Chapter 91 I Thought You Were Dead
"Try it on."
Hearing Consultant Lin Chen's words, Tony Stark's wide brown eyes instantly blazed with a fervent light.
"Try it? Of course I'll try it! I'm trying it right now!!"
Tony immediately let out a high-pitched shriek of excitement, practically pouncing on it with both hands and feet.
His movements were even a bit clumsy, like a child getting their beloved toy for the first time, impatient yet with a hint of pilgrimage-like reverence.
"Whoosh—"
As he entered the armor, the chest plate that had opened to the sides and the faceplate that slowly rose, aided by magic runes, silently closed with an incredibly smooth motion.
It perfectly conformed to his body, fitting seamlessly.
The feeling… it was like his second skin.
"Jarvis? Report status!"
Tony's voice came through the armor's built-in communicator, with an irrepressible tremor.
"Sir…"
Jarvis's voice had a several-second delay for the first time, seemingly struggling to connect to the armor's internal systems.
"I am somewhat unable to comprehend. The armor's energy core is not an Arc Reactor, but rather a… an energy structure I cannot analyze."
"The energy output of this set of armor, conservatively estimated… is more than ten thousand times that of the Symbiote."
"What?!"
Tony gasped.
Didn't this mean that even without the Arc Reactor, he no longer had to worry about the armor's energy consumption?
But if so, what about the new element he had painstakingly developed?
He smacked his lips a few times, "Who cares… Jarvis, let's go for a test flight!"
With that, he started to walk out.
However, before he finished speaking, Tony felt a gentle yet powerful force envelop his entire body.
He hadn't even had time to issue a flight command.
The next second.
"Buzz!"
With a low roar of air current.
The brand-new silver-gray armor, defying the law of universal gravitation, directly ascended vertically, instantly penetrating the laboratory's special ceiling, leaving a mirror-smooth circular cut.
Immediately after, on the Sky Carrier's deck, a silver-gray stream of light shot into the sky!
"Rip!!!"
It tore through the thick clouds with an unreasonable speed, leaving even the sonic boom far behind.
In the blink of an eye, it became an imperceptible small black dot in the azure sky, boldly flying towards the dark low-Earth orbit!
"Ah ah ah… Jarvis, stop, I'm not ready yet…"
From afar, Tony's screams still seemed to be heard.
Consultant Lin Chen leaped onto the deck, looking up at the rapidly disappearing black dot, a satisfied smile playing on his lips.
He nodded secretly.
Not bad.
With the enhancement of the Rune, this armor, forged from Destroyer Divine Gold, not only completely abandoned traditional physical propulsion systems, relying purely on magic for flight, but also came with an energy shield and an internal environmental circulation system.
It was no longer a mortal weapon.
But a true magical construct capable of interstellar travel!
…Bridge.
In front of the thick bulletproof porthole.
Nick Fury's iconic Egghead head reflected the lingering white trail in the sky outside the window.
He stood with one hand behind his back, his face as still as water, his single eye flickering with a complex light that no one could understand.
Natasha Romanoff, standing beside him, her sexy and alluring red lips slightly parted, looked at the large hole in the deck with some surprise.
After a long while, she swallowed with difficulty, and said softly in a tone mixed with relief and lingering fear:
"Director…"
"Fortunately, Consultant Lin Chen is on our side."
Fury, of course, knew what Natasha meant.
A monster who could casually conjure such epoch-making technological creations and whose own strength was unfathomable.
If he stood on the opposite side… Fury didn't even dare to imagine such a scenario.
But one thing was certain: it would be a nightmare that would make the entire S.H.I.E.L.D., and even the entire world, tremble.
Just then, a familiar engine roar approached from afar.
A formation of quinjets was slowly approaching the Sky Carrier's helipad.
Natasha's eyes lit up.
"Captain and the others are back."
Fury took a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the surging emotions in his heart, and reverted to his usual calm demeanor, unperturbed by even the collapse of a mountain.
"Let's go, to welcome our 'guests'."
He turned, the hem of his black trench coat cutting a stark arc in the air… On the deck.
Consultant Lin Chen looked at the landing quinjet and waved happily.
"Clang!"
The hatch lowered.
Captain America Steve Rogers's tall and sturdy figure was the first to appear.
He immediately saw Consultant Lin Chen standing not far away, and his azure eyes instantly filled with surprise.
"Lin!"
Steve strode forward, giving Consultant Lin Chen a solid, American-style bear hug without a word.
"Long time no see! You old rascal, you're finally back!"
"I have to apologize, buddy, I've been busy recently dealing with some… you know, my own old problems."
"But Peggy has said several times that I must invite you to dinner at our house to taste her cooking. But I heard from Tony that you went to another planet… Luckily, you came back safely!"
"…"
Consultant Lin Chen's face instantly darkened.
He pushed away the 1.88-meter tall super soldier with a look of disgust, mentally complaining wildly.
Damn it!
What he hated most was this kind of emotional expression between big men, hugging and embracing!
It gave him goosebumps!
But he still suppressed his discomfort, forcing a polite smile:
"Please convey my regards to Ms. Carter, and thank her for her kindness. When I have time, I will definitely pay a visit."
"No problem!" Steve happily patted him on the shoulder.
Then, Consultant Lin Chen's gaze went past him, falling behind him.
Several S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents were escorting Loki, who was wearing magnetic handcuffs, off the plane.
Even as a captive, Loki's lips still held that cynical, mischievous smile.
And walking at the very front was Phil Coulson.
In his hand, he was still carrying the scepter embedded with the Mind Stone.
"Consultant Lin Chen, long time no see."
Coulson saw Consultant Lin Chen and showed his signature gentle smile.
Consultant Lin Chen nodded to him, as a greeting.
Then, his gaze fell on Loki with interest, sizing him up and down, as if looking at some interesting exhibit.
"Oh, isn't this Your Highness, the adopted son of Asgard?"
"How was your solo free trip across the Universe this time?"
"Did you see the Purple Sweet Potato Spirit?"
Loki, being escorted, had originally shown a flash of annoyance and wariness in his emerald eyes when he saw Consultant Lin Chen.
After all, this Midgardian had left too deep an impression on him.
But upon hearing the last sentence, he was completely stunned.
"What… Purple Sweet Potato Spirit?"
"Heh heh."
Consultant Lin Chen smiled like a fox who had stolen a fish.
He was just about to utter the name that would make the entire Universe tremble when a tall figure rushed over with a gust of wind, blocking the space between the two of them.
It was Thor, who had heard the commotion and hurried over from the restaurant.
"Loki!"
Thor looked at his captured brother, and his blue eyes, which were always full of sunshine and confidence, instantly turned red.
His voice was filled with complex emotions: worry, anger, but more than that, the joy of having him back after thinking he was lost.
"I… I thought you were dead!"
"On the Bifrost… I saw you fall into the abyss… But that's not important, I just knew you had to be alive!"
With that, he spread his arms, wanting to give Loki a solid hug.
However, facing his brother's genuine concern, Loki merely raised an eyelid, a curve of extreme mockery on his lips.
He sneered, taking a step back to avoid Thor's embrace, then said dismissively in a voice only the two brothers could hear:
"Put away your hypocritical act, brother."
"Didn't you wish I would disappear from your world a long time ago?"
Chapter 92 The Mind Scepter is broken?
"You... what did you say?"
Loki's contemptuous words, like a poisonous thorn, deeply pierced Thor's heart.
The God of Thunder of Asgard suddenly became as helpless as a child who had made a mistake.
His tall and burly body trembled slightly, and his tear-filled eyes instantly dimmed, filled with unspeakable sorrow and pain.
"Loki... I didn't... why do you always think I'm so bad?"
His voice was dry and hoarse, full of powerlessness, "I really never thought that way! You are my brother!"
"Brother?"
Loki seemed to have heard the funniest joke in the world. He laughed nervously, his laughter full of self-mockery and venom.
"Stop using that word to disgust me, Son of Odin!"
He suddenly raised his head, and a crazy flame burned in his emerald eyes.
"But don't worry, I don't care about that broken chair in Asgard anymore!"
"You, Odin, and everyone in Asgard, listen carefully!"
"I will return! I will walk back into the Golden Palace with power and glory you cannot imagine!"
"By then, I will make all of you kneel at my feet and repent for your past arrogance and prejudice!"
Loki shrieked hysterically.
Then... "Clap! Clap! Clap!"
A crisp round of applause abruptly interrupted his emotional "declaration of revenge."
Lin Chen clapped his hands and walked over with leisurely steps, a playful smile on his face, as if enjoying a good show.
"Wonderful! Absolutely wonderful!"
He gave Loki a thumbs up and exclaimed, "What a great 'Prince's Revenge Story'! Inspiring! Passionate! It almost got me fired up!"
