Chapter 5026

Compared to the economically savvy Black Soy Sauce Egg of the central universe, Nick Fury of old Earth-616 played his political games more smoothly—he was the kind of old fox who stayed silent but calculated everything.

He wanted to deal with the Luthor Group, but he didn't go after them directly; instead, he found a way to give the Stark Group, who was standing right at the edge of the cliff, a little push.

The brilliance of this method lies in the fact that if he had confronted the Luthor Group head-on, he could forget about getting any money. Although Luthor was still somewhat inexperienced, he was already considered a smart person on Earth Zero, and he wasn't so low as to give Nick money on one hand while Nick was dealing with him on the other.

If Nick wanted the money in his hand, he had to put on an attitude of treating him as a financial backer, and ideally, he shouldn't even make small moves behind the scenes; otherwise, if caught, it would cause trouble.

So even though he could deal with the Luthor Group, he chose not to, opting instead to kick the Stark Group while they were down. This was because he understood that Iron Man and Pepper were a perfect match—two of a kind, and you couldn't sleep two different kinds of people in the same bed.

The two of them are currently arguing because they believe that by sacrificing some immediate interests, they can gain greater benefits in the future. But if anyone threatens their core interests, they will absolutely charge forward without hesitation.

While the Stark Group was still standing at the edge of the cliff, the two of them could argue day and night over all sorts of old scores. But once the Stark Group was kicked off the cliff, they would absolutely love each other more than most true loves in this world. Because at this critical juncture, if either of them were missing, the Stark Group would collapse on the spot into eight pieces.

By then, Iron Man wouldn't cling to the idea of "Well, Pepper wouldn't betray him anyway, so letting her suffer a bit is fine"—he would rush to save Pepper without stopping, the two would reconcile immediately, and then hurry back to save their own lifeblood.

At that point, the one who would suffer the most would definitely be the mastermind behind the kidnapping—the Luthor Group. Luthor, Luthor Tower, and the Luthor Group's business would inevitably be hit hard, and their stock price wouldn't fare well either.

This would artificially add difficulties to the Luthor Group, shifting the situation from the original—where the Revival Alliance needed the Luthor Group and the Luthor Group held out for a better price—to one where both sides now needed something from each other.

Simply put, before, Nick wanted money, but Luthor didn't necessarily want anything, because it was uncertain, so the entire Revival Alliance had to stay on edge, worrying that he would make excessive demands or cause trouble.

But now, no matter what he previously wanted, he can only ask the Revival Alliance for help with the Luthor Group; otherwise, the Luthor Group might not survive this ordeal.

The decline of the Luthor Group is inevitable—not just because Luthor Tower was attacked and Luthor himself was injured, but because the Stark Group, to avoid being destroyed, must find a scapegoat.

As the saying goes, in business as in warfare, when resources are limited, it's always a zero-sum game. Stark wants to recover, so he must take a bite out of someone else. A peak condition might be hard to swallow, but if someone has already been stabbed, greedy vultures will swarm in.

In this situation, the Luthor Group must rely on the Revival Alliance—not just to give money, but to give enough money. If Nick isn't won over, the Luthor Group is doomed.

Moreover, the Luthor kidnapping of Pepper can be big or small. If the law is followed impartially, Luthor will inevitably end up in court, but whether Pepper, as the victim, chooses to pursue it is also a key factor.

Pepper stabbing out one of Luthor's eyes can also be big or small. Although she could sue Luthor for kidnapping, Luthor could also sue her for intentional injury.

In the situation where the two are about to face each other in court, what is the most important thing?

Exactly—it's Nick's man, Shiler, whom he sent over.

He participated in the entire kidnapping case and also saw how Pepper attacked Luthor. His testimony will become crucial evidence, and out of confidentiality principles, Shiler himself won't appear in court; only professionals will take his statement, which gives Nick considerable room to maneuver.

Moreover, Shiler is a professional agent who understands this kind of thing—whatever the higher-ups say goes, and lying with eyes open is part of an agent's job.

That is to say, whichever side—Stark Group or Luthor Group—pays more money, Nick's allegiance can shift accordingly, and the shift will be quite effective, forcing both sides to pay him.

If it were normal times, there might still be room for reconciliation, but in a situation where both sides want to bite a chunk out of each other, it's likely to be a fight to the death. To win the Revival Alliance's support, they would be willing to pay a heavy price.

"How is Luthor doing?" Shiler tilted his head slightly, letting the doctor treat the wound in his ear, not knowing whether repeated use of this gun had caused resistance, although it also damaged the eardrum, his hearing hadn't dropped significantly.

"Not looking good." Natasha said, "This eye is definitely unsalvageable; the issue is whether the other one can be saved. If luck is bad, he might lose both eyes."

"Is his brain okay?"

"No." Natasha said, "But judging from his injuries, Pepper might have really wanted to kill him—she just lacked experience, and the angle she stabbed at wasn't lethal."

