Bane's physical capabilities increased dramatically under the enhancement of the toxic gas flowing through his breathing apparatus, and his speed of movement far exceeded anything that Bruce and Selina had previously encountered during their vigilante activities.
THUMP!
Under the devastating force of Bane's violent charge, both Bruce and Selina were launched through the air, their bodies traveling a considerable distance before they managed to regain control and land safely.
"Ugh..." Bruce exhaled with obvious difficulty as he came to a stop, his breathing labored from the impact.
This was the first time he had encountered such a powerful enhanced individual, and this particular opponent was clearly much stronger than any of the Beastmen they had faced during their previous patrol encounters.
"Let's coordinate our attacks!" Bruce called out to his partner, determination replacing the initial shock in his voice.
As he spoke, Bruce planted his feet firmly and focused his energy, causing the dagger in his hand to become instantly wrapped in the blue energy they had been practicing with Marcus.
Swish!
The enhanced blade sliced through the air with a sharp, penetrating sound that echoed throughout the underground chamber. The energy surrounding the dagger left a bright arc of light trailing behind it as it moved.
"Try this!" Bruce shouted as both he and Selina launched their coordinated assault.
Their energy-wrapped daggers arrived in front of Bane simultaneously, the enhanced weapons demonstrating exceptional sharpness. Even before the blades made contact with their target, they had already torn through Bane's clothing and left visible bloodstains across his exposed skin.
BANG!
Facing the combined attack from both vigilantes, Bane didn't simply stand there passively. Instead, he launched his own counterattack, fighting back with devastating effectiveness.
His fists moved like steel hammers, and at the exact moment their daggers struck him, he delivered powerful punches directly to both of their chests.
Because of the toxic enhancement coursing through his system, his speed was almost impossible to track. Bruce and Selina simply couldn't react quickly enough to his movements. After all, their battle suits enhanced their strength and provided excellent protection, but they couldn't increase their natural reaction speed or processing capabilities.
However, both young vigilantes managed to respond as effectively as possible during the moment they were sent flying backward. Using the momentum from Bane's powerful blows, they quickly created distance between themselves and their opponent while simultaneously employing specialized combat techniques to dissipate most of the destructive force from his attacks.
"This guy's speed is way too fast," Selina said quietly, her voice tight with concern. "We can't keep up with his movement patterns at all."
Their equipment was indeed excellent, and they could effectively absorb and redirect Bane's attacks when they had time to prepare. But when facing an opponent whose strength and speed were both superior to their own capabilities, they simply couldn't enter an optimal fighting rhythm or maintain proper defensive positioning.
Marcus, who had been observing the battle from his concealed position, witnessed this entire exchange and shook his head with a mixture of understanding and mild frustration.
Bane's strength and speed were certainly impressive, but they still weren't quite sufficient to seriously injure either of his students, especially while they were wearing their protective gear.
The real problem that Bruce and Selina were facing wasn't actually Bane himself. Their biggest challenge was their growing dependence on the advanced battle suits that Marcus had provided them.
The suits had given them the confidence and capability to fight against much more powerful opponents, but this advantage had also created an unhealthy reliance on external enhancement. They had become too dependent on the strength amplification and protection that the suits provided, rather than developing their own natural abilities to their full potential.
Moreover, their recent patrol activities had been far too easy and predictable. Although they had mastered their combat techniques very well during training sessions, those skills had only been tested in controlled practice environments.
In an evenly matched battle like the one they were currently experiencing, their limitations became much more apparent. They were struggling to apply their fighting techniques with full effectiveness under real combat pressure.
"It seems like these battle suits need some limitations imposed on them," Marcus thought to himself as he continued to analyze their performance.
Looking up again to observe the ongoing fight, Marcus watched as Bruce and Selina rubbed their chests lightly, trying to relieve the numbness and pain from Bane's devastating punches. Meanwhile, Bane himself now had twice as much blood flowing from wounds on both of his arms.
The coordinated attack from Bruce and Selina hadn't been completely ineffective. Their energy-enhanced daggers had successfully penetrated Bane's defenses, leaving two deep, significant cuts in his muscular arms.
Hum~
Bane took another deep, deliberate breath through his gas mask, and the apparatus connected to the green chemical delivery tubes produced a strange, mechanical humming sound.
Then both vigilantes witnessed something that completely defied their understanding of human biology—the bleeding wounds on Bane's arms began healing rapidly at a rate that was clearly visible to the naked eye.
