This lawsuit was shaping up to be the stuff of legends. Not just because humanity had witnessed its first public alien invasion, but because of the staggering lineup of plaintiffs and defendants—and the inclusion of one of mankind's most devastating creations: the nuclear bomb.
The first three points alone were enough to make people sit back and enjoy the spectacle. But the last point? That sent waves of outrage crashing through the public. Especially among the locals. This wasn't just about air quality anymore. The outside world was in chaos.
That evening, Hong Fei slicked back his slightly overgrown hair, slipped into a sharp black suit, and prepared to head out. As he reached the door, Big Head rushed over, urgency etched across his face.
"Boss, Arthur just found out someone's deliberately suppressing the spread of information. People are starting to point fingers at us. Take a look at this."
He handed Hong Fei a tablet. Adjusting his collar and cuffs, Hong Fei glanced at the screen. A series of short video clips played out, each one a montage of destruction caused during the battle—buildings reduced to rubble, vehicles mangled, and civilians caught in the crossfire.
There was Hulk, grabbing a car and smashing a Chitauri into paste before tossing the vehicle aside, leaving a woman trapped inside, screaming in terror. Tony's armor lasers sliced through a Chitauri airship, but the beam also carved through the exterior walls, floors, and ceilings of a skyscraper. The people inside were left trembling in shock as he flew away.
Then there was Hong Fei himself. Using the Dragon-Capturing Hand, he'd torn two Leviathans apart, but the falling debris crushed cars and injured—or killed—those caught beneath. And when he clashed with Thor, the shockwave blew a bystander off a rooftop to their death.
Every incident was meticulously cataloged.
The compilation laid bare the collateral damage—losses, injuries, and deaths inflicted on innocent civilians by every combatant. Hong Fei didn't know how others would react to this, but he found it... amusing.
A laugh escaped him.
"Heh, is there more?"
"Yes, plenty," Big Head replied, switching to another video. "These were all posted after seven this morning. The comments aren't exactly favorable. We tracked the IP addresses, but they're all hidden."
Hong Fei shook his head dismissively. "What's the point of tracking them? If they want to stir up hype, let them. Hell, give them a hand. Stir it up even more."
Big Head looked puzzled.
Hong Fei leaned in, his tone instructive. "The secret to 'heat' is conflict. Whether it's sensory, emotional, or argumentative—conflict is what grabs attention and keeps people hooked. One-sided propaganda gets stale. Push it too far, and it backfires."
He paused, letting that sink in.
"But when an opposing side jumps in, it gives people another perspective. The clash of viewpoints draws more eyes—and pulls people into the debate. Right now, find a few media outlets to pin the conflict at the top of their feeds every day. Then hire an army of trolls to keep the comments buzzing around the clock."
A sly grin spread across his face.
"Better yet, spend some cash to organize street protests. Get opposing groups to face off for a few hours. Once the attention's peaked, push them into a physical confrontation. That's how you keep the heat alive."
If this group includes more Black people, gay people, transgender individuals, vegetarians, animal rights activists, and environmentalists—and they "accidentally" reveal their support for the plaintiffs and the discrimination and violence they face from opponents during interviews—they'll be practically invincible. Stacking buffs? Who doesn't know how to do that?
Hong Fei had always believed that these "politically correct" movements were steeped in hypocrisy. The more "weakness" halos an individual carries, the more privileges they can enjoy. It's no wonder many people eagerly join these movements only after seeing the benefits they offer.
People who genuinely possess these characteristics shouldn't receive privileges, nor should they face discrimination. What they deserve is a fair and equal gaze. But this society can't provide that. The more unattainable equality becomes, the louder people advocate for it—until "equality" morphs into "privilege."
To take it a step further, when these so-called "privileges" grow rampant, they push people who were once indifferent or even supportive to the opposite side. Worse, some begin to see these privileges as something they're entitled to, which breeds something Hong Fei detests even more.
"Those people don't care about right or wrong. As long as something unfavorable happens to them, they cry discrimination."
That's the current state of affairs. For Hong Fei, the only significance of this is to exploit it for manipulation when needed. As for solving the problem? That's not his concern. Maybe some people never wanted to solve it in the first place.
It's the classic "my grandmother lived to be 103" logic.
Back to the point—what Hong Fei wanted was heat, not some hollow victory. After all, what happens after a win? On the surface, he'd triumph over Fury, Ross, and S.H.I.E.L.D., but in reality, they'd continue their operations unchanged. There'd be no substantive impact.
If he truly wanted to win so badly, Master Hong could have decapitated Fury and the others long ago. But Hong Fei was focusing on sustainable development now. He hadn't resorted to direct killings like he used to, all for the sake of shearing the wool more persistently.
This case, fueled by the explosion of heat and public opinion, would transform superficial discussions into sharp needles. These needles would pierce the opponent's body in an unstoppable way, making them unbearably uncomfortable without killing them. These invisible needles would have originally been aimed at the Avengers and Hong Fei in the future.
