The Birth of Iron Man (Bonus Chapter for Station King's Generous Reward!)

A major gang had been wiped out at its headquarters.

This immediately drew the serious attention of the New York police.

Especially since the battle had involved not only gunfire, but even rocket explosions.

After all, the Irish Mob's headquarters was not some remote wilderness.

First came the blackout, then the gunfight.

Countless people in the surrounding area had trembled in fear, terrified of getting caught in the crossfire.

The impact had been extremely severe.

One wrong move could cause the government to lose public trust.

So, over the next few days, the police launched a frenzied crackdown.

Gangs?

Even if you were the king of Hell's Kitchen, you had better stay in the sewers.

Showing your face at a time like this was a direct provocation against the government.

So although countless wolves were already eager to devour the territory left behind by the Irish Mob, they could only wait silently for the police crackdown to end.

No one dared to go against the police at a time like this.

While the underlings in the underworld were terrified, gang bosses like Kingpin were even more enraged.

It was true that with the Irish Mob wiped out, they had one less rival.

But the disappearance of such a large gang was also a warning to them.

In Hell's Kitchen, their words had once carried more weight than the police's.

But now, with two government crackdowns in quick succession, the terrifying image they had cultivated in Hell's Kitchen had been damaged.

"Who was it?"

Kingpin wore a cold expression as he considered the other party's origins.

If it was a local gang, that would be fine. What he feared was some formidable figure from elsewhere forcing their way in.

That would have an enormous impact on his future plans.

Faced with this crisis, he immediately had Leland contact Madam Gao and the other underworld factions.

On this matter, they had to stand on the same front.

Every side attached great importance to this matter.

Only Madam Gao's expression remained unchanged.

"No matter who it is, if they dare to come, kill them."

The Russian Brothers sneered.

"Finn Cooley died without a sound. You old hag, do you think you're stronger than him?"

Killing intent flashed through Madam Gao's eyes.

Beside them, Leland Osley, disguised as Kingpin, tapped the table and said, "Enough, everyone. No matter who made a move, it is not good news for us.

Madam Gao, I know you have your confidence, but that is no reason for you to underestimate the enemy."

Madam Gao withdrew her killing intent, tapped her cane, and said, "Divide Finn Cooley's share as we discussed before.

As for the enemy...

We do not even know who our opponent is. What is there to discuss?"

With that, Madam Gao prepared to leave.

Leland Osley narrowed his eyes slightly and continued, "Fine, then the shares are settled.

But I have some guesses about the enemy's identity."

Everyone's attention immediately focused on him.

Leland Osley said, "There are two possibilities. One is that they naturally offended some troublesome outsiders.

Other than that, there is another possibility: Noah Allen!"

A trace of wariness flashed in Leland Osley's eyes.

He was Kingpin's confidant, so he knew very well just how deep the waters of this world ran.

Like Madam Gao, his influence in Hell's Kitchen was arguably the weakest among everyone present.

Yet his wariness of Madam Gao was the greatest.

As for bringing up Noah Allen, he had his own selfish motives.

"Noah Allen?"

Madam Gao frowned.

She had heard that name before.

Leland Osley continued:

"Noah Allen has some unusual methods. He's caused quite a bit of trouble in Hell's Kitchen lately.

More importantly, he has a conflict with the Irish Mob.

The Irish Mob has attacked him several times, but none of them succeeded."

The other mob bosses all showed strange looks in their eyes.

Could Noah Allen really be that formidable?

After all, if the Irish Mob couldn't handle him, most of those present wouldn't be able to either.

Finn Cooley was no minor player.

They all remembered the name.

But no one said anything further.

Though they all knew Noah Allen's name, he had little to do with them.

As long as they didn't provoke him, he wasn't their problem.

The one who should be worried now was Kingpin.

At that thought, quite a few people glanced at the frail young man.

Was this man Kingpin?

Probably not. Having risen to this point, they couldn't possibly know nothing about Kingpin.

But where exactly was the real Kingpin?

Kingpin was the one who had hidden himself most deeply out of them all.

That was fine too. After all, Kingpin was the one in conflict with Noah Allen. They could use this chance to see whether Noah Allen could uncover his secrets.

Many people knew about Anobella.

Kingpin was the one who had a direct conflict with Noah Allen.

Whether or not Noah Allen was responsible for this matter, Kingpin's current actions were meant to drag them into it.

No one here was a fool.

Even Madam Gao, who didn't think much of Noah Allen, had no intention of seeking trouble for herself.

Looking at everyone's expressions, Leland Osley knew exactly what they were thinking.

He had anticipated this, but his expression still darkened somewhat.

Noah Allen was clearly the kind of person who held grudges.

There was bad blood between them and Noah Allen.

And although they hadn't acted directly during this time, they had in fact contributed to dealing with Noah Allen.

Even if he could let it go, that depended on whether Noah Allen was willing to do the same.

So...

Strike first!

Since he couldn't drag these people into it, he could only act himself.

Leland Osley's expression turned cold.

In his heart, he sentenced Noah Allen to death.

This was something he and the boss had decided long ago.

After dealing with the Irish Mob, Noah's mood immediately relaxed considerably.

His parents would be coming home soon as well.

He had spoken with them on the phone just two days ago. Though they had enjoyed themselves outside, they were already homesick.

Faced with such a reasonable request, Noah naturally had no reason to refuse.

The house was already being rebuilt, but he had no idea what expressions they would have when they returned and saw a brand-new home.

Noah smiled bitterly to himself.

These past few days, he had been keeping a close eye on Tony Stark's situation.

The day after Tony Stark returned, he announced at a press conference that Stark Industries would be shutting down its weapons division.

The news immediately set off a storm of public opinion.

Within days, Stark Industries' stock had fallen even lower than it had before his kidnapping.

When the stock had fallen as far as it could, Noah entered the market and began frantically buying up Stark Industries shares.

However, while making his purchases, he noticed another force was also buying.

If he was not mistaken, it was Obadiah Stane.

But unlike Noah's open acquisitions, Obadiah Stane's moves were far more discreet.

In the end, Noah still made a killing.

Unfortunately, his funds were limited. Surpassing Obadiah Stane was indeed unlikely, but he should have been able to buy back all the loose shares on the market.

Even so, he was quite satisfied.

With the shares he now held, every research breakthrough Tony Stark made would bring him a substantial income.

He also noticed that many terrorist strongholds had recently been wiped out.

One name was mentioned again and again in the news.

Iron Man!

Watching Tony Stark display such overwhelming power, Noah's emotions stirred slightly.

Judging by the timeline, the plot was probably about to begin.