Chapter 98 The Battle with Hulk
Finney quickly stopped Hulk from continuing his playful antics. He wanted to know just how much stronger Hulk had become under the 'Demon Possession' spell. Leaving
aside defense for now, Finney wanted to test Hulk's strength first. At this moment, Hulk wasn't in a state of rage, so his strength shouldn't have increased.
"Go lift that rock,"
Finney said, pointing to the boulder nearby, usually used for testing 'Explosion Magic'.
Hulk obediently rushed to the boulder, grabbed its edges from the bottom with both hands, and with a roar, easily lifted it above his head, leaving Finney speechless.
Although he had expected Hulk to be able to lift it, he hadn't anticipated it would be so easy.
This rock, which was actually almost the size of a small mountain, felt like plastic in Hulk's hands.
However, to compare the effects of wearing and not wearing the spell, Finney first had Hulk put the rock down, then released him from the 'Demon Possession' spell, preparing to let him try again.
The disappearance of the 'possessed by evil spirits' left Hulk puzzled. He fumbled around on his clothes for a while before realizing that Finney had taken it back.
"Come on, lift it again,"
Finney said, watching Hulk's performance.
This time, Hulk struggled much more. He gripped the edge of the boulder with both hands, exerting tremendous effort to barely lift it, unable to lift it overhead as easily as before.
From this alone, Finney knew that the power amplification of Hulk by 'possessed by evil spirits' was absolutely terrifying.
This was only under normal circumstances, after Hulk had been weakened by eating a large amount of 'Violet Chicken Nuggets'. If Hulk were in a state of rage, his power would be amplified again, making him even more terrifying.
Watching Hulk struggle desperately against the rock, Finney snapped out of his daze, stopped him from lifting the stone, and explained why he had called him out: "Hulk, come fight me!"
Finney thought Hulk would be happy to hear this, but to his surprise, Hulk hesitated and shook his head, saying, "Sorcerer, friend!"
Although Hulk's words were simple, Finney unexpectedly understood the meaning. Hulk didn't want to fight him because he was a friend, fearing he might hurt him.
"It's okay,"
Finney said, patting Hulk's head from mid-air with a smile. "It's just a simple fight. Just don't use too much force."
Hearing this, Hulk hesitated slightly.
"Come on!"
Finney didn't give Hulk another chance to refuse, immediately equipping 'Demon Possession' and preparing to truly grind Hulk for experience.
Seeing Finney unleash a 'Burst Magic' spell, Hulk quickly raised his arm to block the flames. His tough skin protected him from much damage, but it ignited his fighting spirit.
With an excited grin, Hulk charged towards Finney.
Finney's goal this time was to gain experience through combat, so he didn't adopt a kiting-style fighting approach, but instead engaged Hulk in guerrilla warfare on the ground.
Tony's previous experience was still fresh in his mind, and Finney dared not take Hulk's punches head-on. Although he had just told Finney to hold back, Hulk's temperament was such that when he got excited, he wouldn't listen to a call to pause, let alone hold back.
While Hulk was strong and fast, he lacked agility. His immense strength had made him accustomed to charging at any enemy directly. His
fighting skills were atrocious, at least in front of Finney.
And it was precisely because of this that Finney was able to maneuver around Hulk. Hulk's punches couldn't land on him, but his punches and instantaneous 'Explosion Magic' were also unlikely to cause any effective damage to Hulk.
It was like an assassin fighting a warrior, but unfortunately, Finney's assassin output was too low to break through the defense, while Hulk, although high in defense, health, and output, lacked control skills and couldn't land a hit.
Overall, this situation was disadvantageous to Finney, as his margin for error was too low; if he accidentally took a few hits, he could be defeated.
However, this does not mean that Finney's strength is absolutely weaker than Hulk's, after all, his true profession is a sorcerer.
This fighting style was chosen to gain experience. If he were truly facing an enemy like the Hulk, he would have already flown far away into the sky and begun chanting.
The straightforward Hulk clearly disliked Finney's fighting style, and soon accumulated a bellyful of anger. After all, low attack power is relative; hitting the same spot too many times will hurt Hulk too.
Just as Finney expected, when the fight truly began, Hulk completely forgot about holding back.
His fierce, howling fists slammed into the mountain, creating deep craters with each punch, terrifying Finney. He didn't want to end up like Tony.
The battle didn't last long. Finney remained tense, while Hulk, fueled by anger, grew stronger, even his beast-like fighting instincts gradually allowing him to adapt to Finney's style.
The final result was a draw, with Finney flying into the sky to forcibly end the fight. In his words, it was a stalemate, a fifty-fifty split.
Unfortunately, the system only gave more experience for a victory; a 'draw' didn't add any experience.
"Mage, battle...unhappy."
Hulk looked displeased after the battle.
After all, he'd been getting beaten up the entire time. He'd finally figured out the pattern and was ready to counterattack, only to have the battle ended by Finney. Anyone would be unhappy in that situation.
"Ahem!"
Finney coughed, slightly embarrassed. To be honest, he'd underestimated Hulk's strength.
He hadn't expected Hulk to improve so quickly in battle. At first, dodging was easy, but the fight became increasingly difficult, forcing him to end it.
This situation worried him. This was only their first battle! He planned to use Hulk to gain experience throughout the summer.
He couldn't afford to lose the entire vacation!
Finney racked his brains for a solution, while also checking the experience gained from the battle with Hulk. Even without winning, it was still seven Mordos.
This made Finney even more conflicted. So much even without winning? How many Mordos would he get if he won?!
Finney couldn't help but turn to look at Hulk, who was clearly upset. Perhaps because Banner had initiated Hulk's appearance, Hulk showed no signs of turning back.
So, after a moment's thought, Finney said, "Alright, don't be angry. I'll treat you to something! You haven't eaten anything besides chicken wraps, have you? I'll take you to get something else."
Hulk showed a curious expression. He almost always appeared when Banner was in danger and then had to run away, rarely experiencing anything himself.
"Come on!"
Finney opened a portal to Banner's villa. He had considered the potential danger, but ultimately chose to trust that Hulk would obey him.
Passing through the portal, Hulk was curious about everything in the villa, but when Finney saw his gaze fall on the wine cabinet, he quickly stopped him.
"Don't touch that!"
Finney said seriously. He didn't know Hulk's alcohol tolerance; if he was weak and got drunk and acted out, it would be a serious offense.
"Oh."
Hulk looked at the liquor cabinet strangely, then obediently didn't touch it, much to Finney's relief. Afterwards, Finney removed the 'Demon Possession' and went to the supermarket and restaurants, buying a huge amount of snacks and food to bring back to the villa, giving Hulk his first taste of just how abundant Earth's food industry was.
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(End of Chapter)