In the following days, Tony ran with Shang-Chi.
Although he often heard the phrase 'On your left', it also helped with his anxiety and insomnia.
However, it might also be that he was simply too tired to think too much, especially since he had a beautiful wife at home.
As expected, love is a major stumbling block to maintaining exercise.
John didn't bother with him either; this was just a small interlude.
At this time, John was visiting Midtown High School.
That's right, the one Shang-Chi attends.
Shang-Chi was also dumbfounded when he saw John.
John shook hands with the Principal, who smiled as brightly as an old chrysanthemum.
Half a month later, the students of Midtown High School received an invitation letter.
"Future Talent Fund?"
Shang-Chi looked at the invitation letter with the Taran logo on it, feeling utterly confused.
His teacher was excitedly saying, "Taran Industries invites you to visit."
The teachers couldn't help but feel envious; these students were too lucky.
Taran Industries is a multi-billion dollar enterprise, and this Future Talent Fund is used by Taran Industries to recruit talent.
Sufficiently outstanding students can receive assistance from Taran Industries, covering tuition fees and future advanced studies or startup costs.
This is like having food spoon-fed; those chosen for support will rise rapidly, taking a huge step forward.
"I didn't have such good fortune back then," the teacher mused, "but now these students have encountered it."
That afternoon, Midtown High School organized students to visit Taran Industries.
The person responsible for reception was Hattie.
Hattie had reason to suspect her boss didn't want to be dragged into work, which is why he sent her away.
John, who was buying Invisible Beast bread at the bakery, just wanted to say, "You're absolutely right."
The matter of the Future Talent Fund was also highly anticipated.
Although Taran Industries had previously been a company selling civilian firearms, in the past year, there have been clear signs of transformation.
Not only did they develop new energy, but they also established a Technology Department and a Medical Department, and even handled resource recycling.
All signs indicate that Taran Industries is starting to venture into other fields.
Shang-Chi toured with the group, and they saw the sci-fi new energy reactor.
The enormous reactor, over ten meters in diameter, emitted a dreamy light, continuously providing energy.
They also saw the Regeneration Cradle technology; this revolutionary technology left people speechless.
They watched the dissected mice bouncing around, and the beautiful Dr. Helen also enthusiastically spoke about how the Regeneration Cradle would revolutionize the medical industry.
The Technology Department was even more fantastical; in each display case, the wreckage of Chitauri weapons was disassembled.
And there was also a complete Chitauri soldier's corpse immersed in a bio-chamber.
The sci-fi yet slightly horrifying scenes stimulated the students.
In just half a day, their eyes had been opened.
Even Shang-Chi couldn't help but click his tongue; his landlord's Taran Industries was actually this powerful.
***
John was slacking off, but not completely.
Olov took him to meet someone.
The man with the gray beard extended his hand and shook John's hand warmly. "It's an honor to meet you, Mr. Wick."
Olov introduced, "This is Ulysses Klaue; he has what you want."
Ulysses' smile widened. "It's my honor to be connected with the Lord of War."
Even if he no longer smuggled weapons, Olov was still a legend in the arms industry.
This guy could turn illegal business into legitimate business and still get out unscathed; it was practically the lifelong goal of these people.
John glanced at the box the other party brought. "What I want, I hope you have enough of it."
Ulysses was originally afraid he couldn't sell it all, but upon hearing this, he immediately grinned and burst out laughing. "You've found the right person, Mr. Wick."
He opened the box, which contained the vibranium he had collected and plundered.
Ulysses was a vibranium dealer and also an arms dealer.
John had absorbed vibranium last time and experienced its benefits, so naturally, he wanted to buy more to store.
Olov acted as a go-between, arranging for John to meet Ulysses.
There was a considerable amount in stock, a full hundred jin.
This amount was already astonishing; if Olov hadn't intervened, the other party wouldn't have rashly brought out so much vibranium.
Selling his prized possession, Ulysses said with a hint of playfulness, "Is this enough?"
He didn't think John would buy so much. After all, at the current price of vibranium, this amount would cost a full 500 million.
Olov's expression also hardened. He leaned close to John's ear and whispered, "You just started the Future Talent Fund; don't be impulsive taking out so much money at once."
