Shadow Blooms Like a Black Lily

There would always be fish that slipped through the net. In the end, a three-man infiltration team had broken into the command center. It was hard to say whether they were lucky or unlucky.

The team leader crouched by the doorway and peeked inside. Ah, the situation was favorable. The people inside had only just stabilized the situation and confirmed the Helicarrier’s heading. They were completely unguarded on the side of the door. Hmph, then I won’t hold back. Taste my Italian Grenade!

As luck would have it, Hill had just finished assigning tasks and turned toward the doorway, only to see a grenade flying straight at her. She was about to shout a warning when a fat man, round as a pig, suddenly appeared and floated lightly into the air. She only had time to marvel, What incredible qinggong! Then she watched the fat man go, "Awoo… emmmm."

He swallowed it! He swallowed the grenade whole!

It was Hill’s first time witnessing such a savage scene firsthand. Her mouth fell open in shock. She had expected a gruesome explosion of blood and flesh, but after the fat man drifted gently back to the ground, a muffled boom came from inside him. His body abruptly swelled three or four times larger, and then… burp.

After letting out a light burp, his body gradually returned to normal as he transformed into a deep-blue creature, broad on top and narrow below, with thick arms. It was the Voidwalker, Dumen.

Nick Fury, who was also in the hall, naturally saw all of this. Only then did he realize these were Evenson’s subordinates. Still, he wondered, Weren’t they stationed on this deck? And I don’t remember them entering the hall.

Rat-a-tat-tat… The sound of automatic rifles firing interrupted Nick Fury’s thoughts. The infiltration team had opened fire.

In truth, seeing someone swallow a grenade whole had rattled them too. But they had a mission and could not retreat. Besides, according to the plan, the two snipers powerful enough to build an empire would come support them, so they could only charge forward despite their fear.

Smack, smack, smack. A purple-blue one-handed battle axe spun through the air and struck the lead infiltrator in the neck. But it did not end there. The axe bounced in a way that defied the laws of physics, slashing each of the remaining two men once before flying back into someone’s hand.

"Ms. Carter." Nick Fury stared at Peggy Carter in surprise. He had no idea when this senior agent, rejuvenated in her old age, had learned that trick. Or perhaps the two of them simply defied Newton whenever they threw something.

"Even under a surprise attack, letting someone break in here so easily can only mean your defenses are far too lax, Nick." Peggy Carter coldly tucked Revenge behind her waist.

The command center was the brain of the Helicarrier. If it were breached, it would be a literal decapitation strike. Peggy Carter was therefore extremely dissatisfied that this place had come under attack so easily.

"Barton is one of my finest agents." Nick Fury meant that it was not that his side had failed to try; the enemy was simply too formidable.

"I do agree with that…" Carter took off her sunglasses and casually tossed them aside. They had only cost 3.2, after all. Nothing worth cherishing.

Fel flames burned fiercely in her eye sockets as Ghost Vision activated at full power.

Hmm? Carter first looked to one side in confusion, then suddenly whipped her head toward the other. "Ha!" With a sharp shout, Carter rushed toward the other side so quickly she nearly left an afterimage. She drew Revenge and slashed with movements too fast for ordinary people to see. With a crisp snap, a Broken Arrow fell at her feet.

A closer look revealed a probe on the arrowhead. Its original target had been the external port of the main control computer. This was a Hacker Arrow.

Anyone who dared to fire such an arrow—or rather, anyone qualified and capable of firing one—could only be Hawkeye Barton. He had been hiding at a window in the shadows, intending to use this opportunity to forcibly shut down the Helicarrier. But under Carter’s Ghost Vision, none of his movements could escape detection.

"Tch." Carter drew Havoc to return fire, only to discover that her opponent had already left. Hawkeye was a top-tier agent. If a single strike failed, he would retreat far away; he would not stand in one spot and trade shots with someone like an inexperienced rookie.

"Ms. Carter, please pursue her." Nick Fury ran over as he spoke. This was one of the rare times he used honorifics.

"That won’t do…" Carter smiled faintly. Under Nick Fury’s puzzled gaze, she aimed Havoc in the other direction. "Because there’s still one here."

Boom. Havoc let out a muffled roar, firing a green fireball toward the ventilation shaft.

Before it could be hit, a figure jumped down from the vent. Yet upon landing, she transformed into a large cloud of black smoke. Carter frowned slightly. She discovered that even her Ghost Vision could not see through the black mist.

Whoosh. A grappling hook shot out from the black mist and latched onto the ceiling. The black smoke then gathered into a graceful figure, who soared toward the ceiling under the pull of the hook. After passing over everyone’s heads—

Her body suddenly turned upside down in midair. One leg curled around the rope as she arched her body backward, raised her sniper rifle, and took aim. The entire sequence flowed in one seamless motion.

An expert. Seeing her opponent’s fluid movements, Carter immediately went on guard. But the flames in her eyes flickered, and she relaxed slightly.

"Shadow Blooms Like a Black Lily." A pitch-black trajectory shot from the sniper rifle toward Carter, but it ultimately streaked past her ear and flew toward the space behind her.

"Urgh…" Thud. A dying scream rang out, followed by the sound of a pistol dropping to the floor. Everyone turned around to see one of the infiltrating combatants struggling to prop up his upper body, with a pistol lying beside him. He was the man Carter’s battle axe had struck last.

It seemed Carter had not yet fully mastered her skills, and her final axe blow had failed to hit a vital spot. While everyone was distracted, he had pulled out his pistol and prepared a sneak attack. Honestly, how much had Loki paid him? He had only one breath left. Wouldn’t it have been better to lie down and play dead? Why insist on rushing over to die?

With a rustle, a bizarre scene unfolded. The man’s upper body turned into black sand and scattered across the floor. He could not have been more dead.

Everyone turned back to look at the person who had dealt with the sneak attacker. She wore high-heeled combat boots and a low-cut, slit purple bodysuit wrapped around her devilish figure. Tactical compound-eye goggles covered half her face, while she held the strange-looking sniper rifle upright at her side.

"You let your guard down, Little Pei," she said in a seductive voice. From her words, it was clear that she was very familiar with Carter.

"You are…" Carter frowned deeply. She seemed to recognize this person, but she was not entirely certain.

The woman raised a hand and pressed the back of her head. Her tactical goggles opened, revealing a face Carter knew all too well.

"Dottie? What are you doing here?" Carter asked in surprise. This person was Dottie Underwood, who had been taken away by the Eredar Twins.