Late at night.
Stark Industries, Sector 16.
A S.H.I.E.L.D. team led by Level 7 agent Coulson quickly arrived at Stane's secret research facility, ready to search for the Steel Armor technology.
Just as the team began searching, two blinding beams of white light suddenly flared in the depths of the dark factory!
Amid the whirring of the hydraulic system, a steel behemoth over three meters tall came fully into view, its cold metal exterior radiating a suffocating sense of menace.
"Open fire!"
Coulson acted decisively, and he and the agents beside him raised their guns and opened fire without hesitation.
A hail of bullets poured onto the Iron Monger armor, unleashing a continuous barrage of metallic clangs and sparks.
Yet attacks that could tear through flesh were little more than a tickle to the Iron Monger. They left only faint white marks on its heavy armor before bouncing off harmlessly.
"Get out of my way!"
Stane's voice came through the armor, a harsh roar like grinding metal.
Before the words had even faded, the Iron Monger's massive body lurched into motion and slammed into the agent at the front!
The agent had no time to dodge. The tremendous force sent him flying, and he crashed hard into the wall with a dull crunch of breaking bones, his fate uncertain.
Faced with such overwhelming force, the remaining agents immediately realized how outmatched they were and scrambled for cover.
Fortunately, they clearly weren't Stane's target.
The Iron Monger ignored the agents in hiding, smashed straight through the research facility's thick wall, and thundered into the middle of the road!
The people in the vehicles were stunned by the sudden appearance of the steel behemoth.
What was that?
A miniature steel giant?
Only after the Iron Monger casually flipped a Hundred-Ton King—the undisputed king of the highway—did panic spread like an epidemic.
In an instant, piercing screams and chaotic honking erupted all around!
"Stane!!"
Just then, a furious roar tore through the night sky.
A red-and-gold figure came diving down from the sky amid the shrill whine of its thrusters, slamming into the Iron Monger in the middle of the road!
BANG!!
A deafening crash exploded through the street!
The two suits of armor collided violently. The force of the impact sent them tumbling out of control across the asphalt, sparks flying in their wake. They rolled several times before finally coming to a stop.
But the Iron Monger quickly got back to its feet.
Its blood-red mechanical eyes locked onto the red-and-gold Steel Armor. Stane immediately guessed who was inside.
"Tony, what do you think? Do you like my new suit?" Stane's voice came through the speakers, full of arrogance and mockery.
"Shut up, you knockoff!"
Tony was so furious he could barely think straight.
A genius like him could tell at a glance exactly what the Iron Monger was.
Wasn't this damn thing just the Mark I he'd hammered together in that cave!?
In both appearance and design, the Iron Monger was nothing more than an enlarged copy of the Mark I.
Even worse, the reactor powering the Iron Monger's chest had been ripped right out of his own armor!
How was that any different from getting NTR'd right in front of everyone!?
"Tony, you really are a genius. But unfortunately, the ideas you come up with don't always belong to you!"
Stane finished speaking.
The Iron Monger's right arm shot up, and the six-barreled Gatling gun mounted on its forearm began spinning wildly as it warmed up!
BRATATATATAT—!
A torrent of bullets poured out, forcing Tony to retreat again and again under the ferocious barrage.
Tony gritted his teeth and charged into the hail of metal. Blinding white light flared from both palms as he fired two energy blasts at the Iron Monger, forcibly interrupting its assault.
"Sir, energy levels have dropped to 18%," Jarvis's voice said from inside the Steel Armor.
"I know!"
Tony's heart sank. This was bad.
The reactor in his chest was the original version, and it had very little energy left to begin with.
Although the Mark III was far more efficient than the Mark I, its remaining power was nowhere near enough to keep it running for long. If this continued, the Mark III would soon become a useless pile of scrap, leaving him completely unable to fight back.
RUMBLE—!
The heavy roar of an engine sounded again!
Tony had barely regained his balance when he saw the Iron Monger pounding across the road toward him at a speed that belied its size!
"Damn it!"
Tony cursed. In the rush, all he could do was cross his arms over his chest to protect himself.
THUD!!
With its overwhelming advantage in weight and momentum, the Iron Monger easily knocked the Mark III off the ground!
Tony felt as though he'd been hit by a speeding train. He crashed hard onto the road more than ten meters away, leaving a shallow crater. Before he could struggle to his feet, the Iron Monger's massive shadow loomed over him, and it stomped him into the ground.
Looking down at Tony beneath his foot, Stane said with a smug grin, "Tony, your armor isn't as good as mine."
"Bullshit!"
At that moment, Tony was just like an impotent husband, utterly helpless against the evil bald bastard Stane.
In Tony's eyes, the Iron Monger was nothing but a shoddy knockoff.
But there was no denying that the Iron Monger's defense, built on sheer mass and ultra-thick armor, was absurdly strong. With its energy supply running low, the Mark III had almost no chance of breaking through.
Tony felt a humiliation unlike anything he'd ever experienced.
Could anything be worse than the original creator being ground into the dirt by the plagiarist?
The Iron Monger lifted its foot, then grabbed the Mark III and hurled it into a bus in the distance.
Stane controlled the Iron Monger and strode forward heavily, closing in once again.
Looking at Tony embedded in the bus, he said coldly, "Listen, I built this company from nothing, one step at a time. No one's going to stand in my way, especially you!"
As he spoke, an anti-tank missile launcher rose from the Iron Monger's shoulder and locked onto Tony.
Tony stared at the anti-tank missile aimed at him and couldn't help but freeze.
This scene looked so familiar!
The next moment, without the slightest hesitation, flames burst from the missile's tail as it shot straight toward Tony!
Just as Tony prepared to take the blast head-on, a figure suddenly appeared in front of him. Holding an utterly ordinary Frying Pan, the figure swung it at the anti-tank missile like a baseball bat!
CLANG!
BOOM!
With a deafening explosion, the anti-tank missile blew apart. Flames rose rapidly, and a powerful shock wave swept outward.
As the dust and smoke gradually cleared, Du Mu stood in front of Tony, Frying Pan in hand, completely unharmed.
"You're fighting the boss without even calling me?"