Breaching the Checkpoint

World Master’s real name was Ershu. Though his history made him seem like quite an impressive figure, he actually had a very low appearance rate in the comics, practically amounting to a background villain.

A villain from the DC Universe with a similar history, Vandal Savage, was far more famous.

Like World Master, Savage had been a primitive human. During ancient times, he had been affected by extraterrestrial substances, gaining an extraordinarily long lifespan and immense power. Over the vast passage of time, both men had accumulated inexhaustible wealth and technology that surpassed Earth’s civilization.

However, in their respective universes, Savage and World Master’s lives had been vastly different.

The former had stolen Batman’s Tower of Babel Protocol and had come within inches of wiping out the Justice League. The latter had spent all his time stirring up trouble in Canada, and the most famous superheroes who had truly "fought" him were no more than Wolverine, Aquaman, Namor, and the like.

But Zhang Ye would not underestimate World Master because of that alone. After all, annihilating all of Atlantis was not something just anyone could accomplish. World Master’s ability to wage such a brilliant campaign in this world was more than enough to prove his strength.

What was more, he had extended his hand into Red Skull’s territory. Clearly, he had long since stopped taking Hydra seriously. He probably truly intended to rule the entire Earth and had already prepared to fight Red Skull to the bitter end.

Zhang Ye was not especially worried about him. After all, World Master generally stayed inside his own high-tech flying ship base and would not take the initiative to strike unless something unusual happened.

The troublesome part was that World Master had set up quite a few checkpoints here, apparently intending to root out Hydra spies.

"We probably can’t go any farther ahead. The snow is getting deeper and deeper. We should go borrow some useful equipment from those people before continuing."

After parking the car in the wilderness, Zhang Ye called for everyone to get out. A frigid breeze hit them head-on, and all they could see was an endless expanse of white snowfield.

Kara was not affected in the slightest. She had long since become immune to both heat and cold, so she was still wearing her ripped jeans and black short-sleeved shirt.

However, Pietro and Ashley shuddered the moment they got out of the car. They were superpowered individuals, true, but their powers had not granted them any resistance to the cold.

Seeing this, Venom immediately surged and transformed into a warm outer coat at a visible speed, tightly blocking out the cold wind and allowing Ashley to catch her breath.

"Does this feel more comfortable?" Venom’s words carried some concern, though not much.

".Thanks." Ashley nodded, her face flushed red, whether from the cold or something else.

Meanwhile, a burst of green light suddenly emerged from Pietro’s body. The next moment, he was dressed in a full set of down clothing. Pietro turned to look at Zhang Ye and saw ghostly green fluorescence dancing in his hand.

"Magic is pretty amazing, isn’t it?" Zhang Ye smiled, then looked at Kara. "Want me to make you a set too?"

"No need. I’m fine as I am. Being wrapped up too tightly would restrict my movements." Kara slowly shook her head.

Zhang Ye did not say anything further. Of course, he knew that thick clothing would limit everyone’s performance, but they were still relatively safe for now. Staying warm had to come first.

Ashley had Venom looking after her, so there was no need to worry too much. But Pietro was different. He could not exactly tell Pietro, "You’ll warm up once you start running," could he?

"There’s a checkpoint not far ahead. There should be snowmobiles there. With those, we’ll make much better progress. Hopefully, we can catch up to Barton. I can sense that he isn’t far from us," Zhang Ye said.

"How do you know where that old… my father is?" Ashley corrected herself in time as she looked at Zhang Ye.

"Did you think I tied your father up for no reason? I left a magical mark on him earlier. If he encounters danger, it will activate immediately and save his life once. Since I was the one who left the mark, naturally I can sense where it is," Zhang Ye explained.

Ashley nodded, but she still did not understand why this Witch Raven cared so much about Old Barton.

Before long, the group arrived at a checkpoint near the Canadian border.

From a distance, Zhang Ye saw seven or eight guards armed with firearms standing watch. Behind them, a relatively crude barrier gate blocked the road, while two people farther down the road were clearing snow from the pavement.

The four of them did not pause at all and walked straight toward the checkpoint. Only when they got closer did Zhang Ye finally spot the snowmobiles he wanted behind several single-story buildings.

"Stop!"

Seeing four strangers brazenly approaching the checkpoint, the guards immediately raised the guns slung behind them, their muzzles instantly aimed at Zhang Ye and the others’ heads.

The leader shouted loudly.

"This place belongs to the lord of the world, the King of the North. State your names and show your identification, otherwise—"

"Let’s just kill them. No one’s come through here in ages. I’m bored to death staying here every day. These little fuckers came right to our doorstep, so let’s have some fun," the deputy officer beside him sneered.

"Those two chicks aren’t bad either. After we’ve had our fun, we might even be able to sell them for a good price."

The guards showed no intention of taking Zhang Ye and the others seriously. Instead, they loudly appraised them, their mouths full of filthy obscenities as bursts of laughter rang out from time to time.

Ashley had never endured such humiliation before. She immediately clenched her fists, ready to act, but before making her move, she cautiously glanced at Zhang Ye.

"Leave none alive." Zhang Ye did not even turn his head, his tone utterly calm.

But for the other three, those words were enough.

In the blink of an eye, Pietro, Kara, and Ashley rushed forward at top speed.

The distance between both sides was not great, and seeing that Zhang Ye’s group were all young, the soldiers had not taken them seriously at all. But soon, they would pay for their mistake.

Zhang Ye paid no attention to the soldiers’ screams. He merely turned and walked toward the single-story buildings.

Activating the Wizard’s Eye, Zhang Ye could clearly see a cluster of ghostly green flames inside one of the buildings. He drew his umbrella, loaded it with Armor-Piercing Rounds, raised it, and aimed in one fluid motion.

As an explosive gunshot rang out from the black umbrella, a finger-width hole suddenly appeared in the building’s outer wall, and the flame inside immediately vanished.

Only after doing all that did Zhang Ye put away his umbrella and turn his attention back to the snowmobiles.