The last vestiges of the shield's power still trembled at Ye Mo's fingertips, and even his breath carried the smell of rust. His kneecaps felt like they'd been struck by a thousand-pound hammer, and every heartbeat made his eardrums ache. T'Challa's large hand, clad in Vibranium glove, had already gripped his shoulder, his strength perfectly controlled, preventing him from falling flat on his face or breaking his nearly broken spine.
"Can you still move?" T'Challa's voice was right next to my ear, deep and resonant, as if it were echoing in my chest.
Ye Mo didn't have the strength to answer, and could only squeeze out a single syllable. "Go."
Emma Frost stood on his other side, her face as pale as paper, her lips almost bloodless. She had exhausted her last bit of mental energy to maintain the mental link and shield Ye Mo from his painful thoughts. At this moment, her eyes were somewhat unfocused, but her fingers gripped Ye Mo's arm tightly, her nails digging into the fabric of his hoodie. She didn't speak, but quickly scanned her surroundings with her gray-blue eyes to make sure there was no second wave of explosions or ambushes.
The roar of mechanical engines could be heard in the distance; it was the swarm of drones left behind by Klaue searching the ruins. The sound grew closer, like a swarm of hungry flies buzzing around.
"There's an old drainage ditch behind the bushes on the left," T'Challa pointed to a collapsed embankment ahead. "Run with me, don't look back."
The three moved in a triangular formation. T'Challa the way, the nanomaterials on his Black Panther Suit instantly conforming to his muscle lines, granting him explosive speed. Like a black panther, he silently leaped over broken concrete slabs, avoiding the craters still emitting black smoke. Ye Mo followed in the middle, each step feeling like walking on cotton, unsteady and powerless. He dared not look around, only staring at the path beneath his feet. Finally, that damned system notification in his mind sounded, coldly announcing: [Energy Circuit cooling down, estimated recovery time: unknown. Recommendation to stop high-intensity exercise.]
Ye Mo cursed under his breath, then gritted his teeth and sped up.
Emma Frost brought up the rear. Her footsteps were so light they were almost inaudible. Occasionally, the beam of a drone's searchlight would sweep across the ground, and she would quickly lower herself, using Telepathy to interfere with the drone's sensors, making them think it was just an ordinary rock or a clump of weeds. This was torture for her now, but she persevered.
As he walked through a thicket of thorns, Ye Mo's hoodie was torn in several places, revealing several bloody scratches on his exposed skin. He didn't feel pain, only cold. The chill that seeped into his bones was more piercing than the night wind outside.
After running for about ten minutes, the surrounding vegetation thinned out. T'Challa stopped at the edge of a steep cliff and pointed to an inconspicuous cave entrance halfway up the mountain. "We're here."
It was a cave entrance, half natural and half man-made, surrounded by vines; it would have been completely unnoticed if T'Challa hadn't pointed it out. Above the entrance was a concealed signal jammer, flashing a faint red light. This was an emergency contact point reserved by Wakanda, specifically for dealing with such emergencies.
T'Challa was the first to crawl in, his movements as swift as if he were doing his daily training. Ye Mo and Emma Frost followed closely behind.
The cave interior was not spacious, only about ten square meters, but it was fully equipped. There was a folding table, a few chairs, and some first-aid supplies and spare batteries piled in the corner. A small display screen was embedded in the wall, showing the external surveillance footage—of course, the signal had been blocked, and the screen was filled with static.
Ye Mo slumped into the chair, his body sliding down the back until he landed on the floor. He gasped for breath, his chest heaving violently, each inhale accompanied by a sharp pain in his ribs. His hands trembled as he pulled the data chip from his pocket.
The chip's casing was charred black by the high temperature, with traces of melting along the edges. But under the dim emergency light, the tiny indicator light on top of the chip stubbornly blinked. Red light, flash, flash, and flash again.
"Still alive." Emma Frost leaned closer, her voice hoarse but tinged with relief. She reached out and gently touched the chip's casing; the warmth emanating from her fingertips made her frown. "It's frighteningly hot, but the core module seems intact."
Ye Mo didn't speak, but simply gripped the chip tightly. The sweat on his palms made the metal casing slippery, but he dared not loosen his grip. This small thing contained all the evidence of Klaue's collusion with Hydra, as well as the potential crises Wakanda might face in the future. If this thing was lost, all their desperate efforts, bloodshed, and overexertion tonight would become a joke.
T'Challa stood at the cave entrance, his back to them, cautiously observing the movements outside. After a while, he turned around.
At this moment, Black Panther's battle suit was covered in mud and Ashes, making the once shiny black fibers look somewhat disheveled. But he stood straight, his gaze sharp as a knife. He walked up to Ye Mo and stopped.
Ye Mo raised his head and met those deep eyes.
T'Challa didn't speak, but slowly lowered his head, clenched his right fist, and gently tapped his left chest over his heart. This is a traditional Wakanda salute, representing the highest respect and recognition.
"Your courage transcends steel," T'Challa said, his tone solemn and serious. " Black Panther is with you."
Ye Mo was stunned. He hadn't expected the high and mighty king to perform such a grand gesture. He opened his mouth, wanting to say something polite, such as "You're too kind" or "It was just a small favor," but his throat was dry, and he couldn't utter a sound for a long time. In the end, he could only manage a weak smile, raise his right hand, which hadn't fully recovered its strength, and clumsily imitate T'Challa's gesture, tapping his chest.
