Whiplash

Two days later, at 10:22 p.m., Tony Stark's car pulled up in front of Golden Mansion.

Of course, the building's name had long since changed.

It had quietly gone from Golden Mansion to Heisenberg Mansion!

The citizens of Brooklyn had no idea why. They thought New York was commemorating some scientist from Germany who had failed to develop nuclear weapons.

And what could Heisenberg do about it? Just enjoy his underlings' flattery.

Looking at the Heisenberg Mansion logo that had been put up less than a day ago, Tony shook his head irritably.

"That alien is seriously this high-profile? What the hell!"

As he spoke, he followed the greeter's invitation and entered the elevator leading to the Nightclub with Happy, his driver and bodyguard.

When they stepped out of the elevator, Happy's forehead was already beaded with sweat.

The briefcase in his hand was anything but light.

Yet he had no choice but to carry it, because he knew it was his boss's final and most crucial safeguard.

They passed through the corridor and entered the noisy Nightclub venue.

In an instant, dazzling lights converged on Tony Stark's face.

"Let us welcome New York's pride, the sexiest billionaire in the world, the youngest genius in scientific history, our superhero Iron Man, Tony~~~ Stark!!!"

"Whoa!!!"

"He really came! You know, he turned down Congress twice!"

"He's got the right to. I freaking love this Nightclub!"

"An astronomy-themed strip party—this is genius!"

Countless Wall Street patrons drawn by Tony Stark's name immediately took Heisenberg's Nightclub to heart.

For some time to come, this would become the gathering place for investment elites like them.

Don't ask them why!

Anywhere Stark might appear was the place that attracted them most.

Whether it was securing Stark's investment or trying to get involved in one of Stark's projects themselves.

No matter what they gained, they would soar along with Stark's momentum!

Tony had long since grown used to such clamor. Proudly, he kept exchanging greetings with people who knew him.

And he greeted them very quickly.

For example...

"Ha, it's you, that loser?"

"You came too? Because the real Academy of Sciences refused to invite you?"

"I'm so happy to see you here. Your ex-girlfriend is gorgeous, and she was even in the last two issues of Playboy. She's amazing!"

"I really don't want to see you, or I'll feel guilty—guilty that the little thing I whipped up in half a day ruined the grand plan you spent two whole years investing in."

"You want to know what I think of the Academy of Sciences Nightclub? That's a fucking genius name, though I doubt those professors would like it."

"Justin Hammer, instead of studying your medieval armor, did you come here hoping to find inspiration by kissing my ass?"

In short...

Thanks to Tony's unique greeting skills, he quickly gained some personal space.

He had to admit, the quality of the dancers at this Nightclub was truly excellent.

They were no worse than some of Victoria's Secret's smaller shows.

But for some reason, he felt that a few of those dancers were rather dangerous...

Was it an illusion?

Whatever!

Tony quickly immersed himself in the Nightclub atmosphere and couldn't pull himself away.

By midnight, Tony had lost track of how much he had drunk.

But he finally remembered the real reason he had come.

He wanted to meet that alien—see him with his own eyes!

So, staggering along, he found one of the waiters assigned to serve him.

"Where's your boss? Heisenberg. I want to see him!"

"Please wait a moment. I'll contact my boss for you!"

The waiter had long been prepared to contact Heisenberg. After all, in his view, since his new boss had managed to invite the renowned playboy Tony Stark, they had to at least be friends.

Just as the waiter called Heisenberg, on a sofa near the corner of the Nightclub.

Steve Rogers frowned as he repeatedly sized up Tony Stark, who reeked of alcohol.

"Just like his father's son!"

Steve said helplessly.

"That playboy air is practically carved into his bones!"

"Yeah!"

Coulson, standing beside Steve, drank as he nodded in agreement.

At that, Captain Rogers looked at Coulson and asked softly.

"Do we really need to meet Stark in a setting like this? Are you sure he can even stay conscious?"

"Of course. We already gathered the intelligence. Someone who has been waiting for him for a long time will give Stark a gift they have prepared today, right here in this nightclub!"

"Huh?"

Captain Rogers took an irritated drink.

