Cate, the Gentle and Innocent, and the Invincible Him

The Desert Shield project was simple in its design: secretly inject Compound V into the Middle East to create pro-American superhuman soldiers, thereby safeguarding America's interests in the region.

Vought called this "upholding justice."

Farid was one of the first test subjects.

He was only twenty years old at the time.

The experiment was a success, granting him powerful geokinetic abilities.

But Vought underestimated one thing.

They assumed that a twenty-year-old Iraqi youth, upon gaining superpowers, would obediently listen and become a tool for America.

They overlooked the fact that Farid's father had been killed in a U.S. airstrike, and his mother had died in the chaos that followed.

More significantly, his two younger brothers had been injected with Compound V, but the experiments failed, and Vought disposed of them as defective products.

Vought gave him power, but they also gave him a reason for hatred.

In 2005, Farid broke free from Vought's control and vanished into the Middle Eastern desert.

For the next twenty years, he operated under the codename "Sandstorm," establishing a superhuman terrorist organization across the Middle East.

This organization focused on attacking American military bases, destroying oil pipelines, and assassinating pro-American politicians.

America dispatched special forces to suppress him multiple times, but every attempt failed.

His network of underground shelters spanned the entire Syrian-Iraqi border, with some reaching depths of over two hundred meters and covering an area equivalent to a small city.

On his own turf, he was a god!

Lu Heng closed the folder.

"So, Vought created a monster, and now you want me to clean up the mess?"

Edgar's expression remained as indifferent as ever, as if he didn't consider the dangerous man before him a threat at all.

"Your summary is quite accurate. Farid is indeed a failed product created by Vought, just like those defective ones within America's borders."

"I'm curious, he's been active for twenty years, why are you only thinking about dealing with him now?" Lu Heng felt there was more to this than met the eye.

"Before, he only caused trouble in the Middle East and didn't affect the domestic market, so we couldn't be bothered. Now, the situation is different."

Edgar pulled a photograph from the bottom of the folder.

It was a screenshot of a video showing Sandstorm standing in front of ruins, speaking to the camera.

"Three weeks ago, he released a video declaring that he would launch an attack on the American mainland."

"The Pentagon is putting pressure on us..."

"They want Vought to handle this problem, after all, it was Vought that created it in the first place."

Lu Heng leaned back in his chair, wanting to defer the task to Homelander.

"You could send Homelander."

"Homelander is indeed a great candidate, but we plan to tailor the persona of the Protector for you. Dealing with terrorists is a perfect fit for a hero who stands for justice." Edgar gave Lu Heng a reason that seemed impossible to refuse.

"No! No! No!" Lu Heng shook his head.

"Justice for America in the Middle East? Don't make me laugh. I don't want to be used as a pawn."

Edgar seemed to have anticipated this, as he pushed over a few more sets of photos.

They were pictures of locals who had been brutally killed.

"Farid is a terrorist to us, but he's no better to the locals. He never cares about the lives of ordinary people; every operation results in the deaths of several innocent civilians."

"We know these types of superhumans all too well. They come from the lowest rungs of society, and once they gain immense power, they don't sympathize with those they once stood alongside."

"In fact, they treat those who are still at the bottom even worse. In other words, he is now a thorough superhumanist! A supremacist!"

Lu Heng looked at the photos and grinned.

"Edgar, you were born to be a negotiator."

Lu Heng took the photos and agreed to the mission.

"We will send a helicopter to broadcast the event live. Your heroic deeds will bring hope to people all over the world," Edgar stated.

"Very well."

Lu Heng shattered Edgar's window and flew back to the conference room from the top floor.

Only Edgar remained, left to endure the cold wind.

The female secretary felt a chill run down her spine.

Lu Heng knew clearly that besides wanting to borrow his strength to complete this counter-terrorism mission, Edgar mostly wanted to test his power and his controllability.

When a product is manufactured, one must first measure its threat level.

But Lu Heng didn't care.

There was almost no superhuman in this world who could pose a threat to him; instead, he could use this incident to boost his popularity with the public once again.

It would be best to bring both Cate and Jordan along this time.

"You're taking two interns on a counter-terrorism mission?"

Ashley questioned.

She was worried that if those two died, it would cause trouble for Guardian's reputation.

"They need field training, and I will ensure their safety."

Ashley shook her head. "Sandstorm has been rampaging through the Middle East for twenty years. It's not like Vought hasn't sent supes before, but they all died. Only Homelander has ever managed to..."

A notification popped up on the panel.

[Side Quest Triggered: Desert Storm]

[Mission Objective: Eliminate the super-powered terrorist "Sandstorm," Farid al-Rashid]

[Mission Rewards: 15,000 Ability Points, Global Reputation Increase]

[Bonus Objective: Protect the safety of team members Cate Dunlap and Jordan Li]

[Bonus Rewards: Team Loyalty Increase, 3,000 Ability Points]

It looked like this trip would be quite profitable.

Lu Heng took out his phone and sent a message to Cate and Jordan.

[Guardian: The wind is picking up, hurry back!]

[Guardian: Big job coming up!]

[Jordan: Is it a big burger this time?]

[Guardian: Sure, we can buy one and eat it in the Middle East.]

[Cate: The Middle East?]

After the messages were sent, the door to Lu Heng's office was kicked open.

Jordan and Cate both looked excited.

"We're going to the Middle East for a mission?"

"Is it a terrorist attack?"

"Guardian, you really are a hero of justice!"

"I like you so much, I want to give you a shock..."

Ten minutes later, the Middle East.

Lu Heng carried one in each hand, descending from high altitude into the desert.

As soon as Cate and Jordan landed, they couldn't help but vomit.

Everything they had eaten that morning was wasted.

"Ugh!"

"Blegh!"

It wasn't until they had emptied their stomachs that the two wiped their mouths and stood up shakily.

"Gu... Guardian, help me out, my legs are jelly."

Cate grabbed Lu Heng's arm, stars dancing before her eyes.

Jordan cleared her throat. "Feels like I drank 100 bottles of beer and then got leaned on all night."

Lu Heng: "..."

Cate: "..."

That's quite a unique analogy, sister!

"Jordan, seriously, just when I think you've reached the peak of absurdity, you always come up with something that makes my eyes pop." Lu Heng gave a thumbs up.

My team is truly a lost cause.

The frail and boneless Cate, the Jordan who always fantasizes about being leaned on.

And the invincible me!