In the dead of night, within a hidden manor.
The master bedroom door slowly creaked open, and a figure swaggered in.
This person was dressed in a thick floral padded jacket but wore a pair of death barbie pink shorts below, with a pair of poop-colored crocs on his feet.
You couldn't say this outfit was particularly ugly; it was just uniquely hideous.
The most eye-catching part was the giant yellow dog-head mask on his head, the smug expression radiating an inexplicable sense of mockery.
The Dog-Man walked straight to the desk, opened the computer, and pulled out a USB drive from his pocket, plugging it in. A progress bar immediately jumped onto the screen.
While waiting, he felt his phone vibrating in his pocket.
"Yo?"
"Du Mu, this is Nick Fury. What's your status?"
"I'm already infiltrating the target location and obtaining the mission items."
"Not detected, right?"
Just as Du Mu was about to answer, the bathroom door of the master bedroom suddenly creaked open, revealing a terrified bearded man in a bathrobe staring at him.
"Damn! Who are you? How did you get in?!"
"Where's the bodyguard?! Guard! Gu—"
Bang!
The gunshot rang out, sharp and clean.
The Dog-Man calmly put away his pistol and said into the phone, "Don't worry. No one will find out."
"..."
Nick Fury fell silent for a few seconds on the other end of the line, his voice lowering. "After the mission, come back to headquarters."
"Okie-dokie!"
Du Mu hung up the phone, just as the progress bar on the computer ended, and swiftly pulled out the USB drive.
In the next moment, a cold mechanical voice rang in his head.
[Daily task "Steal vital information" has been completed!]
[Rewards received: Experience points +500, S.H.I.E.L.D. reputation +10, C4 bomb *1]
"Tsk, more of this trash reward again."
Du Mu pouted, glancing at the corpse on the floor, and couldn't help but exclaim, "But this game really is well-made; look at the NPC death feedback. It's just like real life. If the game designers haven't killed before, I won't believe it."
In fact, he was immersed in a holographic virtual game called "Marvel World."
By 2065, holographic virtual gaming technology had become widespread, allowing players to experience an almost 100% real virtual world.
As a hardcore player with a million fans, Du Mu had completed countless games and had some fame in the international gaming scene.
Two months ago, a game company under Marvel approached him, inviting him to test this new game, claiming it had "unprecedented high freedom," promising a ten million prize as long as he completed it once.
To be honest, Du Mu didn't know much about Marvel.
After all, in his time, Marvel stories had undergone many updates; the original characters had long disappeared.
Currently, the hottest superhero was the seventh-generation Iron Man, known as "Iron Black Heart," a black single mother with gender dysphoria, severe alcoholism, morbid obesity, a history of numerous transitions, three divorces, and five children.
She formed a family with the eighth-generation Captain America, a gay, vegetarian, environmental activist, feminist, Catholic with one-eighth Native American blood, who shouted 'Fam' every day.
That said, he signed the agreement without hesitation and lay down in the top-notch virtual pod they provided that day.
What could he do?
They offered far too much!
At the beginning of the game, the system provided several identity options: Hydra spy, S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, Stark Industries employee, Hell's Kitchen resident, Midtown High School student.
Du Mu picked an option at random, and the game began.
After two months of gameplay, Du Mu had to admit that the game's freedom was indeed outrageous.
There were no beginner tutorials or any guidance; all operations and plots relied wholly on player exploration.
The most absurd part was that after so many days, he hadn't even seen a shadow of the main plot mission!
If the game system hadn't repeatedly assured him of the existence of a main plot, he would have suspected he was playing a spy simulation game.
"By the way, it seems like there's no exit game key in this game," Du Mu wondered.
The system's voice chimed in:
[We apologize. There was a minor issue when starting the game, leading to a system BUG. We are currently working on fixing it.]
"Am I going to be okay?"
A chill ran down Du Mu's spine.
