Chapter 309

Expanding selfish desires was not a good thing, but everyone had them. Commoners wanted to become officials; once they became officials, they wanted to become emperors. After becoming emperors, they wanted immortality. Once immortal, they still dreamed of becoming saints in the flesh.

Naturally, the committee’s directors were not brain-damaged fools or hopeless trash. If they truly were idiots, they could never have climbed to those positions. Yet they could not restrain their ambitions and wanted to climb even higher.

But they were already the most powerful people in the world. If they climbed any higher, what, were the five of them each going to carry a cross and proclaim themselves God?

So, after discussing it among themselves and listening to certain people’s agitation, they decided to become dictators.

They flipped through history books, studied the glorious deeds of their predecessors, and discovered that war was practically a shortcut on the road to dictatorship.

Just look at Hitler, Mo—uh… never mind that one. What did they all rely on to rise to power?

Thus, they set their sights on Asgard.

But as the saying went, provisions had to be prepared before the troops moved. Waging an Interstellar War was not like hosting a dinner party. At the very least, they had to get their intelligence work in order and determine the enemy’s strength.

Yet they did not even know where Asgard was. Norse mythology on Earth was all vague and obscure, offering no reference value at all. So Sif, a living Asgardian, became their primary target of attention.

Sif was straightforward by nature, and Asgardians had always had the proud tradition of bragging at the drinking table. So long as they found a few agents to drink with her, the information they wanted would be carried back by the recording equipment.

What? Why not have those agents recount it themselves? Because after drinking to their hearts’ content with Sif, they had all suffered alcohol poisoning and been rushed to the hospital. One of them had tried to play clever at the table and got beaten until his internal organs bled. He had yet to leave intensive care, and his family was already preparing for his funeral.

But once the intelligence reached them, the committee members grinned so widely their back teeth nearly showed.

Because Sif had opened with, "My great Asgardian army is mighty and magnificent! Spears stand like a forest, swords fall like rain, and shields form walls! Back in my day, beheading generals and seizing banners was nothing to me!"

This led the committee members to conclude that the Asgardians relied on their powerful physiques and were hopelessly obsessed with the bloody clash of cold weapons. What wonderful news!

It was not as if they had never doubted Sif’s words. After all, she had said them at a drinking table. But then they thought about it again—who would ever make their boasts smaller when drinking? Thus, they believed Sif’s description of Asgard’s military strength was still inflated, and that their actual strength should be another thirty percent weaker.

Now they were confident. The committee celebrated in delight. So what if the Asgardians were physically strong? Great Earth had endless artillery and missiles, with nuclear weapons to back them up. Could they really be afraid of a pack of savage barbarians who only knew how to hack with swords and axes?

Besides, hadn’t that Asgardian woman already said it? That Destroyer from last time had already been one of Asgard’s top combat forces, and there was only one of those deluxe collector’s items. Yet hadn’t Earth dismantled it? Moreover, they had already created weapons based on the Destroyer’s principles. Before long, they would even be able to mass-produce them. What was there left to fear?

That settled it! The committee decided to use Asgard as a stepping stone on their path to success. Once they succeeded, east, west, south, north, and center—the five of them would divide the world among themselves!

All one could say was that their ideals were plump, while reality was practically a bone demon.

First, Asgard was not without long-range thermal weapons! But using those weapons was certainly not as thrilling as fighting with cold weapons, so Sif had not bragged about them.

And could cold weapons really be looked down upon? Their guardian god Heimdall could leap into space and cleave apart a spaceship with a two-handed sword. God King Odin, wielding Gungnir, the Spear of the Great God, could chat and laugh while reducing ten thousand troops to ashes! Even the spears carried by ordinary soldiers could fire lasers. They could blast your face apart in seconds, believe it or not?

Besides, back then, the Zerg had chewed through an entire star sector with nothing but their mouths. Did Mengsk ever say they lacked anything?

"More importantly… they have the Bifrost." Evenson had already relayed everything he knew about Asgard’s strength. Judging by Nick Fury’s expression alone, people would have believed he was the European Emperor.

"What about the Bifrost?" Nick Fury wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He remembered that the Bifrost was a teleportation device, wasn’t it?

"The Bifrost can do more than teleport. It can also be used as…" A mischievous smile appeared on Evenson’s lips. "A planet-destroying weapon."

"A planet-destroying weapon…" Nick Fury repeated the words one by one. To be honest, the term was both familiar and unfamiliar to him. Such weapons often appeared in science-fiction comics, but in reality…

"When the Bifrost activated, it released enormous energy. Loki once tried to use it to destroy the Frost Giants’ planet." Evenson explained, "According to my calculations, if the Bifrost operated at full power for two hours, Earth would become dust in the universe."

After hearing this, Nick Fury remained silent for a long time. He had only one thought now: Give me a machine gun, and I’ll go take out those five lunatics! What World Security Council? You’re the World Destruction Council! All you know is how to court death!

"Actually…" Seeing Nick Fury like this, Evenson suddenly changed his tone. "Everything I just said was merely my personal speculation. It cannot be taken as fact!"

With a crack, Nick Fury felt that turn had come so suddenly it nearly threw out his back. But after thinking it over, he agreed. "Right. They’re only speculations."

What else could they be if not speculation? Could he produce hard evidence? No? Sorry, then they could only be called speculation.

But Nick Fury became even more wary. It seemed the committee members were not satisfied with their current authority. Though there was no evidence to deal with them now, he would have to keep watch in the future. If they introduced any more plans resembling high-pressure dictatorship, he would have to investigate them thoroughly and make sure they did not exploit any loopholes.

"I’ve said everything I needed to say." Evenson stood up. "And it seems you also don’t…"

"Don’t worry, I’m not keeping you for dinner. Go." Nick Fury said directly.

"Then… what about my disability compensation?" Evenson asked again.

Nick Fury leaned back on the sofa. "Go find Melinda and complete the paperwork. Consider it payment for telling a good story just now."

Evenson’s expression stiffened slightly when he heard that. Coulson had only just died. The temperature in Melinda’s office could freeze a penguin right now. Going there at this moment would be asking for trouble.

"Oh, right." Nick Fury suddenly called Evenson back. His eyes gleamed with an indescribable light as he asked, "In your Magic world, what do you think about bringing the dead back to life?"

Evenson smiled faintly. "No opinion."