Chapter Summaries

Bruce Banner proposed using gamma-ray spectrometers to track the Tesseract, and Nick Fury sent him to set up the search. Lin Hai warned Fury to look more closely at what he should know, planting suspicion that S.H.I.E.L.D. had problems within its own ranks.

• Banner proposed placing gamma-ray-calibrated spectrometers on rooftops and using a tracking algorithm to narrow the Tesseract's location.
• Fury told Natasha Romanoff to take Banner to a laboratory, and Banner left to begin working.
• Fury told Lin Hai that he had investigated Kamar-Taj and spoken with Director Zheng.
• Lin Hai warned Fury not to overlook important information and implied that trouble might exist within S.H.I.E.L.D.
• Lin Hai hoped Fury's growing suspicions would lead him to uncover Hydra's infiltration before it could trigger a disaster.

Lin Hai joined Steve and Peter to investigate Loki’s lead in Stuttgart, where Steve confronted Loki after he attacked an elderly man. Loki was knocked down by his reflected attack, and Steve faced him.

• Lin Hai toured the Helicarrier with Gwen and the others, then they returned to their lounge while Banner worked in the lab.
• A staffer found Loki in Stuttgart, and Fury sent Steve to respond.
• Lin Hai and Peter joined Steve, with Peter excited to see Captain America in uniform.
• Loki tried to force the crowd to submit and fired the Mind Scepter at an elderly man who defied him.
• Steve arrived, deflected Loki’s attack with his shield, and knocked Loki down before confronting him.

Steve and Peter fought Loki in the plaza, with Peter overpowering and binding him in Silk. Tony arrived after the fight and found Loki wrapped up, praising Peter’s work.

• Loki rejected Steve as an outdated soldier, then fired a blast at the Quinjet when Natasha ordered him to surrender.
• Steve attacked Loki with his shield while Peter shot Silk across Loki’s face and struck him hard enough to send him flying.
• Peter bound Loki from his shoulders to his ankles before Loki could recover, then told Steve that Loki had been wrong to call him outdated.
• Tony arrived in his Iron Man armor and joked that they had turned Loki into a caterpillar before praising Peter.

The Avengers flew Loki back to the Helicarrier while Lin Hai showed Tony how Peter’s upgraded suit appeared from a chest emblem. Loki recognized its metal as Uru and accused them of stealing it, but thunder shook the Quinjet before Lin Hai could silence him, and Lin Hai stepped forward to handle whoever was outside.

• Natasha reported to Nick Fury that Loki had said nothing, and Fury told her to bring him back and have Doctor Lin watch him closely.
• Tony noticed Peter had changed out of his Spider-Suit and questioned Lin Hai, who admitted their suits had new functions and had Peter demonstrate.
• Peter activated his suit from the golden spider emblem, and Loki recognized the metal as Uru and accused the Midgardians of stealing it.
• Lin Hai dismissed Loki’s accusation as a misunderstanding and told Peter to seal Loki’s mouth with Silk.
• Thunder erupted around the Quinjet and shook it, prompting Steve and Tony to ready themselves while Loki said he disliked the person who often appeared with thunder.
• Lin Hai reassured the others and stepped forward to handle the approaching visitor.

Lin Hai calmed the Quinjet’s passengers and welcomed Thor aboard, then introduced him to Steve and Tony. The group left their first meeting on friendly terms, while Lin Hai considered asking them for compensation for his efforts.

• Lin Hai opened the Quinjet’s rear hatch and greeted Thor, who joined them aboard.
• Thor saw Loki bound in Silk and greeted Peter before meeting Steve and Tony.
• Lin Hai warned Steve and Tony about Thor’s temper and explained that Mjolnir was forged from Uru Metal, which caught Tony’s interest.
• Thor boasted about Mjolnir while Loki silently disapproved of his brother’s behavior.
• Lin Hai introduced Steve as the team’s leader and Tony as its smartest member, and Thor shook hands with both.
• Lin Hai reflected that he had turned a potential fight into a friendly meeting and considered asking Tony and Thor for something in return.

Nick Fury locked Loki in a high-altitude containment cell and confronted him while the Avengers watched from the Helicarrier conference room. Thor and the team discussed Loki’s Chitauri army and his plan to use the Tesseract to open a Portal, which Tony explained would require iridium and a high-density power source.

