As Qin Xiao and Tony walked out of the hospital room, Ivan Vanko's curses—switching between Russian and English—could still be heard inside.
The police outside grew tense, suspecting that Qin Xiao and Tony might have done something to the prisoner.
In truth, what disturbed Ivan Vanko most wasn't that Tony had ultimately escaped palladium poisoning—it was Tony flaunting his new Arc Reactor and explaining where it came from.
To Ivan, the most unbearable truth was that his father had truly lost to Howard Stark.
In reality, no matter how much or how little someone contributed to a project, the person who gets expelled will always believe everything was their own achievement, and will paint the one who expelled them as useless.
Ivan Vanko had grown up believing that Howard Stark was nothing more than a fame-seeking businessman, not a real scientist.
All of Stark's achievements, in Ivan's mind, came from his father and other scientists.
So when he learned that Tony Stark's father had invented a new element decades earlier—one that dramatically increased the Arc Reactor's output, but couldn't be manufactured at the time due to technological limitations—he simply couldn't accept it.
"Tony, that guy is basically a living Arc Reactor now. I don't know how many people are watching him. The stick you're holding is about to be taken by someone else."
Qin Xiao said this quietly to Tony as they walked out of the hospital.
He only spoke after a long internal struggle.
From the very beginning, Qin Xiao had believed his greatest advantage was knowing everything and being able to do anything.
Even though he had seen Loki being dragged away before time travel, and knew of the Time Variance Authority, he always believed there had to be some mechanism preventing them from discovering him.
But Gu Yi's words had changed his thinking.
He still wouldn't actively plan to change the plot—but he also wouldn't blindly follow it.
It depended on one's heart. Since the butterfly's wings would flap no matter what, they might as well flap freely and naturally.
So when Ivan Vanko was left in the hospital, Qin Xiao knew that according to the original timeline, Justin Hammer would still break him out.
Of course, Qin Xiao didn't particularly care whether another conflict would happen later—but standing in a friend's position, he chose to give Tony a warning.
After all, Ivan Vanko's primary target was Tony Stark.
"Notify Nick Fury and let him handle it?"
The two stood on the beach in front of the hospital. Tony thought for a long time before asking tentatively.
"Honestly, when it comes to protecting the world, I absolutely trust Nick Fury. But don't forget, Tony—behind him is the World Security Council, full of politicians from various governments. You know how badly the U.S. government wants your armor."
They had discussed this issue back during their first trip to the Middle East. At the time, they even considered forming a secret organization independent of S.H.I.E.L.D. and the Avengers.
On a macro level, it could protect the world with fewer restraints; on a micro level, it could handle problems no one else could.
Their earlier mission wiping out the Ten Rings, and Qin Xiao's solo trip to Mexico to eliminate drug lords, both fell into that category.
Of course, Qin Xiao mainly went there to make money.
"I actually already thought of a name—and even developed a phone app!"
Tony unlocked his phone and revealed an app called 'Illuminati.'(Who knows when Marvel would ever reveal this Easter egg in Iron Man 2. After all, Iron Man is already dead. Imagine it yourself—the members would definitely be different from the comics. This is the movie universe.)
"Oh?"
Qin Xiao looked at the phone with interest.
"It's not fully developed yet. Basically, it's a chat plus mission-sharing platform. It can detect crises, upload tasks, and resolve nearby problems. Of course, it's mainly for encrypted communication."
It could be said that even before going to the Middle East, Qin Xiao had already planted the seeds for the Avengers' future independence.
But after witnessing the massacre there firsthand, his thinking shifted slightly. He truly believed that some organizations and individuals should be dealt with by extreme means.
After meeting Gu Yi, Qin Xiao gained even more ideas.
But none of that mattered now.
What mattered was that Tony and the others had already reached an agreement.
"I can enter the name now: Ivan Vanko."
Tony said as he opened the app.
"All you have to do is cross out his name—and he won't have a tomorrow."
Qin Xiao turned his head and glanced at the hospital.
"Boom."
The moment the word left his mouth, a massive explosion erupted from the hospital across the way.
The power of the blast wasn't limited to destroying a hospital building dozens of stories tall.
The shockwave swept through the entire street.
Qin Xiao reacted instantly, turning to shield Tony.
He blocked massive chunks of steel, concrete, and flying debris—any of which would have been fatal to an ordinary person.
Most of the fragments were stopped, but the shockwave still sent the unprepared pair flying into the sea.
"Pfft!"
Qin Xiao dragged Tony up as they surfaced, both spitting out seawater.
The explosion completely destroyed the hospital. The collapsed structure toppled over and struck a nearby building.
Dust filled the air. Sirens wailed. Cries for help echoed from the rubble.
"Save people first."
Tony glanced at the ruins with a complicated expression. The ever-responsible Iron Man blamed everything on himself.
Qin Xiao glanced at him, said nothing, and swam toward their slowly sinking car. He punched through the trunk and yanked out Tony's Mark 5 suitcase armor.
Using Tony's armor-embedded scanning systems and Qin Xiao's inhuman strength, the two worked alongside arriving government forces, pulling trapped victims out one by one.
"52 seriously injured. 37 dead. Including one pregnant woman and five children. One person still missing."
Tony spoke grimly, reciting the numbers to Qin Xiao.
Qin Xiao didn't look much better.
In the news, these were just statistics.
But when you face the loss of life directly—especially when children are involved—it ignites a burning rage.
"Ivan… Vanko?"
Qin Xiao said the name aloud.
If only one person was missing, then it could only be him.
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