·Marvel Chapter 4.Sat 00:31ShareChapter 4: Mark 2 completed.
Tony's speech at the press conference caused Stark Industries' stock, which had been rebounding since his return, to plunge once again. Many shareholders were furious, some even wishing they could get rid of him.
Several days later, Li Yue saw Tony again. This time, Tony had sent his personal driver, Happy, to bring Li Yue to his beachside villa. Finding Li Yue was an easy task for Tony.
Upon arriving at the villa, Li Yue was greeted by Tony's assistant, Pepper. After recognizing him, she led him to the underground garage, where Tony's workshop was located. Inside, Tony and Yinsen were busy working.
"Yinsen, look—the hero who saved us is here!" Tony put down his tools and grinned. "Li Yue, what do you think? Beautiful, isn't it? Want me to give you a villa like this?"
Since stepping inside, Li Yue had been captivated by the grandeur of Tony's home. It was one thing to see it in movies, but being here in person was another experience entirely. Along the way, he passed dozens of rooms before reaching the garage. There, he saw an entire lineup of luxury sports cars—each one a rare limited edition. Even the cheapest among them cost millions, while others were worth tens of millions of dollars some even hundreds.
Li Yue couldn't help but sigh inwardly. Bloody capitalism!
"Li Yue, let me introduce you to a new friend—my AI butler, J.A.R.V.I.S.," Tony said, clapping his hands. "J.A.R.V.I.S., come out and say hello to Li Yue. Also, grant him first-level access to the villa—all rooms should be open to him."
"Understood, sir," J.A.R.V.I.S. responded. "However, I should remind you that when you first returned, you instructed me to search for Mr. Li Yue's information and even fill in his missing details. Mr. Li Yue is now a legal citizen, so I am already acquainted with him, though I haven't—"
"Alright, J.A.R.V.I.S., that's enough," Tony interrupted, looking slightly embarrassed.
The truth was, the moment he got back, he had J.A.R.V.I.S. investigate Li Yue. The man was too mysterious—he had suddenly appeared out of nowhere. However, the search results were inconclusive. All that J.A.R.V.I.S. found was that Li Yue had first been recorded in Las Vegas three months ago. Before that, there was no trace of him anywhere.
Tony even suspected that someone had deliberately erased Li Yue's past from all records. He had hacked into multiple intelligence agencies, but none had any data on him.
'Could he be from another planet?' Tony wondered.
Despite his doubts, Tony was certain of one thing: Li Yue had saved his life—not just once, but multiple times. If Li Yue had been hostile, Tony wouldn't even be alive to question him now.
Setting aside his suspicions, Tony still instructed J.A.R.V.I.S. to continue monitoring Li Yue's background. If he wasn't careful, no one would notice anything strange—but Tony would rather be sure.
"I'm sorry, Li Yue, I—"
"It's fine, Tony," Li Yue interrupted. "In fact, I should be thanking you. For the past three months, I didn't even dare to wander the streets, afraid that the police would arrest me for being undocumented. You've really helped me a lot."
Tony nodded, then looked at Li Yue with sincerity. "As long as you don't harm me or my loved ones, you'll always be my friend."
Li Yue met his gaze and smiled. "Tony, I still haven't figured out how to explain my origins to you, but I promise you this—I would never do anything to hurt you. And I'm more than happy to be your friend."
"Good! Then it's settled!" Tony grinned.
"Come on, Li Yue. While you were away, Yinsen and I made some real progress. Do you remember the suit of armor I built in the cave? I called it the Mark I. Now, Yinsen and I are working on the next version—Mark II. We've already built the legs, and we're about to run a test. You came just in time to witness our work!"
Tony's excitement was like that of a child showing off his favorite toy.
In the underground garage, he strapped on a pair of metallic boots, their silver surface gleaming under the lights. These were the flight thrusters he had developed. Holding a remote control in his hands, he stood poised for the test. A robotic assistant nearby kept its mechanical arm ready—prepared to extinguish any accidental fires.
Yinsen, standing in front of him, held a camera, while Li Yue watched from the side, waiting for what would happen next.
