"How do you feel?" After hearing the latest news about Gunilla and the accidental crash of a new U.S. military fighter jet, Zhou Yi immediately called Tony. He really wanted to tease his bad pal and learn about his new feelings in this new profession.
"What do you mean, how do I feel? If you're talking about my jog just now, I feel pretty good. You know, I haven't had normal, reasonable exercise in two months." Tony began to prevaricate. No matter who asked him, he never answered honestly.
"Tony, you should know what I'm asking. You know you broke Rhodey's plane. Don't you feel a little bit guilty?"
"I'm very guilty, so I didn't go looking for trouble with him. You know, he hit me first." Tony's short temper made him retort, and this naturally led him into Zhou Yi's linguistic trap.
"Alright, then how does it feel, after putting on that flashy ‖.2⊥3.o＠ red iron man armor."
"What do you mean flashy, you bumpkin who only knows black Base layers." First, he refuted Zhou Yi's aesthetic, then Tony began to formally answer his question. "You're right, that feeling was really awesome."
"I feel like I've become a different person, you know? pal, I single-handedly wiped out an entire terrorist Base. It's just like being in a movie."
It seemed he had finally found a colleague to confide in, and Tony couldn't suppress his excitement at this moment. He was like a playful Child who had found a fun game, his mind filled with this thrilling feeling.
"Yes, it's awesome. I know. So besides that, do you feel better?" Interrupting Tony's rambling, Zhou Yi indicated that he wasn't there to listen to his inaugural address. He was concerned about Tony's inner self, specifically his sense of guilt.
As one of his best friends, he was well aware of Tony's major flaw. He was often self-righteous, willful, prejudiced, and arrogant. Even with friends, he wouldn't hold back when his temper flared. Although he always tried to make amends after he sobered up, some damage to friends couldn't be compensated for. This was why Tony had so few friends. Because very few people could tolerate his personality.
As an ordinary person, this kind of personality would at most affect those around him. But once he stepped into the Domain of a Superhero, this personality would become a fatal problem. Not just for him, but for many people.
A Superhero does not exist for one person; they exist for more people. The one thing such a person cannot have is willfulness. So Zhou Yi had to remind him, to put a leash on him, so that he wouldn't embark on a path of no return.
"Tony, since you've already joined this line of work.
As a friend, and also as a senior, I must tell you to remember your original intention: you became a warrior in the Iron Man Suit for those who were hurt because of you. So if you continue to fight in that suit in the future, you must remember this original intention. You are for others, not for yourself."
Tony listened, but he remained silent. And Zhou Yi said nothing more after that. They tacitly maintained this silence until one of them broke it.
"pal, did you take the wrong medicine today? You're actually saying such high-sounding words. Honestly, you've kind of scared me." Tony laughed, seemingly trying to muddle through. But Zhou Yi wouldn't let him off so easily.
"Tony, I want you to promise me. You'll remember what I told you today."
"Is it that important, pal!"
"It's very important. It concerns the lives of many people. You should have that awareness now."
Hearing the word 'life,' Tony fell silent once more. After another long period of thought, Tony finally gave him an answer.
"I'll remember, pal."
"Very good, Tony. I hope you will abide by it." Zhou Yi chuckled softly. "So, what do you plan to do next? Continue causing havoc in the Middle East? Rhodey has complained to me. If you keep messing around like this, next time it won't just be planes waiting for you."
"I know what I need to do. I've already asked Pepper. Obadiah has been making shady deals behind my back. As long as Pepper can get me the evidence, I can return to the Board of Directors. I'll need your help then."
"I understand. My representative will fully support you at the shareholders' meeting. Of course, that's all I can do."
"That's enough, pal!" A faint smile appeared on Tony's Face. Exposing Obadiah wasn't an easy task for him, but having his friend's support at least gave him some comfort.
"Contact me if you have any problems, you know. My other identity can help you a lot." Zhou Yi reminded him. He remembered that Tony and Obadiah still had a battle ahead, and he somewhat wanted to get involved. Because Obadiah really made him feel a bit disgusted. Before, he didn't bother him out of respect for Tony, but now it was different.
