Iron Man on the Verge of Bankruptcy

The next day, Lu Qi woke up and thought of yesterday's farce, shaking his head.

A Shadow Ninja appeared to prepare food. Lu Qi took a toothbrush and cup of water from another Shadow Ninja and went to brush his teeth.

Sitting at the dining table, the ninja turned on the television by himself.

"Yesterday, Stark Industries issued an explanation regarding the battle that took place at Stark Industries the day before. At the press conference, billionaire Tony Stark announced that he was the person wearing the metal armor that night, acknowledging his nickname, 'Iron Man.' He also admitted that another individual with numerous inhuman subordinates and control over black energy was his friend, the 'Shadow Lord,' and declared that the other party's abilities were absolutely under control."

"Last night, Tony Stark attended a banquet wearing the Iron Man armor, making the atmosphere even livelier."

"Unfortunately, our reporters did not spot the Shadow Lord's appearance..."

The television news was reporting yesterday's events. Most of it concerned him and Tony.

It seemed more people were paying attention to him, since Lu Qi had saved Tony several times when he was threatened yesterday. Then, in the end, he had fought Iron Monger alone, drawing even more attention from ordinary people.

Lu Qi changed the channel, but it was still reporting the same news.

He frowned. Even his favorite morning gossip shows had turned into Iron Man news, leaving him somewhat helpless.

After breakfast, Lu Qi opened the system.

He now had fifty Blade Soldiers and three hundred and fifty Ninja Soldiers. To his surprise, not a single Ninja Soldier on Yinsen's side had died. Lu Qi could not help feeling that he needed to reassess the Ninja Soldiers' strength.

Still, it made sense. The Ninja Soldiers now possessed physical capabilities eight times greater than an ordinary person's. Combined with their superb skills, they could withstand rifle attacks. With their coordination and elusive movement techniques, they were more than capable of establishing themselves in that area.

Before fighting Iron Monger yesterday, he had first fought an enemy from another dimension. That had also made Lu Qi realize his own shortcomings.

His individual strength was still relatively weak. He basically relied on his subordinates in battle, but the Shadow Legion was not especially strong at present.

Ninja Soldiers, for example, were formidable in ordinary battles, but they were somewhat lacking in battles between dimensions. The enemy generally sent their Material World subordinates to attack, and their numbers would not be small. That meant Lu Qi's side would naturally be outnumbered.

Looking at the few coordinates for Tiny Dimensions he had left, he realized that when he later plundered Small, medium, large, and even Dormammu's dimensions, the numerical gap would only grow wider.

Since he could not compete in numbers, he might as well improve quality. By then, his stronger troop types could fight ten thousand alone and all guard the spatial rift on this side. The enemy would not be able to push through, while his fearless ninjas could cross over and wear the other side down until they were exhausted to death.

Lu Qi looked at the remaining tiny Dark Dimensions and decided that after mining them all, he would raise the Ninja Soldiers' numbers to one thousand, strengthen his body once, then raise the Blade Soldiers' numbers to one hundred. That would not only unlock a new troop type, but also make his subordinates stronger.

Lu Qi checked the remaining mineable energy, set an alarm, and decided to hurry up and mine all the Tiny Dimensions over the next two days.

A call came in. Lu Qi picked up his phone and saw that it was Tony.

He answered it. "Hey, Tony. Need my help again?"

"It's nothing, Lu. Come over here for a moment. I have a gift for you."

A gift?

Lu Qi thought about it, unable to guess what Tony would give him. Could it be a set of Iron Man armor?

He drew a circle and arrived in Tony's basement.

"Recordings deleted," JARVIS's voice said.

"I adjusted JARVIS yesterday. From now on, whenever you use a portal, it'll automatically delete all recordings from that period."

Tony explained as he handed over two wristbands.

"Put them on and give them a try."

Lu Qi put the wristbands on. Light flashed from them, and a pair of metal boots flew over and fitted themselves around his feet.

"This is a new tracking armor technology I developed. It lets the armor automatically separate into individual pieces and attach itself to the body. The technology isn't mature yet, though, so it can only attach smaller things."

"I noticed you moved slowly in the air before, so I made you a pair of jet boots. They're powered by a miniature reactor and can push your aerial speed beyond the speed of sound."

