"That's right. You should know that Boeing Aerospace is my company. Our technology is actually more advanced than what we show the public. Dracula, who has always been interested in space, realized this and came to us. He asked us to build him a spaceship so he could leave Earth," Josh said, making it all up.
Even though Dracula did leave on a Mar-Vell spaceship, since he was no longer on Earth, Josh could say whatever he wanted about it.
He wasn't worried about being found out, either. After leaving Starscream alone for about a week, the clown gave in and handed over a bunch of Decepticon-controlled Cybertronian technology in exchange for a batch of Vibranium Josh had agreed to give him.
Before Josh arrived in Hong Kong, Starscream had already coated himself and added some vibranium armor, and now planned to overthrow Soundwave and Shockwave in order to take complete control of the Cybertronian regime.
After Josh received the tech files from Starscream, he immediately gave them to Yuri and Lawrence to review and use.
After all, it would be too much trouble for scientists in Josh's world to understand Cybertronian technology—the tech gap was just too big.
The Austrian scientists still hadn't figured out much of the technology from Yuri's world, so there was no way they could handle it either.
But Yuri and Lawrence came from a world that was already very advanced, so it was much easier for them to understand.
After going through the files, they both confirmed that Cybertronian technology was very useful to them.
In fact, their tech system was very similar to that of humans, and much easier to learn than the Kree Empire's technology.
It made applying and using the tech much easier.
Only a few details still needed improvement, especially in life support systems—since human bodies were much weaker than Transformers.
But since Cybertronian technology was relatively easy to understand, Josh now had the technology for interstellar travel.
"Incredible... So Boeing Aerospace can already do interstellar travel. I really underestimated you, Mr. Kahn," Xu Wenwu said in amazement after hearing Josh's words.
Even though he had built a powerful empire over the past thousand years, it was still stuck on Earth.
The universe still felt unreachable to him.
But did Dracula really dream of the stars and space?
Xu Wenwu secretly scoffed at that thought.
That guy was just scared of the Ancient One.
Yes, Xu Wenwu knew about the Ancient One and Kamar-Taj.
In the movies, the Ten Rings had a secret fight club in Macau where Wong (A/N: who became the Sorcerer Supreme after Doctor Strange died in the Snap) appeared—this already said a lot.
And that's why, even though he and the Ten Rings had enough power to build a great empire, they chose to stay in the shadows.
Because there was an agreement between the two sides, and the reason for that agreement was actually quite simple. In the eyes of the Ancient One, Xu Wenwu, who possessed the Ten Rings, wasn't just an ordinary person anymore, he was already something beyond the dimension of Earth.
In the movie, even Wong, Captain Marvel, and Bruce Banner couldn't figure out where the Ten Rings came from, but the Ancient One knew exactly what they were.
So even though Xu Wenwu had only scratched the surface in studying and using the Ten Rings over the past thousand years, the Ancient One still treated him like a dimensional being—and that's why she made an agreement with him.
Xu Wenwu could secretly increase the power of the Ten Rings, but he couldn't reveal the Ten Rings to the public or lead from the front.
If someone else had tried to impose such restrictions on Xu Wenwu, he probably wouldn't have hesitated to smash them.
But if that person was the Ancient One... even if he was unhappy about it, he had no choice but to agree—he didn't want to end up trapped in a mirror dimension prison.
So when Josh said that Dracula had left Earth, Xu Wenwu immediately knew the truth.That guy wasn't trying to explore space—he was just trying to escape the Ancient One.
Honestly, when Josh mentioned that Boeing Aerospace could do interstellar travel, Xu Wenwu was seriously tempted.
He had been angry with the Ancient One for hundreds of years. Before she appeared, when had he ever been forced to bow to anyone?
But... Xu Wenwu looked at Jiaying again, and his eyes began to drift.
"It's not that amazing," Josh said modestly. "We were only able to help Dracula leave Earth because he's a special case. If he were a normal human, life support and other supplies would still be a big problem.
So for now, Boeing Aerospace can only handle short-distance missions, like going to the moon. But give it a few years—or a decade—and who knows?"
After saying that, Josh finally noticed that Xu Wenwu's eyes kept landing on Jiaying.
Wait... seriously?
Josh raised an eyebrow. Was Xu Wenwu really interested in Jiaying?
It wasn't impossible. While Jiaying wasn't Josh's type, that didn't mean she was unattractive—she was definitely above average.
And attraction is a funny thing. Sometimes it's just a feeling.
So it wouldn't be too surprising if Xu Wenwu liked her.
After all, the woman he liked in the movie, Ying Li, wasn't particularly stunning either.
And if Xu Wenwu really ended up with Jiaying... hmm... would their child be Skye or Sargi?If it was Skye, Josh would be thrilled.
If it was Sargi... ugh, no thanks!
Maybe Josh should ask Yuri if there's something that makes people only have daughters and not sons.
Poor Skye—she wasn't even born yet, and she was already being watched by her mischievous "grandpa."
And technically, yeah—if Skye is born, she would have to call Josh "Grandpa."
Of course, all this depended on whether Jiaying agreed to it.
If she wasn't into Xu Wenwu, Josh wouldn't push her. She could just stay in the family and be their little treasure.
"Her name is Jiaying, from southern Hunan. She ended up in Europe because of the war. She's my housekeeper now," Josh said with a slight cough when he noticed that Xu Wenwu's gaze hadn't moved.
