While the military was debating their global nuclear strike plan, the Avengers finally arrived late to the New York battlefield and quickly joined the fray.
Thor led the charge, wielding his hammer like a god descending to earth... Well, he is the God of Thunder.
With a lift of his hammer, thunder roared; with a swing, lightning scattered in all directions.
Mjolnir truly was a remarkable weapon—both a magical artifact capable of summoning lightning for powerful AOE attacks and an incredibly heavy weapon that left its targets either dead or incapacitated.
But there was one thing Su Ye couldn't quite understand.
Why, when Thor could unleash unlimited AOE attacks and quickly clear out hordes of enemies, did he insist on emulating Captain America by fighting grunt by grunt, hammering them down one by one?
Or was he deliberately lowering his combat effectiveness to match the team's average level so he wouldn't stand out?
Probably neither.
Thor seemed to rank near the bottom in terms of IQ within the Avengers, only slightly smarter than Drax the Destroyer from the Guardians of the Galaxy—a muscle-bound brute with more brawn than brains.
Maybe, in his mind, using AOE wasn't as satisfying as hammering enemies one by one for fun.
Thanks to Thor's valiant but inefficient ground-pounding antics, the battle situation after the Avengers joined looked almost the same as before their arrival.
The Avengers barely managed to clear fewer than a hundred Chitauri soldiers per minute, a paltry effort compared to the relentless torrent of enemies pouring from the portal.
To most civilians in the city, it was as if the Avengers hadn't even arrived.
Instead, the rooftop hero, Max Dillon (Electro), had already captured the public's attention with his relentless discharges of electricity that decimated the enemy ranks.
Some people did initially connect him to the blue-skinned villain who attacked Times Square, but watching the charred bodies of Chitauri soldiers fall one after another quickly convinced them otherwise.
The blue-skinned man was a notorious criminal, while this electrifying figure was a hero saving the world. How could the two possibly be the same?
In the end, many people in buildings and those running through the streets couldn't help but cheer for Max.
The cheers acted like a drug, wildly stimulating Max's nerves and making him fight even harder.
It was a perfect positive feedback loop.
Eventually, Max got so carried away that even when his power levels dropped below 40%, he continued enthusiastically "generating electricity for love" in the open.
It was Sharon who noticed the issue through her equipment, prompting Su Ye to call Max back.
"Your body is your greatest asset! If you run out of power and get killed, how will you save those waiting for you? Be smarter about this and go recharge—now!"
Max didn't argue and obediently went to recharge.
It was around this time that Thor arrived on the battlefield with the Avengers.
After some chaotic lightning attacks, Thor went back to hammering like a super soldier, while Max, now fully recharged, returned to the battlefield, almost seamlessly taking over.
As a result, hardly anyone realized that a hammer-wielding man had ever been discharging electricity on the battlefield. They all assumed the lightning attacks had been Max's work from start to finish.
Electro's reputation soared, elevating his standing in New York to a [Revered] status.
Throughout all this, Su Ye remained crouched near the Tesseract activation device, making various futile attempts that looked earnest but were actually just for show.
That is, until he received a communication from Nick Fury.
"Su Ye, get your team out of Stark Tower immediately! The military just launched a low-yield nuke in your direction, and I couldn't stop it. Leave now—hurry!"
Hearing Fury's words, Su Ye sighed. As expected, what was bound to happen had finally come.
The Americans really didn't mess around. When they said they'd drop a nuke, they meant it. Even a low-yield explosion at Stark Tower would cause immeasurable damage.
Looking up at the sky, Su Ye shook his head again. Without the constraints of a special effects budget, the portal above was spewing enemies endlessly and in astonishing quantities.
In such a situation, Iron Man trying to grab the nuke and fly it out would probably be harder than being the one sperm out of millions to fertilize an egg.
The odds of accidentally hitting the alien mothership Sanctuary I were near zero. The best outcome would be for the nuke to detonate near the portal.
This would indeed inflict significant damage on the aliens near the portal, but the blast wave and nuclear radiation would also severely harm the Guardians of the Great Wall below.
No matter how you looked at it, this seemed like a hopeless scenario.
It was at this point that Su Ye decided to use the contingency plan he had prepared.
"Max!"
Su Ye shouted through his earpiece, immediately recalling Max, who was discharging electricity midair like a giant static ball.
"Uncle Su, Electro Max reporting in! Awaiting orders!"
Even while airborne, Max managed to salute in a Chinese military style, leaving Su Ye both amused and exasperated.
Su Ye didn't bother with formalities and simply pointed in the direction Fury had indicated.
"Over there, a little guy is flying toward us, aiming to drop a nuke under us. It's all yours—take it down! Confident?"
