Chapter 152

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It's unclear whether it's because Thor had learned that Odin's days were numbered, or because he had truly matured, or perhaps because Asgard had just suffered a great upheaval. Since their heart-to-heart, the relationship between Thor and Odin had become much more harmonious than before. 

A month earlier, Odin had angrily stripped Thor of his right to the throne. However, upon Thor's return, he did not disappoint Odin's expectations and, appearing as a changed man, Odin had also altered his own thinking. He began to fully groom Thor as the next king of Asgard. Odin started to gradually relinquish the handling of various Asgardian affairs to Thor. 

In addition to conquests, Odin also deliberately nurtured in Thor the qualities a king should possess, beyond the battlefield. Of course, both Odin and Thor took the crucial intelligence leaked in the journal very seriously. But considering the current state of Asgard, aside from ordering Heimdall to search the universe for Loki, Odin could do nothing more. 

The news of the Bifrost bridge's destruction would soon spread throughout the Nine Realms and even the neighboring galaxies. It was foreseeable that Asgard would have to deal with an incredibly troublesome mess. Both Odin and Thor would be too overwhelmed to deal with external issues. Indeed, Odin's prediction was correct. Within just three months, the Nine Realms had descended into complete chaos.

"The Frost Giants are rebuilding their homeland, but some radical factions among them are plotting revenge against Asgard."

"Though Loki dealt a fatal blow to Jotunheim which weakened them for the moment, they remain a significant threat."

"Other powers are stirring as well."

"The trolls have set their sights on the Dwarven forges and have launched attacks."

"The primitive Bergrisar have erupted into a civil war, consumed by a struggle for power and fortune."

"Even the bands of space pirates are preparing to attack Vanaheim."

In the grand hall of the king, Odin sat sternly upon the throne with Thor standing below, listening to Heimdall's report together with Odin. The atmosphere in the hall became exceptionally somber and tense. 

Everyone had anticipated chaos following the Bifrost's destruction, but not to this extent; the situation was beyond anyone's expectations. A truly horrendous mess indeed.

However, sitting confidently on his throne, Odin remained calm and composed. Indeed, the Nine Realms were in disarray, but for Odin, this also presented a golden opportunity. His death was imminent, and Thor would succeed him as the ruler of the Nine Realms. But the undeniable fact was that Thor was not yet qualified. He lacked the ability to command respect across the Nine Realms! 

The present chaos offered a rare opportunity for Thor to establish his might. If he could successfully quell the turmoil, no doubt both the Nine Realms and the entire cosmos would acknowledge Thor as the new king of Asgard. 

This was why Odin wasn't considering retrieving the Tesseract from Earth to repair the Bifrost bridge immediately—a far-sighted decision by the king.

"Thor, what is your opinion?" Instead of issuing orders as usual, Odin began asking Thor for his thoughts. 

Thor, rather than immediately reacting with fury and fervor to rush into battle, took time to think deeply before sharing his thoughts and opinions with Odin. Although there were some deficiencies, Odin was very pleased; at least Thor was using his intellect. Odin then made some minor adjustments to Thor's suggestions and entrusted him with full authority to handle the matter.

"Have you found Loki?" Odin asked Heimdall this question after Thor departed. Despite Loki being his adopted son and admittedly favoring Thor a bit more, Odin truly loved Loki as his own child. Heimdall shook his head; he had kept an eye out for signs of Loki for three months but found nothing. 

"Loki inherited Queen Frigga's advanced sorcery. He has ways to shield himself from my sight," Heimdall paused before continuing, "If he wishes to hide, even I cannot find him." Though Heimdall truly believed Loki had perished, he offered this explanation to comfort Odin. Odin simply nodded without saying much, but a subtle sorrow flashed across his single eye.

Meanwhile, back on Earth, Nick Fury, with a twinkle in his own eye, was showing an entirely different kind of sharpness. Over three months, he had grasped all facets of Pierce's life—habits, preferences, daily routine, and social networks. With a Skrull shape-shifter acquiring Pierce's recent memories, the disguise would be flawless. Fury believed it was time to cast the net. Without any further ado, Fury whipped out a special satellite phone and sent out a string of commands. His secretly assembled forces began mobilizing according to the plan.

Pierce, busy in his office atop the building, had no idea that a trap had been laid out for him, quietly but surely. He continued to diligently work for HYDRA's cause. "Commander, I have reliable intelligence that Tony Stark has joined forces with Nick Fury," a senior undercover agent reported seriously to Pierce. "This may be the key reason why our operatives have been continuously exposed. We are all aware of Iron Man's capabilities."

Pierce frowned, feeling the situation become rather uncomfortable. Stark was a significant problem! Just when the assassination attempt seemed perfect, wouldn't you know it, Satan himself turns up out of nowhere! 

The man simply would not die! And now, to make matters worse, Stark must have uncovered the truth behind the "Hulk incident." Since he survived, tracing the technological evidence wouldn't be difficult. So not only did their plan fail, but they had also inadvertently pushed this nemesis into Fury's corner—truly a self-inflicted injury! Not just this, but the technology from the Mandarin had been proven counterfeit, the supply of the Super-Soldier serum was nearing depletion without yielding results, and Fury was getting wind of more and more. Indeed, HYDRA had been experiencing a streak of misfortunes.

Pierce massaged his temples subconsciously and then issued a series of orders to the senior undercover agent before him.

"All right, you can go now."