"Seriously, when does the script start filming? I'll go give you a like then!"
These words instantly shattered the tragic and impassioned atmosphere on the scene.
The fierceness on Loki's face hadn't faded yet when it stiffened there.
He sharply turned his head, like an enraged viper, glaring fiercely at Lin Chen.
"Midgardian!"
He squeezed out these three words through gritted teeth, his voice cold and piercing, "You won't be laughing for long!"
"Oh?"
Lin Chen raised an eyebrow, completely disregarding him, "What? Now that Thanos has your back, you've grown bolder? You dare to speak to me like that?"
"I..."
Loki's harsh words instantly caught in his throat, and he stood frozen on the spot as if struck by lightning!
His pupils, at this moment, suddenly contracted to the extreme, and a monstrous wave rose in his emerald eyes, filled with incredible shock and fear.
He... how could he know?!
The name Thanos was his biggest secret on this trip, his greatest trump card for daring to return to the Nine Realmsand speak harshly to Thor!
He thought his encounter in the cosmic abyss and his deal with the Dark Lord were top-secret, known to no one.
But this Midgardian... this damned, always-haunting Midgardian, actually revealed the secret with a single sentence!
How could this be?!
Every time!
It was like this every time!
This guy was like a fly that could never be swatted away, always appearing at his most crucial moments, and with an omniscient and omnipotent demeanor, messing up all his plans and secrets!
Loki's mental state, at this moment, completely collapsed!
However, before he could recover from this shocking revelation, something even more startling happened.
The Midgardian, completely ignoring his ghostly expression, turned around leisurely and extended a hand to the Agent holding the Mind Scepter.
Then, with an undeniable tone, he commanded, "Agent Coulson, give it to me."
Coulson was stunned, a look of difficulty on his face.
"Mr. Lin, S.H.I.E.L.D.'s regulations..."
Just as he hesitated, a steady and powerful voice came from not far away.
"There's no need to trouble Consultant Lin Chen with this; S.H.I.E.L.D. will keep it safe."
Director Fury, who had arrived late, finally hurried over with Natasha.
Upon hearing this, Lin Chen merely glanced at him indifferently.
That look was like seeing an ignorant child.
"Keep it safe?"
Lin Chen's mouth curved into a mocking arc, "Do you even know what this is, to so brazenly say you'll keep it safe?"
"Or..."
He paused, then his tone suddenly shifted, becoming as sharp as a knife, "Director Nick Fury, do you not trust me, your special consultant?"
"Uh..."
Fury felt as if an invisible hand had gripped his throat, instantly rendering him speechless.
Of course, he didn't know what it was.
Nor did he dare to continue Lin Chen's words.
Because in that instant, he clearly saw a bright, star-like yellow light flash in the other's eyes.
Although the light was fleeting, it made all the hairs on his body stand on end.
A shiver from the depths of his soul made him feel as if he had fallen into an ice cellar.
"Gulp..."
Fury swallowed hard, forcibly suppressing the fear in his heart, and bravely found an excuse:
"We... we lost a top Agent, and his betrayal may be related to this staff. We need it to rescue our people."
"Oh, it's just Barton."
Lin Chen rolled his eyes dismissively, as if he had heard something insignificant.
"Don't worry, he won't die. He'll be back alive and kicking in a couple of days."
After speaking, he didn't even bother to look at Fury again, extending his hand to Coulson once more, his tone leaving no room for doubt.
"Give it to me."
This time, Coulson didn't hesitate.
He glanced at his Director, whose face was ashen but dared not say another word, and could only reluctantly hand the Mind Scepter, glowing with a faint blue light, into Lin Chen's hands.
At the other end of the deck, Loki, being escorted by Agents, saw this scene, and the horror in his eyes was instantly replaced by a sinister, ecstatic glee.
His eyes narrowed slightly, and the corners of his mouth uncontrollably curled upwards.
What an ignorant fool!
Embedded in that staff was the Mind Stone!
One of the most fundamental forces in the Universe!
Enough to distort reality and manipulate human hearts!
A mere mortal dares to touch it with bare hands?
Just wait, soon you will taste what it's like to be devoured by desire and ambition!
He was already eager to see the scene where this Midgardian, after being influenced by the Mind Scepter, would fight amongst himself and the others on the deck.
However, reality was not like that.
Loki's anticipated scene of Lin Chen being corrupted by the Mind Scepter and losing control of his mind did not appear at all.
Instead, there was a crisp sound that made his soul tremble.
"Crack!!!"
A sharp crack suddenly exploded on the silent deck!
The next second, the sinister smile on Loki's face instantly froze. He widened his eyes, his eyeballs almost bursting from their sockets.
What did he see?!
That Midgardian... that damned bastard, actually like breaking sugarcane, held the "moon blade" at the top of the staff with one hand, grasped the shaft with the other, and with a push of his knee... just like that... just like that, he broke the staff?!
That Mind Stone, exuding infinite magic, was pried out of the broken staff's tip with a "crack," like picking out a candy bean!
Loki's brain, at this moment, completely crashed, falling into a blank state.
After more than ten seconds, he suddenly snapped back to reality, letting out a shrill, distorted scream:
"You damned fool!"
"What are you doing?!"
Chapter 93 Gathering Infinity Stones
Loki's scream was as shrill as a cat with its tail stepped on, with a tremor of disbelief.
However, his only response was Lin Chen's increasingly intense, idiotic gaze.
"Why are you shouting? Trying to show off how loud your voice is?"
Lin Chen's voice wasn't loud, but it clearly entered everyone's ears, carrying a lazy, irritating tone.
He lowered his head, examining with interest the yellow gem he had pried from the Mind Stone.
The gem lay quietly in his palm, like an exceptionally tempting yellow hard candy.
Inside, a scorching yellow light, like the sun, flowed, emitting a vast energy capable of making even the soul tremble.
Then, under Loki's almost fiery gaze, Lin Chen made a move that made everyone's heart stop.
He flicked his finger.
The Mind Stone, containing the fundamental laws of the Universe, was lightly tossed into the air by him, like flipping a coin.
The gem drew a graceful yellow arc in the air, then accurately fell back into his palm.
As if that wasn't exciting enough, he skillfully rolled the gem between his fingers.
His movements were fluid, like a street performer toying with a worthless glass marble.
"You... how dare you?!"
Loki was completely crazy, he roared in disbelief, the muscles on his face twitching violently from extreme anger.
"Do you know who you'll provoke by doing this?"
He felt his perception, his Worldview, being completely trampled underfoot by this Midgardian, then brutally ground into dust.
That was an Infinity Stone!
Even a cosmic overlord like Thanos spoke of it with reverence!
But this guy... this guy actually played with it like a toy?!
And why was this guy completely unaffected?
He knew that even with the Mind Stone sealed within the Mind Stone, he had to be careful not to let it influence his mind when holding the Mind Stone.
But this Midgardian in front of him showed no reaction.
"Provoke who? The purple potato monster?"
Lin Chen heard Loki's roar, finally deigned to look up, and rolled his eyes at him.
"Don't be so dramatic, acting like you've never seen the world."
As he spoke, he made a "shush" gesture with his hand, and Loki's mouth was sealed by an invisible force, only able to emit muffled "woo woo" sounds.
Immediately after, amidst everyone's stunned gazes, he made an even more perplexing move.
He lightly lifted his upper garment.
Revealing a seemingly ordinary, even somewhat old, leather lope belt.
This lope belt was the very same one that had been shattered by the destructive energy on the Bifrost, leaving only twelve dim stones!
Odin had picked up its remains while Lin Chen was unconscious, and later personally returned it to him.
However, its appearance had now changed drastically.
The original holes where the twelve talismans were inlaid now only had six, evenly distributed in the center of the lope belt.
The remnants of those talismans seemed to have completely merged with the lope belt itself, giving the entire lope belt an ancient and profound dark gray color, no longer resembling its original appearance.
This was the result of Lin Chen's modification using a basic shaping and restructuring magic, done when he had nothing to do after learning magic from Frigga.
Simple, crude, but very effective.
"Watch closely, don't blink."
Lin Chen grinned at the now stunned Loki.
Then, he slowly pressed the Mind Stone, which was bouncing on his fingertip, into the innermost hole of the lope belt.
The moment the gem touched the lope belt!
"Click--"
The originally unremarkable lope belt suddenly wriggled, like an ancient beast awakening from slumber.
The dark gray leather surface rippled like a living thing, and the edge of the hole instantly softened, like a small mouth opening, docilely "swallowing" the Mind Stone.
Then it quickly tightened, firmly fixing it in the center.
"Mmm..."
Lin Chen's body trembled violently, and an uncontrollable grunt of pleasure escaped his throat.
