You are under arrest

The majestic Triskelion sits on an island in Washington D.C., surrounded by water on all sides with beautiful scenery; you can even see the Washington Monument not far away.

This is the headquarters of S.H.I.E.L.D. The Triskelion is massive, occupying the entire island, with some artificial structures extending outward from the landmass.

Three skyscrapers, each a hundred meters tall, appear separate and unconnected, but in reality, their tops and bottoms are joined together, forming a single, incredibly vast entity.

Under the glow of the setting sun, the Triskelion stands like a giant in the twilight. A bridge spanning the river comes into view—a passage connecting the outside world to the Triskelion. From a distance, a red vintage convertible can be seen speeding across it.

Upon entering the perimeter of the Triskelion, Laura ends her flight and descends from the sky.

William gazes at the giant in the twilight, feeling moved. As expected of S.H.I.E.L.D. headquarters, what a grand scale. Truly a grand scale. How much manpower, resources, and time did it take to build such a headquarters in Washington D.C.?

But thinking about this is useless, because in the not-so-distant future, this place will be destroyed.

"How about it? Our headquarters is spectacular, isn't it?" Coulson asks, seeing William in a daze.

He originally thought the other party was immersed in the imposing grandeur of the Triskelion, never imagining that the man was actually picturing the scene of the Triskelion reduced to ruins.

Led by Coulson, they arrive at the lobby of the Triskelion, where people are coming and going.

A giant S.H.I.E.L.D. logo stands before them. As soon as William walks over, Athena's voice rings out.

"Side quest initiated!"

"Side quest: S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent: Join S.H.I.E.L.D."

The quest description is very simple. It seems joining S.H.I.E.L.D. is not a main quest, meaning Athena isn't forcing him to complete it; even if he doesn't join, it's fine.

However, William has his own plans. S.H.I.E.L.D. is a massive organization with influence spanning the entire world. At the very least, he should make good use of it before S.H.I.E.L.D. falls.

The Triskelion is even larger than William imagined, like a giant labyrinth. If not for Coulson leading the way, he would have been lost long ago.

Along the way, he looks left and right, finding everything fresh and wanting to take pictures as souvenirs, but he is quickly stopped by Coulson.

"Tch, stingy."

William curls his lip. In the blink of an eye, he doesn't even know where Coulson has brought him.

Before him is a door. Coulson stands in front of it and says, "Our boss is waiting for you inside. Go on in."

Hearing Coulson say this, William immediately opens the door. The room is pitch black. As soon as he steps inside, the door behind him slams shut with a bang. Coulson doesn't follow him in, leaving him alone in the room.

Damn, it's a trap! William thinks to himself. I knew S.H.I.E.L.D. looking for me wouldn't be that simple. But what is this situation? Are they locking me in a dark room?

Just as his mind wanders, the dark room suddenly lights up. Before him is a white space. The construction of this space is very strange; he can see many walls of varying shapes distributed throughout the area.

Moreover, in the four corners of this place, he sees surveillance cameras. This means his every move here is being watched—someone is observing him from the outside!

"What exactly are you trying to do?" William asks, looking at the camera.

At this moment, Coulson's voice rings out, "I'm sorry, Mr. Lister, this is our test."

"A test? What kind of test?" William frowns, knowing nothing good can come of this.

"A test of your abilities and level," Coulson replies. "In 10 seconds, we will officially begin the test. A friendly reminder: this test may be life-threatening, so please take it seriously."

As soon as Coulson finishes speaking, the 10-second countdown begins. William immediately understands; this is an assessment of his capabilities.

Because Coulson doesn't know what his abilities are yet, he wants to see them with his own eyes. Perhaps the Director of S.H.I.E.L.D. is also monitoring him to see if he poses a threat.

But what exactly is the content of the test?

"You are under arrest!"

In the blink of an eye, the test officially begins. A piercing alarm echoes through the White Room.

The ground not far away suddenly rises, and a black machine gun emerges. Without any warning, it launches a fierce attack on William.

"Holy crap!" William is startled. He didn't expect Coulson to be playing for real. Amidst the roar of the machine gun, countless bullets whistle toward him. He dodges quickly, and the bullets strike the ground, sending up golden sparks.

He hides behind a wall, realizing only then that these walls are cover for the test.

Bullets fire madly at the cover. William hides behind it, looking at the surveillance camera in the corner. He knows S.H.I.E.L.D. personnel must be watching him. He was invited to S.H.I.E.L.D. for a reason, and it's possible Coulson has already reported that he is a man from the future.

Since he's already here, hiding his strength is pointless.

"Athena, transform into Soldier: 76!" William says in a low voice. In a brilliant burst of light, he transforms into the form of Soldier: 76: the classic red, white, and blue combat suit, gray-white hair, and red tactical visor.

Why didn't William use the Strike Commander: 76 skin? It's simple: during the previous Skull Gang mission, both the Skull Gang and Hydra saw the Strike Commander form, and many people remembered his appearance.

Therefore, he decided that he generally wouldn't use this skin to avoid suspicion.

And the original appearance of Soldier: 76 looks more like a warrior from the future!

"Now, it's showtime!"

As the Heavy Pulse Rifle appears in his hands, he immediately rushes out from cover. The machine gun locks onto its target and fires at him.

Soldier: 76 rolls on the ground, raises his pulse rifle to aim at the machine gun, and Helix Rockets fly out instantly. Three blue micro-rockets spin through the air, blowing the machine gun to pieces.

But this test has only just begun. More machine guns rise from the ground, launching an assault on William.

Soldier: 76 dodges the dense rain of bullets with a Sprint. He moves like a ghost through the barrage, and while dodging, he fires his pulse rifle, blue pulse rounds destroying each weapon one by one.

Beyond the weapons rising from the ground, even the ceiling begins to change. Two Gatling guns appear, firing a torrential downpour of bullets at William at a rate of thousands of rounds per minute.

Soldier: 76 rolls and leaps, throwing a Biotic Field onto the ground. A yellow pillar of light rises, and William feels his entire body filled with power.

After a tense battle, his ultimate ability energy reaches 100%, and he activates his Tactical Visor without hesitation!

"I see you!"

Like the roar of a beast, the Heavy Pulse Rifle spewed dazzling blue flames. The Gatling guns were instantly locked on by the Tactical Visor, and a terrifying Pulse Storm swept toward the surrounding weaponry.

It wasn't just the Gatling guns on the ceiling; every weapon within Soldier: 76's line of sight suffered a devastating blow, becoming riddled with holes and unrecognizable!

In the room right next to the White Room, a space resembling a surveillance center, Coulson wore a look of astonishment. I've been guessing what William's ability actually is. Super speed? Enhanced physical strength?

No, none of that was right. To be honest, he still hadn't figured it out, and the weapon in the man's hands shocked him even more.

With its highly sci-fi aesthetic and such terrifying firepower, it seemed as if this weapon didn't belong to this era!

"Hill, what do you think of this person?" Coulson asked, calming his excitement.

"Danger level: S." Hill looked at the test scores on her tablet and said, "It seems you've found an interesting guy."