Lin Rui’s consciousness withdrew from his thoughts, and he had already read the newly issued hidden quest from the system quite clearly: Retrieve the Devourer Seed left by Ego on Earth.
The fact that he triggered this hidden quest didn’t surprise Lin Rui too much. After all, this time, he didn’t directly participate in the Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2 storyline alongside Star-Lord or Yondu, but he had still taken some actions.
“It seems that there’s a certain pattern to triggering hidden quests. If I hadn’t done anything, this hidden quest might not have appeared.” Lin Rui didn’t dwell on the difficulty or the Reward; his immediate thought was about the conditions required to trigger hidden quests.
If Lin Rui could indeed discern the conditions for triggering hidden quests, he might be better prepared in the future to take actions that could trigger them, thus obtaining additional Reward Points.
Yes, with his current level of power and the forces he could mobilize, Lin Rui believed he could complete most of the quests that the system would offer, and he wouldn’t be as helpless as he used to be.
At the time Ego came to Earth, he had met Star-Lord’s mother on a farm in Colorado. Their romantic involvement had eventually led to the conception of Star-Lord.
Therefore, the Devourer Seed that Ego left on Earth was most likely situated on that farm. Of course, there was a possibility that it could be elsewhere, but the farm had the highest probability.
Furthermore, this hidden quest had a two-month timeframe. With Lin Rui’s current abilities and the people he could enlist, they could turn Colorado upside down. Lin Rui was confident that he could complete this hidden quest, and the fifty thousand Reward Points were as good as his!
“However… since the system has given this hidden quest a two-month duration, does it mean that the system knows that Ego won’t activate the Devourer Seed during that time? Or perhaps Star-Lord and his team won’t give Ego the opportunity to activate it?” As he formulated a plan to complete the hidden quest, Lin Rui pondered another possibility.
Of course, there was also the worst-case scenario: that the Devourer Seed would indeed activate and consume Earth in two months, and nobody would be able to stop it.
In that case, the system’s issuance of such a hidden quest could be a way for Lin Rui to once again save Earth. This might even be considered a main storyline quest for safeguarding Earth.
“I hope it won’t be the worst-case scenario… I’ll have people search for it as soon as I get back!” Lin Rui muttered softly as the E Grade Spaceship surged into Earth’s atmosphere.
…
The meeting, attended by representatives of major global powers and organizations, regarding the establishment of the Earth Federation, lasted for a week before reaching a conclusion.
Well, it couldn’t be exactly called a conclusion; they had simply confirmed the most crucial aspects, ensuring the rights of each major nation and power within the Earth Federation.
There would undoubtedly be more detailed decisions to be made during the process of establishing the Earth Federation, but Lin Rui had no intention of participating in those.
After Dormammu’s failed attempt to consume Earth, the planet experienced a period of tranquility. With no external threats, major internal powers on Earth had successfully achieved their goal of uniting to establish the Earth Federation.
Apart from some insignificant minor powers still causing a fuss, Earth’s internal threats had been thoroughly eradicated.
Lin Rui observed all these changes on Earth, and he was pleased with them. From Lin Rui’s perspective, it seemed that Earth had undergone significant changes under his influence. At the very least, in the original Marvel World, Earth was still in a state of turmoil.
Thinking about it, this was quite normal. The most influential and powerful individuals on Earth had gathered, and they had even developed spaceships far beyond the current technological capabilities of Earth.
The power Lin Rui and his alliance held was absolute. In such a situation, the individuals who were supposed to cause trouble for Earth in the original plot didn’t seem so difficult to deal with anymore.
Take, for instance, Magneto, or his yet-to-be-located offspring, Scarlet Witch and Quicksilver. These high-level Mutants indeed possessed immense strength, but they were limited to causing disturbances on Earth.
Lin Rui and his alliance, on the other hand, were already planning to venture into the cosmos, and dominating Earth was not their goal.
However, Lin Rui wouldn’t disregard the potential impacts of the plot, even with their newfound power and the backing of their allies. For instance, he had always kept in mind the storyline of the superhero Civil War. To prevent the Civil War from occurring, Lin Rui had hidden Bucky quite effectively.
Because the plot had advanced to a point where Lin Rui couldn’t predict, he also didn’t know when the story of the magical nation of Wakanda would unfold. However, after Lin Rui had sent Bucky to Wakanda earlier, Bucky had not disappointed him.
With the identity that Lin Rui had arranged for Bucky, coupled with Bucky’s own formidable strength, he had managed to blend in well in Wakanda, and he had even established a connection with the King’s son.
As global powers and forces around the world underwent significant changes due to the establishment of the Earth Federation, Lin Rui was not only searching for Ego’s devouring seed in Colorado on behalf of SHIELD but he was also involved in another matter.
This was something Lin Rui had contemplated for a long time, but he was only now taking action.
In a well-maintained park in the Queens borough of New York, Lin Rui sat on a bench, basking in the sun. Sitting beside him was a handsome man dressed in an exquisite suit, whose refined appearance and proud demeanor seemed somewhat out of place in the park.
This well-dressed gentleman sitting next to Lin Rui was none other than Loki, who had previously taken action to help Earth against Dormammu. Although Loki had left when Dormammu made his final assault on Earth, he had indeed contributed significantly.
Of course, this was all due to an agreement between Loki and the Ancient One sorcerers, as well as the actions of his father, King Odin.
However, for some unknown reason, Loki, who had not been on the best terms with Lin Rui, was here and sitting beside him. It seemed that there were some unresolved matters between them.
“Loki, have you considered what I mentioned earlier?” Lin Rui asked casually, taking a sip of the milk tea he had bought at the park entrance, without looking in Loki’s direction.
Inviting Loki to meet here, Lin Rui’s intentions were certainly not as simple as enjoying the sun together. Compared to Loki, Thor, the Crown Prince of Asgard, was more likable. After all, being naive was better than being cunning.
Upon hearing Lin Rui’s inquiry, Loki blinked with a calm expression and didn’t immediately respond.
“Do you think you can trust me?” he finally asked.
…
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