Marvel: The Enlightened One-Chapter 104: [] - The Birth of the Phoenix Saint (Bonus)

Chapter 104: [104] - The Birth of the Phoenix Saint (Bonus)

<><><><><><><><>

Within the Cosmo.

As the Phoenix Fire receded, it was replaced by a golden light so brilliant it illuminated the entire inner universe.

And as the stars of his Cosmo turned, a golden suit of armor, shaped like a phoenix, was born.

It was brilliant, dazzling.

Like a Gold Cloth, the kind only a Gold Saint was worthy to wear.

But...

It wasn’t a Gold Cloth. The golden sheen was merely a result of its materials.

As everyone knows, there is no Orichalcum in the Marvel Universe. Hawk had used Vibranium as a substitute, and the natural color of Vibranium was a brilliant, pure gold.

So naturally, the Phoenix Armor he had forged was as golden as a legendary Gold Cloth.

But it was still a Bronze Cloth. It just looked golden.

In short, it was just for show.

...

On the savanna outside Wakanda.

The Demon Hulk, its frame as massive as a mountain, stood on the grassland and looked up at Hawk hovering in the sky. A sneer of disdain and contempt twisted its savage features.

At the same time—

"The game begins. I don’t accept forfeits."

"Defeat my toy, and I will ensure your sister is safe."

"Or—"

"Be killed by my toy, and come be a guest in my Hell."

Mephisto’s words echoed in Hawk’s ear from the depths of Hell, even though the demon had already vanished.

"I’ll be in Hell soon enough, Mephisto."

"And I look forward to meeting you there."

Hawk answered, his face an emotionless mask. He pulled his consciousness from his Cosmo and hovered in the air, his eyes—now swirling with the light of cosmic stars—fixed on the Demon Hulk below.

The next second...

His Cosmo transcended the ethereal. It projected itself into the real Phoenix constellation, using it as a conduit before re-projecting into reality as a phantom image behind Hawk himself.

"BURN, MY COSMO!!!"

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!

Crimson-gold flames erupted from every pore of Hawk’s body without warning. This was no ordinary fire; it was the purest, most intense, and most domineering power of the Phoenix, manifested from the raw energy of his burning Cosmo.

The crimson-gold flames instantly engulfed him, turning him into a furiously burning, humanoid torch.

And in that inferno, the image of a golden phoenix began to emerge.

...

"Ping, ping, ping!"

"Unknown energy signature rising rapidly."

"Holy shit!"

"Commander, the energy readings are almost on par with the fluctuations we see when Thor appears."

"My God."

High above, in the S.H.I.E.L.D command jet, the agents stared at the screen, at the image of Hawk engulfed in the spectral form of a golden phoenix, and cried out in shock as the energy readings went off the charts.

Maria Hill raised a hand, silencing them. She stood at the window of the jet, her eyes fixed on the firebird below as it began to spread its wings.

...

On the ground, the Demon Hulk saw this, and the sneer on its face vanished, replaced by a look of dawning caution.

Amidst the blinding fire and searing heat—

The transformation began.

First, golden greaves and vambraces materialized around his bare legs and arms with a sharp clang of metal. The lines of the vambraces were as sharp as blades, the greaves thick and solid.

CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!

A series of rapid, clear metallic impacts rang out.

With a shudder of his arms, two massive, magnificent golden pauldrons, shaped like burning wings, appeared from thin air and snapped heavily into place.

The edges of the pauldrons were sharp, their form wild and untamed, like the most powerful feathers of a phoenix taking flight.

The tip of every golden feather gleamed with a deadly light.

Almost simultaneously, a golden chest plate forged in the roiling flames, its core emblazoned with a brilliant phoenix totem. It pulsed like a living heart, each beat pulling the surrounding flames higher.

The waist armor, a fauld resembling a cascading waterfall of fire, was formed from several thick, flexible plates of metal, their sharp edges swaying with the flickering flames, emitting a low, metallic groan.

Finally—

The crimson flames surged upward, coalescing into a unique, aggressive-looking helmet that formed in an instant of fiery light.

As the visor took shape, Hawk, who had been watching with his eyes narrowed, slowly opened them.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!

The crimson flames erupted in a final, glorious burst, forming a phantom phoenix of fire that soared into the sky behind Hawk, letting out a cry that echoed throughout the cosmos.

The Phoenix Armor was donned.

...

"Hiss!"

"Holy shit!"

"Jesus Christ."

"That armor is way more badass than Tony Stark’s."

In the S.H.I.E.L.D command jet, the agents were completely stunned by the sight of Hawk, now clad in the Phoenix Armor, hovering in the sky.

