Dragon Power surged through Hong Fei's body, a boiling, otherworldly energy that rippled against his physical form. He moved like a feather caught in a breeze, each step effortlessly manipulating the air currents around him. Yet, for all his lightness, his strength remained undiminished—Dragon Power was raw, masculine, and ferocious, its wild nature evident with every strike.
His palms struck with precision, each impact leaving a distinct print on the sturdy secondary Adamantium armor. Yet, oddly, only one mark marred the chest plate. This was no accident—it was a testament to his meticulous control. Every time his palm connected, pale golden energy rippled outward, sinking the print deeper into the metal. Inside the armor, Tony's display flashed red as Jarvis issued urgent warnings.
Tony's attacks were swift, but Hong Fei dodged each one by the slimmest of margins. To an outsider, it didn't seem absurd—his movements were too sharp, too fluid. Even when he didn't land a hit, his grace made it a spectacle. But Tony wasn't deterred. He pressed on, his breaths ragged, his strikes relentless.
Then, in a sudden pause, Hong Fei raised his arm to block Tony's swing. He pivoted, thrusting both hands upward to strike the armor's chin. The force sent Tony airborne. Seizing the moment, Hong Fei balanced on one leg and unleashed a spinning kick, the motion effortless and precise.
Steve's attack was straightforward, as always. His shield flew ahead of him, spinning through the air. Hong Fei kicked it mid-flight, sending it whirling back into Steve's grasp. The moment Steve caught it, he lunged forward, shield leading the charge.
Luke and Matt closed in from the sides, their movements synchronized. Tony, despite starting later, activated his thrusters and arrived first. All four attacked simultaneously, their strikes converging on Hong Fei. But under the Eyes of Death, their positions and trajectories were laid bare.
Hong Fei drew his sword, channeling energy into the blade. A golden aura erupted from it, sharp and radiant. Steve was the first to reach him. Hong Fei thrust the sword forward, its tip striking the center of the shield, halting Steve's momentum. With a twist of his waist, the blade slid across the shield's surface, sparks flying and a piercing screech echoing through the air.
Tony's energy beam slashed toward Hong Fei's upper body, but the sword moved faster. The blade blocked Tony's armored arm, stopping the beam dead in its tracks. Hong Fei stepped inward, the sword cutting across the armor's surface before thrusting toward the eye socket.
Though he knew the blade wouldn't pierce the armor, Tony's instincts took over—he closed his eyes. In that split second, Hong Fei released the sword hilt and delivered another palm strike, perfectly aimed at the sunken print on the chest. Dragon Power burst outward, and a tiny crack formed on the edge of the mark.
Behind him, the staff in Matt's hand cut through the air, aiming for the back of Hong Fei's neck. Without missing a beat, Hong Fei caught the end of the staff with a backhanded grab. He turned and shook his arm violently, sending tremors through the weapon. Matt gripped it tightly, his body shuddering as the staff vibrated in his hands.
The staff trembled violently in his grip, threatening to slip free. He slammed his other hand on it, bracing with both arms until the vibrations finally stilled. But Hong Fei was already on the back foot—he twisted his torso, thrusting out a palm to meet Luke's incoming fist.
The air erupted in a deafening roar as golden energy surged from Hong Fei's palm, crashing into Luke's arm and bursting out through his shoulder blade. By then, Luke was already airborne. Hong Fei pivoted, his foot snapping out to launch the longsword. It streaked through the air, dispersing a ball of energy mid-flight before plunging into Fury's shoulder with a wet thunk. Matt recovered quickly, swinging his staff at Hong Fei's neck.
Hong Fei didn't dodge. Instead, he stepped forward and kicked sideways, his boot connecting with Matt's chest. Matt hurtled backward, slamming into a vehicle with a metallic crunch. Blood sprayed from his nose and mouth as he crumpled to the ground. Tony streaked in, but instead of attacking, he locked his arms around Hong Fei's torso in a vice-like grip. At the same time, Steve charged forward, shield raised, aiming for a brutal, full-force collision.
Hong Fei struggled against Tony's hold, but his arms wouldn't budge. Glancing down, he saw Tony's arms locked together, fingers interlaced like an unbreakable iron chain. The thrusters on Tony's back roared to life, pushing with terrifying force as he drove Hong Fei toward Steve's Vibranium shield. The shield loomed closer, undeniable and deadly.
Panic surged through Hong Fei, but he shoved it aside. Dragon Power flooded his body like a raging torrent, the energy so intense it felt like it might tear him apart from the inside. He swapped in the passive skill card "Rapid Regeneration" and tensed his core, his legs snapping upward in a split-second motion.
Facing the shield, he channeled Dragon Power into his legs, curling them before unleashing a devastating kick. The air exploded with a thunderous boom! Steve's leg sank halfway into the ground, his face paling instantly. Hong Fei kicked off, leaning backward to use the momentum.
Just as the armor was about to hit the ground, the thrusters roared again, jerking Tony upright. Frustrated, Hong Fei took a deep breath, his lungs expanding as his arm muscles bulged. The armor creaked under the strain, the sound of metal fatigue grating on his ears.
A few seconds later, Hong Fei exhaled sharply, a stream of pale golden energy bursting from his mouth as he drew his arms inward and sank low. The armor clenched tightly—but found only empty air. Hong Fei rolled backward, springing to his feet just as Tony turned to face him. Without hesitation, Hong Fei unleashed a triple kick.