• Nick Fury had agents take Loki to a glass containment cell that could be dropped from the Helicarrier, then warned him not to try to escape.
• Loki taunted Fury by referring to the monster the cell was built to hold, and Fury threatened to make Loki regret his actions.
• Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, Harry, and the Avengers watched the exchange, while Banner stayed calm at Loki’s insult about a raging beast.
• Thor told Steve that Loki had an army called the Chitauri Army, which Thor believed wanted the Tesseract.
• Banner and Natasha explained that Loki had controlled Dr. Selvig and another S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, and Banner suspected Loki planned to open a Portal.
• Tony said iridium could stabilize the Portal and that Loki would also need a high-density power source to activate the Tesseract.

Lin Hai identified Tony's reactor beneath Stark Tower as a likely energy source for Loki's plan to open a Portal, and the group began preparing to locate the Tesseract. He then told the lab team he wanted to touch Loki's Scepter and approached it, leaving the group ready to intervene if anything went wrong.

• Lin Hai pointed out that Tony's reactor beneath Stark Tower could provide enough energy to activate the Tesseract and open a Portal for the Chitauri.
• Tony realized the enemy had targeted his building, and the group agreed to search for the Tesseract while preparing defenses around Stark Tower.
• Tony took Banner to the lab to investigate the Tesseract, while Lin Hai followed with Gwen and the others to study Loki's Scepter.
• Lin Hai explained that he wanted to make contact with the Mind Stone in Loki's Scepter, and Banner cautiously judged that touching its inactive outer shell should be safe.
• Gwen, Tony, Peter, and Harry accepted Lin Hai's decision, and Lin Hai walked toward the Scepter on the examination table.

Lin Hai used the Mind Scepter to make contact with the Mind Stone, hoping to strengthen his mental power, but the Stone’s energy invaded his mind and struggled against his Life Force. The Seven-Colored Essence awakened, consumed the invading energy, and granted Lin Hai a boost to his mental power before retreating again.

• Lin Hai touched the Mind Scepter and guided his Life Force through its shell to contact the Mind Stone.
• The Mind Stone’s energy surged into Lin Hai’s brain and tried to take control, forcing his Life Force to fight back and repair the damage.
• The clash caused the Mind Scepter to blaze with blue light as Lin Hai’s Life Force glowed green, alarming the people in the laboratory.
• The Seven-Colored Essence awakened and began consuming the Mind Stone’s energy as the Stone increased its output.
• After ten minutes, the Mind Stone stopped transmitting energy, and the Seven-Colored Essence absorbed the remaining energy before releasing a boost that merged into Lin Hai’s brain.

After contact with the Mind Stone, Lin Hai discovered that his Upper Dantian had transformed and that he could use spiritual power to sharpen his senses and project his awareness around him. Gwen and Peter sensed his projection, while Tony and Banner were left wondering what had happened.

• Lin Hai examined his transformed Upper Dantian and found a clear, direction-filled space with a pool that seemed to store spiritual power.
• Lin Hai used spiritual power to hear sounds throughout the Helicarrier and discern details in the faces and expressions of people in the laboratory.
• Lin Hai projected his spiritual power from between his brows and gained a panoramic view of himself and everything in the laboratory.
• Gwen and Peter sensed Lin Hai watching them and realized the unusual presence came from him when he opened his eyes.
• Tony asked the others to explain what had just happened.

After Lin Hai gained benefits from the Mind Stone, an explosion rocked the Helicarrier and revealed that Hawkeye had likely sabotaged it under mind control. As Tony went to repair an engine, Lin Hai and Gwen rescued Natasha and calmed Banner, and Lin Hai invited Banner to stay with him after the crisis.

• Lin Hai explained that touching the Scepter had improved his strength, while Tony asked whether Thor or Banner could benefit from it.
• The next morning, an explosion shook the Helicarrier, and Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry rushed to respond.
• Lin Hai sent Peter and Harry to the command center while he and Gwen headed for the laboratory.
• Hill reported that Engine Three had stopped and was on fire, and Tony volunteered to repair it.
• Gwen lifted the pipe pinning Natasha, while Lin Hai healed Banner and used his mental power to calm the Hulk within him.
• Lin Hai invited Banner to stay at his home after the crisis, and Banner accepted.

