Transmigrating: Starting in the Cyberpunk World

Emil transferred Hawkeye to a base in New York, arriving at the same time as another team escorting the tesseract.

At that moment, the vajra titan inside the base, which had been in a dormant state, was remotely activated. It slowly rose, and its visual sensor module lit up with a red glow.

This signified the entry of someone's consciousness.

"BOSS."

Emil took a step back upon seeing this, his expression respectful.

"Well done."

A slightly distorted mechanical voice rang out from inside the titan.

Kael's consciousness had already entered this body of steel.

This wasn't the traditional mode of wireless remote control; that technology was too susceptible to electromagnetic interference and easily tracked by others.

Kael was using a new technology that combined Kamar-Taj's Astral Projection magic with the soul link found on the Destroyer armor.

For a muggle like Tony, this belonged to an entirely different realm, so there was naturally no need to worry about him.

The soul link technology on the Destroyer armor was too profound for Kael to fully replicate at the moment, so he used the bits and pieces he'd learned along with magic to take a slight shortcut.

"How are the preparations for the energy absorption equipment?"

Kael asked.

"Fully prepared, though it hasn't been tested yet."

Emil nodded. He didn't understand technology; he was simply following the task schedule arranged by four seasons treasure.

"Hurry up. My interference methods won't delay them for long."

Kael had prepared a lot for this day. Had he not studied at Kamar-Taj, he wouldn't have had such confidence.

The growth and nurturing of runes required a massive amount of high-grade energy, and Kael intended to fleece a large amount from the tesseract.

"Understood."

Emil nodded, stepped forward to open the case containing the tesseract, and took it out.

Setting aside the Space Stone sealed within, the tesseract itself was a rare artifact. Its ability to stably extract the power of the Space Stone was already incredible.

However, it was still too early for Kael to explore the technology behind it; for now, all he needed to do was extract and store the stone's energy contained within the tesseract.

This near-infinite cosmic energy held inestimable value on its own.

Using it merely to power energy weapons, as Hydra or the Snake Shield Bureau did, was a massive waste.

Even if just combined with runes, it could achieve many incredible things.

Kael didn't keep his consciousness in the vajra titan for long. The specific work that followed would naturally be completed by four seasons treasure. He still had to find time to deal with Tony and the others... on the Helicarrier.

Loki, realizing the situation had changed, dared not sit and wait for death any longer. The cage Nick designed had never truly held him from the start.

Trying to use technology and physical means to restrain a mage—one could only say the intent was good.

One must remember, this was the premier mage of Asgard.

Even if that title was in quotation marks and he was a heavily diluted mage, he still had a few tricks up his sleeve.

After all, not just anyone could stab Thor the God of Thunder in the kidney.

Beyond the S.H.I.E.L.D. surveillance screens, Loki had already quietly turned invisible and followed behind Nick.

His goal was to first retrieve his Scepter.

Ruling Earth and all that was hollow; Loki knew this better than anyone. The Chitauri army weren't his own soldiers to begin with. Even if he truly conquered Earth, so what?

Collaborating with Thanos was, in the end, a matter of having no other choice.

Who knew that after falling from the Bifrost into the void, he would be picked up by Thanos?

If not for his silver tongue and flattering Thanos into a good mood, his neck would likely have been snapped on the spot.

Asgard was one of the biggest obstacles to Thanos's ideals, a clear enemy force.

Of course, it couldn't be denied that Loki did quite enjoy the feeling of playing the villain.

Especially with Thor in the opposing camp; seeing this non-biological brother of his driven to exasperation always gave Loki an indescribable pleasure.

The most crucial point was that since Thor was here, Odin's gaze must also be cast down upon them.

No matter what, his life would certainly be preserved.

This was why Loki dared to be so unscrupulous; after all, the worst outcome was merely being locked up in his own home.

Just look at Nick's attitude—despite his fierce words, in the end, he only imprisoned Loki and hadn't used a single interrogation method on him.

Nick clearly understood that Thor's appearance was, to an extent, a reflection of Odin's attitude.

That All-Father still cared for his adopted son.

However, Loki had already followed Nick for a full circuit and still hadn't found the location of the Scepter.

On the other hand, Thor, who had gone to visit his brother, was the first to notice something was wrong, seeing through the fact that the prisoner was merely an illusion spell.

