Peggy Carter and her team split up after infiltrating the factory.
Peggy went ahead to locate the mastermind behind the operation, while Hawkeye and Black Widow moved toward another section of the complex to rescue the Vice President.
However, Peggy was stunned the moment she encountered the first mercenary injected with the Extremis virus.
The opponent's physical strength and speed were nearly on par with her own enhanced abilities.
Even worse—
The mercenary's body suddenly glowed red, and intense flames burst out from his skin.
Peggy instantly realized this enemy was far more dangerous than expected.
The fight had barely begun when the commotion attracted more mercenaries.
Soon, several Extremis soldiers surrounded her.
Peggy gripped her weapon tightly.
A silver-white medieval longsword, forged from an adamantium alloy.
She stepped forward without hesitation.
Whoosh!
The sword flashed through the air.
One mercenary's arm was severed cleanly.
But Peggy's expression changed immediately.
The severed limb began regenerating.
Within seconds, the arm grew back completely.
The regenerative ability of the Extremis virus was astonishing.
At the same time, several mercenaries unleashed waves of superheated flames from their bodies.
The temperature was terrifying.
Even Peggy's adamantium alloy blade began to glow dull red from the heat.
The hilt became dangerously hot.
BOOM—!
Two Extremis soldiers attacked simultaneously.
Jets of scorching flame forced Peggy backward until her back slammed into the factory wall.
Meanwhile, Hawkeye and Black Widow encountered their own group of mercenaries.
Initially, they believed the enemies would be easy to defeat.
But reality proved otherwise.
Even pistol rounds could not kill the Extremis soldiers.
Their bodies regenerated almost instantly.
Only Hawkeye's explosive arrows were capable of destroying them completely.
The situation was even more difficult for Natasha.
Although her combat techniques far surpassed her opponents, the Extremis soldiers possessed overwhelming physical strength.
Each strike carried tremendous force.
Even she struggled to keep up.
At that moment, Natasha regretted not bringing Bruce Banner along.
She had assumed the mission would be manageable.
She had completely underestimated the enemy's guards.
BOOM—!
Suddenly, several bright lights appeared in the sky.
They were flying rapidly toward the factory.
Tony Stark had arrived.
Along with dozens of vibranium Iron Man suits.
After detecting the massive heat signatures inside the factory, the armors immediately began attacking.
The Extremis virus was indeed far stronger than in the original timeline.
But Tony's suits had also been upgraded.
Each suit was constructed entirely from vibranium.
Every unit contained four new-element arc reactors, along with multiple high-grade weapon systems.
BOOM!
BANG!
Miniature missiles and laser cannons rained down on the Extremis mercenaries.
Once hit—
Their bodies were blown apart instantly.
Even the regenerative ability of Extremis could not recover from complete destruction.
Their physical enhancement was powerful.
But it was still limited.
No human body could withstand missiles.
Even someone like Steve Rogers, enhanced by the Super Soldier Serum, could not simply endure a missile strike without severe injury.
The Extremis soldiers were still fundamentally human.
Against Tony's heavy weapons, they had no chance.
With Tony's arrival, Peggy Carter and the others finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Without his support, defeating these guards would have been extremely difficult.
The Extremis mercenaries possessed:
Rapid regeneration
Internal high-temperature heat
Flame projection
Combat experience
Without heavy firepower, killing them would have been nearly impossible.
Fortunately, Tony had arrived in time.
However, the battle outside naturally alerted the people inside the factory.
Aldrich Killian and the Mandarin both walked outside.
When they saw the various Iron Man suits hovering in the air, they immediately understood.
Tony Stark had arrived.
Inside the largest factory building nearby—
A figure hung suspended in the air.
It was the Iron Patriot armor used by the U.S. military.
Inside it was the Vice President, who Tony's team had come to rescue.
"Tony! The Vice President should be inside there!"
Natasha shouted after spotting Tony's armor.
One of the Iron Man suits nodded in response.
The armor she spoke to was actually unmanned.
Jarvis was controlling it remotely.
However, the information Natasha provided was instantly relayed to Tony.
Soon, the Iron Man suits eliminated the remaining mercenaries.
Then the entire group flew toward the largest factory building.
Peggy, Natasha, and Barton followed behind.
When Tony entered the factory wearing his armor, he saw two figures already waiting for him.
One man wore a black suit.
The other had rings on every finger.
Killian.
And the Mandarin.
Tony's armor hovered forward.
Dozens of Iron Man suits surrounded the two men.
Palm cannons locked onto them simultaneously.
Feeling confident in his advantage, Tony raised his visor.
He wanted to see clearly who had attacked his home.
"Alright," Tony said coldly.
"Let's start with this."
"Which one of you decided to bomb my house with attack helicopters?"
His eyes were filled with hostility.
"Hahahaha…"
The Mandarin laughed.
"You don't actually believe you've already won, do you?"
"With just these toys?"
His expression was full of contempt.
Then he raised his left hand.
The ring on his middle finger flashed.
A surge of lightning erupted instantly.
The electric blast struck Tony directly.
At the same time, it slammed into the surrounding Iron Man suits.
Even though the armors were made of vibranium, they were still thrown backward.
Vibranium could absorb energy—
But not all of it instantly.
Tony was blasted across the factory floor.
However, he wasn't injured.
The armor's safety system had immediately sealed the helmet when the electric attack struck.
BOOM—!
Tony and several armors crashed into the factory wall.
As Tony began standing up again—
The Mandarin raised his hand once more.
The ring on his left thumb flashed.
A thick red laser beam shot toward Tony.
Tony reacted immediately.
His palm repulsor fired a beam of energy in response.
The two energies collided.
The power continued increasing.
Soon, a glowing energy sphere formed between them.
Then—
BOOM!
The explosion tore through the factory.
The entire structure collapsed.
Tony remained unharmed thanks to his vibranium armor.
The Vice President, still trapped inside the Patriot armor, was also safe.
But something unexpected happened.
From the rubble—
James Rhodes walked out.
Killian and the Mandarin also emerged from the wreckage.
They were covered in soot but completely unharmed.
The Mandarin raised his hand again.
This time the index finger ring flashed.
Flames erupted in midair.
A torrent of fire rushed toward Tony.
Tony immediately grabbed Rhodes.
Then he dodged to the side.
Tony himself might survive the flames thanks to vibranium—
But Rhodes would be burned alive in seconds without protection.
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