[Brain Check Station]
“Zzz…
Crack!”
Linus Vance felt an intense numbness and a surge of convulsions throughout his body as a blinding flash of white light exploded before his eyes.
Just half a second ago, he had been sitting at his computer, sipping iced soda while rewatching *The Avengers* on his monitor.
In his other hand, he was holding his phone, immersed in a Cao Cao–style wife-stealing fanfic novel.
Reaching the climax of the story, he had slapped his thigh in excitement.
By an unfortunate twist of fate, his half-full can of soda tipped over, spilling liquid directly onto a leaking power strip.
In his final second of consciousness, he vaguely remembered his hands slamming onto the keyboard, typing four un-sent words: *Long live Cao Cao!*
*BANG!*
A heavy crash echoed, followed by the shattering of glass, violently dragging Linus back from his stupor.
He snapped his eyes open.
What greeted his vision wasn’t his messy single apartment, but an extraordinarily spacious, high-tech laboratory that had been completely reduced to rubble.
Alarms blared frantically.
Red emergency lights flickered continuously.
A gaping hole was torn into the wall, through which freezing wind howled into the room.
A tearful voice filled with utter panic and despair cried out near his ear.
“Lin…
Linus…
Bruce…
he turned into a monster!”
Linus turned his head at the sound, his pupils shrinking slightly.
Slumped in the debris right beside his feet was a woman.
She wore a tight lab coat over a black pencil skirt that outlined her staggering curves.
Right now, due to the violent incident moments ago, her lab coat was torn open, and her black stockings were ripped in several places, exposing smooth, porcelain skin.
Her beautiful hair was in complete disarray, and her gorgeous face—a perfect blend of purity and sensuality—was streaked with tears.
She trembled like a frightened bird.
In that exact moment, countless memories flooded violently into Linus’s mind.
The Marvel Universe!
Culver University!
The Gamma Ray Laboratory!
And his current identity was a top Chinese-American researcher in this lab—a gentle, refined scholar on the surface, and a colleague of Bruce Banner!
Just minutes ago, Banner’s gamma ray experiment suffered a catastrophic accident.
That mild-mannered, nerdy guy transformed on the spot into a green, human tank.
He smashed half the lab to pieces, swatted away several security guards, abandoned his slumped, defense-needing girlfriend, Betty Ross, and leapt over the wall, fleeing into the night!
Looking at Dr.
Betty Ross on the verge of a breakdown—abandoned by her boyfriend and thoroughly traumatized—a hidden gleam flashed deep within Linus’s eyes behind his gold-rimmed glasses.
As a seasoned fan of wife-stealing fiction, this classic plotline—”fiancé mutates and flees, gorgeous fiancée falls from grace and seeks comfort”—was practically hand-delivered by destiny!
Before Linus could even get excited, a mechanical prompt suddenly thundered in his mind!
[Ding!
Host successfully transmigrated to the Marvel Universe at an absolute prime opportunity!]
[Emerald Great Love System awakened and bound!]
Linus drew in a cold breath mentally.
A system?
And judging by the name, this system was far from wholesome!
[Core Function: Unlimited Account-Stealing Plunder!]
[As long as the host intercepts, flirts with, or engages in deep intimate interaction with high-quality female characters who have a specific boyfriend/husband/crush, you can directly steal a proportion of that male target’s core abilities and fortune!]
[Rule Released: Fully possess her body and soul and send ‘warmth’ to her original partner to make her completely devoted, or achieve the “Display Affection in Front of Original Partner” achievement to trigger critical-hit roulette rewards!]
[Current Environment Scanned…
Target Locked: Betty Ross.]
[Target to Intercept: Bruce Banner.]
Looking at the long list of prompts on the holographic panel before him, Linus almost burst out laughing inside.
This wasn’t just a system; it was a custom-tailored life mentor!
So long as he seduced Betty right here, he could directly leech Hulk’s superpowers for free?
