Lucci's voice rang out like a drum at dusk, a bell at dawn, resonating deep within Banner's soul.
"And now, what you must do is no longer suppression or imprisonment. Instead—observe, understand, and control!"
"Observe your anger—see where it comes from, why it arises. Is it from fear? Injustice? Or suppressed instincts?"
"Understand your power—feel every current and pulse within you. It doesn't crave destruction… it craves liberation."
"In the end, you'll be the one in control!"
Lucci looked at Banner, his words illuminating every shadow in Banner's heart like an oracle. "Let your wisdom be the reins that wrap around the wild head! Let Hulk's endless strength be the horse that gallops a thousand miles a day! From now on, you are no longer the prisoner of monsters… you are the rider of a sacred horse!"
As he finished, the stream of information at Lucci's fingertip flashed into Banner's brow.
Boom!
Banner felt as if his brain had been washed by the wisdom of the entire universe! Countless unprecedented theories, mysterious visualizations, and exquisite mental control techniques exploded in his mind! He instantly comprehended and mastered every aspect of the Suppressing the Horse Will With Monkey Mind!
He sat in a daze, muttering to himself. "Observe… understand… harness…"
"Wisdom is the rein… to harness the horse…"
"I am the rider… not the prisoner…"
He repeated the words, and the confusion, fear, and pain that had haunted him for years were visibly replaced by the light of "enlightenment."
Yes… why did he have to destroy Hulk? Why couldn't he… be friends with him? Why couldn't he… let himself wield power?
In the past, he wouldn't have dared even to imagine it, but under Lucci's supreme guidance, it all seemed so clear, so… within his grasp!
He felt all his years of scientific knowledge were being overturned and reconstructed at a higher level. Spirit and matter, consciousness and energy, could be perfectly fused!
"Sit cross-legged," Lucci's calm voice sounded just in time. "Now, follow the method and meet your old friend inside. Tell him you're not here to fight. You're here… to make peace."
Banner took a deep breath, looking at Lucci, his eyes filled with unprecedented shock, excitement, trust, and resolve. Without another word, he followed Lucci's instructions, sat cross-legged on the ground, and closed his eyes.
…
Spiritual World.
It was a dark, oppressive wasteland, swept by wind and thunder. Bruce Banner's consciousness stood within, feeling the soul-tearing wind, his thin form small and powerless.
In the center stood a giant cage wrapped in countless chains. Endless roars of rage and anguish shook the spiritual world as a huge green muscled figure slammed the cage, pulling at the chains. That was Hulk—the "self" buried deep in Banner's heart, the one he feared, suppressed, and imprisoned for years.
In the past, every time Banner entered this world, he'd only react with fear, strengthening the cage, thickening the chains, trying to imprison the beast with reason.
But today was different.
Banner looked at the furious giant. His eyes held no more fear—just complex emotions, guilt, compassion, and, above all, the courage to face himself.
He followed Lucci's Suppressing the Horse Will With Monkey Mind, channeling spiritual power.
Instead of fleeing, he faced Hulk's roar head-on, feeling the roots of rage. He saw… the shadow of domestic violence from his father in childhood. He saw… the military lab, where General Ross used him as a tool of oppression. He saw… that fateful accident, when he exposed himself to gamma rays to save colleagues. He saw… the loneliness of exile, being hunted, betrayed, and hated. All the resentment, injustice, pain, and depression had merged into this great rage.
Originally… Hulk's rage was his rage. Banner understood clearly.
He felt Hulk's mighty surges, full of destructive desire—but their essence was not destruction, but a longing for recognition, a cry for liberation. Like a child locked up for years, he just wanted to go outside, to run free, to see the world.
Banner took a deep breath and made the boldest decision of his life. He visualized countless tenacious golden reins, replacing the cold chains of the past. Step by step, he approached the cage.
Hulk, sensing something odd, halted his rampage. Confusion and anger flashed in his eyes as he looked at the "self" who had only ever tried to reinforce the cage.
Banner stood before the cage, not opening it right away. Instead, he used his truest spiritual intention to communicate with the Hulk inside.
"I'm sorry. It was my fault for locking you up. I was scared of you, hated you, treated you like a monster. But now, I understand. You're not a monster. You're me. You're my repressed strength, my rage that I never dared show. We… will be together. I don't want to imprison you anymore. I need your strength, and you need my wisdom. Let's go out together, okay?"
His thoughts flowed like warmth into Hulk's consciousness. For the first time, clarity showed in Hulk's angry eyes. He looked at Banner, at the golden reins, at the cage that had imprisoned him for so many years. He… understood.
Slowly, he extended his massive green palm, big enough to crush a tank. Banner saw this and was overjoyed. He reached out—one big hand, one small hand, gently clasping through the bars.