"J.A.R.V.I.S., initiate manual control. Let's start with 10% power." Tony flexed his fingers and took a deep breath, ready to begin the test.
"Tony, I think starting with 10% power might be a bit too much. The first test should be more cautious," Li Yue advised kindly. Having seen the movie, he already knew how this test would end.
"J.A.R.V.I.S., ignore Li Yue. I trust my own judgment. Prepare for the test—three! Two! One!" Tony insisted.
Seeing that Tony didn't take his advice, Li Yue could only think to himself, 'Well, get ready to embarrass yourself.'
Boom!
"Agh!"
As expected, the propulsion system blasted Tony into the ceiling before sending him crashing back to the ground. The nearby robotic assistant scrambled to contain the mess.
Li Yue laughed. "Tony, there's an old Chinese saying: 'He who ignores the wisdom of the experienced suffers the consequences firsthand.'" He looked at Tony, who was sprawled on the floor, struggling to get up.
Back when Li Yue watched Iron Man in his previous life, he found this scene hilarious. But now, experiencing it firsthand, he realized just how many details the movie had skipped.
Over the next few weeks, Tony practically lived in his underground lab. He wasn't just a genius—he was obsessively dedicated. He barely ate, rarely slept, and sometimes worked nonstop for days. His relentless drive bordered on madness.
Finally, after more than a month, the Mark II was complete. Tonight was its first official test.
Li Yue and Yinsen watched as Tony stood before them, fully suited up in the newly completed armor. Unlike its painted successors, the Mark II was entirely silver, exuding a sleek, metallic luster. It was breathtaking—pure technological brilliance.
Li Yue couldn't help but marvel. This is the power of innovation. Tony Stark truly deserves the title of the century's greatest inventor.
"J.A.R.V.I.S., initiate a full armor self-check," Tony commanded. "Verify weather and air control data. Establish communication with ground control. Prepare for launch—three! Two! One!"
A brilliant white light erupted from the thrusters in Tony's boots. He lifted a few feet off the ground, adjusting his posture with his hands, palms down. He hovered like a floating figure from mythology. Then, without warning, he leaned forward, accelerated, and shot out of the garage like a missile.
"Whoo-hoo!"
A joyful shout echoed as Tony soared into the night sky, disappearing from view.
"Let's head outside and see how well this thing performs," Li Yue said, grabbing Yinsen. In an instant, they vanished from the underground garage and reappeared outside the villa.
Together, they gazed at the sky. A streak of light shot across the horizon at breakneck speed, vanishing for a moment before circling back toward the villa. Then, Tony suddenly changed direction, rocketing straight up into the atmosphere.
He was completely immersed in the thrill of flight, like a child playing with his favorite new toy.
Mark II's performance exceeded expectations. It had already broken the sound barrier—and this wasn't even at full power.
Then, Tony recalled Li Yue's earlier warning about high-altitude icing. Confident in his recent modifications, he had replaced the armor's material with gold-titanium alloy normally used in the satellite. Now, he wanted to put it to the ultimate test.
Without hesitation, he changed course, flying higher and higher, attempting to break the altitude record.
Watching Tony ascend, Yinsen turned to Li Yue. "You know Tony too well. You warned him about the risk of icing at high altitudes, and now, just as you predicted, he's pushing to see how far he can go."
The test was a complete success. Not only did Tony gather extensive data on the Mark II, but he also confirmed that the suit's performance was flawless, with no technical failures during the flight.
"We did it!" Tony exclaimed upon landing, his voice filled with exhilaration, pride, and sheer joy.
Li Yue was pleased too—but his mind was already on what came next.
Soon, Tony would attend a charity gala, where he'd hear from a certain reporter—one he had a brief fling with—that Obadiah Stane was secretly selling Stark Industries' weapons to terrorists.
Not long after, Tony would don the newly painted and weaponized Mark III to confront those very terrorists, triggering Stane's paranoia. In response, Stane would steal the Mark I prototype and its blueprints, using them to build an even larger suit of his own.