A majestic and vast torrent of energy, enough to instantly shatter the mind and annihilate the flesh of any mortal, surged wildly into his limbs and bones through the lope belt!
But this power not only didn't tear him apart, but instead, like long-awaited rain after a drought, made every cell in his body cheer with joy.
The power of Yin-Yang balance from the Tiger Talisman had long been integrated into his soul and blood.
What was a deadly poison to others, the Infinity Stones, was merely a great tonic to him!
And this modified lope belt did not disappoint him either, perfectly enduring this primordial power and becoming the best carrier.
That's right, this was his true purpose in modifying the lope belt!
From the day the power of the twelve talismanscompletely merged with him, a crazy idea took root and sprouted in his heart.
He wanted to collect all six Infinity Stones and use them all for himself!
Crazy... This guy is a crazy man... Loki was completely lost, his eyes unfocused as he looked at the Mind Stone shining brightly at Lin Chen's waist, his heart filled with desolation.
At this moment, he finally realized that he had messed up again.
And it was the most tragic and complete loss!
"Lin Chen!"
Thor also noticed something was wrong, he took a step forward, a hint of solemnity on his face.
"The power of the Infinity Stones is far beyond your imagination! Don't let its power bewitch your mind!"
Lin Chen heard this, slowly put down his upper garment, covering the lope belt that now had a gem embedded in it.
He turned his head and raised an eyebrow at Thor.
"What? Looking down on me?"
"I..."
Thor was instantly speechless, looking at Lin Chen's calm demeanor, he suddenly felt that his words just now were superfluous.
Yes, this guy was already a monster that couldn't be judged by common sense.
Why was he worrying about it?
Just as he was speechless, he saw Lin Chen bypass him and walk directly towards Loki, who was being escorted by two Agents and was already like a walking dead man.
"Hey! What do you want to do?"
Thor's heart tightened, and he instinctively asked.
Lin Chen turned back, smiled brightly at him, revealing two rows of sparkling white teeth in the sun, his smile dazzling.
Then, under the bewildered gazes of Thor and everyone else, he raised a finger.
Gently, he touched Loki's chest.
In an instant, the yellow Mind Stone on the lope belt under his clothes suddenly lit up.
Immediately after, Loki's originally unfocused, scattered emerald green eyes, his pupils suddenly constricted, instantly swallowed by bottomless pitch black.
But that extreme darkness lasted less than half a second.
Soon, the black receded, and the emerald green eyes regained their luster.
Clear, calm, and even with a hint of... obedience.
He blinked, glanced at Lin Chen who was close by, then lowered his head to look at the magnetic handcuffs on his wrists.
Finally, he spoke in a very natural tone:
"My hands are going numb."
"Can you untie me?"
Chapter 94 He is increasingly ignoring us
Loki's calm, almost eerie request, like a stone dropped into a tranquil lake, stirred up a thousand waves on the Sky Carrier's bridge.
The two S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents escorting him exchanged glances, at a loss.
Steve Rogers subconsciously tensed his muscles, clenched his fists, his eyes filled with wariness and confusion.
After a brief moment of stunned silence, Thor's expression changed dramatically.
He abruptly turned his head, his deep blue eyes fixed on Lin Chen, his voice filled with suppressed shock and anger:
"What did you do to him?! Did you control him?!"
Before he finished speaking, his large, fan-like hand shot out like lightning, grabbing Lin Chen's arm with enough force to crush steel.
"Stop! Stop it!"
Thor's reaction was undeniably swift, and his emotions undeniably intense.
He would rather see a cunning, lying brother than a controlled, unconscious puppet!
However, Lin Chen, whose arm was grabbed, didn't even twitch an eyebrow.
He merely turned his head, glancing at Thor with a look that said, "Aren't you overreacting?" His tone remained casual:
"Why are you shouting? It's as if your father died."
"My father..."
Thor subconsciously wanted to retort, but the words caught in his throat, and his face flushed crimson.
"Don't worry."
Lin Chen shook his arm, easily breaking free from Thor's steel-like grip. "I'm not that bored. I just think your brother isn't very bright, so I helped him calm down physically."
He paused, a meaningful smile playing on his lips.
"And, by the way, I'm borrowing him to lead the way to find that little blue cube he hid."
Lin Chen's objective was clear: the Tesseract that Loki had stolen.
As for its location...
At this point in time, besides Hawkeye Barton and DoctorErik Selvig, who were controlled by the Mind Scepter, only Loki, the instigator, knew its whereabouts.
There were only two ways to find it.
First, according to the original plot, wait for Loki to be imprisoned, then rely on his silver tongue to instigate infighting within S.H.I.E.L.D., then escape in the chaos, and he would happily go find the Tesseract himself.
But the problem was, with himself here, could Loki still escape?
Even if he could, Lin Chen was too lazy to waste U.S. time playing "office politics" and "prison break" with them.
It was too much trouble.
So, only the second option remained.
Let Loki, this human GPS, lead the way personally.
He believed that the Chitauri on the other side of the Universe must have thought the same thing.
Those alien ugly monsters were probably already impatient, eager to open the door and send in their cannon fodder.
Hearing that Lin Chen only wanted to find the Tesseract, Thor's tense nerves immediately relaxed by more than half, and he let out a long sigh of relief.
As long as Loki was fine, it was all good.
Just then, Nick Fury, who had been ignored and whose face had been changing colors like a dye shop, finally found an opportunity to speak.
He suppressed the urge to pull out his gun and shoot Lin Chen, fixing his single eye on Lin Chen and saying in a deep voice:
"Can Natasha go with you? I want to ensure Barton's safety!"
Natasha Romanoff, standing nearby, immediately became eager.
However, Lin Chen merely glanced at her, shaking his head unceremoniously.
"No need, I don't want to bring a burden."
"You!"
Natasha's beautiful eyebrows instantly shot up, and a sharp aura emanated from her.
"You don't need to worry either."
Lin Chen completely ignored the Black Widow's anger, turning to Fury with a smirk. "I am, after all, a special consultant for S.H.I.E.L.D. I still have that much professional integrity."
"Believe me, Barton will be crying and running back on his own before long."
With that, he gave Fury no further chance to speak.
He directly reached out and grabbed the magnetic handcuffs on Loki's wrist, giving a gentle squeeze.
With a "click," the specially made handcuffs shattered like fragile biscuits.
Immediately after, Lin Chen grabbed Loki's shoulder, who hadn't yet reacted, and applied a slight force with his foot.
With a "whoosh," the two instantly transformed into a golden streak of light, soaring into the sky, disappearing into the clouds in the blink of an eye!
"Where are you going?!"
Thor froze for a second, then suddenly reacted.
Without another word, he swung Mjolnir and immediately chased after them, afraid of being left behind.
With the departure of the three.
After a brief moment of silence on the deck... "F*ck!!!"
A sky-shattering roar of anger finally erupted from Nick Fury's throat.
He was trembling with rage, his dark face miraculously turning a liver-purple color, making Natasha's eyelids twitch.
She quickly stepped forward, whispering reassuringly, "Director, calm down, at least he's going to solve the problem..."
"Calm down, my ass! He's increasingly disrespecting us!"
Nick Fury roared, as if only this could suppress the panic in his heart.
Just then, Doctor Bruce Banner, who arrived late, walked over with a cup of coffee, looking bewildered.
"Uh... everyone, what happened? I think I heard a lot of commotion."
"Where's Lin? Where did he go?"
Steve Rogers, standing next to him, frantically winked at him, signaling him not to add fuel to the Fire.
But Dr. Banner apparently didn't get the signal, still asking innocently:
"Why are both Lin and Thor gone? I didn't come out much later..."
"Huh? Where's Tony? Did he also slip away?"
In an instant, Dr. Banner felt like he had been abandoned by the entire world... On the other side.
Under Loki's now incredibly submissive guidance, Lin Chentook him across half the Earth in just over a minute, arriving above a deserted underground facility in Ohio.
"Is this it?"
"Yes, I had that human scientist build a little toy."
Upon receiving a positive reply, Lin Chen, without another word, directly took Loki and descended vertically like a meteor.
With a "boom," they smashed through several layers of concrete, landing precisely inside the underground base's internal passage.
As soon as the two stood firm, urgent footsteps came from the front of the passage.
Barton was leading a team of well-equipped mercenaries, rushing towards the helipad that led to the surface.
Apparently, they were preparing to attack the Sky Carrierand create chaos, as Loki had previously instructed.
"My Lord Loki?"
Seeing Loki, who should have been on the Sky Carrier, suddenly appear here, Barton's face was filled with surprise.
He was about to ask if the plan had changed.
However, the next second.
"Whoosh!"
