As the saying goes, vibranium lasts forever, a piece to be passed down through the ages. Consider Steve Rogers, whose vibranium shield has been used for decades, through countless battles big and small. Now, Steve Rogers, the super soldier, has aged, but his vibranium shield remains as intact as ever.
However, Robert is unaware of these details about vibranium. He simply wants to see if this hard metal can be shattered, and how much force he can exert on it!
"It really is him…" Tony Stark, looking somewhat bewildered at Robert's performance, keeps replaying Robert's words in his mind, not even triggered by Robert's intention to dismantle his armor.
"Only what you master, that which helps you grow, is your true source of power…"
"Watch out!" As Tony Stark is lost in thought, a shout is heard, followed by a stream of water wrapping around Tony Stark's armor and pulling him aside, while Jarvis also automatically controls the armor to perform the same action.
"Boom!" The next moment, the spot where Tony Stark was just standing is blasted open by John Walker, who is holding an energy baton that had just released an energy wave towards Tony Stark.
John Walker chose to launch a surprise attack on Tony Stark because he had reviewed Tony Stark's data and believed that Tony Stark, with his modern armor, posed the greatest threat. He decided to incapacitate Tony Stark first!
The reason why John Walker didn't attempt to surprise attack Robert with the energy baton is simple: he couldn't keep up with Robert's speed and couldn't even aim at Robert, let alone surprise him.
"Swish!" As the energy wave shot by John Walker's energy baton misses its mark, a familiar shield flies towards John Walker.
"Hmph!" John Walker snorts, thinking of Robert's suave catch of the shield and tries to mimic the action, stretching out his arm. After all, this was his weapon! "Snap!" John Walker catches the shield with one hand, his body slightly trembling. Although not as smoothly as Robert, he at least succeeds.
"Bang!" However, just as John Walker raises his head, Jackie Chan kicks him in the chest, causing John Walker to stagger back a few steps, and the shield he had caught is snatched back by Jackie Chan.
"Ch!" Reacting, John Walker shoots another energy shock wave from his energy baton, which Jackie Chan quickly blocks with the shield, even reflecting the energy shock wave back at John Walker with the curved surface of the shield, aiming it right at John Walker's head.
"Shit! How is he so proficient?" John Walker's pupils dilate in shock as he leans back, the energy shock wave targeting his head! "Boom!" An explosion sounds behind John Walker as Jackie Chan, holding the shield, charges towards him again, having discovered John Walker's weak points during their previous fight, mainly aiming for John Walker's head, which is not covered by his uniform.
"Beautiful and kind lady, you truly are a goddess, thank you for saving me just now…" Meanwhile, Tony Stark, having gained some insight from Robert's words, snaps back to reality when Mera saves him with a stream of water, pressing his realizations aside and looking at Mera with slightly glowing eyes, "How did you do it? Control water? You really are a deity… glug! Ugh…"
Before Tony Stark can finish his sentence, he finds his armor filled with water, preventing him from speaking.
Moreover, the water seems not only to silence Tony Stark but also to dismantle his armor from the inside out. "Lady! Please stop what you're doing! Otherwise, I'll have to open fire!" Jarvis, facing this situation, temporarily takes control of the armor and warns Mera.
"Are you not here to heal? Do you plan to hide inside to heal?" Mera stops in surprise and asks.
"Sorry, lady, my mistake." Jarvis pauses, looks at Tony Stark holding his breath underwater, nods, and then speaks.
"Click! Click!" Under the control of the water, the mechanically worn armor is opened, revealing Tony Stark's somewhat darkened face.
Not because Tony Stark is in a bad mood, but because his palladium poisoning is quite severe, though his mood isn't great either. After spitting out the water and staring at the scattered armor parts on the ground, he mutters, "Why can everyone dismantle my armor…"
"Hm, this glowing thing on your chest should be taken out, right?" Mera, noticing the arc reactor on Tony Stark's chest, pauses briefly before asking hesitantly.
"Take it out, I probably won't live much longer, beautiful lady…" Tony Stark looks at Mera for confirmation, but before he can finish, a stream of water wraps around the arc reactor, even briefly revealing a spark of electricity.
But at that moment, the amulet on Mera's chest lights up, the electricity vanishes, and the hole in Tony Stark's chest, the palladium in his body, and the shrapnel all disappear, restoring Tony Stark to his pre-injury state.
"This… I'm cured? Just like that?" Tony Stark, feeling the changes in his body, stands there stunned, unable to deny what seems like a miracle, even as a staunch materialist.
"Sir, according to the scan, your body has fully recovered to a sub-healthy state, congratulations…" Jarvis's voice rings in Tony Stark's ear, darkening his mood.
What does it mean to return to a sub-healthy state? Tony Stark, born to be a knight on horseback, capable of handling two at night without issue, is considered sub-healthy? And with the beautiful and kind goddess nearby, how could such a thing be said?
"Boom!" As Tony Stark's thoughts churn due to his body's recovery, on the other side, Jackie Chan is pushed back several steps by a punch, holding the shield and turning to look at Tony Stark and Mera, "I say, you two, are you done? This guy is so ferocious, are you really not going to help?"
"Oh! Wait a moment!" Tony Stark snaps back to reality, remembering Jackie Chan's assistance, and after attaching the arc reactor to a piece of armor, looks at Mera, "Goddess, could you help me put on the armor… ugh!"
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