Steve’s Intentions

Only then did Carl understand why she could still be alive despite not breathing or feeling a heartbeat.

Or, more precisely, she was no longer sure whether her current state could still be considered alive.

Her first reaction was that she couldn’t go on living in this form, or she would inevitably become a hostage Whitehall could use to threaten her daughter. But when she tried to kill herself, she discovered that she no longer had any limbs at all, making suicide impossible. Even biting through her tongue wouldn’t kill her.

The force sustaining her life was the magnetic field rotational power transmitted from within her body. It was a miracle of life that allowed her to survive without breathing, a heartbeat, or blood circulation…

She tried manipulating the Magnetic Field Force to kill herself, but it still didn’t work.

Some kind of program seemed to have been installed in her body. The magnetic field power could only be directed outward; it couldn’t harm her or the person wearing the armor.

Moreover, when she had just activated her Astral Energy, she didn’t know what the scientists had done, but that mode had been locked in place. She now only had two permissions: using the magnetic field power to speak and to activate and maintain the Astral Energy. She could no longer use any of the other magnetic field power.

In other words, from now on, she could only survive as the secondary brain of the Twin-Headed Armor.

"The outer layer of your head is also wrapped in Vibranium. Combined with the energy shield, no one can hurt you. And now that you’ve merged with the armor, you’ve effectively reached the realm of immortality."

Whitehall stood before Carl and continued explaining at length:

"Once Daisy joins us, I’ll consider letting her use the Twin-Headed Armor. You’ll be responsible for maintaining the energy shield and protecting your beloved daughter. Not only will you be able to watch her get married and have children, you could even become her family’s heirloom, serving the family’s descendants generation after generation!"

"Fine, I understand what you mean. Don’t worry, I won’t slack off. Now stop wasting time here and go find my daughter! Let me have some peace and quiet!" Carl shouted irritably.

"Okay! I’m leaving right now. Trust me, no one can hide what Hydra wants to find!"

Whitehall knew Carl needed time to adjust, so he promptly stopped talking and left.

Soon, the scientists and the Magnetic Field Warriors withdrew as well, leaving behind only an empty hall and the Twin-Headed Armor hanging in the exact center.

Carl sighed and sadly closed her eyes, only to discover that even with her eyes shut, she couldn’t fall asleep. With the energy sustaining the Twin-Headed Armor, she had been deprived of the ability to sleep and dream. She would remain awake forever, facing this cold world.

The New White House had been destroyed, and quite a few Federation officials had died as a result, but this had not affected the operation of the Federation’s government in the slightest. Hydra had too many elite reserves, so it was enough to replace one group with another. They were all on the same side anyway, so the continuity of policy would not change.

But the matter of Thor Peter couldn’t be concealed. Too many unrelated people had witnessed Peter’s actions that day. So, a wanted notice was issued.

Hydra’s Peter Parker had been exposed, assassinated the president, failed, and fled. He was wanted throughout the world.

Thanks to the black technology in the construction industry, a new White House had risen from the ground at the original site in just a few days. It wasn’t exactly identical to the one that had been destroyed, but it was very similar.

President Rogers returned to his office and began handling government affairs from all over the country.

The sound of high heels rang out, and Saoji Carter entered with a document in hand. Seeing Steve frowning deeply, she placed the document on the desk, walked around behind him, put both hands on his shoulders, and massaged them firmly as she asked softly:

"What’s wrong? Have you run into some difficult matter?"

Steve tossed the document in his hand onto the desk, pinched the furrow between his brows, and said, "I don’t know why, but ever since what happened with Peter, I haven’t been able to calm down. It feels as though there’s a voice in my heart constantly bothering me."

Saoji’s hands stiffened. Conflicting emotions flickered repeatedly in her eyes, but eventually her expression returned to normal as she comforted him, "Peter is your fan, after all, and also your friend. After something like this happened to him, of course you’d feel upset."

"But everyone has to bow to reality. Once Peter comes to his senses, he’ll naturally join our Hydra. By then, all the conflicts will be resolved."

"sigh, I hope so." Steve sighed and picked up the document Saoji had placed on the desk, opening it to look through it.

"Multiple people missing in Montana? This kind of case should go to the FBI. Why was it brought to me?" he asked, holding up the folder as he looked at Saoji behind him.

"Because the number of missing people has already reached over a hundred thousand."

"What?" Steve was startled. "Then we’ll have to send some Magnetic Field Warriors over to investigate."

"Hmm… Mr. Pierce hopes you’ll suppress this matter again."

Saoji spoke very indirectly, but Steve immediately understood.

"So this was done by our own people again?"

Saoji shrugged and sat sideways on the broad armrest of the chair. "That’s right. Dr. Zola has escaped and is currently establishing the Robot Kingdom in Montana."

"The Robot Kingdom? What does he want to do? Robots and humans are different species! Humans can’t even tolerate Mutants, so how could they possibly tolerate robots?" Steve was extremely wary of Dr. Zola’s Robot Kingdom.

"Times have changed, Steve. In the past, Hydra’s dream was merely to rule the world. But now, we’re already on the verge of accomplishing that in practice. So what do we do afterward? Disband?"

Saoji smiled as she explained:

"Aliens are now invading on a massive scale, which proves that humanity isn’t alone in the universe. The current Hydra has already turned its gaze toward the cosmos, and Dr. Zola is the pioneer."

"I see. Robots do have greater advantages than humans when it comes to exploring alien worlds. Many of those Chitauri soldiers were also controlled remotely." Steve suddenly understood. "Then what happened to the missing humans? Were they killed by Dr. Zola?"

"No. In fact, mass-producing robots is easy, but creating intelligent robots is extremely difficult. Dr. Zola discovered that simple programs could only produce low-level AI. Data from the internet could help AI imitate humans, but true advanced AI needs to experience emotions. That may require extensive interaction with humans. Those missing people were all taken away to help the newborn robots gain intelligence."

"Fine." Steve casually dropped the document. "The public is always exploited anyway. Whether they’re exploited by people or by machines, the difference shouldn’t be very great."

Seeing that they had finished discussing the matter, Saoji rose to leave. But the moment she stood up, she suddenly felt agonizing pain throughout her body and spat out a mouthful of blood.

Steve was shocked and hurriedly caught her. "What’s wrong? What happened?"

Saoji knew exactly what had happened. Forcing a smile, she said, "I may have been caught in the crossfire during the battle that day. I’ll go to the medical room and have a thorough examination later."

"I’ll take you there." Steve suddenly felt panicked. In a fluster, he picked her up and started toward the door.

"Don’t do this, Steve. You’re the president, and besides… you’re engaged." Gasping for breath, Saoji reached out and pressed a hand against Steve’s chest.

Steve’s body stiffened as he realized that his behavior was inappropriate.

Saoji struggled out of his arms, gave Steve a deep look, then turned and pressed the button beside the desk to summon the medical staff.

The medical staff soon rushed in. When they saw the blood on Saoji’s face and body, they quickly worked together to place her on a stretcher and carry her out.

From the moment the medical staff entered until they left, Saoji didn’t look at Steve again. But Steve’s gaze never left her.

Saoji suddenly vomiting blood made Steve realize his true feelings. But the problems standing before him in reality became moral shackles binding him.

Although he had been brainwashed into joining Hydra, his worldview and sense of morality had not been completely twisted by it. An extramarital affair was something he could not accept.