Chapter Forty-Six: Aftermath

After the Battle of Liberty Island, Gu Zhongyan had expected New York to become lively again in no time. In reality, not only did New York remain unusually calm, but even Hell’s Kitchen seemed to settle into a rare tranquility.

Perhaps this was because Gu Zhongyan had erased all traces of the battle on Liberty Island, giving the authorities a convenient excuse. They quickly declared that the so-called battle on Liberty Island had merely been a prank video, filmed with special effects technology. Especially after the Beast appeared and its unique electromagnetic reaction destroyed all surrounding electronic equipment, there was no evidence left. Coupled with the fact that Liberty Island looked exactly as it always had, it seemed the battle that day had truly been nothing but a show.

Although many media outlets and members of the public doubted the official account, no evidence could be found, and in the end, the matter quietly faded away.

Yet, this calm was only surface-deep. Beneath the placid waters, government agencies and underground organizations worldwide classified the event as top secret and worked feverishly behind the scenes.

Of course, Hell’s Kitchen was not entirely without its own tremors. At least two companies experienced significant upheaval, and both were connected to Gu Zhongyan.

The first was Midtown Circle Financial, which served as the headquarters for the Hand. After the Hand’s destruction, Midtown Circle Financial was inevitably exposed, quickly saddled with a slew of charges, and promptly declared bankrupt.

With the company dissolved, Gu Zhongyan, who had been there as an intern for his social practice, had no choice but to end his placement and return home.

The second was the Rand-Meachum Industrial Group, the family business of Danny Rand, the Iron Fist. As heir to the Rand family, Danny held fifty-one percent of the company’s shares, granting him absolute control. However, due to his disappearance, the company had long since fallen under the control of his father’s business partner, Harold Meachum, the other major stakeholder.

In the original story, the Rand Corporation was infiltrated by the Hand. Harold, unwilling to relinquish the company he had single-handedly seized, allied himself with the Hand and plotted to kill Danny. Ultimately, though, Danny thwarted his schemes and reclaimed control of the Rand Corporation.

If the naive and pure-hearted Danny could single-handedly wrest back the company from Harold, then with the Defenders’ help now, regaining control would be all the easier.

Indeed, after much persuasion from Gu Zhongyan, Matt and the others finally agreed to establish the Defenders.

Their roles were clearly defined. In addition to covert operations against crime, they also developed a basic organizational structure.

Matt, with his credentials as a lawyer, handled the legal issues for the Defenders, preventing unnecessary conflict with government authorities. Jessica became the team’s lead investigator, responsible for gathering key evidence against their targets. Luke’s bar served as the Defenders’ secret headquarters and intelligence exchange point. Danny’s Rand Corporation, despite not being as vast as Stark Industries or Hammer Industries, was still a top-tier New York conglomerate, and easily provided the major financial backing for the Defenders.

If these four were the public face of the Defenders, then Stick and Gu Zhongyan were its shadowy core.

Stick, with his experience organizing and managing the Chaste, became the Defenders’ steward, quietly ensuring the group’s operations ran smoothly. He also consolidated the remnants of the Chaste and some of the Hand’s forces, covertly taking over the criminal underworld of Hell’s Kitchen.

Gu Zhongyan, who had proposed forming the Defenders but cared little for its daily affairs, took charge of logistics—mainly crafting equipment and potions through magic.

At first, Matt and the others strongly opposed Stick’s takeover of the underworld in Hell’s Kitchen. In their eyes, this was no different from what the Hand or Fisk had done, and they believed all criminal elements should be put behind bars.

But Gu Zhongyan argued that where there is light, there is also darkness. The criminal underworld in Hell’s Kitchen could never be completely cleansed. Given the choice, few would willingly join such organizations, but even if every last one of them were thrown in jail, new forces would inevitably spring up—like weeds burnt by wildfire, only to grow again with the spring breeze.

Rather than playing a perpetual game of cat-and-mouse, it was better to use overwhelming power to unite the chaotic factions. While their existence could not be eradicated, establishing underground rules might at least minimize the harm they caused.

This approach hardly won favor with the superheroes, but it suited Stick’s anti-hero sensibilities perfectly.

In the end, after persistent insistence from Stick and Gu Zhongyan, the others reluctantly acquiesced. However, they made it clear that although they agreed to let Stick consolidate the underworld, they did not accept these forces as part of the Defenders. If they crossed paths, they would show no mercy, regardless of Stick’s connection.

Thus, from the very outset, the Defenders harbored the seeds of division.

Light and darkness seemed destined never to reconcile.

But Gu Zhongyan was perfectly content with this. Though he had proposed and lobbied for the formation of the Defenders, he cared little about how far the organization might go.

The reason was simple—Gu Zhongyan knew exactly how high the ceiling of this world reached. The Defenders were little more than a beginner’s guild; before the age of super-heroes dawned, they might accomplish some things, but as beings emerged who could influence the globe, the galaxy, even the entire universe, the Defenders would become utterly insignificant.

His motivation for actively forming the Defenders was, in truth, a single one: money.

There’s a saying—money makes the world go round. It may not be omnipotent, but lacking it is simply not an option, especially for professions like sorcerers and mages, which burn through resources at an astonishing rate.

While the upper limits of magic in the Marvel universe far exceeded those of the Harry Potter world, the age of magic had passed—in this era of technology, magical materials in nature were pitifully scarce.

Fortunately, gold, silver, other precious metals, and gemstones also served as magical materials, but acquiring enough required vast sums of money.

As a high school student, Gu Zhongyan had no means to earn real wealth, and he was unwilling to debase himself with magical scams or petty theft.

Thus, forming the Defenders and earning rewards for his efforts was only natural.

Supporting Stick’s consolidation of the underworld served the same goal—to rapidly accumulate wealth.

In a way, Stick’s actions had been guided by Gu Zhongyan’s will from the very beginning. He was, in fact, the true mastermind behind the scenes.