After Tony's battle with Obadiah on the streets, with Pepper's help, he managed to defeat Obadiah and later publicly admitted at a press conference that he was Iron Man.
If Li Yue wanted to stop Obadiah, he could have done so easily. However, without that battle, Tony wouldn't have come forward and admitted his identity as Iron Man. Therefore, Li Yue chose not to interfere. But reality isn't a movie. If Tony didn't have the "protagonist's halo" like in the film, he would have been beaten down by the Iron Monger countless times. So, Li Yue decided to give Tony a little boost.
"Tony, have you ever considered making the armor bigger, like..."
For now, Li Yue's situation is set aside. Meanwhile, in his office, Nick Fury sat at his desk, studying the latest intelligence report with a blank expression. After a moment of contemplation, he picked up his phone and issued a command.
"Keep a close watch on the target's movements. Find out his connection to Tony Stark and his purpose for approaching him. Do not alert him—try to establish contact discreetly."
Nick paused before continuing, "As soon as possible, gather information on how Tony Stark escaped from the terrorists, what he is working on now, and whether he is developing new weapons. Report directly to me."
After hanging up, Nick Fury got up and walked toward a secure lockbox. He went through fingerprint and iris verification, then entered a long numerical password before opening it. Inside, he retrieved a file labeled "Avenger". He stared at it for a long moment before placing it back inside.
Time flew by, and within a few weeks, an ordinary evening arrived.
As usual, Tony wrapped up his work for the day. Ever since completing Mark 2, he should have had more free time. –However, after discussing ideas with Li Yue, a flood of new inspiration had taken over his mind. While Jarvis applied a fresh coat of paint to Mark 2, Tony continued his work in the underground lab.
That night, after finally solving a technical challenge that had troubled him for days–, he decided to grab something to eat. But just as he was about to leave, he caught sight of a news broadcast on TV—it was about a charity gala being held under his name.
Tony realized he hadn't made a public appearance in a while. It seemed like the perfect opportunity to show the world that Tony Stark was alive and well.
"Hey, Li Yue, Yinsen, are you guys still playing games? I really don't get what's so fun about them. Wouldn't it be better to fly around in a suit of armor instead?" Tony asked, looking at Li Yue and Yinsen, who were lounging on the sofa.
Since Li Yue had nothing else to do, he had Jarvis create a few video games to pass the time. He and Yinsen had been playing them for the past few days.
"Hey, do you want to come with me? I just found out about this charity gala tonight. No one even bothered to tell me! There'll be plenty of beautiful women at the party. Aren't you even a little interested? You might just meet someone special and have an unforgettable night," Tony teased, winking mischievously at Li Yue and Yinsen.
"No thanks. Unlike you, we don't have women flocking to us everywhere we go," Li Yue replied flatly.
Yinsen also shook his head, showing no interest in Tony's invitation.
"Suit yourselves. Your loss," Tony shrugged. "I need a break. If I stay cooped up in that lab any longer, I'm going to rot."
With that, he put on a sharp suit, fastened his watch, and drove off in his luxury car, heading straight for the charity gala.
Two hours later, Tony stormed back into the villa, his face dark with rage.
"Back so soon, Mr. Stark? What happened?" Yinsen asked, surprised by Tony's early return. However, when he noticed Tony's grim expression, his tone grew more serious.
Li Yue already had an idea of what had happened but remained silent, waiting for Tony to speak.
"I just found out that my company is still selling weapons behind my back—to terrorists, no less!" Tony spat through gritted teeth, his fury barely contained.
"Tony, now that you know, what are you going to do about it?" Li Yue asked.
"I'm going to do what needs to be done," Tony declared, his eyes burning with determination.
Without another word, he headed straight to his underground lab. With Jarvis' assistance, he suited up in the freshly painted Mark 3 armor—its sleek red and gold finish perfectly reflecting his bold personality.
With a thunderous blast, the armored figure shot into the sky.
Tony flew at top speed, reaching a small town called 'Gulmira', which just so happened to be Yinsen's hometown.
