Chapter 34: 34: Mr. Abdullah’s Video
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"But I still can't figure out, you just spent one night in Afghanistan, how did you manage to gain so many... loyal fans?" Tony waved the slice of bread in his hand.
"You mean believers~"
"Close enough, especially that reporter who seems to have gone through a lot of hardship. He talks about you being the true Holy Spirit in front of the media every day, like a fanatic."
"You're talking about Abdullah... I don't know what's up with him either. Maybe it's just the simple, honest customs of that place?"
"I thought you brainwashed him, you know, like how Clark does in Superman with his memory manipulation." Tony gestured animatedly in the air.
"I wish I had that kind of power, sounds pretty cool," Lyon quipped.
"What exactly is cool about it? Care to elaborate?"
"You better just want to hear it and not already have a scene playing in your head."
"Ahem... Where was I? Oh, right, that Abdullah guy, he mentioned in an interview that you saved his life?"
"That's true. He was within the blast radius of the Jericho missile. I saved him and asked him to help spread the video and deliver a message."
"So he was that guy!" Tony suddenly realized. "Jarvis showed me the footage, and he appeared in it. No wonder he looked familiar!"
Lyon looked up, "You seem to be paying quite a bit of attention to him?"
"Mm-hmm!" Tony chewed on his bread. "He said that to show his gratitude, he plans to invest all his money in Warner Bros. stock, so I had Pepper acquire Warner Bros."
"You're good at making big money moves," Lyon's mouth twitched.
"Don't say it like that. The whole world is focused on Superman right now. After acquiring Warner, Stark Industries' stock also went up." Tony finished his bread and started licking his fingers.
"I'm more curious about how you managed to negotiate that acquisition. The entire world is watching DC; they had no reason to sell the company."
Tony wiped his fingers with a napkin. "Some... other conglomerates and countries, you know, put pressure on their company, so I took the opportunity to step in."
"How did you step in? You don't sell weapons anymore, so how did you qualify to get in on that?"
"I'm selling this now!" Tony tapped the arc reactor in his chest. "New energy—everyone wants it."
Lyon's eyes widened slightly. "You already revealed the Arc reactor?"
Tony looked around, did a quick spin on the spot, and raised his hand.
"Sort of. Rhodey let it slip. Oh, that guy's mouth is like a public service zone—can't keep any secrets!"
Lyon didn't believe him at all. "Come on, Rhodey's just got a sense of humor. If he couldn't keep a secret, how could he work in the military?"
He guessed, "I think you were just jealous of Superman's popularity, so you exposed yourself on purpose to draw all the attention to you!"
Tony stopped talking, glanced at the ceiling, pretended to be busy, patted his body, and then, surprisingly, turned around and walked away.
"I was helping you relieve some pressure. So many people are watching you and misunderstanding you; I had to step up and set an example, right?"
He waved his hand as he walked out. "Alright, I'm leaving. Tomorrow is my last day in the Middle East. The Ten Rings won't exist after that."
"Oh, by the way!" Tony suddenly turned back after stepping out the door. "I have a press conference tomorrow. Make sure you attend."
"..." Lyon's super brain was momentarily stunned as he watched Tony's back.
Half a minute later, the sound of Iron Man's suit igniting and taking off could be heard from outside.
"That guy Tony... the press conference tomorrow, could he be planning to publicly reveal his identity as Iron Man?"
Lyon looked out the window at the disappearing Mark 3 suit, lost in thought for a long time.
He had considered it many times.
The appearance of Iron Man, as the starting point of the major events in the Marvel movies, might be an absolute fixed point in time.
In other words, there's a high probability that Tony would say those famous words, "I am Iron Man," no matter what.
Lyon had speculated about many possible reasons that could lead Tony to admit his identity as Iron Man.
But the idea that it was simply because Tony wanted to "gain popularity" and reveal his identity was something Lyon never saw coming.
"This world is freaking insane," Lyon couldn't help but curse.
"Forget it, Tony won't die anyway. No need to worry about him. Sunbathing is more important."
Lyon patted his butt, stood up, tore off his shirt, and instantly transformed into Superman, flying off into space.
...
S.H.I.E.L.D.
Nick Fury, with heavy dark circles under his eyes looked particularly worn out. His eye bags were unusually dark and large, like a chunk of coal hanging under an ink bottle.
"Is this your investigation report?" He put down the document in his hand and looked up at Agent Coulson in front of him.
"The information in here isn't even as detailed as what's been exposed on TV. At least the TV stations interviewed the locals!"
Coulson lowered his head. "Sorry, Director. Superman hasn't appeared since that day, and we haven't been able to find any leads."
"However, the videos broadcasted on TV actually contain a lot of information!"
As he spoke, Coulson took out a tablet and handed it to Nick Fury.
Fury, recognizing the familiar action from his subordinate, felt his eyelid twitch.
Then he saw Coulson light up the screen and start playing a video he'd already watched hundreds of times in the past few days.
The video was divided into three parts.
The first part was filmed by the Afghan reporter Abdullah, showing Superman withstanding vehicular missiles and Jericho missiles.
The second part featured Abdullah relaying Superman's message to the Eagle forces:
—All foreign troops, immediately leave the borders and abandon the invasion!
The third part was the reporter's personal addition. He spent a full hour extolling Superman's greatness, spreading faith in Superman, and trying hard to link Superman with his God.
Although Nick Fury had seen this video hundreds of times, he patiently watched it again.
Because the first part of the video showed Superman at his most powerful in any of the battles where he had displayed his strength.
And it just so happened that no official satellite had been able to fully capture this moment.
The only relatively comprehensive information was this video released by the reporter, which was of great significance for studying Superman's abilities.
After the video ended, Nick Fury looked at Coulson, "What conclusions did you draw from it?"
"Director, it's quite clear—Superman's strength, at least his defense and speed, surpasses all known creatures and even weapons on Earth."
Coulson chose his words carefully, "Whether or not he's the Superman from the comics, based on the power he's displayed, our best option is to make sure we stay on good terms with him and keep his emotions stable."
"Hmm..." Nick Fury nodded.
He rubbed the pager in his hand: "Then tell me, is his personality extreme and unruly? Do we need to suppress him?"
"Suppress?" Coulson was stunned. "With all due respect, Director, we don't seem to have such means."
Nick Fury glanced at his pager: "I mean, assuming there is, do you think it's necessary?"
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