To be honest, from World War II till now, Su Ming has seen quite a few Hydras. Although the uniforms of people under different leaders have slight differences, it's not like now, where the changes are so big that they're unrecognizable.
What's with this swamp green coat? What a waste of fabric, and the Hydra emblem is so small, like a button.
"Coulson? What do you think?" Su Ming flipped over the corpse on the ground, the cause of death is clearly cyanide, Strangulation smelled bitter almonds.
Coulson also examined the body and, after exchanging glances with Melinda, said: "Deathstroke, I think there's definitely something strange about this."
Su Ming: "???"
So Coulson can speak Chinese too? Makes sense, his outward identity is Supreme Mage, and although Kama Taiji is in Nepal, The Ancient One's surname is Yao, making Chinese the common language of Kama Taiji.
But has Coulson jumped into his role this quickly? Even Bo Bo next door doesn't react so fast, ready to start bootlicking now?
Yet, let's talk about Coulson's skills in flattery, there's no questioning it; even someone like Tony with such a quirky personality is made comfortable by him, let alone other superheroes, who all have a good opinion of Coulson.
Can Coulson provide them any substantial help? No, it's all thanks to his mouth and that warm smile.
"Do Hydras have a Time Transmission Device?" Su Ming asked a rather crucial question.
"At least in our time, no." Coulson said confidently as he took down and meticulously checked the weapons from the Hydra agents: "They still use Energy Guns, where did they get the Magic Cube Energy Block?"
Su Ming thought for a second, then stood up and wiped the blood off his hands: "Alright, the things you want could only be with three factions: Longevity People, Hydra, or the Underground Indigenous People."
Coulson bowed his head in thought and didn't hurry to speak, but Daisy was straightforward: "Why not with others?"
"Simple, because Leviathan came to hunt you down, they've already integrated Element Zero into their bodies, they wouldn't care for something like Gravityium. And the Blood Race came to fight, engaging with Gravityium without prior planning is asking for death."
Coulson nodded, patting Daisy's arm to signal her to stop interrupting, and said: "You're right, we will follow your lead."
"By the way, don't Longevity People claim to be Observers? Why are they getting directly involved in the game now?" Su Ming gestured in a circle with his fingers at Xiaowang, signaling him to open a Teleportation Gate, while also asking Coulson for intel.
Coulson wiped the sweat off his large forehead, took out his phone with the other hand to take a few snaps of the new Hydra uniform for documentation, and said: "Their home planet was destroyed. After knowing we once reversed the future, they wanted to imitate that to save their planet. But, when a race's home planet is destroyed, a large portion of them go to the extremes, calling themselves 'Hunter', now becoming out-and-out temporal terrorists."
"So we can kill them at will then?"
Su Ming retracted the Godslayer, switched to the Nightfall Greatsword; against unknown alien enemies, using a weapon with X Metal Coating is more reliable.
"We never give up efforts for peace with friendly alien forces, but, hehe..."
Coulson smiled warmly, implying that those unfriendly ones can be killed off, yes, he was referring to these Hunters.
"Speaking of, everyone seems interested in Gravityium; is it really that useful? Although the King of Ten Thousand Powers is strong, absorbing Gravityium leads to severe heavy metal poisoning, and mental confusion is just the mildest symptom." Su Ming feigned curiosity and asked.
Coulson, who previously negotiated a deal with Su Ming, appeared much more candid, answering directly without extra thought: "Our space travel technology needs Gravityium to break free from various planets' gravity. You know, the more massive the vessel, the harder it is to lift off."
"Then why not use an external orbital space station and construct spacecraft in space docks within the cosmos?" Su Ming also tossed Hydra's corpse into the nearby Abyss.
"It's a matter of technology and the politicians above. Our funding comes from the Global Security Council." Coulson replied helplessly, flashing a bitter smile that seemed indicative of a middle-aged crisis: "They would rather trade resources for ready-made spacecraft from Sandaar Star than allocate funds for developing our Cosmic Battleship. Fitz's modification of the Harmony at least gave us interstellar travel capability, but can only rely on the clever trick of using Gravityium."
Su Ming rubbed his chin; as someone who started saving money and resources as soon as he entered Marvel, he prepared for the possibility of falling into such an awkward situation.
The happiness of the wealthy is something Coulson can't even imagine.
Gravityium not being substantially useful to Su Ming, he just placed some in a plastic box to take back for research, it doesn't matter if he doesn't have it. Su Ming still has Cybertron technology and the Evil Energy Engine, using Harmony as a reference will suffice.
Su Ming's cosmic spaceship just lacks a compatible good engine now. Although the first experimental spacecraft is small, having all the technology in one's own hands means taking the first step forward.
"Alright, let's move to a safe place first, next to that most inconspicuous spire building at the edge. Have you investigated the situation inside those buildings?" Su Ming signaled everyone to enter the Teleportation Gate, Xiaowang had already gone ahead to clean for possible enemies.
"The interior of the house is honeycomb-like, partitioned into small rooms, and although the spire buildings don't look big, there could be tens of thousands of rooms in each tower. We can't completely investigate it, majority near the outer walls are residential."
Melinda explained while bending low, dodging enemy fire to enter the Teleportation Gate.
