#784 - Explosion

Reed was eager to meet the lab's owner, who was naturally Valeria, but she was currently too busy to see him.

Without Franklin's help, Hulk and the Harpy wielding the Skybreaker Hammer were still a formidable force. It was almost impossible for Valeria and her team to take them down quickly.

However, Hulk and the Harpy definitely couldn't defeat Valeria's trio either. It was only a matter of time before the gamma-powered couple would be subdued.

When Franklin brought Reed and the others over, he had mentioned the trouble he was dealing with and explained why he was entrusting the matter to them.

Having experienced the New York incident, the group was well aware of the terror of gamma monsters. Now, these two were enhanced by supernatural forces, so Franklin appeared to have a legitimate reason for being tied up.

Franklin also mentioned that he knew the task was difficult, so he had arranged for reinforcements: Ji Shuangshuang and Acheng, who had just joined their team.

Upon learning that the two were elite agents from a special department, Reed immediately agreed to their addition. After all, facing Howard, who commanded an army of robots, required considerable manpower.

However, if they were just two ordinary, unknown superhumans, Reed would likely have refused. A bunch of misfits wouldn't be of much use.

His team might be small and wouldn't dare call themselves elites, but at least they knew each other well. Reed knew where to assign each of them. They might not be the strongest, but they were a qualified team.

After witnessing the solidarity of Reed's team, Ji Shuangshuang handed over command to Reed. This wasn't the time to compete for leadership; the most taboo thing in a team was having two voices.

To complete the mission, Ji Shuangshuang didn't mind following Reed's orders. Similarly, if Reed wasn't qualified, she wouldn't hesitate to seize command or simply break away from the team with Acheng.

Fortunately, the first impression between both parties was good. They were both pragmatic people, and as long as they could succeed, they didn't mind compromising. This attitude facilitated the formation of a temporary team.

Reed asked if he needed to prepare equipment for Ji Shuangshuang and Acheng, but they declined. Not only was the special equipment from S.H.I.E.L.D. better than what Reed could quickly make, but the Three Sovereigns Artifacts were also stronger than most weapons in the world.

However, after Lin Lie's foresight, they both decided to be more careful when using the artifacts in the future, at least not to be as reckless as before.

After the team members became acquainted, the next thing to do was naturally to make a plan. Of course, the plan had been initially set, but he was too lazy to say it a second time, so he waited for Ji Shuangshuang and Acheng to arrive before notifying everyone together.

The plan was actually very simple: sneak into the village quietly, guns silent – a standard stealth plan.

There were just too many Sentinel robots. Reed boldly estimated that Howard had at least five or six thousand Sentinel robots under his command, but Ji Shuangshuang told him that this number could be boldly guessed even higher.

According to the data returned by agents and analyzed by S.H.I.E.L.D. professionals, it was possible that there were over ten thousand.

Moreover, these Sentinel robots weren't the initial, early versions. Those trash models only accounted for a small part of the total. It was said that Howard had a rift with Hyperion and later developed many advanced versions, waiting for the day he could overthrow his rule.

"Speaking of which," Reed pushed up his glasses. "Where's Hyperion? Where's the Squadron Supreme?"

"According to eyewitness reports, Hyperion fainted shortly after the Skybreaker Hammer landed," Ji Shuangshuang took out a record. "The reason for his fainting is currently unknown, and as for the other members of the Squadron Supreme, frankly, they're just extras."

"Without Hyperion, the Squadron Supreme has no deterrent power. A few dozen Sentinel robots can easily take them down."

Ji Shuangshuang was telling the truth. Hyperion was not only the leader of the Squadron Supreme but also its soul. Only with him could the Squadron Supreme be called the Squadron Supreme.

"Why do I feel like this Hyperion, who is called America's strongest superhero, has never done anything right?"

Johnny rubbed his chin, voicing the thoughts of everyone present. Hyperion really hadn't done anything right in recent months; instead, he had caused a lot of trouble for the world.

Ignoring the official superheroes who couldn't help, Reed continued with his arrangements.

First, they needed to approach the New Stark Industries building (the old one was in New York and had become ruins). Howard had set up his base there, transforming it into an entire factory with Sentinel robots.

A constant stream of Sentinel robots was produced there, and Howard himself was also stationed there.

Then, they could use the energy and stored volatile materials there to blow the entire factory sky-high.

That's right, the plan was simple and crude. If things went smoothly, they wouldn't even need to engage anyone in combat. The most difficult part of the plan was sneaking near the Stark Industries building.

This was because any attacks from the outside would be intercepted by Howard. The entire building had been transformed into a super fortress, and the tireless robots were incredibly efficient.

Shortly after Howard was first controlled, missiles were launched at the Stark building, but they were all intercepted by Sentinel robots. According to satellite photos, the Stark building definitely wouldn't need Sentinel robots to intercept missiles now.

The entire building now looked like a giant steel tower, and just looking at those few turrets made it clear that this was a terrifying high-tech military fortress.

"For this, we need Susan's ability," Reed pointed to his girlfriend. "She has the ability to make herself and others invisible. At the same time, she can raise a force field. I just need to use equipment to change its properties, and this force field will prevent us from being detected by any electronic devices."

"This can help us effectively sneak into the Stark building. This task doesn't require too many people; more people will only lead to mistakes. But that doesn't mean the others have nothing to do."

Reed took out a map again and marked several points on it.

"The rest of you will all act as decoys, attracting Howard's attention and increasing the chances of success for the stealth team."

Reed then pointed to several people.

"Susan is the core of this mission, so she must be a member of the stealth team. The others are Tyrone and Quentin. These three will be the main personnel for the stealth operation, and the rest of you are all candidates for the decoy team."

Susan aside, Tyrone and Quentin, who were pointed out, looked at each other in dismay.