Chapter 9:
Time passed quickly amid the playful banter between Alex Chen and Wanda.
On the night before the appointment, Alex Chen went to the lakeside to fish as usual.
Just when Alex Chen thought he would get another useless item again, the system suddenly prompted:
[White Ability — Tony Stark's Wisdom]
What??
Looking at the system notification, Alex Chen fell into silence.
Tony Stark's wisdom? What do I need this for? Isn't there already a Stark?
Alex Chen's mind frantically recalled the Marvel storyline.
Since Iron Man would eventually discover the derivative cube of the Cosmic Cube anyway, he might as well get it out in advance himself.
With that thought, Alex Chen stopped overthinking and hurriedly continued choosing suitable clothes for tomorrow's meeting.
A sharp roar of a car engine sounded behind Alex Chen.
He turned his head and saw the familiar white Audi A8.
After the car stopped steadily at the entrance, a familiar figure stepped out of the A8 in a cool manner.
"Hey, Tony, can you calm down a bit!"
Following Tony, a woman also got out of the car and shouted at Tony who was about to walk toward the elevator.
Pepper Potts.
Heh, what a pair of quarreling lovers. You're ignoring her now, but she'll become your wife later.
Alex Chen looked at the still unrestrained Tony and couldn't help but mutter.
"You're here. Then follow me inside."
Alex Chen was genuinely startled by this sudden voice.
"Miss, can you people from S.H.I.E.L.D. please stop suddenly appearing behind others to scare them next time?"
Hearing this, Black Widow stopped in her tracks, turned around, and coldly stared into Alex Chen's eyes as she said:
"Some things shouldn't be said outside. Be careful not to bring trouble upon yourself."
After saying that, Black Widow turned her head and continued walking toward the building without looking back.
Leaving a dazed Alex Chen standing alone in place.
"Miss, wait for me!"
When Alex Chen followed Black Widow into Stark Tower, he realized that the building in the original movie must have had a low budget. Otherwise, how could the building shown in the movie look completely unrelated to this one?
Watching the elevator rise rapidly floor by floor, Alex Chen could only think: Rich people really do whatever they want.
"When you see Tony later, don't say anything. Just follow behind me. Understand?"
At this moment, Black Widow turned her head and said to Alex Chen.
"Oh, no problem, Miss. I understand."
Alex Chen immediately replied with a smile.
When the elevator indicator finally reached the top floor, the doors opened. Alex Chen followed Black Widow through a long corridor.
Looking at the artworks displayed on both sides of the corridor, Alex Chen thought that if he casually took one or two of these pieces and sold them, the money would probably be enough for him and Wanda to live comfortably for the rest of their lives.
"Knock knock knock! Mr. Stark, may I come in?"
"Natasha, come in."
It wasn't Tony who answered Black Widow, but Pepper Potts' voice coming from inside the office.
"Miss Potts, here are the documents you wanted."
"Thank you, Natasha."
"Hey, hey, hey, wait a minute. Who is this beauty?"
Alex Chen looked toward the speaker. It was Tony Stark.
"Mr. Stark, I am Miss Potts' new secretary."
Black Widow smiled slightly at Tony.
"No, no, no. You can start considering being my secretary. Whatever she's paying you, I'll pay double."
As he spoke, Tony stared straight at Black Widow with his eyes.
"Enough, Tony. Natasha is my person. You'd better put away that attitude of yours. If there's nothing else, you can leave now. I still have an important board meeting to attend. Excuse me."
After saying that, Pepper Potts packed up her things and walked out.
Black Widow followed closely behind and gave Alex Chen a look, signaling him to follow.
"Sorry, Mr. Stark. It's a pleasure to meet you. Can we shake hands?"
Ignoring Black Widow's increasingly wary expression, Alex Chen walked straight toward Tony.
"Oh, sorry. Who are you? I don't have any impression."
Tony said lazily.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Alex Chen. I'm a freshman at Columbia University."
"Columbia University, huh? Nice scenery there. Do you want an autograph?"
Damn it.
Looking at Tony's arrogant expression, Alex Chen had already mentally beaten Tony up a thousand times in his heart.
"No, Mr. Stark. I didn't come here for an autograph. I came to save your life."
As soon as the words left his mouth, Alex Chen clearly felt everyone in the room fix their gazes tightly on him.
After several seconds of silence, Tony laughed.
"Did I hear that right? You said you want to save my life? Why would I need your help? Aren't I living perfectly fine right now?"
Seeing that Tony was still being stubborn, Alex Chen could only say:
"The taste of palladium isn't very pleasant, right? You've probably had enough of that chlorophyll juice too."
Tony, who was still smiling just moments ago, suddenly became serious.
Even Black Widow, who was about to leave the room, now stood behind Alex Chen. If Alex Chen made any unusual move, she would immediately subdue the mysterious young man in front of her.
Tony and Black Widow's reactions were all seen by Alex Chen. He was very satisfied with this effect. This was exactly what he wanted.
"Whoa, whoa, whoa. You two don't need to be so serious, okay? I'm just a student. Relax, both of you."
"What do you want? Just say it."
"Mr. Stark, I think you misunderstood. I don't need anything. I just want to help you solve your problem."
Hearing this, Tony couldn't help but laugh again.
"A problem even I can't solve, and you say you can solve it?"
"Yes, sir."
Seeing Alex Chen's confident look, Tony, who prided himself on being a genius, hesitated for the first time. After all, who doesn't want to live well?
"Then tell me how you plan to help me."
Alex Chen didn't answer Tony's question. Instead, he walked straight to a pile of miscellaneous items in the room.
He grabbed the white cloth covering it and pulled hard. A large sandbox was revealed.
"This is…"
Looking at the sandbox, Tony couldn't help but show a thoughtful expression.
A moment later, Tony looked at Alex Chen in surprise and asked:
"Is it what I think it is?"
Alex Chen smiled without confirming or denying.
Afterward, ignoring Black Widow and Pepper Potts' reactions, Tony took the sandbox and Alex Chen back to his residence.
Arriving at Tony's laboratory and seeing the high-tech equipment displayed everywhere, even a science idiot like Alex Chen couldn't help but show an infatuated expression.
Seeing Alex Chen's look, Tony smiled and said:
"If this succeeds, I'll have someone build you a laboratory like this too, okay?"
Hearing this, Alex Chen quickly expressed his thanks.
[White Ability — Tony Stark's Wisdom]
With the cooperation of two "Tony Starks," the two quickly succeeded in synthesizing the derivative cube of the Cosmic Cube.
Looking at the blue crystalline object in front of him, Tony impatiently embedded it into the reactor in his chest.
"Beep!"
"Palladium element content: 0%!"
Looking at the numbers on the detector, Tony felt an overwhelming sense of relief.
Yes, what could be better than being alive?
"Kid, what did you say your name was again? From now on, you'll follow me!"
"Okay, Mr. Stark."
If you enjoyed this chapter, thank you so much for reading! Translating these stories takes a lot of time and effort, and your support really helps me keep going and release more regularly.
If you'd like to read a few chapters ahead (or just want to help fuel more translations), consider checking out my Patreon: Patreon.com/arthursink