He immediately warned the others, and a piercing alarm rang through the Helicarrier.

This made the invisible Loki increasingly impatient.

"This is the absolute cage you spoke of?"

Tony found Nick and questioned him. He had already accumulated much dissatisfaction, and now he couldn't help but let it explode.

"Now is not the time for blame! We must find Loki as soon as possible."

Steve interrupted.

"I know Loki's tricks. I can catch him!"

Thor looked confident, while also inwardly grumbling about Loki's restlessness. If he'd just stayed locked up, they could have sought leniency later; why did he have to cause trouble?

"What's your plan?"

Tony looked at Thor suspiciously. Based on his assessment, this guy's intellect shouldn't be trusted.

"Loki! I know you can hear me. Come out! I will plead with Father for you. Mother is also waiting for your return. Stop this nonsense!"

Thor shouted loudly.

Hearing his words, the expressions of those around him became strange.

Seriously, man? This is your plan?

Could a grand god of Asgard not produce some more impressive methods?

"Shut up! Thor, I don't need your pity!"

Loki's somewhat exasperated voice drifted over.

...

Well, Thor certainly knew how to provoke Loki.

"Sonic location confirmed! Lockdown sector 7-24!"

Natasha said immediately.

Loki cursed inwardly. He was disliking this lady more and more.

Mainly because he had just suffered a setback at her hands not long ago.

To him, that was a great humiliation.

Isolated and without help, Loki was trapped on the Helicarrier. Even if he could stir up some trouble, without the Scepter in hand, he really lacked the ability to deal with Thor and the others.

Before long, he was found during S.H.I.E.L.D.'s carpet search. Facing the team led by Thor, Loki very simply raised his hands in surrender.

"Fine, I give up. Congratulations on catching me again."

"Loki, stop this nonsense!"

Thor rushed at Loki in anger, but in the end, he couldn't bring himself to drop the hammer, only letting out a roar.

"Sorry, Thor, but it seems we need to step up our measures."

Nick stepped forward, prepared to upgrade Loki's accommodations—at the very least, he couldn't let the guy act so willfully.

Thor wanted to refuse, but seeing the gazes of Tony and the others, he could only shut his mouth sullenly and watch as Natasha placed heavy restraint devices on Loki... The next day, Tony, who had stayed up all night, finally updated the algorithm with Dr. Banner, narrowing down the tesseract's specific location to within half a kilometer.

"It's actually in New York?"

Dr. Banner looked at the results, thought for a moment, realized Loki's plan, and looked at Tony, whose expression was not good.

"What does that bastard want to do with my tower?"

Tony had also thought of this.

Activating the tesseract required a massive amount of energy, and his newly completed tower undoubtedly met that requirement.

If Loki succeeded, how would that be any different from taking a dump on his head?

However, by now, Tony and the others were gradually realizing that the situation had changed. Loki's original plan seemed to have encountered some complications.

Thor had interrogated Loki all night, and managed to wear his brother down to the point of exhaustion, revealing some key information.

But this wouldn't affect their next move.

Regardless, retrieving the tesseract was the top priority.

Natasha piloted the quinjet, taking Tony and the others toward the destination. Kael was among them, sitting in the co-pilot seat.

After a round of investigation, Tony finally confirmed the exact location of the tesseract. However, when the quinjet landed in front of the destination, his expression changed, and he turned to look at Kael.

"Kael, what's going on?"

"What's going on?"

Steve was still a bit confused, but Natasha reacted quickly. After a quick search, she confirmed that the villa before them was one of Kael's properties and slowly approached.

"A-Bao, are you ready to receive guests?"

Kael stepped forward and said, and the front door opened automatically.

"Everything is ready, Master."

"Guests? This is your house?"

Steve frowned as he realized.

Dr. Banner rubbed his hands uneasily, not knowing what to say. Although they hadn't known each other long, his impression of Kael was actually quite good. How did they suddenly end up on opposing sides?

"Are you the mastermind behind all this?!"

Thor gripped his hammer, about to step forward and act, but Tony reached out and stopped him.

"Use your brain, will you?"

"Uh, did I guess wrong?"

Thor was a bit uncertain, feeling his scalp itch.

