The air in the laboratory suddenly began to vibrate at a high frequency.
A blinding golden spark exploded out of thin air, spinning rapidly and cutting through the surrounding space with a sizzling sound.
An irregularly shaped circular portal quickly took shape.
Three figures stumbled out of the portal.
Tony Stark walked in front.
His nanotech armor was badly damaged, the metal shell covered in charred burn marks, and emitting a burnt smell.
The right shoulder armor was completely shattered, revealing a dusty combat uniform underneath, and there was a long scratch on the arm.
Strange followed closely behind, his hands still in a spellcasting gesture, the edges of his red Cloak of Levitation tattered and still bearing a few Mars.
Banner walked at the back, his shirt torn in several places and covered in dust, his tie nowhere to be seen.
The portal closed rapidly behind them, turning into a few Mars and disappearing completely.
Tony steadied himself, raised his head, and looked around the entire laboratory.
The gaze finally settled on Reed's feet.
Within the blue energy field, Kang was still convulsing, black smoke billowing from the cracks in his armor, and electric sparks leaping across the broken wires.
Tony turned his head and looked at Valeria, who was standing next to the control panel.
"Is this the helper you summoned, genius girl?"
Tony raised his right hand and tapped the damaged breastplate, producing a crisp metallic clang that sent down a few charred fragments.
"That was quick."
Valeria ignored Tony's teasing.
She turned her head and looked at Reed.
" Reed, this is one of those two universes with very thick dimensional barriers that Franklin monitored..."
Valeria raised her arm and pointed at Tony.
Tony Stark.
Reed pushed up his non-existent glasses and looked Tony up and down.
His brain was rapidly processing the information he had gathered.
The metal material of the armor, the energy fluctuations of the reactor, the lingering effects of spatial teleportation—all these data converged in his mind.
Tony took a step forward, the tattered nanotech armor making a slight scraping sound, and the metal floor beneath his feet making a dull thud.
" Reed, right?"
Tony raised his chin and pointed to Kang in the field.
Give me that black hippie at your feet.
Reed didn't move an inch; his legs remained firmly planted in place.
He looked at Tony, his hands hanging naturally at his sides.
" Stark, what do you want to do with him?"
Tony tilted his head and let out a short, cold laugh.
Are you kidding me?
He raised his right hand, and the light from the palm cannon began to converge, emitting a charging buzzing sound, with blue energy swirling in his palm.
"Such a dangerous guy, of course he should be killed!"
Tony raised his voice, and the visor of his armor retracted automatically, revealing his dust-covered face.
"Are you expecting him to escape and cause trouble? We just got blown up by him; I don't want to go through that again."
Reed shook his head and raised his hand to stop Tony from doing so.
" Stark, you have no idea how dangerous this guy is."
Reed stretched out his fingers and tapped rapidly on the control panel, bringing up rows of complex data charts.
"Killing him is only a temporary solution; it will only create more problems in the timeline. We need to analyze his time-jumping device and find the timeline node behind him."
Tony lowered his arm, snorted coldly, and the light from the palm cannon quickly dimmed.
"Since you know he's dangerous, why keep him around?"
Tony took two steps forward and stopped at the edge of a safe distance.
"Are you going to keep it as a pet, or are you planning to worship it and offer incense to it every day?"
Johnny quietly moved closer to Valeria.
He lowered his voice and leaned close to Valeria's ear.
" Xiao Wa, I don't remember Tony Stark being this ruthless, do I?"
Valeria turned her head and glared fiercely at Johnny.
"I've told you so many times, don't call me by that name!"
Valeria gritted her teeth, her fingers scratching the edge of the control panel with a harsh sound.
I'm not a child!
She turned her head to look at Tony and Reed, who were facing off, and her hands flew across the keyboard.
"Also, don't underestimate them; something's not quite right with the Avengers in this universe."
Valeria rapidly tapped on her personal terminal, bringing up several sets of data; the light from the screen reflected on her face.
"Their strength is definitely greater than that of the Avengers in our universe."
