Elsewhere—
Michael had been taken down from the rack by Lucian and was now lying on the bed, fast asleep.
Suddenly, the ringtone of a text message woke him up. Drowsily, he grabbed his phone and looked at the screen—then immediately snapped awake.
He stared at the digits, counting them carefully. A full ten million dollars had been transferred to his account.
Such a sum was beyond anything he had ever imagined. But considering his current situation—about to become a werewolf and caught in a war between two species—would he even live long enough to spend it?
Depressed at the thought, Michael sighed and consoled himself. At least the money was in his account. Selene, for all her secrets, had kept her word.
Setting the phone aside, Michael closed his eyes and drifted back to sleep. Having been drained of blood, he was utterly exhausted.
…
Meanwhile—
General Ross and his elite team had arrived in Brazil, near the residence of Bruce Banner.
Before Emil Blonsky set out, General Ross handed him a box containing a power level detector.
"Take this. It might help in the operation."
This piece of equipment, worth three million dollars, was far too valuable to issue to every squad member.
Blonsky accepted the detector, strapped it on, and saluted.
"Thank you, sir."
Ross nodded and said:
"Go. Bring the target back."
Blonsky exited the command vehicle, no longer relaxed—now fully alert.
A power level detector… the most expensive individual combat tool. For it to be used now, the enemy must be something terrifying. Even as an Enhanced, Blonsky barely measured at 8.5 in combat power.
There were others stronger than him, even Transcendents. What class was this target?
And he had to be captured alive. Hopefully, nothing would go wrong.
Blonsky steeled himself and led the squad toward Bruce Banner's room.
To avoid alerting the target, they subdued even a stray dog along the way with tranquilizers.
Soon, the squad reached Bruce's door. To confirm his presence, a soldier inserted a probe under the door.
Unfortunately, Bruce's pet dog saw the device and bit it. The monitor only showed a blurry image of someone sleeping—then was swallowed up by the dog.
Ross, seeing this from the command vehicle, immediately ordered:
"Forget stealth. Retrieve the device and breach the door."
The soldiers responded swiftly, placing small C4 charges on each corner of the door.
"Boom!"
With a press of the button, the door exploded inward.
"GO! GO! GO!"
The team stormed in, reaching the bedroom where the target appeared to be sleeping. They immediately fired a tranquilizer dart.
But Blonsky, scanning with his detector, realized something: only one lifeform— the dog—was in the room.
"Stop! The target's not here!"
His reaction was fast, but the tranquilizer had already hit the bedding.
Blonsky began searching and noticed an open window. He looked out.
The team pulled back the blanket to reveal not a person but a decoy made of pillows.
Bruce Banner had spotted them closing in and activated an escape plan.
"He's not in the room! All units, search below!"
They even tranquilized the barking dog to avoid distractions.
Then Blonsky noticed a rope tied outside the window—evidence of Banner's escape.
"He's downstairs! Move!"
Bruce had just entered his attractive neighbor's room, planted a hot kiss on her lips, and said:
"Thanks!"
Then he dashed out, wearing a red hoodie, backpack, and cap. Upon spotting the soldiers, he turned casually and tried to walk away unnoticed.
Blonsky, however, saw through it. His detector revealed the target had a combat power of 8—stronger than a normal human, but still manageable.
(For reference: Bruce Banner in his normal state registers only 8.)
Blonsky eased up a bit. No wonder this guy was a wanted fugitive—he had skills.
"Target is the guy in the red hoodie with the backpack!"
He shouted and raised his gun.
But Banner, quick on his feet, dove into the crowd, making it hard for the soldiers to get a clear shot.
From the command vehicle, Ross ordered:
"Clear the civilians. Don't lose him!"
Blonsky sprinted after him, quickly leaving the others behind thanks to his enhanced physique.
Yet Banner was even faster. With incredible stamina and intimate knowledge of the terrain, he dodged through buildings and alleys, shaking off the pursuers.
Unfortunately, in the midst of his escape, Banner bumped into some workplace rivals—his enemies. Recognizing him, they chased after him with a vengeance.
He used this chaos to slip into the factory where he worked, planning to hide there.
Blonsky, using the detector, had already locked on to his target and followed with his squad. He reported Banner's location to Ross.
But inside the factory, Banner was cornered by those same rivals. They pinned him against a rack and began punching and kicking him.
Banner tried to warn them:
"Leave now… or something bad will happen!"
But they didn't listen. Their punches came harder.
Outside, the soldiers had Banner in their sights, but his attackers were in the way. They had no choice but to tranquilize the aggressors first.
As they did, Banner's heart rate climbed rapidly.
When it passed 200 BPM, the transformation began—
The Hulk was unleashed.
One soldier, watching through night vision, shouted:
"Did anyone see that?!"
Compared to his surprise, Blonsky was outright stunned.
On his detector, the power level skyrocketed—10, 20, 30… then broke into triple digits: 100!
And as the green giant stepped out, Blonsky shouted:
"Open fire! Everyone, shoot! This is a Transcendent!"
As the team leader, his command triggered a volley of darts. But none penetrated the Hulk's skin. They bounced off uselessly.
Enraged, the Hulk roared, and Blonsky's detector kept climbing.
"Switch to live ammo! Do it now!"
"RATATATAT!"
"BOOM BOOM BOOM!"
Bullets slammed into Hulk's body with metallic clangs.
Snap!
The detector on Blonsky's arm exploded when the reading surpassed 150.
"150…"
"It's over 150…"
He muttered in disbelief.
That monstrous number left him speechless. If he hadn't known better, he might've tried to take this green beast head-on.
But now, knowing he himself was only at 8.5, all he felt was fear.
Still, as a soldier, he refused to run. He kept firing—grenades, explosives, everything.
But nothing worked. The Hulk tore through the factory like a beast, finally smashing through a wall and disappearing from view.
At least Blonsky didn't leave empty-handed. He found Banner's backpack, which contained his laptop.
…
(End of Chapter)
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