Pre-Match Trash Talk Was an Essential Part of the Exchange

Tony stood before the testing ground he had built.

At the center of the site stood a massive frame.

Beneath the frame,

towered a two-meter-tall behemoth covered by a broad black cloth.

Its sharp edges pushed up against the cloth, revealing a humanoid shape.

That was obviously Tony's armor.

"You should feel honored."

Tony spread his arms. "You're about to witness the debut of the greatest masterpiece in the world! And you get to witness it twice!"

Leon did not deny it. "That seems about right. Come on, start your show."

Tony's expression grew somewhat more serious.

He kept his arms spread. "Begin, JARVIS."

"Creak!"

At the command, several mechanical arms extended from the frame behind Tony and pulled away the black cloth.

An armor suit in raw steel coloring was revealed.

The metallic, gleaming shell reflected the sunlight like water.

For a moment, even the basement seemed several shades brighter.

The mechanical arms did not stop moving. They removed the armor's components one by one, then began fitting them onto Tony.

The overlapping plates of steel, like living scales, closed around Tony's body and enveloped him.

Once Tony had fully donned the steel armor, the mechanical arms naturally withdrew, and the armor's eyes suddenly lit with a faint glow.

"Hiss!" Streams of air burst from the gaps between the armor plates as though it were breathing.

"Look! This is... my armor!" Tony controlled the armor to spread its arms, flames shooting from both its feet and palms.

He rose into the air and hovered there. "This is Mark 2! Now, I can fly too!"

"Whoa, cool!" Leon could not help but marvel as he looked at the heavily metallic armor before him.

JARVIS's voice intruded at an inopportune moment. "Mr. Stark, Mark 2's flight function still requires further testing."

"No, no, JARVIS. Sometimes, we have to start running before we can learn to walk slowly." Tony repeatedly rejected the warning.

It was clear that he could not wait to soar through the sky.

Tony hovered in the air, flipped open his faceplate, and turned his gaze toward Leon again.

"Mark 2 is equipped with flight stabilizers, palm repulsor beams, and a whole series of other systems. You could say it's thirty years ahead of the world."

"Now it's your turn. Where's your armor?"

Leon did not answer immediately. Instead, he circled Tony once.

"Built entirely from titanium steel, powered by a new energy source, and equipped with the JARVIS system—it truly is a masterpiece that transcends its era."

Then his tone shifted. "But it's still far from enough. I remember there was gold among the spare materials, yet you didn't use any. That will be a flaw."

Tony looked utterly confused. "Why would you add gold to armor? That would be completely unnecessary!"

"In a few minutes, you'll find the answer to that question on my armor."

The admiration in Leon's eyes vanished. He rolled up his sleeves, revealing two glowing wristbands.

"Watch closely. This is my armor. JARVIS, initiate the program!"

"Beep!"

An electronic chime rang out, and the lights on the two wristbands around Leon's wrists turned red.

Then a rumbling sound came from above the garage, accompanied by the crackling crashes of various objects breaking apart.

Tony's expression turned strange. "It sounds like something in my lab just broke. What the hell are you doing?"

"Uh, there may have been a slight mishap with the planned route... Look, it's here!"

Leon suddenly floated into the air and spread his arms.

The next moment, a red-and-blue oval flight pod, jets blazing, flew in from outside the garage.

"Don't tell me your armor is just a big tin can. That really is... Oh my God, this is... How is this possible?"

Tony instinctively began to mock him, but he was soon rendered speechless.

After entering the garage, the red-and-blue flight pod began to disassemble.

Pieces of armor spread out in midair, flames bursting from them as they fitted perfectly against Leon's back.

The red-and-blue steel scales locked onto Leon's body with incredible precision, using his torso as their base.

At last, they formed an armor suit with blue as its base color and red accents.

The armor's eyes lit up. Every component constantly adjusted its position with Leon's movements, as if it were a living creature capable of breathing.

It was practically a work of art forged from steel, its streamlined form combining strength and beauty.

Once the armor had finished assembling, flames suddenly burst from its feet and back, keeping Leon suspended in midair.

He pointed to various parts of his body and described each of the new functions one by one.

"My armor is controlled by the wristbands. When idle, it's a flight pod, and when needed, it can provide remote support."

"Although it isn't equipped with weapons for now, it has plenty of slots reserved for adding them."

"Most importantly, this suit has rear propulsion systems, freeing up both hands during flight for combat or... waving hello."

"Besides that, it has plenty of other functions. For example, it now has a liquid filtration feature that lets the wearer take care of business anywhere while flying..."

Even with his mouth hanging open in shock, Tony hurriedly interrupted him. "Wait, wait. That last part sounded kind of disgusting. You plan to pee while wearing the armor? Don't you think that's gross?"

"Oh, really? I thought you'd like that feature."

Leon narrowed his eyes.

Others might not know, but how could he not understand a guy like Tony?

That liquid filtration feature was something Tony had specifically shown off in the movies.

The only reason Tony had interrupted him now was probably because the old man could not handle the provocation and had to nitpick something.

"I would like it? What a joke! A disgusting and useless feature like that is an insult to armor!" Tony said with a perfectly straight face.

Leon raised an eyebrow. "Then no matter what, I won this contest, right?"

He counted on his fingers. "Your armor has fewer functions than mine, it's less convenient to put on, and there are so many other gaps, so..."

"No, no, Leon, you've got one thing wrong."

Tony hurriedly began patching things up. "What is armor? It's a weapon. Its functions are mainly for combat. Having so many extra capabilities is just a waste of time."

"So?" Leon motioned for Tony to continue.

"So, when comparing armor, the most important thing is comparing performance—speed, environmental adaptability, strength, things like that."

"I have no objection. Then how do we compare?" Leon thought it over and came up with an idea. "I suggest we fly into the sky together and see who flies faster and farther!"

Tony snapped his fingers. "That's exactly what I was thinking."

"Then let's go outside. Have JARVIS call the start, and then..." Leon increased his thruster output and flew outside.

"Whoa, whoa! Leon, are you planning to compete with me while wearing your armor?" Tony felt that something was not quite right.

"How else would we compete?" Leon stopped.