Two slender but intensely hot yellow lasers suddenly grazed his shoulders, instantly piercing the heads of the mercenaries behind him!
These people didn't even have time to let out a scream before they fell backward in unison, turning into burning corpses.
Barton was terrified, taking a sharp step back, and saw the light in the mysterious Yellow man's eyes slowly fade.
Immediately after, he felt as if his brain had been violently struck by an invisible giant hammer!
"Ugh!"
Barton trembled violently, clutching his head, and painfully knelt on the ground.
"I... how did I get here?"
"What happened?"
It was Lin Chen who casually lifted Barton's Mind control.
He patted Loki's shoulder, signaling him to continue leading the way.
The two walked directly past Barton, who was kneeling and wailing, entering the deepest part of this underground facility.
After a few steps, a huge, sci-fi-filled underground space appeared before Lin Chen's eyes.
Hundreds of researchers in White coats and heavily armed mercenaries bustled about, like an orderly ant colony.
And in the center of the entire space, a huge and precise instrument was slowly operating, with countless blue energy pathways flowing within it.
In the very center of the instrument, the cube emitting a faint blue light quietly floated.
It was the Tesseract that Loki had stolen!
Chapter 95 Space Gem
The Tesseract before them, like a quietblue heart, pulsated slowly within the precise instruments, emitting a heart-stopping energy.
The entire underground space was enveloped in its dreamlike halo, with the researchers' faces a mix of fanaticism and awe, as if on a pilgrimage to a miracle.
"My Lord Loki!"
Seeing the two, Doctor Erik Selvig, his eyes flashing with fervent light, quickly stepped forward.
He looked at Loki, his face covered in a fawning smile, like a jester meeting a king in ancient times.
"Why are you back? Has the plan changed?"
Loki's expression was unusually calm at this moment. He glanced at the instrument in the center and asked indifferently, "How are the preparations coming along?"
"Everything is going smoothly! It's assembled exactly as you instructed!"
Doctor Erik's voice trembled with excitement. He pointed at the Tesseract, as if showing off his masterpiece.
"Now, all that's left is the final energy calibration, and we'll be able to open a stable and sufficiently wide 'door'!"
"Oh, My God, I have never seen such... such magnificent energy! It's simply a miracle of the Universe!"
Loki hummed indifferently, then ignored the spittle-flying Erik, turning to Lin Chen beside him and saying,
"It seems, if you want to use it, you'll have to wait a while."
His implication was clear: this thing wasn't calibrated yet; it was a semi-finished product.
However, Lin Chen scoffed as if he had heard the greatest joke in the world.
"Wait? Why wait?"
He strode directly towards the massive instrument, his tone as casual as if he were strolling in his own backyard.
"No need for such trouble."
With that, in the horrified gazes of Doctor Erik and the scientists, he completely ignored the shimmering energy barrier around the instrument and reached out his hand.
Then, he grabbed the quietblue glowing cube in one swift motion.
As simple as taking a can of cola from a shelf.
"No! Don't!"
Doctor Erik shrieked, "The energy isn't stable yet! Direct contact will..."
Before he could finish his sentence, he witnessed a scene he would never forget.
Lin Chen held the Tesseract, his five fingers slowly closing, faint veins protruding on the back of his hand.
The next second... "Crack... crunch!"
A crisp cracking sound emanated from Lin Chen's hand.
The Tesseract, containing infinite Space power, instantly became covered in spiderweb-like cracks in his palm, like a fragile walnut.
"Bang!"
Then, with a muffled thud, the quietblue cube completely exploded, transforming into a sky full of shimmering blue powder.
Lin Chen opened his mouth and gently blew.
"Whoosh—"
The powder scattered like dandelion seeds, leaving only a brilliant gem in his palm, as deep blue as the sea, with billions of stars seemingly flowing within it.
The Space Stone!
Immediately after, under the dumbfounded gaze of everyone, Lin Chen picked up the Space Stone with his left hand, and casually lifted his shirt with his right, revealing an ancient belt already embedded with a yellow gem.
Without the slightest hesitation, he pressed the blue Space Stone with a "snap" into the empty slot next to the Mind Stone.
A perfect fit.
In an instant, it was as if two sleeping cosmic beasts were awakened simultaneously!
Yellow and blue light erupted, and the two Infinity Stonesseemed to produce some terrifying resonance, trembling violently.
An indescribable cosmic torrent, a blend of Mind and Space power, surged madly into Lin Chen's body along the skin where the gems met the belt!
That power was violent and vast, as if billions of stars were exploding simultaneously in his veins!
"Ugh!"
Lin Chen groaned, feeling as if his body was about to be forcibly burst, torn into the most basic particles of the Universe by this power, every cell wailing in pain.
But instead of fear, he spread his arms, closed his eyes, and showed an expression of almost frenzied enjoyment on his face.
The next second, he had a thought.
The power of Yin and Yang balance instantly intervened, forcibly blending and sorting the two violent energies, while the immortal divine power acted like the strongest dam, protecting his body.
No matter how the cosmic torrent crashed, he remained unmoving!
Almost instantly, the two restless Infinity Stones quieted down, like two tamed pets.
The energy that had been raging in his body also obediently retreated into the belt, slowly merging with the magic of the talismans within him.
"Hoo..."
Lin Chen slowly opened his eyes, a long, hot white breath exhaled from his mouth, condensing in the air without dissipating.
His gaze was no longer the previous laziness, but filled with undisguised arrogance and dominance!
"Heh..."
He laughed softly, his laughter growing louder and louder, finally turning into a wild laugh that echoed throughout the entire underground base.
"Hahahahahahaha!"
Too strong!
This feeling was simply too strong!
The power of the talismans, coupled with the blessing of the two Infinity Stones, made him feel that he could now shatter a mountain with just his physical body and a single punch.
He just didn't know... what level of strength he was at in the entire Universe?
Could he contend with top-tier beings like Odin and the Celestials?
"It seems I'll have to find a good opponent to spar with when I have time."
Lin Chen murmured to himself, and with a thought.
On his belt, the newly embedded Space Stone shimmered faintly.
"Swish!"
A circular Space door, glowing with a blue halo, appeared out of thin air before him.
He beckoned to Loki, who was completely stunned beside him, and stepped through first.
Loki immediately awoke as if from a dream, instinctively following close behind.
Just as the Space door closed.
"Boom!!!"
A tremendous thud, as if something heavy had landed, suddenly came from the ground outside the base.
A burly figure, wielding a warhammer, rushed in like a whirlwind, his voice preceding him:
"Lin! Loki! Where are you?!"
It was Thor, the Thunder God, in hot pursuit.
However, when he rushed into the vast underground space, what he saw was a group of scientists with blank expressions, as if they had seen a ghost.
Where were Lin Chen and Loki?
Thor stood rooted to the spot, hammer in hand, utterly bewildered and confused.
"That's not right..."
He muttered to himself, "I saw them clearly land here, I shouldn't have lost them... Where are they?"
...Meanwhile.
S.H.I.E.L.D., on the deck of the Sky Carrier.
"F*ck!!!"
Nick Fury's roar still echoed, his black face, due to extreme anger, had turned a rare liver-pigment color.
"Director, calm down..."
Natasha was still trying to comfort him.
Steve Rogers and Bruce Banner stood by, helpless, not knowing what to say.
Just then, Steve's keen senses suddenly detected something. He spun around, looking at the empty deck behind him.
"Swish!"
A blue Space door appeared out of thin air, and Lin Chen, accompanied by a calm-faced Loki, strolled out of it.
As if they had never left, merely gone to the restroom.
And up until now, from when Lin Chen left with Loki in a golden light until their reappearance, the total time was less than five minutes.
Nick Fury and the others on the deck hadn't even had time to move an inch.
Steve's eyes nearly popped out, and he blurted out instinctively:
"You... didn't you just leave?!"
His voice made Nick Fury and Natasha, who had their backs to him, stiffen, then abruptly turn around.
When Fury saw Lin Chen and Loki, who had returned, his gaze uncontrollably fell to Lin Chen's waist, which was covered by his clothes.
Then, the pupil of his single eye sharply contracted!
Chapter 96 Respecting the Elderly and Loving the Young is Our Traditional Virtue
Nick Fury's gaze fell directly on Lin Chen's waist, concealed by his perpetually white T-shirt.
There were two points of light there, which, even through the fabric, were still dazzlingly bright.
One point was a familiar dull yellow, the light from the gem on the Mind Scepter.
And the other... was a deep, profound blue.
Blue?
Fury's heart gave a sudden lurch.
Recalling Lin Chen's recent departure, he instantly thought, could this be... no!
Absolutely impossible!
He practically roared in his heart, instantly overturning his own guess.
After all, that was the Tesseract, an energy cube with sides over ten centimeters long.
