Hearing Tony's words, Ryan would have to be a fool not to know what he wanted to borrow.
What Tony wanted to borrow was clearly the Mind Stone in his hand—one of the Infinity Stones that, in the original story, awakened Wanda's abilities and created Ultron and Vision.
After all, the Mind Stone not only grants superpowers but is also one of only two Infinity Stones with high-level intelligence; its degree of wisdom is second only to the Soul Stone, which can choose its own soul Guardian.
Ryan tapped his finger gently on the table, weighing the gains and losses in his mind.
To be honest, although Ultron's birth in the original story caused a series of major disasters, directly leading to the birth of the Sokovia Accords and indirectly splitting the entire Avengers...
Setting that aside, there was no denying Ultron's power as an intelligent lifeform.
Only days after being born, he created a massive army of robots and nearly wiped out humanity!
Compared to Ultron's supreme execution, the artificial intelligences on Earth—like Jarvis, Dr. Zola, or even the intelligent life of Wakanda—simply couldn't compare!
Even on a universal scale, Ultron was an extremely high-level intelligent lifeform!
Perhaps the only one who could surpass Ultron as an intelligent lifeform was the Kree Empire's collective consciousness, the 'Supreme Intelligence'.
Furthermore, while the Supreme Intelligence had nearly reached the end of its path as an electronic lifeform, Ultron, as a newborn intelligent life, had greater potential and infinite future possibilities. Surpassing the Supreme Intelligence was not impossible!
And for his Spider Family, he naturally wanted the best!
Whether it was people or things, only the best would do!
He had the best team in the Universe, so he naturally needed the best artificial intelligence in the Universe to assist them!
Thump—
As Ryan's finger tapped down one last time with a bit more force, he looked up at Tony, who was watching him with a look of 'longing'.
Then, with a lift of his hand, a brilliant golden gem appeared at his fingertips.
One of the six Infinity Stones: the Mind Stone.
As soon as the Mind Stone appeared, everyone in the meeting room bathed in its dazzling golden light felt their minds become clear and refreshed, as if... their intellect had been enlightened.
The Mind Stone could make those around it irritable and prone to infighting, as seen in the original story, but it could also make those around it more clear-headed.
All of this depended on its user...
It could be said that with Ryan holding the Mind Stone, not only did he not have to fear being controlled by telepaths, but even his subordinates were safe from mental influence.
For instance, Hulk, who was the most easily provoked, wouldn't require Iron Man to build a Hulkbuster Armor to knock him unconscious if he lost control due to outside influence; the Mind Stone was there.
The Mind Stone could directly dispel any mind control on Hulk.
However, even if Hulk really did lose control, Ryan would likely resolve it with his fists rather than the Mind Stone~
The only person present who seemed unaffected by the Mind Stone was probably Witch Wanda.
After all, she came from the future timeline of another Universe, and her Chaos Magic had already been developed to a certain extent.
While her Chaos Magic was triggered by the Mind Stone, it wasn't granted by it; it was an ability she was born with.
Moreover, strictly speaking, Chaos Magic was of a much higher caliber than the Mind Stone.
The Mind Stone was at most universal level, whereas well-developed Chaos Magic could go beyond the Multiverse level.
Tony, his eyes reflecting the glow of the Mind Stone, could hardly contain his excitement. He stood up, wanting to reach out and take the gem from Ryan's hand.
But before his hand could touch it, Ryan slapped it away.
Ryan glanced at the pained Tony and said calmly, "The last person who touched an Infinity Stone without mastering it was the Red Skull. His soul is now imprisoned forever as a slave on a dead Planet. Tony, do you want to try that too?"
Hearing this, Tony realized he had been too hasty. He laughed awkwardly and waved his hand. "Heh, never mind. I might be interested in being a slave owner, but I'll pass on being a slave..."
Ryan shook his head, feeling a bit helpless regarding Tony.
This Tony was great in every way—smart and highly useful—but his personality was just too reckless!
For example, in Avengers 4, Doctor Strange clearly meant for him to fly up and find Captain Marvel, or was hinting that Hulk still had one hand left, but Tony just had to be the one to perform that fatal snap himself.
Although there were no strict rules saying only specific people could use the Infinity Stones, using them did, in fact, have very rigorous requirements.
First, the user needed to have a top-tier cosmic-level constitution and soul.
Without these two points, you simply couldn't use any Infinity Stone with your bare hands.
Whether it was the Power Stone, Space Stone, or Reality Stone that caused physical damage, or the Mind Stone, Soul Stone, and Time Stone that damaged the soul.
If an unqualified person tried to hold them without a body and soul strong enough to master the stones, they would basically either die or go insane.
Even for Tony, grabbing the Mind Stone barehanded would likely burn out that clever brain of his.
Unless this Tony was the one who possessed that special Infinity Stone, the Wisdom Stone.
But Ryan didn't think so; his Tony seemed to be just a normal genius Tony.
Therefore, in the entire world, perhaps only someone like Ryan—who had absorbed the power of countless strong enemies to reach his physical peak and possessed a naturally powerful soul—could truly master the power of the Infinity Stones without relying on external tools.
Because he had a degree of true control over the Infinity Stones, Ryan finally made a decision. The Symbiote surged in his hand once more, and a golden scepter encased the Mind Stone at its tip.
Then, he tossed the Mind Scepter into Tony's arms and said calmly, "I'll allow you to create Ultron, and I'll even have Dr. Banner and Dr. Samuel assist you, but I have two requirements..."
Tony's spirit jolted, and he nodded without a second thought. "Don't just say two—even if it's ten, I'll agree!"
Ryan ignored the mention of ten requirements and simply stated his own: "First, the creation of Ultron must be done within Parker Tower, and the research and development must be conducted in an environment isolated from the internet..."
After hearing the first requirement, Tony thought about it, decided it wasn't an issue, and nodded in agreement.
Ryan continued, "Second, once Ultron is created, you may have the right to use it, but its ownership belongs to me, and I will be the one to place the final safety shackles on it!"