And Su Ming simply stood by the door, occasionally sweeping away some potentially harmful long-range attacks with the Giant Sword, saying nothing more, just letting the others enter the door one by one, while he guarded the rear.
The golden circle closed behind them, and the sound of gunfire and the smell of blood instantly vanished from everyone, replaced by the foul stench typical of underground creatures filling the air.
Su Ming and the King were unaffected, standing as master and servant by the new Giant Tower, calmly observing the place from which they had just escaped.
The black particles in the air somewhat impaired their vision, so all they could see were ant-sized figures rushing across the suspension bridge without capturing anyone, making skyward roars as if in frenzy.
However, the rest of the Shield Squad seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, each of them leaning against the Black Tower wall, panting, either sitting or squatting, likely due to the intense pressure earlier, now feeling fatigued upon relaxation.
Jemma and Bobbi went to help bandage the wounded teammates, while May went to talk to Daisy, leaving Coulson smiling as he joined Su Ming's side, saying nothing, as if joining the sightseeing group.
"Look at this wave of Minotaur's attack, it's raising its Great Axe, oh, the opponent morphs into a Blood Race Bat, then it's serpentine maneuvering, keeping distance, turning around and striking back; look, the Minotaur's heart is gone."
Xiaowang nodded, even taking out a little notebook to jot down Deathstroke's words: "Serpentine maneuvering... Turning around and striking back... I understand, Master, guns really are more useful."
"Indeed, no matter how fast you cast spells, can you be faster than pulling the trigger? One shot, a big hole in the chest." Su Ming patted the King's shoulder: "Look over there, there Hydra and the Blood Race are engaging, oh? A Hydra leader arrives? Tearing the Blood Race apart bare-handed is a bit reckless, Flash Bomb thrown, flashing a group, Energy Weapons sweeping, does the Blood Race have any recourse?... No, they retreat, losing this team battle."
"Yes, Energy Weapons are stronger than ordinary firearms, I've noted that, Master." Xiaowang quickly jotted down another string of text.
Coulson is generally patient, but seeing Deathstroke by his side, explaining the battlefield situation to his assistant as if narrating a gaming competition, completely detached, he couldn't help but speak up:
"What's our next move? We can't just wait here forever, can we?"
"Now just observe the battlefield, edge-OB this wave, the opposition doesn't know I'm here. After confirming where Gravityium is located, it'll be easiest to succeed with a surprise attack." Su Ming took a moment to explain to him, believe it or not.
"Is that okay?" Coulson rubbed his forehead, glanced around, honestly he didn't mind if the Shield Squad could rest a bit longer, considering they had the wounded and were mentally exhausted.
But he worried if someone ran off with Gravityium, things could get complicated, potentially needing to intercept at another point in time, leading to unnecessary risk.
"Don't worry, it's quicker than you acting rashly."
Su Ming folded his arms, his focus now on the Longevity People in the distance, who were surrounded by various forces and temporarily unable to break through.
But they are an interstellar race after all; they must have some cards up their sleeve. Now, there's an opportunity to watch; he wouldn't foolishly step on a mine, would he choose to probe himself?
Shield Squad's impulsive actions have a historical tradition; Coulson excels at improvisation and interpersonal relations, but his tactical planning abilities are only average.
Even the Black Man Mike once mocked, saying the team's strategy is "execute the plan, plan fails, understand and develop the second plan, then fail again, infinitely repeat until success."
To be honest, if not for the team's strong survival skills, this is quite a pitfall...
But while Su Ming 'stands idly by', perhaps intentionally attracting everyone closer, the Longevity People finally showcase their true skills. With a dazzling flash combined with sound waves inaudible to humans sweeping across the underground space, in a large area centering them, the frenzied fighting parties felt as if paused abruptly.
Bullets and Energy Beams continue flying without hindrance, but those firing or getting hit are frozen, as if they lost their ability to perceive the outside world.
"As expected, it's a Mind System skill, not time nor space; this makes things easier, Skye." Su Ming quickly spoke, turning to call Daisy's nickname.
Daisy, currently being lectured by Melinda, worriedly heard Deathstroke's shout like a grace relief, trotting over, leaving May a feigned apologetic look.
Mel took Daisy as her child, seeing her like this, could only silently sigh, showing a helpless expression.
"What is it? Do you need me to act?" Daisy reached Deathstroke's side, also beginning to gaze into the distance, but her eyesight wasn't good enough to see that far.
"The Hunters have disabled everyone's external perception, it's a Mind Ability. Now, block your ears, I'll have the caretaker open the Teleportation Gate, and you'll unleash a shock wave at their hiding place."
"Hmm? Will that work? Also, what scale should I trigger the shock wave with?" Daisy tightened her arm guard, looking towards the King already starting to draw circles in the air.
"Just make sure not to bury us alive, it's best to shake those hiding in the Dark Tower into the bottomless abyss. If they have Gravityium in hand..." Su Ming pointed a finger, circling between the pair.
"Then they'll use it to protect themselves, floating like leaves!" Daisy showed a cute smile and even tapped Su Ming's Chest Armor: "I get it, you're pretty clever."
Saying this, she unhesitatingly triggered her ability towards the freshly opened Teleportation Gate, as the group watched from afar seeing the ground shaking, a Black Tower seemed to be grasped by an invisible hand from a rock pillar, tilting and falling into the abyss, dust and various debris flying and gradually descending.