How could it become such a tiny point of light?
Unless... unless that thing also had a compression function.
Fury's mind was in a state of chaos; reason told him it was impossible, but his intuition was screaming warnings at him.
Just as the atmosphere on the deck became extremely strange...
"Boom!!!"
A deafening roar suddenly came from high above, like a bolt from the blue.
Immediately after, a silvery-gray metallic streaking light descended from the sky at an extremely fast speed, crashing heavily onto the deck.
"Clang!"
The sturdy special alloy deck was slightly dented, emitting a jarring, ear-splitting sound.
The silvery-gray figure slowly straightened up, and the metal faceplate "clacked" open upwards, revealing Tony Stark's face, filled with excitement.
"Ooh-hoo! Lin! You're an absolute genius!"
Tony's voice was as high as if he'd just taken drugs; he spread his arms, stroking the armor on his body with a look of intoxication.
"Perfect! This is simply a work of art!"
"Do you know? Just now, I wore it and went to the Moon!!"
He gestured excitedly, "What vacuum environment! What cosmic radiation! Useless! I didn't even feel a trace of cold or suffocation!"
"This thing is like a part of my body, my second skin!"
"I don't even need Jarvis, just a thought! Just one thought is enough to make it perform the most complex operations!"
"My god, this is better than dating a hundred top models!"
Everyone: "..."
Watching Tony, who was gesticulating wildly and spitting, everyone was speechless.
His analogies were always so bizarre.
However, before Tony's excitement faded, the next second, he frowned again, patting the armor on his chest with a look of distaste.
"But speaking of which, this color is too ugly."
"Silver-gray? What the hell? It looks like an unpainted tin can, completely unsuited to my temperament."
"Jarvis, repaint it for me later. I still prefer the old color scheme."
Lin Chen's mouth twitched; he didn't want to bother with him at all.
This guy's aesthetic sense was completely beyond saving.
After complaining about the color, Tony's gaze finally moved away from the armor and landed on Loki beside Lin Chen, and he was immediately stunned.
"Hey, what's with this guy?"
Tony pointed at Loki in confusion, "Where's his bracelet? Why was it removed? Is S.H.I.E.L.D. really that careless?"
Hearing Tony's words, Loki slowly turned around to face him, a strange, gentle smile on his face.
Then, under Tony's disbelieving gaze, this God of Mischief, the Second Prince of Asgard, actually stepped back half a pace, placed his right hand on his chest, and elegantly performed a standard Asgardian chest-bowing salute towards him.
The movements were standard, the demeanor humble, and the eyes... friendly to the point of being unsettling.
Tony's eyes instantly widened, and his jaw almost dropped to the ground.
"What the f*ck?!"
He shrieked in surprise, "He... he he he... he just saluted me?"
"Lin, has this guy's brain been kicked by a donkey? Or did you beat him silly? How did he suddenly become so obedient?"
"Just a little psychological counseling, that's all."
Lin Chen waved his hand nonchalantly, not interested in explaining to him, but instead turned his gaze to Fury and Steve.
"Alright, small talk time is over."
His tone became a bit more serious, "I suggest you all step aside. Next, I'm going to do something big, and the scene might be a bit grand. I'm afraid of accidentally harming you... ordinary people."
"Do something big?"
Tony's spirits immediately lifted at these words; his shock was instantly replaced by excitement.
He slammed his faceplate shut with a "bang," and the gilded patterns on his body glowed with golden light.
"Is there a fight to be had? Count me in! I've been wanting to test its combat capabilities!"
"By the way, what do you think of me calling it 'Thor's Bane'?"
His entire Iron Man suit hummed with anticipation, clearly itching for action.
Unfortunately, no one paid him any attention.
"What are you going to do?"
Steve Rogers asked with a frown, his face wary.
Lin Chen didn't answer, only pointed with his chin at Loki, who stood beside him as obedient as a servant.
"He didn't come to Earth alone this time."
Lin Chen's voice was not loud, but it clearly reached everyone's ears:
"In fact, there's a large alien fleet in outer space, waiting for his summons, ready to invade Earth at any time."
"What?!"
No sooner had he finished speaking than Nick Furycouldn't help but roar out.
His single eye constricted to the extreme with shock, his dark face instantly turned pale, then from white to green, his expression constantly changing, wonderfully vivid.
"Don't worry."
Lin Chen looked at their expressions, as if the sky was falling, and said lazily, "I'll handle it."
"However, you all staying here won't help much, and will only get in the way. It's safer to stay indoors."
"I can help too!"
Steve immediately stepped forward, his hand already reaching for the shield on his back, his expression resolute.
Lin Chen glanced at him, rolling his eyes without a hint of concealment.
"I say, Captain, stop making trouble, alright?"
He said bluntly, "Those alien foot soldiers won't talk about chivalry with you, lining up to fight you all day."
"You just stay in the room and watch the show, after all... respecting the elderly and cherishing the young is our traditional virtue."
"Pfft—"
Tony let out a suppressed laugh from under his faceplate.
Steve's face instantly turned a liverish purple, so angry he couldn't speak for a long time.
"Exactly, exactly!"
Tony, with an expression of enjoying the spectacle, immediately chimed in, teasing:
"Old people should hide in a safe place and drink tea. Rough work like fighting and killing can be left to us young people. Don't you agree, Dr. Banner?"
Bruce Banner, who had been silent, scratched his head, smiled somewhat awkwardly, and silently walked to stand beside Tony.
Although he didn't say a word, his meaning was already clear.
Steve felt his blood pressure soaring wildly; he took a deep breath, forcing back the words he wanted to curse.
Nick Fury's expression changed several times, finally settling into a long sigh.
He knew Lin Chen was telling the truth; against an alien fleet, they, as mortals, truly couldn't help much.
He looked up, his single eye gazing deeply at Lin Chen, his tone carrying a hint of plea and solemnity.
"I just hope... you know what you're doing."
"Earth, it's all up to you."
With that, he no longer hesitated, gave Natasha a look, and turned to walk towards the bridge.
Natasha glanced at the situation worriedly, then quickly followed.
Steve hesitated for a moment, but ultimately, under Coulson's persuasion, he followed them off the deck with a look of unwillingness.
Soon, on the vast deck, only Lin Chen, Tony, Banner, and Loki, who stood still like a statue, remained.
The atmosphere was quiet for a moment.
Tony turned his head and looked around, and his slightly confused voice came from under the silver-gray faceplate.
"Strange..."
"I somehow feel... like someone is missing?"
Chapter 97 Go, Pikachu
At the same time, hundreds of meters above New York City.
A figure with a red cape was shuttling back and forth at an extremely fast speed, the mjolnir in his hand 'wooshing' and stirring up gusts of wind.
"Achoo—!"
Thor suddenly let out a loud sneeze, his body stumbled in mid-air, almost falling from the sky.
He rubbed his itchy nose, his handsome face filled with confusion and bewilderment.
"Strange, why would I sneeze out of nowhere?"
He muttered to himself, while continuing to stare wide-eyed, scanning the vast city and sea below like a radar.
Damn it!
Where did he run off to?
Thor's heart was practically roaring, his heroic face filled with grief and self-doubt.
He couldn't understand.
He really couldn't understand!
Just a second ago, he watched Lin Chen fly down with his brother, so how could two living people disappear the next second?
He had been watching the whole time!
How could he have lost them?!
His poor silly brother, who he had just gotten back and hadn't even had a chance to properly educate, was just abducted by Lin Chen... As soon as he thought of this, Thor's heart felt as if it had been brutally smashed by a troll's club, both painful and constricted.
"Loki... Lin Chen... where are you two?!!!"
A sorrowful roar echoed high above the ten thousand-meter sky... Sky Carrier, deck.
Tony's question about "someone missing" received no answer.
Because everyone's attention had already been firmly drawn by Lin Chen's next move.
"Lin, what do we do next?"
Bruce Banner pushed up his glasses and asked somewhat nervously, "Are we going to fly into outer space and shoot them down?"
"No need for such trouble."
Lin Chen shook his head, then extended his hand and patted Loki's head beside him, as if comforting a pet.
"We'll just stay here and wait for the rabbit."
After he finished speaking, the dull yellow Mind Stone on his waist lit up.
Then, an invisible mental force instantly enveloped Loki, like the most precise probe, piercing into the deepest part of his soul.
Loki's body trembled violently, his eyes became momentarily vacant, but then quickly returned to normal, though his face grew even paler.
The Chitauri fleet's interstellar coordinates were now in hand.
"Alright, found the rabbit hole."
Lin Chen chuckled lightly, and then, another deep, dark blue gem on his waist suddenly emitted a light even more brilliant than the sun!
"Tear—!!!!"
