Monaco, Monte Carlo.
At the starting line of the Monaco F1 circuit, the deafening roar of engines could faintly be heard from the track.
The sunlight baked the asphalt, while cheers surged through the grandstands like waves.
Tony Stark was dressed in a flashy racing suit.
He gave Lin Xuan, sitting in an identical race car beside him, a thumbs-up with a flamboyant grin.
Lin Xuan was likewise dressed in a racing suit, his hands resting casually on the steering wheel.
The signal lights came on!
Then went out!
The race began!
More than a dozen race cars shot forward like arrows released from their bows, roaring across the starting line in an instant!
The deafening engines thundered, tires scraping against the track and filling the air with the scorching smell of burnt rubber.
Lin Xuan followed unhurriedly behind them, but his eyes remained fixed on the rearview mirror and the points of abnormal energy fluctuations around him.
He had barely made it through two turns when—
“ZZZT—!!!”
A metallic cutting screech, painful enough to make one’s teeth ache, suddenly tore through the roar of the engines!
It was accompanied by terrified screams from the spectators!
A figure, like an envoy crawling out of hell, suddenly burst onto the narrow racetrack!
He wore a crude, roughly constructed gray metal exoskeleton, with a miniature reactor flickering with unstable blue light mounted on his back.
In each hand, he held a long energy whip!
Dangerous blue electrical arcs danced at the tips of the whips, crackling and distorting the very air around them!
Ivan Vanko.
Through the gaps in his battered mask, his eyes locked onto Lin Xuan’s race car, which was following directly behind Tony’s.
His overwhelming hatred was almost tangible.
“Stark—!”
“And you, you little lackey of that thief!”
“Give me back what belonged to my father!”
Amid his roar, the energy whip in his right hand lashed out like a striking viper, carrying devastating force as it viciously whipped toward the cockpit of Lin Xuan’s car!
In the blink of an eye—
Lin Xuan’s eyes narrowed.
[Xiong Core Command: Analyze Ivan Vanko.]
[Target locked: Ivan Vanko.]
[Physiological data scan: Heart rate 145 bpm (anger state), respiratory rate 35 breaths/min, peak muscular stress response, extremely high adrenaline levels…]
[Establishing real-time dynamic model.]
The instant Ivan appeared and his energy fluctuations reached their peak, the Xiong Core had already predicted the trajectory of his attack!
One second before the energy whip reached him—
Lin Xuan suddenly cranked the steering wheel all the way to the left!
His right foot kicked the car door open!
His body rolled out of the speeding race car with an agility that surpassed the limits of ordinary human comprehension!
The movement was fluid and precise, as though it had been calculated thousands upon thousands of times!
The energy whip slammed into the now-uncontrolled race car!
Its sturdy body was torn apart and deformed in an instant, as though it were made of paper.
Blue electrical sparks erupted violently as the race car flipped and crashed into the barrier, completely breaking apart!
Lin Xuan rolled across the ground to dissipate the momentum before rising steadily to his feet.
He brushed the dust from his clothes and looked up at Ivan Vanko, who was approaching step by step, energy whips swinging in his hands.
[Exoskeleton structure analysis: Material is a mixed titanium alloy. Design flaws detected at the joints.]
[Power source: Miniature Arc Reactor. Energy output curve contains an obvious trough; poor heat dissipation.]
[Weapon system analysis: Energy whips. Core consists of arc generators, with output transmitted through flexible conductive cables.]
[Analyzing energy output pattern… Predicting next attack trajectory… Calculating energy fluctuation cycle…]
[Overall threat assessment: High.]
[Weak-point identification: Reactor casing protection level: C. Energy output instability cycle: approximately 1.8 seconds. Control-unit wiring interface exposed.]
[Tactical simulation: Employ high-mobility evasion. Utilize attack intervals and periods of low energy output to prioritize destruction of the reactor on his chest.]
The upgraded Xiong Core was operating at terrifying speed.
