Meanwhile, at Avengers Tower.
The Ultron development project had officially begun and continued for several days. During that time, Stark and Banner had gotten less than ten hours of rest between them.
Banner watched Stark continuously debug the program and thought, He's really pushing himself too hard. He's been drinking coffee like water these past few days.
He couldn't help saying to Stark, "Let's stop here for today. Development on Ultron has stabilized, and it's Saturday. Don't we have a party later?"
Only then did Stark turn around. Three days and two nights of work had left his eyes bloodshot. He checked the time and realized several days had passed, then said,
"Oh, really? It's been that long? All right, it's time for a break. Go get some rest, then head to the party later."
Banner breathed a quiet sigh of relief. He had actually prepared himself to work "overtime" again. After all, it was just the two of them and the artificial intelligence JARVIS working on the project, and since he had agreed to help, he couldn't just give up halfway.
"JARVIS, let me know if there's any further progress."
After giving JARVIS those instructions, Stark left with Banner. As they walked, he took out his phone and made a call.
After the two left, the Green Lantern Ring and the Mind Stone Scepter suddenly lit up in the dim workshop. Silken strands of green and yellow energy drifted out from where each had been placed and converged.
A mechanical voice sounded intermittently through the workshop.
"Protect... world... peace. I... am... Ultron..."
At the general store, half an hour had passed since Han Yu posted his first webnovel.
In just half an hour, "Feel-good book" had caused a huge stir on Sky Dome Novel Website. Many people saw the title, noticed it was by an unknown author, and went in planning to mock it.
After all, even the greats didn't dare claim their own novels were that satisfying.
They opened the novel, intending to skim a few lines to give the author a little face before tearing into him. But their eyes seemed glued to the story before them, and they couldn't look away!
By the time they came to their senses, they had finished all thirty thousand characters.
"Holy shit, what just happened?"
"What's with this novel? It's way too satisfying!"
"My god, I was taking a dump and looking for something to help things along, but I ended up reading for over ten minutes. My shit's gone back up!"
"Heavens, does the author have any more chapters? We need an update!"
"It was so satisfying I jumped up and slapped my wife. I'm still kneeling..."
In just half an hour, hundreds of comments had appeared under "Book god," some gushing about how satisfying it was, others clamoring for updates.
Han Yu grinned as he read through the comments. He hadn't expected such a huge response.
Novels in this world were still the kind with some depth, updated once a week with only one or two thousand characters per installment. Then a novel like this had suddenly appeared.
Without explaining a thing, the main text delivered an uppercut straight to their faces, leaving them so exhilarated they couldn't tell north from south.
Han Yu had written it in the style of the simplest wish-fulfillment fiction from his previous life. With wish-fulfillment fiction, all it needed was to be satisfying from start to finish.
There might have been huge plot holes, but it was just so satisfying. Unlike traditional literature, it didn't make readers think too hard. As long as they read it, it gave them a thrill. It was that simple.
In this world of godlike beings, with superheroes and supervillains flying around, perhaps only games and novels could give ordinary people an outlet for their feelings.
Just as Han Yu was preparing to forge ahead and bang out over a hundred thousand characters, a call came in. He took out his phone and gave a soft exclamation of surprise. It was Tony Stark.
Han Yu answered, and Stark's hearty laughter came through the phone. It sounded as though he had solved his problem. "Han, we're having a party tonight, and I'd like to invite you. Are you free?"
Han Yu was taken aback. He hadn't expected to be included in Stark's party so soon. Stark clearly wanted to be on good terms with him.
Han Yu smiled. "Of course. When and where?"
Stark answered, "In half an hour, on the top floor of Avengers Tower. I've already spoken to security. Just tell them your name when you get here, and they'll let you up."
Had Stark given those instructions before Han Yu had even agreed? Han Yu smiled and said, "All right, I'll be there."
After hanging up, Han Yu looked back at his computer and refreshed the page. More than a hundred new comments had appeared.
Han Yu didn't plan to post any more. Even a feel-good novel needed some suspense, and posting too much at once would hurt the book's development.
As it happened, the last chapter of those thirty thousand characters stopped just before a small payoff. Leaving the readers hanging would make "Feel-good book" an even bigger hit.
He decided to attend Stark's party first.
On the top floor of Avengers Tower, a group of Avengers stood in a circle, talking about something.
"Tony, this is a private party. Isn't it a little inappropriate to invite a stranger?"
The speaker was Thor. Before the party, he had heard Stark say he wanted to introduce them to someone formidable, and Thor had been displeased.
That was because there had been a hint of respect in Stark's voice when he said it, and the way he spoke had rubbed Thor the wrong way.
In his eyes, no matter how strong an Earthling was, an Earthling was still an Earthling. He, on the other hand, was a god from Asgard, Thor!
Hawkeye said, "Haha, Thor, why don't you fight him when he gets here and see who's stronger?"
"He's a guest Stark invited personally. Whoever he is, you should show him some respect for Stark's sake."
Captain America rolled his eyes at Hawkeye, Clint, who was only too happy to stir up trouble, as he spoke.
Aside from Captain America, most people had spoken; Banner was the only one left who hadn't. He knew who the guest was: the man who had given Stark the Green Lantern Ring.
Banner was especially curious, too. After spending the past few days developing Ultron with Stark, he found the energy contained in the Green Lantern Ring increasingly terrifying.
Anyone who could casually give away a ring containing that much energy was definitely not someone to be trifled with. With Earth's current technology, there was absolutely no way to make a device like it.
As they chatted and laughed, the elevator doors opened with a ding, and a young man and woman stepped out. They were Han Yu and Wanda.
Han Yu stepped out of the elevator and couldn't help letting out a soft "Wow" when he saw the guests.
The party was hosted by Tony Stark, and the guests were all prominent figures and heavyweights in society. Every one of them was a super-celebrity who appeared in the news and whose name people could call out at once.
"Han, I'm so glad you could make it."
Stark, who had been talking to someone, saw Han Yu emerge from the elevator. He immediately excused himself with a smile and went over to greet him.
Han Yu shook his hand. Seeing the relaxed expression on Stark's face, he figured the Ultron research must be progressing fairly well. He smiled and said, "How could I refuse when Mr. Stark invited me personally?"
As they spoke, Stark glanced over and saw Wanda holding Han Yu's arm. He was visibly startled, because he had seen this girl before!
During the operation in Sokovia a few days ago, this girl had been one of the Metahuman twins. Why was she with Han Yu?
"And this is?"
Seeing Wanda holding Han Yu's arm, Stark didn't dare ask too directly and put the question to him tentatively.
Han Yu wasn't surprised to see Stark's cautious expression. A few days ago, the Avengers had gone on a mission to a place called Sokovia, where they had destroyed an enemy hideout and obtained the Mind Stone Scepter.
Wanda and Quicksilver had also escaped that day and were then found by Han Yu.
"Let me introduce her. This is Wanda, my girlfriend!"
Han Yu placed heavy emphasis on the word "girlfriend." Stark was no fool, and he understood what Han Yu meant at once.
Stark had no intention of asking more. Although their first encounter hadn't gone well, he held no deep grudge against her.
"Come on, let me introduce you to some friends!"
Since Han Yu had brought her, Stark said no more and led the two of them farther inside.
Along the way, quite a few people were surprised to see Han Yu and Wanda walking alongside Stark. It was rare to see Stark treat anyone so well.
Han Yu's looks also caught the attention of many beautiful women. His Asian features were arranged on his face in a striking way.
The air he carried in his every gesture didn't seem to belong to a young man in his twenties. They had never seen an Asian whose looks and bearing could both be called perfect.