Reunion

Stark and Steve returned to the base with worried expressions. They had just been summoned to a meeting with the Secretary of State about the uncontrolled destruction they had caused while fighting evil forces over the years, as well as the civilian casualties.

"I think they have a point," Stark suddenly said. "Didn't you see what Hulk did in Lagos? And the building your little witch destroyed a while back? Do you know how many people died inside?"

"Tony..." Steve turned to look at Stark in disbelief. In his eyes, Tony was the least likely person among the Avengers to sign the agreement.

He dared to act and hate, dared to face every danger and challenge, and always overcame them. Although Steve was the leader of the Avengers, Tony carried no less weight within the team—if anything, slightly more.

Tony had provided the base, the operating funds, the training equipment, and all the subsequent expenses and living support. The fact that the Avengers could remain unharmed in the face of those vampire-like politicians was largely due to Stark Industries' pivotal position.

Steve lowered his head. He understood that Tony wanted to consider the well-being of more people, but once they were bound by rules, it would mean the Avengers were not far from becoming those politicians' private army.

"One hundred and seventeen countries have agreed to sign this agreement. One hundred and seventeen! Do you know what that means?"

Rhodey did not look well either. Though he was a general, he understood their methods. But he could neither refuse nor find a reason to refuse, because those people's lofty justification was the people.

"Heh..." Steve sighed. "I won't agree to it. The Avengers will not become their personal bodyguards." His tone was firm. Hydra and Project Insight two years ago had made it impossible for him to trust anyone.

The only person he could rely on was himself, just as he had fallen alone into the ice seventy years ago and spent those seventy years in solitude, like a dead man.

He had once been a lone hero, but he was no longer one. He had to be responsible for his comrades, and for Dr. Erskine.

The group argued fiercely as they walked, slowly making their way into the base.

"Hello!"

"Ah!"

Li Nian looked at Rhodey, who had nearly jumped out of his skin, and felt rather speechless.

"Was that really necessary? Such a huge reaction."

It was not just Rhodey. Steve and Stark were no less startled. The two exchanged a glance and saw the shock in each other's eyes.

"Vision? Where have you been for the past year? We thought you..."

Steve asked tentatively, but Li Nian could see the wariness gradually rising in his eyes. Stark and the others behind him also looked suspicious to varying degrees.

Li Nian looked at them helplessly. He could understand how they felt. He had vanished from the base without a word, and he had been gone for over a year without any news. Their concern was perfectly normal.

Besides, Ultron was a precedent. The Avengers were probably afraid he had become like Ultron, hiding somewhere and plotting some evil scheme.

"It's a long story." Li Nian did not want them to grow suspicious of him, so he poured out everything that had happened to him over the past year, leaving out certain important details, such as the fact that he was a transmigrator and that he was hiding Ultron's body...

Steve was left dumbfounded. He smacked his lips. "Your experiences... have been pretty eventful..."

Stark was not as easygoing as Steve. Though he was not as suspicious as that gentleman next door, he was still an individualist and would not fully believe Li Nian's words.

"You're saying that a childish big-headed freak and a drugged-up magician dragged you into another world, then that world exploded like fireworks, and you were swept into other worlds and spent more than a year there before finding your way back..."

Tony cast Li Nian a mocking glance. "As far as I remember, I didn't install a lying function in your head. JARVIS didn't have the capacity to lie either. So the one influencing you must be Ultron!"

Tony's words made the Avengers wary again. That was right—they had assumed Li Nian could not lie because he was an artificial intelligence. But part of Ultron's thoughts still existed in his mind. Who knew whether he might go mad one day and decide to rule the world?

Li Nian sighed softly. He had known this would happen. After all, he had only spent a little over half a month with them.

Li Nian stood up, and only then did Tony see the Tesseract hidden behind him. It was emitting a faint blue glow.

"The Tesseract! Didn't Thor take it back to Asgard?"

The group was shocked to see the Tesseract appear on Earth again.

"It contains the coordinates of that universe. If you don't believe me, you can go take a look."

Steve and Tony exchanged a look, their brows furrowing. This had hit them too hard, because the news involved the existence of the multiverse. It also meant that the enemies they faced in the future might come from other worlds, and perhaps some terrifyingly powerful people might even break into this universe...

Anything was possible.

Tony felt like he was going mad. A mad Titan had already taken root in his heart, and all the other messes had left him restless. It had been a long time since Tony had slept peacefully.

Seeing the others fall silent, Li Nian tactfully changed the subject.

"By the way, where did you go? Where are the others?"

"Barton retired. Wanda and Pietro are in confinement because of... certain incidents. Dr. Banner..."

Steve's tone suddenly became heavy. They had searched for Banner for an entire year, but they had still not found the slightest trace of him.

"Dr. Banner is fine." Li Nian could not bear to see their sorrowful expressions, so he decided to tell them some information in order to prevent certain future tragedies.

"He passed through a wormhole and was transported to another planet. He's living quite comfortably there." Li Nian reassured them.

Then Li Nian's expression turned serious. Pointing at them, he said solemnly, "Something else is about to happen. When it does, you must remain calm and not act on impulse."

Li Nian told them that Zemo wanted to deal with the Avengers and had already taken control of Bucky.

"He wants to use this agreement to divide the Avengers and destroy us from within."

In truth, he had not revealed the most important piece of information. The real culprit behind the Avengers' split was Tony's parents. But how could he possibly say something like that in this situation? Stark was usually rational, but once his deceased parents were involved, he could go crazier than anyone.

Li Nian's thoughts shifted slightly as he looked at Tony and Steve.

"Hmm?"

Both of them felt their phones vibrate. They looked down, then soon raised their heads and stared at Li Nian in confusion, as if asking what exactly he was up to.