the worst of nightmares."

Yeah... Does he mean it? Of that one can only wonder, never getting a clue as Ian pierced a demon with his staff.

"Eww, so gross. Who would've thought I was bathing in demons' blood just a week ago, and even Etrigan's... I was so in the zone that I didn't care."

Ian felt like he adapts to circumstances and places very well. Like they say, when in Rome do as the Romans do.

When in Nanda Parbat, he rarely spoke, remaining in silence and peace. Now in hell, he very much felt like talking to himself and letting a tiny bit of wildness out.

Even his appearance looked a little wild with his still messy hair due to being cut off by Etrigan, his still missing limbs though they seem to be regenerating, perhaps only a week or before they regrow fully.

He was adorned solely in black pants, knowing that things might get messy, so need need to ruin his clothes again despite several wardrobes of clothes beings in his dimension.

"And the speed force is weird... It doesn't feel like the speed force but my speed force. Perhaps my Death force corroded it."

If only he knew one of the most important reasons why his speed force isn't that fast, but still, it had just become faster, so much faster.

Like now, he was in the Rose of speed force mode, orange lightning crackling around him. He was hovering in the air with his wings spread out.

He couldn't run because he was basically missing a leg, but he can fly, and that he did as his wings flashed, causing him to vanish.

The fact that his speed force also works on his wings was wonderful. He wasn't sure if something similar is possible for other speedsters, or if this is a result of his Death force because it did corrode the wings.

There is any possibility though, what if the speed force in the second vessel is actually different from the normal speed force.

What if it has no connection with the latter, meaning it's independent. That can explain a lot of things, Ian even theorized that the speed force is aware of him, and likely avoiding him.

Many things and beings were avoiding, some even he doesn't know about, but he's aware of such a possibility.

There are beings with cosmic awareness in this world, so they're likely aware, to a certain extent. Whether they're more aware of his nature than him is still uncertain.

He flew through the air like a bullet, faster than a bullet, seeming like a cloud of orange lightning gliding through space with a speed surpassing forty Mach.

At such high speeds, he'd usually use his magic to resist the air friction and all the troubles that come with it, but he didn't need to anymore, the speed force was taking care of it all.

Alas. the realms of hell are extraordinary vast to the point it took him several hours to reach his destination, a specific city. As for how he found it, well, it's naturally charity.

He just kindly asked demons on the way, and they were so cowardly that they told him without hesitation, almost as if they know who he is... How could they not?

Ian being the charitable person he is of course left them alive, sometimes. His destination was clear, Etrigan's domain.

He was looking forward to what kind of gifts the demon prince has left for him though he was a bit pessimistic because it took him a week to recover to this degree.

A full week should be more than enough for the word of Etrigan's demise to spread, especially with the fascinating nature of hell.

Demons are greedy, so why wouldn't they see this as an opportunity to take what is now ownerless? Fear? That's negated by stupidity and desire.

However, much to his surprise, when he reached the place, it appeared very orderly with no sign of the chaos he was expecting, no scattered corpses throughout the domain, just peace and a bit of tension.

Etrigan's domain was very small, mainly because he was sealed in a mortal for thousands of years, but as a demon prince, he still owns a small domain with only one city.

The demon prince's choice of style was evident at a glance, crimson gothic buildings with a touch of gold. The main castle was especially splendid albeit ominous as one might expect.

Ian's still blurry white eyes landed on a figure standing alone at the castle gates, seemingly awaiting him, a familiar figure.

He drifted down until he was hovering before her, eyeing her strangely, "Aren't you the random demon I saw at some point in time?"

"..." There was a long menacing silence before the seemingly calm demon, "Lady Blaze, and it's only been a week." She even smiled amicably at the end, seemingly graced by his presence.

"Ok stop it." Ian instantly responded, appearing to be weirded out.

"Huh?"

"Take that smile back, it brings me chills, pheeww." Indeed it brought him chills, making her even more confused, so he had to clarify patiently.

"Like, have some common sense and act like the demon you are. I've met demons that peed their pants just by seeing me for christ's sake. What is this? A reverse horror movie?

And now before me is another demon acting like the kind old man on the side of the street who gives free candy. Next thing you know, you're in his basement, ready to be dissected alive."

"..." Blaze was speechless, to say the least. I mean, she was certainly not gonna dissect him, of course she wouldn't because she isn't the old man who gives away candy.

She just wants to suck his soul out after milking him for all he's worth, but she wouldn't tell him that, "I... I think you're the one not aware of hell's common sense."

