Now, Strucker had become Darian's loyal subordinate.
This meant that the entire HYDRA force in Europe had fallen under Darian's control.
Darian did not hesitate and ordered Strucker to begin integrating the HYDRA forces under his command, having HYDRA members join Sokovia as legal citizens to serve him.
Although HYDRA was notorious, it had to be admitted that its members were indeed more capable than the average person.
Darian had observed S.H.I.E.L.D. for a period of time and found that the Agents who worked diligently were almost all HYDRA spies, voluntarily working overtime every day and never taking a break.
In contrast, genuine S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents tended to show some slack, with some even playing games on the Helicarrier.
If it weren't for these HYDRA spies silently putting in the effort, the entire S.H.I.E.L.D. might have collapsed.
Which company boss wouldn't want these workhorses who toil without complaint, never demand anything in return, and even allow you to save on salaries?
Darian didn't care what their identities were.
It doesn't matter whether a cat is black or white, as long as it catches mice, it is a good cat!
HYDRA had numerous talents, covering almost every industry, which perfectly filled Sokovia's talent gap in various sectors, immediately making Zemo's job of managing state affairs much easier.
But seriously, the HYDRA concentration in Sokovia was currently too high.
It was almost becoming the Nation of HYDRA!
Zemo was deeply worried about this.
If other countries found out, their nation of Sokovia might be subjected to heavy bombing.
Darian stated that Zemo's worry was completely unnecessary; even S.H.I.E.L.D., a global intelligence organization, had been infiltrated by HYDRA into a sieve without anyone noticing, let alone a small, unnoticed country like theirs.
Speaking of small nations, Darian suddenly recalled that among the information Peter B had disclosed to him, there was mention of a highly technologically advanced country.
He immediately ordered people to start searching for information and, sure enough, found a nation called Wakanda in East Africa.
Public information showed that Wakanda was a poor, backward agricultural nation with an extremely low international presence.
Aside from whining and begging for sympathy at international conferences every year, Wakanda hardly ever appeared in the public eye and was an extremely closed country, having repeatedly rejected all outside aid.
However, according to Peter B, all of this was Wakanda's elaborate disguise.
In reality, Wakanda's technological level far surpassed outside imagination, even decades ahead of technological powerhouses like America, sounding as preposterous as some self-aggrandizing fantasy.
And this was all due to their control over an extremely rare special metal, one of the main raw materials for Captain America's shield: Vibranium!
Vibranium possesses astonishing hardness and the characteristic of absorbing all energy; it can almost be said to be unbound by conventional physical laws to a certain extent.
It is said that long, long ago, a meteorite containing high-purity Vibranium struck Central Africa, and it was this impact that brought unparalleled treasure to this land.
Wakanda's ancestors were the first to discover this special metal, beginning to mine it and apply it in various fields, especially in technology.
Since then, Wakanda's technology tree climbed continuously, with no sign of stopping!
Similar to Sokovia, Wakanda also adopts a monarchical system, ruled by a King, and successive Kings have been given the title of Black Panther.
A certain generation of Kings, deeply aware of the preciousness and strategic value of Vibranium, chose to close off the country to avoid attracting the covetousness of other nations, especially the ubiquitous mold that was America. The King of Wakanda used advanced technology to completely hide the country's true situation.
It had the distinct feeling of a massive "wolf in sheep's clothing" operation.
To say Darian wasn't interested in Vibranium was impossible.
He naturally wouldn't easily let go of such a precious special material.
This item is fated to be mine!
Darian immediately issued an order, listing Wakanda as a top priority focus and instructing the HYDRA intelligence department to launch a comprehensive investigation into it.
A few days later, Darian arrived at S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters as usual to hand over the mission items to Hill.
[Mission 'Acquire Intelligence' Settlement Complete]
[Reward Acquired: EXP + 500, S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation + 10, Item 'Mana Potion']
[S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation has reached the limit. You may receive the Identity Advancement Mission from NPC Maria Hill]
Just as the system prompt ended, Hill, standing in front of Darian, spoke up and stopped him.
"Agent Darian, please wait a moment."
Hill took out a folder marked "Confidential" and handed it over with a serious expression.
