Hall of Heroes

The trip from Stark Restaurant to the villa naturally did not require walking. Although Grandis, Mash, and Tony Stark, who had lost his armor, lacked the ability to fly, Li Chen and Ulquiorra easily solved that problem—a massive hand condensed from spirit particles carried everyone through the air.

As the Fourth Espada, Ulquiorra already possessed captain-level Reiatsu, while Li Chen could unleash spirit-particle strength at the peak of S-rank through his special ability. Carrying people through the air was effortless for them; only their control precision still needed improvement—for ordinary people, it felt like being tightly constricted by a python.

Tony Stark silently vowed never to ride such a dangerous "aerial cable car" again.

"Everyone, it seems we have two unexpected visitors to deal with."

Before the lift platform, two men in black suits were walking toward them—S.H.I.E.L.D. Level Eight Agent Coulson, and the iconic one-eyed Black director, Nick Fury.

"Who gave you permission to speak to my lord so casually, trash?!"

Ulquiorra merely leaked a trace of Reiatsu, yet the two high-ranking S.H.I.E.L.D. agents were pinned firmly to the ground, unable to move even a finger. It was suppression that came from the soul itself; they could not even form the thought of resisting.

Since Iron Man Tony had received his lord's tacit approval, Ulquiorra could ignore him. But these mere human ants actually dared question his lord's decisions? They truly did not know whether they were dead or alive.

"Enough, Ulquiorra."

"As you command."

The terrifying pressure enveloping Coulson and Fury abruptly vanished, but their backs were already soaked in cold sweat. When they looked up at Ulquiorra, only deep wariness remained in their eyes—this man was simply not within the bounds of humanity. If he wished it, the entirety of New York would likely be reduced to ashes in an instant.

"Since you represent the local forces, I'll give you some basic information. Follow me."

"Hey, this is my house..." Tony muttered, but still followed Li Chen toward the living room.

In the luxurious, futuristic villa, Secretary Pepper Potts should have been the one receiving them. Unfortunately, Tony had become engrossed in developing the Iron Man armor and handed Stark Industries entirely over to her; this assistant had long since been promoted to CEO.

"Sit down."

"Let me emphasize, this is my house..."

"Hm?"

Ulquiorra swept him with a glance, and Tony instantly felt as though he had fallen into an ice cellar. Though the oppressive feeling vanished in a flash, he wisely shut his mouth and sat down—if he kept talking, he would probably really get beaten up.

"Who exactly are you people?" Fury demanded in a low voice.

The appearance of these four was far too strange. No records of them existed in the registry system. Not only had they appeared out of nowhere near Stark Restaurant, they also possessed terrifying combat power. Leaving aside that unfathomable, cold young man, the blonde girl who had torn apart a monster with her bare hands alone was comparable to a humanoid weapon. And both of them deferred to the black-haired, red-eyed young man, making it clear that he was the central figure.

Such a dangerous force had suddenly appeared on Earth, yet S.H.I.E.L.D. had known nothing about it. This was absolutely a major threat.

"You should know about the global upheaval a month ago."

"Indeed." Fury nodded.

The millennia-old Eastern fox demon clan, Tushan, had quietly risen. As long as this demon territory, which maintained a delicate balance with humanity, did not cross those few red lines, a mutually beneficial coexistence could still be maintained.

A hyperdimensional disturbance erupted over the Pacific Ocean, spawning a series of spatial rifts that devoured everything. Otherworldly beings known as "Spirits" descended along with them.

And in the center of New York, the headquarters building of the [Hall of Heroes] had appeared out of thin air. It had evaded satellite surveillance and repelled the approach of all armed forces—any army that entered within a hundred li would be reduced to dust in an instant.

"We are from the cross-dimensional guardian organization, the [Hall of Heroes]."

"You are not the only ones fighting alone in the shadows of this world."

The one-eyed commander's pupils suddenly contracted. "The... Hall of Heroes?!"

