Zhang Xi shook his head, shaking off the chaotic thoughts.
He checked the time—it was about right.
With Tony’s brilliance, he should have thoroughly analyzed the flying knife by now.
The timing was perfect.
With that thought, Zhang Xi traveled to the Marvel Universe.
Once again, his destination was Stark Tower.
Pressed for time, he walked straight inside.
“Hi, X.”
As soon as he entered, someone greeted him.
Zhang Xi looked up and saw it was the same receptionist from before.
“Hey, hello,” Zhang Xi replied politely.
“I’m here to see Mr. Stark.”
The receptionist said, “Mr. Stark left instructions that if you came to see him, you could go directly to his lab. Please follow me.”
“Thanks,” Zhang Xi said, then followed the receptionist.
On the way, he spotted Pepper Potts.
Zhang Xi smiled and greeted her, “Hi, hello.”
Pepper glanced at Zhang Xi, her expression cold.
Without saying a word, she walked away.
Zhang Xi was surprised and couldn’t help but ask, “What’s going on? She doesn’t seem very happy.”
The receptionist shrugged and said, “Our boss has been holed up in the lab every day lately, working on who knows what. So, yeah, she’s not too happy.”
“Oh, I see,” Zhang Xi said, nodding with a smile.
Then, he suddenly froze as a terrifying thought struck him.
*This plot… it’s so familiar.
Tony is obsessed with researching the Iron Man armor and neglecting his girlfriend’s feelings.
Isn’t this exactly the plot of Iron Man 3?
Could it be that we’ve already reached the events of Iron Man 3?*
As a die-hard Marvel fan, Zhang Xi was incredibly well-versed in the Marvel timeline and its plots.
A single detail was enough for him to pinpoint exactly where they were.
*Damn it.
This is when Killian will organize the helicopter attack on Stark Tower.*
But now that he did, Zhang Xi was determined to stop it.
Not for any other reason, but because he wasn’t a Marvel character and lacked any plot armor.
Who knew if he’d end up dying here?
Just as Zhang Xi was lost in these frantic thoughts, a voice rang out.
“Hey, it’s not good to talk about the Boss’s privacy.” Tony walked out, looking disheveled.
“Uh, don’t blame him. I was the one who asked,” Zhang Xi said.
“Yeah, I know. It’s fine, I don’t mind,” Stark said.
“Follow me, I have something to tell you.”
Zhang Xi nodded and followed Tony.
The two arrived at Tony’s lab.
Tony said, “J.A.R.V.I.S., show the guest the blueprints.”
“Yes, Boss.”
A blueprint appeared—the design for a suit of Iron Man armor.
Holding a cup of coffee, Tony asked, “What do you think? I’m quite pleased with it.”
Zhang Xi asked with some confusion, “Um, I’m not too clear on this. But shouldn’t you be researching that flying knife? What, have you already figured it out? Are you planning to use the flying knife’s material to make the armor?”
“No, I don’t have that idea. I haven’t had a chance to tell you about that yet.” Tony waved his hand, and another blueprint appeared.
“Look, this is the molecular structure of the Flying Knife Metal. This metal has a major side effect.”
“A side effect?”
“Yes. For the user, there are no issues at all. Plus, it’s incredibly easy to replicate. Just cut off a piece and fuse it with any other metal, and that metal will acquire the same properties. It’s truly remarkable stuff.”
“Hmm, that does sound impressive. But where’s the side effect?” Zhang Xi asked.
“I’m not sure if it’s a side effect, but here.” Stark produced a small cage from nearby, containing several white mice.
“To test if this metal was toxic, I used these mice for experiments. Alright, I know you’re going to call me cruel, but I had no choice. And that’s when the problem arose.”
“What do you mean?”
“These mice were long past their breeding age,” Tony said gravely.
“But after I ran the experiments on them, their breeding cycles suddenly stopped completely!”
“Is there a connection?”
“Yes. Because these were just superficial tests. Theoretically, this shouldn’t have happened. Now I even suspect these mice have completely lost their ability to reproduce. So… hospitals will no longer need to perform vasectomies, and the birth control industry is in trouble.”
Though Tony said this with a smile, Zhang Xi recognized the severity of the situation.
This metal was so easy to mass-produce and worked so well, it was almost too good to be true.
But the side effect was terrifying.
If this were true, would humans on Earth become unable to reproduce? You are reading on g.com, the official source.
Most importantly, Zhang Xi had been stabbed by this knife.
Could it be that he also…?
The thought broke a cold sweat over him.
Zhang Xi was an only child.
If he couldn’t have heirs, his mother would truly hang herself.
At this thought, Zhang Xi hurriedly closed his eyes and recalled scenes from some adult movies, silently pleading, *Come on, man, help me out here.
Don’t scare me.*
As the images grew more vivid, Zhang Xi finally felt a reaction.
He breathed a sigh of relief.
*Whew, thank goodness.
It seems it doesn’t affect humans.
I’ll do the other checks when I get back.*
Tony turned his head and happened to catch sight of Zhang Xi.
He couldn’t help but frown and ask, “Hey, man, what are you thinking about?”
“Ah, me? Oh, nothing!” Zhang Xi quickly snapped back to reality and replied with a chuckle.
Although he hadn’t been caught, the guilt of his secret made him feel awkward when suddenly questioned.
“Oh, good. Now, where were we? Right, this metal issue. I didn’t dare use it for the armor precisely because it might have these side effects.”
*So that’s why.
It seems my decision was correct,* Zhang Xi thought.
He had known all along that this metal was unusual, and letting Tony study it was definitely the right choice.
“Alright, let’s drop it, Tony,” Zhang Xi said hastily.
“Listen, you need to get some protection ready. There could be helicopters coming to bomb you at any time over the next few days. You must be extremely careful.”
Zhang Xi’s change of subject was so abrupt that Tony couldn’t react immediately.
He stared blankly for a moment, then laughed, “Hey, what are you talking about? Are you dreaming?”
“No, I’m not joking. I’m dead serious,” Zhang Xi said sternly.
“Do you remember a man named Killian?”
“Killian?” Tony paused, then shook his head.
“Rings a bell, but I can’t place him.”
“Of course you don’t. He’s a nobody. Forget it, you’ll remember him soon enough. All I’m saying is we need to be prepared. Get the air defenses ready. Do you understand?”
Zhang Xi’s warning was spot on, but by now, it was already too late.
(End of Chapter)