[Detected deep green sacrificial item: Dr. Zola's Digital Life System]
[An electronic life-support system developed by the terminally ill Dr. Zola to prolong his lifespan, possessing extremely important research value for certain death-approaching entities]
[Sacrifice yields points: 800 points]
Besides that, there's also this... Peter thought, taking out a pair of exoskeleton arm guards.
They were precisely Crossbones's exoskeleton arm guards, equipment this guy used in *Captain America: Civil War*.
[Detected green sacrificial item: Crossbones's Exoskeleton Arm Guards]
[Tactical combat equipment developed by S.H.I.E.L.D., but due to a relatively outdated power source, its usable duration is very short]
[Sacrifice yields points: 500 points]
"Sacrifice!"
With Peter's silent command, another full 1300 sacrifice points were added to his account.
Looking at the account balance, now a staggering 22,200 sacrifice points, Peter was already starting to look forward to next week's store refresh.
After using the Byakugan to survey the entire old Base and confirming there was nothing else here besides Dr. Zola's database,
Peter was just about to leave with Felicia when his phone rang. The caller was none other than Tony.
As soon as Peter answered, the piercing sound of high-temperature melting and the roar of battle eagerly assaulted his ears from the other end.
And Tony's voice was so urgent it sounded as if someone had him by the throat:
"Peter, are you done over there? We're about to be overwhelmed here!"
Upon hearing this, a giant question mark couldn't help but appear on Peter's forehead:
"Seriously, man? You guys can't handle a bunch of small fry?"
Feeling somewhat embarrassed by the doubt, Tony knew this wasn't the time for pride, so he could only speak hurriedly:
"These guys have way more resources than we imagined. That Alexander has four weirdos under him, each quite skilled and not easy to deal with."
Tony's words were cut off as a burst of sharp static suddenly overwhelmed the line, and the call abruptly ended.
Listening to the dial tone from the receiver, Peter realized the situation was indeed much more troublesome than he had thought.
Four weirdos under Alexander... The cinematic Universe didn't show this guy having such a fantastic lineup.
Although he didn't know the origins of these people, judging from the earlier call, Captain America and the others were truly in a precarious situation.
He probably couldn't afford to leisurely fly Felicia from New Jersey to Seattle anymore:
"Sorry, Felicia. Looks like I can't take you to Seattle after all."
Hearing this, Felicia couldn't help but chuckle, then gently planted a kiss on Peter's cheek:
"Go on, my hero. I'll be waiting in New York for your good news."
...Seattle, inside the secret HYDRA Base Alexander had established.
The scales of victory were visibly tilting in HYDRA's favor.
Within the vast underground space, Captain America was being suppressed by a combination of a burly middle-aged Black man and a young white man.
The strong Black man, though without a shield, possessed physical abilities comparable to the Captain's.
The young white man had abilities similar to Bullseye, able to accurately throw boomerangs, effectively restricting Captain America's attacks.
Bucky was in an even more sorry state, currently surrounded by a massive swarm of bees.
His metal fist was completely useless against this swarm.
Even more terrifying, this bee swarm seemed to possess some form of consciousness, proving more troublesome than a mechanical army.
The fight had only been going on for a few minutes, yet Bucky was already covered in stings, his vision even starting to blur.
It was only thanks to his previous bodily modifications by HYDRA that he could persist in fighting.
Anyone else would have likely been killed by the potent neurotoxin in those bee stings long ago!
Not far from the two, Tony's situation was equally dire.
His opponent was a freak completely encased in gold-red metal.
This guy's body was entirely composed of a special liquid metal, allowing him to completely ignore Tony's repulsor blasts and firearms.
Even more frightening, his body emitted terrifying high temperatures. Just a glancing blow would leave scorching, melting marks on Tony's armor.
In the innermost chamber of the Base, Alexander Pierce was watching this delightful hunt through a surveillance screen.
Seeing his subordinates successfully pounding Captain America and the others into the ground, he couldn't resist gloating. He turned on the loudspeaker to launch a taunting, in-your-face jeer:
"Stark! Rogers! Did you really think you were the only ones with aces up your sleeves?!"
"HYDRA's over seventy years of accumulated strength is no joke!"
"Although I don't know how you discovered my secret Base, now, the game is over!"
"I'll make you disappear without a trace! Not even that damn monster Peter Parker will guess who killed you!"
"Hail Hyd—"
BOOM!
Before he could finish, Tony, ignoring the high-temperature alarm inside his suit, seized a moment to fire a micro-missile, shattering the nearest loudspeaker.
This act of desperate resistance drew a cold snort from Alexander:
"Hmph, utterly reckless! Molten Man, kill this fool immediately!"
Upon hearing this, the figure composed of gold-red, blazing-hot metal couldn't help but turn his head and shout back:
"Hey, that's not in our contract! At most, I can help you subdue this guy! Also, afterwards, you must separate me from this damn radioactive liquid metal as agreed!"
Despite complaining, his movements didn't slow in the slightest; instead, they grew even more ferocious.
He lunged straight at Tony, whose leg thrusters were severely damaged.
No way to dodge!
Tony's pupils contracted sharply, forced to watch helplessly as the fist capable of melting steel grew infinitely larger in his vision... Sssss~
Hearing the piercing sound similar to armor being melted by extreme heat, Tony instinctively closed his eyes.
However, one second passed.
Two seconds passed... but the anticipated pain never arrived.
Tony opened his eyes in surprise, only to find his body now covered by a layer of purple energy shield.
This shield had successfully blocked the fist of the being called Molten Man.
The opponent's fists landed repeatedly on the purple energy shield, but the terrifying high temperatures couldn't leave even a single mark!
This is... The moment he saw the purple energy shield, Tony felt as if he had instantly returned to heaven from hell.
Having participated in the Brooklyn battle, he was all too familiar with this miraculous energy shield!
Sure enough, as the purple light on the shield grew brighter, the next second, a tall, straight figure quietly appeared between Tony and Molten Man.
"Looks like I arrived just in time."
"Any later, and I'd probably be attending a memorial service for you three~"
The Punisher, making his grand entrance~!