Shiler lightly nodded—this wasn't surprising, as most people can't master such skills. Pepper is a businessman, not an assassin; even with great power, delivering a killing blow isn't that easy.

"She actually injected herself with the Desperation Virus." Natasha's tone carried a hint of disbelief.

"Isn't it more surprising that Iron Man didn't use the Desperation Virus to control her?"

"No, what's more surprising is that she knew Iron Man could use the Desperation Virus to control others, yet she still injected herself with it."

The two exchanged a glance, both somewhat speechless. This feeling is hard to put into words—even after being agents for so many years, they still wanted to ask: Is there anyone left who's still human?

Iron Man was dumped by Pepper, but he still didn't move the source of the Desperation Virus, letting Pepper take it if she wanted. Pepper dumped him to go marry someone else, but she still injected herself with the Desperation Virus and wasn't afraid of him controlling her.

If you say they put interests above all, their trust in each other absolutely surpasses that of most couples, even spouses—it's as if they've entrusted their lives to each other. If you say they're true love, it's really hard to pinpoint where the love part lies.

It's like when humans walk into Monkey Mountain and stand among a troop of monkeys, feeling a bit dazed: the monkeys live carefree among the trees, while our lives are full of countless worries—especially when you think about how you bought the ticket with your hard-earned wages just to see the monkeys, making you feel that your evolution might not be any more complete than theirs.

In TV dramas, the male and female leads struggle for love over seventy or eighty episodes, endure countless hardships, and finally reach a perfect ending—but their mutual affection might not even be as strong as the natural, chaotic dynamic between these two.

"I just hope it can stop here." Natasha sighed, checking her gear as she spoke, "The wedding venue has already been set. Next, we need to prepare the defense map—do you understand this aspect?"

"Does it absolutely have to be in a church?" Shiler looked troubled.

"Of course, the venue has already been decided—Forward York Cathedral, which is also the original Gotham Cathedral, the oldest Gothic cathedral… You don't like churches?"

"Naturally, defense maps are usually aimed at me." Shiler muttered quietly.

"What?" Natasha seemed not to have heard clearly.

"Nothing, I'm just saying I can help." Shiler said, "Do you have any healing needles? Give me one."

"No need to rush that." Natasha said, "You can rest for two more days—this matter still needs to be wrapped up."

"Wake me if anything happens." Shiler didn't object—the pain pump brought a subtle dizziness, and he soon fell asleep.

When he woke up again, it was already the next day. Shiler saw Arrogance sitting by his bedside, and Peter standing by the window.

"Do we really need to make such a fuss?" Shiler asked.

"Luthor is in the next ward." Arrogance spoke bluntly, "We're mainly here to check on him, though it's a bit noisy in there now."

"Did he save his eye?"

"The other one was saved." Arrogance sighed, implying that the one pierced by the pen wasn't saved—it's really hard to believe Nick didn't do this on purpose.

Just as Shiler was about to say something, noisy sounds came from the next ward.

"Tony, where the hell did you put Pepper? I'm her husband—don't I even get to see her once?"

"It's not that I won't let you see her." Iron Man's voice still carried a hint of cold mockery, "Your beloved wife injected herself with the Desperation Virus—you know this thing is under my control; she might not even want to see you now."

"What?! She injected herself with the Desperation Virus—how is that possible?! Could it be… for me…?"

"Stop being so self-centered—she injected the original strain, which was produced before the Civil War and has nothing to do with you."

"Impossible—you must have lied to her! I want to see her!"

Shiler again showed an expression of utter disbelief—in other words, his right neighboring ward is Luthor, his left is Happy, and Nick couldn't possibly have done this by accident.

Just as he was thinking that, Natasha walked in, looked at Shiler, and said: "What about the gun you used to destroy the assassin's vehicle and Luthor Group's basement?"

Shiler glanced at his waist, but the gun had already been taken away. Natasha continued: "This weapon's power is too great—it exceeds the Revival Alliance's limit for individually held weapons, so it's been listed as prohibited. You can either temporarily hand it over to us for safekeeping, or go return it yourself."

"I really need this gun right now." Shiler said, first looking left, then right, letting out a long sigh: "Just one shot, and the world would be quiet."

"You can't pull that trick on me. If I don't get the gun, I'm not going back…"

Shiler and the others had been waiting for exactly those words—Natasha's voice had barely finished when another scream came from the next ward. Natasha instinctively reached for her gun, only to see medical staff rushing frantically toward the adjacent room.

Natasha stepped out with her gun in hand, and soon after, loud commotion erupted from next door—it sounded like Luther was shouting at someone, accompanied by the noise of things being thrown. After about ten minutes, Natasha returned, looking somewhat disheveled.

"He's completely insane! Why wouldn't he stay in the VIP ward of his top-tier private hospital and come here to cause trouble?!" Natasha began picking glass shards from her hair.

She had just started to holster her gun when another thud came from next door, immediately followed by Happy's furious roar. Natasha sprang into action again without hesitation.