Fully Devoured

Han Lin watched the train heading downhill and knew that even running might not be enough to catch it, so he quickly built up speed and charged toward the cliff. Steve and Bucky knew Han Lin could glide through the air, but Carter did not, and she cried out in alarm.

"Don't worry, Lin wouldn't gamble with his own life," Steve reassured her at the right moment.

In midair, Han Lin swiftly glided toward the departing train. Just as he was about to descend, Han Lin kicked off with both legs and glided forward once more, instantly halting his downward momentum.

The system notification sounded. Skill unlocked: Extra Dash: Gain one additional midair dash.

As the train rounded a wide bend down the mountain, Han Lin drew closer and closer in his dive. Schmidt and Dr. Zola watched as Han Lin, who had not died in the explosion, flew across the ravine and rapidly approached them.

Dr. Zola raised the energy gun in his hand and aimed it at Han Lin. A blue flash streaked through the air, and Han Lin, unable to dodge in time, was struck. A bloody crater appeared in his shoulder.

The Secondary Adamantium plate on his body was pierced through. The remaining energy did not penetrate Han Lin's body, but it still inflicted a horrific wound.

This was the first time Han Lin had been injured. Watching the inverted flesh rapidly heal, fury surged within him. As the distance closed, Han Lin activated Wind Whip Thrust. The wind whip tore through the twenty-meter straight-line distance and shot toward Schmidt.

The wind whip was incredibly fast, reaching Schmidt and Zola in the blink of an eye. Caught off guard, Schmidt was startled by Han Lin's sudden attack. He had not expected Han Lin to possess a ranged attack.

Unable to dodge, Schmidt pulled Dr. Zola in front of him. The cone-like wind whip swiftly pierced through Dr. Zola's chest, then spread into a three-pronged hook behind him, dragging Dr. Zola off the train. Borrowing that pulling force, Han Lin rapidly descended toward the ground.

"Host is injured. Autonomous devouring initiated."

The system's ill-timed voice rang out. Han Lin, who had intended to continue pursuing Schmidt, suddenly felt countless memories crammed into his mind and clutched his head in agony.

"Ah..."

All kinds of memories and knowledge were transformed and transmitted into Han Lin's mind, as though he had lived through the other man's entire life in a very short time.

Schmidt had originally feared that Han Lin would continue the pursuit. His berserk state could only last five minutes, and his exchange of attacks with Han Lin on the train had nearly brought it to an end.

Now, seeing Han Lin standing there in apparent pain with no intention of pursuing him, Schmidt was relieved.

Han Lin stood there for roughly four or five minutes before finally absorbing Dr. Zola's memories. Looking in front of him, Han Lin saw that only a set of clothes had fallen to the ground.

Steve raced over from the distance along the railway tracks, while Han Lin sat down on the rails, somewhat drained of strength.

Memories that did not belong to him had all been stuffed into his head. The pain was indescribable, as though his skull might burst open at any moment.

Steve and the other two approached. "Lin, how are you? Are you okay?"

"Not really. I need to rest for a while. Right now, it feels like this body isn't mine." Han Lin shook his head with a bitter smile, took two motorcycles out of the armory, then tilted his head toward Bucky to signal him to drive before sitting on the back seat.

They sped all the way back to the base. Han Lin did not say a word, merely hurried back to his barracks and fell asleep the moment he lay down.

Han Lin was only twenty-six years old, yet he had suddenly been crammed with nearly fifty years of someone else's memories. Anyone would have been driven mad. Only the powerful brain development granted by the Blacklight Virus and the Super Soldier Serum kept Han Lin from being driven insane by those memories.

Anyone else would have become an idiot or a psychiatric patient.

Han Lin slept until the following afternoon. He awoke from a dream so real that, within it, he had become Dr. Zola and lived through his entire life.

After graduating from school in his youth, Dr. Zola had long struggled in life. Arnim Zola had talent but lacked looks, and neither his career nor his love life went smoothly. Though gifted, he had yearned for success.

But the greater the hope, the deeper the disappointment. His superior stole the results of his experiments, the woman he liked rejected him, and Dr. Zola gradually became gloomy and withdrawn.

The increasingly changed Dr. Zola altered some of the data in his research results and submitted them to his superior as a successful experiment. After his superior stole the results once again, a major accident occurred, resulting in casualties. The superior went to prison and paid compensation, while Dr. Zola was fired.

The woman who had rejected him looked at Dr. Zola with disgust, as if he were the murderer.

Unable to endure it any longer, Dr. Zola picked up a utility knife and disfigured the woman.

The police took Zola away. Hydra found Dr. Zola in prison, promised to give him the success he desired, and brought him into a Hydra research base.

As time passed, Dr. Zola's talent found a stage upon which to shine, and he quickly gained the attention of Hydra's upper ranks.

Then, the mentally twisted Dr. Zola pledged loyalty to Schmidt and developed energy weapons for him. The insecure Dr. Zola held an obsessive attachment to Hydra because it was there that he had found solace.

Feeling the information in his mind that did not belong to him, Han Lin asked the system, "Why did you directly absorb Dr. Zola yesterday instead of removing his memories first?"

"The system detected that the host was injured, with damage exceeding 10%. Under the primary principle of protecting the host, it independently absorbed the enemy to heal the injuries. Mental energy is also beneficial to the host, so absorption was carried out independently."

"You call that beneficial? This is practically murder, okay? I feel like my brain is about to burst." Han Lin complained speechlessly. "From now on, just preserve the memories when absorbing someone. There's no need to convert them into mental energy and pass them on to me."

"Received. Configuring. Configuration complete."

Hearing that it could be configured that way, Han Lin breathed a sigh of relief. As long as it could be set, it was fine. What he feared was that it could not be set. Otherwise, whenever he was injured, the system would automatically absorb too many people's memories. That feeling was truly unbearable, and with those memories interwoven with his own, Han Lin constantly felt as though he were two people.

The tent flap was lifted, and Carter walked in from outside. Seeing Han Lin sitting up, she quickly approached and asked, "How do you feel?"

"I'm fine. How long was I unconscious?"

"A whole day. After the battle ended, you nearly fell off Bucky's motorcycle." Carter spoke with concern.

"Gather everyone for a meeting. Schmidt's trap this time was meant to clear away the smokescreen Steve and I put out." Han Lin said angrily.

Following Agent Carter's orders, everyone made their way to the meeting room.

Han Lin spotted someone among the crowd who should not have been there.

"Howard, why are you here?" Han Lin asked curiously.

"I brought you a gift. And since I heard you're about to have your final battle with Schmidt, I brought some new equipment." Howard winked at Han Lin.

Han Lin nodded and said nothing more. They could discuss the equipment later; for now, he first needed to tell everyone about Schmidt's plan.