Chapter 60 The Old Man with the Whips
Finney had thought he could wait for Billy to return at today's opening ceremony, then get rid of the two troublemakers around him, have a good look around, and finally go home.
But things often take unexpected turns. Just as Finney and the two women were watching Tony finish his speech and prepare to head backstage, an unexpected event occurred.
A sudden commotion erupted in a corner near the stage.
Then, a burly man, dressed in dirty clothes, with a toothpick in his mouth, a modified version of a miniature arc reactor on his chest, and wielding two energy whips, walked onto the stage.
"Holy crap!"
Finney couldn't help but exclaim. He hadn't expected things to turn out so unexpectedly; Whiplash Ivan Vanko had actually made his entrance in this way.
"This is Tony's territory!"
Ivan's appearance greatly surprised Finney. He never imagined this guy would appear at this time, in this way.
However, after thinking about it carefully, he suddenly felt that Ivan's appearance wasn't so unacceptable after all.
Tony Stark was already a super-rich man, and now, as Iron Man, he was a star among stars. His whereabouts were not something ordinary people could track, and this obviously didn't include Ivan Vanko.
Especially since Tony hadn't experienced the despair of being poisoned and hadn't gone on any reckless adventures, it made it even more difficult for Ivan to find Tony and seek revenge.
Therefore, it wasn't surprising that the grand Stark Expo became Ivan's primary target. However, Finney hadn't expected Ivan to emerge so 'nakedly'.
"Isn't he afraid of being shot dead?!"
Looking at Ivan Vanko, whose body was mostly exposed, Finney couldn't understand his thought process. He wasn't wearing Tony's Iron Man suit, and the small Arc Reactor was mainly for powering the two energy whips. What
if there was a sniper in the venue? Even a well-aimed pistol shot could kill him instantly!
"Crack!"
The energy whip lashed the ground, sparks flying. The surrounding audience, still unaware of what was happening, assumed it was an extra performance and remained excited.
It wasn't until Ivan whipped several bodyguards who rushed at him, sending them flying and lying on the ground, their fates unknown, that they seemed to realize something was wrong.
"Ah!"
Screams erupted, turning the already noisy crowd into chaos. Ivan, delighted, continued to crack his whip incessantly.
Even the old men exercising in the park couldn't match his skill!
Tony reacted quickly, immediately sensing something was amiss upon seeing Ivan. He swiftly returned to the stage, intending to equip his Iron Man suit, but was blocked by Ivan, who was intently watching him.
"Crack!"
"Tony Stark!"
Ivan spat out the toothpick, forcefully cracked his whip, and glared at Tony with hatred, beginning his essential villainous skill: explanation.
"Your family are thieves and butchers. Like every sinner, you want to rewrite your history, to forget the lives the Stark family killed."
Tony stared intently at the small arc reactor on Ivan's chest. He was intimately familiar with it, but he couldn't understand why it was on Ivan.
In that instant, he thought of Finney and Obadiah, but according to his investigation, Obadiah hadn't yet developed the analytical technology, so it was unlikely he'd been exposed by him.
As for Finney, he had plenty of opportunities to obtain it; there was no motive or need for him to do this.
"While I don't know how you stole my technology, I suppose you haven't paid the patent fees yet, right?"
Tony tried to stall for time. He was currently unarmored, fighting a burly man wielding two energy whips—it would be tantamount to suicide. "Tony!"
Just then, a shout came from the side. It was his bodyguard, Happy, who, seeing something was wrong, rushed over, carrying a steel case that looked like a suitcase.
Beside him was a woman with red curly hair and a particularly curvaceous figure. The moment she saw Ivan Vanko, her eyes changed.
Ivan was annoyed by the intrusion. Without a word, he slammed his energy whip on the ground and looked at the two of them, seemingly preparing to take them out first.
Happy wasn't blind; seeing the crackling energy whip, he knew it was something to be trifled with, but his duty as a bodyguard wouldn't allow him to run away.
"Watch out! Happy, give me the thing!"
Tony quickly warned, urging Happy to give him the case.
Upon hearing this, Happy threw the case towards Tony without a word, making Tony's head throb. This thing couldn't be equipped in mid-air! "Snap!"
Ivan wasn't quite sure what the box contained, but he clearly didn't want Tony to get his hands on it. He lashed out with his energy whip again, accurately striking the box in mid-air and sending it flying far away.
When they realized Ivan was in danger, people around the booth had already started scattering, but New York is never short of reckless individuals. Besides the reporters, a group of fervent Tony fans remained watching from a distance.
The two beautiful women beside Finney had somehow been separated by the chaotic crowd. He didn't bother looking for them, quietly blending into the group of fervent fans to see how things would unfold. After all, he couldn't possibly watch Tony die unexpectedly.
Not wanting to help and encountering someone deliberately refusing to help are two different things.
Just as Finney was considering whether to secretly lend a hand, the woman beside Happy moved. Like a nimble spider, she stood up, accelerated, and arrived beside Ivan before he could even react after striking with his whip.
"It's her!"
Seeing this person, Finney suppressed his urge to help. This was someone who had infiltrated the Avengers; dealing with a mere incomplete Whiplash was a piece of cake.
Ivan saw Black Widow rushing towards him, and he had no intention of showing her any mercy. Without hesitation, he lashed out with his whip.
Leaning back and bending over,
Black Widow dodged the attack with a feat most people couldn't manage. As she rose, she swung off her high heels, unleashing a long, bare, white leg kick at Ivan.
Even the burly man, wielding two energy whips, couldn't withstand Black Widow's kick and fell backward to the ground.
This was the woman who dared to flirt with the Hulk!
"Well done, Natasha, your bonus is in the bag!"
Tony, who was running towards the box, had also been watching the situation and couldn't help but praise Black Widow after seeing her kick.
But Ivan wasn't an ordinary person either. His villainous tenacity allowed him to recover quickly, partly because his kick hadn't landed on any vital areas.
Black Widow was about to press her advantage, but Ivan's energy whips were already in motion, wielding a skill far surpassing that of an elderly man exercising in a park, making even Black Widow somewhat wary.
Fortunately, Tony, who had been dawdling, finally got his Mark V suit. While the Mark V wasn't as powerful as the other models, it was currently his only easily portable suit of armor.
And the equipment installation was quite fast.
A few seconds later, Tony, fully equipped, instantly ignited cheers from the entire audience via the big screen, especially from the group of enthusiastic fans, making his eardrums feel like they were being tortured.
P.S. My semester exams have started, so I've updated fewer chapters recently. Once my exams are over, I'll update more chapters. Thank you for your support!
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(End of Chapter)