"There is a special mission here, and I believe you are the most suitable candidate. Upon completion of the mission, I will apply for your promotion qualification to Level 8 Agent. I trust your abilities are sufficient for the task."
[NPC Maria Hill has issued an Identity Advancement Mission to you]
[Mission: Undercurrents of the Vampires]
[Objective: Investigate the recently active Vampire organization, ascertain its true purpose, and stop any potential threats]
[Reward: Level 8 S.H.I.E.L.D. (HYDRA) Agent Clearance Qualification]
Vampires?
Darian raised an eyebrow slightly. Vampires were old acquaintances of his; he had slaughtered most of the Vampires in New York back then and was known as the Vampire Killer.
He hadn't expected that this advancement mission would once again involve these Vampires.
He checked the game system's guidance; the target location was Los Angeles, requiring him to drive there.
Darian didn't delay. He walked straight to the parking lot outside the S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters building, randomly found a car, opened the door, leaned down to pull out the wire bundle beneath the steering wheel, and expertly hotwired the engine.
The engine started immediately. Darian slid into the driver's seat and habitually reached forward to grip the steering wheel, only to grab air.
He froze for a second, then looked down to confirm.
The dashboard and controls were all present, but the crucial operating component was missing.
"Wait, where did this car's steering wheel go?"
Darian's mouth twitched. Without a steering wheel, even if he were a veteran driver, he couldn't drive the car.
He stepped out of the car, speechless, and walked toward another vehicle, only to find the same smooth dashboard inside, with the steering wheel position completely empty.
Darian: "..."
Disbelieving, he checked five or six cars in the parking lot consecutively.
Without exception, the steering wheels of all the vehicles had vanished!
Because Darian had stolen vehicles far too many times, S.H.I.E.L.D. Agents couldn't find their cars whenever they went on missions, leading to immense resentment.
They had tried various advanced anti-theft systems, but unfortunately, they were useless in front of Darian; a master key could easily open them, and hotwiring was just a formality.
Finally, some genius came up with this simple and crude method: directly removing the steering wheel and treating it as the key.
This way, even if Darian stole the car, he couldn't drive it.
"Alright, alright, so this is how you want to play."
Darian was so annoyed he started laughing.
How could I, the magnificent Fourth Calamity, be stumped by you NPCs?
So, he ran out onto the street, found a car, opened the door, removed the steering wheel, returned to the S.H.I.E.L.D. parking lot, and installed it on the car.
The engine started smoothly. Darian pressed the accelerator, and the vehicle sped away.
Almost simultaneously, a citizen who had just bought coffee returned to the street, saw his wide-open car door, and his heart sank.
He frantically checked, only to find that the valuables inside the car were intact, and the gas tank was still full.
Only the steering wheel was gone!
"F*ck! Which bastard stole the steering wheel!"
Following the game system's guidance, Darian drove under the cover of night to a spot a hundred meters away from a factory.
He got out of the car, his eyes sweeping over the factory gate, where several security personnel in black uniforms were patrolling.
However, the game panel that appeared in his vision showed that these security personnel were all Vampires.
Just as Darian was preparing to act, he suddenly heard a familiar voice beside him.
"Darian?"
"Who is speaking! Show yourself if you dare!"
Darian immediately opened his eyes wide in vigilance, quickly scanning his surroundings.
Blade: "..."
I'm standing right under the streetlamp this time, that's too much!
Darian saw Blade's stiff black face and chuckled: "Just kidding, Blade. Long time no see. How have you been lately?"
"I'm alright."
Blade sighed: "It's just a pity that I still haven't found my mother's whereabouts, and I don't know where she went."
Darian: "..."
Going by the timeline, your mother might be inside someone else's belly.
Darian quickly changed the subject: "Right, why are you here?"
In truth, he had already roughly guessed the reason for Blade's appearance here; it must be because of the Vampires.
Blade's daily routine only consisted of three things.
Killing Vampires, killing Vampires, and still killing Vampires!
Unless Vampires are completely eradicated, the Blade series will probably never end.
Sure enough, Blade said in a deep voice: "I came here to destroy this Blood Factory."
