Chapter 79

Night.

SHIELD headquarters.

Nick Fury's office.

Phil Coulson walked in again, looking more dejected than ever. This was already his third visit today, and his expression grew worse each time.

Nick Fury's dark face was terrifyingly grim.

Without waiting for Coulson to speak, Nick Fury could tell from his expression that the news was not good.

"Sir, we still can't get in touch with her!"

"Figures!"

Upon hearing this, Nick Fury sighed heavily and then ordered, "Stop the search. I'm now 100% sure that Natasha is in trouble! Contact Agent Barton immediately and have him rush to San Francisco!"

Phil Coulson did not immediately carry out the order but hesitantly said, "Sir, according to our intelligence, Bai Xiaofei bought a ticket to fly to Los Angeles early tomorrow morning. I suspect he is planning to return to Tony Stark's side..."

"Damn bastard!"

Nick Fury nearly exploded with anger at this news, roaring, "He's toying with us! He takes the money, goes for a spin, and then returns to Tony Stark's side as if nothing happened, making fools of us all, and now he's even captured Agent Romanoff! This damn Bai Xiaofei is really pushing it too far!"

Phil Coulson was also at a loss, reminding him, "Sir, about Agent Barton..."

Nick Fury calmed his anger, his single eye narrowing as he thought for a few seconds before ordering, "Send him to Los Angeles to closely monitor Bai Xiaofei. We must rescue Natasha. He's our only hope now!"

Pausing for a moment, Nick Fury continued, "Coulson, how did the negotiations with China go?"

Phil Coulson replied, "Sir, we have some leads."

Nick Fury's single eye lit up, finally some good news: "Tell me, it might help with our next move!"

Phil, however, was skeptical, his face downcast as he reported, "Sir, the Chinese authorities only said that Bai Xiaofei possesses an unimaginable power and is a rare and special talent for China. They wouldn't reveal any more details. After much effort, we managed to get a clue from an official's secretary, who mentioned that Bai Xiaofei seems to be proficient in magical powers, but that's all we have."

"Magical powers?"

Nick Fury was taken aback, a bit bewildered, then frowned and muttered to himself, "Is there really such a thing as magic in this world?"

Then, he suddenly remembered something he had hidden away.

A blue cube!

The Cosmic Cube!

...

San Francisco.

In a high-end hotel room.

Bai Xiaofei lay on the bed, tallying the gains from his kidnapping operation.

The Pym Particles for shrinking and enlarging, and the high-tech insect control, were extremely useful to Bai Xiaofei. He wouldn't be foolish enough to sell them to the Time-Space Mall for energy points, but the technical data could be sold.

The Time-Space Mall was a real pain.

Items from untraversed time-space worlds, like the Rinnegan, were priced exorbitantly, at least ten times their original value!

Bai Xiaofei had once questioned why, and the traverser explained: "The composition of time-space items involves certain rules, requiring energy to counteract, penetrate, and integrate with these rules. The more advanced the item, the more energy it consumes. Additionally, extracting and purchasing items also requires traversing time and space, which consumes energy. Combined, the prices are naturally sky-high!"

Bai Xiaofei could勉强 accept this explanation.

At the same time, he gained a deeper understanding of the Time-Space Traverser, such as the principle of "Equivalent Exchange."

Whether it was traversing time and space, buying items from the Time-Space Mall, or enhancing attributes and skills, energy points were required. Obtaining energy points was not easy; Bai Xiaofei had to alter the plot to cause time-space fluctuations or acquire highly valuable items and technologies. Alternatively, he could help the traverser "plunder" by completing tasks!

It was a naked equivalent exchange!

On the surface, Bai Xiaofei was the host of the Time-Space Traverser, but their relationship was more like a partnership.

The Time-Space Traverser was something Bai Xiaofei had snatched from a mysterious chat group. According to the group members, they were all extremely powerful beings, especially the group owner, the Supreme of Time and Space. One of the many traversers in his red envelope had such incredible power, so how powerful must the owner himself be?

Bai Xiaofei didn't know how strong the Supremes in the chat group were.

But he knew one thing: powerful artifacts and divine weapons had their own will, as seen in ancient mythological novels. For example, the Bell of the Eastern Emperor and the Xuanyuan Sword... they would choose their masters based on their own will.

If the actions of their owners severely conflicted with the will of the artifacts, the artifacts might even turn against their owners! Such cases were rare, but not unheard of!

So...

What about the Time-Space Traverser?

With such incredible power, it should have its own will, right?

What is its will?

Traversing time and space? Seizing energy? It can't be that simple, can it?

The Supremes in the chat group are not mere mortals like Bai Xiaofei. With their power, a mere bit of energy would be trivial to obtain.

Bai Xiaofei had once asked the Time-Space Traverser directly, but it ignored him.

Bai Xiaofei was an optimist who enjoyed the present. He wouldn't get bogged down in such matters. Since he couldn't figure it out, he decided not to think about it anymore!

"As long as I live a colorful life now, who cares about the future!"

"Meet the challenge head-on, and deal with it step by step. I've lived a life of freedom and joy, and even if I die, it won't be in vain!"

Putting aside all the troubling questions, Bai Xiaofei began to sell the technical data with a satisfied smile.

"Beep! Discovered [Pym Particle Technology], extremely valuable, not available in the Time-Space Mall. Selling it will earn 1,000,000 energy points. Host, do you wish to sell it?"

"Beep! Discovered [Pheromone Technology], extremely valuable, not available in the Time-Space Mall. Selling it will earn 500,000 energy points. Host, do you wish to sell it?"

"So little?"

Seeing the prices offered by the Time-Space Mall, Bai Xiaofei was almost ready to bite his tongue in anger.

To buy these two technologies from the Time-Space Mall would cost nearly 30 million energy points, but the selling price was less than one-tenth of that!

Bai Xiaofei didn't believe for a second that there was no catch!

The traverser seemed to sense Bai Xiaofei's thoughts. The Time-Space Mall interface suddenly flashed, automatically switching to the [Pym Particle Technology] and [Pheromone Technology] and their related physical products. Behind the prices, which were in the millions, an additional line of information appeared.

"Detected the original time-space technology. After the Time-Space Mall acquires it, the price will be adjusted to: 1,500,000 energy points."

"Detected... Blah blah... Result: 750,000 energy points."

The prices of the actual Pym Particles and insect control items were also discounted by 10%. This result left Bai Xiaofei speechless and dumbfounded.

Recalling the explanation from the Time-Space Traverser, Bai Xiaofei suddenly understood.

"Sell! Sell everything!"

Bai Xiaofei gritted his teeth and sold both sets of technical data to the Time-Space Mall.

The selling price was a bit of a rip-off, but not selling would be even worse, and he wouldn't get any energy points at all. Better to sell and get something, even if it's less, than nothing!

...

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