Chapter 22:
"I didn't expect that my first time protecting Earth would have me working overtime late at night," Li Ji muttered, trudging through the dense forest of Shennongjia. "I used to spend all day observing celestial bodies. Was I born just to work hard?"
He looked up at the night sky. A crescent moon hung above, its pale light filtering through the thick canopy, just enough to reveal a large footprint on the forest floor.
"Bigfoot, huh?" he muttered, crouching to examine the imprint. It was nearly seventy centimeters long and three centimeters deep. He flicked a finger over the edge, dislodging a small cloud of dust.
"Judging by the dust density, this print is over a day old. It's likely the creature has already moved on." Rising to his feet, he pressed deeper into the woods, eyes scanning for more signs.
"The earlier tracks I found were at least a week old. These are more recent. That means I'm headed in the right direction." He let a soft white light hover over his palm to light the way.
His eyes caught a rough patch on a tree trunk. "Something's been rubbing against the bark. Wild boars and black bears usually do that—but the boars aren't this tall, and there are no territorial markings that would indicate bears." He studied the markings closely. "These must belong to the monster."
Further ahead, he spotted claw marks embedded in another tree. "Getting closer," he muttered, growing more alert.
Then something on the forest floor caught his eye.
"A deer head…" He walked over and flipped it over. "Fresh kill. It hasn't started decomposing yet. Dinner for the monster, maybe?"
He stood up and took a breath, senses sharp, mind focused. Despite the caution he forced himself to maintain, he felt something deeper beneath the surface—anticipation. The thrill of the upcoming fight coursed through him.
"No, I shouldn't be thinking like this. I'm not some battle junkie," he told himself. But even as he denied it, the eagerness stirred within. It was the Saiyan blood in him. He could suppress it, but he had no desire to deny it entirely. If the opponent was strong enough, then a satisfying battle was the only answer.
"Too bad I'm not that good at sensing qi. I can only pick up familiar signatures. Otherwise, I would've tracked the monster by now."
Then a thought struck him. "But even in *Dragon Ball*, Goku and Vegeta couldn't always sense weak people's energy. Maybe the monster is just too weak to detect… No, I shouldn't flatter myself. Compared to them, I'm the weak one. No need to lie to myself."
He checked his watch. "It's already 3 a.m. Gotta move fast." Dawn wasn't far off. Crowds from Jiangcheng would probably flood the area by morning to gawk at the so-called savage, but Li Ji wasn't sure if any nearby residents would stumble into danger sooner.
"Master said the monster's never hurt anyone. I was planning to let it go once the mission was over. But maybe that's no longer wise." He remained wary as he continued forward, considering his options.
"Either kill it and bury the body, or take it away. But I can't leave it here alive. It could cause a huge mess."
A foul odor suddenly stung his nose.
"What is that smell?" he whispered. It wasn't overpowering, but it was sharp and pungent.
"Smells like… urine. Disgusting." He wrinkled his nose. The monster had to be close now.
A sudden noise cracked through the silence. Li Ji turned quickly—but saw nothing.
"Trying to play games with me?" he said aloud. "You'll have to do better than that."
He finally sensed something—rage. Not immense, but distinct.
He turned toward the source and gasped.
A towering, green-skinned monster stood before him.
"Hulk?!" Li Ji blurted out.
"HULK!" the creature roared, voice thunderous.
Before Li Ji could react further, Hulk yanked two giant trees from the ground and swung them like clubs toward him.
"Damn! What's Hulk doing here? And how did he end up in China of all places?" Li Ji soared upward, barely avoiding the trees. His face was tense.
"This… this is trouble." He hovered in the air, watching Hulk rampage below. The creature flung stones and tree trunks at him in a blind fury, tearing up the ancient forest around them.
"His strength isn't overwhelming yet, but I can't afford to let my guard down. The angrier Hulk gets, the stronger he becomes. That's what makes him dangerous."
Li Ji's body flickered through the air, evading every attack with precision. The more he dodged, the more furious Hulk became—and the faster his swings.
"If it's Hulk, I'll have to disable him completely and take him away. Not sure if it's possible, but there's only one way to find out."
Energy surged from Li Ji's body as his expression turned cold. He dove down, charging straight at Hulk.
Why was Hulk in China? Why did rumors of the Shennongjia savages suddenly emerge? Was it all coincidence—or was someone orchestrating this?
He shoved the questions aside. The only thing that mattered right now was the fight. The Saiyan blood within him boiled with excitement. It felt like a war drum beating inside his chest.
Their fists collided.
Hulk's fist was massive—easily ten times the size of Li Ji's—but Li Ji's power was greater. His punch crushed Hulk's knuckles with a sickening *crack*, sending the green behemoth flying backwards, tearing through trees and earth as he crashed down hard.
"HULK!" the monster roared in fury, trying to halt his momentum but failing. Li Ji's eyes gleamed coldly as he darted forward, flying parallel to Hulk's trajectory.
Then he dropped, knee-first, and slammed into Hulk's abdomen.
*BOOM!*
Hulk let out a roar of pain and rage as his body caved inward from the strike.
"HULK!!"
*********
if you want to read more there's 15, 30, 50 chapters there of my written fanfictions and translated works in my Pat.Reon.
Here is the link:
https://patreon.com/LordFisherman?utm_medium=unknown&utm_source=join_link&utm_campaign=creatorshare_creator&utm_content=copyLink
And if you can't find it just type my name: patreon.com/LordFisherman