Marvel's Venom, starting with a Hydra undercover agent.

Now, their daily work consists mostly of administering nutrient solutions and then just spacing out and slacking off.

Just as the bald man was spacing out and slacking off as usual, the sand, which had never shown any unusual behavior, began to slowly gather.

This time, he gathered the sand faster and more powerfully than ever before, even forcibly stopping the constantly spinning hourglass and preventing it from turning completely.

"Beep! Beep! Beep!"

The alarm sounded immediately when the hourglass malfunctioned.

The bald man was startled by the sound, immediately snapping out of his daze. He then stood up to grab the special equipment lying nearby.

But before he could take two steps, with a loud bang, a fist made of sand shattered the hourglass and slammed into him, sending him flying.

"Bang!"

The bald man was hit hard in the front and then slammed into the equipment box behind him, his eyes rolled back and he passed out on the ground.

At the same time, the sand that had been wandering throughout the area quickly solidified and, after many days, finally returned to a complete human shape, a somewhat thin William Baker.

Feeling the surging power coursing through his body, William Baker also felt a sense of awe towards the mysterious person who had come here that day.

His time at S.H.I.E.L.D. can only be described as agonizing. He was trapped in that hourglass every day, unable to solidify, and was sometimes taken to be experimented on.

More than physical damage and wear and tear, the hourglass erodes his will and spirit.

The longer he stayed in the hourglass, the more exhausted he became. He didn't even know if he could ever return to human form until the mysterious man arrived.

The hourglass was eroding his will and spirit, while the nutrient solution was weakening his body.

The nutrient solution could only keep him from dying, but it couldn't meet his enormous energy needs at all.

So if it weren't for that drop of black liquid mixed with the nutrient solution sent by the mysterious person, even if the hourglass had been broken, he wouldn't know if he would have had the strength to escape this space carrier, let alone possess the combat power he has now, which is far stronger than before.

After dealing with the bald man, William Baker instantly turned into a pile of sand and flew towards the entrance.

Attentive to the alarm, many fully armed soldiers have already rushed here.

But their equipment was completely useless against William Baker, who had already been reduced to a pile of loose sand.

On the contrary, William Baker could easily send them all flying with a single effort.

Seeing how easily these people could be defeated in front of him, William Baker's lost confidence gradually swelled again.

Just as he was preparing to teach the S.H.I.E.L.D. people a lesson and let them experience the pent-up anger he had been holding in, the mysterious man's advice suddenly resurfaced in his mind.

"Once you're out, don't waste any time, get out of S.H.I.E.L.D. immediately!"

As the voice entered his mind, William Baker suppressed his thoughts, knocked over the armed personnel one last time, and then turned into a pile of loose sand, escaping from S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Helicarrier through the ventilation ducts.

Chapter 184, The Greedy Hydra, Old Man Dengalot

"I understand, I'll keep an eye on it," Holm replied into the phone, before hanging up a moment later.

Seeing him hang up the phone, Daisy, sitting on the sofa next to him, asked curiously, "Was that Commander Coulson? Is there another new mission?"

Upon hearing this, Holm sat down on the sofa, frowning slightly as he said to her, "It's not a new mission, but it's much more troublesome than a new mission."

"William Baker has escaped from the space carrier and his whereabouts are currently unknown. The department has begun a manhunt."

"The officer called me to tell me to keep an eye on things. After all, I was the one who arrested him. If he escapes, he might come back for revenge."

"William Baker escaped?!" Daisy exclaimed in surprise upon hearing Holm's answer. "How is that possible? Wasn't that equipment working perfectly? Could something have suddenly gone wrong?"

“I’m not entirely sure either,” Holm said, shaking his head. “Commander Coulson is also having people investigate the specific reasons.”

"Perhaps it's an instrument malfunction, or perhaps it's the guards' negligence, but the result is the same: William Baker has escaped. What we need to do now is to catch him as soon as possible to prevent any further trouble."

Daisy rubbed her head and said with a troubled expression, "Things just keep piling up. I hope there won't be a new mission as soon as this one ends."

"Sigh, I actually hope William Baker comes after you for revenge, so we can put him in jail again."

Holm nodded and said, "I'd like to do that too, but he's not a fool. If I were him, I would run away and live a low-key life, never to come out again."

“If he just lives a low-key life, that’s fine. I’m just worried that he might create some big news again after a period of low-key living,” Daisy said, looking at Holm.

After chatting for a while, Holm stood up and waved his hand. As he walked toward his room, he said to Daisy, "I'm going to rest. This guy was banging on the wall too loudly, and it kept me from getting any sleep."

Tony has already started manually synthesizing the new element, laying electrical wires all over the house and transporting them to the basement through a large hole he broke open. According to his plan and progress, the new element should be synthesized in no time.

"Click!" Holm locked the door, then lay on the bed staring at the ceiling while sensing the movement around him.

After realizing that there was nothing unusual, he took out a phone he didn't use often and dialed the number Garrett had given him.

After a few beeps, the call connected. After exchanging the coded greeting of "Hail Hydra," Holm spoke directly.

"Sir, I think I may have found a lead on the attacker. He was taken away by Hammer Industries before he could be apprehended..."

He then proceeded to analyze the relationship between the attackers and Tony Stark and his son, using a serious deduction process from the result. He then investigated Hammer Industries' recent anomalies and their major plans for the World's Fair, uncovering various clues.

Then he circled back to this result, asking if he should take Ivan Vanko away and bring him back to Hydra so that he could build the Arc Reactor and the Iron Man armor for Hydra.

