Absolute Domination

Tony's armor alarm shrieked sharply through the villa. On the holographic display, data from the wreckage of the crashed Hydra assault ship flickered. Sea wind blew in through the broken windows, carrying the scent of gunpowder and salt.

The renovation crew's drills stopped abruptly. The workers stared at the sea in terror—five menacing Hydra warships were cutting through the waves, ominous energy glowing at their prows.

"They're back!" Tony activated his armor. "JARVIS, bring all defensive systems online!"

Xiao Han slowly rose from his lounge chair, his gaze icy behind his sunglasses. "The test was over."

A sonic boom shattered every remaining pane of glass as he shot toward the lead warship like a cannonball. The instant he made contact, one hand punched straight through the hull armor and ripped out the core reactor. The warship exploded into a fireball in midair, its wreckage raining down.

The second warship hurriedly turned and opened fire with every weapon it had. Energy beams rippled across Xiao Han's body but did nothing. He accelerated in an instant, broke the sound barrier, and punched through the bridge, tearing the entire warship in half as metal fragments flew everywhere.

The third warship tried to flee, but Heat Vision pierced its engine room with perfect accuracy. A chain of explosions completely engulfed the ship, and its burning wreckage crashed into the sea, turning the surface into a sea of flames.

Seeing this, the fourth warship immediately deployed dozens of drones, forming a dense attack network. Xiao Han did not even move. Heat Vision flashed from his eyes like precise laser blades, instantly vaporizing every drone and leaving only fleeting fireballs in the sky.

The fifth warship finally realized escape was impossible and activated its self-destruct sequence. But Xiao Han had already appeared on its bridge. He pressed one hand against the console, and his freezing breath instantly froze the entire control system, abruptly halting the self-destruct sequence. He casually hurled the whole warship toward the distant sea, raising a massive wave a hundred meters high.

The entire process took less than fifteen seconds. Only floating debris and burning oil slicks remained on the sea.

"That's... it?" Tony stared dumbfounded at the five red dots that had vanished from the holographic display in an instant.

Suddenly, strange red ripples spread through the air. A young woman in a red coat appeared out of nowhere, unnatural red light shrouding her eyes—it was Wanda Maximoff, under mind control.

"For Hydra..." Her voice carried the dullness of someone being controlled as chaotic energy lunged toward the villa like venomous snakes.

Xiao Han could not even be bothered to move. Heat Vision flickered faintly, instantly vaporizing the chaotic energy and leaving a blazing trail in the air.

"Is that all Strucker can do?" he sneered, appearing before Wanda in an instant and gripping her throat with one hand. "Let me show you what real power is."

Wanda struggled in terror, chaotic energy surging violently around her. Yet she discovered that her powers were completely useless before him. Heat Vision flickered in Xiao Han's eyes as he directly burned away the mind-control mark inside her. A wisp of black smoke drifted away from her forehead.

"The control is gone." He casually tossed her aside. Wanda stumbled and fell onto the beach, gasping for breath.

The roar of engines came from the distance. Five armored vehicles smashed through the fence, and dozens of Hydra soldiers began firing wildly, bullets pouring down like rain.

A cold glint flashed through Xiao Han's eyes. He drew a deep breath, and freezing breath instantly swept across the entire battlefield. The armored vehicles and soldiers froze in an instant, locked in their firing poses.

Then he lightly stomped his foot, and every frozen object shattered into glittering ice crystals that flashed with an eerie light beneath the sun.

"Baron Strucker..." Wanda weakly pointed toward the sea. "He's commanding them from a nearby submarine..."

Xiao Han turned his gaze toward the ocean. His ears twitched slightly, and his super hearing instantly locked onto the submarine's location twenty nautical miles away.

Heat Vision suddenly erupted from his eyes. Two blazing red beams pierced the sea's surface and struck the submarine's engine compartment with precision. A muffled explosion sounded beneath the waves, huge bubbles rolled upward, and an oil slick began to spread across the surface.

A few minutes later, Xiao Han returned with Baron Strucker by the collar and casually threw him onto the grass. The baron was soaked to the bone and trembling, his expensive uniform covered in oil.

"The mastermind," Xiao Han said flatly. "The others in the submarine are feeding the fish."

Tony lowered his faceplate and carefully examined this important Hydra leader. "Baron Strucker? That's... it?"

Wanda timidly stepped closer. "Sir... my brother Pietro is still in their hands. Please..."

Heat Vision suddenly shot from Xiao Han's eyes at the sand by her feet. "Do I look like a babysitter?"

Strucker suddenly burst into manic laughter and struggled to his feet. "Fool! The data has already been sent back to headquarters! They know how to deal with you! Your abilities have been completely analyzed!"

Xiao Han did not even look at him. His tone was as calm as if he were discussing the weather. "Three hundred meters underground in the Swiss Alps. The entrance is disguised as a ski resort.

"Do you need me to give you the coordinates?" He watched Strucker's face turn deathly pale. "Tomorrow, I'll pay you a personal visit."

Heat Vision flashed, and Baron Strucker was instantly vaporized amid a scream, leaving behind not even a trace of ash.

"Too much nonsense." Xiao Han turned and walked toward the villa as though he had merely tossed away a piece of trash.

Suddenly, he stopped and looked toward the southeast. Heat Vision erupted from his eyes again. A hidden observation post on a distant hill exploded instantly, a mushroom cloud rising into the sky as the shockwave even blew the beach umbrellas.

Tony's armor alarm sounded again. "Nuclear radiation detected! That was Hydra's nuclear observation post!"

Xiao Han coldly addressed the empty distance. "Tell your leader to wash his neck and wait. Tomorrow, I'll come knocking in person."

The sea wind carried the smell of gunpowder and blood. Only traces of battle and the still-molten sand pit remained on the lawn. Watching it all, Tony finally understood why Hydra had run into an immovable wall this time.

Wanda stood where she was, watching Xiao Han's departing back with a complicated look in her eyes. Out at sea, the submarine wreckage still burned, oil slicks and fragments rising and falling with the waves like a bonfire lit in celebration of this absolute victory.

Just then, JARVIS spoke. "Sir, Director Fury is calling to ask about the nuclear explosion just now..."

Tony sighed. "Tell him... tell him we were setting off fireworks."