"According to my investigation, a Vampire faction has established multiple such factories across America, secretly capturing large numbers of humans, continuously draining their blood to create blood packs for storage, and then selling them to other Vampires for money."
"Wow, these Vampires are even getting into pre-packaged meals."
Darian muttered a complaint, then said to Blade: "Perfect, my target this time is also Vampires. How about we team up again?"
"That's exactly what I intended."
Blade agreed decisively.
With a powerful teammate like Darian helping, he could save a lot of trouble.
Most importantly, he could also save a lot of money on silver bullets; it was simply a win-win situation.
[NPC Eric Brooks has joined your team]
The Black and White Duo returns to the world!
Black & White - double - kill!
Just as Blade was about to set off, Darian suddenly reached out and stopped him.
"Wait, I almost forgot this."
Darian pulled a pair of sunglasses from his game inventory and put them on. Since Blade was wearing sunglasses late at night to look cool, Darian naturally couldn't be left out.
"Alright, we can go now."
Darian waved his hand, and the two walked with synchronized steps straight toward the factory gate.
In a silent slow-motion shot, their coat tails flapped in the night wind, and the sunglasses on their faces maximized their cool aura.
Darian: ( ■ _ ■ )
Blade: ( ■ _ ■ )
Watching the two make their entrance like this, the Vampire guards at the gate were stunned.
So pretentious. How about giving them a beating?
One Vampire guard snapped back to reality and yelled: "You are here to—"
Bang!
A gunshot suddenly rang out, and a bullet accurately pierced the Vampire guard's forehead.
Darian did not use silver bullets, but simply attached energy to the projectile.
However, the shot Vampire guard didn't even have time to scream before he rapidly turned to ash in the flames.
It was clear that this type of energy bullet had an exceptionally significant lethal effect on Vampires.
After all, it was Light attribute energy, and having a counter effect against a dark creature like a Vampire was perfectly normal.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
With several successive gunshots, a few more Vampire guards who had just reacted and were trying to rush forward were instantly headshotted.
Blade on the other side was not idle either.
He drew his specialized silver longsword; a cold flash passed, and several Vampire heads rolled onto the ground, their bodies immediately convulsing and turning into ash.
The two didn't pause their movements, kicking open the heavy factory door and swaggering into the factory interior.
The Vampires inside the factory were clearly already alerted.
Dense footsteps came from all directions, and large groups of Vampire guards armed with automatic rifles surged toward the pair, pulling the triggers without hesitation!
Da da da da—!
Gunfire erupted, and golden bullets flew toward them!
Darian showed no intention of dodging. White light shimmered around his body, and under the protection of the Shielding Spell, all the bullets were intercepted outside, not even touching his clothes.
He stood there, enduring the hail of bullets, slowly raising his gun, aiming, and pulling the trigger.
Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang—!
Every bullet infused with Light energy that left the barrel ended the life of one Vampire.
His steps were steady, as if strolling through a garden, with only his muzzle continuously spitting lethal flames.
Seeing this sight, the remaining Vampires broke down.
"Th-This is a monster!!"
"You Vampires have the nerve to call someone else a monster?"
Darian was somewhat speechless.
But the Vampires ignored whatever he said, dropping their weapons one by one and frantically trying to run outside.
Blade naturally wouldn't let them escape. He rushed forward, gripping his silver longsword, and easily finished off these Vampires who had lost the will to fight.
After dealing with this group of Vampires, Blade finally turned to look at Darian, his tone surprised.
"What was that ability you just used?"
Blade remembered that Darian was not this powerful the last time they met.
How long had it been, yet the other party had evolved into a tough guy who wasn't afraid of bullets!
Darian didn't explain, saying with a smile: "Look at the light on my body. What ability do you think this is?"
Blade frowned in thought: "This light seems to have a counter effect against Vampires. Could this be Holy Light?"
Darian nodded: "You have excellent judgment. That's right, this is Holy Light!"
Blade was startled: "Then you are—"
"Since you figured it out, I won't hide it from you. Actually, I am an exorcism squad sent by the Church."
Darian raised his two golden desert eagles in a cross, his expression solemn.
Blade: "..."
No, I absolutely did not figure that out!