This deal was an absolute win!
The expression on Linus’s face shifted with Oscar-worthy precision in under a second.
The smirk belonging to an amused spectator instantly vanished, replaced by deep distress, worry, and unshakeable resolve.
“Gentle Rogue” acting mode: fully activated.
Without hesitation, Linus took off his well-tailored suit jacket.
With exquisite gentlemanliness wrapped in undeniable authority, he bent down and wrapped the jacket tightly around the shivering Betty.
Carrying Linus’s body heat and a subtle woody cologne scent, the jacket instantly enveloped Betty.
For a woman trapped in a freezing ruin with a heart full of terror, this warmth was more effective than any panacea.
Linus’s voice was warm, deep, and irresistibly magnetic.
“Don’t be afraid.
I’m here.”
He dropped to one knee, using his broad shoulders to block the freezing wind blowing in from the hole, then naturally pulled Betty into his arms.
Betty was currently in an extreme emotional vacuum.
The boyfriend she deeply loved had turned into a monster and abandoned her at the most dangerous moment.
The despair, helplessness, and sense of betrayal caused her normally strong defenses to completely shatter.
Feeling the steady, powerful thrum of Linus’s heartbeat, Betty unconsciously clutched the hem of his shirt like a drowning person grabbing a lifeline.
Leaning against Linus’s chest, she finally couldn’t hold back her tears any longer and sobbed aloud.
“Linus…
Bruce…
he mutated…
He became a green monster…
He didn’t want me anymore…
He left me and ran…”
Linus’s fingers casually brushed through her smooth blonde hair, gently patting her back.
He offered sweet comfort in an exceedingly gentle voice that tore apart her remaining loyalty word by word.
“Don’t think about that right now.
The most important thing is that you’re safe.”
“Still…
Banner was far too reckless.
How could he leave you alone in such a dangerous place?”
“Didn’t he realize that a collapsing load-bearing wall could have crushed you at any moment?”
Betty’s crying paused for a fraction of a second.
*That’s right…
Why did Bruce run?
Even if he was scared, shouldn’t he have taken me with him?*
*Leaving me alone in a pile of rubble and unknown danger?*
In contrast, Linus, who was usually quiet and gentle, had refused to leave her side by a single step at this life-and-death moment, even using his body to shield her from the cold wind.
Side by side, the emotional scale inside Betty’s heart began to tip drastically.
Linus looked down at Betty’s curves heaving with her sobs, an aggressively dark glint flickering deep in his eyes.
[Ding!
Betty Ross affinity initially established!
Congratulations host on taking the first step of interception!]
[Congratulations host on obtaining Hulk Ability Fragment: Hulk-Class Golden-Ratio Physical Enhancement!]
As the system prompt rang wildly, Linus felt a volcano erupt deep inside his body!
An unmatched, terrifying force washed through his entire body like a breaking dam!
His muscle density surged exponentially, and in a single instant, his bones were remolded to be harder than steel.
His frame, previously somewhat slender from years of scientific research, filled out in just a few seconds.
Underneath his shirt, eight sculpturally perfect abdominal muscles instantly took form, and the lines of his lats and chest reached a golden ratio of perfection.
What thrilled Linus most was that he didn’t transform into a hideous green brute like Banner, nor did he rip his clothes apart.
The system’s enhancement perfectly compressed Hulk’s mountain-shaking, violent physical foundation into his refined, handsome frame!
No ugliness, no color change—only pure, explosive power!
Right now, even if he were sprayed at point-blank range by an assault rifle, he wouldn’t suffer so much as a scratch!
Holding Betty, Linus looked through his gold-rimmed glasses toward the hole in the wall where Banner had crashed through and fled.
He narrowed his eyes slightly, a playful and mocking smile curling at the corner of his lips as he thought silently to himself:
*Brother Banner, since you couldn’t handle your woman, let your brother step in.*