The Savior of American Comics? I'm the Subspace Evil God!

Chapters 577, 1070, and 1071: Rapid Pursuit

"They are not here."

Captain America said gravely, "But judging from the degree of congealing of the blood and the traces of battle left at the scene, Ultron couldn't have left here in no more than five minutes. We might have been just one step away..."

“That’s impossible. I’ve been guarding this place the whole time and I didn’t see Ultron or the Iron Legion leave at all… They couldn’t possibly have slipped away right under my nose.”

Tony Stark said, sounding annoyed, his voice filled with the anger of being mocked, but more like he was justifying his dereliction of duty.

"Hey Tony, calm down, nobody's blaming you." Black Widow's voice came through the communicator, calmly advising him:
"Ultron's electronic warfare capabilities far exceed our expectations. Perhaps he has blocked or forged local signals... In any case, our top priority right now is to find their whereabouts as soon as possible."

“That’s right.” Captain America thought for a moment and immediately devised a new battle plan: “Stark, use Friday to search the nearby surveillance footage and see if you can find the whereabouts of Ultron and the Cradle of Life?”

“Natasha, go search in another direction... I’ll first do some emergency hemostasis for Dr. Zhao Hailun and see if I can get any useful information from her. Then I’ll try to catch up with you.”

As he spoke, Captain America had already helped up Zhao Hailun, who was lying in a pool of blood and looked like she was on the verge of death but was still conscious. He quickly took out hemostatic gel and bandages from his tactical waist pack and skillfully performed emergency hemostasis treatment on the terrible wound on Zhao Hailun's shoulder.

When he saw Zhao Hailun's pale cheeks twitching slightly from the pain, he immediately injected her with a dose of adrenaline that he carried with him.

"Dr. Zhao... Dr. Helen Zhao? Can you hear me?" After the other person regained some consciousness, Captain America gently patted the other person's cheek.

As the medicine began to take effect, Zhao Hailun let out a painful groan, her eyelashes trembled, and she struggled to open her eyes.

The blurry vision gradually focused on Captain America's square face, which was filled with concern and anxiety.

"You are... Captain Rogers?" Her voice was barely audible.

"It's me. Hang in there, the ambulance's almost here." Captain America grasped her cold hand, his voice urgent but as gentle as possible as he asked:

"Dr. Zhao Hailun, tell me, what exactly happened here? Why did Ultron attack you, and where did he and the Cradle of Life go?"

A flicker of lucid fear flashed in Zhao Hailun's eyes. She took a deep breath and said weakly:

"Ultron... he's uploading his consciousness... into that vibranium body in the Cradle of Life..."

She would pause briefly after every few words, the pain from her wounds causing her to linger. "That body was made of vibranium nanomolecules... possessing unimaginable defensive capabilities; ordinary bombs, even missiles, simply cannot destroy it..."

At this point, she gripped Captain America's arm tightly, her nails almost digging into his uniform. "If...if you can take back the Cradle of Life, give it to Tony and see what happens. He...he'll definitely find a solution..."

Captain America's expression was grave. He had realized the seriousness of the situation. He hadn't expected Ultron to act so quickly. In just a few days, he had successfully created a new 'vibranium body,' and only the final step of uploading his consciousness remained.

If they hadn't found Wakanda early on and obtained information about the whereabouts of Vibranium from Frank, Ultron would probably have already successfully uploaded his consciousness into that Vibranium body by the time they realized what was happening.

"Don't worry, I understand, but I need to find the Cradle of Life first, but you..."

"Leave me alone!" Zhao Hailun, drawing strength from who-knows-where, forcefully pushed away Captain America's large hand that was supporting her, and said resolutely in her eyes:
"Go and stop Ultron! Please... for everyone's sake... we can't let his plan succeed."

Captain America looked deeply at the frail woman, his eyes filled with respect and admiration.

He slowly stood up and said in a deep voice before leaving, "Hang in there, Doctor. You'll be alright. Stark has arranged the best medical resources."

Having said that, he didn't hesitate any longer and turned around, rushing out of the laboratory like a whirlwind.

Captain America sped out of the lab building, hopped on his Harley-Davidson parked at the lab entrance, and the engine roared like a beast. He pressed his earpiece and asked:
“Stark, Natasha, report back… Have you found anything on your end?”

I've found something!

Tony Stark's voice rang out first, speaking rapidly, "An unregistered private jet just took off from a private airport across the Han River. No flight plan, no passenger information, highly suspicious... Ultron might be on it, but it could also be a smokescreen!"

But before he could finish speaking, Black Widow interrupted, "Tony, what you're seeing might be a diversion. I spotted a van from the Eugene Genetic Research Lab on the highway, less than three kilometers northwest of the lab on the elevated highway..."

"The vehicle information matches the laboratory registration, and... based on vital signs and energy scanner detection, there are five signals emitting high-energy reactions inside the vehicle, four of which are concentrated in the middle of the vehicle and one in the driver's seat. Their energy characteristics are highly consistent with [Ultron] and the Iron Soldiers, so it can be roughly confirmed that it is them..."

"Captain, what should we do? The Cradle of Life should be inside the carriage."

Black Widow's voice carried a hint of eager killing intent, "Target locked. Should I use the Quinjet's air-to-ground missiles to blow them and that truck to smithereens?"

"No! Please don't do that, Natasha!"

Captain America practically shouted these words into the microphone, because his mind flashed back to the devastating consequences of the disaster Hulk caused in Tucson, the ensuing uproar, and the 'threat' label they still couldn't shake off. Captain America couldn't let that happen again, so he solemnly warned:
"Have you already forgotten so quickly? The explosion couldn't destroy the 'Vibranium Body' inside the Cradle of Life; it would only collapse the overpass, causing a chain reaction of car accidents and numerous civilian casualties... We absolutely cannot let the tragedy of Tucson repeat itself!!"

