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Chapter 177 The Dark Side of S.H.I.E.L.D., The Roots of S.H.I.E.L.D.

"Remember, the fact that Nick Fury is a Hydra can only be known to a very small number of people at the moment, understand?"

'

"Understood, sir!"

Sitwell nodded respectfully, inwardly admiring Du Mu's disguise as Pierce to the extreme.

Even Nick Fury, the former director of S.H.I.E.L.D., is one of their own. So who in the entire S.H.I.E.L.D. can stop Hydra's advance?

Even if Captain America Steve Rogers came, it wouldn't work!

Wait a minute, Captain America isn't also one of Hydra's agents, is he?

Sitwell suddenly felt a sense of security, as if he couldn't see the people around him clearly, but everyone seemed like one of his own.

In this way, Du Mu successfully took over the Hydra forces within S.H.I.E.L.D.

Now that Nick Fury was declared a Hydra agent, he took the opportunity to cancel the assassination order on him, lest Nick Fury be fed bullets by unsuspecting Hydra members one day.

In addition, Du Mu announced on the spot that he was handing over the management of Hydra to Nick Fury.

There are simply too many Hydra agents lurking within S.H.I.E.L.D., and their networks are so intricate that someone has to take charge and manage them.

Du Mu himself didn't want to take on such a troublesome task, but Nick Fury was very experienced in this area. He used to be in charge of S.H.I.E.L.D., so it was perfect for him to take charge of Hydra within S.H.I.E.L.D.

Besides, having a former director of S.H.I.E.L.D. manage Hydra is a fine tradition that cannot be abandoned!

Nick Fury did not refuse.

Since stepping down as director, his authority within S.H.I.E.L.D. has dwindled day by day. Coupled with his past betrayal of S.H.I.E.L.D., he now faces immense difficulties within the agency. He is constantly under surveillance, and getting anything done is harder than climbing to heaven.

Although everyone knows that Nick Fury was controlled by Loki, it is also true that he attacked S.H.I.E.L.D. This is equivalent to jumping into a cesspool. Even if he washes himself clean after getting out of the cesspool, people will still wonder whether the black stuff on him is his skin color or excrement.

For someone with severe paranoia and an extremely strong desire for control, this feeling of being invisibly sidelined is even more unbearable than killing Nick Fury.

But things are different now.

Thanks to the network Hydra had laid within S.H.I.E.L.D., his authority within the agency was greatly enhanced, to the point that it was even greater than when he was director.

Nick Fury:

'

Just how deeply has S.H.I.E.L.D. been infiltrated?

Nick Fury only joined Hydra out of a sense of humiliation and hardship for the greater good, and had to shout "Long live Hydra" time and time again.

However, after joining Hydra, he only had one feeling.

Really fragrant!

The Hydra crew is just too easy to use.

These spies were not only highly skilled, but more importantly, they had an impeccable work ethic, never slacking off and demonstrating astonishing execution ability.

Moreover, they will go to great lengths to complete their missions, even at the cost of their own lives, making them modern-day suicide squads!

Most importantly, they are absolutely obedient to orders and never try to be clever by questioning or changing their superiors' instructions. Even if they were ordered to carry a nuclear bomb to the White House, they would do it without hesitation and without any questions.

Compared to the S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who occasionally cause trouble and let their personal emotions get in the way during missions, this group of people is much less of a worry for Fury.

Moreover, those secrets that Hydra had deliberately hidden in the past can now be easily accessed. Under Hydra's infiltrated intelligence network, the entire S.H.I.E.L.D. has become almost transparent to him, and no matter what happens, it cannot be hidden from him.

What makes Nick Fury even more relieved is that he no longer has to worry about a mole within S.H.I.E.L.D., because he himself is the biggest mole.

I have to admit, this feeling is absolutely amazing!

This state can be said to have almost realized his ideal vision of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Could it be that... Hydra is the true righteous organization among intelligence agents?

Nick Fury couldn't help but feel self-doubt.

Of course, controlling Hydra does not come without a price.

Once his relationship with Hydra is exposed, he's finished. At the very least, he'll never be able to shake off the label of being a Hydra spy.

At that time, even if he says he is an undercover agent, no one will believe him.