Ian narrowed his eyes at her, sizing her up from top to bottom, "Yeah, no. I'm aware. Anyway, care to explain?"

Lady blaze was starting to regret her plans. He doesn't seem like someone who will lose himself in power and lust, but who knows what might be hiding behind his unique appearance.

"I took over the city after our meeting, awaiting your arrival... I want you to be my mate, and I shall be your mate as well."

She let out an alluring smile as she flew up, approaching him until her body was hooked to his, her ample breasts squeezing against his chest in an act of pure seduction.

She caressed his cheek, her lips an inch from touching his as she continued.

"Can you imagine what kind of offspring we can have? And trust me, I'll make it all worth it. You'll be living the best days of your life, and who knows... We might just be able to take over hell, together."

Against her seductive and very much alluring display, Ian let out a chuckle. He found it very interesting. but at the same time, he could finally understand some speedsters' troubles.

Her every sultry word seemed to take minutes to leave her throat. Her expression was nearly unchanging, but those small minuscule changes were as clear as day for him.

He felt like an hour has passed while in reality only a minute or so passed. This was what is called speed mode, you process things so quickly that time seemed to crawl behind even the slowest of turtles, unable to catch up.

It was a fascinating experience, but at the same time, 'Torture for those who can not control the speed force well... Thank god my control over it is nearly perfect.'

His charming smile made her misunderstand, thinking that her temptations worked as she went all in for the kiss... Only for her to be in shock a few seconds later as she felt like she's gonna faint, far too overwhelmed.

She could swear that last she remembered she was the succubus, yet here she is, kneeling before a man, breathless and dazed without him doing much.

'Hmm, my death force seemed to have improved not only in quantity but also in quality... I hope Selina and Ivy don't pass out in like a second... Nah, that will surely not happen.'

Ian convinced himself of his own delusions before finally paying attention to what he actually came here for...

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Chapter 118: Rose Of Death III

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Ian convinced himself of his own delusions before finally paying attention to what he actually came here for.

The moment he arrived here, he had already started spreading his Death force all around, making it function as a sensor of sorts. The force went on to explore the depths of the castle while he satisfied his curiosity.

His death force enveloped the target. He was still at the gates while his target was far away, in the depths of the castle, yet his goal found itself in his hand.

It was a simple switch from its original place to his dimension then to his hand.

Ian eyed the item closely, seeming to be a book, locked with hellish chains. It had a sense of age, seeming to have existed since the beginning of earth.

The slowly recovering Blaze lifted her face, her expression speaking of fear but also desire. She seemed to have learned her lesson though and didn't act.

She was confused though because she searched the castle thoroughly for anything of value, but didn't find much.

"It's not the real thing," Ian however had a very different reaction. His death force thoroughly explored the thing, and he even used The Rose of Magic, sensing the mystic force within it.

"It should be just a copy done without much effort, but it's enough. Its magical abilities are of no use to me, knowledge on the other hand..."

He smiled brightly, seeming in a very good mood as his wings flapped on their own.

What he holds in his hand was a copy of one of the most magical and valuable books to ever be written, created by Belial himself.

It's said to not only hold the history of the universe but also a variety of magical spells, some invaluable.

Ian sent to his dimension before finally paying attention to the nervous Blaze, "You really have no idea why I came here. The other reason I mean, but I suddenly changed my mind."

His one foot touched the ground, his wings still keeping him balanced as he crouched to her level, "No need to be nervous. I don't bite."

'Like I would believe you!' Blaze so wanted to snarl at him but she could only watch in nervousness as he pinched her chin, making that odd feeling return.

Her breathing became heavy very quickly and her desire seemed to ignite. She felt a fire burning within the succubus in her, a blaze of desire to jump at him like he's the most delicious thing ever.

Ian on the other hand stared at her with the eyes of a scientist, ones of interest, wanting to see how his Death force would affect demons, especially ones as special as her.

He knows that it strengthens Ivy, but it doesn't seem to have a valuable effect on normal humans except for increasing their life span significantly.

That however seemed to change for Selina once she gained her Cat-like abilities, so he was curious how it would affect her.

'She seemed easily affected when she kissed me which isn't odd by itself if not for how easily she fell. However, touching her with my hand and transferring my life force to her doesn't seem to have as much of an effect.'

Ian didn't hesitate at all in approaching her further and sealing her enticing dark red lips unleashing a wild beast.

