Chapter 130: The Cosmic Cube Isotope

Rushing back to the Dark Tome laboratory, Old Wang spotted Coulson at first glance and froze.

Could the “village chief of Marvel’s beginner’s village” possess some hidden attribute, such as “passively attracting transmigrators”?

Otherwise, in such a massive laboratory, how could he have teleported right in front of Coulson?

Coulson was even more stunned than he was.

He had been on the phone with the director, and before he could finish speaking, the vanished Master Wang had suddenly reappeared—directly in front of him. Their faces were less than ten centimeters apart. Coulson could feel the warmth of the other man’s breath and hear his own heart pounding.

To be confronted with such a huge panda face was downright terrifying.

The next second, Coulson felt dazed.

For some reason, observing that face from such a close distance made him think of Carol Danvers, that marvelous woman.

Why did cats so often meow in the director’s office? Why did the old salted egg occasionally fall silent? Why had a middle-aged man of such advanced years still never married?

Though he never said anything, we all knew…

“Coulson? Coulson?”

Fury’s voice came through the phone. Coulson jolted and hurriedly replied, “Sir, Master Wang is here.”

Fury could not help snorting. “Give him the phone!”

“Yes, sir.” Coulson quickly handed it to Old Wang.

Old Wang shrugged and took the phone. Fury’s voice came through, three parts resentment and seven parts displeasure.

“Master Wang, was it you who sent the missile to San Juan? You nearly destroyed an entire city!”

“That missile wasn’t powerful enough to do that. Besides, I chose the location carefully. I did you a huge favor. After this, the person who ordered the missile launch will definitely be in trouble. You can take advantage of the opportunity to move against him.”

Old Wang was perfectly courteous. “No need to thank me.”

Fury fell silent.

Thank you? Thank you for nothing, Master Wang!

General Anton had ordered the missile launch. Of course Fury knew that the man was a Hydra operative.

Though Anton held a fairly high position, killing him would not have been difficult. A few agents could have disposed of him quietly and without a trace. There had been no need to make such a tremendous commotion.

Fury could have had him secretly taken to a covert base, tortured him for information, found out who had issued his orders and which superiors he reported to, and perhaps even turned him.

But after what Master Wang had done, every senior government and military official was watching Anton closely. It had become much harder to make a move against him.

Master Wang, you did that deliberately, didn’t you?

Old Wang smiled without saying a word.

Of course I did.

The situation had been urgent, and he had not had time to think things through, but he had still chosen the more suitable course of action.

If that missile had not exploded near San Juan, there would probably have been more than one missile flying over. He could have dealt with them, certainly—but it would have cost a great deal of money. Was Fury going to pay?

And what if something went wrong? People would die!

“Enough about that.”

Old Wang knew Fury had enough influence to settle the matter, so he brushed it aside and changed the subject.

“I went to Stark Industries headquarters just now.”

“What did you go there for?” Fury frowned and picked up his cup.

He had not known about Old Wang’s previous visit to treat Tony’s illness.

As far as he knew, aside from purchasing high-tech equipment and materials from Stark Industries through S.H.I.E.L.D., the only other things connecting Master Wang to the company were his stock holdings—worth more than a billion dollars.

Could it be that Master Wang had a relationship with that playboy beyond filthy financial dealings? Something more intimate?

“Nothing much.” Old Wang spoke lightly. “I saved Tony’s life.”

Fury spat out his coffee.

And that was supposed to be nothing?

Wait…

Hadn’t that playboy been kidnapped only recently? How had something happened to him again?

“Send someone to investigate the details yourself. No point wasting phone charges. Oh, and I’m rather short of money lately, so transfer the payment to me as soon as possible.”

Old Wang shoved the phone back into Coulson’s hand and turned to leave.

A monk moved like the wind, never lingering or dragging his feet.

Hearing Fury roaring through the phone, Coulson could only smile bitterly.

Not even the Secretary of Defense dared speak to the director that way. Every government official, general, and wealthy magnate in America both hated and feared that “King of Spies.” He held evidence of who knew how many people’s crimes and illegal dealings. Anyone who provoked him was courting death.

Master Wang, I salute you!

…

…

Although the battle in San Juan had involved hundreds of people and a vast quantity of weapons, and even included the detonation of a missile, no innocent civilians had been killed.

Fury personally stepped forward, transforming the entire affair into a military operation against a terrorist organization.

With the efforts of the Puerto Rican military, the terrorists were completely wiped out. The sole missile that had been launched was intercepted and exploded outside San Juan, saving hundreds of thousands of innocent citizens. A certain terrorist organization claimed responsibility for the incident.

General Anton resigned, taking responsibility for the disaster. Another general was flown in to replace him, while Air Force Brigadier General Glenn Talbot was dispatched to establish a military base and assist in protecting Puerto Rico’s territory and people.

On the surface, everything was calm and peaceful. Beneath it, turbulent waves were rising.

Both Fury and Pierce sensed that a storm was coming—one that might even prove catastrophic.

And at that very moment, another piece of news caused a considerable uproar.

Several terrorists infiltrated Stark Industries headquarters, intending to steal confidential information and kidnap chairman Tony Stark and CEO Obadiah Stane.

Mr. Obadiah suffered a heart attack and died on the spot. With the assistance of several security guards, Stark successfully eliminated the terrorists.

Tony Stark attended a press conference, his complexion rosy and his health reassuring.

Although Stark Industries had shut down its weapons division, he promised that within three months he would develop new pillar industries for the company, including but not limited to clean energy, electronic information technology, artificial intelligence, life sciences, advanced materials, and fringe science.

Though Mr. Stark was brimming with confidence, the mass media remained skeptical.

Capital fled in droves, and the stock price continued to fall, suffering a total decline of 62.7 percent.

Old Wang took advantage of the opportunity to buy in, pouring all the money Fury had transferred to him into the market.

Three nights later, after conveniently wiping out a terrorist base along the way, Tony arrived in San Juan, 5,600 kilometers away, wearing his flamboyant red-and-gold Mark Three.

…

…

The Dark Tome laboratory.

The Mark Three landed steadily, immediately drawing a large crowd of onlookers.

“Is that… an exoskeleton suit? It’s unbelievably cool!”

“It would be great for people with disabilities. Stark Industries really does have a new pillar industry.”

“It actually flew all the way here from Los Angeles? What powers it? How can it possibly have that kind of endurance?”

“I want one! I want one too!”

“Mr. Stark is too fat. I definitely wouldn’t fit into his suit. I wonder if he accepts custom orders…”

“Hm. Its flexibility is inadequate. The gold-titanium alloy armor has formidable defensive capabilities, but the joints are its weak point. If I caught him off guard, I could dismantle it in under a minute. Let’s see him do that while flying…”

Old Wang’s attention was focused on something entirely different from everyone else’s.

He stared at the two inverted triangles on Tony’s chest, glowing with white light, and a faint smile finally appeared at the corners of his mouth.

“You developed the new element?”

“Much of the credit goes to you, Master Wang!”

At the mention of it, Tony could not contain his excitement.

“It took me a full two hours to decipher the model my father left behind and discover the elemental model hidden within it. Then I spent another three hours on the calculations, followed by four hours assembling the equipment. Only after all that was I able to create a new element out of thin air!”

At that, he could not help sighing.

“My father was truly extraordinary. To think he discovered such a safe, reliable, and pollution-free new element!”