"You could say that!"
Finney nodded. This guy was particularly interested in the obelisk and the research on superpowered individuals, even using ordinary people for experiments, which could be considered a grave sin.
Moreover, even without his involvement, after Hydra obtained the Mind Scepter, they still conducted research that transformed an ordinary brother and sister into superpowered individuals.
Thinking of Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver, Finney couldn't help but think of the experimental base in the information Sitwell had given him, and felt that perhaps he could take some time to go and rescue them.
Now that the Mind Scepter was with him, the two of them probably wouldn't have another chance to be modified to gain superpowers, and giving them an ordinary life would be quite good.
Skye's face showed a resentful expression, her fists clenched, and she asked Finney, "When do we leave?"
"In the next couple of days, let's make some preparations!"
Although Finney said they needed to make preparations, he actually just explained the action plan to Skye in detail and confirmed the situation at the base again; he didn't actually make any preparations.
Ultimately, while Whitehall was one of the Hydra leaders and had acquired Skye's mother's powers, his individual strength wasn't particularly formidable.
At least in Finney's view, the entire S.H.I.E.L.D. and Hydra lacked high-level combat capabilities; even the Winter Soldier was nothing compared to him.
Two days later, Finney and Skye began their operation.
Before setting off, Finney took the Mind Scepter. He hadn't properly used it since acquiring it, and this was a good opportunity to test its effectiveness against Hydra.
Opening a portal, the two arrived directly near the base.
"I'll go in first. You wait here for my notification,"
Finney instructed Skye. He didn't like things to be too complicated, so his request for Skye was simple: he would scout ahead and, once he was sure it was safe, she could follow.
"Finney, I'm pretty strong now too,"
Skye said, somewhat excited. After Finney's absence for the past six months, without supervision, she had practiced her abilities frantically, resulting in rapid growth, and she was eager to show off.
"No, behave yourself, or I'll send you back right now!"
Finney said seriously. He knew Skye was capable, especially after his recent inspections, where he had been astonished by her progress. However, her abilities primarily lay in destruction.
Defensively, while she was fine in active defense, she struggled to react quickly to ambushes. Furthermore, he couldn't lend Skye 'Possessed' right now; it would be too much of a strain on her body.
"Oh!"
Skye responded dejectedly, but she understood that Finney was concerned for her safety, so she didn't resist much.
Worried about unforeseen circumstances, Finney didn't linger. He concealed the Mind Stone within his cloak, activated 'Possessed' for invisibility, and infiltrated the base.
The Infinity Stones, being among the six most powerful stones in the universe, truly possessed immense power in terms of control.
After encountering Hydra agents, Finney could easily twist their minds with a mere touch, without altering their personalities—the effect was terrifyingly good.
With the Mind Stone's help, Finney quickly gained control of most of the base, and most importantly, no one noticed anything amiss.
"If Loki weren't so arrogant, Earth might really be in danger!"
Having witnessed the power of the Mind Scepter, Finney couldn't help but think of Loki. If Loki had chosen a different path, less blatantly revealing himself and focusing on secretly controlling the upper echelons of nations, Earth's current situation might be very different.
"Come here!"
Having confirmed the outpost's safety, Finney let Skye into the base. Seeing all the guards ignoring her, Skye looked surprised. Standing before Finney, she couldn't help but ask, "What's going on with them?"
"I told you, this scepter has the power to control and brainwash,"
Finney explained, holding up the Mind Scepter.
"But this is too…"
Skye didn't know what to say, her gaze towards the scepter filled with fear. Although she had heard Finney say this before, seeing its true effects made her understand its meaning.
"Alright, don't overthink it. I won't abuse its power,"
Finney explained, noticing the resistance in Skye's eyes.
While the Mind Scepter's control wasn't permanent, it was extremely difficult to break free, or rather, its effectiveness varied from person to person.
The stronger your will, the harder it was to resist, because it drew upon your own power to fight back. Only by surpassing your own will could you successfully resist.
But the stronger one's will, the harder it was to break through their limits. If your will wasn't strong enough, the Mind Scepter's control would be less effective.
This made Finney think that since Skye's mother could recover after being dismembered and lead an organization seeking revenge, her will must be very strong, and the brainwashing effect should be quite good.
However, the specifics would only be known after actually testing it.
To be honest, this intrusion was simpler than Finney had imagined. He barely fought at all; it was just simple invisibility, poking, controlling, then poking again, then controlling again.
Guided by their 'own people,' Finney and Skye quickly found their target: Daniel Whitehall.
When Finney entered his room, he was sitting at his desk reading a book, wearing a pair of old, small, round glasses, looking like a gentle and refined scholar.
"The Divine Punishment Knight!?"
Seeing Finney and Skye enter, Whitehall's eyes flashed with shock, but he didn't panic or shout. Instead, he stood up gracefully and said, "Welcome! I never expected the Divine Punishment Knight to grace us with his presence!"
Although Whitehall acted like a gentleman, Finney knew he was a ruthless executioner at heart, responsible for countless deaths from World War II to the present.
Finney didn't want to deal with this guy, but Skye was different. Seeing the murderer who had orphaned her and driven her parents insane living so comfortably, she couldn't help but feel angry and questioned,
"Doesn't your conscience bother you?"
Whitehall paused, looked at Skye, his eyes narrowing slightly, and asked, "Who are you?"
Although he hadn't intended to let these people go, Finney had prepared a mask for Skye as a precaution, allowing her to simply conceal her identity.
Even without her mask, Skye probably wouldn't recognize her.
Skye didn't answer, only glared at him angrily. With her enemy before her, she was emotionally agitated, and her abilities became unusually uncontrollable, causing everything around her to vibrate.
"Calm down!"
Sensing the anomaly, Finney grasped Skye's hand and reassured her, stopping the vibrations.
Whitehall had clearly noticed the anomaly Skye had caused. Having studied superhumans for so many years, he had spent his life pursuing the power of the obelisk. Upon seeing this, his first thought was whether Skye had any connection to the obelisk.
"What brings you two here?"
Whitehall secretly reached for his waist, his gaze sweeping towards the door. Although he didn't know Finney and Finney's purpose, Skye's attitude suggested it wasn't friendly.
Finney wasn't one to explain himself to his enemies. Noticing Whitehall's subtle movement, he didn't hesitate, lunging forward and throwing a punch at his face.
Perhaps a lingering effect of beating Loki, he now unconsciously aimed for the face when attacking.
Then, Finney poked the Mind Scepter into Whitehall's chest as he lay on the ground, a surge of blue energy instantly flooding his eyes.
"Master!"
When Whitehall stood up again, his attitude had changed. Unlike the previous guards, Finney's control over Whitehall was deeper and more demanding.
"I'm giving you a task: find all the information related to the woman who saved your life."
After gaining control, Finney assigned Whitehall his first task.
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(End of Chapter)