"So he's about to be in danger, and instead of stopping it beforehand, we're going to use it to..."

"To achieve a greater purpose, Captain. The Avengers need Tony's strength, and S.H.I.E.L.D. needs it even more.

Besides, we won't let him actually get hurt!"

Coulson shrugged at Rogers and replied with equal helplessness.

Meanwhile, Heisenberg lay bored atop a building.

He wore only a set of casual pajamas, the loose collar exposing his powerful chest muscles.

He actually looked not much different from the actor who played Superman in the Justice League.

Since it was already midnight, Heisenberg was reviewing what he had gained over the past day.

"Your decision to rule New York caused more than three hundred gang members to die.

Many more were affected as a result. You have obtained a total of 5.426 cubic units of Origin Matter today."

"So the fates of 5,426 people were changed..."

Heisenberg muttered as he smiled.

A decision made on a whim had caused Origin Matter to gather as if it were flying toward him.

Heisenberg hardly dared imagine how much Origin Matter he would gain if he truly destroyed Earth completely!

"System, create a task. How much Origin Matter would it take to send me back to where I was before I transmigrated?"

"Returning to the DC Universe requires 282 cubic units of Origin Matter.

Returning to the Origin Universe requires 6,440 cubic units of Origin Matter."

"I understand!"

Heisenberg nodded, a faint gleam of anticipation appearing in his eyes.

Once he had saved enough Origin Matter, he should first return to the Earth from before his transmigration and take a good look around.

His parents deserved a better life.

Sadly, all he could still do was make them worry...

Just then, his phone rang.

"Hello?"

"Boss, Tony Stark wants to see you. What do you think?"

"Tell him to wait!"

Heisenberg agreed without hesitation. He wasn't some coy young lady—what was there to be afraid of meeting?

The only reason he had not gone to enjoy himself at the nightclub party was that he had yet to emerge from his inner period of uncertainty.

But that did not mean he was afraid to show his face.

With that, Heisenberg casually rode the elevator down to the nightclub in his pajamas.

The nightclub was packed, but who could possibly block Heisenberg's path?

He sent more than a dozen drinkers sprawling, then used that very method to swagger over and sit directly across from Tony.

Picking up a glass and filling it for himself, Heisenberg asked Tony.

"Earth's superhero—heh, heh. Glad to meet you."

"Yeah, I'm Earth's hero. What about you, criminal of Krypton?"

Tony snapped irritably.

For the moment, Heisenberg did not mind Tony's drunken mouth. He emptied his glass, then poured himself another as he nodded indifferently.

"Indeed. A criminal of Krypton, an exile, a man who has lost his home—you can use whatever words you like to describe me."

"So then you could just throw a casual punch and smash both me and my armor into dust?"

Tony was still needling him, which left Heisenberg slightly displeased.

"Are you sure you prefer this kind of confrontational communication?"

Heisenberg asked with a frown, but Tony nodded indifferently.

"What else? Should I communicate with you the way you do—by blowing someone's head off?"

Tony gave an irritated smile as he continued.

"That won't work. After all, I can't blow your head off!"

"Yeah, you really do have a face begging to be punched!"

Heisenberg took an annoyed drink.

He was getting a little tired of it. No matter how many fans Stark had, that personality of his and that foul mouth...

Believe him, nobody would enjoy sitting beside him and having a conversation.

Other than people he acknowledged, or people who admired him.

A guy like him was destined to have no other friends.

However, Heisenberg, who could not be bothered to spend his energy listening to pointless noise, had not expected this.

The moment he decided Tony had no friends, one of Tony's enemies appeared!

I may not have friends, but I've got enemies!

Crackle!!!

Just as Heisenberg swallowed that drink, a violent flash of light suddenly erupted inside his Nightclub.

Countless electric currents, as though bound by something, smashed fiercely into the floor.

Heisenberg and Tony looked toward the source of the sound. Damn it, they both seemed to know the man crackling with electricity.

Tony merely found him familiar, because he seemed to have seen photos of his father posing with someone who looked much like this man.

But Heisenberg...

"Why is Whiplash here?"

He muttered softly.