The town was under siege by terrorists. When they saw a golden-red figure descending from the sky, fear took hold of them. None of them had ever seen anything so terrifying. As Iron Man approached, he radiated an aura of death itself.
The terrorists, panicked and desperate, opened fire. Bullets rained down on the metal-clad figure, but all they did was bounce off with metallic clinks, leaving him completely unharmed.
Ignoring the hail of bullets, Tony strode forward. In the blink of an eye, he closed in on a terrorist and delivered a devastating punch, sending the man flying into a wall—lifeless.
Without hesitation, he turned toward the remaining terrorists. Energy pulsed in his palms before he fired a concentrated beam, blasting another target away.
In a matter of moments, Tony had wiped out the entire group. He then handed over their leader to the enraged townspeople, who wasted no time in delivering their own form of justice.
Satisfied, Tony turned toward the remaining Stark Industries weapons scattered around. He knew he couldn't allow them to remain in terrorist hands.
Just as he prepared to destroy the stockpile, a tank shell was fired from the ground—striking him mid-air.
(And he had to admit, the tank had impressive aim.)
Tony crashed into the ground, creating a massive crater. Fortunately, his suit was durable, and aside from some scuffed paint, he was unharmed.
Glaring at the tank, Tony fired a missile, reducing it to ashes. Then, in true cinematic fashion, he turned away without looking back at the explosion.
With one final blast from his repulsors, he obliterated the rest of the weapons.
Mission complete.
And with that, Iron Man soared into the night.
Tony sped all the way back to his villa, unaware that his actions had sent shockwaves through the U.S. military. The command center launched an urgent investigation to determine which department had dared to act without authorization.
Unlike in the movie, Tony, wearing his steel armor, was not intercepted by fighter jets. This was because he had followed Li Yue's suggestion and equipped his armor with an anti-radar scanning device. His small, agile form made him difficult to track.
The military was only aware that there had been an explosion at a terrorist camp but had no idea who the attackers were. The assailants had vanished from their radar almost instantly, leaving the military powerless to respond. A colonel even questioned whether it was some kind of new weapon.
Rodhey, Tony's close friend, quickly grew suspicious. He believed that only a genius scientist like Tony could have developed such an advanced weapon. Without hesitation, he called Tony directly.
While still in flight, Tony received Rod's call and hastily made up an excuse. However, as an Air Force officer, Rod easily recognized the faint whispering sound caused by high-speed flight. Still, he chose not to expose Tony's lie.
Meanwhile, Obadiah saw Tony wearing the steel armor on TV and felt an impending crisis. He knew that if Tony continued to dig deeper, he would eventually be exposed and imprisoned. Desperate, Obadiah contacted the terrorists, hoping to retrieve the Mark I prototype and blueprints Tony had used to escape from the cave. He planned to conduct further research and modifications at Stark Industries' Sector 16.
Perhaps due to the inertia of the plot, even though Tony had killed the bald leader of the terrorists during his escape, events still unfolded as they had in the original story—Obadiah eventually became the Iron Monger.
On the surface, everything seemed to progress just like in the movie. Obadiah was working on his own armor, while Tony frequently donned his suit to do as he pleased. But would the outcome remain the same?
After Tony's first mission against the terrorists, he returned home, where Yinsen made a decision. Seeing news reports of the devastation in 'Gulmira', his hometown, Finsen was overcome with sorrow. Though his family was long gone, the sight of his war-torn homeland strengthened his resolve.
(One can't help but wonder—did Finsen lie to Tony before his supposed death in the movie to ease Tony's guilt? Was his family truly gone?)
Determined, Finsen decided to return home and use his medical skills to aid the surviving civilians. Upon hearing –this, both Li Yue and Tony respected his choice and fully supported him. Tony even arranged for someone to escort Finsen back to 'Gulmira' safely.
Time waits for no one. Tony gradually uncovered signs that his uncle had committed numerous heinous acts behind his back. However, without concrete evidence, he had no choice but to seek help from his assistant, Pepper Potts. Initially hesitant, Pepper eventually agreed to help after witnessing Tony's sincerity.