And on the savanna, the Demon Hulk was completely enraged.

"ROOOOOOOARRRRR!"

The Demon Hulk no longer hesitated. The muscles in its massive arms tightened, and its fingers, like five great pillars, dug deep into the earth below.

Its muscles bulged, the veins beneath its skin popping like massive steel cables. With a furious roar, its arms unleashed a terrifying power, enough to rip the very savanna from the earth.

RUMBLE—

An entire section of the earth—the thick turf, the soil beneath, the tangled network of roots—was torn from the ground by the Demon Hulk’s inhuman strength.

With a surge of its arms, the Demon Hulk hurled the slab of earth—over ten meters in diameter and shockingly thick—at Hawk in the sky.

Hawk didn’t dodge. As the massive projectile came crashing toward him like a meteor, the Phoenix Fire around him roared to life.

As the Phoenix Fire surged, the massive slab of earth began to incinerate in mid-air, melting away at a visible rate.

The next second, Hawk appeared in front of the Hulk.

One punch.

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!!

As if struck by a freight train, the Demon Hulk’s massive head snapped to the side. It spat out several enormous teeth as its entire body was lifted from the ground and sent flying, crashing onto the savanna.

"Hulk..."

"HURT!"

The Hulk roared as it scrambled to its feet.

But Hawk’s second punch was already on its way.

"Lightning Sonic Fist!"

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!

A brilliant golden light erupted from Hawk’s fists, each punch a precision-guided missile that slammed into the Hulk’s body.

A massive crater, far deeper and wider than before, was formed in an instant, a pillar of dirt and rock shooting into the sky.

Press the attack. No mercy.

"Lightning—"

Hawk hovered in the impossibly deep crater, listening to the sound of the Demon Hulk’s heartbeat below. He opened his five fingers, his hand aimed down into the pit, and the fiery phantom of the phoenix once again appeared behind him.

The phoenix’s wings spread wide, and the continuously burning energy of his Cosmo gathered in Hawk’s hand.

"...Sonic Fist!!"

"BOOM, BOOM, BOOM!!!"

A dense storm of phantom fists, burning with the most brilliant fire, shining with the most brilliant golden light, shot from Hawk’s hand and plunged into the crater below.

At the bottom of the pit, the Demon Hulk was like an excavator, driven deeper and deeper into the earth by the relentless barrage.

A second later—

BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!

A perfect, circular shockwave erupted from the crater, tearing up the savanna for twenty meters in every direction, the earth and grass peeling back like a carpet.

In that instant, a crater of unprecedented size, as if from a meteor strike, was all that remained.

Hawk stood at the edge of the pit—now over thirty meters in diameter—the three golden tail feathers of his waist armor swaying gently.

He looked down into the depths, his face like stone.

At the bottom, there was only silence.

Shattered earth and roots, and now the rushing water of an underground river, crashed down upon a massive, motionless, humanoid silhouette at the center of the pit.

The Demon Hulk—

Dead.

Hawk let out a short, cold laugh. He looked up, his gaze fixed on an empty point in space.

Having donned the Phoenix Armor and received the full might of the constellation, he could now clearly sense a consciousness that had not yet departed.

If he wasn’t mistaken, it was Mephisto.

"Speak."

"Mephisto."

Hawk’s gaze fixed on the direction where the consciousness lingered, and he projected his own thoughts toward it. "What’s wrong? Don’t feel like talking anymore?"

Mephisto, whose true form was in his Hell dimension and had only projected his consciousness here through the Demon Hulk, snapped out of his shock. He heard Hawk’s taunt and let out a dry chuckle.

"No wonder you were so confident."

"But..."

"Your power does not belong to this universe. You are strong, yes. But that is all. You think you can use this borrowed power to make me hand over one of my souls? That’s not enough."

"It will be."

Hawk smiled. "When I get to Hell, you’ll see, Mephisto."

Mephisto said nothing more.

With a gentle breeze, his final wisp of consciousness vanished.

Hawk stood his ground, his eyes fixed on the spot where Mephisto had disappeared.

He knew, of course, that his power had not yet been ’certified’ by the Marvel Universe.

But Hawk already had a solution.

The Reality Stone.

Once he had the Reality Stone, the moment his Phoenix Constellation manifested in reality would be the moment he became a Gold Saint.

...

Bonus Chapter at 2,000PS

<><><><><><><><>

If you’re interested, you can read advanced Chapters:

https://p-atreon.com/dragonnx

~# Bonus Chapter every 300PS!!

~# If you like the story, please leave a review.

~# Add to Library!