"Are you kidding me? How is that possible?" Nick Fury said, a bit speechless. This sounded outrageous, to say the least.
Although there are different kinds of gods, some claim to be omnipotent, omniscient, and invulnerable, while others clearly state in their myths that they can die, they are still gods!
Among the equipment developed by S.H.I.E.L.D., there are special tools for dealing with vampires, werewolves, and certain strange aliens, but there's nothing specifically designed for gods.
Even the equipment for dealing with aliens is still in development, but there's nothing aimed at gods, because, as long as you have a normal mind, you know that gods don't exist.
If they don't exist, there's no need to develop equipment specifically for them.
Nick Fury certainly knew about Hawkeye's arrows. They were special arrows, custom-made for Hawkeye under his orders. These arrows were far more powerful than ordinary ones, with some even stronger than artillery shells.
Even the regular arrows surpassed standard special bullets. But no matter how powerful, they couldn't possibly kill a god. Those arrows couldn't even kill mutated monsters like the Hulk, so how could they possibly kill a god?
Nick Fury couldn't understand why Luo Chen would claim something like this.
But since it was recorded in Luo Chen's diary, there must be some possibility.
Although it was only a branch of a potential timeline, who's to say it couldn't be part of the real timeline?
"What if—what if things turned out that way? What if Loki himself came and invaded Earth? What would happen then?" Tony Stark asked.
"That's when we fight back!" Nick Fury replied. "The Avengers are meant for situations like this."
When it comes to Earth's strength, a regular army would stand no chance at all. But if it's a battle between the extraordinary, there's a chance.
"Otherwise, do you really think I'm just assembling a superhero boy band?" Nick Fury glanced at Tony Stark, a hint of annoyance in his voice.
Tony Stark had always teased him about the Avengers, calling it a "super boy band." Now, Nick Fury finally had an opportunity to complain back.
Tony Stark didn't have anything to say in response, because he now realized just how essential it was to form the Avengers.
It wasn't about creating a "super boy band," nor was it about having a mascot like Captain America, the hero of World War II. What was really needed was an elite team.
"We may not be able to truly prevent the other side from destroying Earth and humanity, but we must have the ability to retaliate—to take true revenge!" Nick Fury said. "That's why I called it the Avengers!"
Tony Stark felt the weight of his words. While humanity as a whole might not be much in the grand scale of the universe, the power of the individual could still be quite formidable.
It was a strange reality, but one that he now understood more clearly.
This was something Nick Fury had learned from his partnership with Captain Marvel.
Though it seemed unbelievable, it was the truth.
At first, he didn't understand why such a powerful individual had emerged from such a weak species, but now he realized—humanity was the child of destiny.
Aliens, gods, monsters, werewolves, vampires—do they understand the true value of being the "Child of Destiny"?
Nick Fury also had a secret that even Tony Stark didn't know about—his ultimate trump card, Captain Marvel Carol. In terms of raw power, she could travel across the universe with incredible range and strength.
Just look at Superman, who only enforces justice in a few city blocks. Captain Marvel, on the other hand, upholds justice on a cosmic scale.
Now that was a card to play.
"I see. I'll join the Avengers!" Tony Stark said seriously, no longer joking about a "super boy band."
He was even planning to invest a lot of money into the Avengers. Not only did he want to join, but he was willing to put his resources, connections, and everything he had into the effort.
In just two or three months, Luo Chen had mentioned multiple crises in his diary. The "purple sweet potato spirit" snapping his fingers—though no one knew exactly what it was—was certainly a major event. Otherwise, Luo Chen wouldn't have been the first to mention it.
Then there were other crises tied to the universe, such as the Ancient One and Kang, who were not to be trifled with.
There were also ongoing issues that could stem from Hawkeye accidentally killing Thor.
"When the time comes, you give me the account details, and I'll put a billion dollars into it as startup capital!" Tony Stark began.
A billion dollars was no small amount for him. Back when he was selling arms, it was a little more difficult to generate such a sum. Arms were a business done by many, with no exclusivity.
But now that he had turned to new energy—something akin to nuclear fusion—it was a blue ocean, a market with massive potential. Just releasing a bit of news had countless people knocking on his door, begging him to take their money.
For the current Tony Stark, money was nothing but a string of numbers. It wasn't something you took with you when you die.
And it was worth investing in something as significant as protecting humanity.
Tony Stark suddenly felt a sense of sublimation.
In this moment, he had transcended the petty things of life.
Amidst the looming threats to humanity's future, he had undergone a metamorphosis in his thinking. He had begun moving down the path toward standing shoulder to shoulder with the gods—his own journey to godhood.
Nick Fury furrowed his brow when he heard this. He almost couldn't say anything. The boss was really serious about this.
Tony Stark was so quick to commit one billion dollars, as if it were nothing.
As for him, if he wanted to request a billion dollars, it would be like asking his grandmother for permission. S.H.I.E.L.D.'s annual operating budget was only in the tens of billions, and it had to be spread across branches worldwide, with agents to pay, bases to maintain, equipment to develop, and so on. The funds were tight.
Looking at Tony's approach, Nick Fury couldn't help but admit that he had underestimated the playboy. Though Stark's nature hadn't changed, like his father, he was also incredibly responsible when it mattered.
"Then I'll send a team of accountants to settle things. In any case, this team must be formalized as soon as possible, not just some small group!" Tony Stark said.
"No problem!" Nick Fury replied.
He didn't mind overseeing the financials, as long as there was no dishonesty involved.
The two of them continued reading the diary, but Tony Stark soon looked a bit confused and said, "This seems to be the second time Luo Chen called Loki 'the three princesses.' Could it be that our god of tricks is actually female?"
Nick Fury thought for a moment. Loki had all sorts of outrageous rumors surrounding him, including a tale about turning into a mare and having relations with others. Perhaps Loki was, in fact, a woman.
"I think Luo Chen's just being playful with nicknames. He likes to give people less-than-flattering titles..." Nick Fury said after a pause.
He thought about his own nickname: "Braised Egghead."
"Like 'Braised Egghead,' for example!" Tony Stark added, teasing.
"What about Black Widow? The undercover agent you sent to me? And Thor, the 'God of the Hammer'? His nickname is outrageous too!" Stark continued. "Maybe 'three princesses' is just a jab at Loki, like calling him a 'sissy'?"
"Forget it. We'll find out eventually," Nick Fury replied, shaking his head. "In any case, the priority now is to notify Barton so he doesn't shoot randomly!"
Let's prevent this potential timeline from even happening.
"Alright, I'm heading out. I've got to handle things in New Mexico!" Nick Fury said. "Asgardians may show up, and I need to file a report with the council. There's a lot to do."
"Wait a minute!" Tony Stark suddenly stopped him. "Look at this diary. Something's changed!"
In the diary, there was now a video, seemingly appearing out of nowhere.
"What is this?" Nick Fury asked, confused. No one had embedded a video in his diary before.
This was strange.
"This is how social platforms like Facebook work!" Tony Stark said, glancing at Nick Fury. "You're really out of touch. Young people do this all the time—Facebook, Twitter, sharing fragments of their lives."
Nick Fury's face darkened. He suspected—no, he was certain—that Stark was calling him old.
Though he wasn't too old to accept new technology, Nick Fury couldn't help but feel the sting.
"Anyway, let's check what this video is about."
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