Now that Iron Man's problem has been resolved, he doesn't want to waste time waiting for the plot to unfold, so he wants to finish the mission quickly. He also needs to contact William Baker to make follow-up arrangements and carry out the plan.

After Holm finished speaking, Garrett on the other end of the phone was not as happy as expected. Instead, he was silent for a moment and then said in a deep voice, "Your ability to discover the truth from such clues is truly outstanding."

"However, the organization has other plans for this matter, so don't act rashly. Just observe and wait."

“But if S.H.I.E.L.D. also finds out about this, then won’t we fall behind them?” Garrett’s words surprised Holm. He had already figured out how to bring Ivan Vanko out, but he didn’t expect to get this response.

Hearing that Holm was not following orders as before and instead raised his own questions, Garrett was somewhat displeased. However, considering Holm's special circumstances, he explained despite his displeasure: "Justin Hammer started seeking help from the government a couple of days ago in order to secure the military order."

"The organization also has many people in the upper echelons of the government, so they have already made contact with him and his plans."

"Therefore, the organization's decision on this matter is to wait and see, to allow Justin Hammer to mass-produce steel soldiers with the help of high-ranking government officials, and to take Ivan Vanko away after this matter is over."

"So Ivan Vanko will ultimately have to serve the organization, but it's not the right time yet. We need to wait a while longer. Do you understand?"

“I understand,” Holm replied in a deep voice.

So that's how it is. No wonder Garrett didn't react at all to his report; he already knew all along.

They were incredibly greedy. They wanted to use Ivan Vanko to promote Justin Hammer into a new arms tycoon to replace Tony Stark, and after that, they wanted to bring Anton Vanko under Hydra's control and make him work for Hydra.

With such a huge appetite, aren't you afraid of something unexpected happening and choking yourself to death?

As Holm was lost in thought, Garrett said to him with slight dissatisfaction, "Agent Viper, remember your identity. Don't question the organization's decisions. Just do as I say. You don't need to have too many thoughts or ideas, understand?"

“I understand. I’m sorry. I was unaware of the situation this time, so I was a bit hasty,” Holm said to Garrett with a cold face but still humble tone.

After hearing his response, Garrett didn't say anything more and hung up the phone.

"Crack!" Holm crushed the phone in his hand, his face turning icy as he gritted his teeth and cursed, "You old bastard!"

He only asked one more question, and this old guy was so dissatisfied and even lectured him. He was just pretending to be obedient in front of these guys, but now he's really being treated like a grandson.

"Whoo~"

Holm let out a long breath, adjusting his mindset and breathing.

Thinking about it calmly, the conversation just now actually indicated that there was already a conflict between him and Garrett.

Perhaps it was because his abilities were too outstanding and he climbed the ranks too quickly, coupled with his attitude just now, that made the old man feel a sense of crisis, which is why he gave him this verbal warning.

However, Holm's usual image might mislead him. This reprimand wouldn't make Holm feel apprehensive; instead, it would make Holm hold a grudge against him.

New energy and the threat of Ivan

Time slipped away quietly, and as the sun gradually set, evening arrived in the blink of an eye.

Inside the underground laboratory, Tony Stark lowered the wrench from the pipe switch, removed his sunglasses, and walked toward the new element that had just been created on the workbench.

On the workbench, a small triangular object was placed on a stand, emitting a dazzling, eerie blue light.

Looking at the mysterious and beautiful new element before him, Tony couldn't help but exclaim, "It's absolutely perfect! Is this the key to the future you were talking about, Dad?"

At that moment, Jarvis's voice rang out: "Sir, congratulations, you have created a new element."

Tony then picked up the small triangle that was emitting a faint blue light and placed it into the new reactor that had been prepared next to him.

The reactor first emitted a beeping sound, and then gradually stabilized.

"Sir, the reactor is receiving the updated core."

“I will begin the testing next,” Jarvis said.

Tony looked at his new heart and smiled, nodding. Finally, he had solved the mystery, and he no longer had to worry about death.

Tony slumped onto the sofa in the lab, having lived in constant fear every day.

Now that he has finally found a new element, things will be a little easier for him.

Just then, a telephone rang in the laboratory.

"Undisplayed number calling." Jarvis's voice rang out at the same time.

“Oh, I can answer the phone again, that’s great.” Tony said as he sat down and swiped toward the screen on his work desk.

His external communications have been monitored by S.H.I.E.L.D. for the past few days, and he hasn't answered the phone in a long time.

Then, Tony slid his chair to the workbench, pressed the call button, and said, "Hey, what's up, Agent Clint? Aren't you home?"

Tony thought it was Holm calling him.

Just as Tony was waiting for Holm's response, a voice that was both familiar and unfamiliar came through the phone.

"Hey Tony, how are you doing?" A man's voice with a Russian accent came through the phone.

Upon hearing the familiar voice, Tony frowned immediately. He remembered who it was. He pressed the button to mute the microphone while having Jarvis track the caller's location.

These actions happened in an instant. After finishing, Tony continued in a deep voice, "Ivan, I didn't expect you to still be alive."

Hearing Tony's words, Ivan laughed in a hoarse voice, "Hahaha, you too, Tony. I also thought you should be dead from palladium poisoning by now."

"It seems you've found some ways to delay your death, but it's no use; you still can't escape this fate."

Tony stalled for time before continuing, "So, do you have any good suggestions? We can talk about it."

Ivan didn't reply to Tony's words, but just said to himself, "Your advice is also very good, Tony."

"I've taken your suggestion from the Monaco prison; the power of the Ark Reactor is indeed higher."

Upon hearing Ivan's words, Tony's expression turned somewhat grim.

What he said in prison was nothing more than a mockery of a dying man.