"It seems that you think a gun's power can kill me? How truly narrow-minded of you," Qin Li's calm voice came from behind Obadiah Stane.
Obadiah Stane increased the torque, and the Iron Monger suit began to turn halfway toward Qin Li. At the same time, his right hand began to charge, preparing to deliver a powerful punch to Qin Li.
However, at that moment, Qin Li formed a magic circle beneath his feet. Obadiah Stane sensed something was wrong and tried to retreat from the magic circle's range, but it was already too late.
With a burst of blue light, the massive Iron Monger suit was sent crashing into the ceiling, followed by a violent explosion. The blast propelled both the Iron Monger and the ceiling into the air.
Pepper had already reached the ground. At that moment, Tony Stark, who was on his way, contacted her through J.A.R.V.I.S.
"Pepper?" Tony's voice suddenly rang out.
"Tony? Are you alright? Obadiah Stane has gone insane! If it weren't for Li arriving in time, he would've killed me!" Pepper spoke anxiously.
"I'm fine. I know. Listen, you need to leave immediately," Tony Stark quickly replied.
"Okay, okay, but what about Li?" Pepper asked. At that moment, a streak of light passed across the sky, and Tony landed in front of Pepper, saying, "Li is strong. We should be more worried about Obadiah Stane, not Li."
As soon as Tony finished speaking, the Iron Monger, seemingly responding to his words, was shot out of the underground and into the air. Just as it reached the peak of its ascent and began to fall, a golden streak shot up from the hole in the ground below and hovered directly above the Iron Monger.
Tony and Pepper looked up, realizing it was Qin Li, and he seemed to be holding something in his hand.
Qin Li watched the Iron Monger fly, exerted force beneath his feet, and followed. As he reached the Iron Monger's position, he pulled his right hand back. The golden holy light gathered in his palm, forming a Holy Light Sphere. Due to its brilliance, no one realized the sphere was spinning.
"Today, I'll cosplay as Naruto! Take this, my Holy Light Rasengan!" Qin Li shouted, launching the Holy Light Sphere at the Iron Monger. The suit, which had barely begun to enjoy the New York skyline, was sent back into the underground with its parts flying off.
Tony Stark instinctively shielded Pepper as the Holy Light Sphere hit the Iron Monger. A piece of what appeared to be chest armor flew toward them, but Tony blocked it with ease.
As Qin Li landed back on the ground and walked toward them, Tony removed his helmet and said, "Li, you need to be more careful. There are non-combatants around here. You almost killed someone just now."
Qin Li apologized to Pepper and then turned to Tony Stark, saying, "Well, isn't your Iron Shield armor pretty good?"
"It's Iron Armor! My suit's a battle armor!" Tony Stark retorted instinctively.
"Alright, alright. An armor that can't even withstand my Holy Light Sphere," Qin Li said dismissively.
"Damn it! One day, I'll use the materials you gave me to build an anti-Qin Li suit!" Tony Stark said, grumbling.
Qin Li widened his eyes in shock and said, "Hey, hey, hey! You want me to provide materials so you can hammer me? Am I a masochist? I'm not someone who goes looking for opponents just because I'm invincible. I like the feeling of being invincible."
Tony Stark gave him the middle finger and asked, "What happened to Obadiah Stane?"
Tony's voice held a tinge of sadness, the bitterness of betrayal by someone close to him.
Qin Li shrugged and said, "He should be done for. If you head down now, maybe he's still hanging on."
Just as Qin Li finished speaking, there was movement in the hole Obadiah Stane had created. Tony Stark immediately closed his helmet, preparing for action. A mangled mechanical arm clawed its way over the edge, and Obadiah Stane appeared before the three of them.
His appearance wasn't great, but at least he wasn't badly injured. Still, the broken and limbless wreck of a man showed he was beyond saving. Qin Li glanced at Tony Stark and said, "It's all yours now. He's a wreck, and you still can't handle it?"
Tony Stark didn't answer. He silently walked toward Obadiah Stane. Qin Li, on the other hand, moved to Pepper's side to protect her. Pepper asked worriedly, "Tony should be fine, right?"
Qin Li yawned and said, "It's a small issue. If the Iron Monger hadn't been damaged, Tony might've still had trouble. But with this mess, it's like a flying dragon riding the face—it'd be hard for him to lose now."
Upon hearing this, Pepper was less fearful but still kept her eyes on Tony Stark.
"I don't like this metal junk, but I have to admit, it saved my life," Obadiah Stane said, glaring at Tony Stark. Noticing Tony's silence, Obadiah continued, "You've finally surpassed yourself, Tony, and now you have such a powerful ally. Your father would be proud of you." Obadiah looked at Qin Li as he spoke.
Tony Stark then spoke up, "He's my friend, not my hired muscle. You're wrong, Obadiah."
The moment Tony spoke, Obadiah Stane raised his right hand, and the Gatling gun began to spin. Bullets rained down on Tony Stark's suit, but they left no marks, and stray shots hit Qin Li and Pepper. However, Qin Li's small Holy Light Shield blocked them effortlessly.
As Obadiah Stane fired, he shouted, "It's ridiculous, Tony! You want to rid the world of weapons, yet you invented the greatest weapon!"
"J.A.R.V.I.S.? Crank up the power," Tony Stark ordered.
"Understood, Mr. Stark," J.A.R.V.I.S. replied. With a flash of light from his chest reactor, an energy cannon shot toward Obadiah Stane. Tony thought to himself, "Goodbye, Obadiah."
Obadiah Stane, seeing Tony's action, knew what was coming. He knew he'd lost. Rather than spending life in prison, he would rather die here. As the energy cannon flew toward him, his Gatling gun ceased firing.
With a deafening explosion, the Iron Monger was obliterated, and everyone fell silent. After a long pause, Qin Li finally spoke, "Want to grab a drink?"