His wrist was shoved sideways by a force far beyond his expectations, and he lost control of his entire arm in an instant.
The knife flew from his hand.
At the same time, Lynn's left knee drove into Ryan's abdomen.
The combined output of the Super Soldier Physique and Superhuman Strength was at roughly forty percent.
When the knee struck, the carbon-fiber armor Ryan wore beneath his hoodie let out a sharp crack.
The armor shattered.
Ryan was launched backward by the blow, flying about three meters before crashing through a plasterboard partition.
Plaster fragments and dust burst through the air.
Then he slammed into a steel frame behind the wall.
The frame gave a dull metallic groan and bent at an angle.
Ryan slid down from the frame and dropped to one knee amid the rubble.
Blood stained the corner of his mouth.
Fragments of shattered armor fell from beneath his clothes, making faint clattering sounds as they hit the floor.
At least three ribs were broken.
He could feel it. Every breath sent a sharp stab of pain through his chest.
He looked up at the man standing three meters away.
Lynn stood there, breathing steadily.
Several white marks from the carbon-fiber blade streaked his clothes, but the skin beneath was completely unharmed.
His gold-rimmed glasses reflected the faint moonlight.
"You're not an ordinary doctor," Ryan said.
Every word came with pain in his chest.
"I am."
"Ordinary doctors can't stop carbon-fiber blades."
"My clinic treats every illness. Including my own."
Ryan braced himself against the floor and tried to stand.
His left hand pulled out his last throwing needle from his waist—
Lynn stepped forward and seized his wrist with his right hand.
The grip crushed past Ryan's limit.
The needle slipped from his loosened fingers and