WARNING: The following contains spoilers for Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #2 by James Tynion IV, Stepe Epting, Javier Fernandez, Nick Filardi and Travis Lanham, on sale now

The Batman Who Laughs has been planning to try and break the core DC Universe and make it as grim of a place as the Dark Multiverse from which he hails. His plans have included infecting six heroes -- Shazam, Supergirl, Blue Beetle, Donna Troy, Hawkman and James Gordon -- with a strain of the Joker Toxin that's turned them into corrupted versions of themselves, giving him new fearsome allies. But now, it appears that this infection has spread much further than anyone ever suspected, as Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #2 reveals an entirely new group of heroes has been infected themselves.

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Apex Lex Goes to See the Infected Jim Gordon

Superman and Batman have revealed to the other superheroes of Earth that the Batman Who Laughs has successfully infected six of their allies. While five of the six have been able to evade capture, the heroes caught the only member of the new Secret Six who doesn't have powers: Jim Gordon. Gordon is being held within a prison inside the Hall of Justice. Various other heroes are watching over him and trying to reverse the effects of the infection. But while he's shown in Batman/Superman to be using his time in the Hall of Justice to mock the World's Finest, he's also revealed to have a secondary mission in the base: corrupting other heroes and adding to The Batman Who Laughs' army.

In Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #2, Apex Lex Luthor investigates how to reverse the effects of the infection. But the samples he took from his battle against most of the Infected weren't viable. Lex wasn't able to procure a blood sample from Sky Tyrant or the Scarab. Meanwhile, the kryptonite in Supergirl's system ruined the sample he took from her, and the magical elements of King Shazam and Deathbringer tainted their samples. To best figure out how to reverse the effects of corruption, Lex decides he needs an untainted blood sample from the completely human Gordon. Using the shapeshifting powers he stole from the Martian Manhunter, Apex Lex is able to sneak into the Hall of Justice with relative ease. But his plans don't end up working out for much longer after that.

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The Infected's Numbers Grow

Lex makes his way to Gordon's cell and procures a sample of his infected blood. Using it, he's able to do a search of the planet to find people who have the same infection. To Lex's horror, it's revealed that not just the Secret Six have been infected, as 666 people turn up during the search. This means the schemes of The Batman Who Laughs have been more prevalent than anyone ever expected, spreading his influence potentially around the entire DC Universe. He could have targeted more than just heroes too, bringing down more allies like James Gordon that could help quietly keep the heroes (and Lex Luthor) on their toes.

Gordon even reveals he's been able to help spread that infection himself by sneakily targeting the various heroes who've been watching over him. He's been seemingly successful too, as Lex turns and is confronted with an entire Justice League of corrupted heroes, Doctor Light, Miss Martian, Steel, Booster Gold, Hawk, Dove and Beast Boy. All of them appear with terrifying grins on their faces. Hawk even speaks in the same scratchy dialogue that the other Infected use, appearing to confirm he's been changed.

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On top of the terrifying prospect of there being hundreds more infected people that the Justice League is completely unaware of, there are a number of quiet powerhouses now corrupted. The telepathic Miss Martian could help spread madness. Beast Boy could be unleashed and turned into a savage animal. Booster Gold and Steel have access to technology that could be used against the world, and Doctor Light could do a lot of devastating damage if fully unleashed. And that's exactly the sort of thing The Batman Who Laughs wants for the DC Universe. While there's no indication yet whether this Infection is as permanent as the one that got the Secret Six, this could mean an entirely new group of heroes have already been turned against their allies.

Year of the Villain: Hell Arisen #3 releases Feb. 26 from DC Comics.

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