At the start of the battle, Max might have been hesitant about dealing with a nuke. Only a fool would be completely fearless in such a situation—ignorance breeds courage.
But after the earlier combat, with his fighting spirit and resolve through the roof, nothing could stand in the way of Max's dream of becoming a hero who defends Earth.
"Rest assured, Sir! Mission will be accomplished. If I can't dismantle it, I'll eat it!"
With a loud roar, Max, like a soldier plugging a dam's breach with his body, resolutely transformed into a streak of electricity and shot out.
Meanwhile, over the distant sea, a missile approximately two meters long sped toward New York at near supersonic speed.
Within the city, the Avengers received news from Nick Fury about the incoming nuke. Iron Man immediately turned into a streak of fire, rushing toward the missile's trajectory.
Both publicly and privately, he couldn't allow the nuke to land in Manhattan, let alone on Stark Tower.
Fortunately, the nuke's speed wasn't too high. He could still divert it to a location where it wouldn't cause massive harm to the city or its residents.
If anything went wrong and the nuke detonated prematurely, Iron Man would likely go down with it.
But at this moment, Tony Stark couldn't afford to think about that.
In turbulent times, true heroes emerge. This was the moment Tony Stark would transform from a playboy into a true hero.
Following Jarvis's navigation, Iron Man quickly reached the sea and located the nuke.
But just as he was about to approach and redirect the nuke, Jarvis's radar suddenly detected a high-energy reaction on the missile.
From Tony Stark's perspective, he saw a glowing mass, like electricity, wrapping around the missile. Countless filament-like currents extended like tendrils, seeping into the missile's rivets and welded seams.
"Is this… some kind of alien creature?"
As Tony Stark pondered in confusion, he saw the missile's tail flame flicker twice—and then it vanished.
The propulsion system had shut down, rendering the nuke a dud?
Tony hesitated, unsure whether to catch the now unpowered missile—and if he did, where should he take it?
His heroic transformation had barely begun and was abruptly cut short, leaving him feeling as if someone had squeezed him painfully, leaving his adrenaline and tension without release!
Just then, the electrical currents on the nuke began to take on a humanoid shape. To Tony Stark's surprise, it was someone he recognized—Max Dillon, aka Electro, the man who had joined the Red Shield branch after his Times Square incident.
Sweat beads formed on Max's forehead as he worked to disable the nuke's propulsion and detonation systems. This wasn't as easy as tampering with tanks or multiple rocket launchers.
Had he not been an electrical engineer forced to study various systems, it was doubtful anyone else could have managed this.
But he had succeeded and could now report back to Su Ye with his mission accomplished.
Feeling relieved, Max greeted Iron Man before resuming his course, carrying the nuke and maintaining its original speed as he flew back toward New York.
Tony Stark, exasperated, immediately opened a communication channel with Max.
"Hey, Mr. Max, where exactly are you planning to take that thing?"
In a good mood, Max responded casually, "Stop nagging. Just follow me."
Tony Stark: "..."
Completely baffled, Tony followed Max as they flew through New York City, weaving between skyscrapers.
Finally, Max landed on a rooftop, placed the nuke into a metal box on the platform, and casually closed the lid. He then called out to a man sitting cross-legged nearby, seemingly deep in thought.
"Sir, I'm back. Mission accomplished!"
Tony Stark: ∑(っ°Д°;)っ
Isn't this Stark Tower? I don't come here often, but it's still my property—I spent a lot on it! You casually brought a nuke here without consulting the owner? What if it explodes?!
And that guy over there—that's a nuke, a nuke! Come on, could you at least show a tiny bit of concern?
Su Ye didn't even glance at the nuke. He waved his hand nonchalantly.
"Comrade Max, well done. The organization will remember your contribution. Keep it up. There are still plenty of aliens in the city—go and continue writing your legendary story!"
"Yes, sir!" Max snapped to attention, saluted, turned around, and flew off. His movements were crisp and efficient, leaving Tony Stark dumbfounded.
So this is the Red Shield branch? Their so-called Guardians of the Great Wall? Their operational efficiency and execution leave the Avengers in the dust by miles.
Why am I suddenly tempted to join them?
"Hey, Mr. Tony Stark," Su Ye greeted him with a wave, still not sparing a single glance at the box containing the nuke, as if it didn't even exist.
Tony Stark had been about to say something but fell silent the moment he noticed the bat-shaped emblem engraved on the lid of the metal box.
If that box was provided by him, then there was no need to worry about the nuke being remotely triggered or detonated.
The man with the bat codename had, over time, established himself as someone completely trustworthy.
Su Ye gestured for Tony Stark to come over. "You're knowledgeable about energy systems. Could you take a look and see how we might shut down this device?"