Chapter 13
The Tyrant Tiger's Fire Seed: Seeking Its Own Death
The next morning.
Queens, New York.
Li Ang was lounging idly on the counter, teasing the garlic turtle that was sunbathing with his finger.
"Da na~"
Bulbasaur stretched out its vine whip, lazily brushed aside Li Ang's fingers, turned over, and continued sleeping.
"These days, even pets are starting to give up."
Li Ang sighed, "I wonder when the next big client will come. Tony has used all the value points he gave me to upgrade the system. Now I have the mall but I can't afford to buy anything."
Ring ring.
The wind chimes at the door rang.
Li Ang didn't even lift his eyelids: "Welcome. We do not offer credit. If you want directions, please turn left after you leave. If you want to rob us, we suggest you buy personal accident insurance first."
"A very interesting opening."
Calm and composed, with a hint of oppressive pressure from someone who has long held a high position.
Li Ang raised his head.
A bald, bearded man stood at the door, wearing his signature expensive suit, followed by two cold-looking bodyguards in black.
Obadiah Stan.
"Looks like today is a good day; the God of Wealth has come to our door."
Li Ang instantly put on a professional smile, his eyes sweeping over Obadiah. "Mr. Stan, you look... brighter than you do on TV."
Obadiah raised an eyebrow almost imperceptibly.
He hates it when people talk about his bald head.
"Young man, I don't like nonsense."
Obadiah walked straight to the counter, took out an anonymous black bank card from his pocket, and gently patted it on the table.
"There are fifty million US dollars here."
Obadiah leaned forward, his vulture-like eyes fixed on Leon. "I want everything Tony bought, all of it."
"Fifty million?" Li Ang raised an eyebrow, picked up the card and twirled it between his fingers. "Impressive."
"But I must remind you, Mr. Stan."
Li Ang pointed to the gashapon machine behind him, "What's being sold here isn't merchandise, it's luck."
"What Tony draws, you might not be able to draw, and besides..."
Li Ang's smile turned somewhat playful: "Sometimes, the more you gain, the more you lose."
"Luck?" Obadiah sneered, his voice filled with capitalist arrogance. "In my entire life, I have never relied on luck. I only believe in strength, and money is a part of strength."
"Each draw of the low-level gacha costs 10,000, and each draw of the mid-level gacha costs 100,000."
Li Ang shrugged, not caring about the other party's attitude.
Fifty million US dollars.
This is five thousand chances to win a prize.
Even if Li Ang is a ruthless businessman, he has to admit that Obadiah is indeed richer than Tony is now.
Tony's assets are mostly frozen in the stock market, while Obadiah has all sorts of liquid black money.
For the next half hour, the gashapon shop was filled with Obadiah's heavy breathing and the sound of gashapon shells cracking.
"Again!"
"Garbage! It's all garbage!"
"What's this? A bamboo dragonfly? What use would I have for this toy!"
Obadiah's feet were surrounded by piles of white discarded props.
His mindset gradually shifted from calm at the beginning to anxiety, and eventually even became somewhat hysterical.
He was like a gambler who had lost everything, completely unlike his usual shrewd and strategic demeanor.
Fifty million, and in the blink of an eye, only half remains.
Apart from a few heavy machine guns from Metal Slug and some low-level potions that could quickly heal wounds, he saw no power comparable to the Red Devil.
"Are you kidding me?"
Obadiah looked up, her eyes bloodshot. "It's all a hoax! Tony isn't here at all..."
"Sincerity moves mountains, Mr. Stan."
Leon calmly sipped his cola. "There are still 25 million left. Are you just going to give up like this? That's not like the demeanor of the second-in-command at Stark Industries."
"You can leave now, I won't stop you."
Obadiah's teeth were grinding together.
give up?
No, he has no way out.
The board of directors is putting pressure on him, while Tony is secretly investigating.
If he can't muster enough power to suppress everything in a short time, he's finished!
"Keep going!" Obadiah roared.
Just as his funds were about to run out and Obadiah was on the verge of losing his composure.
A gashapon capsule, as black as ink but with an eerie purple glow flowing across its surface, slowly rolled out.
There was no celebratory background music.
There was only a low-frequency humming sound that was unsettling, which even startled Bulbasaur, which was sleeping soundly.
"Oh?" Li Ang put down his cola, his eyes turning serious for the first time. "The big guy is out."
Obadiah's hands trembled as he picked up the icy, chilling gashapon.
Click.
Black mist filled the air.
A small, irregularly shaped metal fragment, no bigger than the palm of a hand, floated silently in mid-air.
It has a dark silver color all over its body, and its surface is engraved with incomprehensible complex patterns. Each breath-like flash is accompanied by a piercing electronic noise.
[Item: Spark Fragment (Disposable)]
[Source: Transformers Cinematic Universe]
[Description: A sacred fragment of Cybertron, containing the magical power to grant life to machines. Simply insert it into any electromechanical device, and it can instantly be activated into a silicon-based life form.]
[Note: Because this fragment has been corrupted by Megatron's berserk will, the activated mechanical lifeforms will possess an innate and extremely strong desire for destruction and conquest.]
Li Ang looked at the fragment, and his heart skipped a beat.
Goodness, this Obadiah was unlucky his whole life, and now he's sneaking into Europe?
If used properly, this thing can be a real weapon.
But the problem is... this is the Decepticons' side!
"What is this?"
Obadiah looked at the fragment and sensed the terrifying energy contained within it, an energy whose purity was comparable to Tony's reactor!
"The Source of Fire".
Li Ang's voice became somewhat low, "A source that can give life to machines. As long as you plug it into a machine, the machine will come to life."
"Back to life?" Obadiah's pupils contracted sharply.
"Yes, but I must warn you, the mechanical life granted to this fragment is a bit... "
Li Ang hadn't even had a chance to utter the words "extremely difficult to control".
Obadiah had already grabbed the fragment and turned to leave with his men.
"Life...it's actually life!"
"If the armor had a life of its own, wouldn't it be like Jarvis?"
"Moreover, the energy inside is quite strong; it might even be able to replace a reactor."
Obadiah was completely trapped in his own logical loop.
He was constantly troubled by the inability to find loyal soldiers and the problem of miniaturizing energy sources.
But this fragment perfectly solves all the pain points!
"This is exactly what I need!"
Obadiah stuffed the fragments into the pocket of his expensive suit, turned and got into the car, completely ignoring the other trash he had pulled out.
"Mr. Stan, that's the Decepticon's seed, not your pet golden retriever. I suggest you..."
Li Ang called out from behind him.
"You don't need to worry about that!"
Obadiah didn't turn around, his voice filled with arrogant arrogance, "No machine can rebel against Stark Industries' code!"
Watching Obadiah's figure disappear through the door, Li Ang helplessly shrugged.
"Control the Decepticons? Or use this code?"
"This is probably the funniest joke I've ever heard."