It was like Blaze was given permission to let her desires go ablaze as she wrapped her arms around his neck, diving into him and exploring the depths of his mouth just as he explored hers.

It was like the slutiest kiss Ian have ever experienced because she seemed like a natural or just experienced, and her desires for him also seemed abnormal.

'Hmm? Is that? She's a succubus. That explains a lot.' Ian certainly didn't lose himself in pleasure but was carefully observing how his Death force affected though he was a bit tempted.

He noticed bits and pieces of odd energy surrounding them as well as a sweet aroma, evidently produced by her by instinct.

Alas, the Succubus wasn't able to bear his uncapped life force as she again felt weakness throughout her entire body, unable to continue the kiss anymore, so Ian had to hold her by her waist, keeping her against him.

She was however still trying as if she couldn't get enough of him, so Ian had to pat her head as he cut off his death force release, "Well done, I assume even Ivy would fall long before you if I don't hold back, so relax and listen."

Ian didn't wait for her to regain her breath but instantly started whispering something in her ear as his staff shone with brilliant blue light, surrounding them in a barrier.

"I'm looking forward to what you can do with this information, so do not disappoint."

He then vanished, not giving her the chance to respond. Not that she could because she remained there frozen for quite a while, understanding the severity of the information, but also its potential.

Ian didn't come here just to get the book of eternity but also to get some training while regenerating his limbs because even holy energy was taking a while to heal him completely.

Due to that, he set off to another city, the closest he could find. This time, he was much more swift as he directly landed at its center, noting it to be quite chaotic.

The city had no order as demonic blood could be seen everywhere, such as the chaotic nature of hell without a ruler, and now Etrigan's domain has lost its prince.

"Well, this makes things easier." Ian took a deeper breath, closing his eyes for a second only to open them again, an orange flash passing in their light before becoming blurry again.

He squeezed the staff in his hand and vanished, moving at such a speed that no demon could perceive him.

His Death force flowed into the Rose of Speed Force at such an intense rate his entire person became blurry, seemingly switching between reality and illusion.

What was he doing while moving at such speed? He was simply trying to get used to his new evolution, experimenting with the demons as dummy targets.

His quick reaction time and immense processing power in the speed mode certainly helped him in stabilizing his condition as his spear-like staff pierced through every demon in the city without exception.

In fact, the speed at which he pierced them created sound and shock bombs every time without fail.

They, however, happened way after he left the area due to his speed, he was after all so much faster than sound, so he got to watch fireworks at work when he left the city only to look back at it crumbling with constant explosions.

And so a city has fallen in a matter of minutes. He also looked a bit different because he didn't look so blurry anymore. His power seemed to be stabilizing.

"Did I do bad?" Ian started to doubt his decision, "Should I make it worse? Can it get any worse?" He was thinking about an entirely different situation.

The only thing in his mind was the words he whispered to Blaze. It was honestly exhilarating to Ian as he licked his lips in anticipation, "Nergal and many high demons are dead, all due to I and Constantine's immaculate teamwork.

I caused a war without trying, so now that I'm trying, what'll be the result? Oh god, please do not disappoint me, Blaze. You're someone who'll never miss an opportunity, you'll job right at it, so do so..."

Indeed, demons despite being cowardly, were quite talkative, so they gladly told him everything that happened in the past months, things of importance at least.

And he wasn't surprised to find out that Constantine had sold his information to every demon he made a deal with. Most importantly, he made a deal with Etrigan, Nergal's life for Ian's.

Etrigan though wanted to take Ian's life by himself which was convenient for Constantine because he suddenly didn't have to do much.

There were however some complications along the way as Constantine 'accidentally' slipped, and let out some valuable information about Ian to some other demons.

That for some reason started a war with the demons that made a deal with Ian and the ones that didn't as the formers dearly wanted to exterminate them.

Unsurprisingly, it was a one-sided battle because Ian likes to make charity with deals with very good demons, the saintests of them all.

Of course, most of this is a result of Ian's quick deduction because the low demons only knew some general information about what happened, but knowing Constantine, he was sure his guess is correct.

He couldn't wait for the day he comes back to see a much different scenery of hell. Perhaps a more exquisite style, one of pure destruction.

Ian still didn't leave, but remained in desolation, putting the entirety of his focus on healing himself.

He certainly didn't want to go back in such a sorry state. He can only imagine what the girls would do if see him like this. He was sure at least it would be worse than if he just vanished.

