Ross thought that no reporters could get close to the battlefield, and as long as his bombing order yielded results, he wouldn't be held accountable even if the Avengers complained.
But now it was being live-streamed by S.H.I.E.L.D. It went without saying who the general public would side with; to avoid getting burned, the authorities might even investigate Ross's command.
"Damn you, Nick Fury! Having Black Widow act as a war correspondent—you've really outdone yourself!" Ross cursed in his heart.
But he was cursing the wrong person this time. Any friend slightly familiar with this pattern knew that this move of live-streaming every major event was basically Fang Yuan's doing.
At most, Nick Fury simply hadn't stopped it.
The Avengers was a project Fury had always wanted to realize. Although the current team didn't have much to do with him, they were technically affiliated with S.H.I.E.L.D., so Fury still valued them highly.
Having Black Widow and Hawkeye broadcast the battlefield not only demonstrated the necessity of forming the Avengers to the outside world but also served as a form of protection.
If Ross tried any funny business, there would be video evidence.
And sure enough, Ross's little stunt had been caught.
Of course, even if he were to be held accountable, it would have to wait until the battle was over.
In reality, under Ross's order for indiscriminate bombing, the Avengers hadn't actually suffered any harm.
But it certainly annoyed Hulk. Hulk roared, gouged a giant boulder from the ground, and raised it over his head, ready to hurl it at the fighter jets.
"Hulk, calm down!"
At that moment, a voice suddenly echoed in Hulk's mind, causing his movements to pause.
"Our enemies are the Frost Giants!"
Fang Yuan used Telepathy to speak directly to Hulk's mind, simultaneously soothing Hulk's emotions.
Telepathy was truly effective on Hulk; his mind was very simple, like a young child who believed whatever Fang Yuan said.
Mainly, Fang Yuan speaking directly within Hulk's mind allowed Hulk to identify with him.
Hulk obediently changed direction, smashed the boulder onto the nearest Frost Giant, and then rushed over with a smooth combo. The poor Frost Giant went silent on the spot.
"So violent!" Sif couldn't believe that as an Asgardian, there would be a day when she would call someone else violent.
The indiscriminate bombing from the fighter jets continued.
Even though Ross knew he was going to be criticized, he still didn't stop.
He was a hardline general, but he wasn't stupid.
Ross knew his core competitiveness was his tough way of doing things. If he backed down because of a news live-stream, the forces behind him wouldn't support him so firmly.
Besides, the Avengers hadn't been hurt yet, right?
But this didn't trouble Fang Yuan at all.
He opened his palm toward the shells. Using Magneto's ability, all the bombs dropped by the fighter jets were instantly controlled by an invisible force. Over sixty missiles traced graceful arcs in the sky, falling precisely onto the heads of the Frost Giants in groups of three.
This single move took out about twenty Frost Giants, causing the atmosphere of the entire battlefield to fall silent.
The citizens concerned about the battle were naturally very excited, while General Ross frowned deeply.
Last time, Fang Yuan disarming all his soldiers wasn't even his limit; even fighter jets couldn't deal with him. In this sense, Fang Yuan was practically General Ross's natural enemy, as Ross's greatest reliance was his ability to mobilize the army.
However, this moment was the highlight for the Avengers.
Because the Frost Giants truly had the advantage in numbers, even the arrival of the human army was futile—tanks could be flipped over, and the number of troops the humans could assemble and bring to New York in a short time was limited.
Iron Man and the others had already done their best. Tony and Howard's energy had been depleted, and their Iron Man Suits were tattered.
The Asgardian Four were the same; Hogun had been impaled in the chest by a Frost Giant's ice shard, Sif's right arm was fractured, and while Volstagg and Fandral were better off, everyone was wounded.
Fang Yuan directly opened a portal and transferred Tony and the others, whose combat effectiveness had plummeted, to the rear of the human army to prevent them from taking more damage.
The Avengers' debut was over. The sight of Iron Man and the others fighting heroically was seen by everyone, and leaving the field wounded only added a sense of grit to these heroes.
That's right, even during a major battle, Fang Yuan was thinking about marketing.
If he, the leader of Vought, wasn't the boss, who was?
Actually, the main reason Fang Yuan had the mind to think so much was that he was holding back.
Back when he had just obtained the Black Emperor Aura, Fang Yuan could take on a group of Kryptonians by himself. Now, no matter how many Frost Giants there were, he could kill them all alone.
The Black Emperor Aura was just that broken; as long as the intensity of the attacks didn't exceed his absorption limit, Fang Yuan would never be harmed.
But although Fang Yuan could, there was no need.
Because the protagonist Fang Yuan had designated for this event wasn't himself, but the Ancient One.
Moreover, he hadn't forgotten that Loki was still watching from the sidelines. If he didn't show a weakness, what if the Third Princess didn't dare to come out?
So, before long, Fang Yuan pretended to have exhausted too much energy, and his movements became noticeably sluggish.
Hulk, on the other hand, was still full of energy, but it was clearly a bit difficult for him alone to smash so many Frost Giants.
Oh, speaking of smashing?
The God of Hammers was currently being hammered.
Laufey, King of the Frost Giants, not only had a physique stronger than ordinary giants but could also use sorcery, making him a dual-threat in magic and martial arts.
Thor was still too green compared to an old hand like him. At the beginning, Thor had aggressively suppressed Laufey for a short while, but later he was being beaten down by Laufey.
