Despite putting on a terrifying show with his plasma whips, Ivan Vanko was ultimately just an ordinary mortal. There was no way he could withstand the sheer kinetic force of a localized hurricane. He was violently blown off his feet and sent tumbling across the asphalt.
Immediately following up, Lucas unleashed his newly acquired Heat Vision. Two concentrated beams of crimson light shot from his eyes, instantly melting through the crude Arc Reactor strapped to Ivan's chest.
Without the reactor supplying immense electrical power to his harness, Ivan completely lost his ability to fight back. He was instantly reduced to nothing more than a slightly muscular, very angry mechanic.
Moments later, Monaco track security rushed in and dragged him away. The entire time, Ivan never took his eyes off Tony. He laughed maniacally, roaring at the top of his lungs.
"You lose, Tony Stark! You lose!"
Tony Stark looked utterly bewildered. He still had absolutely no idea what this madman was rambling about. However, his eyes were glued to the smoldering, slagged remains of the chest piece Ivan had been wearing.
It was unmistakably an Arc Reactor. The design was incredibly rough and the energy output couldn't even hold a candle to Tony's current palladium core, but the fundamental technology was identical. In fact, it was arguably better than the bulky Mark I prototype he had built in the cave in Afghanistan.
Only Lucas fully understood what Ivan Vanko was trying to achieve. Obviously, Ivan's primary goal was to kill Tony Stark. But there was a secondary, equally crucial objective.
If you can't kill God, you have to make him bleed.
The most vital aspect of being a "god" in the public eye is the illusion of invincibility. You cannot show weakness. You must appear completely untouchable. But the moment a god bleeds, the illusion shatters, and they are reduced to a mere mortal.
It perfectly mirrored a classic joke among video game players: If it has a health bar, I don't care if it's a god, I can kill it.
Tony Stark hadn't died today. On the surface, the assassination attempt looked like a complete failure. But Ivan had succeeded in exposing Tony's fatal flaw. He proved that Iron Man could bleed.
As long as there was blood in the water, the sharks would begin to circle. Endless waves of enemies would inevitably pounce, trying to tear Tony Stark apart piece by piece. That was exactly the psychological victory Ivan Vanko wanted.
Success doesn't have to be mine. The one who pulls the trigger doesn't have to be me. If I can prove that you are vulnerable, your days are numbered.
That was Ivan's mindset. Once he proved Tony could be hurt and killed, a domino effect would automatically begin.
In truth, this rule didn't just apply to ordinary humans in metal suits. Even someone like Superman—a literal god among men—would face countless challengers the moment he showed vulnerability. For example, once Batman realized Superman could be weakened by Kryptonite, he immediately began obsessively hoarding the radioactive rock. It was simply human nature.
Tony Stark hadn't yet realized the true severity of the situation. It wouldn't be until the events of Iron Man 3 that his enemies would grow bold enough to launch a direct, devastating helicopter missile strike on his Malibu mansion. Only then would he fully comprehend the absolute necessity of maintaining an undefeated image.
It was the exact same reason the All-Father Odin would rather die than drop his proud, majestic facade. He could not afford to let anyone in the Nine Realms see even the slightest hint of his frailty.
"Thanks for the save today," Tony said, snapping out of his daze. He let out a self-deprecating chuckle. "Man, you always seem to catch me looking like a total mess."
The fact that Tony could still mock himself proved his mental state hadn't shattered. He had never prided himself on his physical combat skills anyway. His superhero status relied entirely on his unparalleled intellect and his "pay-to-win" bank account. Getting tossed around a bit outside of his armor was nothing to be embarrassed about.
"No problem," Lucas replied smoothly. "Just make sure those twenty million dollars hit my account on time."
"Don't worry, it'll be fast. The last bank I used for your wire transfer was way too slow. So, I just bought my own bank. The routing should be instantaneous this time," Tony nodded casually.
Hearing this, Lucas desperately wanted to grab Tony by the collar and scream. You filthy, ridiculously rich bastard!
Today, Lucas truly understood the staggering chasm between the wealthy and the ultra-wealthy. His own hundred-million-dollar net worth had granted him financial freedom, but compared to Tony Stark, he was basically panhandling.
Recently, Tony's successful monopolization of clean energy had caused his personal net worth to skyrocket past five hundred billion dollars. He was indisputably the richest man in the world. Even factoring in the hidden mystical and underground factions, no single individual possessed more sheer capital than Tony Stark.
Stark Industries itself had smashed past a trillion-dollar valuation just a few days ago, becoming an unprecedented corporate behemoth. And that was nowhere near its ceiling. As Tony continued to dominate the global energy sector, his wealth would only multiply.
Lucas knew that the Stark Industries board of directors had initially been furious when Tony announced they were shutting down weapons manufacturing. In their greedy eyes, arms dealing was the only foolproof, recession-proof business in the world.
But now they realized the truth. Clean energy was infinitely more profitable.
While other nations were still fumbling with theoretical nuclear fusion projects that were decades away from being viable, Tony Stark had already perfected and commercialized the technology. Naturally, oceans of wealth were flooding into his pockets.
Because of this pivot, the corporate structure of Stark Industries had undergone a massive, bloody purge. Aside from Tony, who had aggressively consolidated over fifty percent of the stock to become the absolute majority shareholder, the rest of the board had been entirely replaced.
The original, dissenting shareholders had all withdrawn from the company due to various "mysterious reasons." Some cited a lack of confidence in the market. Others suddenly developed severe, rapid-onset health issues. As for the truly stubborn ones, they usually ended up suffering dozens of gunshot wounds to the back in a tragic, officially ruled "suicide."
Previously, Tony had been the only true heavyweight on his own board. But now, if you walked into a Stark Industries board meeting, every single shareholder sitting at the table was a terrifying, world-renowned titan.
There were multinational mega-conglomerates, shadowy intelligence agencies, and high-ranking military representatives. Even the official governments of the world's most powerful nations held stakes in the company.
Basically, any corporate decision Stark Industries made would be executed globally with zero bureaucratic resistance.
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