It was when Adrian, Penguin, and Bane gathered together.

The incidents at Arkham Asylum had leaked out, despite the institution's attempts to cover them up.

However, Western reporters were not to be underestimated. They caught the scent of news and raced ahead faster than anyone else.

After a thorough investigation...

Although they didn't acquire complete, clear firsthand information, it was confirmed that someone had successfully escaped from Arkham - or rather, evaded the institution. In any case, a dangerous individual had definitely broken free.

Fortunately, Gotham citizens, having weathered many storms, remained calm.

Without the Bat-Signal overhead, everyone stayed put, waiting for Batman to handle the situation.

Gotham's Dark Knight wasn't one to linger; he moved faster than the reporters.

However, this time, Batman was just a step slower than the reporters because when he received the news, he was still investigating information regarding Adrian.

The results of his investigation left Bruce Wayne feeling somewhat incredulous because no matter how many tightly secured databases he infiltrated, he couldn't find a trace of Adrian.

This youth seemed to have appeared out of thin air.

And indeed, for this world, Adrian seemed to have emerged out of nowhere.

"Alfred," Bruce momentarily set aside the matter of Adrian and called for his butler. After all, Batman merely suspected the boy might be associated with the League of Assassins and wanted to investigate his identity.

Comparatively, the incident at Arkham Asylum was much more critical.

There were quite a few dangerous individuals inside Arkham.

Scarecrow, Killer Croc, and the extreme environmentalist Poison Ivy - if any of them got out, it wouldn't bode well for Gotham.

"Master Wayne," Alfred appeared at an opportune moment.

"What happened at Arkham? Who escaped?" Bruce inquired.

"It's still unclear for now, sir. The other party seems to be desperately concealing the information," Alfred said, "I believe it's necessary to contact Commissioner Gordon."

"I'll handle it myself," Bruce stated.

"I must remind you, sir, that all networks within Arkham Asylum are closed. We cannot infiltrate their systems for intelligence, and judging by their behavior, it seems they don't wish for any other forces to intervene. They probably won't welcome Batman's presence," Alfred pointed out.

"That's up to them," Bruce stood up.

Night fell, and above Arkham Island, a black jet soared, with a futuristic design resembling a bat-shaped jet.

The jet flew over the island without pausing. However, Batman had already descended from the aircraft. As he approached the ground, his large black cape unfolded, slowing his descent, and silently stabilizing as he landed.

While Batman entered Arkham Asylum, in another part of Gotham...

A man with ghastly green hair, pale skin, and red lips was shouting loudly, "Trash, vermin, crap, jerks! I spent so much money on them, and they let someone escape."

His shouting was strange. You'd think he was angry, but compared to his erratic movements, there wasn't much anger evident in his tone.

The only person in all of Gotham who dressed like this and behaved so oddly was Batman's arch-nemesis—the Joker.

"Mr. J, don't be so upset. Shall we go and kill them all?" A voluptuous blonde woman beside the Joker, her face painted like his, spoke in a sweet but slightly crazy voice.

Harley Quinn, also known as the Joker's most devoted follower.

She was once a psychologist but unfortunately ended up being captivated by the twisted mind of the Joker while treating him, ultimately becoming Harley Quinn.

Although she wore the Joker's makeup on her face, it was applied.

As for the Joker, he naturally looked this strange.

"Oh, Harley, my beloved, your words make me so happy," the Joker suppressed his anger and laughed.

"Mr. J, as long as you're happy," Harley Quinn's eyes were filled with infatuation.

"Ah, I plan to have a little game with the Bat's head at Arkham and, while at it, punish those bunch of morons," the Joker, who had just been furious, suddenly laughed, "Harley, my dear, why don't you go in first and take care of some things for me?"

"Of course, my Mr. J. How should I get in?" Harley Quinn asked.

The Joker's laughter became more exaggerated, and suddenly, he punched Harley Quinn on her head.

Harley Quinn swayed and fell unconscious from the punch.

Despite the Joker's appearance of being slender, he surprisingly was skilled in hand-to-hand combat.

The reason why his close combat skills appeared weak was because his opponent was Batman. Similar to Penguin, when encountering Batman, there was only the fate of being strung up and beaten.

No room for maneuvering.

It's strange to say, but under normal circumstances, "regular" humans like Batman should have had little room for maneuvering against monsters like Bane or Killer Croc.

However, Batman always found various ways to use the environment and props for a perfect fight.

Rendering Killer Croc and Bane incapacitated.

Bane was relatively okay; Batman somewhat valued him.

