MUP: Chapter 86. Stalling for Time

"You dodged?"

Retracting his palm and looking at the unharmed Ryan in front of him, the Beast couldn't help but smile, "I'd like to see how many times you can dodge."

With these words, the Beast waved his palms. The ten thousand golden symbols lingered around his arms. The Buddhist chants continued around him, "Buddha's Palm. Second Form -- Golden Crown of Buddha's Light!"

Of course, this Buddha's Palm was, unsurprisingly, dodged by Ryan.

Although he dodged it, the strong force of Buddha's Palm still left a large palm mark inside the restaurant.

"This is the guy we swore to defeat before?"

Jessica looked back at the two people fighting against each other and couldn't help but comment.

"Guys, I don't wanna be the party pooper, but if the Beast used that something palm... thing before... we could have died."

"It's Buddha's Palm." Matt opened his mouth and added, "To be honest, I think he had used it before. Did you forget how he knocked you down from the air?"

Matt's comment provoked Jessica's miserable memory of the previous fight. Her eyebrows jumped as she kicked a ninja in front of her, "Thanks for reminding me. Maybe I should leave him a thank you note for showing mercy."

Deflecting the Hand's attack with a bang, Luke Cage took a look at the fierce battle in the distance and couldn't help but speak up, "As much as I hate to say this, guys, I think Master Ip isn't going to win."

In Ryan's setup, Ip Man was not a match for the Beast. The previous scenes were deliberately designed to increase the memorability of Ip Man's character and to plant the idea that the Beast was wounded. Now, when the groundwork had been laid, he had to create a proper crisis situation to attract the attention of the Defenders.

After all, he wouldn't gain any points by fighting himself, even if he won.

"What can we do?" Jessica expressed pessimism at those words, "If even Master Ip is no match for the Beast, we won't be any help."

Matt heard Jessica's words and firmly said, "Master Ip is our only chance against the Beast."

"That's right." Exerting the power of the iron fist to knock down the surrounding ninjas, Danny adjusted his breathing while saying, "We have to make a move!"

If in the past, Jessica and the others might have been surprised to see Danny displaying his iron fist's miraculous power, but having seen Ah Xing's [Mighty Steel Leg] and the Beast wreaking havoc with Buddha's Palm in front of them, Danny's half-assed iron fist wasn't really that impressive.

It wasn't mind-blowing enough, but Iron Fist's strength did somewhat help Matt and the others gain some ground in the battle.

With this opportunity, Luke opened his arms and charged in. The man broke up the fight, no, fake fight, between Ryan and the Beast.

"Get out, you can't get involved in this fight."

Keeping with the persona, Ryan wore a righteous expression, shouting at Matt and the others.

"Master Ip, this isn't just your fight."

Bracing himself and holding the guide stick in his hand up to his chest, Matt spoke in a deep voice, "Since the beginning, we've been fighting for Hell's Kitchen."

"..."

To that, Ryan was silent for a moment before he sighed and helplessly said, "OK, but you have to be careful. I don't know much about Buddha's Palm, but according to the people of Peng Lai, it's originally a Buddhist Celestial Art, different from the Celestial Arts of Peng Lai. From what I saw, he hasn't fully mastered it."

Ryan uttered a lot of nonsense, but apparently, Matt and the others only understood the last lines, "You mean, he could get even more powerful?"

"Then shouldn't we feel lucky right now?" Jessica tugged at the corners of her mouth, trying to liven things up, but couldn't even bring herself to smile.

"..."

After all of Ryan's hard work in setting things up, Matt and the others were only concerned about that. Ryan felt speechless and could only nod back, "You could say that."

"Even if he hasn't completed it, he's powerful enough to deal with everyone here."

While Ryan exposed his weakness, the Beast didn't look flustered at all. He raised his hands to stop the ninjas and sneered at the small group.

Under the Beast's gaze, the Defenders didn't dare to make a move. Ryan, with a stony expression on his face, whispered to Matt and the others, "I don't think this is the end yet, but I need time."

"Time?"

Listening to Ryan's words, the Defenders looked at each other silently.

They understood that delaying time against the Beast and the ninjas wasn't as simple as it sounded.

Even Luke, who was invulnerable, had no confidence going against the attacks from those palms.

However, considering the possible consequences they might face if they didn't defeat the Beast, Matt had to grit his teeth and say, "I understand, Master Ip. We'll take care of that."

"As much as I hate to say it, Master Ip, please try to hurry." Taking a deep breath, Jessica looked at the Beast.

"I will," Ryan replied and nodded his head.

"Are you guys in such a hurry to die?" Looking at the Defenders, who looked like they were ready to die, the Beast spoke with a disdainful expression.

At this time, Wesley, who had been silent, took the lead.

Well, it was actually Ryan who maneuvered the clone into shooting. With the appearance of the Beast, it was obvious that the miraculous swerving bullets weren't as useful as they used to be, and rather than waste chakra by still keeping the clone, he should retire it and reap a bit more reputation points.

"You think that little toy would still work on me?"

Taking one look at Wesley's movements, the Beast sneered and waved his palm. He sent out another Buddha's Primordial Light move.

With a flash of golden light, the spot where Wesley was originally located was transformed into a huge palm print.

The Beast's Buddha's Palm actually went straight through the floor of the restaurant and landed on the first floor.

"Wesley!"

Wesley, the clone, had remained a taciturn figure among the Defenders but had gained some friendship with the group over the numerous battles. Therefore, witnessing Wesley being hit by The Beast's palm, the group's expressions instantly turned to anguish. Several people subconsciously made the assumption that there was no chance for Wesley to survive such an attack.

[Reputation points from Daredevil +750]

[Reputation pints from Jessica Jones +1020]

[Reputation points from Luke Cage +800]

[Reputation points from Danny Rand +135]