Chapter 40: The Iron Fist Strikes · The Dragon's Lament
The symbolic belief in "absolute defense" represented by Luke Cage had been utterly shattered by a single punch. The dull impact and the thunderous collapses sounded like a final funeral bell, striking hard against the hearts of all the remaining heroes. The abyss of despair swallowed all light. The battlefield fell into a total, suffocating silence.Yet, at this moment of despair where even breath seemed frozen—A cry of pain, suppressed to its limit, wrung from the very depths of the soul, tore through the dead silence!A figure, dragging a body covered in horrifying injuries, struggled to its feet from amidst burning rubble. His costume was in tatters, his body bathed in blood, one arm twisted at an unnatural angle. But his one remaining, intact hand was clenched into a fist, upon which bloomed a faint yet incredibly dense, golden-yellow light!It was Danny Rand. The Iron Fist!He had witnessed Luke's crushing defeat, the despair of everyone. The power of the Shou-Lao the Undying dragon within him wailed in哀鸣 (āimíng - lament) and fear, but his will to protect burned at its极限 (jíxiàn -极限)! The teachings of K'un-Lun echoed in his mind—protect life, fight darkness, unto death!He knew his power was but a flickering firefly before such beings. He knew this was likely meaningless suicide.But he could not retreat! He was the Iron Fist! The guardian of K'un-Lun! He had to stand here and throw this punch! If only to prove that, even in the face of this despairing power, there were still those who dared to draw their sword!"In the name of K'un-Lun!!!" Danny roared, a cry akin to weeping blood. He poured all his remaining will, all his life force, all the power of the dragon, without reservation, into his one good fist!The golden light flared intensely! A faint, sorrowful虚影 (xūyǐng - phantom image) of an Eastern dragon coiled around his arm, letting out a silent dragon's roar!Dragging his broken body, like a moth flying into the flame, he launched his final, tragic charge towards Sun Wukong! Each step left a bloody print; each step burned his life!The punch,凝聚 (níngjù -凝聚) all that he was, carried the惨烈 (cǎnliè - tragic and fierce) momentum of an all-out,玉石俱焚 (yùshí jùfén - ready to perish together with the enemy) assault, smashing towards Sun Wukong!This punch was not for victory, but for dignity! For proof!The distant heroes watched this scene in horror, their eyes filled with不忍 (bùrěn -不忍) and悲痛 (bēitòng -悲痛).Sun Wukong looked at this "mortal" charging towards him, bathed in blood yet with eyes burning with疯狂战意 (fēngkuáng zhànyì -疯狂战意). A flicker of surprise passed through his Fiery Eyes and Golden Pupils."Eh? This aura... somewhat interesting. A semblance of dragon power? A method of burning one's lifeblood? You, boy, are truly烈性 (lièxìng -烈性)."He could sense that this punch no longer contained mere strength, but a惨烈决绝 (cǎnliè juéjué -惨烈决绝) that燃烧生命本源 (ránshāo shēngmìng běnyuán -燃烧生命本源)! Even in the primordial world, such desperate, life-risking techniques were极其罕见 (jíqí hǎnjiàn -极其罕见).Facing this strike凝聚了生命与信念 (níngjùle shēngmìng yǔ xìnniàn -凝聚了生命与信念), Sun Wukong did not casually flick it away or blow it off as before. He became,罕见地 (hǎnjiàn de -罕见地), slightly more serious. He extended a single finger.At its tip, a barely perceptible light of混沌 (hùndùn -混沌) swirled.The Iron Fist's ultimate strike,燃烧生命 (ránshāo shēngmìng -燃烧生命) and stirring the dragon's soul, smashed squarely, without any fancy技巧 (jìqiǎo -技巧), against the tip of Sun Wukong's finger!There was no earth-shattering explosion, no raging clash of energies.Only a sound so沉闷 (chénmèn -沉闷) and钝响 (dùn xiǎng -钝响) it was like a strike against ancient bedrock!Time seemed to freeze for a moment.A teeth-grating,密集的 (mìjí de -密集的) sound of shattering bones erupted like popping beans from Danny's fist, his arm, even his shoulder! The golden-yellow dragon power on his fist, like a wave hitting a reef, instantly崩溃 (bēngkuì -崩溃),湮灭 (yǎnmiè -湮灭)! The faint dragon soul虚影 let out a凄厉的哀鸣 (qīlì de āimíng -凄厉的哀鸣) and abruptly消散 (xiāosàn -消散)!Danny Rand vomited a mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of internal organs. The burning fighting spirit in his eyes instantly extinguished, replaced by endless pain and涣散 (huànsàn -涣散). His entire body went limp, as if all his bones had been抽空 (chōu kōng -抽空), collapsing softly. His life force rapidly衰败 (shuāibài -衰败). The fist that once glowed was now twisted into an grotesque angle, its light completely黯淡 (àndàn -黯淡).Sun Wukong slowly retracted his finger, watching the specks of golden light rapidly dissipate from its tip. He shook his head slightly."烈性有余 (Lièxìng yǒuyú -烈性有余),根基太差 (gēnjī tài chà -根基太差). The heart is willing to risk life itself, but the vessel cannot bear the power. A pity for this trace of dragon lineage..."He had not delivered a killing blow. The other's full-power strike had merely crashed against the absolute disparity in power,反噬自身 (fǎnshì zìshēn -反噬自身), leaving him already at death's door.The Iron Fist's tragic strike was like the most brilliant yet briefest meteor in the night sky, burning itself out without illuminating the darkness, leaving only deeper silence and despair.The dragon soul of K'un-Lun, on Earth's despairing battlefield, let out a lament none could hear, and faded away into黯然消散 (ànrán xiāosàn -黯然消散).