But when it came to Killer Croc, Batman always had a "This guy is just a brainless creature, not worth worrying about" attitude, treating him as if handling an unleashed Husky.

Having knocked out Harley Quinn, the Joker took out his phone and made a call, "Hey, I found Harley Quinn, yes, that crazy Harley, she's at XXXX. Hurry up and take her away. What? Who am I? I'm a concerned citizen of Gotham, hahaha..."

With a burst of manic laughter, the Joker ended the reporting phone call and left Harley Quinn lying there, departing the room.

After a while, a police car with blaring sirens arrived and took away the just-awakened Harley Quinn.

Watching the police car depart, the hidden Joker made another call, "Hey, dear Penguin, it's me, your Uncle J."

"Hi, don't hang up in a hurry. I have some business I want to do with you. The arms trade hasn't been great lately, right? Uncle J wants to give you a big order. In a while, help me transport some weapons to the waters near Arkham Asylum..."

The Penguin on the other end hung up the phone, frowning.

The fact that the Joker got hold of his number wasn't strange, but what was strange was why he suddenly wanted to buy some arms and send them near Arkham Asylum. Although the quantity wasn't large, it was more than enough to start a rebellion at the asylum.

The asylum housed many of the Joker's henchmen and followers, but the Joker wasn't interested in those underlings causing a prison break.

"Joker?" Adrian said to the Penguin.

During the recent phone call, the Penguin hadn't avoided mentioning Adrian and Bane.

"Yes, that lunatic wants to buy some weapons from me and have them delivered to the waters near Arkham Asylum - what does he want?" the Penguin asked.

Adrian seemed to have an idea and looked at Bane, "Do you know who transferred you to Arkham Asylum? Your transfer was kept secret; someone was controlling it."

Bane shook his head, remaining silent.

"Could it be the Joker?" Adrian continued.

"It's possible; he's capable of anything," the Penguin stated.

"Let's organize this. For the Titan serum, the Joker bribed people behind the scenes at the asylum to transfer Bane. Then I rescued Bane, and he called you for weapons. Is he planning revenge on those people from the asylum? Or is he trying to find you and get all his underlings out of there?" Adrian said, "Anyway, whether it is or isn't..."

Before the two could speak, Adrian said, "Let's lend the Joker a hand; it's certain that he's up to something at the asylum."

The Penguin maliciously chuckled.

Bane didn't speak; he remained silent for a while before saying, "What are you planning?"

"If you want to develop a truly perfected Titan formula, simply burying yourself in the lab won't make it an easy task -" Adrian paused and a cruel smile crossed his face, "Don't you think we need some dynamic and valuable test subjects?"

Bane rose, "The patients and criminals in the asylum?"

"Yes," Adrian smirked.

"For live experiments, I can get hold of some people," Bane said.

The Penguin chimed in, "Although it's not my primary business, I can provide a few people, and I can make the price more affordable."

"Leave it to me," Adrian waved, "I'm a kind-hearted person; how could I use innocent people for experiments? The asylum's criminals are the best test subjects. Besides, isn't this whole thing quite interesting?"

"Ultimately, this is your true goal," the Penguin said with a hint of disgust.

"Joker - if it's really him, then I also want to return the favor properly," Bane removed a needle from his body, thumped his chest, and revealed a grim smile.

"Don't rush," Adrian said, "It seems the Joker's plan is just beginning. At least, we need to produce some Titan serum first. Also, you just escaped today; if you don't want to be caught by Batman again, it's better to lay low for a while. I don't like suddenly hearing that my important partner, lab director plus chief of security, has been caught by Batman."

"Hmph! Batman!" Bane was clearly displeased.

He once broke Batman's spine, but later, after his weakness was exposed, Batman became the victor in their fights.

"Alright, the decision is made. Cobblepot, don't betray us," Adrian told Cobblepot.

"How could I? We're old friends, right?" the Penguin looked at Adrian.

"No, what I mean is, to avoid having your head bashed in by Bane, it's best if you don't betray us. Also, I suggest you change your yacht's driver; that guy can't navigate a boat at all," Adrian said.

"Hehe," Bane timely laughed twice, a hint of threat in his tone.

These criminals had no integrity; it wasn't possible for them to develop an affectionate, enduring relationship after just a few transactions. 

Interests, the threat of violence, mutual distrust, and compromise were the ties and guarantees for their continued cooperation.

"Hey, you can't treat me like this; after all, didn't I save you?" the Penguin half-heartedly shouted at Adrian's back.

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