Johnny pursed his lips, crossed his arms, leaned back against the metal wall, and idly shook his right leg.
"How strong can it be?"
Johnny raised his chin, nonchalant, a hint of mockery on his face.
"We've been in the industry for so many years, our combat experience is definitely far superior to theirs. They're just a few ordinary people wearing high-tech toys."
Valeria stopped what she was doing, her fingers hovering above the keyboard.
She turned her head and looked at Johnny.
Valeria began stating the facts without any emotional fluctuation.
"This Tony Stark knows magic."
Johnny was stunned.
He stared wide-eyed at Tony, who was wearing tattered armor.
Valeria continued to add.
"And his skill level is about the same as Strange's."
She pointed to Banner, who stood behind Tony, looking refined and even somewhat thin.
"And then there's Bruce Banner. He doesn't need to transform into the Hulk to possess the Hulk's power, and he's also proficient in various fighting techniques."
Johnny was completely dumbfounded.
He rubbed his ears vigorously, wondering if he had misheard, and suddenly stood up straight.
What's going on?
Johnny pointed at Tony, then at Banner, waving his finger back and forth in the air.
"Isn't Tony Stark the one who hates nothing but technology? Bruce Banner can have the Hulk's power without transforming? Are you serious, Xiao Wa? That's utter nonsense!"
Tony turned his head and looked in the direction of Johnny and Valeria.
He raised his right hand, his fingertips moving rapidly through the air.
A golden magical line instantly took shape, leaping and entwining in mid-air, emitting crackling sounds of energy bursts.
"The genius girl is right."
Tony snapped his the Snap, and the magical lines turned into specks of golden light and dissipated into the air.
"My personal suggestion is that you give this hippie to me to avoid any unpleasantness for everyone."
Susan stepped forward and stood beside Reed.
She raised her hands, and a transparent force field swirled around her fingertips, causing subtle distortions in the air and creating rings of transparent ripples.
"I'm sorry, Mr. Stark."
Susan remained resolute, showing no intention of backing down, and stood with her feet slightly apart in a defensive stance.
"We have better ways to handle him; we can't leave it to you."
Reed nodded in agreement and continued operating the control panel.
"We need to extract his timeline data to build a multiverse threat model; this is the safest approach."
Tony sighed, shook his head, and rubbed his temples.
He turned his head and looked at Strange and Banner behind him.
"Guys."
Tony spread his hands and shrugged helplessly.
"Looks like we'll have to take a tougher approach."
Strange didn't waste any words.
He clasped his hands together abruptly, and a blinding orange light shone from his palms, with ancient runes appearing around them.
Tony raised both hands at the same time, and golden magic circles instantly unfolded in his palms, with complex geometric patterns intertwining in mid-air.
The two moved in unison, and the magic resonated in the air, producing a deep hum.
The entire laboratory space instantly distorted violently.
The metal walls folded and flipped, emitting a piercing metallic tearing sound; the floor became the ceiling, and the ceiling became the walls.
The artificial Sun overhead was fragmented into countless pieces, giving the space an irregular, polyhedral structure.
Mirror Dimension shaping.
Everyone was forcibly pulled into this bizarre and fantastical space.
Johnny whistled, and the sound echoed in the folded space.
He looked at the constantly changing spatial structure around him; the ground beneath his feet had transformed into vertical walls, yet he remained standing steadily.
I knew it.
Johnny looked at Reed and spread his hands.
"It seems that Tony Stark is difficult to get along with in any universe, and his temper is just as bad."
As soon as he finished speaking, Johnny's entire body burst into orange-red flames.
The intense heat instantly distorted the surrounding air, scorching the ground until it sizzled.
He exerted force with both legs, transforming himself into a fiery meteor, trailing a long tail of flame, and charged straight at Tony.
Ben let out a deafening growl.
His massive rocky body leaned forward, taking heavy steps that caused the transparent ground of the Mirror Dimension to tremble violently with each step, sending fragments of rock flying.
Ben brandished his massive rock fist, creating a gust of wind as he charged towards Tony and his companions with astonishing force.
