Mark V

As far as Leo was concerned, he had used up nearly all the remaining fifty kilograms of Vibranium, leaving only two Vibranium Metal Darts on his body. He had absorbed all the rest.

Leo had also been constantly experimenting with Astral Projection.

I remember Doctor Strange mastered it after studying for only a short while. I've had this book for more than two months now. Why haven't I made any progress at all?

Could it be that I really have no talent for magic?

After Doctor Strange borrowed the book Astral Projection to study, he mastered the technique in less than a day. Even while his physical body slept at night, his soul could continue flipping through the book and learning.

Another person who knew this technique was Kaecilius, who had betrayed The Ancient One. Both of them possessed extraordinary magical talent.

However, at that time, Doctor Strange had already been studying magic at Kamar-Taj for half a year and had already mastered Space Teleportation Gate.

Doctor Strange had also experienced having his soul leave his body, but even The Ancient One had been unable to move Leo's soul.

Therefore, this profound technique might still be somewhat difficult for Leo at his current level.

Yet while Leo slept, he seemed to be gradually touching upon the sensation of his soul.

New York had been extremely lively lately. Perhaps it was because the new year was approaching, or perhaps because the Stark Industries Expo was about to begin. Technical talents from companies and countries all over the world had been arriving one after another.

Leo had originally tried to travel to the African continent, find Wakanda directly, and obtain Vibranium. But Uncle George didn't seem to have any work lately. He drove his new BMW around everywhere.

After school, he would pick Leo up, take a detour to pick up Peter as well, and then take the two children out to have fun.

Leo wouldn't refuse Uncle George's affection. Rather than waste time searching for Wakanda, he might as well wait for Black Panther to appear on his own, or simply ask Nick Fury when the time came.

Although his cultivation progress had slowed over the past two months, accompanying Uncle George and Aunt May and making them happy was worthwhile.

His Metal Control value had risen to 113 points, while all his Four-dimensional attributes had reached twenty-one points. As for the enhancement of Iron Bones, although its efficiency wasn't as high, it had still reached 49% completion.

Taking advantage of the time after dinner, Leo went out for a walk and flew directly to Tony's mansion in Malibu.

He arrived in the basement and looked at the newly rebuilt glass door, as well as Tony Stark sitting in a reclining chair.

He went straight over and opened the combination lock. "Mr. Stark, did you receive my gift?"

"Leo, where did you find this kind of metal?"

Tony, who was drinking chlorophyll juice, looked up and cried out in surprise when he saw Leo walk in.

He stepped forward and pulled Leo over. Looking at the Vibranium that had already been dismantled by a quarter, Tony patted Leo on the shoulder.

"Leo, I've run numerous tests on this piece of metal. It's very difficult to process, but those are minor problems. It has a property that absorbs energy, and that reminds me of a certain metal—Vibranium."

"This is Vibranium."

"I'm not joking with you. Vibranium production is astonishingly scarce worldwide. My father once bought some Vibranium from its place of origin, Wakanda, and then was unable to purchase any more. Now, only a small amount of Vibranium is still circulating on the black market. Do you know how expensive it is?"

"How expensive?" Leo was genuinely curious.

"About eleven thousand dollars per gram. In other words, if you wanted to buy these fifty kilograms, it would cost roughly 550 million dollars."

Leo took a deep breath. Although he had thought of such a price before, hearing it from someone else was still shocking.

Even so, he grinned. "That's right. It's Vibranium. I brought it back from Africa on purpose. See if it's useful to you."

"You're really not joking with me?"

Tony knew that the Vibranium shield created by his father was already one of the only remaining sources of Vibranium. Although a small amount of Vibranium still circulated on the black market, Tony had never considered buying any.

He had only heard about the Vibranium shield from his father and had never seen the real thing.

"You... where did you get it?" Tony still hadn't quite processed the situation.

"Is it useful to you? There's a huge amount of this stuff in Wakanda. I'm planning to go take a look in a few days."

"No, it's not very useful to me. Although Vibranium has outstanding defensive capabilities and many properties that other metals don't possess, it isn't within my field of reference." Tony instinctively refused.

Still, he stared at the piece of Vibranium before him in amazement. "This is the first time I've seen such a large piece of Vibranium. I think I can study it properly."

Leo noticed four transparent glass cases embedded in the wall nearby.

From left to right, they contained Mark I through Mark IV. Each one represented one of Tony's improvements.

"Mr. Stark, how is your Mark V coming along?"

"Good question!"

Tony excitedly snapped his fingers. A projection appeared before them, and a three-dimensional image of a red-and-silver case appeared on the floor.

"Mark V. I also call it the Safety Briefcase. I simplified the assembly process even further while improving Mark IV, so I can respond to all kinds of emergencies at any time."

He stepped on the floor, and the briefcase unfolded to reveal two handles. At the same time, a virtual figure appeared and demonstrated the assembly process for Mark V.

"The case weighs no more than forty pounds, but it can't be equipped with weapons. It only has Arc Pulse Cannons in both hands and a Cluster Cannon in the chest."

Looking at the Mark V standing before him, Tony said regretfully, "The system integration is pretty good, but its flight altitude and speed are limited. The armor also uses a single-layer design made of lightweight titanium and steel, so its defensive power is relatively low."

"Mark V is only for dealing with sudden emergencies. I don't think I'll have many chances to wear it."

Leo's eyes lit up when he saw the strange black patterns on Tony's chest. They had already begun spreading outward from his chest. This was a sign of Palladium poisoning.

"What about the Arc Reactor in your chest? How much Palladium is left now?"

As soon as the question was asked, the atmosphere seemed to freeze.

"Leo, I think your Aunt May is already urging you to go home and get some sleep. Remember to watch my opening ceremony in a few days!"

Tony snapped his fingers twice, and all the projections before them vanished.

Tony seemed somewhat unwilling to discuss the subject. He turned around and sat back in his chair.

"J.A.R.V.I.S., send the itinerary from the last industrial Expo to my computer. I want to see how my father handled it."

Seeing that Tony was acting as if he were invisible, Leo helplessly turned and left.

Tony's extreme confidence and narcissism made him want absolute control over his own life.

He believed in his abilities and thought he could control his life, with high expectations for the future.

But once someone with that kind of personality realized that failure was unavoidable, they could easily collapse—or even destroy themselves.