Chapter 22: No Plan
This time, Lance Ryder did not transform into a water giant. With a wave of his hands, the towering columns of water surged forward and wrapped around Emil Blonsky's legs.
At that moment, Blonsky was busy attacking the Hulk and didn't notice the water rushing toward him.
Calling it a water column might not be entirely accurate. It looked more like a rope—but no one had ever seen a rope as thick as a bowl.
The thick stream of water coiled tightly around Blonsky's legs. For a creature over three meters tall, it fit perfectly.
The powerful force lifted him into the air before slamming him violently back onto the ground.
The pavement shattered instantly.
The water stream seized the opportunity and wound itself around Blonsky's entire body, binding him tightly.
Everyone watching breathed a sigh of relief, but their eyes remained glued to the screen.
Many still worried that Blonsky would break free again like before.
But what happened next surprised everyone.
Another monster suddenly rushed forward and smashed directly into Blonsky—completely ignoring the fact that he was already restrained.
It was the Hulk.
The Hulk's massive fist slammed into Blonsky's body—and into the water binding him.
The water holding Blonsky was powered entirely by Lance's magic. It was that magical energy that gave the flowing water its unique strength.
But the Hulk's punch shattered the magic instantly.
With a single strike, the magical flow collapsed.
Blonsky roared and leapt up from the ground.
He drove his knee straight into the Hulk's chest, launching the green giant into the air.
But this time Blonsky didn't pursue him.
Instead, he turned and charged directly at Lance Ryder.
At first, surpassing the Hulk had been Blonsky's only goal.
But now Lance had become the greater threat.
At the same time, the Hulk jumped back to his feet and rushed in the same direction.
And it seemed that his target was also Lance.
Seeing this scene, Betty Ross felt a wave of disbelief.
She had just asked Lance to help.
But now he was facing two monsters at once.
Even fighting Blonsky alone had been difficult.
Could he really handle both?
"Dad, you have to help him!" Betty pleaded desperately.
General Ross snorted coldly.
"Now you realize you were wrong?"
"Hmph. Don't worry about him. He'll be fine."
Ever since Ross had witnessed Lance's extraordinary illusion abilities earlier, he had known Lance wasn't easy to defeat.
In a chaotic battlefield like this, Lance's abilities were even more dangerous.
But Lance didn't use illusions this time.
Instead, he raised his hands.
In the next instant, two water-blade scimitars formed in his palms.
They spun rapidly and shot toward Blonsky's ankles.
For giants with towering bodies, the rear ankle was often the Achilles' heel.
But Lance didn't stop there.
More water blades formed in his hands, one after another.
They flew forward in rapid succession.
Within seconds, hundreds of spinning water blades appeared.
They merged together into a narrow, rushing stream of blades racing toward Blonsky's ankle.
From a distance, it looked like a massive chainsaw made of water.
Both the Hulk and Blonsky possessed incredible durability and rapid healing.
Destroying their bodies was nearly impossible.
Even so, the spinning blades carved deep red lines across Blonsky's ankle.
After only three steps, the back of his ankle split open.
Khaki-colored blood burst out.
Blonsky lost his balance and crashed heavily onto the ground.
At that moment, the Hulk rushed forward—
But his target was never Lance.
It was Blonsky.
The two monsters began fighting fiercely on the ground.
Even though Blonsky's heel had been cut, his upper body remained strong.
And the Hulk had not yet recovered his full strength.
For the moment, their battle looked evenly matched.
Everyone watching—including Lance—was slightly stunned.
It turned out the Hulk had never targeted Lance at all.
His true opponent had always been Blonsky.
Lance quickly understood why.
For the Hulk, the most important thing right now was recovering his full strength.
Blonsky provided exactly the kind of battle that could push him further.
Lance, on the other hand, rarely fought directly.
And although his true power could overwhelm Blonsky, it wasn't the kind of opponent the Hulk wanted.
So naturally—
Blonsky became his target.
"Lance!"
General Ross's voice called from behind.
Lance turned his head.
Ross made a clear gesture.
Attack.
Even though Lance wore a U.S. military uniform only for appearance, he still had to follow orders publicly.
Ross's concern was reasonable.
