An Understated Dominance (Maria Vittori) novel Chapter 2002

"Huh?"

Everyone stood in shock, their eyes fixed on the shattered bronze door. Mouths hang open, faces reflecting pure disbelief.

They never imagined that the supposedly indestructible bronze door, resistant even to explosives, could be obliterated by a single punch from Dustin.

There were no flashy moves, no grand display of power—just a simple, direct punch, and the bronze door shattered instantly. It was truly unbelievable.

"Wait… Seriously, how is this even possible?" Garrett's eyes widened in disbelief, his face revealing an indescribable shock.

Only moments ago, he witnessed dozens of people taking turns attacking the bronze door with weapons and explosives. Despite their relentless efforts, the door remained as it was. However, with just one punch, Dustin managed to shatter this seemingly indestructible door.

"Holy crap! Is he a monster?" Silva blurted out, her hand instinctively covered her mouth in shock. Her eyes were practically about to pop out.

Just moments ago, she was mocking Dustin, not giving him any credit. But reality had slapped her in the face.

She pondered whether this was the prowess of a grandmaster martial artist. It surpassed all her expectations by a mile.

"Whoa! Did he really just punch it into pieces? That's so badass, right?" Jackson exclaimed, his mouth wide open in amazement.

Earlier, when Dustin slashed the black serpent with his sword, it was terrifying, but Jackson thought it was the sharpness of the weapon that did the trick.

Jackson considered it logical for Dustin to be able to decapitate the black serpent with a single swing, given his divine sword and grandmaster martial artist strength.

Yet, to Jackson's surprise, Dustin opted not to use his sword this time. Instead, he punched through the seemingly indestructible bronze door with his bare fist. The sheer force of the blow was so powerful that it sent shivers down the spine of anyone witnessing it.

"Dustin, wow, you're incredible!" Sophia exclaimed, her excitement evident as she jumped up. After a brief moment of shock, she seamlessly embraced the role of being his close friend or ally.

"He took down the black serpent with one swift sword stroke, then smashed the bronze door with a mighty punch. Mr. Rhys, truly impressive!"

At that instant, everyone admired Dustin's strength again. While the defeat of the black serpent might be credited to the divine sword, what had just occurred was undoubtedly the display of sheer raw power.

Dustin smiled as he turned to Garrett. "It appears my fist works better than your methods."

To him, in the face of sheer strength, any mechanical traps or tricks were useless.

"Um…" Garrett's expression froze in embarrassment. He had expected Dustin would employ tricks to unlock the door, not a punch. It dawned on him that strength was the deciding factor in this situation.

"Captain Wilder, recall when you boldly claimed you'd slam your head into the bronze door if Dustin managed to open it? What do you think now?" Sophia teased.

Garrett's eyes twitched at the corners, and his face flushed a deep shade of red. He regretted his earlier bragging and wished he could just vanish into thin air. The embarrassment was palpable.

"Alright, let's cut the chatter. The door's open. Let's head in and check it out," Grace interjected, breaking the awkward silence.

Following her lead, everyone entered the room. The rest exchanged meaningful glances with Garrett and quietly followed suit.