"Come out. What's the point of staying like this? You like water, don't you? Look at this massive lake; doesn't it tempt you?"
Standing by the lake, Hong Fei, shirtless, looked down at the motionless White Dragon pattern on his chest and coaxed it softly.
"If you don't like lakes, then I'll take you to the seaside—no, how about the middle of the ocean? You're from outer space, right? Do you know that seventy percent of this planet's surface is ocean? You can roam freely through the five oceans. There's plenty to eat, too—big whales and sharks, small crabs and shrimp. Or I could build you a Dragon Palace on the seabed. We'll each have one; you rule the oceans, and I'll rule the continents. You take seventy percent, I take thirty. How about that?"
On his chest, the White Dragon remained completely unmoved.
"If you don't come out now, I'm going to get angry."
Upon hearing this, the White Dragon's eyes moved slightly.
"I don't blame you for not talking, and it's fine that you like Dragon Power, but isn't it a bit strange for you to hide in my body all day without coming out? We are two different species; this isn't right."
The White Dragon stirred slightly, and then its body began to swim. A flash of white light appeared, Hong Fei's field of vision suddenly shifted, and at the same time, he heard cheers coming from the riverbank in the distance. Turning his head, he saw many people carrying long lenses and short cameras pointed at him, waving excitedly in his direction. Hong Fei looked down, and he was astonished.
He had turned into a White Dragon. This feeling was completely different from the divine dragon mimicked by Dragon Power. Dragon Power constructed the "spirit," while the "form" was just an incidental effect. Hong Fei remained in human form, with Dragon Power simply synchronizing his movements into those of a divine dragon. But this was different.
From his form to his demeanor, he had become a dragon. When he moved his hands, they were front claws; when he moved his feet, they were hind claws. As soon as a thought arose, his slender body began to instinctively swim in any direction, and the swaying of his dragon tail was completely under his control. This was a completely different and magical experience.
Hong Fei swam forward, his speed increasing. He arrived above the group of people focused on photographing the dragon, opened his mouth, and exhaled a cloud. With a sweep of his tail, a light drizzle suddenly began to fall. Following that, he tilted his head back and soared straight into the sky.
The White Dragon appeared and disappeared in the sky, twisting and turning like a white rainbow, resembling a ribbon of white silk. A long time later, the White Dragon charged toward the Sky Base, and as it landed, the dragon body quickly transformed back into a human form. Hong Fei still had a hint of excitement on his face.
He lowered his head and said to the White Dragon, "Hurry up and absorb it. Get rid of those fins that haven't finished evolving and the red spots on your scales as soon as possible, otherwise, you'll lack a bit of prestige."
The White Dragon still didn't make a sound but quickly swam behind Hong Fei, clearly not wanting to listen to his chatter any longer.
Hong Fei brought over a lounge chair and lay down in the high altitude, letting the sunlight beat down on him. Most of the green patterns on his body had disappeared, leaving only faint traces.
New York. Xu Wenwu led a team, gathered most of the personnel, and began taking over the bases left behind by Fury. During the operation, Tony kept a silent watch on Barton.
Seeing that he didn't show anything unusual, Tony couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief. He had already had a conversation with Barton, but in the end, Barton didn't give him a clear answer, which left Tony's heart hanging. If Barton truly insisted on continuing to work for Fury, Tony estimated that his final fate would not be very good.
In addition, Coulson had been missing and hadn't appeared; Tony was now worried about him as well. That dead guy Fury—even in death, he didn't let people have any peace.
The existence of HYDRA should not be made public for the time being. Among the Avengers, only Steve, Tony, and Barton knew about these things. As long as the others followed orders, they wouldn't get answers from those in the know, even if they asked questions out of confusion. Unless Pierce started to make a move.
Triskelion. Pierce and Hill were arguing. Hill said with a cold expression, "Sir, I still cannot understand why Captain America would suddenly become a traitor among us. It's impossible and completely illogical."
Pierce frowned upon hearing this. He leaned back in his chair, crossed his hands, and said calmly, "Hill, we didn't want to see this result either, but the fact is that Steve investigated S.H.I.E.L.D. secrets without permission. Furthermore, after being discovered, he refused to cooperate and even killed our elite agents. Even so, we are still willing to leave an opportunity for him to explain, but he has refused to show his face. Every time he is discovered, he refuses to speak and attacks directly. We have already had dozens of agents lying in the hospital one after another. This is the fact, and even if you don't understand or believe it, it has indeed happened."
"Then what exactly is the secret that Captain Rogers investigated? What on earth did he see to make him become like this?"
"Hill, you are the Acting Director. When you remove the word 'Acting' one day, you will know exactly what this secret is."
Hill curled her lip.
"Then does Fury know?"
