Starting from scratch, Batman crushed my dream of getting rich

Chapter 385 Terrifying Energy Absorption
"Old horse?!"

Barry, who was lying on the ground, panicked. He tried to push himself up with his hands, but his body, which had been subjected to a strong electric shock, was completely unresponsive. The intense pain caused his muscles to spasm and tremble, and he was unable to get up from the ground for more than ten seconds.

Why did you come back? Hurry up and let's go!

He shouted a warning to Ma Zhaodi: "Don't come back! Gibran's abilities are dangerous!"

"Stop worrying about me, eat your candy first!"

With a flick of his wrist, Ma Zhaodi tossed a small chocolate from his palm toward Barry, who, activating his Speed ​​Force, reacted swiftly, biting into it and swallowing it.

"Hurry up and throw away the access card!"

Ma Zhaodi's warning sounded again. After throwing away the chocolate, he hid behind the building inside the gate, not intending to expose himself directly to the threat of electricity. Most of the other employees were still in a daze and confusion, just screaming and running aimlessly, trying to get away from the super-powered criminal who was covered in electricity. They didn't know that their actions were meaningless—no matter how fast their legs ran, they couldn't outrun Gibran's electric light.

Only a few substation employees reacted quickly enough to heed the words of the mysterious man in black robes, throwing their access cards to the ground before continuing their escape.

But that was enough. Gibran only needed an access card to enter the substation, and when he saw someone wisely throw the access card out, he no longer intended to waste time chasing after the remaining employees.

"That's right. Don't go against me, and you'll all survive."

Kahlil Gibran bent down to pick up the card and grinned maliciously at the direction where Ma Zhaodi was hiding: "You're very clever."

He turned around, swiped his card to open the gate, and ran straight into the substation without glancing at Barry at the entrance again.

Ma Zhaodi didn't stop him, but after confirming that the guy's attention had shifted, he immediately ran out the door and came to Barry's side: "How are you?"

"I feel better."

The treatment was complete, and Barry's injuries had healed. He stood up again: "No, I have to stop Gibran. He got the room key; he must be going to absorb electricity."

"Idiot, is electricity more important or people?" Ma Zhaodi retorted. "Are the people in the substation really safe right now? Go and get them all out of here first!"

"Oh yeah." Barry finally realized. "I'll go right now."

"Hurry up!" Ma Zhaodi ordered, then finally had time to take out his headset and connect with the three people in the Starry Sky Laboratory: "Doctor, are you there?"

“We’re here. How’s Barry?” Wells’ usually calm voice betrayed a hint of urgency. “We just heard you confronting Gibran, but Barry’s communicator suddenly lost signal—are you alright over there?”

“His headset was damaged by the high-voltage current,” Ma Zhaodi replied. “Kahlil Gibran can discharge electricity, and that just now probably destroyed all the electronic devices on his body.”

Cisco quickly asked, "How is Barry now?"

“He got shocked twice, but he’s okay. Well, at least he can still run,” Ma Zhaodi replied. “He’s currently moving the employees out of the substation because Gibran has already gone inside.”

Caitlin frowned: "If what he just said is true, he's going in to absorb electricity. If he replenishes his power, he'll become even more difficult to deal with."

"It's hard to say. I think this guy is already very difficult to deal with," Ma Zhaodi replied. "After all, that guy is covered in electricity. Barry can't even touch him; if he does, he'll get shocked. By the way, can you cut off the power supply to the substation?"

“Good idea—but it would cause a significant portion of the city to lose power.” Caitlin looked at Cisco: “Can we manage that?”

“Me?” Cisco shook his head. “Before, we definitely couldn’t have done it—but ever since Felicity came to reprogram the lab’s computers, I feel like we’re invincible.” “Then let’s do it,” Dr. Wells declared decisively. “How long will it take?”

"Let me take a look. Hmm, three minutes should be enough."

"Great—Old Ma, how's the situation over there?"

Upon hearing this, Ma Zhaodi looked up and saw Barry leading a substation employee out, giving himself a "done" gesture.

The two immediately chased after Gibran, and Ma Zhaodi turned on his headset to speak to the doctor.

"Barry sent everyone out."

“Very good. Now we need Barry to buy time. Cisco needs three minutes to cut off the power to the substation. Gibran’s abilities are somewhat restraining of Barry. Remember not to let Barry take the initiative; focus on delaying.”

Barry immediately replied, "No problem."

Ma Zhaodi then asked, "By the way, are there any guns in the lab?"

As soon as he said it, Barry and the three people in the lab were all stunned for a moment.

"You want to use a gun against Kahlil Gibran?"

“If we can’t fight him in close combat, then of course we can only rely on ranged attacks,” Ma Zhaodi replied. “If his ability is just to discharge electricity, two shots will be enough to incapacitate him. Or if you have any tranquilizer guns or anything like that, you can bring them up. As long as they work.”

"This"

Cisco scratched his head. He hadn't really considered how to deal with Gibran from this perspective before, or rather, everyone in the lab had gotten used to relying on Barry's abilities to solve problems.

“If that’s the case, we don’t even need a gun,” Barry replied. “If I just grab a steel pipe, run at high speed, and throw it, I could probably knock Gibran unconscious.”

"See, you still have a way to deal with him." Ma Zhaodi concluded, "Of course, when rescuing people, your speed is indeed a bit insufficient. You can't outrun lightning. You still need to practice that."

As they spoke, the two had already entered the substation and saw Kahlil Gibran again.

He was standing in the middle of a dense array of transformers, with a dozen blue currents piercing the air and surging to connect to his body. Judging from his satisfied expression, he was really enjoying it.

Sizzle, sizzle—

"My God, how can this thing be so terrifying?" Cisco exclaimed suddenly while typing on the keyboard: "Multiple areas of the central city powered by the substation are starting to lose power! It's absorbing a huge amount of electricity, and there's no sign of it stopping!"

Upon hearing this, Barry looked up in astonishment and indeed saw that several high-rise buildings in the city center had suddenly turned off their lights and gone completely dark. Then, this phenomenon began to spread rapidly.

"Hurry, Cisco!" Barry exclaimed, "Otherwise, the power will go out in the lab too!"

"I'm working on it at full speed—!"

(End of this chapter)