章 6: 6: Tony’s Guilt

Ten minutes later.

"So, Tony, how does it feel to be leaving your temporary residence of the past few months? Any reluctance?" Lyon asked, carrying Tony and Yinsen, floating in the air above the cave.

He teased, "This is the kind of extraordinary experience most people wouldn't have even once in their lifetime. Don't you want to share your thoughts?"

Tony's hair was being blown into a mess by the wind. "You call that an extraordinary experience? Damn it, Lyon, if you weren't a fucking 'Superman' from the comics now, I'd arrange for you to have this kind of extraordinary experience too."

"Alright, alright, seems like you're not in the best mood. My bad, I'll stop talking." Lyon closed his mouth.

Yinsen interjected at the right moment, "Um… Mr. Lyon, may I ask what you plan to do with the base below? Are you leaving it for the Americans?"

Yinsen had no trust in the U.S. government. He believed that the terrorists were so rampant because there had to be some American interests involved.

Before Lyon could respond, Tony spoke up, "Destroy it. Destroy all these… Stark things."

He looked down at the boxes of weapons and ammunition marked with the "Stark" logo, his expression dark and heavy.

"No problem," Lyon agreed, taking the two of them higher into the sky.

After reaching a sufficient distance, Lyon's eyes emitted heat vision, instantly igniting the entire base's explosives.

Boom! BoOOObAam! Boom!

The ammunition in the base exploded one crate after another. All the explosions intertwined, triggering a chain reaction. Flames engulfed the entire area, and a mushroom cloud, tens of meters high, rose into the sky as smoke quickly spread.

The sizable terrorist base was now a thing of the past.

"Terrifying… it's all over," Yinsen muttered quietly, his cheeks scorched by the intense heat of the explosion.

"It is over. This terrible chapter in your lives has finally come to an end," Lyon nodded.

"Next, I'll take you to the U.S. military base in Afghanistan."

"There, Tony's old friends will help you get back to the United States."

Lyon shifted direction, flying toward the base's exterior. "However, I won't be joining you. For now, it's best to keep my powers separate from my identity."

Yinsen seemed to have other thoughts but decided to follow the plan, considering the several hundred meters between them and the ground below. "Gulp"

Upon hearing this, Tony, who had been sullen since their escape, suddenly paused.

Tony hesitated for a moment before speaking, "You said it's not suitable for now, but does that mean you plan to do something later, Lyon?"

"That's right," Lyon admitted. "There are things I've wanted to do for a long time, but I lacked the power to act."

He spoke calmly, "Heh~ Now that I have it, I can handle these matters while also demonstrating my strength to various parties."

"This way, even if my true identity is discovered later, those pesky flies won't dare to act rashly."

"As for what exactly, we can discuss it later."

Even Superman, with all his power, still had Lex Luthor constantly causing trouble. So, there was no need to mention someone like him, who had only spent half a year absorbing the sun's rays.

Lyon had no doubt that once his physique and strength were exposed, countless parties would immediately start coveting him.

Unless he showed invincible strength and an unwavering attitude from the start, trouble would be inevitable.

People, for the most part, respect power rather than virtue—there was no doubt about that.

"So? Are you going to persuade me not to make too much noise?" Lyon asked.

"It's not that," Tony immediately denied. "I just..."

He paused for a long moment before letting out a deep breath and awkwardly spoke.

"Lyon, I... I wanted to say... I'm really sorry for not listening to your advice to shut down Stark's weapons division earlier."

There was deep guilt on Tony's face.

This guilt wasn't towards Lyon, but towards the ordinary people who had been harmed by the weapons Stark Industries had sold.

More than a year ago, when Stark Industries' electronic products were rapidly spreading across the world, Lyon had suggested cutting off and shutting down the weapons division.

But at that time, Tony hadn't taken it seriously. He thought Lyon was just young and inexperienced, too sentimental about the world's harsh realities, and had brushed it off with a few words.

Thinking back now, Tony felt an overwhelming sense of responsibility and guilt.

"There's no need to apologize..." Lyon was a bit surprised, but not entirely so.

He knew Tony would eventually shut down the weapons division, but he hadn't expected Tony to apologize.

God knows, in his entire life, Tony has probably made fewer than ten sincere apologies.

In the past, even if he made a mistake, he'd just awkwardly try to make up for it in other ways, but he'd never admit he was wrong.

It seems that during his time in captivity, Tony really did 'grow up' quite a bit.

"What's done is done, and there's no going back. As the saying goes, it's never too late to mend a fence after a sheep is lost."

"Just make up for your mistakes from now on, Tony."

Lyon's voice was gentle as he comforted him, "And there's the small arc reactor you developed this time. It could be the foundation for widespread energy use, benefiting the whole world."

"I believe the entire world will change because of you in the future, becoming a better place. So yes, feel guilty, but don't dwell on it."

Tony listened quietly to Lyon's words. It was rare for him not to interrupt someone during a long speech.

When Lyon finished, Tony gave a wry smile, "Maybe you're right... Hmm, and about Obie—"

''Obadiah is definitely a problem,'' Lyon interrupted directly. ''If I tell you now, you'll just hesitate, so I'll wait for you in Los Angeles. Then we'll confront him together.''

Tony instinctively wanted to argue, still holding onto some hope for his uncle.

However, he opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing.

Instead, he nodded in a muffled voice, "I'll listen to you."

Hearing this, Lyon couldn't help but smile.

It seems that this experience has increased his influence over Tony.

They say that people can't teach other people as effectively as life experiences can.

Apparently, that's true.

After flying for a bit longer, Lyon landed in the desert with the two of them.

"Alright, I'll leave you here. The army base is eight miles ahead. Here, take this flare gun. After I leave, shoot it into the sky, and someone will come to find you."

Lyon handed the flare gun he had taken from the terrorist base to Tony, then prepared to take off and leave.

"Wait!" Tony hurriedly called out, "I forgot to tell you, make sure to take my suit back home, and if the blueprints weren't destroyed, bring those back too!"

"What the...?! Why didn't you mention this when we were still in the cave?!"

"I figured you couldn't carry more with just two hands, so I'm telling you now."

"Tony, you're something else!"

Lyon flipped a middle finger to Tony off as he shot up into the sky, breaking the sound barrier as he left.

SWoosh! Boom!

The two on the ground blinked, watching the trail Lyon left as he broke through the clouds, then shrugged at each other.

"Won't your brother be noticed flying like that near a military base?" Yinsen asked.

Tony raised an eyebrow. "What brother? Didn't some guy claiming to be Superman just save us and then leave? We didn't even get a clear look at his face."

Yinsen suddenly understood. "Oh, so that's how we escaped? That Superman sure is a helpful fellow!"

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