The sharp crack of gunfire echoed, followed by a dull thud. The body hit the ground, bounced once, then lay completely still. Blood pooled rapidly beneath it, spreading dark and sticky across the pavement. S.H.I.E.L.D. agents swarmed the scene, their gasps and murmurs rising in a chaotic clamor as they recognized the corpse's face. Hong Fei glanced at the body, then looked away, sucking in a sharp breath.
"Cruel," he muttered under his breath.
Pierce's cheek twitched.
"If I recall correctly," Hong Fei said without turning, "he attacked me first. You saw it, didn't you?"
His tone was calm, almost conversational, though there was no mistaking the underlying edge.
Pierce's eyes flickered, his expression unreadable.
"Of course," he replied smoothly. "He initiated the attack on you."
Hong Fei turned suddenly, catching Pierce off guard. The man recovered quickly, his face neutral. Hong Fei's lips curved into a warm, disarming smile.
"Mr. Pierce, I didn't see you at the banquet earlier. Why is that?"
Pierce opened his mouth to deliver his prepared excuse when footsteps sounded behind him. His expression shifted instantly. He stepped forward, his voice tinged with anxiety and a hint of panic.
"Mr. Hong, are you alright? I'm deeply sorry. I can't understand why Fury would suddenly attack you. This is... inexplicable."
Hong Fei glanced toward Steve, who was striding quickly toward them.
"I'm fine," he replied. "He didn't hurt me, but his injuries seem severe."
Pierce stifled a grimace. Severe? He's dead on the spot!
Steve reached them, his blue eyes sharp with concern. Hong Fei gave him a reassuring look, then leaned slightly past the glass wall. Steve followed his gaze, spotting the corpse below and the crowd of onlookers. He turned back to Hong Fei, astonished.
Hong Fei nodded silently, and Steve quieted, his tension easing. Pierce watched the exchange, his brow furrowing as he seemed to sink into thought.
Hong Fei extended his hand, and with a flick of his fingers, Fury's pager levitated from the ground into his palm. He examined it for a moment, then smiled.
"He must have succeeded in calling someone, didn't he?"
Both Pierce and Steve leaned in, staring at the device.
"What is that?" Steve asked, his brow creased in confusion.
Hong Fei pretended to consider the question.
"He said it could summon reinforcements."
"Reinforcements?" Steve frowned. "Did he call more superpowered individuals?"
Hong Fei shook his head and turned to Pierce.
"Mr. Pierce, what do you think?"
Pierce knew exactly who the device was meant to summon, but admitting it would ruin his plans. He furrowed his brow, feigning deep thought.
"I'm not sure. I've never seen this pattern before. I can look into it, but I can't promise results."
Hong Fei smiled. "Alright, I'll leave that to you."
He glanced at Steve.
"Have you finished discussing matters with Mr. Pierce?"
Steve nodded.
"Yes, we're done."
Hong Fei turned back to Pierce.
"Mr. Pierce, what do you think?"
Pierce nodded slowly.
"I can choose not to prevent anyone, including the Avengers, from leaving S.H.I.E.L.D. But unless they join your Superpower Foundation, otherwise—"
Hong Fei cut him off, his tone firm but calm.
"It's not my Superpower Foundation. It belongs to all superpowered individuals."
"Fine. Either they join the Superpower Foundation after leaving S.H.I.E.L.D., or I'll handle it according to current protocols—keep them under long-term surveillance. It's the only way to prevent leaks."
"Understood. Since we've covered everything, I'll take my leave now."
"Mr. Hong, won't you stay a while longer?"
"No, it's too noisy here."
The S.H.I.E.L.D. alarms were still blaring. As Hong Fei turned to leave, he paused.
"One more thing—about Fury's situation. No one's going to cause me trouble over it, right?"
Pierce met Hong Fei's calm gaze and felt an undercurrent of threat. After a brief hesitation, he replied, "Rest assured, Mr. Hong. I guarantee there won't be any issues. It was his own doing."
"Good."
Hong Fei turned away. The elevator was out of order, so he and Steve strode down the hallway, leaving openly and without hesitation. Outside, they glanced briefly at the crowd gathered around a body before walking off without a second look.
Pierce stood in his office, watching their retreating figures through the window. Once they were out of sight, he picked up the phone.
"Get Gatler and Rumlow in here. Now."
On the street, Steve broke the silence.
"Did Fury really attack you?"
"Of course not. But this situation isn't simple."
Hong Fei pulled out the pager again.
Steve glanced at it.
"Will that really summon reinforcements for Fury?"
Hong Fei nodded.
"How many?"
"Just one."
"One?" Steve blinked, surprised.
"Yes, just one."
Hong Fei's smile faded, his expression turning serious.
"Sometimes, one person is enough."
Steve's demeanor shifted to match Hong Fei's solemn tone.
"That powerful?"
"It's not just about power."
"A woman?"
"Yes."
"Go on."
"She's... the kind you rarely encounter. The kind that makes you want to strangle her."
Steve's face scrunched up in confusion, like an old man squinting at a smartphone on the subway.
Hong Fei clarified, "Let's just say she's incredibly strong. I don't even have absolute confidence against her."
