Chapter 5
Don't Waste Your Life
"Ethan, Ethan, are you alright?" Tony knew he was just asking a question. With such a big hole in his chest, even in a hospital with an operating table right next to him, he might not be able to be saved, let alone in this desolate wilderness.
"Should I leave now? With wounds like these, will I turn into a zombie like them?" Ethan asked.
"No, Ethan." Tony wasn't entirely sure either, but the serum said it provided 24-hour immunity, while the original virus solution said it was active for 10 hours. As long as there were no new sources of infection after 24 hours, it shouldn't turn into a zombie again.
"That's good. I don't want to end up like that." Ethan breathed a sigh of relief, then, as if remembering something, asked, "Tony, does your Primal God have a place similar to Heaven?"
"Yes, it's called Teyvat. It has beautiful scenery and you can explore it freely." Tony said, trying to comfort Ethan.
"That's great, it's a pity my family can't go. Now I'm going to see them. Goodbye, Tony, don't waste your life." Ethan's voice grew softer and softer until he fell silent.
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"An explosion has been detected in area S412-J454. Team T2 is dispatched to investigate."
"T2 received, proceed to reconnaissance."
"T2 team has reached its position. A landslide has occurred in the target area. The situation is unclear. Please dispatch ground troops for reconnaissance. Requesting to return to base."
"Tower received, Tower grants permission for T2 to return."
"Wait, VIP detected in T2! VIP detected in T2! VIP Tony Stark!"
"Roger, robbery! How is the VIP? Protect the VIP's safety, dispatch troops immediately."
As soon as the message came back from T2, the US military base erupted in chaos. Rhodes, who had been in the command center, jumped up and shouted:
"Satellites, satellites, send me satellites! I need to see Tony's situation! And send one, no, three teams, to this damn place immediately!"
Following Rhodes's order, the entire base sprang into action, with three helicopter formations advancing toward Tony's location.
Meanwhile, the base's missiles were also warmed up and ready to launch at any time. The operators, who had been urgently called to their posts, couldn't understand why they were being asked to stand by. They couldn't possibly launch missiles to save Tony Stark, could they? Was this to save him or send him to his death?
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Tony sat on a clearing not far from the valley, next to a new grave.
Digging the grave didn't take much of Tony's energy. Stimulated by the intense life-or-death crisis, Tony had already mastered the basics of telekinesis. He used his telekinesis to dig a large pit, put Ethan in it, and then covered it with soil, thus completing a simple grave.
"I think staying here is what you really want, rather than taking you back to America," Tony murmured to himself, patting the simple tombstone as if bidding Ethan a final farewell.
The sound of something cutting through the air came from the sky. Tony looked up and recognized it as a military reconnaissance plane. He waved casually, and the reconnaissance plane, probably recognizing him, began to circle high in the sky.
Soon a tremendous roar resounded, and a massive formation of helicopters flew over.
Before the helicopter had even fully landed, Rhode eagerly jumped out and ran to Tony's side. Seeing that Tony's complexion was relatively good, Rhode shouted:
"Where's your happy Hummer? Don't leave me next time, okay?"
"Don't be so passionate. I'm not like you. My sexual orientation is perfectly normal, you know that." Hearing Rhodes' words, Tony couldn't help but take a step back.
"I'm perfectly normal!" Rod felt a little relieved to see that Tony was still in the mood to joke with him.
"Let's go then. Let's get on the plane now. I also need to give a report to the big shots. Do you know how many people I have to report to every day while you've been missing? Those people at the Pentagon can finally get a good night's sleep tonight."
After speaking, Rhodes led the way toward the helicopters, while the other helicopters circled around, scouting for any unusual activity.
After settling into his seat on the plane, Tony casually asked, "Where are we going?"
"Military base, then fly directly back to the United States."
"My plane?" Tony recalled his memories of private jets and beautiful flight attendants. He finally had the chance to ride one himself!
"No, there's a transport plane waiting for you. I've received orders to send you back as quickly as possible!"
Hearing Rod's serious tone, Tony figured he couldn't bargain this time, but then he quickly remembered something and asked, "What about my things? My phone?"
"Everything was packed up for you on the plane. But your phone is really good quality. The soldiers cleaning up the battlefield said that at least a few bullets hit it, but the screen didn't break."
"Unfortunately, my body wasn't as strong as it was back then, otherwise I wouldn't have been kidnapped," Tony complained.
"By the way, what exactly happened? What have you been through these past few days? We saw that video; it was done by the Ten Rings Gang, right?" Rod asked with concern.
"It's the Ten Rings Gang, but I suspect there's someone else behind them. Someone betrayed me." Tony knew the plot, but unfortunately, he couldn't say it directly without evidence.
"Who is it? Tony, do you have any leads? I can help you."
"I have some ideas, but I still need to investigate. I'll let you know when I get back and have some leads."
"It's good that you have a plan." Rhodey believed that the clever Tony Stark could solve everything rather than use his own brain. Unfortunately, he didn't know that the current Tony had lost his cleverness, but knowing the plot was like having a prophetic cheat code, so it didn't make much difference.
The two chatted casually until they reached the transport plane, where the logistics soldiers brought Tony's belongings over as soon as they arrived.
Tony took out his phone, typed a string of numbers on the keypad, and entered a hidden interface.
Seeing this, Rod asked curiously, "What is this?"
Tony explained, "You should know that the Jericho missiles haven't been delivered yet, and ownership still belongs to Stark Industries, where I am the largest shareholder and CEO."
"Yes, and then?" Rod didn't understand why Tony brought this up. Was he trying to show off his wealth? There was no need to flaunt it; he was already used to it.
"So the Jericho missile is mine. This is the missile's remote control interface. I just entered a coordinate."
"You're going to activate the Jericho missile and bomb a location?"
"To be precise, it's all blown up." Tony turned his phone screen around and put it away.
"Not America, is it?" Rhodes asked tentatively.
"Of course not, it's not far from where they picked me up, the place where I'm being held."
"Afghanistan, huh? That's good. It's a small matter; I'll have my men fill out a report. But why bomb there?"
Tony, thinking about the toxic contagiousness of the original solution, said seriously, "There are some things there that should be buried."
"Are you talking about a painful past? Should I find you a therapist? Do you have PTSD?" Rod asked with concern.