Chapter 247: The Horn of Counterattack

Hulk stood in the center of Times Square, his green skin covered in a layer of golden fire.

He did not roar, nor did he speak; he simply stood there, watching the warriors who were getting back on their feet, something changing within those green eyes.

He looked down at his hands, those giant palms that had once existed only for destruction—then he looked up at the circling Chitauri warriors in the sky, emitting a low, rumbling sound like thunder.

Tony heard the sound, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly. “Banner, are you holding up?”

Hulk did not answer, but he had already moved.

He launched himself like a cannonball, crushing an overturned bus, leaping over a dozen meters high, and smashing a diving Chitauri glider with a single punch.

Debris scattered and sparks flew; Hulk landed, creating a deep crater, but this time he did not stop to catch his breath—he leaped directly into the air, pouncing on a second glider.

Steve stood up from the ruins, shield in hand, the surface of the Vibranium still glowing faintly.

He could feel the layer of fire covering his body infusing him with power, making his muscles stronger, his reflexes sharper, and his heartbeat steadier.

He glanced at the wormhole in the distance, then at the sky; then, he took a deep breath and raised his shield.

“Everyone, with me!”

No one hesitated. The Agents rushed out from behind cover, the Police raised their sidearms, and those civilians who had not fled picked up weapons from the ground—whether it was a gun, a stick, or a stone—and followed Captain America as they charged toward the Chitauri army.

They knew that now, they would not die—at least, not so easily.

That layer of golden fire would protect them, would make them stand up again, and would allow them to continue fighting.

One man, his face covered in dust and his clothes stained with blood—it was unclear if it was his or the Chitauri’s—laughed as he charged forward.

“I’m not afraid of death anymore! Come on! Bring it on!”

His voice was exceptionally loud amidst the gunfire and explosions, like a flag snapping in the wind.

More people around him joined in the shouting, the voices rising and falling, traveling from one end of the block to the other.

Natasha wove through the streets, her dual pistols already replaced by energy guns scavenged from the bodies of the Chitauri.

Her movements remained precise, but they were faster than before; that layer of golden fire gave her extra speed and strength.

She turned, fired, rolled, and repositioned; every movement was clean and efficient, carving trails of bullet holes through those gray figures.

Clint Barton stood on the roof of a high-rise building, his bowstring vibrating incessantly, each arrow precisely piercing the head of a Chitauri warrior.

He had already exhausted all his arrows, including those specialized explosive and electromagnetic arrows. Now, he was using Chitauri spears picked up from the ground as arrows, shooting them with astonishing force—each spear capable of piercing through two or three enemies.

Wanda hovered in mid-air, dark red Chaos Magic swirling wildly around her.

She felt the layer of golden fire covering her body, felt the warmth and power it brought.

Before, her Chaos Magic had always frightened her because it was too violent and too difficult to control.

But now, that layer of fire acted like a protective shield, making her magic more stable and precise.

She raised her hand, and the Chaos Magic transformed into countless dark red tentacles, ensnaring three Chitauri gliders and dragging them toward the ground, smashing them into an abandoned office building.

Pietro moved through the battlefield even faster, silvery-white lightning trailing behind him like long streaks of light. He wove between those gray figures, taking them out one by one with punches and kicks, each attack carrying more power than before.

He stopped to catch his breath and discovered that his breathing was not as labored as it had been before.

That layer of golden fire not only gave him strength but also helped him maintain his stamina.

“Wanda, this feels amazing!” he shouted.

Wanda glanced at him.

“Focus on the fight.”

Pietro grinned, then transformed back into a streak of silvery-white lightning, charging toward a group of Chitauri warriors surging from the front.

A massive Leviathan descended slowly from the clouds; it was the flagship-class biological weapon of the Chitauri army.

With a whale-like appearance, covered in heavy biological armor—each scale larger than a shield—and spewing blue energy beams from its mouth, it was like a floating fortress in the sky.

It turned slowly, diving toward the densest crowd on the ground, preparing to crush everything with its sheer size.

Tony looked up and saw the giant beast. Beneath his faceplate, his lips pressed into a thin line; he had dealt with this type of thing before with Hulk, and it had taken a great deal of effort to take one down.

But now, he felt the power surging within him, felt the layer of golden fire covering his body accelerating his reflexes and enhancing his armor.

“Hulk!” Tony shouted. “You take the left, I’ll take the right!”

Hulk let out a roar, leaped from the ground, and charged toward the head of the Leviathan.

He landed on the beast’s forehead and smashed down with both fists, cracking the thick biological armor.

The beast let out a painful hiss and twisted its body, trying to shake Hulk off, but Hulk’s claws held onto the cracks in the armor tightly, refusing to let go.

Tony rushed in from the right, thrusters firing at full power, his hands’ Repulsor Blasts condensing the strongest energy beams, striking the crack that Hulk had smashed open.

With the two layers of power combined, the armor finally could not withstand it; it split open a huge gap, revealing the fragile biological tissue beneath.

“Move!” Tony shouted.

Hulk let go, leaped backward, jumped off the beast, tumbled in the air, and landed steadily.

Tony adjusted the Repulsor Blast in his palm to maximum power and fiercely fired a thick beam of light, which precisely pierced into the gap.

The beam of light passed through the beast’s body and exited the other side, bringing with it scattered debris and black blood filling the sky.

The beast let out one final hiss, began to tilt, and fell, crashing into the street and kicking up a massive cloud of dust and an Impact.

Hulk walked out of the dust, stood beside the wreckage of the beast, and watched the Chitauri warriors who were still struggling.

He looked down at his fists; the skin on his fists was still covered in that layer of golden fire, like a thin suit of armor.

The battle in New York was slowly turning around.

More Leviathans descended from the clouds, but this time, the human resistance did not retreat.

They charged toward those behemoths, using their limited weapons, their fists, and their flesh and blood.

A young Agent was struck in the chest by a Chitauri energy beam and fell.

But a few seconds later, he stood up again; the charred wound on his chest was healing rapidly. He looked down, grinned, raised the gun in his hand, and continued firing.