Chapter 118: Truth Should Not Be Spoken Recklessly

S.H.I.E.L.D. Trident Headquarters.

Having just dealt with the Winter Soldier and the missing Obelisk incident, Egghead stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, hands clasped behind his back, allowing himself a rare moment of emptiness.

As he watched the clouds drift across the sky, the adorable orange cat suddenly morphed into a slightly chubby figure.

He wasn’t sure if it was his eyes playing tricks, but no matter how he looked, it resembled a certain detestable fellow.

“Hmph!”

Irritated, Egghead decided to send a Quinjet to disrupt the clouds and make that unsightly nuisance disappear.

At that moment, Hill entered, striding in confidently with her long legs.

“Agent Hill.”

Egghead returned to his usual calm demeanor, turning to face the tall and athletic assistant. “What is it?”

“There was a shallow earthquake in San Juan, Puerto Rico,” Hill reported. “Several sections of the old city collapsed. Fortunately, the quake subsided quickly and caused no casualties.”

She placed a document on the desk. “Seawater flooded back in, revealing an ancient underground city. The architectural style is unique—unlike anything from any era or civilization. Investigations show an earthquake shouldn’t have been possible there unless someone was tampering.”

“You mean an experiment? A detonation? Or perhaps using explosions to explore the underground city?”

Egghead glanced at the report and recalled recent actions by the Hand. “Could Hydra be involved? Did they discover something?”

“Our operatives are investigating,” Hill replied.

Egghead furrowed his brow.

Puerto Rico?

San Juan?

Wasn’t there someone setting up a lab there and luring away my two prized scientists?

Could it be connected to him?

Why does everything always involve that guy?

“Coordinate with the local government in San Juan. Lock down the site. Assemble a task force of folklorists, historians, geographers, ancient linguists, architects, and the finest agents. I want the findings delivered straight to my desk.”

Egghead pondered for a moment. “Send Coulson.”

He didn’t trust anyone else.

Since this matter involved ‘Fatty Wang,’ it was safer to send someone familiar. Otherwise, if Fatty Wang got angry, it would spell serious trouble.

After dismissing Hill, Egghead leaned on his desk, deep in thought.

Everything major that happened recently, aside from that playboy’s kidnapping, seemed to be linked to Fatty Wang?

Was that guy a born calamity? Wherever he went, disaster followed; wherever he went, people died—a trail of death and destruction.

He opened the file and read carefully, soon drawn to a particular date.

“The earthquake occurred less than half a day after I last saw Iron Fist?”

“His lab was researching the Dark Grimoire.”

“Is the earthquake related to the Dark Grimoire, or to the Obelisk he just obtained?”

“Does that guy have supersonic speed, or the ability to teleport?”

Egghead continued reading and soon found several diagrams.

They were structural blueprints of the underground city, drawn by San Juan agents using advanced technology. Due to time constraints and flooding, as well as widespread collapse, only a small portion was completed.

Staring at the dense concentric circles on the plans, the distribution of features north to south, and the perfectly aligned straight lines matching latitudes and longitudes, an image immediately surfaced in Egghead’s mind:

The Obelisk.

The Obelisk’s surface bore similar patterns, though too sparse and vague.

For sixty years, S.H.I.E.L.D. researchers had speculated.

Some thought it was mere decoration, others believed it was linked to ancient totems, and some suspected the patterns concealed undiscovered knowledge in mathematics or astronomy.

But no one had ever considered it might actually be a map.

A map of an ancient underground city.

“Could the Kunlun people have built that city?”

“Immortal Iron Fist… how many secrets are you still hiding?”

Egghead picked up his phone, hesitated for a few seconds, but ultimately did not call Old Wang.

Some things weren’t clear yet.

Some people still needed investigating.

…

Almost simultaneously, the same investigative report was secretly delivered into another’s hands.

Looking over the report and the strange yet familiar diagrams, Whitehall’s face lit with indescribable fanaticism and excitement.

“So the secret of the Obelisk lies there!”

Since first encountering the Obelisk in 1945, a full 63 years ago, he had been studying it relentlessly—even dreaming of it.

The Obelisk had become his nightmare, a part of his very life.

From youth to white hair and back to dark strands, without unlocking its mystery, he would never find peace.

Now, with the veil partially lifted, Whitehall felt as if he glimpsed the hidden splendor beneath the skirt.

“Send me the best operatives.”

His voice brimmed with madness: “To San Juan!”

“Our people may not be enough; we’ve lost too many recently,” a Hydra member warned. “Immortal Iron Fist and Ghost Rider are tough opponents. We need assistance.”

“Pierce will help us.”

Whitehall feigned calm, but the fire of madness in his eyes blazed brighter. “He lost the Winter Soldier and will want him back. This is his best chance. He will cooperate with me!”

…

San Juan outskirts.

One call from Old Wang, and Fitz swiftly arrived on site with detection equipment.

After a quick test, Fitz was stunned. “What? Such an ability exists in this world? So you’re a humanoid seismograph? And a full-spectrum one at that—you can speed up or slow down as you wish?”

“Fitz!”

Skye scowled, fists clenched, on the verge of explosion.

You can’t just spout the truth like that, Fitz—still too young, after all…

Old Wang quickly restrained Skye, channeling his internal energy into her, harmonizing their vibrations.

“Calm down, calm down. Young folks can be reckless; just breathe.”

If Fitz got hurt, it would be a huge loss—not just to Old Wang, but to all humanity, since there aren’t many scientists of his caliber worldwide.

For the sake of all mankind, stay calm!

Fitz wasn’t truly foolish—just lacked social grace and relevant experience.

Actually, he thought Skye’s ability would be quite useful against Egghead…

The young scientist, barely eighteen and still inexperienced, felt awkward, unsure whether to apologize or disappear.

He worried that if he didn’t disappear soon, he might be forced to…

“So? Can it be done?” Old Wang changed the subject.

“Uh… we need to design a miniature, all-around, high-precision spectrometer, plus high-strength, high-toughness materials to withstand the shockwaves. The structure must be shock-resistant, and we need a full-spectrum wave generator. At the first sign of Skye generating a shockwave, it will emit an inverse wave of matching amplitude and frequency with a half-wave delay to cancel it out.”

Fitz quickly mapped out the plan mentally, twirling his marker. “This will take time. Also, our lab lacks the necessary precision equipment. We’ll either have to commission S.H.I.E.L.D.’s tech department to build it or purchase it.”

Purchase?

That costs money?

Skye blinked and immediately asked, “Is it expensive?”