"Boom!"
Under the horrified gazes of Coulson and the others, holy light erupted, completely engulfing the Lizard Man.
"What the fuck, that guy really has superpowers?"
Coulson suddenly remembered him. Wasn't he the magician who had offered his services to Natasha?
As the thought flashed through his mind, the holy light abruptly receded.
A dull thud followed. The green monster hurtled backward, smashed through the furnace, and tumbled over and over into the stream.
"No, impossible!!"
The monster rose in the stream and roared, his eyes filled with shock.
"How could you..."
"I told you, I'm a Demon Hun... I have superpowers."
Mark changed tack mid-sentence, keeping his identity as a Demon Hunter to himself.
It had taken enough effort to convince Ben Parker and May that he wasn't sick.
If he kept calling himself a Demon Hunter now, they probably wouldn't be able to sleep again.
After all, no normal person would want to hunt demons in New York.
Himself included.
Now clad in his Demon Hunter Set, he had completed his transformation in the blink of an eye.
Unfortunately, he couldn't summon Bruce.
Who knew where that fellow had wandered off to?
Well, he had probably gone to have some fun with that Red-Haired Bitch.
At that thought, Mark turned to look at the stunned Ben Parker and the others.
"Get out of here. I'll hold him off as long as I can."
Although his stats had improved considerably, he knew perfectly well that his last attack had only caught his opponent off guard.
Without Bruce, defeating his opponent outright was practically impossible.
All he could do was buy as much time as possible.
Ben Parker didn't waste words. He knew staying would only burden the boy.
"Let's go."
He dragged Peter and May away from the battlefield at once.
Coulson, meanwhile, immediately reacted.
"Surround Curt Connors and support him."
"Understood!"
The agents swiftly moved into action.
"Bang, bang, bang!!"
Surrounded by gunfire, the Lizard Man grew increasingly frenzied.
While waiting for his skill's cooldown, Mark made sure to throw rocks at Professor Connors.
"Shit, you damned bastard! I'll fight you one-on-one!"
Under the barrage of suppressing fire, Professor Connors roared in fury.
Ignoring the gunfire, he leaped up a tree, then launched himself at Mark in another diving pounce.
"Boom..."
A vicious gust blasted toward Mark once again. Those razor-sharp claws gleamed eerily in the sunlight, as though they could rip through anything solid.
Mark didn't dare meet him head-on. Without hesitation, he activated his Movement Skill and accelerated out of the path of the pounce.
"Bang!!"
With a deafening crash, the Lizard Man missed his target and smashed a moss-covered boulder instead. Strange black liquid flowed out of it.
Then something happened that none of them could have predicted.
The strange black liquid rapidly crawled over Professor Connors's body. A black demonic face replaced his ugly bestial features, and even his body grew more muscular.
"Ah!! What is this?!"
As his body swelled, Professor Connors roared in terror.
But he soon discovered that the black liquid wasn't harming his body at all. Instead, it amplified his strength.
"Damn it, what the hell is happening?"
At the sight, Coulson shouted repeatedly, "Stop him!"
"Bang, bang, bang..."
The agents unleashed everything they had, only to see the dense barrage of bullets swallowed by the black liquid covering his body. The outrageous sight left them speechless.
Now, the weapons wielded by Coulson and the others could no longer restrain Professor Connors at all.
He glared viciously at Mark, baring a mouthful of sharp teeth.
"Kahaha, Makka Pakka... no, Mark Parker, your doom has arrived!"
The moment he finished speaking, the black lizard lunged with murderous intent. His monstrous body charged forward with dozens of tons of force, crushing trees and loose rocks along the way. In the blink of an eye, he was right in front of Mark.
"Motherfucker!"
Mark cursed, but before he could even react, black claws closed around his throat.
With the demonic face mere inches away, Mark struggled to breathe, his face flushing red.
Such terrifying strength. His meager stats were no match for this guy.
As Professor Connors tightened his grip slightly, Mark couldn't utter another word.
The shadow of death loomed over him.
It looked like he was done for.
Just as I thought, I'm only a weak Beginner Demon Hunter. I don't have the strength to defeat a supervillain.
The savagery in Professor Connors's eyes grew even more intense.
He could no longer control himself. He wanted to tear this guy to pieces.
He knew he couldn't do that. He still needed Peter's help.
But it was already too late.
"Crack!"
The muscles in the black Lizard Monster's arm bulged as tremendous force erupted.
Strangely, however, Mark's throat showed no sign of being crushed.
"Huh?" Professor Connors's pupils contracted.
He had no idea what had happened.
At the same time, the black liquid covering Professor Connors seemed to sense that something was wrong.
"Whoosh..."
The black liquid immediately surged together into a mass, rushing madly along Professor Connors's arm toward Mark.
Green scales were exposed to the sunlight once again as Professor Connors's strength rapidly faded.
Sensing his strength weakening, some of the savagery in Professor Connors's eyes subsided.
But even more apparent was the horror on his face.
"No, don't leave me! I need power!!" he screamed pleadingly.
As the last trace of black liquid left him, Professor Connors seemed to hear something.
"You're too weak. This man is the perfect host..."
"Host?"
Professor Connors's slit pupils trembled violently. Then he realized that Mark had already transformed into a black demon.
"Kahaha..."
The demonic face took shape. As its long tongue curled and lashed, its hideous appearance was far more terrifying than Professor Connors's had been.
An overwhelming sense of pressure swept over him, and the black demon forcibly snapped Professor Connors's claws.
"No!!"
Professor Connors stumbled backward, screaming in agony. The black demon raised both hands high, narrowing his eyes as he savored the
world.
"Hahaha, a perfect body, a perfect warrior. A pity this power seems to have been sealed..."
A hint of confusion and puzzlement appeared on the demonic face.
But he soon seemed to think of something, and the black liquid receded like a tide.
Only after the last trace of black had completely vanished did Mark slowly open his eyes.
He looked at Coulson and the others in bewilderment.
"What happened?"
Coulson and the others came to their senses. Despite their shock, they first tried to locate Professor Connors.
Unfortunately, Professor Connors had already fled the scene in a sorry state.
For now, Coulson gave up on him and turned a wary gaze on Mark instead.
"Sir, I admit that you possess superpowers. On behalf of S.H.I.E.L.D., I can agree to the collaboration you proposed earlier."
Mark's face lit up with delighted surprise. "Really?"
"Of course." Coulson nodded solemnly.
Based on his experience, he had already realized that the strange black liquid didn't seem to be a life-form from Earth.
We have to take it back to S.H.I.E.L.D.!
Perhaps having guessed Coulson's intentions, the black liquid emerged from Mark's body without hesitation and fled into the dense woods.
"What?"
Coulson jolted in surprise. "After it!"
He started to lead the agents in pursuit.
But Mark grabbed Coulson. "Wait, when are we going to discuss the details of our collaboration?"
"Discuss what?"
Coulson shook Mark off. "I never said anything of the sort."
With that, he and the agents swiftly disappeared.
Mark was left standing there, utterly bewildered.
"So they still don't believe I have superpowers?"
Motherfucker!
Wait, that thing just now...
Suddenly, he recalled the black liquid's strange behavior and seemed to realize something.
Venom!