The channel was down.
Ron turned and walked downstairs.
The stench of blood mixed with high-concentration medical alcohol assaulted his nostrils in the medical area on the east side of the shipyard.
Frank lay on a cot in the corner, a blood-stained bandage wrapped around his chest.
Ron walked over, dark red molten lava seeping from his right index finger.
The 400-degree heat pressed directly against Frank's broken rib wound.
The acrid smell spread.
Frank gritted his teeth, veins bulging on his neck, but he didn't utter a sound.
"The bone's set. The Wolf Fruit's regeneration mechanism can handle the rest." Ron withdrew his hand, the molten lava receding beneath his skin.
Jessica stood by the bed, holding a new roll of bandage.
Her hands trembled uncontrollably.
The moment her fingers touched the edge of the bandage, the two layers of gauze instantly shredded into cotton wool.
She angrily threw the shredded cloth on the floor and went to get a second roll.
With a slight tightening of her fingers, the second roll of bandage snapped in the middle.
"Damn it," Jessica cursed under her breath.
"Don't panic," Frank said, his eyes closed. "If you tear off another roll, I'll be shirtless." Jessica shoved the remaining half-roll of bandage into Jack's hands, her tense shoulders slumping slightly.
Ron pulled over a folding chair and sat down.
"Let's talk outside." Jessica followed Ron to the main factory building, the spacious area illuminated only by a few dim tungsten lights.
"You just smashed the Winter Soldier in the parking lot," Ron began. "That was the IGH factor." Jessica leaned against a rusty iron pillar, remaining silent.
"When the Purple Man controlled you, extreme emotions fully activated it." Ron paused for half a second. "Ten tons of basic lifting strength, bulletproof muscle density, and the explosive power to jump six stories high."
"In this world, that power is enough to flip a main battle tank with your bare hands." Jessica sneered.
"What's the point of flipping a tank?" Her fingers dug into the rust on the iron pillar.
"If the Purple Man just tells me to 'go kill,' I'll flip a tank and kill for him." Rusty iron curled under her fingers, metal shavings falling in a flurry.
"I watch my hands snap someone's neck, and I think it's the right thing to do."
"Without immunity to control, no matter how strong you are, you're just a dog in someone else's hands." Ron looked at her.
"What if there was a power that would free you from being controlled by anyone forever?" Jessica suddenly looked up.
Ron stood up, and behind him, the white cloak of justice moved without wind.
"Wear it, and mind control, memory manipulation, hypnotic suggestion—all will be ineffective." Ron pointed towards the medical area.
"When Frank fought the Winter Soldier, he was hit by an electric shock brainwashing device on his temple."
"He didn't even pause." Jessica stared intently at the white cloak.
Her breathing became erratic, her chest heaving violently.
"What is the price?"
"Obey justice," Ron replied. "Not my justice, but the justice you yourself accept."
"If you do something against your conscience, the cloak will be more cruel than the Purple Man." The only sound in the factory was the wind blowing from the East River.
Jessica straightened up.
"I join." A system notification popped up in Ron's vision.
[Confirmed Recruitment: Jessica Jones.]
[Rank Granted: Navy Lieutenant Commander.] A pure white cloak appeared behind Jessica.
The two black characters for "Justice" were larger and brighter than Frank's and Jack's.
The moment the cloak fell onto her shoulders, a warm current forced its way into her mind.
The twisted commands left deep in her subconscious by the Purple Man were crushed in the white light.
Jessica lowered her head, her eyes reddening.
Ron pulled a deep purple fruit from his pocket, its surface covered with eerie concentric circles.
"The Soul-Soul Fruit." He handed the fruit to her.
"You've been mind-controlled, you know best what monsters lurk in other people's minds."
"Eat this, and from now on, you'll be the one judging other people's souls." Jessica took the fruit and took a large bite.
After chewing twice, she gagged and forced it down.
A purple mental shockwave rippled through her body, causing the tungsten filament lamp above her head to shake violently.
She raised her hand, and an invisible mental shield rapidly formed at her fingertips, her soul perception expanding outwards like radar.
She clearly detected Frank's unwavering mental fluctuations in the medical area, and Jack's slightly tense soul frequency.
Ron threw a punch.
The force of the punch struck the shield, causing violent ripples on its surface, yet it withstood the impact.
Ron withdrew his fist.
"At the advanced stage, you can directly reach into someone's soul and extract their memories." Ron walked towards the load-bearing wall in the center of the factory.
He took a folded piece of cloth from his system space, unfolded it, and nailed it heavily to the wall with two steel nails.
White background, blue pattern.
An anchor, two seagulls.
Frank, clutching his chest, walked out of the medical area, Jack following behind.
The four stood before the flag.
Frank, Commodore, Wolf-Wolf Fruit, half-awakened Ryuo.
Jessica, Lieutenant Commander, Soul-Soul Fruit, ten-ton lifting power.
Jack, Captain, Deterioration Serum, basic Armament Haki.
Adding Ron himself, 33% of Akainu's template, Ryuo, Observation Haki, Six Powers.
An absolute military force belonging to this world was officially formed.
"From today onwards, we are no longer a few lone vigilantes." Ron turned around.
"We are the Navy." The door to the medical area opened.
Lin Xiaowei ran out and stared at the flag on the wall for three seconds.
"So beautiful!" She ran over and tugged at Jessica's sleeve.
"Sister, can I join too?" Jessica turned to look at Ron.
Ron's cold face remained expressionless.
"Your current task is to rest well and eat well."
"We'll talk about it when you're an adult." Lin Xiaowei puffed out her cheeks, about to speak.
Frank walked over and handed her a metal plate with a charred steak on it.
"Eat." Lin Xiaowei's attention instantly shifted, and she ran back to her room with the plate.
Ron watched her retreating figure.
This is what the Order needs to protect.
Late at night.
Ron sat alone on the edge of the rooftop, his consciousness sinking into the second level of Impel Down.
In the venomous cage, the intelligence automatically extracted by the system was being compiled.
Ron brought up the file panel.
A memorandum of cooperation between Hydra and the Hand.
Lines of top-secret data slid past his eyes. Alexander Pierce.
Codenames of three high-ranking officials of the World Security Council.
And the name of a project highlighted in red—Project Insight.
Three air carriers, using big data algorithms to lock onto targets, simultaneously eliminate millions of potential threats worldwide.
The target list even includes Tony Stark and Bruce Banner.
Estimated launch time: Two years later.
Ron stared at the list of millions of deaths on the screen.
A chilling smile curled at the corner of his mouth.
"Very good."
"Hydra, you've set your gallows." The system suddenly popped up with the highest-level red alert.
[Prisoner Purple Man Kilgrave Interrogation Progress Update.]
[Key Hidden Memory Fragment Extracted.] The scene unfolded in Ron's mind.
Three days ago, on the top floor of Fisk Tower.
Kingpin sat behind his desk, facing a man.
The man wore a dark green cloak, his face completely obscured by a layer of twisted dark magical energy.
The purple-clad man huddled in the next room, trembling uncontrollably.
The magical energy had rendered his mental control abilities completely ineffective, as if he had struck an iron wall.
The green-cloaked figure turned around.
"Mr. Fisk, help me find the whereabouts of the 'Time Stone'."
"In exchange, your empire will continue for a thousand years."
The scene shattered.
Ron opened his eyes.
The Time Stone.
The magical side.
Kingpin's web was deeper than he had anticipated.
The night wind from the East River brushed against his face.
Ron's fingers gripped the bricks at the edge of the rooftop.
Hot lava seeped from between his fingers.
The hard bricks silently crumbled into a pool of reddish slag.