After all, how could an undercover agent rise to become the leader of an organization? Who would believe that?

Therefore, Nick Fury had to keep this secret and absolutely not let it leak out. He also had to protect the Hydra members who were lurking inside S.H.I.E.L.D., helping them to better conceal their identities and ensuring that other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents could not discover them.

Especially Hill, the current director of S.H.I.E.L.D.

Although he and Hill belonged to the same camp, Hill's personality was not as flexible and adaptable as his. Once the other party found out, they would not show any consideration for the past and would directly kill their friend for the greater good.

The Hydra now controlled by Nick Fury is like the roots of the towering tree that is S.H.I.E.L.D., hidden in the dark soil.

He, too, had to remain behind the scenes, becoming the shadow of S.H.I.E.L.D., secretly clearing away all unstable factors for S.H.I.E.L.D.

However, what Nick Fury didn't know was that while the Hydra forces within S.H.I.E.L.D. were ostensibly handed over to him, the real controller was actually Du Mu.

If Du Mu gave the order, all the Hydras under his control would immediately turn against him. Of course, Du Mu wouldn't do that; at most, he would secretly manipulate the Hydras.

In any case, if anything goes wrong with Hydra, he can simply shift the blame to Nick Fury, the apparent controller of Hydra.

Just as Du Mu successfully completed the power transfer of Hydra, the system's voice rang in his mind.

[Mission complete: Cut off one head, and another will grow back]

[Rewards: 2000 XP, 200 S.H.I.E.L.D. Reputation, Kunai (equipment), Black Pot (item)]

[The seal of the severing of the root of the calamity of the tongue]

[Equipment: Kunai (If you feel stupid, don't forget that a ninja once stabbed a Susanoo with a kunai)]

[Props: Black pot (It's heavy to carry, but you can pass it to someone else)]

[Item: Seal of the Severance of Tongue Curse (A target under this seal will be immediately paralyzed, unable to speak or move, if they attempt to utter any pre-set forbidden words or related information. This seal will only be automatically removed upon the death of the caster.)]

From these task rewards, Du Mu seemed to vaguely see the shadow of a certain pot, but he didn't know what it was hinting at.

Du Mu glanced at the bitter knife and the black pot, then decisively threw them into the recycling system.

The remaining seal for eradicating the root of tongue calamity is a scroll containing detailed instructions on how to use this seal.

"This is good stuff!"

Du Mu's eyes lit up; this cursed seal was practically a tailor-made insurance measure for managers.

As long as he gives each of his subordinates such a curse mark, he won't have to worry about his secrets being leaked, not even truth serum.

When used in conjunction with the newly acquired brainwashing device, the effect is even better.

Du Mu did not waste the Hydra resources within S.H.I.E.L.D. He ordered his men to retrieve all the technological data within S.H.I.E.L.D., package it all together, and send it to Strucker to further strengthen Sokovia's technological capabilities, so that they could break out of Earth and hit the moon as soon as possible.

Strucker: "6"

'

Just how obsessed are you with the moon?

In a secret Hydra base hidden deep underground.

Under the protection of more than a dozen Hydra agents, Du Mu passed through layers of security doors and finally arrived at the core area deep inside the base.

"Sir, he's inside."

The Hydra agent leading the team stopped in front of a security door and whispered to Du Mu, "However, he's a bit unstable right now and prone to losing control of his emotions. For your safety, I suggest you don't go in yourself."

Du Mu waved his hand dismissively: "It's alright, open the door."

Seeing that persuasion was ineffective, the Hydra agents had no choice but to nod and do as they were told, opening the security door in front of them.

Behind the door was a fairly spacious security room with reinforced metal walls on all four sides, and some monitoring equipment and medical devices scattered in the corners.

The most eye-catching figure was the one standing in the center of the room, who was none other than Bucky, whom they had met before.

Based on the information provided by Pierce, Du Mu easily found the secret base and met the Winter Soldier.

This is a super soldier comparable to Steve, and it can be used at a moment's notice, so Du Mu naturally wouldn't let it go.

At this moment, Bucky was shirtless, his left arm was empty, his eyes were unfocused, and his eyebrows were furrowed from time to time, as if he was trying to remember something.