The longer the Hulk fought, the stronger he would become.
If this continued, the situation could quickly spiral out of control.
Lance's wand remained hidden inside his sleeve.
His hands formed a quick magical seal.
The spinning water blades in the air immediately changed direction.
They rushed toward the Hulk's neck.
The sudden pain caught the Hulk's attention.
He swung his fist backward and smashed the incoming water blades.
With a single punch, the razor-sharp blades—spinning like chainsaws—were blasted away by half a meter.
If Lance hadn't controlled them carefully, the entire water stream might have shattered.
It clearly showed how terrifying the Hulk's strength was.
Meanwhile, Blonsky could no longer hold out.
He had already been seriously injured by Lance.
He couldn't even use seventy percent of his strength.
The Hulk, on the other hand, was recovering with every passing second.
Blonsky could barely defend himself.
Still, the bone spikes covering his body helped block many of the Hulk's attacks.
Without them, he might already have been smashed to death.
But now the Hulk's attention was slowly shifting toward Lance.
Blonsky had little left to offer as an opponent.
The Hulk stepped heavily on Blonsky's chest, nearly crushing the air from his lungs.
Then he stood up slowly.
And turned.
Thirty meters away, Lance Ryder stood waiting.
The water blades had already returned to him.
Around his body, streams of water spread outward for dozens of meters.
At the outer edges of those streams were countless spinning water blades.
They shimmered with cold reflections of the distant fires.
Suddenly—
Everything grew quiet.
On the ruined street, only Lance and the Hulk faced each other.
Blonsky lay on the ground behind them.
Whether he couldn't stand or simply didn't dare—
No one knew.
In the distance, Betty Ross tried to call out to the Hulk.
But before she could speak—
The Hulk roared.
And charged forward like an unstoppable bulldozer.
Lance no longer treated this fight as lightly as his battle with Blonsky.
Blonsky's power had come suddenly and lacked experience.
The Hulk was different.
He had lived as the Hulk for years, constantly hunted by General Ross.
His body had been tempered through endless battles.
And most importantly—
The Hulk had no upper limit.
The more pain he felt, the angrier he became.
And the angrier he became—
The stronger he grew.
As the Hulk charged forward, Lance raised his right hand.
The streams of water around him surged forward instantly.
Their target—
The Hulk's neck.
He no longer aimed for the ankles.
Both Blonsky and the Hulk had already shown enough intelligence in battle.
Even when blinded by rage, they were far from foolish.
The Hulk had already learned from Lance's earlier fight.
So when the water blades rushed toward him—
He punched them head-on.
But in that instant, the water streams suddenly split apart.
They scattered into dozens of smaller ribbons.
Instead of striking from the front, they whipped around the Hulk's back, chest, and legs.
Green blood sprayed into the air.
The wounds weren't deep.
But they proved one thing clearly.
Lance Ryder was not an easy opponent.
The Hulk froze for a brief moment.
Then he laughed.
The small wounds had already healed.
In the blink of an eye, his skin recovered completely.
Lance sighed softly.
With a clenched fist, the scattered water blades rushed back together behind the Hulk.
They struck again, drawing new lines of green blood before flying back toward Lance.
The streams merged into a massive sphere of water surrounding him.
The water sphere had a radius of nearly five meters.
More water flowed in from every direction, causing it to expand steadily.
The Hulk didn't hesitate.
His eyes locked onto Lance inside the sphere.
Within seconds, he reached it—
And threw a powerful punch.
But the blow struck only water.
The sphere splashed violently.
Yet it offered no resistance.
Water was still water.
Nothing more.
The Hulk stepped straight into the sphere.
Holding his breath, he pushed forward through the swirling water.
Step by step, he approached Lance.
His fist rose again—
Ready to strike.
But suddenly—
He froze.
Because Lance Ryder—
Had vanished.
Instead, Lance appeared several meters away.
The Hulk roared in fury and chased after him.
This time, his punch landed.
But in the next moment—
The Hulk burst straight out of the water sphere.
Inside the sphere, he had been holding his breath the entire time.
Now he emerged into the open air.
The surrounding water vanished.
And the smoky air of the battlefield rushed into his lungs.
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