Chapter 40

Boom!

Obadiah also charged to the second floor. Unlike Tony, his movements were somewhat rough; he smashed through almost all the glass windows and slammed open the walls as he chased Tony.

"Hahaha, Tony, I've long been displeased with the decoration of your home! I'm so excited to destroy it myself!"

The new Iron Monger II had stronger energy output and more flexible performance than the original. The flying device of the Iron Monger I was rocket-propelled, while the second generation had propulsion technology akin to Tony's. With two legs and six thrusters on either side of his back, the tall and burly Iron Monger II soared down the corridor, hot flames bursting from its engines as it pursued Tony.

Mark V focused on portability. The only weapons available were the two arc pulse guns in the palms and a cluster gun in the chest. Its defensive capabilities were low, and its flying speed was not very fast. Seeing the six thrusters igniting, the second generation of Iron Monger quickly closed the distance.

With Obadiah so eager to pursue, Tony had no time to switch to another armor. The performance of Mark V was simply not enough to confront Obadiah directly, and now Tony was almost at death's door!

Tony kept thinking, urging J.A.R.V.I.S. to find a plan that would allow him to distance himself and change into other armors.

Just then, Obadiah smashed a wall with a punch, grabbed the collapsed concrete, and hurled it at Tony, knocking him directly out and sending his body crashing into the wall behind him.

He coughed up a small mouthful of blood. The Mark V was not very effective at mitigating the impact, and Tony was truly injured.

Meanwhile, with the sound of machinery, Obadiah slowly approached Tony, taunting him. "Tony, Tony, my dear Tony, no one can help you now. I will crush your bones, and then I'll find Pepper and kill her. Anyone who offends me, I remember it all—I will never let it go!"

Tony, watching Obadiah approach, whispered urgently to J.A.R.V.I.S., "J.A.R.V.I.S., help me call Abel."

"Yes, sir!"

With three buzzing sounds, the phone connected, and Abel's voice came through.

"Tony?"

"Abel, I need your help. Pepper is at the company in New York. Please go find her. I'm counting on you to protect her."

At that moment, Abel heard the abnormal tone in Tony's voice and quickly realized that something was wrong.

"Tony, what happened? Where are you now?"

"Just get Pepper to safety! I'm in California—please, help me!"

As soon as Tony finished speaking, the call was abruptly cut off.

Abel tried to call back, but it was busy.

Having just come out of Kamar-Taj's laboratory, Abel wasted no time. He rushed to the practice square where Kamar-Taj could teleport. Donning his hood, he used magic to envelop himself in black smoke, then opened a portal with his ring and stepped through.

At the same time, Abel emerged from the portal and arrived at Pepper's office.

When Abel appeared suddenly, Pepper screamed and stumbled backward, calling for help.

"Pepper, where's Tony? Give me the exact address! He's in danger!" Abel urged.

"What did you say? Tony is in danger? Who are you?"

"I'm a friend of Tony's. Please believe me—just give me the address!"

Pepper, being a decisive woman, quickly provided the address of Tony's house upon hearing Abel's words.

Kamar-Taj's portal-opening conditions are somewhat idealistic. You need to know the place to open the portal, but it doesn't have to be a location you've visited before. As long as you conceptually understand the location, you can create a portal.

Even though Abel had never been to Pepper's office, he knew the location of Stark Industries in New York. Thus, he opened a portal. Although he didn't know where Tony was exactly, he could conceptualize his house's location, allowing him to open a portal even without detailed knowledge of the place.

Raising his left hand with the ring, Abel's right hand made a circular motion in front of him. Suddenly, a circular portal made of countless sparks opened, revealing Tony's mansion on the seaside cliff!

Without hesitation, Abel stepped into the portal. At that moment, he noticed that Pepper had followed him through.

Abel admired Pepper's courage; it seemed she would do anything for Tony.

Hearing the chaos within the mansion and seeing the obvious destruction, Abel didn't waste time sending Pepper back through the portal.

"Find a place to hide! You don't want to become a hostage for the enemy to threaten Tony, right?"

With Pepper's intelligence, there was no need to worry about her understanding the urgency. After saying this, Abel took action. He wore the ring on his left hand and drew his magic wand with his right, swiping it in front of him. A portal immediately emerged, and Abel quickly entered Tony's mansion.

As soon as he entered, Abel saw Tony in the damaged Mark V armor, being lifted off the ground by Obadiah with one hand, before crashing back down. Obadiah lifted his foot, ready to stomp on Tony.

At that moment, Abel raised his wand and shot a blue-white light at the Iron Monger II. The light struck Obadiah, causing an explosion. Obadiah was forced to retreat, creating space between him and Tony.