There was no time to react.

  The Abyssal wave smmed into Batman with the force of a colpsing building.

  His instincts screamed—brace.

  But the moment it touched him, everything shifted.

  Not pain. Not impact.

  Darkness.

  A suffocating void swallowed his senses, tearing him away from reality.

  ---

  [Unknown Space Detected]

  [Forcibly Entering Abyssal Domain]

  ---

  Batman’s feet touched nothing.

  Weightless. Sightless. Soundless.

  The world was gone.

  His mind processed the situation in fractions of a second.

  No light.

  No sound.

  No physical form?

  A mental attack?

  No. This was deeper.

  A voice echoed—whispering directly into his bones.

  > "You do not belong here."

  Batman tensed. Another presence.

  Something vast. Ancient. Watching.

  > "You are not chosen."

  > "You are not cursed."

  > "You are... an intruder."

  A pause.

  Then, ughter.

  Deep. Resonating. Amused.

  > "And yet, you stand."

  > "Fascinating."

  The abyss around him shuddered.

  Then—a figure emerged.

  Not Valen. Not any human.

  Something else.

  It had no face. No defined shape. Only shifting shadows, forming an outline of something vaguely humanoid.

  Its eyes, however—burned.

  Not with fire. But with hunger.

  > "Shall we test you, little knight?"

  ---

  [Abyssal Entity Recognized]

  [Survival Test Initiated]

  ---

  A challenge.

  Batman had no weapons. No tools. Just himself.

  Fine.

  He’d survived worse.

  The entity moved.

  Not fast—instant.

  A tendril of pure abyss shed toward him. Batman dodged—barely.

  No sound. No warning. Only movement.

  His muscles felt slow. His body—unresponsive.

  > The Abyss does not obey your rules.

  Then I’ll make new ones.

  Batman didn’t retreat.

  Instead, he lunged forward.

  Straight at the entity.

  It didn’t expect that.

  For the first time, the shadows hesitated.

  Batman swung—a clean, precise punch.

  It connected.

  And passed through.

  The entity’s ughter echoed.

  > "Foolish."

  The shadows swallowed him whole.

  Cold. Crushing. Endless.

  ---

  [Physical Resistance Failed]

  [Mental Fortitude Test – Ongoing]

  ---

  Pain bloomed in his skull. Memories surfaced.

  His past. His failures. His regrets.

  Images fshed—Deku, Jessa, Gigachad.

  Their faces.

  Their expectations.

  > "You will fail them."

  No.

  > "You are alone."

  No.

  The abyss pressed harder. Trying to break him.

  Batman clenched his teeth. Refused to yield.

  He had been here before.

  In the darkness.

  In the cold.

  Surrounded. Outmatched. Alone.

  And yet—he always got back up.

  ---

  [Mental Fortitude – Success]

  [Survival Test – Incomplete]

  ---

  The shadows recoiled.

  The entity—paused.

  > "Interesting."

  Batman took a breath.

  He wasn’t beaten. Not yet.

  > "Very well, little knight."

  > "Prove yourself."

  The real test had begun. ---