When the name "cross-dimensional guardian organization—the Hall of Heroes" first reached Nick Fury's ears, the king of agents, renowned for his suspicion, immediately tensed. The name did sound like that of righteous allies, but who knew what lay hidden beneath the mask?

"Wait," his one eye flashed with the sharp light of a hawk, "if your organization truly protects the world, why is there not even the slightest trace of it in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s database? Our intelligence network covers everything known to humanity."

"The reason is simple." Li Chen dug at his ear with his little finger, then blew away nonexistent earwax. "Is the path of ants moving house worth a dragon lowering its head to inspect?"

Seeing the other man's face suddenly darken, the young man chuckled and raised his little finger. "You are merely a security team huddled in a corner of this blue planet, while we—" He suddenly spread his arms as though embracing an endless river of stars. "—are watchers standing at the apex of countless universes. If this world were not about to meet its end, you would not even be qualified to witness our true faces."

This mixture of truth and falsehood was precisely the smokescreen Li Chen had carefully designed.

The [Hall of Heroes] would indeed eventually grow into a behemoth spanning the multiverse, but certainly not now. At present, this newborn organization had only five members at most, including him, its lone commander.

But as long as he had enough energy points, mass recruitment would be nothing more than the flick of a finger. If his luck exploded and he summoned a vice-leader-level existence—such as that bald caped hero who could crush an interstellar overlord with his bare hands, or the pink-haired psychic who controlled causality—the style of this Marvel Universe would probably collapse completely.

[Ability Analysis]

Li Chen's ability was extremely special—it could perfectly replicate all the skills of his team members and automatically break through to higher ranks.

[Organization Declaration]

"Earthly political struggles have nothing to do with us." Li Chen lightly tapped the table with his fingertips. "The League of Heroes exists only to maintain the structural stability of the multiverse—let me remind you, this has nothing to do with protecting humanity."

"Even if human civilization is completely annihilated, as long as the foundation of the world remains intact, new intelligent species will eventually emerge."

[Emergency Alert]

Fury, the S.H.I.E.L.D. commander, sharply caught the key detail. "So the reason you appeared this time is...?"

"Three world-ending threats have already been confirmed to have descended." Li Chen brought up a holographic projection. Images of [Desert Emperor] Azir, [Nine-Tailed Demon Saint] Tushan Honghong, and [First Spirit] Mio slowly revolved. "What is even more troublesome is that your world is attracting more calamities like a black hole."

The projected interface suddenly flickered violently, displaying a suffocating list:

· Starforge Creator—Aurelion Sol

· Dimensional Devourer—Boros

· Infinity Gauntlet Thanos

· Gensokyo's Supreme Dragon God

· Apostle-Class Lifeforms

· Ultimate Predators of the Gourmet World

· Creator God Palkia

"The activity of any one of these beings could cause the entropy-reduction collapse of this plane." Li Chen suddenly revealed an amused smile. "Of course, this is only the worst-case projection..."

[Hidden Mechanism]

In truth, these claims were half true and half false. The League of Heroes had the following expansion methods:

1. Basic Recruitment (100 energy units per attempt, randomly produces heroes, equipment, or bloodlines)

2. Targeted Summoning (energy cost directly correlates with the target's strength)

3. Calamity Contract (forcibly summons heroes above B-rank, but requires bearing the risk of the corresponding BOSS descending)

Energy could only be acquired through two methods: absorbing the energy of strange artifacts or annihilating entities beyond standard specifications.

(System Notice: Choose the Calamity Contract with caution—it may trigger a deluxe "Dragon King/Boros/Dragon God" gift pack, or perhaps... a world-ending countdown.)

Unfortunately, most of these people were classified as catastrophic entities.

Although there was a possibility of recruiting them into the righteous alliance, the hope was truly slim.

Looking at the grave expressions of the three people before him, Li Chen felt that his talent for public speaking had risen to another level—being able to throw both Iron Man and the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. into mental turmoil was not something an ordinary person could achieve.

