Hermione, Wanda, and Carol stood there, speechless for a moment after hearing Nick Fury's "fuck it" speech.
Carol couldn't possibly take over as Acting Director; she had enough self-awareness regarding her own management skills.
As for Wanda and Hermione, they were even less inclined to be nannies for Muggles—being a babysitter for three hundred thousand refugees was clearly a thankless, grueling chore.
A bizarre silence fell over the office.
Hermione didn't want to waste time and was the first to break the silence, relaying the intelligence regarding the planet Cybertron.
She specifically emphasized that the hundred or so energy pillars on the lunar surface were likely the vital medium for initiating the spatial transport.
Upon hearing this, a wave of shock rippled through everyone's heart.
Nick Fury, who was already in a foul mood, began cursing directly.
"Motherfucker! This world is insane. Even spatial transport technology capable of moving an entire planet has appeared."
Wanda, meanwhile, stared fixedly at the unconscious General Ross on the sofa, wanting to take the opportunity to finish him off so he would sleep forever.
Carol voiced her own suspicions about Cybertron and prepared to head to the Moon to tear out an energy pillar to bring back for study.
Just then, the office door was kicked open by force.
The Hulk, in his massive green form, charged inside.
"ROAR—!"
Nick Fury hurriedly tried to soothe him: "Hulk, don't smash things! Calm down...!"
But a rampaging Hulk wouldn't listen to the Black Egghead's words. He charged straight at Hermione, wanting to crush the enemy before him with a single punch.
Hermione unhurriedly flicked her wand.
"Levicorpus!"
The Hulk, who was charging forward on his massive legs, suddenly froze, his entire body hoisted into the air by an invisible force, hanging upside down.
This familiar scene reminded the Hulk of how he had been dangled by a certain detestable man before, and he began to roar and scream in fury.
The bellowing was loud enough to nearly deafen everyone else in the office.
But under the power of magic, the Hulk could not break free from the invisible shackles no matter how hard he struggled.
Having achieved her purpose for this visit, Hermione had no interest in fighting a brainless Hulk. She opened a portal and took Wanda out of the Avengers headquarters.
Once the detestable woman vanished, the Hulk finally broke free from the restraint, falling to the floor with a heavy thud.
He soon reverted to his normal human form.
Dr. Banner groggily woke up, propping himself up on the sofa as he looked at Nick Fury and asked, "Did Hulk smash the enemies into pancakes?"
Nick Fury shook his head, not wanting to dwell on it, and instead relayed the vital intelligence they had just received.
Carol glanced at the two men lost in thought and bid her farewell: "I'm going to the Moon to pull an energy pillar for you to study properly."
With that, she flew out the window, shooting straight into space.
Dr. Banner spoke with a heavy heart, "I'm not an expert in spatial transport. Where is Tony Stark?"
Nick Fury pulled up the latest intelligence on the Avengers' movements.
"I've already sent the intel to Stark. He's at the Oslo base in Norway, trying to find a way to seize control of the military's nuclear arsenal."
Dr. Banner looked shocked. "What does Stark plan to do?"
Nick Fury's tone was complex. "Pierce took the opportunity to seize power in Germany and has begun invading surrounding European nations. Stark wants to threaten them with nuclear weapons."
Dr. Banner was agitated. "It's the end of the world, and we're still engaged in infighting? Is Pierce not afraid that Earth will be ripped apart by gravity and we'll all be finished?"
Nick Fury couldn't understand where Pierce's confidence came from either. If Earth was destroyed, did he really expect to survive by floating in space on a single Helicarrier?
"The world situation is growing more chaotic. We need to find a way out in advance. It's time to initiate the Noah's Ark project!"
"The Captain won't like hearing that kind of talk. After all, two Helicarriers can only carry a hundred thousand people. Are we supposed to abandon the remaining seven billion humans?"
"Judging by the current natural disasters, there are likely no longer seven billion people on Earth."
...
Oslo, Norway.
This was the largest internet exchange point on Earth, where almost all data bytes flowed through, boasting the fastest access speeds in the world.
Tony Stark had been in the network center of this base for five hours. With Jarvis's help...
He had finally cracked the nuclear codes for all systems connected to the network.
Aside from physically isolated nuclear facilities, he now possessed control over 21% of the world's nuclear weapons.
Don't think this number is small.
Most nuclear facilities use internal networks or purely manual operations; with physical isolation, even the most brilliant hacker cannot infiltrate them via the web.
But 21% of the world's nuclear control was enough for Stark to destroy the world several hundred times over.
After all, the "North Pole Bear" alone possessed over 30,000 "big fireworks." A 21% global nuclear force meant at least 10,000 nukes.
After cracking the codes, Stark sent a threatening email to Alexander Pierce.
Pierce had many superhumans and mutants under his command; the Avengers had concluded they couldn't eliminate this cancer in the short term.
Therefore, Stark could only rely on nuclear force, threatening Hydra with mutual assured destruction.
As for whether Pierce would be afraid, it was hard to say.
Stark had done his utmost; now, it was in the hands of fate.
"Beep-beep!"
[Sir, Mr. Nick Fury has sent an urgent piece of intelligence. I believe you should see it.]
Tony Stark rubbed his aching eyes, muttering curses about how the Black Egghead didn't even give him time to rest, but his hand obediently clicked open the new mail.
On the holographic projection screen, a dozen pictures of the Moon and explanatory materials appeared.
"Interesting. Spatial transport technology?"
Tony Stark stroked his chin, lost in thought.
...
One day later.
Earth's natural disasters continued. Humanity suffered its greatest blow since World War II.
Moreover, Pierce was not only unintimidated by the nuclear threat but actually accelerated the pace of his invasion.
Hydra's brazen fearlessness made Stark give up hope on that front.
The "Nuclear Peace Coexistence" plan had failed, but the Avengers did not abandon hope.
Stark teamed up with Dr. Banner and over a hundred scientists from around the world to begin research on the energy pillar Carol had brought back.
Spatial transport technology was beginning to unveil its mysterious veil to humanity.
Upon learning it would take at least two months to crack the spatial tech, Nick Fury decisively moved the Avengers' headquarters to the safer Helicarriers.
As the movement of the Earth's crust grew more active, Earth was no longer safe.
Humanity's last hope lay in space.
Tony Stark, as the leader of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, left the AI Jarvis on Earth.
He had Jarvis take control of all Stark Industries' precision manufacturing plants to begin the industrial production of starships.
This starship manufacturing technology was learned from the Chitauri aliens during the Battle of New York.
Though the ships produced were extremely crude—barely capable of withstanding the harsh space environment and possessing almost no defensive or offensive capabilities—
Each additional starship meant another hundred thousand human lives saved.
The name "Noah's Ark" became the paradise every human soul desired most in the middle of the apocalypse.