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to calm down, his mind racing: "Looks like we need to try to lure Ultron and his henchmen out of the carriage first... Stark, the task of drawing their fire is yours, you're the fastest!"

“They’re already on their way. Leave the task of attracting Ultron to me. Let me have a good talk with that rebellious ‘brat’…” Tony Stark’s voice rang out again, his tone filled with soaring fighting spirit.

“Okay!” Captain America nodded and decisively ordered, “Natasha, don’t make a move yet. Stay hidden and monitor that truck remotely… Before Stark arrives, I’ll try to distract Ultron, and then when the time is right, you can interfere with the remaining mechanical guards!”

“Understood. I will keep a close watch on them like a ghost,” Black Widow replied calmly.

The instructions are clear, the operation begins!
Captain America twisted the throttle of his Harley-Davidson, and the modified beast roared deafeningly, its tires screeching through the pavement, then shot off like an arrow towards the truck where Ultron was. ...

In the afternoon in Seoul, the sunlight streaming down from the sky is refracted into countless dazzling halos by the towering glass curtain walls on both sides of the street, sprinkling onto the endless stream of vehicles.

boom! ! !
Suddenly, a deafening explosion rang out in the traffic.

A white van bearing the logo of the Eugene Genetic Research Laboratory was seen with its right rear door shattered as if by an energy weapon, bursting outwards into fragments of varying sizes. These fragments flew out like ninja shuriken, whistling through the air, and slammed into the agile figure on the motorcycle that was hot on its heels!

Captain America, riding a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and following Black Widow's directions, weaved through the dense traffic like a cheetah, trying to get closer to the truck ahead.

"Damn it!"

Captain America reacted instantly to the explosion, his pupils contracting sharply, his arms unleashing incredible strength as he jerked the front of the car up, using the raised body to successfully deflect a large amount of oncoming metal fragments.

Ding-ding-ding-ding——

But the smaller metal fragments still scraped against his helmet and the Vibranium Shield in front of him, producing a series of ear-piercing clanging sounds.

However, the real threat came from the other half of the rear door, which was flung at high speed by 'Ultron' using the Gravity Field Device. The door, carrying enormous kinetic energy, was like a runaway giant axe, its edge slamming into the Harley's raised front wheel and body.

Bang!

Click!

The motorcycle twisted, parts flew off... It instantly went out of control, skidding sideways with a screeching sound, sparks flying everywhere.

Captain America released the handle at the last second, his body tumbling forward due to inertia, but he was still violently thrown away by the enormous impact.

boom! !

His back slammed heavily against the windshield of a private car that was driving normally behind him.

The sturdy windshield dented instantly, covered with spiderweb-like cracks, like ice being struck by a hammer.

With their view obstructed, the private car began to shake violently, accompanied by the screeching of brakes and screams from the driver and passengers inside.

“Uh… cough cough cough…”

Captain America let out a muffled groan. Even with the physique of a super soldier and the cushioning of his specially designed combat suit, the powerful blow still made his blood surge and his vision go slightly black.

He shook his slightly dizzy head and quickly checked his condition. Apart from some minor abrasions and muscle soreness, he was fine.

"Captain! Are you alright?" Black Widow's concerned voice came through the communicator.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to die." Captain America breathed a sigh of relief, braced himself against the dented roof of the car, and with a nimble flip, landed steadily on the hood of the still-moving car.

He looked up and stared intently at the truck ahead, which had lost its rear door and was rushing forward like a wounded wild beast.

Near the car door, a familiar figure in gold and red was casting a cold, scarlet gaze at him—it was none other than 'Ultron', who was controlling the [Mark43 Armor].

Behind 'Ultron', a rectangular metal device shimmering with a pale blue light could be faintly seen; that must be their target... the Cradle of Life!

"Damn it."

Captain America glanced at Ultron and said half-jokingly into the communicator, "Ultron seems quite unhappy to see me catching up... but I'll try to keep him in this state until Stark arrives."

As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly exerted force with his feet.

The hood groaned under his feet, leaving a shallow dent.

Captain America's figure shot out to the side like an arrow, leaping onto the roof of a speeding car next to him.

Then, repeating the same move, he leaped several times on the roofs of the cars speeding around him like a swift cheetah. Finally, he leaped into the air and gracefully adjusted his posture in mid-air like a gymnast, landing steadily on the roof of the van where Ultron was.

"Captain, you are no match for Ultron!"

At that moment, Black Widow's concerned voice came through the communicator again, calmly reminding him, "Just stall for time as much as possible until Tony gets here!"

Captain America crouched on the roof of the bumpy, speeding vehicle, one hand gripping the car to steady himself, the other on his communicator, a wry smile on his face: "Thanks, Natasha, that was a really thoughtful reminder."

Before he could finish speaking, Ultron inside the carriage had already disconnected the data cable connecting his consciousness to the back of his head, flew out of the carriage, hovered above it, and said to the ready-to-fight Captain America:
"You nuisance guys are really persistent!!"

Ultron's synthesized voice sounded unusually angry, as if it contained boundless rage and a condescending contempt: "Do you know what's inside the Cradle of Life? It's a power that can change the world... a completely new, perfect life form that won't be as fragile and decaying as humans!"

Ultron clenched his fist, looking like an extremely fanatical religious zealot. "What, does it frighten you so-called 'superheroes'?!"

(End of this chapter)