John just glanced at it. "I'll take it all."
"However..."
As soon as the words came out, Ulysses' face fell; he knew there was something else.
John grinned. "Can we trade with gold?"
Gold?
Ulysses' expression was replaced by a brilliant smile.
Compared to US dollars, gold is easier to offload.
He smiled brightly. "If you can produce it."
John nodded meaningfully. "There will be."
He was an Alchemist; gold and such things were merely the least valuable items in his hands.
When large pieces of gold, so big they didn't look naturally formed, were delivered, Ulysses and Olov both fell silent.
Never mind the nugget gold, that stool-shaped gold...
Does your family have a habit of making furniture out of gold?
How many mines does your family have to waste it like this?
***
After slightly revealing his ability to transmute stone into gold, John returned with a hundred jin of vibranium.
This hundred jin wasn't actually that much; Steve's shield alone required about ten jin of vibranium.
At most, this amount John had was just enough to make a few spare shields for Steve.
He kept half and absorbed the remaining half using the Limited Gauntlet.
John also did a test, controlling the Destroyer to punch him on his right hand.
The punch was blocked, the gem on the gauntlet lit up, and the Destroyer was sent flying directly into the wall.
The yellow light dimmed, and John was quite satisfied with this.
It was just tough on the Destroyer, having to be used as a punching bag.
Pulling the punching bag – ah, no, the Destroyer – back, John used a spell to repair the wall.
The silver faded and turned back into a ring.
Some time passed again.
John would go and enjoy the large morning drama titled 'The Stubbornness of an Old Man'.
Tony went from throwing up at first to not throwing up as violently later.
Shang-Chi also gradually became serious. As the son raised by Wenwu, although he seemed different from his father in personality, he hid Wenwu's arrogance deep in his bones.
Losing to an ordinary person was something Shang-Chi didn't want to see.
John didn't join in to bully people either. Besides caring about Shang-Chi's grades, he would occasionally help train him to use the power within Shang-Chi.
This made Shang-Chi stronger and stronger. One time, he could punch the air and shatter a cup.
This was a good result. Wenwu had asked John to help teach Shang-Chi how to use that power.
The power accumulated over many years, when mobilised, carried a force that should not be underestimated.
To prevent harming others, John told Wenwu to try not to use it at Hogwarts.
Of course, if someone bullies you, just hit them directly.
Shang-Chi realised he seemed to be drifting further and further from his original intention. He wanted to escape his father and live a stable, peaceful life.
But John's appearance not only disrupted his life rhythm but also led him further down the path of power.
He tried to keep a low profile at Hogwarts. His past act of beating up the football team members had marked him as someone not to be messed with.
This greatly troubled Shang-Chi.
It wasn't that he hadn't thought about finding John, but recalling how John had enlightened him after his last nightmare, a seed had actually been planted in his heart.
Those bad people wouldn't just go away if he kept a low profile.
One day, returning home late from Hogwarts, Shang-Chi saw someone drugging a girl and dragging her into an alley.
Between leaving to maintain a low profile and intervening to help, he finally chose to intervene.
He saved the girl and also taught the criminal a lesson.
From then on, he would sometimes deliberately choose to walk through narrow alleys to perform acts of chivalry and justice.
Every time he acted, he was very fast, so fast that others couldn't even see what he looked like.
Gradually, Queens also gained a friendly neighborhood figure.
A white-haired old man was drinking at a bar, talking loudly about that friendly neighbor hero.
An old woman walked into the bar and dragged the old man away by his ear.
"Ow, ow, ow."
"If you drink anymore, you'll get cirrhosis, Stan!"
The old man didn't dare resist and could only be sheepishly led away in front of his old friends.
This incident also made people start to realize that heroes were gradually entering their surroundings.
"The Superhero era."
Fury murmured while watching TV.
"Knock, knock."
The sound of the door opening rang out, and Coulson walked in with a kind and approachable smile.
"Sir."
Fury looked at him, deep meaning hidden in his eyes.
And Coulson didn't see any of this.
He didn't feel that his presence here at this moment was inappropriate at all.
***********
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