"They don't provide much protection for the rest of your body, but judging by your physical condition, you probably don't need protection. Armor might even restrict you."

Tony said that last part helplessly. It was also what he found most unbelievable. Why did Lu Qi have such terrifying physical capabilities?

If he had that kind of physique, he could finish interviewing all thirteen girls from that magazine in a single day.

"That's something you can't envy your way into." Lu Qi looked at the boots on his feet, walked a few steps, and found that they fit perfectly.

"JARVIS, can you give me a route to test them out?"

He walked to the starting point by the garage door.

"Tony, want to go for a ride?"

"Yeah, right. You're just afraid you can't fly and want billionaire Iron Man Tony Stark to protect you."

"Screw you. I can fly on my own. I'm just inviting you out for a ride."

Watching Tony approach in his armor, Lu Qi thought for a moment. Dark Energy covered his body and slowly formed into the shape of a combat suit, which could provide him with some protection as well.

"What can't your ability do?"

Tony looked at Lu Qi's combat suit, somewhat envious of that method of putting it on. If he wanted to suit up now, he still needed specialized equipment, though the new technology he was developing could solve that problem.

He also had a portable armor set in development. It could be carried around and would serve as a transitional product.

"The power of technology should be able to do it too. For example, the concept of nanotechnology that's only just emerged."

Tony nodded thoughtfully.

"JARVIS, give that idea a like. Now, it's time for us to go for a ride."

As Tony spoke, he stepped onto the armor assembly platform. Several mechanical arms brought out various armor components and installed them onto him.

Once suited up, Tony came over to Lu Qi's side and moved his body around.

"Ready? How about a race? If you lose, give me two Ninja Soldiers to study. Don't worry, I'm just curious about their biological composition. I won't conduct any evil experiments."

"And if you lose?" Lu Qi did not care much. He understood Tony fairly well by now. Tony was still a technology fanatic and had no interest in biotechnology. The most likely use for the two Ninja Soldiers would be as bodyguards for Potts.

"Tony Stark doesn't lose."

Tony said it confidently. What did Lu Qi know about fluid dynamics? Lu Qi had only just broken the sound barrier, while Tony was already approaching Mach 2. Technology had won a round before the race even began.

"Let's make this clear first. No cheating with portals. JARVIS, plan the route and apply for an air corridor."

"Relax. My portals can't open to places I don't know."

"Wait, then how did you come straight to my lab?"

"Route planning complete, sir."

"I'm heading out first."

"Wait, you bastard!"

Flames erupted from the boots beneath Lu Qi's feet, carrying him forward. He flew unsteadily through the air for a while, familiarizing himself with the controls before stabilizing himself.

"Hey, are you ready? I've been waiting forever."

Tony did not take off immediately either. He hovered nearby in the air and waited for him.

"Whew, I should be good now."

"Then don't use that as an excuse when you lose. JARVIS, you call the start."

The two hovered in the air, waiting for JARVIS's command.

The instant the command came, Lu Qi reacted first and shot forward. Tony was a little slower, but his speed advantage soon let him close in on Lu Qi.

"Lu, I'm going on ahead."

Both of them had already broken the sound barrier, and Tony's voice reached Lu Qi through the wristband's bone conduction system.

Watching the flames from Tony's thrusters intensify as he sped ahead, Lu Qi smiled. Did Tony really think he was no good in the air?

Dark Energy enveloped his whole body and pushed the air away. Lu Qi's speed continued to increase.

From afar, Lu Qi's body looked like a black pillar that could part the air around him, making it seem as though he were flying through space with no air resistance.

"Here I come, Tony."

Through the Dark Energy, Lu Qi saw Tony, who had originally vanished from sight, and rapidly closed in on him.

"What the fuck, JARVIS? Analyze why he's so fast."

"Unknown energy detected. It displaces the air, eliminating air resistance and allowing continuous acceleration, sir."

"Unbelievable!"

Tony watched as Lu Qi reached his side in a short time, and Lu Qi's speed was still increasing without pause.

"Lu Qi, your speed is about to break Mach 3. This is insane."

"Is that so? I think I can go even faster, but it seems the rest of the trip isn't very long."

Tony glanced at the route. JARVIS had originally planned a five-hundred-kilometer route, but at their current speed, they would cover that distance in only ten minutes.

