Chapter 94: Let Go of That Boy—I'll Do It!

Fire is the sign by which humanity steps toward civilization.

Because of fire, people learned to eat cooked food, to drive back the cold, to prolong their lives. Once safety and longevity were secured, human beings finally had the time and capacity to enjoy, to discover, to create civilization.

When the belly is full and the body warm, desire awakens.

Fire also served another, equally vital purpose: light.

With fire, humanity could keep its distance from the terror of the dark, from that boundless dread concealed within it.

Fire was the mortal enemy of darkness, the bane that could, in some measure, stand for light.

And what was now unfolding at the very top of this towering building was a duel between fire and darkness.

The flames of hell were driven back again and again, while darkness crept steadily toward Robbie.

Sin and desire often appear in the dark, or borrow darkness to spread and take form; as darkness advances, so too do sin and desire, swelling and spreading with it.

That primal force could not affect the Spirit of Vengeance in the least, but for Robbie it was torment.

Perhaps because the power was still not strong enough, though it was more likely because of the Beast, the Eye of Judgment simply could not condemn the boy who had killed more than a hundred people. Instead, the Beast’s power kept gnawing at Robbie, influencing him bit by bit.

This made the Spirit of Vengeance, lodged within Robbie as its vessel, exceedingly unhappy, furious, and resentful.

“You can’t even use the Eye of Judgment properly, and your chain magic is useless too!”

“You haven’t even mastered dimensional teleportation!”

“You’re more useless than Johnny Blaze!”

“And just as disobedient as he is!”

The Spirit of Vengeance could not die.

At least, it could not be destroyed by the Beast, whose power had only partially manifested; for that reason, Ghost Rider could not die either.

But the humiliation of being beaten and abused still filled the Spirit of Vengeance with boundless rage.

No matter how angry it became, there was nothing it could do.

It was not the Beast. It had principles when it killed.

Only the guilty could be judged by the Eye of Judgment, and only then could it use its host to devour the other soul and strengthen itself.

Robbie was far too restrained, using his own will and spirit to suppress it as much as possible.

Even more infuriating was that meddlesome fat kid Wang, who had actually taught Robbie to meditate and build up his spirit.

Shouldn’t a knight focus on strength, agility, and constitution? What was spirit for?

And the result?

The result was that he could not even beat the Beast, which had not descended with much power at all!

To the Spirit of Vengeance, the host was both the vessel through which it could exert its strength in the real world and the limit imposed upon that strength.

“Could it be that Johnny only dumped me on Robbie because he knew Robbie wouldn’t listen?”

…

“Quick, go help him!”

Black Widow forced herself through the pain all over her body and the weakness brought on by severe blood loss. At long last she dragged herself up from the floor, only to discover that she had no weapons left at all.

The bullets were gone, the thirty-thousand-volt charge was gone, the tear gas, the micro-bombs, the plastic explosives were all gone. Her only remaining weapons were a tactical knife and an empty pistol. Her combat effectiveness had plummeted from a full Widow to barely a fifth of one, and because she could hardly move, she was basically reduced to defense, with no real ability to attack.

Then she looked at the others, and Black Widow felt like crying.

Stick was unconscious. Even if he woke up, it would not matter; several ribs had been broken, and he was thoroughly done for.

Matt was a little better, about the same as she was.

Elektra’s fighting ability was still more or less intact, but the problem was that the girl seemed to have frozen in place for some reason. Was she planning to defect or what?

Ghost Rider was clearly no match for the boy. A six-foot-tall man actually losing to a child barely four feet tall was enough to make anyone speechless.

“God is trying to kill me,” Black Widow sighed.

“Director, tell Clint goodbye for me!”

She took a deep breath and tried to steady herself.

Then she gripped her tactical knife and prepared to fight to the death.

Suddenly, someone blew gently on the back of her neck.

Black Widow’s whole body snapped taut. She tightened her grip on the knife and struck backward in one swift motion.

Clean. Beautiful.

She turned at once, but there was nothing there.

This was…

A ghost?

An unprecedented fear surged through her, and gooseflesh rose over Black Widow’s entire body.

Was there really a ghost in this world?

Could it be the Beast controlling the souls it had swallowed?

“It’s me.”

A low, magnetic voice sounded beside her ear.

So familiar. So gentle.

Black Widow’s heart trembled. It was as though she had heard the most beautiful voice in the world. She hurriedly turned her head and cried, “Master Wang, you finally—”

Before she could finish, she froze.

Wang was before her, a warm smile on his face, yet he seemed so unreal, like a beautiful bubble that might burst at the slightest touch.

“Master Wang, you… died?” Black Widow could hardly believe her eyes. A faint sorrow and disappointment filled her heart.

Had Master Wang been killed by the Hand?

As expected, one could not be too reckless. Those who were too wild all died. Back then, Captain America died, later the Wasp died, and now Master Wang, the Immortal Iron Fist from Kun-Lun, had died as well…

“Do you really want me dead that badly?” Wang said with a smile.

Then, in the soft, luminous eyes of Black Widow, he gradually grew clearer, more solid, more real. The warm human heat naturally radiating from his body finally convinced her:

Master Wang was truly alive.

“Master Wang…”

The whiplash of emotions nearly sent Black Widow out of control, but the steel of a legendary agent steadied her in less than two seconds. “Quick, go help Ghost Rider. He can’t beat that boy!”

“No rush. Ghost Rider isn’t that easy to deal with. He can still hold on a little longer.”

Wang smiled. A strand of pure true qi flowed from his shoulder into Black Widow’s body, and a veil of green restorative mist instantly healed her injuries.

As his power had grown, Wang’s healing capacity was no longer what it used to be. What had once been an A cup had now become a B cup.

Compared with the others, Black Widow’s injuries were actually not that severe; one healing would be enough, enough to carry her all the way to the end of time.

Feeling the true qi flooding into her, the itch of healing wounds knitting shut, and that uniquely masculine warmth, Black Widow’s whole body finally settled. Much better.

Wang lifted a hand, and two wisps of green mist fell separately onto Matt and Stick.

It was the Blood-Quickening Art, a monk’s superior healing method.

The wounds on Matt’s body healed almost at once. Even the broken ribs were perfectly put back together under the influence of true qi, fused seamlessly, and then healed over. The effect was a hundred times better than the finest orthopedic surgery.

Looking at the unconscious Stick, Wang barked, “If you don’t wake now, then when?”

Stick jolted all over, then opened his eyes.

“Master Wang, you’re here…” he said, a little excitedly, and hurriedly pushed himself up.

The Immortal Iron Fist had arrived. They were saved.

Wang stood with his hands clasped behind his back, facing the black void, and said calmly, “You’re not needed here. Go deal with the others from the Hand.”

“Yes.” Stick hurriedly obeyed.

“Mm.” Black Widow turned and followed.

“But Elektra…” Matt hesitated, looking at his former girlfriend.

“Her will cannot contend with the Beast in its present state. Still, she has been resisting all along and has not been fully controlled yet. Don’t worry; leave her to me.”

Wang narrowed his eyes slightly. “Go on. I’m afraid I might hit you by mistake.”

“…All right.” Matt was decisive too. He knew that in a battle of this level, he was nothing but dead weight, so he turned and left at once.

“Now it’s our turn.”

Wang glanced at Robbie, who was already on the verge of being swallowed by the darkness.

“Let that boy go. I’ll take him!”