"If possible, I'd rather solve this problem myself. Goodbye, pal. I still have a lot to prepare." Tony said and hung up the phone. Just as he said, he had a lot, a lot to prepare.
Obadiah wasn't an ordinary person; he commanded no less resources than Tony. To completely purge Obadiah's influence from within the company, he had to be fully prepared.
Pepper had already been assigned to some special work, while he pulled out files from over thirty years ago. Those were about his father. He started to suspect Obadiah, and naturally, he would suspect more, such as his father's death.
Howard Stark, in his prime, died in an accidental car crash. This didn't look like an accident at all. Originally, Tony had no one to suspect, so he didn't take this matter to heart. But now, the situation was different.
The printed documents were flipped through one by one before his eyes, and as he looked at these documents, an uncontrollable rage surged in Tony's heart. And this rage was directed at Obadiah.
Tony had very complex feelings towards his father. He disliked his father because Howard valued his science and career more than he valued him. At the same time, he greatly admired his father. His Genius, his cynicism, and his playboy demeanor were all derived from imitating his father.
Father, this role was very important to him.
Before reading these documents, he had never thought of doing anything to Obadiah. At most, he just wanted to clear out his influence and let him be an old man who could only live off his shares. He might even choose to reconcile with him in the future. But now, when he learned that his father's death was very closely related to Obadiah, he changed his mind. He had an urge to kill Obadiah.
However, this impulse had not yet materialized. An accident occurred. An extremely painful sensation instantly transmitted from his brain to the central nervous system, causing him to immediately lose control of his body. At this moment, Obadiah walked out from behind him.
He narrowed his eyes, staring at Tony, who was falling to the ground like a wooden man, with a gloomy look. After a moment, he spoke.
"You really have bad luck, Tony. Such an important matter, and I just happened to overhear it. You actually want to kick me out of the company. Do you know what that means to me, Tony? That's murder to me."
Saying that, he squatted down and picked up the printed documents from Tony's hand.
"Fortunately, my partner gave me an unexpected gift, forcing me to come and see you. You know, originally I was still thinking about how to borrow that small reactor from you, but now! I've changed my mind. It's better to just take it directly."
At this moment, all the blood vessels on Tony's Face burst out, and his eyes turned completely red. It was a look of fury, a fury that almost squeezed his eyeballs from their sockets. Seeing his appearance, Obadiah laughed.
"Don't worry, Tony. You'll be back to normal in fifteen minutes. Remember, this is a little something you invented. A subsonic human paralysis device, light and compact, and very useful. Unfortunately, the Government didn't approve its production. This only sample was collected by me. I have to say, it played a big role."
Saying that, Obadiah sat down. Just like before, he started chatting with Tony.
"You know, Tony, I've always treated you as my Child. You're very smart, very capable, and you once made me proud. Stark Industries' current achievements have a lot to do with your efforts. Many times, I thought I really shouldn't be so harsh on you. But, Tony, you really broke my heart."
"Ever since you started hanging out with that little rascal Zhou Yi, you've become more and more reckless. Stark Industries is no longer thriving like it used to; it's actually been caught up by Osborn. The two of you teamed up, rejecting my proposals again and again. Don't you know those were opportunities for the company's development? I tolerated you repeatedly, but you became more and more excessive."
"Do you know who leaked your whereabouts, causing you to be kidnapped to that place?" Obadiah's Face became ferocious. At this moment, he finally exposed his true colors in front of Tony. "It was me, Tony. I couldn't watch you destroy the company anymore. That was my life's work for over forty years. I had them kill you, but I didn't expect those guys from the Ten Rings Gang to have their own ideas about you."
"But it's also good, they actually squeezed out your potential. I saw the first battle of that iron man armor, and the Ten Rings Gang gave me very detailed data. And your old blueprints and that sample, thanks to your intelligence, I built a bigger one myself. Of course, it's still missing a few things."
At this point, Obadiah glanced at the documents in his hand.
"You thought of Howard again, how unfortunate. I was very sad about Howard's accident. In fact, I didn't want to do that either. It's just that he had the same idea as you. Should I say you two truly have a father-son bond? The father dies by my hand, and the son must also die by my hand. Should I also say that all of this is the decision of fate?"