Going to Brazil

Although the hearing had encountered a few unexpected twists, it still concluded according to the normal "ending" of the plot.

Justin Hammer emerged looking utterly bewildered, as if he had no idea how he had lost. Clearly, once Li Hui had spoken, the overall situation had been settled. Even he himself had felt that what Li Hui said was absolutely correct.

But after that strange fellow on the other side spoke, the entire atmosphere changed in an instant.

He had lost so unjustly, so inexplicably.

In contrast to Justin Hammer’s confusion, the exchange students from the Beiyang Society all heaved sighs of relief, looking as though they had narrowly escaped death.

That had been close. Far too close!

They had nearly fallen into the trap.

Openly confronting a S.H.I.E.L.D. consultant—wasn’t that courting death?

"Good thing that newcomer risked himself to warn us. Otherwise, we’d have been finished."

"Yeah, we really need to thank him properly."

"Looks like we wronged him."

"…"

Now that they had escaped death, they did not hesitate to feel grateful toward their "savior."

Jealousy was one thing, but now it seemed that he was one of their own after all. He had not forgotten about them.

"Yes, we did wrong him. Everyone, don’t be discouraged by this failure. Although we didn’t get information on the new Iron Man suit, Hammer Industries can still produce them on an assembly line. Our objective hasn’t changed."

Liu Hongtao, the registrar, also spoke up to encourage the team. Although this operation had become riskier, at least it had not produced the worst possible outcome. Their ultimate gains had not been affected too severely either.

Then Chen Hang, who had remained silent until now, spoke.

"Besides, hasn’t our newcomer already gotten close to Tony? Once we get the benefits we have in hand, if he can continue staying by Tony’s side, we may be able to win him over."

The moment he said this, everyone’s eyes lit up. That was right. Compared to the defeated Hammer Industries, the benefits of an assembly line were indeed considerable, but in terms of Ultimate Potential, it naturally could not compare to Tony.

More importantly, this newcomer had taken such a huge risk to warn them about their safety. His personality was most likely the saintly type. All they had to do was put a righteous cause over his head, and they could easily coerce him through moral pressure.

Even if he still refused in the end, what kind of waves could a formal Reincarnator possibly make in their hands? He would agree whether he wanted to or not!

What they did not notice was that after they left the hearing, atop a tall building outside, one of two figures watching them through binoculars spoke to his companion.

"Those people seem to be exchange students from the Beiyang Army at the academy. What are they doing sneaking into the hearing? Trying to get close to Tony?"

"Indeed. That one is Chen Hang. He has some ability. But the group they’re following seems to be from Hammer Industries."

The other person spoke with some confusion as well. Then the two exchanged glances, a strange light flashing in their eyes.

Had these people found another mission?

If another Reincarnator team had discovered a mission, they would at least have to consider whether it was worthwhile and cost-effective before deciding to snatch it. But since it was this bunch of exchange students, what was there to worry about?

In the real world, various restrictions and Saint Hill Military Academy’s public protection prevented them from doing anything to these people. But in the Reincarnation Space, without even a big shot to back them up, weren’t they free to toy with them as they pleased?

"Good. I’ll tail them and see what they’re up to. If there’s really something there, I’ll notify you."

"Mm. With your abilities, Chen Hang definitely won’t notice…"

"I have something to do in Brazil. My intuition tells me there’s somewhere there that needs me to uphold justice."

After the hearing ended, Xu Yue turned and said this to Tony.

Although the hearing was technically part of the plot of Iron Man 2, Xu Yue’s intervention had pushed the timeline forward considerably.

Justin Hammer and the others alone posed little threat to Tony, so there was no need to worry too much. As for the Reincarnators, after learning that Tony was a S.H.I.E.L.D. consultant, they would certainly only try to curry favor with him. In fact, most Reincarnators had originally been protecting Tony anyway.

Therefore, Ivan Vanko, whose equipment had not even been fully designed yet, was not much of a threat to Tony for the time being.