Lin Hai and Gwen joined Steve, Peter, and Harry at Engine Three, where Tony was trying to restart the turbine. After Lin Hai and Gwen helped Steve defeat the attackers, Tony got the turbine turning and survived being flung out, then accepted Steve’s apology.

• Lin Hai and Gwen left the command center and found Peter and Harry repairing Engine Three while Steve fought black-clad attackers.
• Gwen shielded Steve, and Lin Hai struck the attackers with a wave of Life Force, clearing the fight.
• Lin Hai grew a vine bridge to the turbine, where Peter and Harry finished their repairs as Tony used his armor to push a turbine blade into motion.
• Gwen shielded Tony, who was flung from the spinning turbine but landed safely.
• Steve apologized to Tony for judging him as selfish, and Tony accepted the apology and shook his hand.

Hawkeye infiltrated the command room and used a special arrow to hack the Helicarrier’s systems, allowing Loki to escape his cell and trap Thor inside instead. Loki prepared to detach the cell from the Helicarrier and test whether Thor could survive the fall.

• A squad of armed attackers entered the command room after a grenade exploded, and Nick Fury took cover before shooting two of them.
• Hawkeye fired an explosive arrow at Fury, then launched a hacking arrow into the control console to disable the security locks on Loki’s cell.
• Thor rushed to Loki’s cell after the attack began, but the cell opened and an illusory Loki vanished when Thor tried to grab him.
• The real Loki closed the cell door behind Thor, trapping his brother inside.
• Thor struck the cell’s glass wall with Mjolnir and cracked it, while Loki reached for the switch that would release the cell from the Helicarrier.

Loki stabbed Coulson and tried to eject Thor’s cell, but Gwen stopped its fall while Lin Hai healed Coulson and drove Loki back. Lin Hai then freed Thor from the cell, leaving them together as Loki was left at the scene.

• Coulson confronted Loki with a prototype weapon, but Loki used an illusion to get behind him and stab him with the Mind Scepter.
• Gwen used golden energy to support Thor’s falling cell after Loki pressed the emergency ejection button.
• Lin Hai healed Coulson and repelled Loki’s attack with a wave of energy, sending Loki into a wall.
• Lin Hai summoned the Great Plum Blossom Spear and shattered the cracked glass wall of Thor’s cell.
• Thor escaped the cell and thanked Lin Hai for helping him again.

Natasha confronted Clint on the Helicarrier after Loki controlled his mind, and their fight broke Loki’s hold over him. The Helicarrier’s Engine Three was repaired, leaving the ship steady and Loki’s plan thwarted.

• Nick Fury told Natasha that Clint was near the command center, and Banner urged her to go after him.
• Natasha intercepted Clint in a maintenance passage and fought him at close range to keep him from using his bow.
• Natasha struck Clint in the chest, and the impact broke Loki’s mental control long enough for Clint to recognize her.
• Natasha punched Clint unconscious and reported to Nick Fury that Clint had been dealt with.
• Engine Three was repaired, the Helicarrier steadied, and the Avengers’ situation improved.

Thor and Lin Hai searched for Loki after Coulson blasted him through a wall, but Loki escaped the Helicarrier with the Mind Scepter. An hour later, Nick Fury gathered the group to discuss the attack, ending by thanking Tony for repairing Engine Three.

• Coulson struck Loki with an energy beam, and Loki crashed through an alloy wall.
• Thor and Lin Hai found that Loki had fled, while Thor recalled how difficult Loki had always been to catch.
• Loki escaped aboard a Quinjet with the Mind Scepter, believing his plan to divide the Avengers had succeeded and preparing for the Chitauri invasion.
• Nick Fury convened a meeting after the Helicarrier's repairs and criticized S.H.I.E.L.D.'s security failures and Tony's refusal to seek help.
• Fury thanked Tony for repairing Engine Three and saving the agents aboard the Helicarrier.

