Beside a dilapidated building no more than 30 meters away from the Destroyer.
Having just dodged an indiscriminate volley from the Destroyer, Joker Eren, looking slightly pale, glanced at the towering Destroyer not far away.
It turned out that the Mind Force Field of the Meditative State, without targeted defensive measures, could indeed wield unpredictable power.
Even Loki, who was hiding within the Destroyer's armor, was unknowingly provoked by the Mind Force Field.
His jealousy, anger, and other negative emotions intensified without him realizing it, and Loki directly lashed out at his former "friends."
Of course, this was also related to Loki's inherently cold nature, inherited from the Frost Giant bloodline.
Nevertheless.
Even though Loki's emotions were unknowingly stirred, it still took a considerable toll on Joker Eren.
Taking out a magician's handkerchief, he wiped the sweat from his forehead, and yet a faint smile appeared on Joker Eren's lips.
As a master magician, Loki's mind was far stronger than that of ordinary people.
If it were Loki himself standing there, Eren's Mind Force Field might not have been able to affect him.
However, Loki's spiritual will, lodged within the Destroyer, could not withstand the influence exerted by Eren's Meditative State.
Elegantly tucking the handkerchief back into his jacket pocket, Joker Eren thought to himself.
Keep fighting!
The fiercer, the better.
Originally, Joker Eren had considered that if Loki honestly fulfilled the transaction content, he might actually give Loki a genuine opportunity to cooperate.
But as soon as the Destroyer entered the town of Pu'ens, it immediately launched its destructive beams at him.
That directly shattered one of Joker Eren's ideas.
However, since he had already anticipated Loki's temperament, Joker Eren was not disappointed at all.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have gone to meet Thor in advance.
Returning the favor is only polite.
Since Loki had delivered such a grand gift, Joker Eren wouldn't let him down.
Using a paper doll substitute and Flame Leap, he secretly dodged another destruction beam from the Destroyer.
Joker Eren then conjured a mirror illusion to cover his body, slipping into the shadows to watch the unfolding chaos.
······················
Joker Eren's sequence of actions directly established a high wall of estrangement between Thor and Loki.
As an older brother, Thor did not mind Loki's hostility toward him, nor did he care about Loki's obsession with the throne of Asgard.
However, Loki's act of personally killing his two friends stirred an indescribable sense of disappointment and anger within Thor.
Under the impact of such emotions, even the seal of divine power within Thor's body began to tremble.
Unfortunately, the seal placed by Odin was not so easily broken.
Nevertheless, with the continuous vibrations of the seal, it seemed that Thor was one step closer to completely breaking Odin's seal.
······················
On the other side.
After killing Volstagg and Fandral, Loki's gaze turned to the last of the Warriors Three—Hogun—who now seemed equally irksome.
"Volstagg and Fandral are already dead, Hogun. It's time to send you down to join them..."
Just as Loki was about to attack Hogun, a series of deafening roars echoed from the sky outside Pu'ens.
It was the sound of jet fighters breaking the sound barrier at supersonic speed, creating a sonic boom.
In the blink of an eye, three sesame-sized black dots appeared on the horizon.
As time passed, the three fighter jets quickly grew from sesame-sized specks to fist-sized figures.
Hiding behind the ruins, Hawkeye instantly perked up when he heard the familiar sonic boom.
"They're here!"
These three fast-approaching fighter jets were dispatched from the Hollows Air Force Base.
After receiving a distress call from Coulson, reporting an unknown armored figure attacking Pu'ens, the airbase immediately dispatched its fastest fighter jets to support S.H.I.E.L.D. and eliminate the enemy.
Elsewhere.
Having rushed to the outskirts of Pu'ens, Coulson looked up at the rapidly approaching fighter jets and let out a small sigh of relief.
Before the three jets could enter the town's airspace, Coulson immediately connected to the cockpits of the pilots via special communication.
"Falcon One, Two, and Three, please be advised. The unidentified metal armor in Pu'ens has slaughtered numerous civilians. We must take immediate action..."
Once in combat mode, Coulson's usual mild demeanor shifted into that of a calm and rational commander, issuing orders without a hint of hesitation.
"Falcon One, ready and awaiting target lock for attack."
"Falcon Two, standing by for confirmation..."
"Falcon Three, in position..."
Coulson nodded in satisfaction at the prompt responses and swiftly ordered, "Begin the attack."
In the next instant, the heavy machine guns mounted on the fighter jets roared thunderously.
Ding ding ding...
The 32mm depleted uranium armor-piercing rounds, like mini-cannonballs, struck the ground, kicking up sand and dust several meters high. As for the Destroyer itself, a string of dazzling sparks burst from its surface.
But apart from the sparks, the armor-piercing rounds left not even the faintest scratch on the Destroyer.
Not a single sign of damage—one of the military's proudest weapons couldn't even leave a scuff on the silver-black armor.
"Falcon One, Two, and Three, immediately switch to missiles and send that thing straight to hell."
Seeing the Destroyer withstand thousands of armor-piercing rounds without the slightest damage, Coulson promptly switched the attack mode.
"Affirmative, sir."
Accompanied by a loud shout.
Two Hellfire air-to-ground missiles were launched from the bottom of each of the three fighter jets.
"Confirmed, target locked, missiles fired."
In an instant, with the assistance of the targeting system, the three fighter pilots locked onto the Destroyer from a distance.