In fact, he was very much looking to what they were up to since his disappearance. What kind of scenery will he be faced with on earth?

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Chapter 119: It Was Unintentional So It's Okay I

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Ian lost track of time. He wanted to spend only as much time as needed to completely heal, but while studying his evolution, he forgot if time was even a thing.

Most of his days were spent thinking and nothing but that. The Rose of Speed was rarely inactive as his mind worked at a rate incomprehensible to most beings, trying to find answers.

Even he had never spent so much time just thinking, and it made him realize something. He had changed a lot.

He reminisced the days of his adventures, the times he sought to see how he wouldn't die. He loved to see different deadly situations and see how his power would react, just to cause a disturbance in his numb self.

No more. Ian felt such a need no more. He still feels like seeking fun, like enjoying his life and living it to its fullest, but he was more okay with his numb emotions.

His desires were starting to change because what he seeks now most is answers. He just wants to know what he is, or where did his powers come from, and that desire is only becoming stronger by the day.

So it wasn't strange for him to use his new powers, namely Rose of speed to think of all possibilities only to end up with a few million possibilities, and he believes there to be more.

It was not enough, he needed more, and he'll get more. Only, when he finally regained his composure and got out of the zone, he found out that a month has passed, "Oops."

Now one might wonder how he'd go back to Earth from hell. Well, it was actually quite simple. Ian instantly teleported into his dimension, then to earth...?

His rings are all mediums to the black rose dimension, and at the moment, he has three on his person. He has two as earrings and one on his finger, the one he used against Etrigan.

The other two rings were both on earth but very far away from each other. One was in the underground level of his mansion in Gotham, and the other was at the temple of Bastet, the place that brought him here.

Back then, when Ian noticed the strangeness of the situation, he discreetly hid the ring somewhere around the temple, basically teleporting it from his finger to the exact spot he just appeared in.

All he had to do was to send out his Death force through the specific ring, and here he is, eyeing Xanadu who was standing not far away.

"On a scale of one to ten, how bad is it?" This was Ian's first question the moment he appeared.

"You took too long, but it's actually not that bad, I'd say about a five." Xanadu could finally let out a sigh of relief, carefully observing him with doubts clear in her eyes.

"Oh? That's it? Well, I guess I trained the team right." Xanadu could swear she was a speck of disappointment in his eyes as he spoke, making her wonder whether he wanted it to be worse or better.

"Not really. It was chaos. They're just a bunch of monsters so they survived through it... Well, most of them at least."

Ian raised his brow at that, "You just said it's five, so I assume no one died... What happened?"

"Aghh, you're really odd," Xanadu remarked, still not used to his carefree nature, hell, death coming out of his mouth doesn't sound like it matters, "Harley, she was caught and sent to Arkham Asylum."

Ian was even more confused, "So what's the problem? The roses should've told them to let her go, and she will magically escape."

"Well, apparently. The plans have changed as she was no longer sent to the mental hospital but somewhere else. According to your people's investigation, it appears she was forced to join a task force of sorts."

"Hmm, very interesting. Well, I am back and I will take care of everything. I have to wonder though, How did you find me? Precognition?" Ian asked with curiosity.

Madame Xanadu shook her head, "No, as I stated before, I can not see anything about you, but I can see how this place will change.

It took me about a week, but I was able to detect a spot around the temple where the stand will have a specific change similar to that of footprints."

She let out an amused smile looking at his surprise, "Indeed, I've just appeared knowing you or someone else will step on that exact spot at this exact moment, so while I can not see your future, I can see your effect on the world and deduce things based on that."

"But it should only be useful if you possess a significant amount of information, and a bit of luck because who would expect I would appear here? But it's the only lead you have, so you followed it."

Xanadu rolled his eyes at his nitpicking before finally voicing her doubts, "You seem different... What happened."

Aside from his trimmed hair and his eyes which have gained a white hue of sorts on top of their brown color, nothing else was changed, but Xanadu trusted her instinct, there is definitely something more to it.

"Nothing much. I was basically a guest of honor in hell, so it all went well." Ian shrugged, finally paying attention to the main reason he teleported here.

"Lady Bastet, if your actions back then were pure, just wanting to keep Selina alive, then I'm thankful. Unfortunately, I'm poor because the inhabitants of hell were quite stingy.

If however, your intentions were impure, then I'll know in the future, and I'll easily find you, as easy as the snap of a finger. Things will be worse if I found out you helped in the trap."