"But there is no need to worry too much. This planet still has many guardians."

"Many guardians?"

"..."

"The Asgardians are responsible for resisting extraterrestrial invasions, while secluded mages ward off dark creatures from other dimensions. Honestly, among the many Earth defense organizations, your S.H.I.E.L.D. has the biggest attitude and the least use."

Li Chen gave his assessment without reservation.

Although the criticism was harsh, it spoke the truth. Leaving aside the fact that eighty percent of S.H.I.E.L.D.'s members were Hydra infiltrators, its core combat strength—Black Widow, Hawkeye, and Captain America—might possess superb fighting techniques, but they were limited by the physical limits of ordinary humans. When facing threats with certain special defensive abilities, they would likely struggle even to break through their defenses.

"Here's one more piece of free intelligence: someone in our alliance can foresee the future."

"Foresee the future? That is impossible!"

Director Fury abruptly rose to his feet, only to sit back down beneath Ulquiorra's icy gaze. Absolute indifference toward life shone in the silver-haired young man's eyes; to him, humans were merely ants that could be crushed at will.

"What exactly did you foresee?"

"Are you sure you want to hear it?" Li Chen narrowed his eyes meaningfully. "This truth may be hard for you to accept."

"No matter how cruel the truth is, we must face it." Fury clenched his fists.

"Fine, then I'll reveal a few fragments of the future." Li Chen spread his hands. "The S.H.I.E.L.D. you are so proud of has long been thoroughly infiltrated by Hydra."

"Hydra?!" Fury looked as though he had been struck by lightning. "That's impossible. They were clearly..."

"Wiped out by Captain America seventy years ago? How naive! Hydra's creed is, 'Cut off one head, and two more shall grow!' They were never truly destroyed. Over the years, they have been secretly corroding S.H.I.E.L.D.'s foundation."

The air in the room seemed to freeze.

Fury's brows furrowed tightly, and stormy waves surged within his heart. Though it was difficult to accept, the words of the black-haired, red-eyed young man before him were indeed flawless.

"Tony, I have another piece of news that will interest you."

"Stop! It is definitely not good news."

Tony repeatedly waved his hands, the loose hair on his forehead swaying with every shake of his head. He did not believe that the "good news" Li Chen spoke of would be anything good—one look at the S.H.I.E.L.D. director's expression of existential doubt made that clear.

"In the future, you find true love and nearly enter the hall of marriage."

"What? Me? Married?" Tony pointed dramatically at himself. "I would only consider something like that if I were about to die."

"Don't worry, the wedding never takes place."

"Whew—I knew it was a farce."

"No, it is because some purple potato monster collects six gems and snaps his fingers, turning half the universe to ash, including your fiancée."

Li Chen spoke half-truths. Thanos's snap was real, but Iron Man's lover, Pepper Potts, had actually escaped unharmed. He deliberately said this to ignite Tony's fighting spirit.

"What did you say?!"

Tony's temples throbbed. If someone in the future truly dared hurt the person he loved, he would definitely make them pay the price. This plot was simply awful, yet seeing Li Chen's certain expression, he had no choice but to believe it.

"Don't worry too much. Since the [League of Heroes] appeared, the future has already changed."

"Wait," Fury suddenly interrupted, "how do you prove that everything you said is true?"

"Investigate your S.H.I.E.L.D. from within and you will understand—remember to be careful. Don't throw your lives away."

"Compared with that, I want to know more about how to deal with that purple potato monster."

"Join us."

A blue wristband appeared in Li Chen's palm, and he lightly tossed it to Tony. This was the symbol of the [League of Heroes], and it had four functions: recording achievements, storing energy, receiving missions, and enhancing abilities. Like Grandis's holy light, it could advance through training or consume energy to rise to B-rank. But to reach a higher level, one needed not only sufficient energy points, but also the corresponding hero title.