When he heard that Natasha had returned safely and brought an expert with her,
Nick Fury hurried over.
Nick Fury's first instinct upon seeing Yan Shuangying was that this man was no ordinary fellow.
After hearing Natasha's report, Nick Fury's stern face seemed to darken further.
S.H.I.E.L.D.
Inside Nick Fury's office.
On the desk lay Old Man's translation of the scroll and a translation of the ancient book Natasha had brought back.
Nick Fury and Natasha, standing before the desk, saw Coulson enter.
"Coulson, what did the man at the Antique Shop say about the book Natasha brought back?"
Coulson smiled helplessly. "Mr. Cheng said the book's contents were rather complicated and he needed some time. He probably won't have the translation ready until this afternoon or tomorrow."
Coulson could understand Nick Fury's slight impatience.
When he heard that the so-called deity in the Fishing Village was suspected of coming from the Indus Civilization...
He had panicked too!
Meanwhile, inside the Antique Shop.
"Sir, the book doesn't look all that difficult to translate, does it?" Frank asked curiously.
Although Frank's knowledge was limited, he could just about tell whether the wording was difficult.
Old Man looked solemn. After a short while, he sighed.
"Do you really need to tell me that? Old Man hasn't gone senile."
Then Old Man pointed to a page in the book. "But this records a potentially viable path to supernatural power."
"A path to supernatural power?" Frank was a little surprised.
He had served as an instructor for the Marine Corps and the special forces.
He had heard a little about the military's attempts to reproduce the Super Soldier Serum over the years.
Fifty or sixty years had passed since Captain America's death in battle, yet there had been little progress with the serum.
The super soldier program had been forced to a halt.
The military had spent so many years searching for a path to supernatural power without success.
Yet S.H.I.E.L.D. had picked up a book from who knew where, and it actually contained a way to gain superpowers?
But...
If knowledge of supernatural power was so easy to obtain, why had no superpowered individuals appeared in all these years?
Could there actually be forces hiding behind the scenes,
Preventing the spread of supernatural power?
The more Frank thought about it, the more uneasy he became.
"Sir, in that case, are you still going to give them the translated material?" Frank asked gravely.
"Of course." Old Man said earnestly, "We have to test the waters."
Frank understood. Old Man wanted to probe whether some organization was pulling strings behind the scenes.
In fact, no major organizations would have emerged in the past. At most, there would have been small-scale efforts by certain countries or individuals.
After all, the Sorcerer Supreme wasn't dead.
Friendly warning from the Time Stone.JPG
That afternoon.
When Coulson received the translation, his face filled with shock and... excitement.
"This... how is this possible? This is a method for gaining superpowers?"
He hurried to Nick Fury's office.
"Build three altars in Insco Town, and a pure person who prays devoutly to the God of Harvest can receive a divine blessing." Frowning, Nick Fury read the method for gaining supernatural power over and over.
"This is tricky!" He turned to Coulson. "Is Insco Town the town Agent Romanoff went to?"
"We've verified it. That was the town's former name."
Nick Fury nodded.
Getting an answer to this matter at least settled a major concern.
Nick Fury's gaze flickered inscrutably. There was no telling what he was planning.
"Have you finished the background check on Yan Shuangying?"
Coulson shook his head. "We've found absolutely nothing. Our presence in the East is weak to begin with, and he claims to come from 1950. We haven't been able to find even the slightest lead on his identity."
"1950? Could he also be a super soldier test subject?"
Nick Fury fell silent, his thoughts unreadable.
After a moment of silence, Nick Fury continued questioning him. "Do you think he could be a spy?"
Hearing Nick Fury's question, Coulson recalled the half day they had spent together and the information he had uncovered. "It's unlikely. If someone wanted to plant a spy, there would be no reason to leave him with no background whatsoever."
"Mm." Nick Fury nodded, seemingly accepting Coulson's explanation. "Classify Insco Town as a level-ten file. Keep it confidential, Coulson."
"Yes, sir."
Outside the office.
Coulson was preparing to leave the office building.
"Hey, Coulson."
"Hey, Stone."
Stone was an old comrade who had trained alongside Coulson in their early years.
Later, however, he had been wounded while working for S.H.I.E.L.D. and could no longer return to the battlefield.
He had stayed on as a warehouse clerk in the storage area.
Of course, that was only his cover.
"Long time no see. How have you been?"
"Good, of course. There are just too many missions. It's hard to find time for a break."
The two chatted comfortably.
Judging by Coulson's attitude, the intelligence involved in this mission had a very high classification.
Stone couldn't keep fishing for information without risking exposure.
Just then, Natasha happened to come looking for Coulson, giving Stone a convenient opportunity to say goodbye.
And so, the information that Coulson appeared to have received a major classified assignment spread through another communication channel.
The training room.
Yan Shuangying moved.
Holding a wooden blade, he charged straight toward the dummy before him. His eyes locked on his target, and the wooden blade slashed down swiftly. An instant later, a precise cut appeared across the dummy's neck.
Natasha and Coulson appeared in the doorway.
Clap-
"Impressive, Mr. Yan."
Even watching from the sidelines, they could still feel a faint sense of pressure.
After observing him for the day, Natasha was certain that Yan Shuangying was at least her equal, if not stronger.
However,
Natasha looked troubled.
He had very little faith in S.H.I.E.L.D.'s ideals.
He seemed entirely unwilling to join S.H.I.E.L.D.
According to the psychologists' analysis, his beliefs leaned more toward that great nation in the East.
He was no longer young, and ordinary brainwashing methods were unlikely to change his thinking.
As for using inhumane methods?
Nick Fury certainly had the nerve for that, and plenty of it.
If Natasha and the others hadn't known Yan Shuangying, that would have been fine.
But now that they knew him, taking such measures would hardly be worthwhile.
Offending one of their own for the sake of an outsider with comparable combat strength clearly wasn't a good bargain.
Yan Shuangying hadn't been idle that day either.
Something about this organization felt off to him.
Everyone could be considered well trained, including the clerks sitting in their offices.
Outside this place, they would all qualify as elite soldiers.
Yan Shuangying had been probing everyone he could come into contact with.
None of them were pushovers.
Even the way some of them looked at him made him deeply uncomfortable.
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