Chapter Seventy-Nine: Tony's Return

Puff, puff, puff...

Watching the terrorists fall one after another like dumplings dropped into boiling water, Tony’s seething rage instantly deflated, vanishing like air from a punctured ball. He stood there, dumbfounded, staring at the Chinese boy wielding a wand amid the crowd. What was happening? Was he dreaming?

Before he could process it, the distant figure vanished, only to reappear just a meter in front of him the next moment.

“What the hell?!”

The sudden spectacle startled him so much that, had he not been so composed, he would have swung a metal fist at the newcomer in his Iron Man suit.

The Chinese boy smiled gently. “Hello, Mr. Stark. I’m Shawn Gu. Colonel Rhodey asked me to come save you.”

Rhodey?

Hearing the name of an old friend, Tony began to regain his senses. He was about to speak when something struck him, and his expression changed abruptly. He turned and rushed back into the cave.

“Yinsen! Yinsen, how are you, Yinsen?”

Clad in his bulky armor, Tony thundered into the cave, finding Yinsen lying in a pool of blood.

“Yinsen, Yinsen, we’re saved! Come on, let’s go, we’re leaving right now.” Tony awkwardly extended a hand to the man in the blood, struggling with the suit’s controls.

Yinsen managed a weak smile and shook his head slightly. “I can’t go. You go, Stark.”

Tony’s eyes reddened. He reached out, saying, “Don’t talk nonsense. Get up, you still have to see your family. Come, I’ll take you out.”

“My family is gone. Now, I’m going to see them.”

As he spoke, a faint black mist settled over Yinsen’s face. Even without medical training, it was clear he was beyond saving.

Tony froze, his throat feeling blocked, unable to utter a single word.

Amid this heartbreaking scene, an untimely voice sounded nearby.

“Sorry to interrupt, but if we don’t treat him now, this gentleman really won’t make it.”

Tony spun around as if struck by lightning, eyes bloodshot, glaring fiercely at Shawn Gu, who looked innocent and calm.

Meeting that tranquil gaze, Tony remembered the boy’s earlier feats.

A possibility dawned on him, and his heart, so recently despondent, began to beat wildly. He cried out urgently, “What did you say? What did you just say? Can you save him? You can save him, right?”

Shawn Gu simply smiled, and under Tony’s hopeful gaze, he flicked and waved his dragonbone wand.

“Bullets, fly out!”

“Heal as new!”

Two spells in quick succession struck Yinsen, and as Tony’s eyes widened, several metal bullets lodged in Yinsen’s wounds were drawn out by an invisible force.

More astonishing still, the bloody holes began to close at a speed visible to the naked eye.

The faint black mist on Yinsen’s face seemed to dissipate like a breeze. Though his complexion remained frighteningly pale, a spark of life returned to him.

“Oh my God! What is this, nanotechnology?” Tony stared, wide-eyed, neglecting even the barely-rescued Yinsen, his gaze fixed on Shawn Gu.

Seemingly oblivious to Tony’s probing look, Shawn Gu withdrew his wand after healing Yinsen’s wounds and spoke solemnly.

“Mr. Stark, I came here to rescue you at the request of Stark Industries and Colonel Rhodey. They promised to pay me twenty million dollars’ worth of Stark stock as compensation if I succeeded.”

“The commission required me to save only you. Now there’s an extra person. What do you think?”

As one of the smartest minds in the Marvel universe, Tony instantly caught the implication. Without hesitation, he replied, “I’ll add another twenty million.”

Shawn Gu’s eyes gleamed, his smile stretching ear to ear, and he looked at Tony with newfound warmth.

A true tycoon, he thought. Though his liquid assets might not match Fury’s, they were his own, freely spent as he pleased—not like Fury, who had to submit endless reports and pinch pennies. Not nearly as satisfying.

In Shawn Gu’s eyes, Tony became his most important client after Fury.

He said warmly, “Then I won’t be shy. This must be Mr. Yinsen. Life is so precious; how can you give up so easily? Come, drink this potion first. Even if you must die, let me get my payment first.”

Without another word, he produced a bottle of magic potion, and gave it to the still-confused Yinsen.

“By the way, Mr. Stark, about your twenty million—I’d like it in Stark Industries stock as well. If you agree, I can also fix that little problem in your chest. How about it?”

“How did you know about that?” Tony was surprised, but given Shawn Gu’s miraculous abilities, he quickly accepted it.

“You want Stark Industries stock. Seems you’re optimistic about the company’s future.”

“No, no.” Shawn Gu shook his head, and under Tony’s puzzled gaze, explained, “It’s not the company I believe in—it’s you, Mr. Stark.”

“Everyone knows, without Tony Stark, Stark Industries is worthless. You probably don’t know how far the stock dropped while you were gone.”

“With Tony Stark, the stock is gold. Without you, it’s scrap paper. That much, I can tell.”

Confronted with such unabashed praise, Tony raised an eyebrow, clearly pleased and entirely agreeing with Shawn Gu’s assessment.

“Looks like you have not only unique abilities but also remarkable insight. Tony Stark is indeed one of a kind.”

“Hurry, hurry!”

As the two exchanged compliments, a familiar voice called from outside the cave.

Immediately, a squad of soldiers, led by a lean, dark-skinned officer, charged into the cave.

“Tony! Thank heavens you’re alright!” Colonel Rhodey breathed a sigh of relief at the sight of Tony Stark, safe in his armor, and hurried forward.

“Rhodey!”

Seeing his best friend, Tony was equally moved.

Their gazes lingered, deep and affectionate; were it not for knowing they were both straight, Shawn Gu might have believed they were long-separated lovers reunited.

Thus, a day later, the news of Tony Stark’s return swept the headlines of nations around the world, and Stark Industries’ stock, once at rock bottom, soared to new heights.

But Shawn Gu had no time to pay attention to these matters. A new headache awaited him.

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