Banner stepped forward, blocking Tony's path, his feet firmly planted on the ground.
Banner made no unnecessary movements in the face of Ben's charge.
He pulled his right arm back, the muscles bulging high under his shirt, making a crisp sound of bones grinding together, and the shirt sleeve instantly ripped.
Then, he unleashed a powerful punch.
The fist collided violently with Ben's rocky body.
boom----!
A deafening thud was emitted, and the surrounding air was compressed into a white wave that spread outwards.
Its massive body was lifted off the ground in an instant.
He was sent flying backward at ten times the speed at which he had charged at him.
It crashed through more than a dozen layers of folded spatial barriers, producing a tremendous cracking sound.
Finally, it crashed into a floating metal plate far away, creating a huge crater and scattering rubble everywhere. It didn't get up for a long time.
Johnny froze in mid-air, the flames on his body dimming sharply, almost going out.
"Oh my god! What the hell is going on?!"
He stared at Ben, who had been blasted away by a single punch, his mind went blank for a moment, and he forgot to attack.
Susan's hands suddenly stopped, and the transparent force field rippled violently, almost losing control.
Reed's outstretched arm froze in mid-air, his eyes wide open.
They were well aware of Ben's strength and defenses; his rocky body could withstand missile bombardment.
That seemingly frail Bruce Banner actually managed to send Ben flying with a single punch using pure physical strength!
This completely overturned their understanding, and their worldview was severely impacted at that moment.
Reed immediately adjusted his tactics, forcing himself to calm down.
He stretched his arms out, covering a distance of more than ten meters, and wrapped them around Tony.
Tony snorted coldly, showing no sign of panic.
He quickly formed hand seals in front of his chest, his movements incredibly practiced.
Crimson magical energy gathered at his fingertips, emanating a dangerous aura.
Crimson Bands of Cyttorak shot out instantly.
The thick red chains twisted nimbly in mid-air, precisely wrapping around Reed's outstretched arms and constricting them tightly.
The chains tightened suddenly, making a teeth-grinding scraping sound.
Reed was pulled so hard that he stumbled, lost his balance, and fell forward, crashing heavily to the ground.
Seeing this, Susan no longer held back, and her protective instincts erupted instantly.
She thrust her hands forward forcefully, mobilizing all the energy in her body.
An invisible shockwave emanated from her, spreading out in a fan shape with overwhelming force.
Wherever the shockwave passed, the folded space of the Mirror Dimension shattered, turning into countless glass-like fragments that flew in mid-air.
Tony and Strange both sensed danger.
The two quickly moved closer and stood side by side.
Strange drew circles with both hands, while Tony pushed his hands forward, unleashing a frenzied burst of magic.
A massive Shield of the Seraphim instantly unfolded in front of the two of them.
A golden magical shield shone brightly, protecting the two of them firmly behind them.
The force field shockwave slammed into the Shield of the Seraphim.
The shield's surface rippled violently, emitting a piercing scraping sound and sparks flying everywhere.
Tony and Strange slid backward several meters at the same time, their feet carving two deep furrows in the ground, sending metal shards flying.
Fine cracks appeared on the golden magic shield and continued to widen.
Tony gritted his teeth, gripping the shield tightly with both hands. The muscles in his arms trembled slightly from the exertion, and cold sweat beaded on his forehead.
"Mamma Mia Law!"
Tony cursed, the swear word still clear amidst the roar of the force field.
He maintained the shield with his left hand, while his right hand suddenly unleashed a golden magical line.
Lines traverse the chaotic battlefield, circling around flying debris.
It accurately entangled Kang, who was trapped in the energy disk.
Tony pulled hard, his arm snapping back.
Kang, along with the silver disc, was pulled over and slid across the ground for more than ten meters before crashing down at Tony's feet.
Tony stomped on Kang's chest, pinning him down, his boot grinding against Kang's armor.
He looked up at Valeria in the distance.
"Genius girl."
Tony was breathing heavily, his chest heaving, and sweat was streaming down his face.
"You didn't tell us your mother was this amazing."