"Oh, Tony, I think I'm going too fast. I'm running out of energy."

Lu Qi suddenly shouted.

"Are you okay?!" Tony shouted back.

"I'm fine, but I might have to slow down. You go on ahead." The Dark Energy covering his body slowly faded, and Lu Qi's speed gradually decreased.

He eventually came to a complete stop and touched his chest.

Dispelling the Dark Energy meant suddenly meeting the air while traveling at more than Mach 2. It felt as though an elephant were pressing down on him. That was only because Lu Qi's physical capabilities were eight times greater than an ordinary person's, and because he had slowly dispelled the Dark Energy, giving himself time to adjust.

After using Dark Energy to heal himself, Lu Qi slowly flew forward.

"Tony, you won. Nicely done." Lu Qi spotted Tony waiting for him outside a burger joint in the distance. A circle of people had already gathered around Tony, taking pictures.

Dark Energy covered Lu Qi's face as he walked over.

"You bastard, I know you let me win!" Tony walked over, hugged Lu Qi, and whispered in his ear.

"Forget it. I wanted to do something for Pepper too. After all, she gave me a lift."

Lu Qi smiled.

The people around them erupted completely. Seeing Iron Man had already made them incredibly excited, but seeing the even more mysterious Shadow Lord made them ecstatic.

Looking at the crowd around them taking pictures and cheering, Lu Qi felt somewhat uncomfortable. He was not like Tony, able to accept the cheers of so many people.

"Many of these people were evacuated from Stark Industries that night. Without you, more than half of them would have been killed by Obadiah. You saved them. They came to thank you."

Lu Qi looked at the crowd around him. They were happy, but none of them did anything excessive.

Two children came over with flowers and handed them to Lu Qi.

"Thank you for saving us."

Lu Qi accepted the flowers and gently rubbed the two children's heads.

"Thank you."

He said that to the children, then turned around.

"All right, Tony. I admit it, I kind of like this atmosphere."

Lu Qi said to Tony. Tony smiled and turned on his armor's loudspeaker.

"Everything in the burger joint is free today! Anyone want a cheeseburger? I personally own this place, and the cheeseburgers are definitely delicious!"

"You really opened a burger joint?"

Lu Qi was somewhat surprised. Tony shrugged. "Stark Industries shut down its weapons division, and commercialization of the reactor is progressing slowly. I didn't know what else to do, so I just opened a burger joint first."

"All right." Lu Qi shook his head. "I'll take two cheeseburgers."

Tony went inside to get the burgers, while Lu Qi flew to the rooftop of the building across from the burger joint to wait for him.

After a while, Tony flew up too.

"Your burger."

"Do you want a tip?"

"Screw you."

The lower half of Lu Qi's mask disappeared, and he took a bite of the burger.

"It tastes pretty good. You might actually make money."

"That's good. Stark Industries' stock has stopped falling, but it's still far below where it used to be. If I don't start making money soon, I might actually go bankrupt."

Tony took a bite of his cheeseburger and said it to Lu Qi with some exaggeration.

"You have so much advanced technology. Can't you turn it into products?"

"Production cost is one issue, and public acceptance is another. Plenty of people still think cameras built into phones are useless, low-resolution, and take up space. But my armor already uses much better equipment."

"Oh, then have you tried putting everything into one?"

"What?"

"Bad news: it's a Frankenstein. Good news: you stitch everything onto it."

Tony was still somewhat confused.

"Try making a phone with a full screen and no buttons. Like this wristband, just swipe directly on the screen. Put everything on it—radio, television, camera, compass, handheld game console. Add every function you can so people feel that this phone can do anything. Then give it a voice assistant. It doesn't need to be like JARVIS, just a simple recognition-and-response assistant that reacts to certain phrases. It can make calls, take pictures, and search for things."

Lu Qi tried to steer Tony toward developing smartphones earlier so he could have more fun himself.

"Would it sell well?"

"Absolutely!"

"Then I'll trust you and go back to try it."

Tony spoke seriously, clearly taking the idea to heart.

"Compared to me, you definitely understand ordinary people better."

"Are you insulting me?"

Just as the two were chatting happily, a voice appeared behind them.

"You two seem to be having a great time?"

Lu Qi and Tony turned around and found Egghead.