On the giant screen, flames surged and raged as Tony and Killian's close-quarters battle continued.
Even though Lynn's persuasion was clear and straightforward, and even though Tony knew that long-range firepower could easily end the battle, he still stubbornly clenched his fists in his armor and relentlessly attacked the raging flames of the Extremis. There was no roar of cannons, no laser attacks; the entire battle was the most clumsy and exhausting close-quarters combat.
The entire battle was nothing short of the ultimate form of "scraping" (a form of gua sha, a form of physical abra
Tony's every attack hit its target, yet he was never able to effectively injure Killian, who possessed a self-healing ability.
Punches landed on the opponent, only temporarily suppressing wound healing, unable to cause a fatal breach.
Killian's attacks grew increasingly ferocious, flames engulfing almost the entire top floor of the platform, and Tony's armor was damaged more and more. Yet he never retreated an inch, relying on a stubborn tenacity to relentlessly wear down Killian's self-healing energy bit by bit through continuous punches and kicks.
When Killian's energy was completely depleted, the flames around him dimmed, and his wounds could no longer heal instantly, leaving him completely unable to retaliate, Tony finally stopped the pointless hand-to-hand combat.
The shoulder-mounted cannons popped out instantly, fully charged, and a high-explosive shell struck Killian directly in the chest.
A deafening explosion erupted, flames soared into the sky, and the mastermind behind the Extremis Virus, who had been hiding for so long, was completely annihilated in the explosion.
The fierce naval battle thus came to an end.
The private cinema was quiet. Natasha watched the battle on the screen finally end and breathed a sigh of relief.
Lynn looked at Tony in the scene, his armor tattered and disheveled, struggling even to stand up. He shook his head helplessly, then with a slight flick of his finger, a soft golden portal slowly opened beside Tony, leading directly to the battlefield atop the abandoned drilling platform.
He rose and stepped through the portal, while Natasha remained in the theater to wait, not going to the battlefield with him.
The sea breeze, carrying the smoke of gunpowder, swept over him. The ground was littered with wrecked armor and charred steel frames, a horrifying sight. Tony leaned against a broken metal pillar. His armor was jammed and deformed in many places, and the cockpit door could not be opened automatically. He was sore and weak all over, and he barely had the strength to lift his arm.
Lynn walked up to him, said nothing more, reached out and disassembled the jammed armor, patiently helped him remove the broken helmet, then slowly unfastened the clasps on the chest of the armor, and helped the exhausted Tony, who was covered in bruises and wounds, step into the portal.
With a flash of golden light, the two arrived directly at the top-floor bedroom of Stark Tower.
Lynn gently laid the aching Tony on the soft bed, carefully examining his injuries. Looking at his disheveled appearance, she couldn't help but click her tongue, her tone full of helplessness, but her words remained unsparing:
"Tsk, serves him right."
"You could have used firepower to suppress his self-healing ability from the start, blasting him into a state of incapacity. Then you could have gotten close and vented your anger, taken your revenge yourself—no one would have stopped you. Instead, you insisted on a head-on confrontation, engaging in close-quarters combat and getting yourself into this state. Are you satisfied now?"
Tony lay on the bed, eyes closed, panting heavily, feeling as if all his bones were falling apart. Hearing this, he could only let out a muffled groan, powerless to refute.
Lynn looked at him and asked softly, "Can you move? Let's tidy up a bit first."
As soon as he finished speaking, Lynn didn't linger. A faint magical light shone from his fingertips again. "I'll go to the Sanctum and bring Yinsen here to treat your injuries. He's more experienced in treating external wounds, so you can rest assured having the person you trust most treat you."
Before Tony could respond, the golden portal opened again, and Lynn stepped into it, instantly arriving at the solemn and quiet Sanctum hall.
Inside the hall, Wang was wiping the magical artifacts on display. When he saw Lynn arrive, he simply raised his eyes, nodded slightly, and gave a brief greeting. Knowing that Lynn was always spontaneous, he did not ask any further questions about his purpose.
Lynn walked straight to the library and immediately spotted Yinsen sitting quietly by the window, intently flipping through ancient books.
Hearing footsteps, Yinsen closed his book, looked up, and his expression was gentle.
" Tony just finished a tough fight, insisting on going all out with hand-to-hand combat and scraping techniques, which left him with a lot of internal and external injuries. I'd like you to come with me to treat his wounds and check on his condition."
Yinsen understood immediately and, without hesitation, followed Lynn through the portal back to his bedroom on the top floor of Stark Tower.
Tony lay on the bed, pale and exhausted. A hint of warmth flickered in his eyes as he looked at Yinsen, who had come to treat his wounds.
Yinsen looked at Tony, who was lying on the bed in a sorry state, covered in wounds, and shook his head helplessly, speechless.
At that moment, Natasha slowly walked into the bedroom, carrying a complete S.H.I.E.L.D.. professional military medical kit. She silently placed the kit beside the bed for Yinsen to use.
Yinsen didn't delay. He skillfully opened the medical kit and began methodically cleaning Tony's burns and stitching up his wounds.
The only sounds in the room were the soft hum of medical equipment and Tony's occasional suppressed gasps. After a moment, Lynn looked at Tony, whose expression was gradually calming down, and slowly asked the most crucial question:
"So, now that this battle is over, have you finally gotten rid of the inner demons that have been weighing on your heart?"
Tony was silent for a moment, then slowly opened his eyes, looked at the ceiling, and his shoulders, which had been tense for so long, finally relaxed completely. He responded softly, his tone utterly relieved. "Yeah, I've figured it out."
Lynn nodded slightly upon hearing this, then changed the subject, looking at the Arc Reactor on Tony's chest that still emitted a faint blue light, and said in a serious tone:
Now that the knot in your heart has been untied, let's find a suitable time to completely remove this time bomb in your chest.
"I'll be by your side throughout the entire surgery so I can intervene at any time and eliminate any unexpected risks."
When the fragment in his chest was mentioned, Tony's eyes flickered slightly, then he fell into a long silence, not giving an immediate answer.
Lynn didn't press him for an immediate decision. Instead, she softened her tone and brought up another secret that Tony had been keeping hidden in his heart but had always avoided:
"And Pepper Potts."
"You can't keep running away, nor can you expect her to wait for you unconditionally forever. You've been through life and death, and she's worried sick for you time and time again. It's time to give her a proper status and a stable future. Don't wait until you truly lose her to be left with irreparable regrets."
These words were direct and poignant, and the bedroom fell silent once more.
Seeing that Tony needed some alone time to process his emotions, Lynn turned to Yinsen, who was tidying up medical supplies, and asked softly, "Can you take care of the follow-up treatment here by yourself?"
Yinsen nodded to indicate that it was alright.
"Then I won't bother you any longer."
Lynn waved to Tony on the bed, then said goodbye to Yinsen, before turning and leaving the top-floor bedroom with Natasha, going downstairs to the spacious living room.
The living room lighting was soft, isolating the dull atmosphere of the upstairs bedroom.
Lynn walked to the bar, took out two wine glasses, slowly poured in amber-colored whiskey, handed one to Natasha, and then sat down on the sofa with his own glass in hand.
He gently swirled the drink in his glass, gazing at the dazzling New York cityscape outside the window. His expression was calm as he sat quietly on the sofa, fiddling with the gem on his chest, seemingly lost in thought about the future of the war or the impending turmoil.
Natasha sat beside him, holding a wine glass, without saying a word to disturb him, simply keeping him company as they gazed together at the city lights outside the window.