At that moment, the spiritual world shook! A thousand-foot beam of light shot up from the pitch-black wasteland. The wind ceased, thunder vanished, and the cage and cold chains that had imprisoned Hulk for years shattered and dissolved into nothingness. Hulk's form and Banner's consciousness merged at the center of the light…
…
Reality.
In the humble clinic in Kolkata, cross-legged Bruce Banner began to change dramatically. His body swelled and grew at a speed visible to the naked eye! His pale skin turned a vibrant emerald green! His thin shirt burst apart as muscles exploded, revealing a terrifying body like a mountain of steel!
But unlike all previous uncontrollable transformations, this time was different. There was no painful roar, no scream of rage. The entire process was calm… as natural as a flower blooming.
Moments later, a green giant over 2.5 meters tall, with muscles and explosive power, appeared in the clinic, almost smashing through the roof.
He rose slowly. The new Hulk, perfectly sober, possessed both Banner's wisdom and memory, and Hulk's peak power—he was born!
Lucci stood calmly, watching Banner—or rather, Hulk. The newborn green giant awkwardly lowered his massive head. He opened his eyes—a pair very different from before. No longer beast-like, full of chaos, wildness, and endless rage, but deep, clear, and rational, filled with shock and curiosity about himself and the world.
Slowly, he raised his huge palms, looking at them carefully. He could feel the majestic power beneath his skin, enough to move mountains. He could hear the gamma energy roaring like a river through his veins.
This power, once his greatest fear and source of lost control—a nightmare he wished to destroy—now, in this moment, moved at his will, flowing gently to his fingertips. He could "see" every muscle, precisely control every ounce of strength.
This feeling… to fully grasp the nightmare that had tormented him, to be able to act as he wished, was… wonderful!
He was no longer just Bruce Banner; no longer just the Hulk. He was a fusion, a new and evolved being!
After feeling the change, the green giant slowly looked up, gaze landing on the mysterious man who had calmly watched from start to finish, as if expecting it all. In his eyes was gratitude, awe, and shock impossible to express.
He spoke—not in the mindless roars of the past, but in a deep, clear, and rational voice. These were his first words to the world as his complete self.
"This feeling… is incredible…"
His clear eyes fell on Lucci, filled with the purest awe and confusion of a mortal gazing at a god. "Are you… a god?"
It was unimaginable. The ultimate curse that had tormented him for countless days and nights, making him unable to live or die, was solved by this man in a few words and a mysterious "method"… and it wasn't suppression or destruction, but… sublimation! He had turned a curse into a blessing, hell into heaven, lead into gold—a feat only legendary "gods" could achieve.
To Hulk's awed question, Lucci smiled faintly. "A god? Maybe. But you can consider me your guide." He looked deeply into Hulk's eyes, as if peering into his soul. "When you were lost, I pointed you in the right direction. You found the path. You reconciled with your true self. What you received wasn't my gift, but what you were always meant to regain."
Hulk listened, as if understanding. But deep in his heart, his awe for Lucci only grew. He knew clearly that without this man, and the Suppressing the Horse Will With Monkey Mind Method, he would have spent his life locked in that dark cage, torturing himself and his other self until the end of the world.
"Guide…" Hulk repeated the word in a low voice, full of wonder.
Lucci stepped forward. "Remember, the Hulk's strength and Banner's wisdom—once you are truly one, no longer divided, no longer at odds… your potential will far exceed your imagination. From today, you are no longer a hunted monster. Even if others fear you, you will become… one of this planet's strongest guardians."
One of the strongest guardians!
That line lit up Hulk's heart like a ray of light. A guardian! He never thought he'd be associated with that word. In the past, he brought only destruction. Now, with the power that once brought destruction, he could finally… understand.
He could protect, atone, even… become a hero!
A new sense of mission and responsibility surged in his heart. He looked at Lucci, his clear eyes full of determination.
But just at that moment, rough voices and hurried footsteps sounded outside the clinic. Soon, a commanding voice echoed through the slum:
"Attention inside! Bruce Banner! You are surrounded! Drop all resistance! Hands on your head! Surrender now! Or we will use all necessary force!"
The voice was all too familiar to Banner. General Ross—the man who'd been his nightmare for years, who saw him as a dangerous weapon.
In the past, hearing this voice filled Banner with fear, rage, and despair. He'd want to run, to hide, to escape everything.
But now, as the reborn Hulk heard the voice, he felt calmer than ever. He frowned—not with fear, but with some annoyance at having his important conversation interrupted. He looked at Lucci, as if asking what to do about these "flies."
Lucci looked outside with indifference, saying nothing. He was ready to let Hulk decide for himself!
...
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