William's body stiffened slightly.
That familiar "Xiao Wei," tinged with seven parts impatience and three parts drunkenness, tore apart his carefully constructed image of a mysterious powerhouse.
Damn it!
He spent a second internally cursing Jessica's accursed, Beast-like intuition.
Then, he chose to ignore it.
A top salesman can never let a client disrupt his rhythm.
"I'll clean up this mess," he said.
His voice was still hoarse and deep.
As if Jessica's words just now were merely the wind blowing around the street corner, "Then, I'll send the bill to Rand Corporation."
After speaking, he didn't even turn to look at Jessica's astonished face; instead, he lifted his head.
His movement caught the eye of the man on the rooftop at the street corner.
Crossbones Brock Rumlow lowered his binoculars.
No expression could be seen on his face, which was obscured by a skull mask.
But from the sudden tension in his body, it was clear that his shock was far greater than anyone else's.
One punch.
Just one punch had crippled an elite ninja unit of The Hand.
There was also that bizarre electromagnetic storm that instantly paralyzed all electronic devices.
And finally, that ghostly movement technique that appeared out of nowhere and instantly snapped the necks of the Chitauri Soldiers.
The intelligence reports hadn't mentioned this man at all.
Who exactly was this guy in the black trench coat who suddenly appeared?
Rumlow was an experienced warrior, and he instantly made the correct judgment.
Retreat.
Any form of direct confrontation would be foolish before understanding the opponent's true strength.
He whispered the order to retreat into his communicator, and the surviving Hydra Soldiers, as if granted a reprieve, began to retreat with covering fire.
Rumlow himself took a deep look at the figure standing in the center of the deep pit, as if to brand this image onto his retina, then turned and disappeared into the shadows of the rooftop without a trace.
William didn't pursue.
His goal wasn't to annihilate, but to solve the problem.
Crossbones' life was not yet within his scope of business.
With HYDRA's retreat, the remaining The Hand ninjas also lost their backbone; after exchanging glances, they transformed into wisps of black smoke and vanished into various corners of the alley.
A siege that could have wiped out Defenders was thus forcibly brought to an end by a man who descended from the sky, in an almost crushing and unreasonable manner.
The gunfire and explosions, which had lasted for nearly half an hour, finally ceased.
The entire street fell into an eerie, suffocating silence.
The air was thick with the smell of gunpowder and blood.
Luke Cage looked at the mess on the ground, then at the man standing in the pit, and swallowed hard.
Despite his bulletproof skin, he suddenly felt no sense of security.
Danny Rand's Iron Fist completely lost its glow; he stared blankly at the spiderweb-like cracks beneath William's feet, feeling that his Iron Fist, cultivated for many years, was like a ridiculous child's toy.
Ava Ayala maintained a vigilant stance, but her heartbeat told her to get closer to this man.
He had a strange magnetism.
Just like William Rodriguez.
William Rodriguez?!
In Matt Murdock's World, that man's "image" was the most unique.
His heartbeat was steady, but he couldn't feel his breath, and even the sound of blood flowing was so faint as to be almost nonexistent.
He was like a black hole made of pure power, quiet, yet capable of devouring everything.
"Damn it," Jessica finally couldn't help herself and strode over, tearing off the mask from William's face, revealing the face she knew all too well, "It really is you!"
William's eye twitched.
With his last disguise torn away, he simply stopped pretending.
He sighed, tidied the collar of his messed-up trench coat, and resumed the demeanor of a top-tier insurance consultant.
"Good evening, Jessica."
His voice returned to normal.
"It seems your life is even more colorful than I imagined. Do you need me to call an ambulance for you?"
"I know a private hospital with excellent service, though it's a bit pricey. But it's okay, I can help you apply for an accidental injury claim, and I'll only charge you thirty percent for the handling fee."
"You…" Jessica was so choked by his words that she couldn't utter a single sound for a long time.
She pointed at William, then at the large pit at his feet, and finally at her still bleeding arm, feeling her brain was completely overwhelmed.
How could this bastard, who spent every day lounging on the sofa drinking coffee and making calls to sell insurance, become… become like this?
"So, this is what you call 'risk hedging'?"
Luke Cage walked over, his tall figure casting a Shadow over William, his tone filled with wariness and confusion, "Using one group of monsters to deal with another group of monsters?"
"Please mind your language, Mr. Cage."
William looked up at him, a professional smile on his face, "I'm not a monster; I'm a risk management consultant. And those just now were merely small 'value-added services' I provide to my VIP clients."
He patted Jessica's shoulder, his actions as natural as if they were old friends of many years.
"After all, our clients' life safety and good experience are the core competitiveness of our company's business development."
Danny Rand and Ava also walked over, their expressions equally complex.
"It was no trouble at all."
William casually dismissed Iron Fist's thanks.
"Mainly, it was to maintain my brand reputation. After all, if someone I recommend gets a work injury on their first day, it would affect the development of my future business."
He said this with righteous indignation.
As if he wasn't saving Defenders just now, but rather handling a common after-sales dispute.
The five members of Defenders were at a loss for words.
William glanced at his watch, his brows slightly furrowed.
"Alright, everyone. The on-site investigation is complete. My assistant will send the detailed loss report to Rand Corporation's email within twenty-four hours."
"If there are no other questions, I'll be taking my leave."
"There's an even bigger fireworks display waiting for me to see in Manhattan."
He turned to leave.
"Wait!" Jessica grabbed his arm.
William stopped, turned his head, and looked at Jessica's eyes, which were filled with confusion and inquiry.
He smiled.
"Jessica, I'm still me; I'm just an ordinary insurance salesman."
"A passionate citizen dedicated to providing the most comprehensive and reliable life and property safety protection for every client."
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