Steve's eyes widened.
"Even you?"
"Excluding external factors, she's formidable."
Steve glanced around cautiously.
"Then she'll be here soon. Shouldn't we call for backup?"
Hong Fei chuckled, patting Steve's shoulder.
"Relax, it won't be that fast. She's far beyond the Solar System. Could take days—maybe even weeks. Hard to say."
"An alien?"
"No, an Earthling."
"Then how—?"
"She's one of those who gained abilities through mutation, but she's in a league of her own. Her mutation was triggered by the Tesseract—the thing we fought over before."
Steve's brows lifted.
"Since she's from Earth, is there any way to bring her into the fold? Get her to join the Superpower Foundation, maybe?"
"Impossible. She's too independent. When she was active, Fury was still a Level 3 Agent. If she'd stayed back then, the Battle of New York and the Dark Invasion wouldn't have happened. She could've ended those threats quickly."
"That strong?"
"Exactly. But she won't stay. Before the Superpower Foundation, people like Matt were just city-level vigilantes, or maybe state-level at best. It wasn't until the Avengers that we started protecting the entire planet. But she is different; from the beginning, she wanted to be a volunteer police officer for the entire Milky Way—even the universe. Her ambitions are on a cosmic scale."
"And when Earth was in chaos—she didn't care?"
"It's not that she didn't care at all. She gave Fury the pager, didn't she?"
Hong Fei held up the small device, turning it over in his hand.
Steve glanced at it, the corner of his mouth curling slightly: "This thing, I can tell just by looking that it must be very old. She hasn't been back for many years, has she?"
"Yeah."
Following that, he fell into deep confusion again: "Since Fury knows her and holds the item to contact her, why didn't Fury use it during the Battle of New York and the Dark Invasion? Instead, he had a hastily assembled Avengers take the field?"
"I've thought about this question too. First, Fury knew that she wouldn't stay long on Earth, so he felt that Earth needed a stable team. Second, perhaps Fury felt that the two events above were not enough to make her take action. Of course, this is on the premise that Fury is not HYDRA."
"That's absurd. Both wars caused huge casualties and losses. As the S.H.I.E.L.D. Director, he should have avoided any event that could harm the public as much as possible, rather than giving up calling for help out of reserve."
Hong Fei smiled: "Perhaps he was deliberately trying to train you all? War is the best training ground for cultivating soldiers."
"But he used the lives of ordinary people as a gamble."
"Alright, don't be angry anymore, he's dead."
When saying this, ripples surged in the depths of Hong Fei's eyes. Fury's original body was indeed dead, not disguised by Skrulls, nor was it a Phantom Illusion, but did he really have no backup plan? If he used the Tahiti Project to resurrect himself...
Putting this thought aside for now, Hong Fei said: "I have a summary of evidence regarding the speculation of Fury's true identity. Help me check if there is anything unreasonable."
"Alright!"
Steve nodded firmly. It was clear that he had confirmed Fury as HYDRA without a doubt. Then, he asked again: "So, what should we do next?"
"Fight. There is no other way. Fury is dead, and that was her old friend."
"I know, what I mean is, should we do some preparatory work?"
"No need."
"Hmm?"
"This battle cannot be fought on Earth. During the Dark Invasion, there was no choice; there were too many fleets, and their targets were only on the ground. But this time is different. She is coming alone, and her target is me, so I will take her to the sky."
Hong Fei raised his index finger toward the sky: "The higher, the better."
Steve was worried: "Then I won't be able to help you. Although the iron armor you gave me can fly, I haven't fully mastered it yet, and air combat is not quite the same as ground combat."
"It's fine, you can provide support for me from the ground."
Although your physical body cannot help, your spirit (skills) is with me.
Steve thought for a while and still suggested: "Should we notify them? We can make a plan first to weaken her strength as much as possible before you meet her."
Hong Fei still shook his head and refused: "It's useless. Her strength is unusual. It's different from everyone you've seen so far, and different from me too. Conventional attacks are ineffective and might even be countered by her."
"Then you are facing the enemy alone?"
"Everyone needs to watch the battle. They all need to understand how many powerful people are in this Universe. This will allow them to maintain a sense of awe at all times and not become arrogant. If the battle situation permits, I will select a few helpers to join in, but only to assist from the sidelines to gain combat experience; they cannot take on the main attack mission."
Steve sighed heavily.
"You have left us far behind."
"That doesn't matter. No matter how strong the power is, we are still friends."
"Yeah!"
Suddenly, Hong Fei pointed to the embankment by the river: "This place is not bad. You can swim across from here at night, and then try to infiltrate the underground Base."
Steve looked and nodded: "It's indeed feasible. I'll just wander around nearby; there aren't many hours left."
"Then I'll head back first."
"Yeah... no matter what, don't worry, you have us."
Hong Fei's lips curled into a thin smile.
"Alright."
He turned on his heel and walked away without another word. Only when he'd put considerable distance between them did he pause.
"Arthur," he called over his shoulder, "give Fury a complimentary cremation. And track down Tahiti—blast it to rubble."
The reply came crisp and immediate.
"Yes, sir."