When it was revealed that Earth would be invaded by a cosmic-level overlord in the future, everyone's expressions grew grim.
Although this conclusion was only a hypothesis from Agent Coulson, it was based on logical reasoning rather than baseless speculation.
Such a matter, even if there was only the slightest possibility, had to be treated with extreme caution.
No level of caution would be excessive.
After all, this was a matter that could determine the fate of Earth—life or death!
Both Coulson and Rhodes made the decision that once they returned, they would immediately report everything that had happened today.
[Question: How will Iron Man, Tony Stark, die in the future?]
[A: Natural death]
[B: Palladium poisoning]
[C: Killed by Thanos]
[D: Killed by the backlash of the Infinity Stones]
[Reminder: Correct answers will reward a healing potion; incorrect answers will randomly deduct one attribute, including but not limited to knowledge, experience, skills, possessions, etc...]
As soon as the question was revealed, the atmosphere in the room became awkward.
Both Rhodes and Coulson couldn't help but turn their gaze toward Iron Man.
No one expected that the second question would be this explosive.
Tony Stark had just revealed himself as Iron Man, and now they were already discussing his death.
"What's with the looks?"Iron Man said nonchalantly. "Everyone dies eventually; this is just a normal question."
However, despite his calm demeanor, Iron Man couldn't help but feel a slight unease in his heart. He didn't appear as calm as he seemed on the outside.
This was because he had a premonition that he might meet a sudden and untimely death in the future.
He would not live to an old age.
After all, this was a question about the future. If he truly were to live out a peaceful life and die of natural causes, this question wouldn't even need to be asked, right?
Moreover, the previous question hinted at a battle, showing that Iron Man would be fighting against the heavens and the earth, even possibly flying out of the universe. Iron Man had even less faith in his own future now.
"So, let's analyze this question,"Rhodes said as he regained his composure and addressed the two of them. "Let's first look at option A... so..."
After a few stutters, Rhodes couldn't bring himself to finish his thought and tossed the question back to Iron Man. "Tony, why don't you analyze this option?"
Neither Rhodes nor Coulson believed that Iron Man would die of natural causes.
They both knew that the world was far more complicated than it appeared on the surface, with forces that transcended the ordinary.
For example, the Hulk, or the cosmic overlord Thanos from the previous question.
Coulson, especially, knew much more than Rhodes about these matters.
And Iron Man, as a superhero on Earth with powers far beyond those of ordinary people, would inevitably become entangled in conflicts with such extraordinary forces.
In this scenario, Rhodes and Coulson believed that the possibility of Iron Man being killed by someone was much higher than dying of natural causes.
It was even possible that Thanos was involved.
After all, in that vision, Iron Man had been stabbed by Thanos!
But Rhodes couldn't bring himself to say this out loud in front of Iron Man.
"Man, I'm Iron Man; I'm a superhero!"
Iron Man knew what Rhodes was thinking. He shrugged and took the question. "Superheroes don't die such mundane deaths! Iron Man definitely won't!"
"If Iron Man ever dies, it should be like fireworks—even in death, leaving the world with the most dazzling brilliance!"
"So, A can be ruled out. This is not the way I, Iron Man, will die!"
With that, option A was discarded, and everyone agreed without objections.
"Then what about B? Palladium poisoning?"Coulson's gaze fell on option B.
Then, suddenly remembering something, he looked at Iron Man. "If I'm not mistaken, your Stark Industries arc reactor uses palladium, right?"
Stark Industries once had a giant arc reactor invented by Howard Stark and Anton Vanko, primarily to provide clean energy to the outside world.
This was a signature product of Stark Industries from decades ago, and some basic parameters were publicly available.
So, both Rhodes and Coulson knew this was not surprising.
However, just last night, Iron Man and Stane had a huge battle that ended with the arc reactor being destroyed.
That was why Iron Man held a press conference today to explain the huge explosion that occurred.
Originally, Coulson and the military had agreed that Tony Stark's identity should remain hidden, with everything being blamed on a nonexistent bodyguard.
But Tony Stark didn't follow the script and directly admitted he was Iron Man.
"Tony, could it be that the explosion last night caused your palladium poisoning?"Rhodes's pupils contracted as he realized something. "I told you, we should have gone to the hospital for a detailed checkup!"
"I wish it were that simple!"Iron Man couldn't help but remark.
"Your Iron Man suit!"Coulson's eyes widened slightly. "The small arc reactor on it must also use palladium, right?"
When Coulson said this, Rhodes quickly realized his guess had been wrong. Coulson's analysis made more sense.
"So, is it the Iron Man suit that caused your poisoning? The Iron Man suit is killing you?"Rhodes's eyes widened in disbelief.
"This is just a minor issue. For a genius like me, I will definitely find a replacement for palladium in the future. Let's move on to the next option."
Iron Man didn't deny it but confidently said.
In reality, since deciding to use the arc reactor as the power source for the Iron Man suit, Iron Man had been working on finding a replacement for palladium.
However, even now, he had no clue.
He had tried almost every element, but none were successful.
In fact, Iron Man was now completely stuck.
But even in this seemingly hopeless situation, Iron Man remained confident.
That was because in the vision from the previous question, the Iron Man battling against Thanos was at least twenty years in the future!
And based on Iron Man's current poisoning situation, he would be lucky if he lived another year!
If he managed to live that long, it was certain that he had solved the palladium poisoning problem!
Rhodes and Coulson were unaware of this, but Iron Man knew exactly what was going on, which was why he was so confident that he would find a replacement for palladium in the future.
(End of Chapter)