Tony also turned to Li Yue, asking him to protect Pepper.
"Relax, Tony. You know what I'm capable of. No one can harm Pepper while I'm around," Li Yue assured him confidently. He even looked forward to what the night would bring—things were bound to get interesting.
Pepper, on the other hand, glanced at Li Yue and felt a bit helpless. She thought that if Tony truly wanted to ensure her safety, he would have been better off sending Happy instead. At least Happy's strong physique provided a greater sense of security. Li Yue, though not exactly thin, wasn't particularly imposing either.
Still, knowing Tony's good intentions, Pepper couldn't refuse. She led Li Yue to the company building, instructing him to wait in the lobby while she made her way to Obadiah's office alone.
Sitting at the computer, Pepper first discovered that Obadiah had been secretly conducting research in Sector 16. Then, she found a shocking video—footage of the terrorists kidnapping Tony. Her heart pounded. Tony's suspicions were right all along. Not only had Obadiah been illegally selling arms to terrorists, but he had also hired them to assassinate Tony.
Wasting no time, Pepper quickly copied all the files onto a USB drive. But just as she was finishing, Obadiah suddenly appeared at the door. Her heart nearly jumped out of her chest, but she maintained her composure.
With remarkable poise, Pepper casually covered the USB drive with a newspaper and acted as if nothing had happened.
Obadiah, harboring his own guilty conscience, took a quick glance at the screen but didn't notice anything unusual. With no evidence to suspect her, he let her leave. However, as he watched Pepper hurriedly walk away, his suspicions grew. He quickly turned back to the computer—only to see the telltale transfer notification flashing on the screen. He smacked his bald head in frustration.
Obadiah knew he couldn't afford to wait any longer. He rushed to Sector 16, where his armor was being developed. But despite having an entire team of researchers at his disposal, none of them could match Tony's brilliance. They had yet to solve the issue of miniaturizing the Arc Reactor.–
Desperate, Obadiah decided he had only one option—he needed to steal the reactor from Tony's chest.
Meanwhile, Li Yue was growing frustrated. He had noticed that someone was watching him—none other than S.H.I.E.L.D. agent Phil Coulson.
Ever since leaving Stark Industries, Coulson had been secretly observing him. Though Coulson's actions were discreet, Li Yue's heightened senses made it impossible for him to go unnoticed.
It was clear to Li Yue—S.H.I.E.L.D. had been keeping tabs on him for a while. The real question was: When did they start watching him?
This wasn't Li Yue's fault. How could he have expected to be watched so soon—on just his second day in this world? He was confident that he had taken sufficient –precautions to remain unnoticed, never once displaying his superpowers in front of others.
Only Tony and Yinsen knew about his abilities, and neither of them would ever reveal his secret. Li Yue couldn't come up with a logical explanation for how S.H.I.E.L.D. had discovered him, but there was no point in overthinking it now. He had already accepted that they were watching him. Worrying about it wouldn't change anything. Besides, he had already prepared an excuse—he would just lead them in circles and keep them guessing.
Meanwhile, Coulson, after listening to Pepper's report, immediately contacted several nearby agents, instructing them to prepare for Obadiah's capture in Sector 16.
At the same time, Pepper picked up her phone and called Tony at his villa. However, just as Li Yue had anticipated, there was no response from Tony. Instead, she heard Obadiah's voice on the other end. Realizing something was terribly wrong, she quickly called Tony's friend, Rhodey, urging him to get to the villa as fast as possible.
Li Yue couldn't help but feel a little helpless. He had only just left Stark Industries, yet Pepper had waited until now to check in on Tony. Meanwhile, Obadiah had moved at lightning speed—he had already traveled to Sector 16, retrieved what he needed, and arrived at Tony's villa. And now, Tony had already fallen.
At this moment, Rhodey was rushing toward Tony's villa. Inside, with the help of his robotic assistant Dummy, Tony managed to retrieve the first Arc Reactor he had built in the cave and inserted it into his chest, saving his own life.
"The final battle is about to begin." That was the only thought in Li Yue's mind now.
...…
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