Coulson's promise sounded magnificent.
Resources. Authority. Support.
To anyone dreaming of wearing a cape, it would have been irresistible.
But Li Jie wasn't dreaming.
In his ears, it sounded less like an invitation—and more like a leash.
Early Steve Rogers had been a symbol, a wartime poster given flesh and blood. A product of propaganda before he became a legend.
Li Jie had no interest in being anyone's symbol.
Survive first.
Grow stronger second.
Live comfortably third.
As for free labor wrapped in patriotic slogans?
Forget it.
When he jokingly asked for the Infinity Gauntlet, Coulson promised it without hesitation. That alone told Li Jie everything he needed to know.
Big words. Bigger lies.
Still, Li Jie smiled and played along.
"Bring me the Infinity Gauntlet tomorrow, and I'll join."
Coulson immediately ordered his secretary to investigate.
That level of commitment was either impressive—
—or desperate.
The Helicarrier tour was polished and deliberate. Coulson showcased Tony Stark's former workshop, praising genius, sacrifice, justice.
Then he revealed the repaired Bat Mech.
That part, at least, impressed Li Jie.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s efficiency was real.
But when Coulson offered hardware and software upgrades, Li Jie declined without hesitation.
Hardware could be replaced.
Software meant control.
The moment S.H.I.E.L.D. touched his core systems, the initiative would no longer be his.
After flying out through the Helicarrier's launch corridor, Li Jie immediately ordered a full internal scan.
The Bat Computer responded coldly.
"Additional positioning devices detected."
"Listening devices detected."
"Surveillance modules detected."
"System trojan detected."
Li Jie's lips twitched.
Of course.
"Remove everything that doesn't belong to us."
Minutes later, the mech was clean.
Only then did he relax.
New York was clearly under heavy S.H.I.E.L.D. monitoring now. Staying nearby was inconvenient.
He was considering returning to Gotham when a call came in.
Ada Wong.
Umbrella's Tokyo headquarters had been located.
That instantly sharpened his focus.
Tokyo meant purification facilities.
Which meant annihilation-level explosives.
In the original timeline, Albert Wesker had activated the system, wiping out an entire city and nearly the entire Alice Legion.
Li Jie had no intention of letting history repeat.
He arrived in Tokyo quickly.
The city was dead like all others—streets clogged with abandoned vehicles and wandering corpses. Umbrella's headquarters towered above the ruins, surface defenses still intact.
Ada's battle plan was clean and efficient.
Surface seizure in under a minute.
Elevator shaft breach.
Suicide squad down.
Main force sweep.
Textbook urban assault.
Li Jie approved—but altered one detail.
"I go first."
Ada hesitated, but didn't argue.
When he flew toward the building, two Sidewinder missiles cleared the approach. Surface defenses collapsed almost instantly under the Bat Mech's precision strikes.
Within seconds, the elevator shaft was breached.
Underground defenses were even less effective.
With Li Jie acting as a spearhead, Alice's forces encountered minimal resistance.
Albert Wesker, however, attempted escape.
The moment Li Jie sensed movement toward the hangar, he changed tactics.
Vines wrapped silently around the aircraft's landing gear—telekinetically guided plant matter manipulated from surrounding debris.
Wesker destroyed them easily.
That was expected.
The vines were only a distraction.
Using his Shadow Warrior ability, Li Jie infiltrated the aircraft during the delay.
When Wesker reentered the cockpit—
A blade flashed.
His head dropped.
Clean.
Li Jie didn't stop there.
He emptied an entire M1911 magazine into the severed head before stepping back.
Only when the system notifications appeared did he relax.
"Alice's object manipulation ability +1."
"Combat skill +1."
"Strength +1."
"Speed +1."
"Experience +300."
The telekinetic upgrade was the true prize.
Direct interference in enemy movement could change any battlefield.
With Wesker dead, activation authority for the purification facility was gone.
Tokyo was secured.
After handing cleanup to Ada, Li Jie returned to Gotham for rest and repairs.
For the first time in days, he slept deeply.
Until—
Bang. Bang. Bang.
The door burst open.
Selina Kyle—Catwoman—stood there, breathing fast, eyes bright.
"I found it."
Li Jie sat up immediately.
"The Dionysian factor?"
She pulled out a glass container slightly larger than her fist.
Inside, green metallic liquid swirled slowly, viscous and luminous.
Even through the glass, Li Jie could feel it.
The Dionysian factor.
He had searched relentlessly and found nothing.
She located it in days.
Professional thief instincts were terrifying.
"Let me see," he said carefully.
Selina handed it over—but didn't release immediately.
"You know what this is worth."
"I do."
"And you know what it does."
"I do."
The Dionysian factor enhanced regeneration dramatically. Combined with his current abilities, it could push his survivability to an entirely different level.
But overuse risked instability.
Madness.
Physical mutation.
Unpredictable side effects.
He examined the liquid under light.
Density. Purity. Color.
It was real.
"Where did you get it?" he asked.
"Black-market vault. Private collector. Former biotech executive."
Of course.
Li Jie exhaled slowly.
This wasn't just power.
This was insurance.
Against zombie super-soldiers.
Against Hulk-level monsters.
Against S.H.I.E.L.D.
He looked up at Selina.
"What do you want in return?"
Her smile curved slightly.
"A partnership."
Not ownership.
Not hero worship.
A partnership.
Li Jie considered.
Survival first.
Strength second.
Comfort third.
Selina fit all three categories surprisingly well.
He capped the bottle carefully.
"Deal," he said.
Outside the window, Gotham remained dark and silent.
But inside that room—
The balance of power shifted again.
....
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