The Green Giant and the Hidden Threat
The Hulk, breathing heavily, leaped several meters high, climbing up to the upper floors of the building.
His massive arms shattered the glass and gripped the steel bars holding it, anchoring himself firmly to the outer wall of the building.
He seemed to instinctively avoid the red-haired woman.
With such clear details, Soren recognized the man and woman who had suddenly appeared.
Realizing the urgency of the situation, he didn't waste time.
He flapped his wings, descended a few meters and grabbed the red-haired woman mid-air: "I'll take you up!"
"Thanks!" The agile red-haired agent grabbed his arm, locked her legs around his body in a scissor hold, and with a quick flip, she landed on Soren's shoulder.
Soren began to chase after the constantly moving Hulk.
The green giant kept jumping between buildings.
Each time he landed, the force created dust clouds and scattered debris, causing stones to fall from the buildings and crash down onto the sidewalk below, hundreds of meters away.
Soren glanced down anxiously.
Thankfully, the chaotic crowd had mostly dispersed, leaving only a few police cars and military tanks coming in the distance.
He accelerated again, closing in on the Hulk.
The red-haired agent on his shoulder activated her Widow's Bite, firing a powerful tranquilizer specially made for the green giant.
But the Hulk's anger had reached its peak, making his skin incredibly tough.
The tranquilizer bounced off his skin.
The red-haired agent's expression changed, and she quickly retracted the Widow's Bite, shouting, "Hey, big guy, the sun is setting—"
The Hulk abruptly stopped moving.
He slowly turned his head, searching for the red-haired agent.
Seeing that her tactic was working, the agent showed no fear.
She stayed on Soren's shoulder and stared directly at the Hulk: "The sun is setting… it's time to go home… no one will hurt you anymore…"
The Hulk's expression clearly softened.
"You won't get hurt again… the sun is setting…" The agent continued to speak softly.
He seemed confused, raising his hand to look at his palm, then shaking his head as if trying to get rid of the voice in his mind.
But the growing drowsiness made him sway.
He looked at the red-haired agent and staggered toward her before his strength faded.
"Boom—"
The massive green figure fell face down before they could reach him, kicking up a cloud of dust and causing the entire building to tremble slightly.
Soren finally breathed a sigh of relief.
In the end, facing the Hulk, who was among the Avengers' top-tier fighters, he wasn't very confident that he could win the fight.
The Hulk's power is nearly limitless; the stronger his opponent, the stronger he becomes.
According to Soren's assessment of the Angemon's strength, unless he could evolve into Seraphimon, he could only manage to tie with the Hulk at most, and not subdue him.
Luckily, Natasha Romanoff, the Avengers' expert at handling the Hulk, arrived just in time, saving him from a tough battle.
As Soren was about to reach out to thank the red-haired agent, she silently looped a steel wire around his neck.
The steel wire, capable of taking a life in an instant, tightened dangerously around his throat.
Natasha Romanoff leaned in and, with her sultry voice, whispered in his ear, "Alright, let's sort this out. Where exactly did you come from, little one?"
Soren froze.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed that all the police guns and tank cannons below were now aimed directly at him.
Just as Soren was caught in this predicament, Far away in Smallville, Kansas, Clark was following Soren's advice and watching the rerun of Doctor Who.
With his Kryptonian brain, he could multitask effortlessly, reading Plato's <<Republic >> while keeping his ears tuned to the TV show's plot.
However, halfway through today's episode, the broadcast was unusually interrupted.
The TV station cut in with breaking news.
The host spoke quickly: "Our latest report: New York City is being attacked by an unknown creature, causing severe damage. The number of casualties is unknown at this time…"
Clark abruptly shut his book.
He looked up and saw the live footage on TV.
A massive, green monster, unlike anything he'd ever seen, was moving between skyscrapers, destroying the exterior of every building it passed.
The streets were packed with people, alarms blaring continuously, and cries nearly drowned out all other noise.
Soren… is in New York City.
A sense of dread washed over Clark.
He tilted his head slightly, closed his eyes, and used his super hearing to extend a wave-like pulse across the entire country, searching for Soren's heartbeat and breathing among the countless noises.
He heard the sounds of police cars speeding, officers calling in the military, people using radios to summon departments, whispers of "We must bring it back to the research center," children crying for their mothers, elderly people calling for help, young people shouting for friends lost in the chaos, and some muttering prayers from the Old Testament.
But he couldn't hear Soren's heartbeat.
It was as if the heart that brought him warmth and happiness had stopped beating.
No, it can't be…!
Clark was struck with shock.
His body acted faster than his thoughts, and he sprinted out of the farm like lightning.
His old sneakers disintegrated from the high-speed impact, and he took off from Smallville, racing toward New York City with a speed he had never reached before.
Clark's mind was blank.
He felt like he was moving too slowly, too slowly, not fast enough!
No, he needed to be even faster!
In half a minute, he went from Smallville to Kansas City.
Two minutes later, he was running along the highway to Portsmouth.
His figure cut through the air like a blade, creating a howling wind wherever he went—still not fast enough, he needed to push harder, go even faster to reach New York City.
He started avoiding roads and pedestrians, ignoring the terrain, heading straight for New York City.
He easily leapt over hills and mountains, crossed rivers and lakes, jumping higher and further each time.