"Looks like my arrival really did create enough of a butterfly effect in this universe."

At the same time, Whiplash kept swinging the electrified whips in his hands.

The violent sounds and constantly leaping sparks sobered up nearly every patron in the Nightclub.

"Ahhh! What is that?!"

"Damn it, is this some kind of horror show at the Nightclub?"

"Fuck, my legs!"

One unlucky man was swept across the waist by Whiplash's electric current. Both his legs were instantly severed at the roots of his thighs.

"Tony Stark!!!"

Whiplash let his rage run wild as he roared at the surrounding crowd.

"Ever since I learned you would be attending this party, I have been waiting for today!

No, I should say that I have been waiting for today ever since your father stole my father's work and caused him to die a miserable death!"

Crack!

A surging arc flashed from his hand, leaving another filthy black wound across Heisenberg's floor, which had been renovated less than a week ago.

"You and your father are the same—hypocritical, cunning, arrogant bastards.

But I'll let you know that all the greatness you showed them was achieved by stealing the results of others' experiments!"

Crack!

The electricity-filled whip sliced past Heisenberg's eyes, splitting the table he had just been resting his arm on cleanly in half.

Tony frantically vaulted over the sofa and ran madly toward Happy.

As for Happy, he was completely blocked by the chaotic crowd and could not reach Tony at all.

So, after confirming Tony's position, he immediately threw the heavy suitcase in his hand over.

Thud!

The suitcase landed on the floor, and Tony desperately rushed toward it.

But the Nightclub crowd was far too dense, and the scene was utterly chaotic.

Even though he was less than five meters from the suitcase, he could no longer reach it!

Crack!

The electricity-filled whip struck down in front of Tony—right between him and the suitcase.

"What is that, Tony Stark? Look at you, scrambling toward that thing like a pathetic fool. Is that your trump card?"

Whiplash smiled cruelly as he strode toward Tony, one step at a time.

His body crackling with electrical arcs blocked Tony's path to the suitcase, leaving Tony with no options.

"Who are you, pal? You think some shoddily thrown-together junk can take me down?"

Tony's nerve kicked in at once. Not only was he unafraid, he mercilessly mocked Whiplash instead.

"Looks like you've figured out a little of how I work, but what are you so proud of? Those trash whips of yours aren't even as good as the little toys I mess around with!"

"Haha, Tony, you're always this stubborn—just like your damned father!"

Crack!

Two lightning whips crossed over Tony's body, leaving marks more than six meters long on the ground to either side of him.

By then, the nightclub's guests had already fled at least twenty meters away.

The customers did not leave outright. On the contrary, they were incredibly curious about the battle unfolding before them.

Iron Man and one of his enemies...

Tsk tsk, coming to the nightclub tonight had really been worth it!

Off to the side, Whiplash kept driving Tony backward with his ferocious arc whips.

He was enjoying it—enjoying the taste of bringing fear to Tony.

"My father died in a park. No one cared about his death.

Yet you basked in everyone's admiration, in flowers and applause, without caring that your success was actually built on the work of my father's entire life!"

Crack!

This whip lashed down with savage force, striking cleanly between Tony's legs.

Fortunately, Tony shamelessly spread his legs apart, avoiding the fate of being split in two down there.

But dodging once was useless. Whiplash had already developed a genuine desire to kill Tony.

"You call yourself Iron Man and think you're saving people, but who can save you now?

Tony Stark, you despicable man born of a vile family—goodbye!"

Two crossing arcs lashed straight at Tony. There was no way he could dodge this strike.

But how could Tony possibly wait to die?

"Are you really going to watch me die in your nightclub, damn it?!"

He gave one final roar toward Heisenberg.

And Heisenberg...

First, he looked at Captain America, who was charging toward Whiplash.

Then he looked at Tony's panicked, disheveled face.

In the span of a moment, he snatched a camera from a reporter dozens of meters away and took a picture of Tony from a fairly good angle.

Then he burst out laughing.

"Tony, you fucking deserve this, hahaha!"

Bang!

As soon as Heisenberg finished laughing, Captain America kicked Whiplash flying.