Pierce was silent for a moment, then sighed and said, "Originally, you had no right to know these things, but now I can tell you that Fury was the leader of this secret. Even after he left office, I still kept him in charge of this matter."
"But he is dead."
"That is his problem."
"I don't think Fury would actively attack the Dragon King. Did he really do that?"
Pierce looked straight into Hill's eyes.
"That's right, he did."
Hill's breath seemed to deflate suddenly. She shook her head gently and said, "Alright, I understand. But the Avengers cannot go and hunt down Captain Rogers."
"There is no such thing as impossible; they belong to the S.H.I.E.L.D. roster."
"Only in name. From the very beginning, there was no formal binding relationship between the Avengers and S.H.I.E.L.D.; it was just because Fury brought them together that they cooperated with S.H.I.E.L.D. operations."
"I certainly understand, but since they borrowed the name, they should contribute at critical times. Now is the time for them to contribute."
"Sir, that is just your idea; they may not necessarily do as requested."
"You are responsible for conveying the message, not for making decisions for them."
"I know them, so I can tell you the result in advance."
"Hill! Mind your position!"
Pierce suddenly stood up. Hill met his gaze without any fear. After a few seconds, Pierce exhaled a long breath, and his voice returned to calmness.
"Hill, go. Tell them this is a mission."
Hill stared at Pierce seriously for quite a while, then turned and left immediately, saying at the same time, "They will not regard S.H.I.E.L.D.'s orders as a mission."
The door closed, and a smile suddenly appeared on Pierce's face. A wall on one side of the room made a sound, and after the secret door opened, Rumlow walked out from inside.
Pierce said without turning his head, "Is everything ready?"
"Yes, sir. All tests have been completed, and all personnel are in position. We can start at any time now."
A hint of excitement appeared on Rumlow's face. Pierce thought calmly for a moment and instructed, "Go check again, then lead the team to search the surrounding area carefully. Do not let any corner go unchecked. I will have others cooperate with your operation to clean up the entire city as soon as possible. I will contact the Dragon King and have him capture Steve Rogers personally."
Hearing the last part, Rumlow couldn't help but be stunned.
"Is this possible?"
"I don't know either, but I must do this. This is the best moment to test and check the Dragon King's attitude. If he is willing, then I can trust him one more time."
"What if he refuses?" Pierce curled the corner of his mouth and smiled.
"Then we will take everything underground and turn the Insight Project into a Dragon-Slaying Project."
Rumlow was horrified, but then somewhat delighted. He quickly hid his emotions and tentatively said, "Sir, I think we can start the Dragon-Slaying Project simultaneously."
Pierce turned his head abruptly, a sinister smile piling up on his face.
"How do you know I haven't started it simultaneously?"
Rumlow's eyes widened instantly, his face full of shock. A moment later, he left Pierce's office with the orders. After exiting the Triskelion, his route was winding and twisting. Finally, he entered an inconspicuous alley.
Looking around and seeing no one, he suddenly stepped forward and tapped the wall bricks lightly. Then, the wall surface suddenly recessed, revealing a passageway. Entering it, a group of people was waiting. They were Pierce, Garrett, Hill, Tony, and Fury. The moment they saw Rumlow, these people all stood up together, lowered their heads, and said respectfully, "Leader!"
Rumlow changed his previous posture, raised his head, and said reservedly, "Mm, sit."
As he spoke, his appearance began to change rapidly, and before long, he turned into a strange green-skinned figure. Talos, the leader of the Skrulls. He was also a former partner of Fury's. Of course, saying it this way might be gilding the lily for the Skrulls.
In fact, while Fury was alive, the Skrulls mostly undertook supporting work, the most important of which was acting as a body double for Fury. But now that Fury was dead, the Skrulls were clearly no longer satisfied with the past and were in the process of pulling off a major event. After sitting down, Talos frowned and looked at Pierce.
"You don't need to turn into him anymore."
Upon hearing this, Pierce also transformed back into a Skrull. Hill, who was next to him, asked, "What's wrong?" Talos sighed, "He actually wants to slay the dragon."
"Slay the dragon? Wait, do you mean the Dragon King?"
"That's right."
"This... sigh, stupid Earthling. Doesn't he know how strong the Dragon King is? That is an existence that even killed Carol."
"He certainly knows and is very clear about it, but he has no fear. HYDRA has always been like this; they always think they can do anything. But only the Earthling's technological level limits their vision. They simply don't understand what kind of destructive power someone like the Dragon King can cause in the universe."
"Then should we give up on S.H.I.E.L.D.?"
"No, S.H.I.E.L.D. cannot be given up. But now is not a good time for us to make a move. After Pierce dies, S.H.I.E.L.D. will fall into chaos. Then we will take the opportunity to take full control of it."
"What about the Superpower Foundation?"
Talos looked at Hill.
"You can start preparing."