In an instant, a deafening shriek, like fabric being violently torn, exploded above their heads without warning.
Tony and Banner looked up in horror.
They saw the ten thousand-meter cloud layer directly above the Sky Carrier, as if an invisible giant hand had forcibly torn a hole in it.
That wasn't a hole in the clouds; that was the very fabric of space tearing apart!
A gigantic rift, spanning the sky, appeared out of nowhere; the edges of the dark fissure were constantly twisting and folding light, and on the other side of the rift... was the endless void of the Universe!
And... a suffocatingly vast fleet of steel!
Countless ferocious Leviathan beasts lurked in the darkness like cosmic monsters, while dense swarms of Chitauri soldiers, piloting individual flying vehicles, formed a massive net that covered their vision.
Those grotesque, ugly faces were clearly visible!
"F***!"
A gasp came from under Tony's faceplate, "These guys sure look abstract!"
Before his words faded, the Chitauri outside the rift seemed to receive a signal for a general attack, and their overwhelming army instantly erupted!
"Roar!!!"
Countless Chitauri let out piercing roars, like a flood breaking through a dam, piloting their flying vehicles and swarming out of the blue portal like madmen!
The scene was like the end of the world arriving!
However, facing this terrifying military might, capable of instantly collapsing any low-level planet, Lin Chen merely raised his right hand nonchalantly and... lightly snapped his fingers at the sky.
"Snap."
A soft, almost inaudible sound.
The next second, an invisible energy barrier, imperceptible to the naked eye, instantly enveloped the entire opening of the portal.
Those aggressive Chitauri vanguard troops, who had just rushed out of the portal, didn't even have time to let out a scream before their bodies strangely twisted and shrank in mid-air... then, they turned into green frogs croaking loudly!
"Croak!"
"Croak croak!"
Immediately after, under the gaze of Tony and Banner's eyes, which were practically popping out of their sockets, an unprecedented "frog rain" fell from the sky.
Pitter-patter!
Pitter-patter!
Hundreds of thousands of frogs fell like dumplings, free-falling from ten thousand meters high, hitting the deck with a series of "splat splat" sounds.
Many more missed the Sky Carrier and fell towards the sea below.
Dr. Banner's mouth was wide enough to fit a fist, and his glasses had slipped to the tip of his nose.
"What the f***?!"
Tony's exclamation echoed inside his armor, "What is this?! A grand magic show?!"
"Idiot."
Lin Chen rolled his eyes at him and kicked his shiny silver-grey armor.
"Bang!"
"Didn't you want to test your new toy? Why are you still standing there? Waiting for me to invite you to frog sashimi?"
Tony, who had been kicked and stumbled, didn't get angry; instead, he cheered excitedly.
"Ooh hoo! Now this is fun!"
He slammed his faceplate shut, and blue-hot exhaust flared from his back thrusters; his entire body instantly transformed into a silver stream of light, directly plunging into the giant spatial rift, braving the pouring "frog rain"!
"Ugly guys! Your Tony Daddy is here!!"
The arrogant declaration resounded through the sky.
Having dealt with one, Lin Chen turned his head and looked with a smile at the dumbfounded Dr. Banner.
"Doctor, it's your turn."
Banner gave an embarrassed smile, silently took off his glasses, and placed them on the ground.
The next moment, his gentle eyes turned wild, and his body swelled and turned green at a visible speed!
"Roar!!!"
His shirt instantly ripped, leaving only the battle suit custom-made for him by Tony rapidly stretching.
Hulk entered the stage!
However, before Hulk could fully transform, a hand lightly rested on his arm.
"Roar?"
Hulk looked down in confusion, not even having time to react before he felt an irresistible, terrifying force.
His massive body was actually lifted up, spun three hundred and sixty degrees in the air, and thrown out like a hammer throw!
"Go! Pikachu!"
Accompanied by Lin Chen's powerful shout, the green giant transformed into a cannonball, shooting with incredible precision into the portal in the sky, leaving behind only an increasingly distant roar of anger.
On the deck, silence instantly returned.
Lin Chen's gaze finally fell on the last "living being."
It was Loki, frozen stiff like a statue.
The God of Mischief felt a chill shoot straight from the soles of his feet to the top of his head.
He suddenly shivered, then frantically waved his hands, shaking his head like a rattle-drum.
"I... I want to stay here, can I?!"
He was almost in tears.
He swore he would rather streak naked in Thanos's bedchamber than be thrown into battle like trash by this guy!
Seeing Loki's terrified expression, Lin Chen nodded, saying nothing more.
The next second, his feet left the ground, and he shot into the sky, flying fearlessly into the deep cosmic rift.
On the vast deck, only a still-shaken Loki remained, and the continuing... bizarre frog rain.
Chapter 98: Fighting the Chitauri
The Universe was filled with the aura of death and coldness.
This was originally an irrefutable truth.
But at this moment, a blue rift, leading to a beautiful blue planet, was forcibly torn open in this pitch-black void.
And what broke the "truth" even more than this rift were the two figures surging out from the beautiful blue planetbelow the rift, flowing against the current.
"Woohoo!!!"
Tony Stark felt that his entire vocabulary was so poor at this moment that he could only use this most primitive scream to vent the excitement that was almost exploding in his heart!
Weightlessness? Non-existent!
Cosmic radiation? Blocked!
Vacuum suffocation? What a joke!
The silver-grey armor he wore, personally reforged by Lin Chen, had obscure Runes on its surface that were now emitting a faint glow.
They intertwined, forming an invisible energy force field that perfectly shielded all fatal factors in the Universe.
He even felt as free as if he were in his own swimming pool!
Only Jarvis maintained a calm tone: "Sir, I think we should be more steady. We don't know the enemy's strength."
"Steady? To hell with steady!"
Tony laughed, his palm repulsor cannons already glowing, "Jarvis, don't be so serious. We're playing with magic now!"
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Three dazzling energy beams shot out precisely, instantly piercing through three Chitauri individual flyers at the very front.
There were no Earth-shattering explosions, only three clusters of metal debris silently blooming in the vacuum, like three brilliant and deadly fireworks.
"See that, Jarvis? Isn't it cool? Hahaha, next…"
Before Tony could finish his sentence, a green figure, dozens of times more massive than him, brushed past him with a "whoosh," like a giant cannonball flung from a trebuchet.
The residual energy ripple it brought made his armor sway three times.
Hulk was here!
After being thrown into the battlefield by Lin Chen in an extremely humiliating manner, Hulk's anger had reached its peak.
However, in the vacuum environment, his iconic roar could not be vented at all, only transforming into a silent, twisted, and ferocious gaping maw.
The weightlessness brought by the vacuum environment made him scramble to stop himself.
But where could he find a fulcrum?
Hulk constantly adjusted his posture, his eyes scanning around, finally locking onto a spot.
The next second, his large, fan-like hand suddenly reached out, accurately grabbing a Chitauri soldier's flyer that was zipping past him.
"Crack!"
The alloy flyer, in Hulk's hand, was as fragile as a soda cracker, instantly crushed into scrap metal.
And the unlucky fellow he grabbed didn't even have time to grunt before he, along with the flyer, was squeezed into an indescribable paste of flesh by that terrifying grip.
Using the reaction force, Hulk's massive body executed a nimble roll in the vacuum, his feet stomping heavily on the wreckage of the flyer!
"Bang!"
The wreckage instantly shattered, and Hulk transformed into a green meteor of destruction, crashing into the gaping maw of a Leviathan beast that had just emerged from the portal, with even more furious speed than before!
The massive biological warship suddenly stiffened, and then its abdomen, back, chest… hardened biological armor bulged up one after another, then burst open with "thump, thump, thump" sounds!
"Roar—!!!"
Accompanied by a silent roar that finally found release, Hulk, covered in viscous green blood, tore a large hole through the Leviathan's spine, bursting out!
He stood on the corpse of the giant beast, surveying the dense crowd of enemies around him, excitedly pounding his chest, treating the remains of this giant beast as his perfect battlefield.
With one punch, he shattered a cluster of flyers.
With one kick, he sent a small war beast flying.
The vanguard position of the entire Chitauri fleet instantly turned into a chaotic mess due to the intrusion of these two uninvited guests!
And in the very center of all this chaos, directly below the ten-thousand-meter Space rift, Lin Chen's figure slowly emerged.
He did not shuttle at high speed like Tony, nor did he crash wildly like Hulk. He just floated quietly in place, arms crossed, like a god examining his creation.
On his belt, the Space Stone glowed faintly, maintaining this magnificent portal.
"Croak!"
A Chitauri soldier who had just rushed in front of him, and hadn't even had time to figure out the situation, instantly twisted and shrunk the moment he approached within one meter of Lin Chen's body, turning into a green-skinned frog, falling helplessly towards the rift below.