"Come inside first."

Kael said casually. Tony gave him a deep look and followed him in, and the others could only follow suit.

In the villa's living room, four seasons treasure had already prepared a sumptuous lunch for everyone, and one person was already seated ahead of them.

"Barton!!"

Natasha stepped forward excitedly, looking at Hawkeye's swollen face with concern.

"What happened to you?"

"Uh..."

Hawkeye didn't know where to start.

"Just some physical therapy. You know, he was being controlled by Loki before."

Kael explained on his behalf.

"Yes, he's right."

Hawkeye nodded. He didn't deny it, but whether the physical therapy had been excessive was something he wasn't sure how to evaluate.

"What exactly is going on? Is the tesseract here?"

Steve asked again.

As soon as he finished speaking, Emil walked out carrying a case, drawing everyone's attention.

Kael reached out to take the case and opened it; the tesseract lay quietly inside.

For a moment, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

"Kael, we need an explanation."

Tony's tone was serious, but he was actually giving Kael a way out. No matter what reason the other party gave, as long as it was somewhat reasonable, Tony would support it.

"Don't look at me like that. I've technically saved the Earth. If not for me, you'd be fighting the Chitauri army right now."

Kael sat down calmly, sounding perfectly justified.

"I don't deny your contribution, but why did you take possession of the tesseract, and why didn't you communicate with us?"

Steve sat down as well upon hearing this, and the atmosphere softened considerably.

"I didn't take possession of it; it's sitting right here in front of you. As for why I didn't communicate?"

Kael said as he lightly clapped his hands.

A holographic projection appeared above the dining table, displaying a lot of hidden information about S.H.I.E.L.D., but mostly intelligence regarding Hydra.

Part of this intelligence had been cracked by four seasons treasure, and part had been found in the Hydra base where Karpov had been hiding for decades.

Combining this intelligence, it wasn't hard to see that Hydra hadn't perished; they had even infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D. long ago.

"That's impossible!!"

Natasha was the first to speak out in denial. It was clear her beliefs had suffered a massive shock.

The gaze of those present focused on Natasha, their expressions shifting one after another.

"Natasha has nothing to do with Hydra; she joined later."

Kael added.

Barton opened his mouth and signaled with his eyes, hoping Kael would say something for him too, otherwise he felt a bit insecure.

"Why didn't you tell me sooner?"

Tony was a bit pained. Could it be that he wasn't trusted by Kael?

With his intellect, it wasn't hard to see the hidden motives here, but that didn't actually matter.

Because Kael had indeed produced the tesseract and given a very sound reason, and that was enough.

If it were Tony himself, he probably wouldn't have been able to resist having some ideas about the tesseract either; it was normal.

"I only gathered the evidence the day before yesterday. I originally just wanted to check S.H.I.E.L.D.'s background; who knew it would lead to Hydra? Tell me, who should I have handed the tesseract to?"

Kael looked perfectly innocent.

The group fell silent, their eyes showing more understanding and approval.

Mr. Wayne is an honest man. He even saved the world. How could we doubt him?

"Alright, now you can take the tesseract away. As for what happens next, it has nothing to do with me."

Kael said with a smile, looking as if he had dropped a burden and felt much lighter.

He was quite curious to see how Steve and the others would handle the trouble of the Snake Shield Bureau.

In any case, lancing this "abscess" early was always going to be easier.

"Everyone, Nick got one thing right: we do need to unite!"

Tony said, putting his arm around Kael's.

His sense of responsibility and his identity certainly wouldn't let him stay out of it. Since that was the case, he had to be proactive in solving the problem.

"It's just you guys."

Kael pushed Tony's hand away in disgust.

"Exactly. We absolutely cannot let Hydra rise from the ashes!"

Steve recovered quickly and chimed in, selectively ignoring Kael's correction.

"Is it too late for me to leave now?"

Dr. Banner had a headache. How did they just solve one big mess only to be sucked into another?

"So, can I sit down and have a drink now?"

Thor looked at the sumptuous food on the table and swallowed. For the sake of his brother, he hadn't eaten for quite some time.

As for Natasha, she hadn't yet recovered and had fallen into a deep state of self-isolation.

Kael was familiar with this; he'd just need to find a moment to give her a little nudge later.