PFC Chapter 4494 The Darkest Night (22)
Chapter 4494 The Darkest Night (22)
Chapter 4494 The Darkest Night (Twenty-Two)
Brainiac was speechless. In fact, he couldn't understand it either. Schiller had stormed out, only to leave instead of taking the stage. And the situation hadn't improved with his departure; in fact, it had gotten worse. It seemed there were at least four or five threads connecting the serial murders. The killers were all masters of stealth. Even with Brainiac having at least 90% control over Gotham, they still managed to exploit that 10% gap to commit the murders. Anyone who came here would have to call it a gathering of geniuses.
“I suggest you take Jonathan Klein under control first,” Tim said. “His methods are nothing new. As long as you can detect the presence of fear gas in the air, you can successfully charge him. Without him causing trouble, we can focus on catching this copycat.”
“I will keep him under control,” Brainiac said, “but he probably won’t go to jail because he does have a mental illness. At most, he’ll be hospitalized.”
“That’s enough,” Jenna said. “Just make sure he doesn’t cause any trouble lately. Otherwise, our workload will be too much.”
Brainiac fell silent, clearly preparing to arrest Jonathan. Just as Tim and Jenna had said, capturing him wouldn't be difficult. Jonathan wouldn't resist at all, knowing Brainiac wouldn't do anything to him.
When Brainiac found Jonathan, he was still busy in his lab. The moment the camera panned towards the lab bench, Brainiac froze. How did that body get here?
Lying on the lab table was the body Jonathan had poisoned. It should have been lying on the forensic doctor's autopsy table.
"How did you manage to steal the body?" Brainiac asked.
“I’m not hiding from you, go check the surveillance footage yourself,” Jonathan said without looking up. He was busy at the lab bench next to him, pouring things into various flasks.
Then he paused for a moment, then held out a hand and said, “Okay, I know you’re busy. The old days are back. Unless you can find someone completely immune to fear gas, what can’t I steal?”
Although Jonathan offered a few explanations, Brainiac still did his own research. Jonathan hadn't been hiding from him at all. He made no attempt to conceal how he took down the police officers. He simply threw a terror gas grenade, and everyone was down. He then leisurely dragged the bodies back.
“What are you going to do?” Brainiac asked.
This highlights the advantages of having a non-human ruler. Generally speaking, anyone facing an outlaw like Jonathan Klein would be somewhat enraged. This guy repeatedly refuses to admit wrongdoing or repent. It's clear that as long as he lives, no one, from the police to the courts, will have a peaceful time. His very existence is meant to disrupt social stability and harmony. Even rulers with humanity and emotions wouldn't tolerate such a person. But Brainiac can.
He wasn't exactly tolerant. He simply followed the rules and regulations without any emotion. He'd arrest someone for each offense, and arrest them again for each subsequent offense. He'd sentence them according to the proper procedures. He wouldn't let personal feelings cloud his judgment.
This time was no different. Even though he was gathering evidence against Jonathan Klein, preparing to subject him to involuntary treatment, he would still care about Jonathan's clearly abnormal behavior, and wouldn't ignore him because he disliked him.
Jonathan's handling of the corpse was clearly abnormal. In Schiller's terms, the artistry of Jonathan Klein's murders lay largely in the poisons. He was a master chemist. His meticulously formulated chemicals could easily affect a person's limbs and brain. He always took pride in this and devoted considerable effort to it. And the effects of chemicals are mostly manifested in the process of death. Once a body is formed, there's nothing left to manipulate.
Take this corpse, for example. The victim's skin had a very deep bluish-green hue. Normally, the human body doesn't contain that much pigment. Even dye might not be able to achieve such an even color. Not to mention the white spots on the skin's surface; those spots varied in size, were arranged regularly, and were extremely aesthetically pleasing. This was clearly Jonathan's design.
Such a corpse doesn't need to be arranged in any strange way to express the theme he wants to convey. Even Brainiac could tell that it should be related to the starry sky and the universe.
Now that the design was complete, there was no need for Jonathan to touch the corpse. Could it be that something was wrong with the body, forcing him to redo it?
Brainiac found it unlikely. Jonathan was a master of chemistry. Although he had suffered from mental health issues for over a decade, frequently visiting prisons and psychiatric hospitals, and lacking Victor's comfortable research environment, his academic level must have reached unimaginable heights. It was unlikely he would make a mistake in such a case. Therefore, Brainiac chose to ask him directly.
“Good question,” Jonathan replied. “Although none of you informed me, I did learn from a police officer that Perrotta, who killed my student, is a person who has come back from the dead.”
“Perlotta was torn to pieces, and there were no conditions for detailed testing, so it can’t be said for sure that’s the case. That’s why I didn’t formally notify anyone,” Brainiac said.
“That’s why I have to do you a favor,” Jonathan said. “Don’t think I’m heartless; in Gotham, you have to be fair. You’re the best steward I’ve ever had. Life in the nature reserve has been the most peaceful I’ve ever had. I can focus on my research without being bothered by those idiots. The students you picked for me are pretty good too; they do have a brain sometimes. So of course, I’ll do whatever it takes to help you.”