This was Lin Chen's mission.
He didn't need to kill with his own hands; he just needed to stand here, subtly adjusting the Monkey Talisman's magical power to change the form of all objects.
Applying its magic to these invaders, "downgrading" their life forms to the lowest possible mode.
He was the "filter" for this gate.
As long as he was here, no "fish that slipped through the net" would be able to enter Earth's atmosphere in a non-frog form!
"Alert! Alert! Unknown energy field! Vanguard losses exceed 70%!"
"Commander! Those two… those two monsters are tearing apart our formation!"
Inside the Chitauri command ship in the rear, there was chaos.
Through the viewport, the Commander could clearly see that his vanguard forces either turned into harmless animals the moment they crossed the rift, or were mowed down like grass by those two grim reapers, one silver and one green.
"Fire!"
A hint of madness and determination flashed in the Commander's eyes, "Blast those two targets into pieces for me!!"
"Buzz—Buzz—Buzz—"
As the order was given, the main cannons of dozens of Chitauri capital ships began to charge, and the next second, a rain of deadly energy light covered the entire battlefield!
This was an indiscriminate attack, and the first to bear the brunt were the Chitauri cannon fodder entangled with Tony and Hulk in the center of the battlefield.
"Woah! Are they serious?!"
Tony shouted in his armor, and his back thrusters suddenly flared.
The silver-grey armor drew incredible, bizarre arcs through the dense barrage, like an artist dancing on a knife's edge.
"Jarvis, calculate trajectories, find me a path out!"
"Sir, route has been planned. Please follow the guidance."
"Hahaha… thrilling!"
Tony laughed, perfectly executing the route planned by Jarvis.
Not only did he dodge all the main cannon attacks, but he even had time to casually clear out those annoying cannon fodder with his palm cannons.
The power of the new armor completely captivated him!
On the other side, Hulk was not so flexible.
Or rather, he never even thought of dodging!
"Boom!!"
A thick beam of energy slammed squarely into Hulk's back.
However, this energy, powerful enough to melt starship armor, exploded on him but only knocked him flying, causing him no harm whatsoever.
The only damage might have been to the special memory fiber pants provided by Tony that he wore.
The pants ripped a large hole under the energy impact.
Hulk angrily stomped on a Leviathan beast, letting out a silent roar at the firing warship.
Then he grabbed the giant beast beneath him and, with all his might, hurled it fiercely towards that warship!
The battlefield had completely transformed into a Crazy Fireworks Show (a chaotic fireworks display).
The more Tony fought, the more excited he became. He found that he didn't need to conserve energy at all; the Runes seemed to be continuously drawing some mysterious power from the void, replenishing the armor's consumption.
"Hey! Ugly guys! Line up, one by one, to meet your doom!"
He shouted arrogantly while charging into the enemy lines like a ghost, alternating between palm cannons and energy blades, gleefully reaping heads.
Chapter 99 Warm-up is over
"Enough!"
On the bridge of the Chitauri flagship, the Commander's wrinkled gray face was contorted with extreme rage.
He looked at the chaotic battlefield outside the viewport, his vanguard troops like straw thrown into a meat grinder—fragile, powerless, and meaningless.
That silver-gray tin can was performing a dance of death amidst the myriad of troops, while that green monster was using the corpse of a Leviathan beast as a throwing weapon!
A disgrace!
This was the most thorough humiliation of the Chitauricivilization!
"Deliver my command!"
The Commander's voice was hoarse and sharp, "All Leviathan units, all heavy assault ships, push forward!!!"
"Commander, that would..."
"I don't care about the cost!"
He roared, interrupting his adjutant's plea, "Execute the order immediately!"
"Buzz—buzz—buzz—"
As if responding to the Commander's fury, shadows began to surge behind the massive array of the Chitauri fleet.
One, two, ten... hundreds of Leviathan beasts, even larger than before, emerged like ancient sea monsters awakening from the abyss, their grotesque maw opening in a silent roar.
Beside them were heavy assault ships, even more heavily armored, their muzzles flashing with dangerous light.
They converged into an unprecedented steel tide, their target clear, heading straight for the two dazzling silver and green points in the center of the battlefield!
"Whoa, Jarvis, I take back what I said."
Tony Stark whistled, the relaxed nonchalance in his tone instantly vanishing without a trace.
It was replaced by a hint of solemnity, "Looks like we've stirred up a hornet's nest, and it's the PLUS MAX size edition."
"Sir, detecting over a hundred Leviathan units and twenty warships approaching. I suggest..."
"Suggestion invalid!"
Tony pulled up sharply, narrowly dodging a Leviathanbeast's deadly charge, "This isn't the time to retreat, it's time to party!"
Before he finished speaking, the ancient runic symbols on the surface of his silver-gray armor suddenly glowed to their utmost, as if about to ignite!
"A party needs the most dazzling lights!"
"Boom!!!"
A concentrated beam of light, dozens of times thicker than any previous repulsor blast, erupted from the armor's mirror-smooth chest!
This torrent of incandescent energy, like a divine sword sweeping across the sky, instantly cleared all Chitauri foot soldiers and flying units within the Front fan-shaped area.
In the vacuum, countless metal debris and organic matter were vaporized by the energy, carving out a temporary "clean" zone.
However, this zone was filled the next second by even more, larger shadows!
On the other side, Hulk's situation was even worse.
He had just torn open the bridge of an assault ship with his bare hands, and before he could enjoy the joy of victory, he was squarely slammed in the middle by three Leviathanbeasts charging from different angles!
"Bang!!"
Hulk's massive body, for the first time, was at a disadvantage in a pure test of strength.
He was like a marble struck simultaneously by three high-speed trains, and with a dull thud, he was flung far away, tumbling in the vacuum, away from the main battlefield.
He roared in anger, but no sound escaped him. He could only watch helplessly as he drifted further and further from the paradise where he could wreak havoc.
"Hey! Big guy!"
Tony was about to rush to assist when he was targeted by the concentrated fire of seven or eight heavy assault ships, forcing him to dodge frantically.
Just as he felt the pressure reaching its peak and was about to activate his chest repulsor for indiscriminate bombing again...
Lin Chen, who had been standing still in front of the spatial rift, overlooking the battlefield like a god, finally moved.
The azure Space Stone at his waist flickered imperceptibly.
The next moment, Tony, who was being chased all over the field by cannon fire, and Hulk, who was tumbling in space, both became illusory and instantly vanished from their original positions.
When they reappeared, they were very close to the Chitauri flagship, having escaped the terrifying encirclement.
"Whoa!"
Tony stumbled, regained his balance, and shouted excitedly, "Cool! I love that move! Can you put one on my armor?"
Hulk, after a moment of surprise, realized he was saved. Instead of gratitude, he became even angrier, pounding his chest and letting out a silent roar towards the distant Chitauri fleet.
"Don't be so quick to roar, big guy."
Tony patted Hulk's arm, a sly smirk curving under his helmet, "Want to play something more exciting? You be the tank, I'll be the sniper, how about it?"
Hulk seemed to understand, splitting his mouth into a ferocious grin.
"Alright!"
Tony suddenly turned, thrusters at full power, "Jarvis, mark all enemy heavy unit energy nodes and weapon systems in red! We're going to play a game of 'Whac-A-Mole'!"
"Whoosh!"
Hulk followed closely. His massive body, at this moment, became the perfect target, instantly drawing most of the firepower.
Tony, using Hulk's cover, darted around the edge of the battlefield like a deadly hummingbird.
He no longer used wide-area repulsor blasts but concentrated his energy, his eye lasers flashing at an unprecedented frequency.
"Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!"
Precise red beams of light traversed long distances, accurately hitting the engine nozzles, weapon turrets, and even the bridge windows of the assault ships!
And the warships he crippled, before they could even adjust, were leapt upon by the rampaging Hulk!
The green giant treated the disabled steel creations as new toys, punching, kicking, tearing... In an instant, combat efficiency increased exponentially!
Lin Chen remained suspended in place, even yawning leisurely.
Occasionally, when one or two Leviathan beasts broke through Tony's and Hulk's defenses and tried to ram them, Lin Chen would lazily lift his eyelids.
Two yellow beams of light, more condensed and slender than Tony's lasers, shot from his eyes, arriving first despite being fired later.
The bio-armor, strong enough to shatter mountains, was as fragile as paper before the Pig Talisman's lasers, instantly pierced and sliced, its massive body silently breaking into several pieces in the vacuum.
Having done all this, Lin Chen returned to his bored demeanor, as if he had merely casually swatted a few flies.
"Retreat... Retreat!!"
The flagship Commander completely collapsed.
His proud steel tide had become a joke in the face of the incredible coordination of those two monsters and the "god" suspended in the distance.