Immediately, all six Hellfire air-to-ground missiles were launched.
······························
"Damn insects."
Just as Loki was about to finish off the last of the Warriors Three, Hogun, the Destroyer was abruptly hit by a long-range strike from the three fighter jets.
Although the previous heavy machine-gun sweep didn't cause any damage to the Destroyer, it did interrupt its offensive.
Far away in Asgard, Loki's eyes grew cold as he watched the scene unfold.
"If you're all so eager to die, then I shall grant your wish..."
"Destroyer, kill these insects!"
At Loki's command, the seams of the Destroyer's upper body armor began to glow with a fiery red light.
Meanwhile.
Back at Hollows Air Force Base, a warning was urgently sent to the three fighter jets.
"Detected high-energy reaction from the target. Falcon One, Falcon Two, Falcon Three, be advised to evade enemy attack. Acknowledge, over."
"Copy that!"
"Copy that!"
"Copy that!"
Just as the three fighter jets swiftly altered formation, splitting into three separate paths.
All six Hellfire air-to-ground missiles hit the Destroyer.
Boom!
With a deafening roar, the flames of the explosion instantly engulfed the towering Destroyer.
Moments later, a small mushroom cloud rapidly rose in the center of Pu'ens.
"Wow..."
As the missiles hit their mark, cheers erupted from the pilots of the three scattered fighter jets.
Zzzzt!
But before their cheers could spread, a crimson destruction beam shot out from the mushroom cloud, striking the fighter jet in the middle.
Boom!
The next moment, the jet hit by the destruction beam exploded violently in midair.
After destroying one fighter jet, the Destroyer did not stop. Instead, it gathered another destructive beam and fired at the jet flying to the left.
At the entrance of the town, seeing this from afar, Coulson immediately shouted into his walkie-talkie.
"Dodge!"
The pilot, already shaken by the explosion of the other jet, shivered upon hearing Coulson's shout and yanked the control stick sharply.
The fighter jet quickly rose into the air, narrowly dodging the destruction beam that had almost grazed it.
But before Coulson could breathe a sigh of relief.
Another destruction beam shot out from the mushroom cloud, hitting the jet on the right side and blowing it up in the air.
·············································
At Hollows Air Force Base, seeing two multi-million-dollar fighter jets turned to fireworks along with their pilots in mere moments, a suffocating atmosphere spread throughout the entire base.
Lieutenant General Hoffman, who had authorized Coulson's support operation, was livid as he grabbed his walkie-talkie and shouted at the surviving Falcon Two.
"Falcon Two, listen to me. Immediately retreat from the battlefield and return to base."
"Yes, sir!"
Barely surviving the chaos, the shaken pilot quickly nodded and swiftly operated his fighter jet, turning it around and flying toward Hollows Air Force Base.
To avoid being hit by that terrifying red destruction beam, the pilot switched the jet to erratic flight mode.
But what you fear most often comes to pass.
Seeing the pilot trying to escape, a disdainful smile appeared on Loki's lips. He directly manipulated the Destroyer to continuously fire destruction beams at the meddling aircraft.
Being attacked by these Midgardians repeatedly had already ignited Loki's fury toward them.
As the King of Asgard, Loki wanted these Midgardians to understand the price of provoking him.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
With destruction beams firing one after another, the pilot of Falcon Two found himself in extreme danger.
If he hadn't prepared for evasive maneuvers in advance, he would have been reduced to ashes by those destruction beams in mere moments.
··············································
"Dammit!"
Back at Hollows Air Force Base, seeing that even Falcon Two had retreated but was still being pursued, Lieutenant General Hoffman roared furiously.
His voice cold and filled with killing intent, he ordered the missile silos at the base to be opened.
"If you insist on killing to the last man, then go to hell! No one can slaughter our soldiers on federal soil!"
As the missile silos were opened, Lieutenant General Hoffman coldly made a call to Coulson.
"Coulson, get your people out of Pu'ens immediately."
"This unidentified armor has already destroyed most of Pu'ens and taken down two of our fighter jets. To protect federal citizens, I have to take action."
"In one minute, I will launch a cruise missile at Pu'ens! If you don't want to die, you'd better run fast."
Hearing the voice from the walkie-talkie, Coulson's body trembled. He shouted in disbelief, "Firing a cruise missile at a town, Hoffman, have you gone mad?"
Boom...
Just as Coulson was questioning Hoffman, the last fighter jet dispatched from Hollows Air Force Base was reduced to a ball of flames by the Destroyer's beam.
As the last jet exploded, the mushroom cloud that had risen from the center of Pu'ens finally dispersed.
Looking at the Destroyer armor emerging from the blast zone unscathed, a heavy expression appeared in Coulson's eyes.
"Damn it, it took six Hellfire missiles head-on and came out unscathed. Where the hell did this armor come from? Even Tony Stark's Iron Man suit wouldn't have this kind of durability!"
As Coulson's mind churned with anxiety, he heard Lieutenant General Hoffman's cold laughter through the walkie-talkie.
"Now, do you still have any doubts about me firing a cruise missile to eliminate this unknown threat?"
"Sorry, I was wrong."
Admitting his mistake without hesitation, Coulson continued, "I'll immediately have my men evacuate Pu'ens, but please, Lieutenant General Hoffman, make sure the missile's blast radius doesn't affect the fleeing civilians."
(End of Chapter)
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