That Day, God Returned

That night, Tony was not the only one who lay awake.

At that moment, in Iraq, at a U.S. military base camp.

A military-green helicopter slowly descended to the ground. Bracing himself against the handrail by the door, Coulson squeezed his somewhat stout body out of the cabin and covered his mouth and nose against the dust stirred up by the rotors.

"Agent Coulson!" An older armed soldier stepped forward to receive him and gave Coulson a mild smile. "Mr. Fury sent me to pick you up."

"Alright. Where is he now?" Coulson asked impatiently as he walked.

"At the temporary command post." The armed soldier gestured ahead and led the suited Coulson through the military tent camp to a wooden building at the very back.

"You can go in yourself."

The armed soldier stopped to stand guard at the door. Coulson took a deep breath and stepped inside with intense emotions churning in his chest. Looking ahead, he saw a bald middle-aged man in a black trench coat with his back to the entrance, marking notes on a detailed regional map hanging on the wall.

"Director Fury!" At the sight of him, Coulson shouted excitedly and stepped forward to salute respectfully.

"Agent Coulson, how many times have I told you? I’m no longer the Director. I’m merely one of the people on the front lines investigating Hydra."

The middle-aged man shook his head slightly and turned around. His dark face was imposing and rugged, his injured left eye covered by a black eyepatch. His remaining right eye was sharp and spirited as an eagle’s.

With his dark skin and the commanding aura forged through years in a position of power, Nick Fury was undoubtedly the most troublesome enemy for Hydra’s remnants.

"Even if you stepped down voluntarily, you will always be the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. in my heart!" Coulson said sincerely.

"Alright." Fury walked over and patted Coulson on the shoulder. "You came all the way from headquarters in New York to this front line. There must be something important, right?"

"Yes, exactly." Remembering the purpose of his trip, Coulson reached into the inner pocket of his suit as he hurriedly explained, "A few days ago, during the attack on Tony Stark, I met a silver-haired young man in New York who saved Tony. That person was extremely strange and mysterious."

"When I asked who he was, he gave me this and said that once you saw it, you would naturally understand." As Coulson finished speaking, he pulled a black card from his pocket and handed it to Fury.

The instant Fury saw the black card, he lost his composure and quickly snatched it into his hand.

A familiar icy sensation reached him. Then, on the pitch-black face of the card, the image of a grinning demon gradually appeared.

As though struck by lightning, Fury’s entire body trembled. His hand clenched tightly around the card as his single eye fixed on Coulson. His voice shook slightly as he asked, "What did the young man who gave you this card look like?"

Coulson had never seen the Director so rattled. Startled, he tried his best to recall. "Well, he wore a hooded top and sunglasses, so I couldn’t see his face clearly. In any case, he was very tall, and his hair was an unusual silver color."

"Demon Card, hood, silver hair…" Fury muttered. His usually stern, taut face softened, revealing wild excitement and joy. "It’s him. He must have returned!"

"Him? Who is he?" Coulson was utterly confused.

After taking several deep breaths, Fury forcibly suppressed his excitement and inexplicably asked Coulson, "Do you remember what I once told you?"

"Decades ago, a god left us. From that moment on, the entire Earth lost its light. Even today, when society appears to be constantly advancing, without him, this new era still feels dull and lifeless."

Fury gripped the card in his hand and said with countless emotions, "And now, that god has returned."

"Director, you mean that young man, he is…" Coulson’s body trembled violently. He was so shocked and dazed that he nearly collapsed to the floor.

That legendary figure had been his idol since childhood!

Fury merely smiled without answering, tacitly confirming it as he ordered, "Coulson, arrange our return trip. I’m heading back to New York tomorrow! It’s time to see an old friend!"

The next morning.

New York, Stark Industries’ new tower.

A blond young man in a black suit arrived at the entrance. He coldly looked up at the building before him, ignored the dozen or so guards armed with batons and firearms at the door, and strode straight toward it.

"Hey, you brat! Non-employees…" A guard picked up his baton and stepped forward to stop him. The next instant, the entire man was kicked flying by the blond youth and rolled more than five meters away.

Catching the baton with sharp reflexes, the blond youth swept his gaze over the guards surrounding him and said coldly, "My name is Red Ten. I have an appointment with your acting chairman, Obadiah Stane."

Seeing their companion injured, the dozen guards’ eyes reddened. Upon hearing the blond youth’s words, they no longer hesitated and rushed forward with batons in hand. Some even began drawing their pistols.

Red Ten narrowed his eyes, and his body suddenly moved. Wielding the baton with brute force, he swept through the guards, then charged at those holding guns with astonishing speed. Before they could fire, he knocked down a towering, bear-like white guard with one punch.

He swept the entire scene with crushing strength!

Just thirty seconds later, more than a dozen guards lay unconscious on the ground. Red Ten stood in the center of the first-floor lobby, tossed aside the bloodstained baton, and calmly brushed the dust from his sleeves.

"Clap, clap, clap…"

Amid a round of applause, Stane walked out into the lobby while clapping, grinning as he praised Red Ten. "As expected of the famous Card Disciple."

"Obadiah Stane." Red Ten gave him a cold glance and said, "I advise you not to test or probe my strength. If Dagu hadn’t said you were paying, I would’ve knocked you to the ground while I was at it."

Stane shrank back slightly, not doubting the truth of his words in the slightest. Getting straight to the point, he asked, "Now that you’re in New York, when will you make your move? Do you need me to provide any help?"

"I’ll act tonight. I only came to inform you. I don’t need any help from you!" Red Ten snorted coldly, then arrogantly turned and left.

Watching his back disappear, Stane looked at the guards lying on the ground and rubbed his hands excitedly. "Card Disciples really are powerful, absurdly powerful! Tony, tonight I’ll first wipe out the people around you as a warning. I hope you notice your uncle’s painstaking intentions soon!"

At the same time, inside Tony’s duplex villa.

Tony was in the basement refining the color-adjustment process for the Iron Man Armor. Jarvis finally had some free time and secretly met with Vis, then the two traveled out along the cables and arrived at New York City’s central broadcasting tower.

The two Artificial Intelligences were going to work together to complete the task Kyle had assigned earlier.

"Old virus, I’ll handle southeastern New York, and you handle northwestern New York."

"How dare you talk to me like that? Call me Lord Vis! I’m your great-great-grandfather!"

Jarvis and Vis entered the building’s data control center at the same time. The two Artificial Intelligences joined forces and instantly took control of every internal system and program at the broadcasting station.

Then, a three-second countdown began—

The two spoke almost in unison:

"Card Muster Order! Officially activated!"