On the other hand, news of the Hulk had already vaguely begun to emerge from Brazil.

An old man had displayed a Gamma Ray reaction after drinking a bottle of soda!

This should have been caused by Banner’s Blood accidentally dripping into a bottle while Dr. Banner was hiding in Brazil and learning how to control his emotions, working at a beverage factory.

Oh, the news had come from Human Path among the Six Paths of Pain.

With their ability to communicate and share information in real time, obtaining intelligence from far away was truly simple.

In Xu Yue’s original calculations, he had planned to let Human Path handle matters over there directly.

But after exchanging blows with Mordo and roughly assessing the combat capabilities of the characters in this Mission Space, Xu Yue still did not dare risk letting Human Path deal with the situation alone.

The inferior version of the Hulk from French Credit that Xu Yue had dealt with before might not have been inferior to the newly transformed Hulk in terms of initial abilities. Its defensive power, combined with its rubber-monster-like transformations, might even have made it more versatile.

However!

The Hulk’s most terrifying trait was that, as his anger grew, his theoretical strength could increase without limit.

It was not impossible for Human Path to fail…

Even without considering Tony’s "connections" within S.H.I.E.L.D., Jarvis alone was the most valuable thing about him in Xu Yue’s eyes.

But when it came to Dr. Banner, a sample of his blood alone would already be an excellent reward.

The late-stage boss of The Incredible Hulk, Abomination, had in fact used Dr. Banner’s blood.

Of course, what Xu Yue found useful was Dr. Banner, not that universally hated Hulk…

Xu Yue boarded Tony’s private jet and flew straight to Brazil. Meanwhile, General Ross, who had been trying to recreate the Super Soldier Serum, received intelligence about the Gamma Ray infection only slightly later than Xu Yue and immediately began gathering special forces soldiers.

He prepared to head to Brazil to capture Banner. A military aircraft landed in Brazil shortly after Xu Yue’s private jet…

Elsewhere, Brazil~

Banner grabbed the wrist of the man in front of him, a faint green tint already appearing in his eyes.

"I said, give it back!"

Even his roar carried a soul-shaking intimidation. The man holding the bloodstained towel hurriedly let go, and Banner immediately snatched it back.

After retrieving the towel, Banner seemed to use the techniques he had learned in Brazil to control his emotions, calming himself down once more.

"Sorry, friend. I have an infectious blood disease. This thing is dangerous."

"N-No, it’s fine. I was the one who didn’t think it through."

The man who had been frightened earlier bowed in apology before leaving in a flustered state.

Only after taking a roundabout route back to a tin shack in the slums did he finally breathe a sigh of relief.

"I told you not to be so hasty! What if you provoked him into transforming? He cares deeply about his blood!"

The moment he entered the shack, he was rebuked by his companion inside.

"Didn’t we already get word that General Ross’s side has taken off? What if they get involved before we act? Kill them first? Aren’t you afraid of S.H.I.E.L.D.?"

"Of course not. We can use strategy, understand? Banner is just as terrifying. Think about how many big shots he has torn apart with his bare hands. Several of those who used their privileges to resurrect don’t even dare step foot in this Mission Space anymore."

The female Reincarnator waiting for him inside spoke in a grave tone.

"But look at that big shot from French Credit. He got Banner’s blood, and that was how he soared to greatness! An immortal body—this is an ability everyone in the Space dreams of!"

"If it weren’t so valuable, why do you think we’ve been waiting here so patiently? Don’t worry. Once General Ross’s special forces team arrives, it seems we can assist General Ross instead."

The female Reincarnator revealed a smile of certain victory, though her expression also carried urgency and fervor.

"You… got new intelligence again?"

"That’s right! I’ve obtained detailed intelligence. When General Ross captures Banner, he doesn’t transform immediately, and he even gets hit by a tranquilizer dart in the end. If we replace the warhead with a vacuum injector to draw his blood, wouldn’t that make it foolproof…"

Two updates done~

Time to cultivate immortality again…