Though feeling reluctant at the sight of the little snake on the ground, Cleve could not disobey the Holy Lord's words. He grumbled and uttered a parting sentence, then used the Snake Talisman to turn invisible and escape.
Meanwhile, Uncle Chen wasn't as lucky as the little snake. Holding Little Jade with one arm and a pocket with the other, he sped away under the pursuit of police cars. After finally managing to shake off his pursuers, he opened the pocket and was stunned. Where were the talismans? How had they turned into diamonds?
"Uncle Chen, we're going to be rich!"
Little Jade's eyes sparkled at the sight of the diamonds. Indeed, women were irresistible to shiny things, even if she wasn't an adult yet.
"This isn't good. We need the talismans. What do we need diamonds for?"
Little Jade nudged Uncle Chen and said, "Uncle Chen, if the diamonds are with us, then where are the talismans?"
Uncle Chen's expression became animated as he exclaimed, "Oh, little snake."
Just as Uncle Chen turned to find the little snake to exchange the talismans back, a figure appeared in his vision. A tight-fitting costume of red and blue, it looked like a child's pajamas.
"Wow, it's Spider-Man."
Little Jade, filled with admiration for heroes, stared at the appearance of Spider-Man with wide, shining eyes.
Spider-Man walked towards Uncle Chen, saying as he approached, "Friend, I don't know how desperate you are for money, but it's not good to steal with a child. You'll set a bad example for the kid."
Noticing the diamonds in his hand, Uncle Chen quickly explained, "It's not what you think. I was just..."
Spider-Man didn't care about Uncle Chen's reasons. Caught red-handed, everything else was just sophistry.
Spider-Man raised his hand, and two sticky, white webs shot out.
Uncle Chen dodged them quickly.
The webs missed, and Spider-Man was already in front of Uncle Chen.
Spider-Man attacked, but Uncle Chen only dodged, constantly explaining, occasionally retaliating.
Spider-Man clearly didn't believe the man's lies. They fought and retreated, from the ground to the rooftops.
Spider-Man was puzzled by the thief in front of him. He had been fighting for justice for so many years and had never encountered such a person. Was he a newly emerged criminal?
"Please, stop."
Just as they were fighting intensely, a voice cut through the air. Both of them stopped in unison and looked in the direction of the sound.
In the darkness, they could barely make out a bald man in a black leather jacket standing at the doorway.
Spider-Man, having operated in this city for many years, had some dealings with S.H.I.E.L.D. and recognized this bald man as Nick Fury, the director of S.H.I.E.L.D.
Nick Fury walked up to Uncle Chen and showed him his identification. "Hello, Mr. Chen. I am Nick Fury, Director of the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division."
"Strategic Homeland what division?"
Nick Fury rambled on, and Uncle Chen couldn't quite remember it all.
Spider-Man, however, took on the role of interpreter, lowering his voice and saying, "It's S.H.I.E.L.D., a secret agent organization that carries out various covert operations."
"Covert operations? Cool."
The three of them looked down to find Little Jade, who had somehow appeared between them.
Seeing this, Uncle Chen quickly pulled Little Jade aside and asked, "Little Jade, what are you doing here?"
"Did you want me to stay alone on the empty street?"
Little Jade's words left Uncle Chen speechless.
"Even so, you shouldn't have been eavesdropping. This Strategic Homeland... division might be very dangerous."
"It's the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement and Logistics Division."
Nick Fury, who had walked over at some point, corrected him.
"It's about training agents for the country and conducting secret operations to eliminate any unstable factors threatening America in their infancy."
He then turned to Little Jade and said, "Young lady, you have great potential. You can join S.H.I.E.L.D. in the future, and I will train you to be the best agent."
"Really?"
Little Jade's eyes lit up like stars at Nick Fury's words. She suddenly felt that this bald man wasn't as ugly as he looked.
And why wouldn't it be true? Nick Fury, as the director of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the chief of agents, was himself an exceptionally outstanding top agent. As for Little Jade's potential, her almost supernatural ability to climb stairs alone surpassed most agents.
"Absolutely not."
Uncle Chen shielded Little Jade behind him and said righteously, "Little Jade is just a normal child. She is not, and never will be, an agent."
Seeing Uncle Chen's stubbornness, Nick Fury didn't say anything more. He simply took a business card from his pocket and handed it to Little Jade, not forgetting to make a phone gesture near his ear with a smile, looking like a creepy uncle trying to lure a little girl.
He then put away his smile, straightened his posture, and faced Uncle Chen. "Mr. Chen, I think we need to talk about the diamonds and talismans you have."
"Alright."
Uncle Chen nodded, not showing much surprise.
He knew that while the matter of talismans could be kept from ordinary citizens, it was impossible to hide it from the upper echelons of America, especially from the chief of agents.
"What do you want to know?"
Nick Fury shook his head. "This is not the place to talk. Let's go somewhere else."
A strong gust of wind blew, and spotlights shone down, brightly illuminating the rooftop where the four of them were standing.
"My goodness."
Little Jade tilted her head back, looking incredulous.
The headquarters of S.H.I.E.L.D., the Helicarrier, was currently hovering directly above them.
Inside the Helicarrier.
"Why did you follow us?"
Nick Fury turned to look at Spider-Man, who was trailing behind. Now, like Little Jade, he had transformed into a curious baby, looking around at everything, like Liu姥姥 visiting the Grand View Garden.
To prevent any unexpected incidents, Nick Fury had asked the good-natured Agent Coulson to give the two of them a tour of the Helicarrier while he took Uncle Chen to a conference room.
As soon as the conference room door opened, Uncle Chen heard a familiar voice.
"Oh my, where is the hot tea Daddy wanted? Without hot tea, Daddy can't calm down and think."
Before seeking out Uncle Chen, S.H.I.E.L.D. had already gone to the antique shop and invited "Old Daddy" to the Helicarrier to inquire about the talismans. After all, the commotion caused by Uncle Chen and the Hand Gang fighting over talismans was not small. Moreover, District 13, where Black worked, was a special agent organization under the US government and had some connection with S.H.I.E.L.D., so Nick Fury couldn't possibly be unaware of the talismans.
However, what Nick Fury hadn't expected was that the old man was not easy to please. Two agents were busy serving him like servants, yet Old Daddy was still unsatisfied. Helpless, Nick Fury had to find an alternative approach, hoping to get some useful information from Uncle Chen.
Seeing Uncle Chen, Old Daddy couldn't help but complain, "Uncle Chen, this place makes Daddy uncomfortable. There's no hot tea, no television, and this room is too cold."
"Alright, Daddy, please cooperate."
After appeasing Old Daddy, Uncle Chen officially began his conversation with Nick Fury.