Nick Fury reprimanded Clint and urged Steve to lead the Avengers while Steve challenged S.H.I.E.L.D.’s plans for Tesseract weapons. Fury defended the weapons and explained the Avengers Initiative, and the assembled heroes agreed to protect Earth together.

• Nick Fury told Clint that being controlled by Loki was not his fault but urged him to protect himself if it happened again.
• Fury challenged Steve to take responsibility as the Avengers’ leader, and Steve agreed before questioning S.H.I.E.L.D.’s intended use of the Tesseract.
• Steve asked what weapon Coulson had used against Loki and challenged Fury over the possibility that it might be turned against people on Earth.
• Fury admitted S.H.I.E.L.D. had planned to create Tesseract weapons to defend Earth from alien threats and said he had also formed the Avengers Initiative.
• Steve, Tony, Natasha, Clint, Banner, and Thor signaled their support for the team, and Lin Hai said he and Gwen had come to help.

After the meeting, the Avengers prepared for Loki’s expected attack on Stark Tower, while Lin Hai and his companions returned home to rest. Thor joined them, and Peter once again failed to lift Mjolnir.

• Tony said he would return to Stark Tower to prepare, while Steve proposed evacuating Manhattan and Gwen suggested strengthening defenses and spreading warnings through her father’s police network.
• Nick Fury dismissed the idea of evacuating Manhattan, then ended the meeting and sent everyone to prepare.
• Tony flew to Stark Tower, Banner stayed to track Loki and the Tesseract, and Steve, Natasha, and Hawkeye remained aboard the Helicarrier to train.
• Thor decided not to visit Jane Foster and went with Lin Hai, Gwen, and Peter through a Portal to Lin Hai’s home.
• Thor looked around the house and went upstairs, while Peter tried to lift Mjolnir again and failed.

Thor discussed his hopes of balancing his duties as Asgard’s future king with his relationship with Jane. The next morning, Lin Hai and the others went to Stark Tower after the Tesseract’s energy appeared there, and Tony prepared to investigate Loki’s intrusion.

• Thor told Lin Hai he hoped to have a home on Earth with Jane someday and lamented his growing responsibilities in Asgard.
• Lin Hai suggested Thor could rule Asgard by day and visit Jane on Earth at night using the Bifrost, and Thor decided to try.
• Nick Fury called Lin Hai to report that Dr. Banner had detected the Tesseract’s energy at Stark Tower.
• Lin Hai gathered Gwen, Thor, Peter, and Harry, then opened a Portal to Stark Tower.
• Tony told the group Loki had placed the Tesseract in his tower without triggering the alarms and that it was drawing power from his reactor.
• Lin Hai explained that ordinary magical items could not stop Loki and asked whether they should go upstairs to investigate.

Tony and the others tried to stop Selvig’s device, but its energy shield blocked their attacks and the Tesseract opened a Portal above Stark Tower. Selvig woke after Lin Hai healed him and revealed that Loki’s Scepter could close the Portal.

• Tony arrived at the platform and attacked the device, but its energy shield deflected his repulsor blasts and sent Selvig crashing into the railing.
• Thor and Lin Hai reached Selvig, and Lin Hai healed him until he regained consciousness.
• Selvig remembered that Loki’s Scepter could close the Portal and told Thor and the others about the backdoor he had left in the device.
• Tony asked JARVIS to contact Nick Fury with Selvig’s information.
• The device accelerated, sent a beam of blue light into the sky, and opened a gigantic Portal above Stark Tower.

As the Chitauri Army prepared to emerge through the expanding Portal above Stark Tower, Lin Hai, Gwen, Peter, and Harry equipped their distinctive armors. Tony was stunned by their rapid transformations as the group faced the approaching invasion.

• Lin Hai saw the Chitauri Army gathering beyond the Portal and surveyed the mostly evacuated streets around Stark Tower.
• Lin Hai donned his mask and transformed his black rod into a Plum Blossom Spear as emerald Huaxia-style armor formed around him.
• Gwen equipped her platinum-white armor, while Peter and Harry activated their Spider-Suit and Nova Armor.
• Tony reacted with shock and frustration at the four rapid armor transformations, then looked back toward the expanding Portal.
• Thor recognized that Tony was especially surprised that Lin Hai and the others could equip armor this way while he could not.