Each kick crackled with Dragon Power, explosive force driving into Tony's armor. For the final blow, Hong Fei leaped into the air, spinning twice before his leg smashed into Tony's neck like a battle-axe. The armor tilted and crashed to the ground, kicking up a cloud of dust that rose several meters high.
Hong Fei bent over, breathing heavily through his nose and mouth. With each breath, the golden energy flickering across his skin pulsed faintly. Tony lay sprawled on the ground, drenched in sweat and questioning his life choices. Behind him, Steve struggled to wrench his leg free from the mud. All three remained motionless, gathering their strength and resolve.
This time, all four of Hong Fei's skill slots were full, and he had even swapped one out mid-fight, meaning he had used a total of five skills. Hidden Identity, Flight, Telepathy, Dual Wielding, and Rapid Regeneration.
Hidden Identity was essential, Flight was always equipped, Telepathy was a fallback, and Dual Wielding didn't get much use, so it was later swapped for Rapid Regeneration, with the goal of helping his body better adapt to more Dragon Power. However, Hong Fei was not entirely satisfied with the result.
Even though Tony's armor was made of secondary Adamantium and Steve's shield was made of pure Vibranium, he still wasn't satisfied with his current performance. Dragon Power should have been stronger! Otherwise, if he hadn't fully developed the Dragon Power, what difference was there between him and Danny Rand, the Iron Fist? However, he had already found the path.
On one hand, he had to constantly strengthen his body; on the other, he had to continuously scour his body with Dragon Power, even if it meant enduring the pain of internal tearing every moment. Because only in this way could he adapt more quickly, while at the same time allowing his will and even his Soul to perfectly integrate with the Dragon Power!
If only there were opponents like Tony and Steve every day. Hong Fei's breathing gradually stabilized. He straightened up and said, "How is it? Are you all satisfied?" Tony's armor flew up, and he said nonchalantly, "I haven't even warmed up yet." Steve also stood up, holding his shield, and said, "I can do this all day." They were truly a pair of hard-headed guys.
Hong Fei bumped his fists together: "Very well, let's go again!" Tony and Steve exchanged a look, and then both charged at him simultaneously. Opposite them, Hong Fei raised his arms high. He deliberately guided his mind to immerse itself completely in the Dragon Power at this moment.
His back muscles contracted and expanded, and the visible golden Dragon Power traveled along his muscles all the way to his arms. He struck out with both palms simultaneously, meeting Tony's fist and Steve's shield respectively. In an instant, a thick golden phantom suddenly erupted in the void, completely wrapping around Hong Fei.
Its shimmering golden body surged forward along with Hong Fei's thrusting palms! Roar!! For the first time, before the actual impact, a mighty dragon's roar resonated first! At the moment of collision, Tony and Steve were both sent flying backward at extreme speed. At the same time, the pale golden phantom, tens of meters high, flashed again behind Hong Fei.
With a bang, Steve crashed into the quinjet, the metal denting deeply inward. Steve fell to the ground and lay motionless, his shield clattering to the side. As Tony flew backward, his armor began to disintegrate from the hands, cracks rapidly spreading across his entire body. As he flew, parts scattered all over the ground, and in the end, only his initial suit of armor remained.
At first glance, his situation seemed better; at least the armor soon stood steadily on the ground. However, the next moment, the armor plate on the chest suddenly burst open with a crack, and cracks instantly spread like a spiderweb. The light in the armor's eyes dimmed instantly, and Tony then fell straight forward.
They had already been at the end of their rope, but they had to grit their teeth and move forward in response to Hong Fei's provocation, not expecting Master Hong to unleash his ultimate move, thus quickly finishing the fight. On the two of them, two skill cards slowly rose. Fury, Hill, and Coulson, who were watching from the side, were already dumbfounded.
Hong Fei slowly retracted his stance, his movements extremely gentle. The previous strike had made the internal tearing injuries even more severe, and the triple-speed Rapid Regeneration seemed a bit stretched to repair them.
Thinking about it, it was actually better for the Iron Fist not to use too much Dragon Power; otherwise, he wouldn't need to unleash such a burst—just filling his body with Dragon Power would cause him to explode into dust the next second. But for Master Hong, it was just that he wasn't strong enough yet!
Hong Fei held two distinct advantages over others, allowing him to progress along dual paths simultaneously. While most cultivators faced hard limits—even the legendary Shou-Lao the Undying couldn't endlessly enhance his physique to fully harness Dragon Power—Hong Fei operated under different rules. The human body could only be tempered so far before hitting biological constraints.
Yet physical limitations mattered less to Hong Fei. His ordinary human form couldn't compare to Shou-Lao's draconic physiology—the immortal's baseline strength would require multiple breakthroughs just to match. But Hong Fei's path demanded no such grueling trials. Simple acts of virtue strengthened him effortlessly, turning morality into might.
Still, nothing surpassed soul mastery for channeling Dragon Power. That earlier moment proved it—when Hong Fei's consciousness merged with the raging energy, boundaries dissolved. One heartbeat he observed the power; the next, he became it. The dragon's essence coursed through his awareness until he couldn't tell where his self ended and the primordial force began. For that fleeting instant, he wasn't just wielding the dragon—he was the dragon.