Chapter Thirty-Five: Joining the Battle!

"I can't take it anymore!"
At the base of the Illuminati, Angel watched the surveillance screens as the army was routed, the Chitauri turned their weapons on the civilians, exploding cars, incinerating people into ashes one by one... She could no longer endure it and wanted to charge into battle herself.

Haoyun quickly tried to stop her. "Mom, there's no official request for support. If we go now, we'll also—"

A sharp slap cut him off.

Everyone was stunned, especially Aunt Pepper. Since Haoyun had joined the Potts family, Angel had never once laid a hand on him. And now, she'd actually slapped him?

Haoyun covered his face, not daring to look at his mother.

"Haoyun, when did I teach you to think only of your own interests?" Angel's face was as cold as ice. "Your life is life, but theirs aren't?

"For the sake of slander that might not even happen in the future, you have the power but refuse to act, watching humanity be slaughtered before your eyes... Haoyun, you've deeply disappointed me!"

With those words, Angel turned and walked toward Baymax.

"Baymax, suit up. Prepare for battle!"

"Miss Angel, your heart rate is excessively high. Shall I run a check—"

"To hell with your check! Get my armor on, we're heading out!"

She stood before Baymax and spread her arms, back to the robot... Baymax began to assemble the specially reinforced suit around her, while also donning his own armor.

Haoyun stood in silence, blocking Angel's path, refusing to let her leave.

His mother was a champion of justice, a lawyer with a conscience! He couldn't let her act without an official statement. The pressure of public opinion was something even Tony and Captain America couldn’t withstand in the story—how could his mother bear it?

Tony and Pepper exchanged glances, but neither dared to speak. Both sides had their reasons—one fought for humanity, the other for family. If they tried to intervene now and something happened, who would take responsibility?

"Move!"
Now fully armored, Angel mounted Baymax, glaring fiercely at Haoyun.

"I won't!"

Haoyun stubbornly stood his ground before Baymax, and for a moment, tension in the Illuminati base reached its peak.

Just as Angel reached her limit and was about to command Baymax to burst through the sky, Dr. Banner, who had been monitoring the screens, suddenly shouted with delight.

"Good news! SHIELD has issued an official request for support! It's stamped and already posted on the White House website!"

"Haha!" Tony leapt for joy, dragging Pepper toward his suit room in excitement. "No more moping around in here—everyone, suit up and prepare for battle!"

Haoyun and Angel exchanged glances, the tension between them easing. Deep inside, Haoyun silently thanked Nick Fury—no wonder he was the top agent, always knowing exactly what they needed.

This only reinforced Haoyun's resolve: no matter how eloquent Fury was after the battle, he would never agree to join the Avengers Initiative or SHIELD.
But perhaps, he could consider bringing in Captain America, Natasha, Hawkeye, and the others? After all, their enemies would only grow stronger in the future, and the more powerful allies, the better!

And he'd need suitable candidates for the items he'd draw in the future, too.

When everyone had finished suiting up—each donning their own battle armor, with even Dr. Banner appearing wielding two massive hammers—Tony gave a sharp wave of his hand.
"Illuminati, move out!"

.................

At the Triskelion battleground, Nick Fury's eyes were bloodshot as he surveyed the carnage. Chitauri soldiers on individual flyers rampaged through the sky, bodies littered the ground, and he roared furiously at Hill beside him.

"How much longer until Tony gets here?! People are almost all dead!"

"I'll contact him right away—"

"Tell him to hurry! I can give him three more minutes at most! After that, the line will break and the enemy will flood the city! We'll lose all control!"

"Tch, now you're in a rush? Relax—we're not like those useless fools."

Before Hill could call Tony Stark, Tony's voice boomed naturally over the helicarrier's speakers.

Nick Fury looked down in astonishment. More than forty Iron Man suits streaked through the sky, and a volley of tracking micro-missiles instantly cleared a swath of the battlefield!

"Rhodey, help me control the portal's invasion rate! Hulk, smash to your heart's content!"

In red-and-gold and black suits, over forty armors—driven by JARVIS, Friday, and other AI Tony had created—soared swiftly ahead. Over the Triskelion, more than eighty palms aimed skyward, unleashing a barrage of energy cannons that held the main doors, dramatically slowing the Chitauri reinforcements.

On the ground, Hulk roared, swinging his dual hammers with wild abandon. The immense metal leviathans that tried to bar Tony's path fell to his blows, collapsing around the tower in defeat.

Behind him, Angel stood atop Baymax, her twin guns raining fire. Powered by a newly designed arc reactor, her energy weapons drew webs of deadly light across the sky. On another front, Pepper, clad in the Supporter Armor and aided by Friday, remotely controlled hundreds of magnetic drones, unleashing countless bullets in concert with Angel.

For a moment, the Chitauri army—invincible in New York and able to crush military resistance with ease—suffered devastating casualties. Together, they carved out a patch of blue sky amidst the chaos.

Inside the helicarrier, five UN delegates were left speechless.
So these were the "civilians" Nick described? Civilians who could beat back aliens that ignored the US military?
Could these actually be Nick's secret, illicitly developed super-soldier squad?!

"Nick, we demand an explanation!"

"No explanations. Right now, the war takes precedence!"

Not only were the UN delegates alarmed—even Nick Fury himself was shaken. Since when had the Illuminati's forces grown so powerful? And what was with the forty-plus suits? Tony's military reserves could fight a war on their own!

"Hmph! Don't forget your responsibilities," the delegates grunted, but said no more. After all, they still needed these 'civilians' to protect Earth. This wasn't the time to turn against them.

Just like in the original story, any reckoning would have to wait until the alien threat was gone and evidence could be gathered. More importantly, this time, they'd authorized the Illuminati to take action themselves—so any blame would be impossible to shift.

What they didn't know was that the Illuminati's true powerhouses—Haoyun, Thor, and the concealed Guangling Tower—were still holding back, preparing for Ebony Maw and the Black Order.

On the battlefield, Captain America, Natasha, and Hawkeye, bolstered by the reinforcements, finally caught a brief respite. Watching Tony and the others rampage through the enemy ranks, they couldn't help but marvel at their combat prowess.

To be honest, even they were stunned by the results Tony and the others had achieved in just a few minutes.

PS: I just saw the tips on Qidian—sorry for the delay! Since I posted on Chuangshi, I didn't see the rewards in time. Thank you, AshesXZ and Bookfriend20200802045445098, for your support—here's an extra chapter as promised! Thank you!