[Please rest assured, the game virtual pod monitors player life signs 24 hours a day and will forcibly wake you up at the first sign of any anomaly.]
[Additional note: The game's time flow rate to real time is 362:1. Your top-notch virtual pod and nutrient solution can ensure your body's basic metabolism remains stable for over ten years, so there's no need to worry about time or safety issues.]
[If players insist on exiting the game, they may do so at any time but will permanently lose their eligibility for the one-time completion prize.]
[Would the player like to exit the game?]
"Not gonna exit!"
Du Mu decisively refused.
What a joke! He would absolutely not exit the game before winning the ten million prize!
Just then, a flurry of hurried footsteps approached from outside, clearly the bodyguards had been alerted by the earlier gunshot.
Du Mu pushed aside his lingering doubts and swiftly brought up the game map, locking onto the coordinates of "S.H.I.E.L.D. Headquarters."
Click, teleport!
By the time the bodyguards arrived, the master bedroom contained only a cold corpse and a beeping C4 bomb.
"Holy Shit!"
Boom!!!
...
In the Triskelion, inside the director's office.
At that moment, Nick Fury was sitting behind a large desk, reviewing a thick stack of documents.
"S.H.I.E.L.D. Budget Reallocation Report?"
A voice suddenly cut in.
Nick Fury snapped his head up to see a giant yellow dog head leaning over the documents.
Du Mu: （¬‿¬）
"Motherf*cker!"
Nick Fury jolted, instincts kicking in, and shouted.
But he quickly recognized the individual, scowling, "Du Mu! How many times have I told you? Dress normally at headquarters, at least like a human!"
Du Mu immediately frowned, "This outfit is clearly stylish, and it's got some serious stats."
The corner of Nick Fury's mouth twitched.
Did you leave your sense of aesthetics in the embryo?
Just as he was about to explode, Du Mu suddenly pointed at a section of the document.
"By the way, Director, this report seems a bit off. Why are there several large expenditures without a source? Could it be that... someone in the agency is embezzling public funds?"
"Ahem, ahem!"
Nick Fury suddenly coughed violently, hastily shutting the file and stuffing it into a drawer, and replied seriously, "That's classified. I'm handling it personally; it's not something a level 5 agent should concern themselves with."
"Oh."
Nick Fury frowned, forcing a topic change. "Now, I have an important mission for you."
Saying this, he pulled out a file from another drawer and slid it across the desk to Du Mu.
The front page of the file displayed a flashy photo of a man with a little mustache, with his name and identity printed below.
Tony Stark, Chairman of Stark Industries.
"Three months ago, Tony Stark was attacked by unidentified armed forces in the Middle East, and his status is currently unknown."
"I need you to set off for Afghanistan right away to ascertain Tony Stark's whereabouts. If he's still alive, bring him back safely."
As Nick Fury's words fell, the system's voice chimed in simultaneously.
[NPC Nick Fury has assigned you a new mission]
[Mission: The Birth of Iron Man]
[Objective: Go to the Middle East to find Tony Stark and bring him back safely]
[You have triggered the main storyline mission! Upon completion, you will receive generous rewards!]
Main storyline mission!?
Du Mu's eyes widened in excitement.
Finally! The long-awaited main storyline mission had arrived!
"Iron Man? Sounds like a superhero title. Is he an important character?" Du Mu speculated.
Although he didn't know much about Marvel, he knew it was a company centered around superhero comics, so the core naturally revolved around superheroes.
However, Du Mu hadn't heard of any superheroes so far, let alone seen one.
Though Nick Fury before him had a bit of superhero vibe.
So what was his hero title?
One-Eyed Man?
Or Motherf*cker Man?
"Du Mu! Are you even listening?"
Nick Fury looked at the dazed Du Mu, feeling his blood pressure rising.
Du Mu snapped back to reality. "Sir, what did you just say?"
"I said..."
"Forget it, it's not important. Skip cutscene!"
Nick Fury: 눈灬●