"His... his body recovers way too fast, doesn't it?" Selina gasped in disbelief.
This incredible display of regenerative capability shocked both young fighters completely. All the enhanced criminals and Beastmen they had encountered during their previous patrol activities, while certainly powerful and destructive, had never demonstrated such amazing resilience and healing speed.
The two serious stab wounds on Bane's arms had completely healed within just a few seconds.
"I can feel the power surging through me again!" Bane announced with obvious satisfaction and renewed confidence.
Then he planted his foot firmly against the ground and launched himself toward both vigilantes with explosive force.
This time, having gained a better understanding of Bane's true capabilities, Bruce and Selina didn't make the mistake of standing motionless. Instead, they reacted the instant Bane began his charge, diving and rolling in opposite directions to avoid his attack.
Although they didn't possess Bane's superhuman reaction speed, they had developed their own tactical methods for dealing with overwhelming force. Since they couldn't directly resist or block Bane's attacks, they would initiate evasive maneuvers the moment he began moving.
Bane's speed was indeed formidable, but as long as both vigilantes acted separately and used different escape routes, they could successfully avoid his direct assaults.
Following their coordinated evasion, Bane slammed into the solid stone wall of Arkham Asylum with tremendous force.
The reinforced wall, which should have been incredibly durable, proved as fragile as paper when faced with Bane's enhanced strength. There was a thunderous crash, and the wall developed a network of spider-web cracks radiating outward from the impact point.
"This guy... he's incredibly powerful!" Bruce exclaimed, staring at the damaged wall in amazement.
The walls of Arkham Asylum were constructed to be no less secure than those of Blackgate Prison—they were designed to contain some of Gotham's most dangerous criminals. Such reinforced construction, capable of withstanding most conventional attacks, had been forcibly cracked by Bane's impact. If this pattern continued, just one more collision would probably allow Bane to break completely through the wall.
"We need to take the initiative and lead him outside," Bruce said with growing strategic awareness. "This space is too confined for us to move effectively. We need room to maneuver."
With that tactical decision made, Bruce raised his dagger and rushed directly toward Bane. He needed to capture Bane's attention and encourage him to break through the wall, which would free them from their current disadvantageous position in the cramped underground chamber.
Bruce's aggressive approach immediately caught Bane's attention. Observing the vigilante charging forward with a dagger that was emitting a faint energy glow, Bane snorted with disdain and launched a powerful kick directly at Bruce's face to counter the attack.
THUMP!
Tear!
Bruce was sent flying backward by the force of the kick, but at the exact moment he was launched away, Bane's leg was also slashed by the energy-enhanced dagger, opening a significant cut.
Stomp, stomp, stomp~
Bruce, having been kicked with tremendous force, took more than a dozen stumbling steps backward across the floor before he could completely absorb and dissipate Bane's power.
This exchange also gave Bruce valuable new insight into Bane's current strength level and combat patterns.
He realized that Bane's physical capabilities had increased even further since the beginning of their fight. His most recent attack had been executed using a proper combat stance—a defensive counterattack technique that should have been able to deflect or redirect most incoming force.
Even using that advanced technique, Bruce couldn't completely neutralize Bane's attack. He had been forced to retreat and use backward momentum to dissipate the overwhelming power behind Bane's kick.
"Be careful!" Bruce called out to his partner. "This guy is getting even stronger!"
"I can see that clearly," Selina replied with a grim nod. "His strength is still increasing continuously."
Selina had observed Bruce's performance during the exchange very carefully. Although Bane had used his foot rather than his fist for this attack, the force behind it was significantly greater than anything he had demonstrated earlier in their battle.
"Here he comes again..." Selina warned as they prepared for another assault.
As soon as she finished speaking, both vigilantes leaped into action, jumping and diving in two completely different directions to avoid Bane's next charge.
Bane's strength was indeed formidable, and after inhaling even more toxic gas through his breathing apparatus, his physical capabilities had become even more overwhelming.
The problem was that while Bruce and Selina didn't possess Bane's superhuman reaction speed, the enhancement provided by their battle suits made their movements extremely fast and unpredictable.
Even though Bane had inhaled substantial quantities of poison gas to repair his leg injury and further increase his strength, his attacks were still being successfully avoided by both vigilantes through their coordinated evasion tactics.
BANG!
Bane collided with the wall again, causing the entire underground chamber to shake violently from the impact. Then he drew back his fist and prepared to punch directly through the damaged stone barrier.
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