"Fire!!!"
Tony's voice had just faded when dozens of bright White trails tore through the night sky. Missiles trailing long plumes of Fire, whistling toward the designated coordinates in the desert.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Oranges-red fireballs erupted, their massive Impact kicking up waves of sand over ten meters high. The entire Mirror Dimension shook violently. Scorching air currents and dust swept in all directions, swallowing everything.
But amidst the continuous explosions, several missiles simply plunged straight into the sand, tails emitting blue smoke, without any movement.
Inside the Iron Man armor, Stark's holographic screen immediately flashed a series of red warnings and analytical data.
"Hammer Industries," Tony's voice came through the comms channel, his anger barely contained. "That infamous 'Ex-Wife' missile. Fuck! These idiots scammed me with inferior products?"
At the center of the smoke, a thick black mist swirled, blocking out both the Impact and the flames. As the mist dissipated, Black Heart Demon stood there, holding the captured contract, completely unscathed. Though his clothes were tattered, not a single scratch could be found on his skin, though his handsome face was clouded with gloom.
"It's a fake!"
On the other side, the Spirit Guide's face turned pale when she saw the whistling barrage. She knew full well she didn't possess a physical body like Black Heart Demon's. With a shrill screech, she slammed her staff onto the ground. Several illusory, formless souls were forcibly dragged from the Shadow beneath her feet, forming a twisted, wailing barrier.
The explosive Fire and Impact swallowed those souls, tearing them to pieces. The Spirit Guide was knocked back by the massive recoil, but without a second thought, she grabbed Johnny's collar and shoved him into the center of the next, most concentrated wave of explosions to use him as a meat shield.
The terrifying heat and devastating Impact instantly swallowed Johnny's body.
"Roar—!"
A subhuman roar erupted from the center of the Fire. The explosive Fire was scattered by a deeper, more violent orange-red Hellfire. Johnny's flesh evaporated and reformed within the Hellfire as a burning skeleton stood up.
The Spirit Guide quickly retreated, raising her staff to draw a pale psionic barrier in front of her. Even so, her arm was grazed by the Hellfire, and her flesh instantly charred. Under the stimulus of death, the controlled Johnny transformed into Ghost Rider. Simultaneously, his immortal body absorbed all the damage from the explosions.
"Plan B," Tony hovered in mid-air, the miniature missile launchers on his shoulders popping out. "Get ready for close-quarters combat, everyone."
A world-shaking roar answered him. Hulk's massive green form plummeted from the sky, slamming into the ground with a thud. The sand cratered in a ring around him. Wearing the "claws of rage" specially made by Tony, his eyes filled with nothing but fury, he charged toward the newly transformed Ghost Rider with clear intent.
Johnny's chain, burning with Hellfire, lashed out at Hulk like a venomous snake. Hulk didn't dodge; he roared and swung his Vibranium-coated claws of rage to meet it.
"Clang!"
Metal and burning bone chain collided violently, erupting in a shower of blinding sparks. Hulk was knocked back a step by the immense force, but the Vibranium blades on his arms left a deep gouge in the chain. Fire spread along the blades, scorching Hulk's skin, but the green flesh writhed and healed itself.
The two tireless Monsters clashed, fighting with savage brutality. Every one of Hulk's punches made the earth tremble, and every one of Johnny's whip strikes plowed molten furrows into the sand.
Elsewhere, Captain America and Mage Russell faced off against Black Heart Demon. Russell traced circles with his hands, and crimson energy bands appeared out of thin air, coiling toward Black Heart Demon from all directions. Black Heart Demon let out an impatient hiss and threw a punch; a burst of pure Darkness energy shattered all the bands. Steve seized this split-second opening, staying low as he hurled his shield. It became a red-and-blue meteor, striking Black Heart Demon in the lower back from a tricky angle.
Black Heart Demon staggered. He swung a claw at Steve's head, the sharp talons letting out a moan as if tearing through the air itself. Steve dodged with an iron bridge maneuver; the claws missed his nose by a hair, leaving five bottomless claw marks in the sand.
"Over here!"
Lin Huai's voice was calm. The Spirit Guide had just stabilized herself from the Hellfire's Impact and hadn't yet had time to chant again when several playing cards sealed off all her escape angles with eerie arcs. She could only wave her staff to block them. At that moment, Tony's pulse cannon fire arrived.
A string of rapid syllables escaped the Spirit Guide's mouth. Several wraiths flew out of her staff, forming a barrier that blocked the pulse cannon and gave her a moment to breathe.
Tony shouted over the comms, "Lin! Don't let her rest! That thing is the controller!"
Lin Huai's figure moved like a ghost, flickering across the battlefield. His face remained expressionless; every dodge was perfectly timed, and every card he threw precisely interrupted the Spirit Guide's casting, preventing her from focusing on controlling Johnny or organizing any effective counterattack.
The battlefield was completely split into three sectors. The power struggle between Hulk and Johnny had reached its peak, each collision making the entire Mirror Dimension tremble. Russell and Steve were like two perfectly synchronized hunters, circling Black Heart Demon at high speed, using magic and physical techniques to constantly probe for weaknesses. Lin Huai and Tony became the calmest marksmen, pinning down the Spirit Guide and leaving her exhausted.
Amidst the fierce battle, Hulk caught an opening. He tanked a horizontal chain sweep from Johnny with his shoulder, and though he was sent flying, he used the momentum to grab the other end of the chain with both hands. He roared and exerted his strength, forcibly dragging Ghost Rider toward him.
The two massive figures were face to face.
Ghost Rider's flame-filled pupils suddenly contracted.
Johnny's Eye of Judgement met Hulk's eyes.
In that instant, Ghost Rider saw Hulk's soul. There was no sin, no filth, not a single impurity that Hellfire could ignite. He saw only a pure, child-like rage and sadness, enveloping a curled-up soul named Banner. Such a pure soul could not be ignited by Hellfire at all.
"Innocent..." Ghost Rider tilted his head.
Ghost Rider's swinging chain hesitated.
"Now!" Steve had been waiting for this chance, and he roared it out with all his might over the comms channel.
He recognized this fleeting opportunity. The Spirit Guide was being suppressed by Tony's saturated firepower, unable to lift her head, and Black Heart Demon was temporarily trapped by Russell's full-power spell.
Steve poured all his strength into his arm and hurled the vibranium shield with all his might. This time, the target wasn't any enemy, but the pale skull the Spirit Guide was clutching tightly in the chaos.
"How dare you!"
Black Heart Demon roared as he shredded the energy bands on his body. His speed was incredible; he appeared at Steve's side in a flash, his claws—condensed with hellish and Darkness energy—stabbing down ruthlessly.
A squelch—the sound of flesh being torn—rang out, a sound that made one's teeth ache.
Black Heart Demon's claws met no resistance, tearing directly through Steve's abdomen.
Almost simultaneously, another sharp crack erupted at the other end of the battlefield.
The vibranium shield, carrying immense force, struck the skull with precision.
The pale bone fell to the ground. A Kamar-Taj mage who had been lying in wait immediately cast a spell, enveloping this Beyonder item with magic.
Within Johnny's burning eye sockets, the pale light controlling his will flickered out.