This lawsuit, to put it bluntly, was a quest for defeat. As mentioned earlier, the loser of this case would gain more of a natural halo. Would the defendants lose? Of course not. Whether it was Fury and S.H.I.E.L.D. or Ross and the military, they couldn't afford to lose this case.
Even if they knew winning would make them even more unpopular, they had to choose victory to maintain their "correctness."
"In short, before the case closes, always remember to give them a hand, so they have no way to retreat even if they want to," Hong Fei mused.
Big Head looked at him with admiration. "Boss, you're brilliant!"
Hong Fei patted his shoulder. "Just keep an eye on it. In a few days, we'll all return to Sokovia. There's nothing left to stay for here."
Big Head nodded in agreement and turned to open the car door for Hong Fei. A moment later, the silver-gray Lamborghini roared out of the manor, speeding along the winding mountain road toward New York.
Inside the car, Hong Fei gave a slight wave of his arm, and a string of skill cards of various colors floated beside him. One white, two green, and three blue.
Passive Skill Card: Swordsmanship Mastery (White) — Clint Barton
Active Skill Card: Earth-Shattering Strike (Green) — Hulk: "Smash the ground to deal area damage."
Active Skill Card: Master Agent (Green) — Phil Coulson
Active Skill Card: Leviathan (Blue) — Leviathan: "Consume energy to summon a Leviathan."
Additionally, there were the two blue skill cards dropped by Loki: "Beguile" and "Phantom Illusion." Although the number of skill cards gained from this battle wasn't high, half of them were blue-quality items.
Let's thank Loki and the Chitauri for coming all the way from outer space. Also, let's not forget to strongly condemn a certain big green monster. Hong Fei went to great lengths fighting it, yet it only dropped a nearly useless green skill card. Among the white and green skill cards, there were no eye-catching skills.
Loki's two cards need no further description, but the blue skill card "Leviathan" was another extraordinary skill. The Leviathan itself was a terrifying alien monster. After being modified by the Chitauri using their biotechnology, it became an even more ferocious semi-biological, semi-mechanical beast.
It was precisely because of this skill card that Hong Fei gave up on participating in the collection and division of the spoils of war from the New York battlefield. Most of the essence of Chitauri technology could be found within the body of a Leviathan. Instead of spending time scavenging, it was better to let Ivan and the others directly study an obedient Leviathan.
If he told it to lie down, it would definitely not stick its butt up.
After entering the city, Hong Fei wanted to take a detour to see Mei first, but Steve's phone calls were quite urgent, so he could only drive straight to the destination. This was an ordinary residential house located in the northern suburbs of New York. The sports car stopped at the door.
After Hong Fei got out, he saw the lights on in the house and a figure flickering on the window. He knocked gently on the door, and before long, Steve came to open it. His expression looked somewhat solemn.
Walking into the room, his leather shoes made short, light sounds on the wooden floor. When he reached the living room, he found it was full of people.
Not a single one of the Avengers was missing, except for Thor, who should have been part of the Big Three. At this hour, Hong Fei guessed he was probably galloping across some battlefield again. The large TV screen repeatedly played the video compilation Hong Fei had just seen at Big Head's place. The group looked very dejected.
Even Tony didn't look away from the TV when Hong Fei arrived. He had his arms crossed and his chin slightly tucked, the gaze behind his tinted glasses appearing somewhat dim.
"Have a seat. I think we should sit down and have a good talk."
Steve led Hong Fei to an armchair and gently pressed on his shoulder to have him sit, then pulled over a stool to sit right next to him, as if afraid Hong Fei would suddenly get up and leave.
Hong Fei naturally followed suit. He unbuttoned his black suit jacket, sat down slowly, and then methodically straightened the corners of his clothes before joining the ranks of those watching the video.
The resources playing on the TV were very rich, covering all combatants. It included what Hong Fei had just seen and things he hadn't.
While watching, Hong Fei also paid attention to everyone's expressions and eyes. Whenever someone's mistake occurred and caused harm or death to a civilian, they would always have a small abnormal reaction—either a slight frown, a twitch of the eye muscles, a stress response in some part of the body, or even directly looking away.
Of course, a certain blind man appeared much calmer; after all, he could only listen to the sound. Hong Fei felt that if this were replaced by the seven Calabash Brothers at home, they would probably be yawning.
Hong Fei had roughly guessed the purpose of Steve calling this meeting. But the lawsuit itself now had roughly nothing to do with him.
Steve and the others were the plaintiffs. Fury and his crew stood as defendants. What the hell did any of this have to do with me, Hong Fei?
Those videos causing trouble for the heroes? If I had to comment... You're really coming at me like this? After everything, you'd actually bite the hand that fed you? Need my help again tomorrow?
Not a chance.
Hmph! (╯‵□′)╯︵┴─┴