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After a round of what you could call… a "friendly nuclear-level negotiation,"
Peter successfully walked away from Wakanda with the first batch of raw vibranium ore.
Yeah, it wasn't that much—just a few dozen tons. Not even a hundred tons… probably…
"Father… are we really just letting him leave like this? What about my sister…?"
T'Challa's eyes were filled with frustration as he watched the figure carrying what looked like a small mountain of vibranium fly off at high speed.
"T'Challa… for the safety of Wakanda, we have no choice."
Of course, the old king hated the idea of so much vibranium falling into an outsider's hands.
But just moments ago, they had truly seen for themselves how powerful this "Superman" really was.
Even their strongest ally—Black Bolt, king of the Inhumans—hadn't been able to lay a finger on him.
Black Bolt's voice could destroy vibranium itself, yet it didn't leave a single scratch on Peter's indestructible body.
With someone that strong, maybe only an actual god could go up against him.
No, wait. The last guy who called himself the "God of Thunder" got beaten up and had his hammer crushed like a soda can.
"And besides… he said your sister's fine. She's just helping him with something for now."
At this point, it was hard to read any emotion on the old king's face.
He stared at the horizon where Peter had disappeared, silent for a long moment, before finally speaking:
"If we can become partners with him… maybe even friends..."
He paused, then continued, "Then we might actually fulfill the dream every Wakandan king before me has had—"
"To share Wakanda's strength and prosperity with the world. And do it without fear… without bringing war to our people."
Wakanda had risen from a simple agricultural tribe to a hyper-advanced nation purely thanks to its vast underground vibranium reserves.
But because of those same reserves, they'd always had to stay hidden—to avoid becoming a target for global exploitation, to avoid war.
But now, the old king had finally seen a chance to open Wakanda to the world—and still keep it safe and untouched by conflict.
"Father… are we really going to do this?"
A flash of concern passed over T'Challa's face.
"I… no. You're going to lead Wakanda into true prosperity."
"Let the world see just how strong the real Wakanda is!"
The old king turned back to his son, eyes full of hope and expectation.
Meanwhile…
Even with one hand carrying nearly a hundred tons of raw vibranium, and the other holding a small sonic device Wakanda used to process and refine vibranium…
Peter's speed barely dropped at all.
People on the ground might've felt a sudden shadow pass overhead, like a plane flying by, but when they looked up, it was already too late—Peter and his mountain of vibranium had vanished into the sky.
Before long, he was back at the research base in Antarctica.
He used his heat vision to widen the hole at the top of the ice cave—just enough to fit the vibranium through.
Then, he gently opened the metal hatch on top of the base.
"He's finally back!"
The scientists below had already been waiting anxiously for a long time.
They were dying to know whether Peter's promise was real.
Vibranium was one of the rarest materials on Earth. Some of them had gone their entire careers without even seeing real vibranium.
But as the hatch opened and they saw what was coming down…
Their expressions froze.
"So… this is what he meant by 'just grabbing a little bit of vibranium,' huh?"
As they stared at Peter carrying what looked like an actual mountain of ore with one hand, everyone—except for Shuri—was completely dumbfounded.
BOOM!
A deep, heavy thud echoed through the base, snapping everyone out of their stunned silence.
"Mr. Superman, this is…"
Otto stood there, wide-eyed, staring at the massive chunk of vibranium ore that nearly filled the entire cave. He was so overwhelmed he didn't even know what to say.
"Just one gram of vibranium is worth over ten grand—if you can even get your hands on it."
"And now there are probably dozens of tons here. Even though it's raw ore and still needs refining, judging by its purity, we'll still end up with over ten tons of actual vibranium. That's gotta be worth a fortune!"
The rest of the team wasn't doing much better than Dr. Otto. Even a rough estimate was enough to make them realize—there was no way they could make this much money in their entire lifetimes.
"Don't just stand there! Princess Shuri, you're probably the most familiar with this tech. Teach them how to use it. I want to see that vibranium-based protective shell for the artificial sun up and running ASAP."
Peter snapped the group out of their daze and gently set the large case he was carrying onto the ground. Then he turned to Shuri with a nod.
Without another word, he shot up into the sky and took off.
"Ahem... Princess Shuri, does Wakanda happen to need any senior scientists? I'm thinking of immigrating…"
Peter's words had clearly brought the starstruck scientists back to reality. Now, every pair of eyes was locked on Shuri like she was some walking treasure chest.
Time flew by, and over ten days passed in a flash.
A high-speed figure streaked through the skies over Antarctica again.
"Looks like they really pulled it off."
As Peter entered the icy cave, the first thing he noticed was that the vibranium ore—once piled up like a mountain—had been reduced to barely half its size.
Most of it had likely already been processed and refined into pure vibranium.
Peter didn't stick around the cave. He turned and walked steadily toward the lab.
"With a vibranium-built containment system, plus the new energy shield design Princess Shuri provided, I'd say there's no way the artificial sun experiment can fail this time."
Just as he walked into the lab, Peter heard a voice full of excitement from inside.
"I heard you're all ready to go?"
Walking deeper into the lab, Peter spotted a huge silver device in the center. It was almost two meters tall and had five metal arms, shaped like giant human fingers, reaching upward in a grasping pose.
"Mr. Superman, you're here!"
Dr. Otto was the first to greet Peter, practically glowing with excitement.
He knew full well that none of this would've been possible without Peter. It was Peter who gave him the chance to chase his dream.
"Looks like you guys upgraded the design."
Peter remembered being there for Otto's last experiment, and back then, the machine only had four metal limbs.
Now it had five. It looked sturdier and more tightly built.
"That's right. After some discussion, we made a few upgrades to Dr. Otto's original model."
Reed stepped forward, clearing up Peter's question.
"Also, the energy shield has been improved as well, thanks to Princess Shuri's design."
As he spoke, Reed glanced over at Shuri.
Ever since everyone found out her family owned an entire vibranium mine, she'd instantly become the center of attention.
After all, nobody knew when they might need a bit of vibranium for their own research in the future.
"So, Dr. Otto—are you confident this time around?"
Peter turned to look at Otto, who was practically bursting with anticipation.
"Absolutely. This time, I won't fail!"
Otto's excited expression turned dead serious for a second, but then his eyes lit up again with fierce determination as he answered without hesitation.
"Good. Since you're that confident..."
Peter paused for a moment, then slowly continued:
"Then I'll let you complete your dream—with the whole world watching."
"A few days from now, sunlight will shine across the New York night sky!"
"....."