"The method was to commit another murder?"
“Didn’t you already have information on this guy? One of the rebels who orchestrated the child abduction case last time, he had to be released only because of insufficient evidence. There’s nothing to regret about him being dead.” Jonathan started working around the lab table again. “On the contrary, his death will be the best example.”
"what?"
"Don't you want to know how people come back to life?"
"you know?"
“Actually, I don’t know either, which is why we need to conduct research,” Jonathan said. “Do you think he can’t be resurrected?”
"If Perlotta was indeed resurrected, then there is only one piece of evidence."
“Use your electronic brain.” Jonathan picked up the test tube and shook it. “He turned off the sun, made such a big fuss, just to use some insignificant trick?”
"what do you mean……"
"He cut off the most important natural resource necessary for human survival—solar energy—in order to create a mass death event. And his purpose in creating a mass death event was to have enough corpses to resurrect. The resurrected corpses fighting against the living will create even more corpses. Ultimately, the Earth will be swallowed up by the living."
“But we stopped it all,” Brainiac said. “The plan to isolate the Earth with dense ice is progressing steadily and the chances of success are high.”
“Yes, it is because you prevented this huge disaster that the bodies have become so precious.” Jonathan stopped what he was doing, looked at the camera and said, “Under your protection, human deaths caused by accidents and killing each other have been reduced to a minimum. Even natural deaths have been greatly delayed due to timely rescue and improved medical standards. In other words, the current global mortality rate is at its lowest point in human history.”
"He wants to create a zombie-infested Earth, and the current small number of naturally deceased corpses are clearly not enough. Creating a large number of corpses through natural disasters is also not feasible. What do you think he will do?"
“The key to the zombie apocalypse lies in its infectivity,” Brainiac analyzed. “The infection rate of zombies grows exponentially. One infected person infects two, two infect four, and four can infect sixteen. At this rate, it won’t be long before they form an invincible zombie army. However, I don’t think human firearms are ineffective against zombies…”
“Yes, you were able to repel Darkseid, so you certainly don’t need to worry about weapons. But what if they don’t engage you in direct combat?” Jonathan changed his gloves, turned around, and continued fiddling with the test tubes. “Did you discover that Perrotta is dead?”
“No,” Brainiac admitted. “It looks no different from a human.”
"It was because you didn't notice that Fanny died. And if Fanny is also resurrected somewhere you didn't notice, it will lead to the deaths of others, possibly including me. And if I become a manipulated zombie, guess what will happen?"
Brainiac had never considered cold sweats to be a thing of the past. But now he had to admit, he was becoming more and more human. If he had a brain, he'd be covered in cold sweat by now.
The fear gas possessed by Jonathan Klein was something Brainiac couldn't crack or counter. This was because it involved neuroscience, psychiatric pathology, and psychology—a large portion of which were outside Brainiac's knowledge. And yet, this substance could be mass-produced and deployed on a large scale.
Moreover, due to its diverse forms—it can exist as both liquid and gas—it's virtually impossible to defend against. Throwing it into any water system could drive a large number of people insane. Furthermore, Jonathan can control the symptoms of these people's madness, making their behavior not all indicative of mental illness, but rather varied.
If Jonathan Klein were to be controlled and begin poisoning people silently, he could create a massive army of zombies overnight. And that's just targeting ordinary people. If he were to specifically target scientists or important figures, the zombies would infiltrate the Earth at an extraordinary speed. Even superheroes might fall victim to his schemes.
Thinking about this, Brainiac was both surprised and suspicious. Several cameras were pointed at Jonathan, analyzing his behavior patterns, seemingly trying to determine whether he was being controlled.
“Alright, stop staring at me,” Jonathan said. “What I’m doing right now is telling you that I’m on your side, Mr. Butler.”
“Let’s continue with our previous reasoning,” Jonathan said, staring at the liquid in the test tube. “The large-scale natural disasters have been stopped, and the global mortality rate is too low. Given that there’s still hope for successful zombie infiltration, he won’t give up easily. Instead, he’ll choose to settle for a less desirable location with a relatively high mortality rate and release the zombies there.”
You mean Gotham?
“It can only be Gotham.” Jonathan put down the test tube, rested his hand on the table, and looked at the camera. “Your arrival has indeed greatly improved the situation in Gotham. But this place has been ill for a long time. Compared to other cities, your control here is significantly insufficient.”
Brainiac didn't argue, because he knew Jonathan was right. There was definitely something to Gotham about. There were many things Brainiac couldn't understand or control.
“He will definitely choose Gotham as his starting point,” Jonathan said confidently. “And as long as the murders occur frequently here after nightfall, it will confirm his reasoning. He will feel that he is right, and therefore will not consider other places. Do you understand?”
Brainiac seemed to be starting to understand. To put it bluntly, Gotham wasn't just a place that mattered to him. It was the same for everyone. He couldn't control it, and neither could the mastermind behind it.
Gotham is like a giant quagmire. Anyone who falls in gets covered in filth. The madmen use murder and crime to drag the mastermind into their familiar territory, then use their extensive criminal experience to defeat him.