"Main cannon charging!!"
He issued his final, hysterical command, "Target, the spatial rift! Blow up that planet with it! We're leaving!!"
The massive flagship began to slowly retreat, the civilization-destroying main cannon at its bow glowing with an unsettling, eerie blue light.
"Sir!"
Jarvis's voice rang out urgently, "Detecting super-standard energy readings! We must stop it!"
"I see it!"
Tony cursed, trying to rush towards the Chitauri flagship.
But endless Chitauri foot soldiers, like sharks smelling blood, surged forward frantically, entangling him tightly.
Hulk also sensed the danger. He stood on the wreckage of a warship, roaring furiously towards the flagship, but he could not make such a long-distance charge in the vacuum.
It seemed the destructive cannon fire was about to coalesce.
Everything on the battlefield was clearly reflected in Lin Chen's pupils.
He looked at the anxious Tony, at the furious but helpless Hulk, and then at the Chitauri flagship, which was accumulating its final madness.
The expression on his face remained unchanged.
Like an adult watching two children playing, sweating profusely, but unable to knock down their block tower.
Although they were having fun, it was time for it to end.
Lin Chen gently stretched his body, letting out an almost inaudible sigh.
"Warm-up, over."
His voice was very soft, so soft it seemed like he was just talking to himself.
However, the instant this soft utterance fell...
His chest swelled high, and he suddenly opened his mouth!
Chapter 100 Director, I advise you to be more restrained in the future
"Warm-up, over."
Lin Chen's voice was very soft, so soft it was as if he was talking to himself.
However, the moment that soft whisper fell.
His chest swelled high, and he suddenly opened his mouth!
The next moment, words became reality.
Accompanied by a silent Dragon's Roar.
What emerged from Lin Chen's mouth was light.
It was an ultimate, pure, indescribable crimson light!
This light started as a wisp, then instantly expanded into a fan-shaped Shockwave that spanned the void.
Like a sun born in his throat, he poured his most tyrannical light and heat, without reservation, into this cold vacuum battlefield!
It was like a silent divine punishment.
The raging beam, with its unparalleled divine might, instantly detonated the Chitauri army!
Even without any sound.
This destructive scene was enough to make every witness's mind automatically conjure a roar comparable to the Big Bang of the Universe!
The first to bear the brunt were the Chitauri cannon fodder, fearless of death, still surging towards Tony and Hulk.
They didn't even have time to react; the moment the light touched their bodies, along with the flying vehicles beneath them, they exploded into dazzling but silent sparks, like ignited magnesium strips.
Next were the massive, heavily armored Leviathan beasts.
Their proud bio-armor was more fragile than a piece of toilet paper in front of this light.
As the light passed, their enormous bodies were neatly vaporized from the middle, not even a drop of blood remaining, turning into the most insignificant dust in the Universe.
Finally, there were the heavy attack ships, arrayed in formation, their muzzles flashing.
Their energy shields melted instantly like snowflakes in the sun.
The sturdy hulls, under the crimson light, were like butter thrown into a furnace, twisting, deforming, vaporizing... eventually exploding into a series of even more spectacular, even more brilliant fireworks!
This was a silent symphony of destruction.
The entire process was extremely fast and extremely clean.
And just a second before Lin Chen opened his mouth, the Space Stone at his waist flickered again.
Tony, who was being chased ragged by artillery fire, and Hulk, who was standing on the wreckage of a warship in impotent rage, both disappeared simultaneously, appearing next to Lin Chen the next moment.
Thus, they became the closest spectators to this "divine punishment."
"Jarvis, am I dreaming...?"
The expression beneath Tony's faceplate was one of unprecedented stupefaction.
He had witnessed this scene that overturned his lifelong scientific understanding.
That light had swept everything away.
As far as the eye could see, the once invincible Chitaurifleet, capable of conquering a planet, was gone.
Completely gone.
All that remained were countless twisted metal wrecks and Broken biological tissue, like a sudden rain of garbage, slowly floating and spreading in this vacuum.
"Gulp..."
Tony slowly turned his head to look at Hulk beside him.
He could clearly hear his heart beating.
The perpetually angry, perpetually fearless green giant, at this moment, for the first time, showed an emotion called "terror" in his burning eyes.
His massive body even instinctively recoiled, a low growl of "ho ho" escaping his throat, like a beast encountering an ancient natural enemy.
It was a tremor from the deepest part of life, the most instinctive reverence of a lower being facing a higher deity!
Finally, the light dissipated.
Lin Chen closed his mouth, retracting the power of the Dragon Talisman.
At this moment, apart from the three of them, there was not a single living Chitauri unit left on the entire battlefield.
"You..."
Tony's Adam's apple bobbed with difficulty, and he squeezed out a word through gritted teeth, "...are a monster."
In this sentence, there was no longer any of the previous teasing, only the purest shock.
Once upon a time, he thought that by donning the Iron Man armor, he was a god walking among men.
But after witnessing Thor's lightning, witnessing Hulk's brute force, and until this moment, personally witnessing Lin Chen's incredible power... he finally understood how insignificant his ridiculous pride was in front of true powerhouses.
The enormous disparity in combat power was like an insurmountable chasm, lying before him.
Lin Chen didn't hear his murmur, his gaze sweeping over the wreckage and towards the distance.
The Chitauri flagship, frantically retreating, with pre-jump lights already glowing on its hull, became the sole survivor in this graveyard.
"Trying to run?"
Lin Chen raised an eyebrow.
The next second.
"Whoosh!"
Two even more solid Pig Talisman lasers than before flashed from his eyes, instantly crossing a vast distance and accurately hitting the flagship's engine and bridge.
With a blinding flash.
The behemoth, like a punctured balloon, instantly experienced a violent chain reaction of energy within its hull, and the entire warship swelled silently.
Ultimately, it became the largest piece of debris in this space junkyard.
Having done all this, Lin Chen seemed to have merely swatted two flies.
He stretched, brushed off non-existent dust from his clothes, turned around, and plunged like a diver towards the massive spatial rift below.
"Hey! Wait!"
Tony snapped out of his immense shock, quickly activated his thrusters, pushed the still-dazed Hulk along, and hurriedly chased after him... Meanwhile, below the rift.
Inside the Sky Carrier's command center.
The large main screen was displaying real-time footage captured by the Sky Carrier's external probes.
Nick Fury, Steve Rogers, Natasha Romanoff, Phil Coulson, and Maria Hill... everyone seemed to be under a petrification spell, staring motionless at the screen, not daring to breathe.
From the moment Lin Chen opened his mouth and unleashed that divine punishment light, to him detonating the Chitauri flagship with a glance, the entire process was witnessed by them, frame by frame.
Inside the command center, it was so quiet you could hear heartbeats.
After a long while.
"Gulp."
Agent Hill swallowed with difficulty. She stiffly turned her head and, in an extremely sincere tone, said to the slightly trembling Egghead:
"Director, I personally suggest... that you, from now on, should restrain yourself a bit, and it's best not to lose your temper with Consultant Lin Chen anymore."
Steve, Coulson, and Natasha, hearing this, nodded in unison and with great emphasis.
Their faces were filled with "deep agreement."
Fury's single eye stared intently at the screen, his lips tightly pressed, not speaking.
But the slightly twitching corner of his eye already betrayed his extremely turbulent inner state.
Soon, the three figures on the screen passed through the rift and returned to Earth's sky.
With a wave of Lin Chen's hand, the hideous, massive rift in the sky, as if about to swallow all of New York, quickly closed like a zipper being pulled, disappearing without a trace, and the sky returned to its usual azure.
The three landed steadily on the Sky Carrier's deck.
"Slap!"
However, the newly returned Lin Chen suddenly seemed to remember something, slapped his forehead, and showed an extremely annoyed expression.
Tony's silver-gray faceplate clicked open, revealing a puzzled face, "Lin, what's wrong? Any stragglers?"
"Not really."
Lin Chen pulled out his smartphone from his pocket, looked at the dark screen, and said with a pained expression, "The scene was so grand just now, I was too busy enjoying myself... I forgot to take a picture and post it on my Moments!"
"..."
Tony opened his mouth, his lips twitching.
He looked at the guy in front of him, who was beating his chest and stomping his feet because he hadn't taken a picture in time, and then recalled the being who had just wiped out a fleet with a mere spit.
An extremely strong sense of disconnect and absurdity made him feel like his brain was about to short-circuit.
Just then.
"Lin! You damned bastard!!"
In the distant sky, a figure flew rapidly, bringing thunder and strong winds.
Before he even arrived, his booming roar echoed across the entire deck.
Thor, raising Mjolnir high, roared as he flew:
"Where did you take Loki?! And when did you come back?!