Blackheart is Ghost Rider's enemy, but the latter has no concept of 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'.
Damn it, let's take them all on.
That's how harmonious and friendly Ghost Rider's style is.
Blackheart's Versailles-like remarks, Ghost Rider's motorcycle riding right into his face—it's full of vivid imagery.
Stark reacted quickly, aiming his cannon at Ghost Rider and firing a web.
However, as soon as the web approached Ghost Rider, it was immediately melted by the raging Hellfire.
"...Oh my god, I forgot it wasn't fire-resistant material."
Stark looked a bit awkward.
Things cobbled together by two scientists in a lab in a hurry might have some flaws, but that doesn't negate their brilliance.
Stark was about to switch attack modes when Mike pressed his hand down.
"Don't rush, Blackheart is Ghost Rider's primary target. Before that, we're just collateral," Mike told Stark to calm down.
"You have a point, but saying 'collateral' really hurts my pride," Stark grumbled. He glanced at a prepared Coulson, "Phil, why are you so nervous? You won't be of any use anyway, so why don't you go watch some videos, read a novel for a while, and then come out to clean up the mess. Oh, my mistake, you actually are of some use..."
One of Stark's annoying tricks: if he's annoyed, everyone gets annoyed.
It's absolutely understandable why Coulson would want to shove a durian shell up Stark's backside countless times; you'd think the same.
Coulson was immediately annoyed and flipped Stark the middle finger.
Seeing Coulson annoyed, Stark was pleased.
At this moment.
Blackheart lay on the ground, spread-eagled, facing upwards. The Ghost Rider's chariot rolled over him, which was "not very damaging, but extremely insulting."
Blackheart's eyes turned pitch black, without a trace of white.
He was very calm.
The calm before the storm.
How could he, with his high-minded pride, tolerate being insulted again and again?
He stood up stiffly from the ground and slowly took off his wool coat, vest, and unbuttoned his shirt.
Stripping before going all out... a good habit, strongly recommended for Banner and Night Werewolf to learn.
Black mist surged.
Blackheart revealed his demonic form—
His body grew taller, his skin became pitch black, a Stark contrast to the deathly white it was before.
He had no nose, only two empty nostrils.
He also had no lips, replaced by two rows of long, sharp, interlocking teeth that extended all the way to his ears.
This terrifying image could stop a child's night crying.
"Is this the true face of a demon?" Stark shivered.
"No, this is just their humanoid form," Mike said.
As for Blackheart's true form, Mike did not know. In Hell, demons hundreds of meters tall and several kilometers long were common.
Coulson asked, "Who has a better chance of winning?"
Mike looked over, "Who do you want to win?"
"Uh."
Coulson was silent for a moment, then spoke his true thoughts: "A mutual defeat would be best."
Strictly speaking, Ghost Rider is also a destroyer of order in the human world, and Ghost Rider had previously killed two S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents, although the Agents had disobeyed orders first.
A beloved leader is often a protective leader. Sacrificing one's own for the greater good is indeed admirable, but such a person is destined to be a "lone minister."
If the two dead Agents were HYDRA Agents, what would Coulson think?
"Neither of them can do anything to the other, I suppose," Mike answered Coulson's previous question.
Mike asked Carter to tell the five church priests to temporarily leave the battlefield; it was too dangerous there.
The five priests all looked resolute, stating that they would not fear, would not retreat, and that fighting for the Lord was an honorable act without harm.
Mike admired them verbally, but sighed inwardly: "You're a burden, don't you have any sense? So annoying..."
Were his words too subtle, so much so that the subtext wasn't heard?
Speechless.
Ghost Rider dismounted his motorcycle, pulled out the chain wrapped around his body, and stood ready to fight Blackheart.
Hellfire could cause damage to Blackheart.
But it wasn't fatal.
The black mist could consume Hellfire.
But it couldn't completely suppress it.
Blackheart had no soul, so the Judgment Eye could not take effect.
Therefore, no matter who was beating whom, and no matter how miserable the beating, they would eventually recover as before.
This was a war of attrition, but there wasn't much time left. Once day broke, Blackheart's power would be limited, and Ghost Rider would revert to Johnny.
So, in the end, neither could do anything to the other.
Unless... like in the original timeline, Blackheart absorbed the souls of the villagers trapped in San Venganza into his body, turning into a horde of ghosts, which allowed Ghost Rider's Judgment Eye to work, and then Ghost Rider sent all the evil spirits, including Blackheart, back to Hell.
Or there was intervention from a third party.
"So that's it..." Mike's heart stirred, vaguely understanding Mephisto's plan.
At this moment.
Coulson received a message through his earpiece, and with a strange expression, he said, "A large group of Police are tracking the traces left by Ghost Rider and are on their way."
"That brave?" Mike suspected he had misheard.
Facing a supernatural entity like Ghost Rider, a group of ordinary Police dared to pursue relentlessly... shouldn't they be relieved that Ghost Rider had left the city?
Of course, there were Agents among the American Police who were dedicated to the people and fearless of sacrifice, but they were a minority; most just saw policing as a profession to support their families—expecting them to charge into battle?
That's why he felt he had misheard.
Stark said quietly, "This is the rhythm of tirelessly sending people to their deaths."
"That's my fault..." Coulson rubbed his nose and said, "I uploaded the investigation results of the Pastor and the Professor to the general database for law enforcement agencies, so they think Ghost Rider is a superhero... and superheroes don't kill Police, right?"
This was like the Police in New York, fearless in the face of superheroes, but cowardly when facing super villains.
Smart people, indeed.
They knew how to assess the situation, knew who would kill them without hesitation, and who would take a beating without fighting back or cursing.
"I'll try to stop them," Coulson said.
S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Police were not the same system and had no direct authority to issue orders; they could only communicate through higher-ups. So Coulson could only call Fury to explain the situation.
And Fury could only patiently communicate with the high-ranking Police officials in Texas.
The person responsible for communicating with Fury on the Texas side was a civilian Chief Superintendent. The Chief Superintendent said a lot, the gist being that protecting the public was the duty of the Texas Police, blah, blah, blah.
The gist was, don't try to steal our glory.
The culprit hadn't been caught, and their minds were only on glory, ignoring the risks involved. No matter what Fury said, the other party wouldn't budge.
Fury was so angry he cursed, "Motherfucker, do you want your subordinates to die for nothing? Do you want a hundred cold bodies of officers with families and friends to be laid out in front of you tomorrow? Oh, I'm sorry, I forgot, maybe you don't care at all, you only care about the position you're sitting in and the ladder to climb higher. If serious casualties really happen, this recording will appear on all national media, and then we'll see how you pass the buck, fuck you, bitch!"
Fury slammed down the phone, a cold sneer on his lips.
Some people, you have to use both soft and hard tactics on them.
Soon, the Chief Captain responsible for pursuing Ghost Rider received an order phrased in diplomatic language, which, summarized, meant: observe from a distance, take advantage if there's an opportunity, and retreat immediately if there's danger.