"It was nothing," he said softly, his voice slightly unsteady.
T'Challa up, the respect in his eyes undiminished, replaced by a deeper solemnity. "No, this wasn't a simple matter. That attack just now pushed you to your limits. Wakanda will remember this kindness."
After speaking, he took a portable decoder from the cabinet next to him and placed it on the folding table. The decoder was a unique Wakanda technological product, small in size, with a simple interface and no unnecessary decorations.
"We need to check the contents." T'Challa picked up the chip and handed it to Ye Mo. "Although I know it's fine, it's best to check the data integrity. This is related to our next deployment."
Ye Mo took the chip, his fingers still trembling slightly. He inserted the chip into the decoder's slot.
With a soft "click," the chip was embedded in place.
The decoder's screen lit up. A pale blue light illuminated the three people's faces. There was no complex code flow on the screen, nor any alarming warning pop-ups. There was only a simple file list interface, displaying dozens of folders and documents.
Ye Mo stretched out his finger and swiped it a few times on the touchscreen. Most of the filenames were displayed as garbled characters in an encrypted format, but the thumbnails of a few files made them easily recognizable.
A photograph.
In the photo, Klaue is standing in a warehouse, opposite several people dressed in Hydra uniforms. In the background, there are a large number of sonic weapon prototypes.
Another file.
It's a list. A densely packed list of names, followed by addresses and contact information.
Emma Frost leaned closer to the screen, her pupils contracting slightly. As Mutants, she had an extremely high sensitivity to information. She extended a finger and gently tapped on a file titled "Transportation Route. pdf".
"This is..." She looked up at T'Challa and Ye Mo, a cold glint in her eyes, "This is a roadmap for Klaue's planned sale of weapons to terrorist organizations. And these names... are all potential buyers."
T'Challa's expression darkened. He stood before the table, arms crossed, his gaze fixed on the names on the screen. "It's not just weapon blueprints," he said in a low voice, "This is a death list. Everyone here could lose their life because of this deal."
Silence fell over the cave.
The only sounds were the faint hum of the decoder fan and the heavy breathing of the three people.
Ye Mo stared at the cold words and images on the screen, feeling his palms sweating again. He had initially thought these were just pieces of evidence of commercial espionage, but he hadn't expected such a deep conspiracy to be hidden behind them. Klaue didn't just want to sell Vibranium; he wanted to tear apart the peace of Wakanda and sell it to those who craved chaos.
He took a deep breath, trying to calm the turmoil within him. He knew this was not the time for reflection. This chip was both a key and a bomb. Opening it meant officially declaring war.
"What do we do next?" Emma Frost asked, her voice soft but unusually clear in the quiet cave.
T'Challa turned to look at Ye Mo and Emma Frost. His gaze was firm, without the slightest hesitation. "Notify S.H.I.E.L.D.. and activate the highest level of alert. Simultaneously, contact the other members of the Avengers. We can't shoulder this alone."
Ye Mo shook his head. "Too slow," he interrupted. " Klaue won't give us that much time to prepare. The fact that he dared to make a move means he's already prepared for a full-scale war. What we need to do isn't wait for reinforcements, but to strike first."
He stood up, his legs still trembling, but his eyes were unusually sharp. Pointing to the photo on the screen, he said, "Find their logistics base. Once the supply chain is cut off, no matter how many guns they have, they're just scrap metal."
T'Challa nodded, a hint of appreciation flashing in his eyes. "A wise choice. But I need your help, Ye Mo. Your ' Vibranium Sense ' can help us pinpoint more Vibranium flows. Perhaps we can find clues in those buyers' warehouses too."
Ye Mo gave a wry smile. He was exhausted, like a dead dog, and all he wanted to do was lie down and get some sleep. But seeing T'Challa and Emma Frost's expectant eyes, he swallowed back the refusal that was on the tip of his tongue.
"Alright." He sighed, sat down again, and touched the screen once more. "But before that, I need to eat something to replenish my energy. I'm starving."
Emma Frost couldn't help but smile, a brief and fragile smile that brought a touch of warmth to the oppressive atmosphere. She took a compressed biscuit out of her backpack and handed it to Ye Mo.
Ye Mo took the biscuit and popped it into his mouth. The rough texture made him a little more awake. He chewed a couple of times and looked up at the cave entrance. It was still pitch black outside, and the wind howled, as if countless wronged souls were crying.
But he knew that dawn would eventually break.
As long as we have the evidence and our comrades are still here, this game is not over.
He swallowed the last bite of the biscuit, wiped his mouth, dimmed the decoder screen, leaving only the necessary data backup progress bar slowly advancing.
"Fifteen percent progress," he said in a low voice.
T'Challa walked to the window, pulled back a corner of the curtain, and looked out at the dark night sky. The distant mountain outlines were indistinct, with only a few stars faintly visible behind the clouds.
"Take your time," T'Challa said. "We have plenty of time."
Ye Mo didn't reply. He leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes, and felt the faint but tenacious energy flowing slowly within his body. The first layer of the Gene Spiral Tower was slightly warm, as if responding to his will.
He is still alive.
Moreover, he held the hope of winning in his hands.