"What's wrong with him?" Du Mu asked curiously.

A researcher in a white coat quickly ran forward and explained in a low voice, "His brainwashing program malfunctioned. After returning from the last mission, his consciousness began to have a rejection reaction, his memory became confused, and his mental state became extremely unstable."

Wasn't the last mission the one to assassinate Nick Fury?

It seems like nothing really happened, right?

All he did was call out Bucky's name, beat the guy up, and incidentally steal his metal arm and motorcycle...

Well, when you think about it, quite a few things have indeed happened.

However, Du Mu said he wouldn't take the blame; it must be a problem with the brainwashing device. He explained that the stronger a person's will, the less effective the brainwashing would be.

It's quite normal for a warrior like Bucky to be resistant to brainwashing.

The researchers added with concern: "If this trend continues without intervention, the Winter Soldier may gradually regain some of his memories, greatly reducing the brainwashing effect. My suggestion is to refreeze the Winter Soldier and thaw him before the next mission."

Pierce once revealed that Bucky has always been Hydra's secret weapon. In order to extend his shelf life, just like handling various frozen meats and seafood, he is usually stored in a specially made freezer and is only thawed when a mission is carried out.

In essence, this approach is no different from that of Steve the Popsicle.

Because he is in this state of deep preservation all year round, Bucky has been able to maintain his youthful appearance and outshine his peers except for Steve.

Unfortunately, this freezing technology has a strict requirement: it must be used in conjunction with the Super Soldier Serum to be effective. If an ordinary person dares to do this, they will go in as a living person and come out as a hard, frozen sculpture.

Otherwise, if this technology were sold on the market, countless wealthy and powerful people would come knocking on our door with their money.

"Freezing and thawing both take a lot of time, making it inconvenient to carry out emergency missions."

Du Mu rejected the proposal outright, saying that such a complicated process was not as convenient as Max's.

As he spoke, he had already started walking towards Bucky.

Almost the instant Du Mu approached, Bucky suddenly raised his head, his unfocused gaze suddenly focused, and he sprang up like a triggered bear trap!

He raised his normal right arm, and with a whooshing sound, struck Du Mu directly in the face!

"Sir, watch out!"

The Hydra agents behind him screamed and raised their guns, but they had no time to react.

However, Du Mu was much faster than them.

Faced with Bucky's punch, he simply raised his arm and grabbed the other's wrist.

Bucky felt a sudden tightening on his wrist, and an irresistible force suddenly surged through him. He was sent flying uncontrollably, his back slamming heavily against the metal wall with a dull thud before he slid helplessly to the ground.

Hydra agents:

'

"

Their protection seems a bit excessive.

Du Mu walked up to Baji and squatted down.

Seeing that the other person was conscious but had given up resisting, he asked, "How much do you remember?"

Bucky leaned against the wall, the mania in his eyes gradually fading, replaced by deep confusion.

He said in a hoarse voice, "Bucky, that name sounds familiar, like someone I know. He said he's my twin brother..."

It turned out that the name Bucky had unexpectedly triggered the other person's memories.

Du Mu did not deny it, but instead continued the conversation, saying, "He's right, Bucky is indeed your twin brother, and you are his younger brother, named Keeba."

"is that so?"

Bucky frowned, sensing that something was wrong, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it.

Du Mu nodded: "That's right, you still owe your twin brother a lot of money, probably several hundred million US dollars."

Bucky:

'

'

It was only a few tens of millions of US dollars, so why did the price increase so quickly?

Baggio skillfully skipped the topic, frowning as he said, "Besides, I seem to remember a blond figure, someone who seemed very important to me. Do you know who that was?"

I know, who else could it be but Steve?

Du Mu was somewhat speechless.

He didn't understand how Bucky connected this incident to Steve.

Just as he didn't understand why Steve could feel a strange sense of familiarity with Bucky just by seeing his two tufts of hair.

Du Mu naturally wouldn't reveal Steve's identity.

If Bucky heard this, who knows if he would instantly break free of the brainwashing and shout, "Don't underestimate our bond!"

"Of course I know."

Du Mu nodded and said, "I know the person you're talking about; she's your... first love!"

Bucky: "??????"