"Huff... huff..."
Thor was knocked down by Laufey again. Seeing this, Hulk came over to help, giving Thor time to scramble up.
His face and body were covered in wounds pierced by Laufey's ice.
Laufey's weapon was a frost blade, seemingly fragile but actually solid; even Mjolnir couldn't easily shatter it.
Hulk had nothing but brute force and fought entirely on instinct; he was soon beaten to the ground by Laufey and poked repeatedly with the frost blade.
Although it didn't cause Hulk much injury, it really hurt baby Hulk's pride.
As the Avengers suffered one setback after another, the battle became increasingly one-sided, causing General Ross to pull out quite a bit of his hair in worry.
Thus, in Asgard, Loki, who was monitoring the battle at all times, smiled slightly.
"The time is ripe!"
Behind him was the Asgardian golden-armored army that had been assembled long ago.
Although Loki had no foundation in the army, he only had to say, "Follow me to Midgard to beat up the Frost Giants," and the soldiers' enthusiasm was immediately ignited.
This was the power brought by a mortal enemy.
"I'll have the Destroyer kill Fang Yuan first, then launch a sneak attack to kill Laufey. Both Midgard and Jotunheim will be mine!" Loki decided in his heart.
He held Odin's Eternal Spear high.
"For Asgard, move out!"
Not long after, a thunderous roar echoed above the Frost Giant battlefield, and then a rainbow descended from the sky, shooting out brilliant light and shadows.
When their vision cleared, everyone saw a large group of golden-armored soldiers had appeared.
"Ha!"
Thor and the Asgardian Four all laughed out loud.
"It's the Asgardian army!"
"Frost Giants, prepare to die!"
Sif, Volstagg, and the others were all overjoyed. Although they could clearly see that Loki was the leader, at this moment, they had no complaints about Loki bringing reinforcements.
Of course, this was temporary; as for how long Loki's immunity from their criticism would last, it would depend on his performance.
However, Loki didn't care about their feelings.
He ignored Thor, who wanted to greet him, and tapped the Eternal Spear on the ground. A humanoid armor larger than a Frost Giant stepped out. To everyone's horrified expressions, it actually fired a fierce energy beam directly at Fang Yuan.
Even Laufey was surprised by the intensity of this blazing energy; if it hit him, even he would suffer significant injuries.
In the original plot, Loki used the Destroyer to fight Thor and held back immensely; after all, this was Odin's armor, and its power was incredibly formidable.
But now, using it against Fang Yuan?
Loki had no intention of holding back at all; his mind was filled with the thought of killing Fang Yuan to wash away his shame.
So, after Fang Yuan was hit by the Destroyer's energy beam, he didn't even let out a groan before being directly vaporized.
"No!"
Thor cried out in pain and questioned Loki in disbelief: "What are you doing?"
"Forgive me, brother." Seeing Fang Yuan's tragic end, Loki's smile was very bright. "Blame him for standing in my way!"
In the distant military camp, two iron armors—one red and one blue—flew out unsteadily.
Tony and Howard's eyes were bloodshot. Howard, in particular, looked at Loki with a gaze that could skin him alive.
The people watching also had different reactions.
Natasha became noticeably silent.
Nick Fury frowned but didn't speak.
General Ross, however, was beaming with joy; someone who didn't know better would think he had already won the war.
"Ross is narrowing his own path." Fang Yuan sighed, hidden in the Mirror Dimension.
He wasn't dead, of course. Don't forget the Clone Halo he had recently unlocked. After sensing Loki's ulterior motives, he had already prepared while slack-off.
Even though Fang Yuan was 'dead', the battle continued.
Tony and Howard were organizing their energy while gathering intelligence.
They already knew the Asgardians came with ill intent, but they didn't retreat; instead, they stood further forward.
But Loki's shocking actions weren't over. He took out the casket of ancient winters, walked right up to Laufey, and said in front of everyone, "The agreement is fulfilled. This is what you deserve."
Laufey was somewhat hesitant, staring warily at the Asgardian army Loki had brought: "You brought so many people?"
Loki grinned. "Of course. I also have conditions."
"Asgard and Jotunheim form an alliance, and we split Midgard half and half?" Loki took the opportunity to raise the price. "Half winter, half summer?"
Seeing him raise the price, Laufey felt relieved. After thinking for a moment, he nodded directly. "No problem."
What Laufey was thinking, of course, was to get the casket of ancient winters first.
This was the artifact of the Frost Giants; only with it would Laufey have the qualification to contend with the Asgardian army.
Loki pretended to look smug and in control as he handed over the casket of ancient winters.
"He's still too young after all. No matter how calculating he is, it's hard to avoid getting carried away," Laufey thought.
But in Loki's mind, he was thinking: "Old man, the one who's getting carried away—"
"—is you!"
The moment Laufey's hand touched the casket of ancient winters was when he was most relaxed.
And at that moment, the casket of ancient winters in Loki's hand suddenly transformed, turning into the Eternal Spear right before Laufey's horrified eyes, with the tip pointing straight at him!
The Eternal Spear possessed Odin's divine power, enough to kill Laufey directly!
But just as Loki was about to unleash the divine power, a violent tremor suddenly shook the battlefield, making some Frost Giants and Asgardian soldiers unable to even stand steady.
A bald figure in yellow robes abruptly appeared in mid-air.
Close the gate, release the Ancient One!
You will get 90 chapter ahead for this fanfiction.
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