Amidst the sea of fire and the ruins of the abandoned industrial park, Levi gave the order.
The C-Class personnel behind him moved instantly.
They showed no hesitation, even when facing a flaming monster that still radiated several hundred degrees of heat.
Two burly C-Class personnel pushed forward a silver-white metal cube.
This was no ordinary metal box; it was a compact “Magnetic Constraint Isothermal Containment Unit.” “Open the containment unit.
Adjust the magnetic field frequency,” Ada Wong commanded calmly.
The top of the cube slid open slowly, revealing a faint blue electromagnetic glow within.
By now, the Burning Man had been suppressed by the oxygen stripping field into a ball of fire only half a meter tall.
It curled up on the gel-covered ground, its once-violent roars reduced to weak crackles.
“No…
cold…
dark…” It seemed to sense its impending fate, attempting one final struggle.
A tiny wisp of flame flickered upward, trying to ignite the trouser leg of the C-Class personnel closest to it.
*Pfft!* Before the flame could even touch the fabric, the personnel ruthlessly squeezed the trigger of a gel sprayer.
The spray instantly smothered the wisp of flame along with half of the Burning Man’s body.
“Target resistance is weak.
Ready for capture.” Several C-Class personnel skillfully used specialized heat-insulated pincers to grip the “core” of the Burning Man—a solid piece of matter resembling charred coal at the center of the fireball.
“Put it in!” Amidst the Burning Man’s desperate shrieks, it was forcibly shoved into the silver-white cube.
*Vrummm—!* The containment unit sealed shut.
A powerful magnetic field activated instantly, suspending the Burning Man in the center of a vacuum insulation layer and completely severing its connection to the outside world.
The indicator light turned from red to green.
“Containment confirmed.
Entity status stable,” Ada Wong reported to Levi after checking her handheld scanner.
The entire process was fluid, devoid of any wasted movement, characterized only by cold, efficient professionalism.
It was as if they weren’t capturing a world-ending demon, but simply processing a piece of ordinary radioactive waste.
Behind some nearby ruins, Rumlow clutched his throbbing chest and struggled to stand.
He watched the scene with eyes full of shock and apprehension.
As a senior SHIELD agent—and more importantly, a high-level enforcer for Hydra lurking within SHIELD—Rumlow considered himself well-versed in the world’s secrets.
However, the level of technology and operational efficiency displayed by this black-clad unit sent a deep chill down his spine.
Equipment capable of creating an instantaneous vacuum field, blue gel that could completely isolate temperatures of thousands of degrees…
these were things SHIELD did not possess!
“Hey!
You there!” Rumlow took a deep breath, suppressing the churning in his gut, and walked over with a few surviving SHIELD agents.
Although the strangers had saved them and averted a disaster, duty demanded he step forward.
“I am Captain Rumlow of SHIELD’s Strike Team.” Rumlow held up his badge, though it was now half-blackened by soot.
“This is United States territory.
That…
thing is under SHIELD’s jurisdiction.
Regardless of who you are, you have no law enforcement authority here.” Despite his tough words, Rumlow’s hand never left his pistol grip, and the agents behind him nervously raised their weapons to aim.
Hearing Rumlow’s words, Levi, who was supervising the D-Class personnel moving the containment box, paused.
He turned slowly, his gaze lingering on Rumlow from behind his sunglasses.
“Law enforcement authority?” Levi acted as if he had heard a joke, the corners of his mouth curling slightly.
“Rumlow, if not for us, you and your men would be charcoal by now, and this entire area would be a living hell.
We don’t enforce laws.
We contain.” Levi walked up to Rumlow until the distance between them was less than two meters.
Behind him, Ada Wong and several C-Class personnel immediately shifted their aim, their dark muzzles pointing straight at the SHIELD agents.
The atmosphere became instantly volatile.
Rumlow felt an invisible pressure wash over him.
The man in the black trench coat before him carried no weapons, yet his aura of authority was more terrifying than any armament.
“Listen, whether you call it cleaning up or containment,” Rumlow said through gritted teeth, “leave that box behind and submit to SHIELD’s investigation.
Those are the rules.” “Rules are for mortals.” Levi took a step back, no longer paying attention to Rumlow’s ashen face.
“In the face of the anomalous, *we* are the rules.” “Secure the anomaly.
We’re leaving.” “Wait!
You can’t leave!” Rumlow instinctively tried to block them, but in the next second, Ada Wong suddenly raised her hand.
*Vrummm—* The “Oxygen Stripping Field Generator” that had been used to suppress the Burning Man was activated once more, but this time, the target was the SHIELD group.
“Cough…
*hack*!” Rumlow and his agents felt the air sucked out of their lungs instantly.
One by one, they clutched their throats in agony and fell to their knees, their faces turning a deep shade of purple.
Though it was only running at low power, it was more than enough to incapacitate them.
“This is a warning,” Levi said, walking toward the armored vehicle without looking back.
“Tell Nick Fury that some boxes, once opened, cannot be closed.
Tell him to keep his people on a short leash and stay out of our way.
Otherwise, next time…
it won’t just be oxygen we strip away.” With the heavy thud of closing doors, the three black armored vehicles sped away, leaving behind a mess of ruins and gasping SHIELD agents.
*** Minutes later, as fresh air rushed back into his lungs, Rumlow breathed heavily, his eyes bloodshot.
“Captain…
what…
what do we do?” an agent asked weakly.
Rumlow watched the direction where the convoy had vanished and slammed his fist into the ground.
“What else can we do?
Report to the Director!
Those bastards…
the tech in their hands is too dangerous.
We must find out who they really are!” *** The Site Base, Underground Containment Zone.
As the containment unit was placed into a specialized isolation chamber, the system prompt arrived in Levi’s mind as expected.
[Ding!
Congratulations to the Host for successfully containing the Burning Man!] [Reward Obtained: 1,000 Containment Points.] [Reward Obtained: Intermediate Energy Core Blueprints.] [Reward Obtained: Special Building—Anomaly Containment Cell (Fire Element Specialization) × 1] “One thousand points!” Levi looked at the numbers on his panel, his mood lifting significantly.
This windfall was enough to upgrade the Site’s defense systems by another level.
Furthermore, the “Intermediate Energy Core Blueprints” were a true treasure.
Once built, the base’s power issues would be completely solved, and there would even be surplus energy to manufacture stronger weapons.
“As expected, containing high-risk items is the true path to wealth,” Levi remarked.
Just then, Ada Wong walked over.
“Sir, SHIELD certainly won’t let this go.
While our actions intimidated them, we’ve also completely exposed our strength.” “It doesn’t matter.” Levi waved a hand and walked over to a holographic map, looking at the red-marked map of New York.
“The more they fear us, the less likely they are to act rashly.
Before he figures out our trump cards, that old fox Fury will only probe us; he won’t start an all-out war.
And that time is exactly what we need to exploit.” Levi tapped the map lightly.
“Next, it’s time to expand our base.
This derelict building alone won’t be enough to hold the truly big guys we’ll face later.” “System, consume 800 Containment Points.
Expand the Underground Containment Zone!
Dig it all the way to the center of the earth if you have to!”