Cat and Mouse—This Is My Home Turf!

A raging storm.

Rain pelted down in torrents, and New York, once ablaze with lights, now looked as though it were veiled behind frosted glass beneath the downpour.

Splash~

Footsteps repeatedly trampled through puddles, kicking up sprays of water.

The cars that had previously moved like ants foraging had all come to a stop.

Figures poured out of the vehicles, like even more ants swarming toward a fallen chunk of meat.

At the head of every squad stood a powerfully built man carrying firearms no ordinary soldier could possibly wield.

"Team 1 is about to enter the target location!"

"Team 3 is about to enter the target location!"

As squad after squad reported in, one team suddenly discovered that there were no guards at the entrance to Osborn Company.

Even the gates that had been tightly shut were now wide open, like a colossal beast opening its jaws and waiting for its prey to enter.

At the front, a man whose face was half-covered by a mask and whose hair looked like a brick of instant noodles spoke in a hoarse voice. "The target's gates are open. We can enter through the front entrance. Should we proceed through the front entrance?"

"No. Shen Fei is smart. If he opened the gates, that means the front entrance is definitely packed with traps. Find another way in!"

"Yes!"

"Remember, don't let hatred cloud your judgment. Bring him back and make him serve the organization!"

"Understood!"

This man was Bucky, the Winter Soldier. The last time, Shen Fei had gifted him two grenades before firing several more shots at him. Thanks to the Super Soldier Serum, he had held on long enough to return to the organization.

But he had been on the verge of death, so Baron Strucker had decided to experiment on him again, testing the newest endoskeleton armor.

The experiment had succeeded, saving his life as well.

But now, he could only survive on motor oil and batteries!

It was all Shen Fei's fault.

After receiving their orders, the many squads bypassed the open gates and charged toward the towering walls around them, using tools to launch themselves up from either side.

Rogers and the others, who arrived later, saw this from afar. They also saw that no one was entering through the wide-open gates.

"What are they doing?"

Barton was a little stunned. The gates were already open, so why weren't they going in from there?

"There must be traps at the front entrance!"

Thinking of Shen Fei, Natasha was certain that the cunning, wicked man, full of dirty tricks, had definitely set traps at the front entrance.

"We'll go in another way too!"

Rogers frowned slightly at Natasha's words. "How do you know?"

"I know something about Osborn! There's no time to explain now. I'll tell you later!" Natasha did not explain in detail that she had encountered Shen Fei before, nor did she mention her professional assessment of his personality.

He would never do something like that.

Rogers nodded. He trusted his teammate.

Inside the laboratory, Shen Fei was continuously adapting to the Super Senses he had just acquired. He sensed that everyone was beginning to take detours, all because he had deliberately opened the gates.

The things his ancestors had already played out still worked here.

These barbarians hadn't made any progress at all over the years.

Shen Fei shook his head. The moment they chose to enter this place, only one outcome awaited them.

They would either become chemical fuel or his test subjects.

Suddenly, Shen Fei raised an eyebrow. In the dynamic model he had constructed, there seemed to be two people he recognized fairly well.

"Bucky isn't dead?"

"He really does have a tough life, but he came back to die again."

"Does he really think he's the chosen one?" Shen Fei could not help shaking his head. The other person was Natasha.

He could still remember the scent of Eastern Slavs.

"Almost time. This is my home turf, and they still think they can take another route?" Shen Fei's gaze settled on the display screen in the laboratory.

"Begin. Grill those little trash fish with electricity. Clear out some of them first!"

At Shen Fei's command, Norman, who had received the order, pressed a button.

Crackle!

Dazzling arcs of electricity instantly appeared across the walls—not the electric grid on top of them, but the walls themselves.

Shen Fei had previously installed conductive materials inside the walls, channeling the current from the electric grid into them.

He loved people who liked scaling walls and leaping across rooftops.

Wanted to bypass the electric grid? Fine.

The walls were electrified too.

Boom!

Fireballs suddenly exploded in midair, startling everyone.

Rogers, who had just arrived, watched charred bodies tumble down from the walls and could not help looking at Natasha. This was what she called knowing Osborn?

"Shit! We fell for it."

Seeing this, Natasha immediately realized that Shen Fei had exploited their understanding of him. He had opened the gates specifically to make them choose the walls.

The walls carried electricity too.

"My lord! We can't get through via the walls!"

Those with quicker reactions immediately broke away from the walls and dropped back to the ground.

Bucky activated his communicator and reported the situation.

"Useless fools. Send people to probe the front entrance!"

"Yes!"

After receiving the order, squad after squad rushed toward the front entrance. The torrential rain constantly interfered with their infrared detectors, even though they had brought them along.

But those were the organization's orders.

They had no choice but to obey.

After stepping through the front entrance and waiting for a while, the soldiers found that nothing happened. They hurriedly reported, "The front entrance is clear! The front entrance is clear!"

"Holy shit! That damned Shen Fei!"

Baron Strucker's face flushed red when he heard the report. Shen Fei had actually played him!

"Everyone enter through the front entrance! And if necessary, blow the whole damn place open!"

"Yes!" the squads answered after receiving the order.

Squad after squad entered Osborn through the front entrance, with Rogers and the other two following behind. "Nick, how are things now? Can you see anything inside Osborn?"

"No! All signals there have been blocked. Fuck! Why is this place like Stark Tower too?"

Nick could not help swearing as he began reviewing the information that had been gathered.

"Could Hydra's target be Shen Fei?"

Nick muttered to himself, suddenly recalling what Natasha had reported earlier. "Natasha, what do you know about Shen Fei?"

He had only just remembered that Natasha seemed to have called for help once before, but it had ended very quickly.

What exactly had happened then?

Hearing Nick's question through her earpiece, Natasha said, "Shen Fei is someone close to Klaw, and it seems the Phoenix Potion that appeared recently was developed by him."

"Damn it! Why didn't you tell me earlier?"

"I did. You just didn't take it seriously!"

Nick slammed a fist against the desk. The Hero Act had been giving him such a headache lately that he had begun wondering whether he should call Captain Marvel back to take charge.

But that woman was always off in space, playing hero. Who knew when she would return?

By the time she got back, everything would probably be over.

"Hydra's target is probably Shen Fei. It seems he once worked for a company controlled by Hydra!"

Nick spoke.

"Shen Fei? Who's that?!"

Rogers froze. Their target was one person.

One person could make Hydra mobilize on such a massive scale?