He wasn't offended—but Jiaying had clearly gotten uncomfortable under Xu Wenwu's intense stare and secretly looked to Josh for help.
But as soon as Josh said that, Jiaying froze.
Boss… I wanted you to help me, not sell me out!
"Oh? Miss Jia is from South Hunan, too? That means we're from the same place!" Upon hearing Josh's words, Xu Wenwu's eyes lit up even more.
"Haha, what a coincidence..." Jiaying replied with a forced laugh. As Josh's chief housekeeper, she knew exactly who Xu Wenwu was. Even though she didn't understand why Josh would "sacrifice" her, she could only play along.
She had no idea her boss was already thinking about her daughter—who didn't even exist yet.
Fortunately, Xu Wenwu wasn't the kind of man to let desire cloud his judgment. Even though he was clearly interested in Jiaying, he stopped making small talk and quickly brought the conversation back on track.
"Anyway, let's talk about this mission. I'm really curious—what kind of task would make someone like Mr. Kahn ask the Ten Rings for help, instead of doing it himself?" Xu Wenwu asked seriously.
"No, not the Ten Rings. I'm asking you, and only you can do it," Josh shook his head.
"Oh? I'm listening." Xu Wenwu raised his eyebrows in interest. What kind of target needed him to handle it personally?
"It's simple. I want you to deal with someone who isn't an ordinary person. In fact, they're not human at all—and they're extremely dangerous." Josh leaned forward and quietly explained the situation with the Eternals.
That's right—Josh had gone through all this trouble to bring out this hidden powerhouse from the Marvel world just to take on the Eternals.
Back in Antarctica, after witnessing the Ancient One, Odin, and the Eternals all appear at the same time, Josh still couldn't figure out their exact relationships.
But what he did understand was that he shouldn't go after the Eternals directly anymore.
So who else on Earth had the power to confront them at that time?
There were still a few, but most of them lived in isolation and didn't care about the outside world—like the people from K'un-Lun.
Josh had no connection to them, didn't even know where they were, and there was no way he could get them to help.
So after thinking it through, the best option was still Xu Wenwu—a powerful character whose strength hadn't been fully revealed in the movie and whose morals could go either way.
"What an incredible story. If you hadn't told me yourself, I would never have believed that there were such strange beings hidden on Earth," Xu Wenwu said in amazement after hearing the details, "Ikaris, Gilgamesh—those names are legendary… and Celestials too? Very interesting. Truly fascinating."
He had heard of the Ancient One before—he'd even had dealings with her.
But the Eternals? This was the first time he heard about them.
The existence of the Celestials and the Earth Goddess Tiamut really shocked him, and his face became much more serious.
"Still, as shocking as this is, I need to confirm the details myself. Give me a week. After that, I'll give you a clear answer," he said after thinking about it for a long time.
"Of course. I'll be in Hong Kong the whole week, waiting for your good news," Josh replied calmly, already expecting this kind of answer.
After all, no sane person would believe something so outrageous just based on someone else's word—let alone a cunning warlord like Xu Wenwu.
If he'd agreed on the spot, Josh might have been too suspicious to go through with the commission.
However, with the power of the Ten Rings and the concrete information Josh had provided, it wouldn't be difficult to verify the existence of the Eternals.
But the fact that Xu Wenwu only asked for a week still caught Josh off guard; given the state of communications at the time, he expected it to take at least a month.
It seemed that the reach of the Ten Rings was even greater than he had imagined.
What Josh didn't expect was that Xu Wenwu didn't need to mobilize the Ten Rings at all.
Because just ten minutes after parting ways with Josh, Xu Wenwu arrived at a building that, in the future, would become one of Hong Kong's most famous landmarks—the Leisheng Chun Traditional Medicine Pharmacy.
It was a four-story building completed in 1931, covering over 600 square meters.
The first floor served as a pharmacy, while the upper three floors housed the Lei family, who owned it.
But Xu Wenwu clearly wasn't there for the medicine.
In fact, it wasn't the pharmacy that he was after, but something hidden behind it.
To the average person on the street, the pharmacy's back door simply led to an alley, nothing special.
But to Xu Wenwu's eyes, behind the Leisheng Chun Pharmacy was a huge, ancient looking building filled with a mystical aura.
This building was none other than the Hong Kong Sanctum, one of the three great Sanctums of Kamar-Taj.
And Xu Wenwu's way of verifying the truth about the Eternals was simple—just go straight to the Ancient One and ask.
He might not like the old crone, but when it came to supernatural matters, there was no one more reliable than her.
Xu Wenwu didn't use the main entrance, but went to a side door.
But before he could knock, the door swung open and a young Asian sorcerer stepped out, bowing slightly and saying, "Master Xu, please follow me. The Sorcerer Supreme is expecting you."
Xu Wenwu merely raised an eyebrow in response. No surprise there—he'd known her for centuries.
This kind of dramatic flair? Classic Ancient One.
Meanwhile, back at the Peninsula Hotel, Jiaying couldn't hold it in any longer.
"Boss, why did you tell Xu Wenwu about me like that?" she asked in frustration.
"What? Don't you like him? Or do you think he's ugly?" Josh teased with a grin.
"Uhh, not really. He's actually pretty decent... just not as handsome as you," Jiaying said, blushing a little.
Clearly, she didn't entirely dislike Xu Wenwu.
Which wasn't too surprising—after all, both his appearance and presence were top-tier, even by modern standards.
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