Ian said nothing more as he turned around, going through the portal just created by Xanadu, "Don't forget about our deal."

"I won't. For now, just tell me all the details."

To say Ian was surprised at her recounting would be an understatement because things that happened far surpassed his expectations.

Perhaps Gotham has been peaceful for far too long because chaos has sought to embrace it yet again.

Nearly at the same time Ian vanished, the league of shadows attacked the city, specifically the Wayne corporation building.

Not just that, while that was happening, some of the strongest of the shadows secretly invaded Ian's mansion. Their goal was without doubt the underground part, almost as if they know what lies in there.

However, what they weren't prepared for was that they couldn't get in, even with explosives.

Perhaps they were misinformed about Ian, or they overestimated him as much as they could, but it was still not enough because the entire underground floor was protected with numerous magic barriers and wards.

They didn't escape unscathed though as they found themselves faced with a few monsters and an army.

The Roses had a plan just in case something similar happened, so the appearance of the monsters was expected, a diamond man, Barney.

A dragon flying above the mansion Mike whose powers were further enhanced by Ian in his last return, allowing the man to completely transform into a dragon. lastly a ball of hair, Ralf.

There were further supported by an army of masked individuals who were actually the same person, Multiplex.

And there was more, so what was meant by they weren't able to leave unscathed, it means only two of them survived at the cost of dozens.

The league of shadows was exterminated a week later in mysterious circumstances. It was simply a massacre, and only a few know who did it, namely Layla and Ian's team because they were partially responsible.

The other person that helped immensely was none other than Deathstroke as he turned on the league without any hesitation. Whatever Ian whispered to him back then worked.

Insanity was the definition of what happened after the special Rose unit's return because the fall of the league of shadows was just the start.

Next came their search for a passage to hell which led them to the battle that sealed Harley's fate... Their battle against the Justice League.

Ian looked recounted the information to himself time and time again, feeling confused as he asked himself, "Why the overreaction?"

"Because you're their obsession, and their love, distorted love I assume." The one to speak wasn't Xanadu but Zatanna because they appeared not in Gotham but in New York.

"Selina did very well, though," Ian murmured, ignoring her, "Ivy on the other hand... Predictable. Harley however I didn't expect to act so crazy... Well, I kinda did. This is a bit amusing, don't you think?"

"No, I don't, not at all in fact. Like, look at you, did you have a vacation in hell, leaving the Chaos in here behind you?"

Zatanna was having none of it, in fact, she looked extremely annoyed, "Do you know that the crazy clown of yours tried to kill me when I refused to take them to hell? To take them to their death? Aghh, ok, I've seen what I wanted, so just go and fix things please."

"Huh?" Xanadu on the side, eyed Zatanna strangely because as far as she remembers, she told her to bring him here for something urgent, yet now she's sending him away after taking a glance at him, 'Could it be...'

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Chapter 120: It Was Unintentional So It's Okay II

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"Huh?" Xanadu on the side, eyed Zatanna strangely because as far as she remembers, she told her to bring him here for something urgent, yet now she's sending him away after taking a glance at him, 'Could it be...'

Ian very much welcomed going away because the greater good was awaiting his arrival, so he vanished appearing in Gotham besides his ring just a second later.

He brought out a tablet from his dimension, connected it to the internet, and started looking through the news, "Hahhaaahaha, well done girls, beautifully done!"

Many many things happened in the past month, but Ian focused only on the things he was interested in. His plans for answers require a lot of answers which are much easier to get.

The Roses were like a virus, spreading and moving about like ants, but very few people pay attention to them.

In fact, those who were once beggars on the side of the street are now rising through the ranks of society, meaning more access to information.

"Layla." He murmured as he took a comfy seat on the couch. His voice traveled through the shadows, reaching her ears, and through shadows, she literally came to him.

"I can take away your powers at any moment, you know that right? I can perhaps grant you something more stable." He murmured as he eyed the seemingly happy Layla.

"I can bear it. I have no need for what it took away from me." Layla shook her head, firmly rejecting the offer, "It's perfect for me, so please allow me to continue to serve you with it."

Ian let out a breath, contemplating for a bit, "Alright, I should be able to solve the problem at some point in time, so just tell me if you can't bear it anymore."

such are the dangers of red Kryptonites. Despite his overwhelming control over it, there are still some side effects to some of the powers it grants, especially the powerful ones.

"Also, I want you to clean up after the girls, and help them if needed... Let them know I'm back." His orders were spoken after he created a portal right before her, "This should get you close... Be careful."

