An hour later, the plane carrying Lin Zhengying and his team landed at S.H.I.E.L.D.’s New York headquarters, where Nick Fury was waiting for their arrival.
As the plane touched down and the hatch opened, Zhao Jian, Ma Yi, and Lin Zhengying disembarked, with Lin Zhengying leading the way.
Nick stepped forward, knowing that the leader usually walked at the front in Chinese customs.
“Captain Lin, welcome,” Nick said, extending his hand.
“Sorry, I’m not the captain,” Lin Zhengying said, stepping aside and revealing Zhao Jian behind him.
Nick felt a bit awkward. The information provided by China didn’t specify who the team leader was, making this misunderstanding hard to avoid.
However, Nick quickly recovered, his expression unchanged. “My apologies, Captain Zhao.”
“It’s not important. Daoist Lin is our spokesperson, so in a sense, you weren’t entirely wrong,” Zhao Jian replied with a smile.
Ma Yi, behind them, rolled his eyes, feeling annoyed by the pleasantries and the hypocrisy.
After some small talk, they all entered the S.H.I.E.L.D. building.
“Director Fury, let’s get straight to the point,” Lin Zhengying said, steering the conversation. “Can you brief us on the current situation?”
“Of course,” Nick nodded.
With a wave of his hand, several projection screens appeared before them.
“The target’s name is Loki, once a member of Asgard. Due to a significant political incident, he was exiled. You have the detailed information.”
“One day ago, Loki arrived on Earth through the Tesseract and immediately launched an attack, using his scepter to brainwash our top agent, Hawkeye, and scientist Dr. Selvig. The three then escaped from the research base.”
“So, our current opponents are three individuals?” Zhao Jian asked, not wanting to expose Nick’s embellishment about their ‘escape.’
“No, according to recent reports, several scientists from Oscorp have gone missing, likely taken by Loki. Additionally, analysis suggests that if the Tesseract’s power is released, an alien force might use it to invade Earth,” Nick explained.
Zhao Jian nodded in understanding.
“Earlier today, some special individuals had a confrontation with Loki, resulting in the destruction of nearly five streets and around twenty fatalities,” Nick said, pointing to images of Tony Stark and others.
“Special individuals? You mean participants from the Main God Space,” Ma Yi muttered, rolling his eyes at the complicated terminology.
“Are these individuals here now?” Lin Zhengying asked.
“No, they aren’t government employees. But don’t worry, we’ve reached an agreement with most of them to meet at a designated location tomorrow,” Nick lied smoothly.
In reality, only Tony Stark and Steve Rogers had confirmed their attendance. Nick hadn’t been able to contact the others, but he couldn’t reveal this truth.
“And how do you plan to locate Loki?” Zhao Jian asked, though he doubted S.H.I.E.L.D.’s efficiency, it was better than no support at all.
“The Tesseract constantly emits gamma radiation. We’ve sent our most experienced agents to invite an expert in this field,” Nick said, pulling up an image.
“Bruce Banner?!” Ma Yi exclaimed. “Isn’t he the Hulk?”
Zhao Jian slapped Ma Yi lightly and glared at him for his outburst.
“Not the Hulk, but the Green Giant. Before his transformation, Dr. Banner was the world’s foremost expert on gamma radiation,” Nick explained.
“Alright, we’ll discuss this further tomorrow,” Zhao Jian said.
Minutes later, Nick led them to their rest area.
“Daoist Lin, what do you think of Nick Fury?” Zhao Jian asked after inspecting the room.
“He’s a consummate liar with a face so thick it could stop bullets,” Lin Zhengying replied. “But that’s typical of politicians. Even in our brief interaction, it’s clear.”
“I suspected as much. I doubt the people he mentioned will show up tomorrow,” Zhao Jian said, placing a micro-camera from his pocket.
“Headquarters has sent over the information they’ve gathered,” Zhao Jian continued. “Their analysis suggests Tony Stark is the most likely to attend. Others, it depends. The least likely is Kingpin. Despite his efforts to go legitimate, he wouldn’t risk his life.”
“Why worry about it?” Ma Yi said, sitting on the bed and pulling out his gloves and bandages. “If they don’t come, they don’t come. We’re enough to handle a single Asgardian exile.”
“Don’t underestimate Loki. We don’t know his hidden tricks,” Zhao Jian warned. “Based on his combat abilities in the videos, it’s hard to imagine how he managed a coup.”
“Doesn’t matter. We’ve got the Hulk, haven’t we? I’ve read his file; he’s incredibly powerful,” Ma Yi said, excited.
“Stop calling him the Hulk! He’s the Green Giant!” Zhao Jian said, exasperated by Ma Yi’s immaturity. “And don’t think about challenging him. Control your battle lust.”
“Fine, I won’t fight the Hulk. Geez,” Ma Yi grumbled.
“He’s the Green Giant!”
“Okay, okay, the Green Hulk.”
“Whatever,” Zhao Jian shrugged, taking off his sword and beginning his routine practice.
“Director, what do you think of the Chinese team?” Agent Hill asked, following Nick.
“Why do you ask?”
“They don’t seem to trust us. And Zhao Jian pushing his teammate forward to speak showed a lack of sincerity.”
“It’s normal for them to be suspicious. And why do you care about their sincerity? Remember, they’re here to deal with Loki. As long as we’re united in protecting Earth, that’s enough,” Nick said.
“I understand,” Hill nodded.
“Did you remove all surveillance and listening devices from their room?” Nick asked.
“Yes, they’ve all been cleared,” Hill confirmed.
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