Every movement of Ivan’s muscles, every change in his breathing rate, the angle and speed of the energy whips, their energy output…
Even the energy-flow patterns within his crude armor and weaknesses in its internal structure—
In Lin Xuan’s eyes, everything was instantly analyzed and quantified, transformed into streams of crystal-clear data!
Tony Stark witnessed this terrifying scene through his rearview mirror!
His pupils suddenly contracted!
First came Ivan’s ferocious assault, and then…
Lin Xuan?!
He had actually… relied solely on his physical body?!
He had escaped that deadly energy whip from a race car traveling at high speed?!
And judging by the looks of things, he was even planning to… confront that monster head-on?!
Tony couldn’t help but curse, nearly losing control of the steering wheel.
“What the hell is this guy… What kind of monster is he?!”
“Is this really the physical fitness a researcher is supposed to have?”
The speed, strength, and reflexes Lin Xuan had just displayed…
They were simply beyond the limits of what a human being could achieve.
This completely overturned Tony Stark’s understanding of individual biological capabilities!
Almost at the exact same moment.
Inside a hotel banquet hall in Monaco.
The race was being broadcast live on a massive screen.
When Ivan Vanko stormed onto the track and began attacking with his energy whips—
When the screen showed Lin Xuan abandoning his car, dodging the attacks with astonishing skill, and even preparing to counterattack—
Her ice-blue, normally impassive eyes were filled, for the first time, with incredulous shock, along with an even deeper scrutiny.
She knew that Lin Xuan had injected himself with the Super-Soldier Serum and possessed physical abilities far beyond those of an ordinary human.
But what the screen was showing was far beyond that!
Those evasive movements, that mobility—it wasn’t merely speed.
It was insight.
It was as though he could predict the trajectory of the energy whips in advance, always finding the only possible escape route at the most critical moment.
And the look in his eyes as he faced Ivan now was terrifyingly calm!
This was something that couldn’t be achieved through physical enhancement alone.
“His combat abilities… evolved again?” Natasha’s heart trembled.
“No. This isn’t merely an increase in strength and speed… It’s combat awareness, battlefield analysis, and control!”
“It’s as though he can see straight through his opponent’s weaknesses!”
“Could it be that he’s combined his fighting methods with technology?”
This Lin Xuan…
The secrets hidden within him were far greater than she had initially anticipated.
Back on the racetrack.
Facing Ivan Vanko, who was advancing step by step while wielding two long energy whips—
Lin Xuan moved.
His movements were as fast as a ghost.
Relying on the Xiong Core’s terrifying real-time analysis and predictive capabilities, combined with the superhuman physical abilities granted by the Super-Soldier Serum, he weaved and shifted through the deadly web formed by the two wildly swinging energy whips.
Every dodge was executed with perfect precision, as though he were dancing on the edge of a blade.
The energy whips carried scorching currents of air as they skimmed past his clothes, leaving deep, charred marks across the ground and barriers.
The more Ivan fought, the more alarmed he became.
His opponent was slippery as an eel, while the sensation that Lin Xuan could seemingly predict his movements in advance left Ivan incredibly frustrated!
Once again, Ivan furiously crossed the two whips and swept them outward, attempting to seal off every possible escape route for Lin Xuan!
The attack missed!
At the instant Ivan’s momentum was exhausted and the energy output of the reactor on his chest entered a brief trough—
Lin Xuan seized the fleeting opportunity calculated by the Xiong Core.
He suddenly lowered his body and charged forward, closing the distance to Ivan in an instant.
His right fist clenched tightly as the power of the Super-Soldier Serum erupted without restraint.
A straight punch imbued with terrifying force— precisely— slammed into the crude casing of the miniature Arc Reactor on Ivan Vanko’s chest.
“CRACK!”
A crisp shattering sound rang out!
The alloy casing shattered on impact, exposing the unstable energy core within.
The core’s light flickered violently, becoming extremely unstable.
“Agh!”
(End of Chapter)