After dismissing the senior undercover agent in front of him, Pierce leaned back in his chair and closed his eyes to rest. There was no helping it—with his age, both physical and mental energies couldn't match those of the younger ones. 

Though he had been busy all morning with intellectual rather than physical tasks, Pierce still felt mentally drained. 

However, the grand enterprise of Hydra was far from complete, and Pierce couldn't dare to relax.

After a brief rest, he immediately sat up straight again and continued to work tirelessly for the cause of Hydra. It wasn't until the sunset that Pierce, dragging his tired body, returned to his luxurious villa. 

He changed his shoes, casually hung up his suit jacket, and walked straight to the fridge, taking out a bottle of herbal tea.

Bang!

Just as he closed the fridge door and opened the lid of the herbal tea, Pierce's body suddenly stiffened. Despite his age, he used to be a top agent, and that training still lingered with him. 

He realized that someone had infiltrated his house!

Whoosh!

In the next instant, Pierce quickly turned his head.

Sure enough, he saw a figure sitting arrogantly on the couch who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.

Not only that.

"Nick?"

Pierce was instantly taken aback.

He could never have imagined that the person who had infiltrated his home would be Nick Fury!

"What is this about? Why are you in my house?"

While Pierce addressed Nick Fury with an appropriate look of bewilderment, he covertly became more alert.

Nick Fury was up to no good!

What could it be for?

Could it be that he had found out about his connection to Hydra?

Impossible!

After all, Pierce had always believed he had concealed himself well enough without any slips or blunders.

But if not for that reason, why else would Nick Fury be here in such a manner?

Pierce couldn't make an accurate judgment at the moment, but he knew that things were clearly not in his favor.

So, the old man quietly reached for the signal transmitter hidden on him and pressed it, sending a signal.

But little did Pierce know that his signals had already been blocked by Zhou Cheng, and he could transmit nothing.

"Honestly, Pierce, I really didn't want to show up here."

"I also didn't want to believe that the mastermind behind the scenes who has been clashing with me for the past half-year turns out to be you."

Nick Fury slowly stood up, sighing from the depths of his heart.

Pierce immediately realized the implication.

Though unexpected, it seemed Nick Fury had indeed discovered his true identity.

This man was indeed the best agent Pierce had ever come across.

"It's not personal enmity, just a difference in stance."

Pierce remained calm, sipped his herbal tea, and shrugged at Fury.

"So, I'm doing this, and I believe you'll understand."

Nick Fury began walking towards Pierce.

Pierce, still composed, curiously watched Nick Fury: "Is this your plan? To kill me, or to arrest me secretly?"

"Come on, this is Nick Fury we're talking about. You should have better methods."

Considering Pierce's status, such a straightforward approach would indeed cause a lot of trouble.

So Pierce guessed Nick Fury must have other contingencies.

But what kind of contingency could deal abruptly with someone of his standing, Pierce couldn't quite guess at the moment.

Because it was indeed a tough issue.

"People like you—killing you would be too easy."

Nick Fury smirked coldly.

The Hydra leader, overflowing with evil and countless sins, couldn't just die so easily.

Moreover.

Pierce held so many secrets which were immensely valuable to Nick Fury.

No matter what, he couldn't just die.

"So you're going to arrest me? Then you should know what that implies."

"I have quite a few friends. If I disappear, are you sure you can handle the fallout?"

Pierce was still composed even at this point, coolly analyzing the current situation with Nick Fury, as if discussing someone else entirely.

"Don't think about stalling for time; your people won't come."

Nick Fury didn't continue to waste words with Pierce, but instead nodded towards a spot behind Pierce.

Subconsciously, Pierce turned his head and saw that the ace agent Black Widow had appeared behind him at some point.

"Natasha, are you sure you want to do this?"

"Think carefully, once you do this, you can't turn back."

Pierce attempted to sway Black Widow's resolve.

Although he knew it was unlikely, Pierce didn't want to give up any possibility.

"I'm very clear about what I'm doing."

Black Widow quickly pulled out a syringe and injected it into Pierce's neck.

As Pierce's eyelids quickly became heavy and his body went limp, in the moments before his consciousness faded, he seemed to see another man identical to himself, sitting on his sofa once again.

Regrettably, how it all happened wasn't something Pierce could figure out anymore.

Zhou Cheng didn't give Pierce that chance.

After knocking out his superior, Nick Fury personally escorted Pierce to a top-secret facility for detention, ensuring the follow-up actions were secured before finally letting out a sigh of relief.

The major operation planned for over three months had been a complete success!

The troublesome issue of Hydra, which had long plagued Zhou Cheng, was finally resolved.

Nick Fury's mood couldn't be any better.

"Wrap it up!"

After stretching his weary body and planning to head home, Zhou Cheng habitually flipped through his journal.

However, he discovered the journal had been updated.

[I never expected Mister Fantastic to have already secured funding, from Stark Industries no less! I had considered investing myself.]

[But investing in Mister Fantastic could be a pitfall; one misstep might lead to bankruptcy, so I was hesitant.]

[Since Stark has invested, I might as well let it go and save myself the trouble.]

[One thing though, how did Stark come to invest in Mister Fantastic? They're not supposed to know each other, right?]

[I must say, I did not see this development coming.]

[If so, could they be setting up an Illuminati ahead of schedule?]

[Haha, an organization that aims to address cosmic crises yet always manages to create them!]