Whatever was happening with the task force thing, he wasn't interested in, but they Harley. Thankfully, he didn't have to interfere because the girls seem to be planning something.

He on the other hand has more important things to do. His unit has proved to be successful as they were able to contest even with the justice league, albeit with using a bit of trickery and distractions.

He continued to read through a lot of information, some public news while the others were collected by the Roses.

"Finally, I can take charity more efficiently." A lot of heroes were appearing one after another in the world, and so were villains.

It all means he has a lot to take care of, starting with going to the Lazarus pit, the one far beneath Gotham, hidden well in a cave.

It was finally found, and Ian was preparing to take a look at it. Ian only blinked once to find himself in a well-lit cave, the source of its light seemed to be the pit at its center.

There was a green boiling liquid within it, releasing a green fluorescent, allowing clear vision. He walked beside it and crouched, his hand reaching out for the liquid, submerging itself within.

"Dionesium huh, a wonderous liquid... Useless to me, unless." His staff appeared beside him, magic already doing wonders, preying for all of its secrets.

That was followed by all of the staff vessels' forces acting one by one, seeing if any of them would have an effect on the pit.

"Light and Darkness..." Ian murmured, stroking his chin in thoughtfulness, "Light weakness it while darkness amplifies it. Unexpected yet expected at the same time."

A pit with healing powers and even revival of the dead, one would expect it to have something to do with an angel's holy powers, but it's the opposite.

"The doing of demons perhaps? I guess I will have to study the book of eternity first, see if anything in it helps."

The book was basically a Wikipedia of knowledge and magical speed, so he really wanted to start studying it right now, but there are more important things to take care of.

A few magical teleportations later, Ian found himself in Coast city, vying for his next target, something he had to wait to take for a while, not because he couldn't borrow it before, but because he wanted more.

The staff behind shone in blue light as several invisibility and stealth spells were cast on him, and only then did he fly to his destination while looking through the news on his tablet, news about the Green lantern.

"Working hard huh? Well, don't mind me then." Once he was close to his target, he unleashed his Death force, lunging itself toward the odd green device hidden in an apartment.

It enveloped it slowly but surely until vanished, appearing within the black Rose dimension, 'Did he really think just invisibility would keep the power battery from being taken?'

Ian was a bit confused because he expected more. That's why he took so many precautions, yet it was all too easy.

'Well, whatever. I can not use it for now, but it's only a matter of time,' The moment the Power battery of the green lanterns appeared in the dimension, massive amounts of death force started flooding into it, corrupting to Ian's liking.

"Hope they come though. It might make things much easier, after all, what's better than absorbing the source itself?"

It was all unintentional. Ian would later swear because he really didn't mean for things to become so chaotic and fun at the same time.

If Ian long ago was a menace without any powers then now that he has them. what'll he achieve? Or what does he want to achieve?

He of course wants to complete his collection. The route for the completion of the staff of all things was already planned, and finally, he make some progress, a lot of progress.

Before the people of earth become too aware of magic and what it can do. The extent of its broken nature. The methods to stop it. Before it's all discovered, Ian went on a stroll around the world, appreciating nature.

The day of chaos was on its way, and it all started with some unintentional events starting with Ian landing before a mountain.

"Aghh, like how can gods be stingier than demons? I guess I had to come personally to get my treat."

The mountain looked normal to the unseeing eyes, but Ian can see it very clearly, and he can feel the complexity of space throughout it.

Somewhere within the mountain, there was a gate leading to a place, and somewhere within that place, someone spoke, "I told you he'd come."

"You did, but what happens when a bug enters weaklings' home? Likely nothing, they wouldn't even notice it... But I, I'm a God, so I know when a bug comes and when it leaves. I can just squash it, can I not?"

Responding to Hephaestus was a gorgeous noblewoman, speaking of bug with a tiny bit of hatred.

The God of the forge could only shake his head in bitterness. She was simply too unreasonable because none of this needed to happen, and he could do nothing about it because he was chained to divine walls of her castle, "I hope you can..."

"No, there is still time, so let me play with the bug a bit, and see it flap its tiny wings like you said it can." Her tone was strange with expectations and frustration.

'They weren't tiny... They were actually too big. I can only hope they aren't too big for her to handle lest Zeus has to interfere...' Hephaestus kept his thoughts to himself but Ian didn't.

"Olympus! Here I come to collect charity! Do you think you can just pledge it and not pay up!?" Ahem...