The term "protagonist," of course, was something Lin Feng had mentioned in his diary.
Tony Stark found this assessment perfectly reasonable. He was handsome, dashing, born rich, and a genius. If he wasn't the protagonist, then who could be?
Who else, indeed?
Nick Fury, hearing this, couldn't help but think, Yep, just as self-obsessed as the intel said.
"Also, you said if I didn't handle it, you would? What's that about? The government trying to interfere with a private company?" Tony Stark frowned instinctively. As a capitalist, he, like others, disliked government interference, even if it was for his own good.
"Of course not. We're stepping in as a shareholder!" Nick Fury said. "You might not know this, but S.H.I.E.L.D. is a major shareholder in Stark Industries. To be precise, your father, Howard Stark, received our investment when he founded the company. It was a cross-shareholding arrangement, so you were unaware."
"You're a shareholder? How did I not know this?" Tony Stark asked, a little suspicious.
Nick Fury chuckled and said, "It's normal that you didn't know. We're a special organization, not exactly eager to be in the public eye. Your father was our chief scientist. He left to start his own business and received seed funding from us. We also provided support during the company's development, including for you. Otherwise, how do you think you, a young man, managed to smoothly take control of Stark Industries? Do you know how many storms we weathered for you?"
Tony Stark pouted, instinctively wanting to argue, but then he thought about it. When he was young, his parents died suddenly. He was devastated and spent a long time in a slump. Later, he spent a great deal of time completing his studies.
After graduating, he returned to take over the family business, but the entire process was remarkably smooth. Aside from Obadiah, a group of shareholders had strangely supported him, with practically no special demands.
With Obadiah's betrayal, Tony Stark suddenly realized that the waters within the company were deep. He had been running the company for nearly a decade, yet he was unaware of the unknown shareholders behind the scenes.
"However, today, I'm not here as a shareholder. I'm inviting you to join the Avengers, which I'm forming. You should know that you're not the only superhero in the world. Em, I think you know what that word means; it's mentioned in your diary more than once!"
Nick Fury revealed his true purpose.
"Avengers? Sounds like the name of some boy band!" Tony Stark quipped sarcastically. "I'm not interested in your boy band, but about the diary... I think if you guys really have that much power, you should have found that Lin Feng, right?"
"Yes, we've been monitoring his existence through certain methods, ensuring that his presence doesn't pose a threat to our world!" Nick Fury nodded.
If Tony Stark could find him, Nick Fury naturally had his own methods. After all, he controlled such a vast organization, and knowing the name, that he was Chinese, and some of the activity traces mentioned in the diary, he found Lin Feng with almost no effort.
But, like Tony Stark, he couldn't confront Lin Feng directly. Whenever he thought about finding Lin Feng to ask about the diary, he would immediately experience a severe headache, preventing him from doing so.
"Currently, it doesn't seem like there is any threat, and he doesn't seem like a bad person!" Nick Fury said lightly.
In fact, with S.H.I.E.L.D.'s current capabilities, Lin Feng's displayed physical attributes, while somewhat frightening, were far from insurmountable.
What truly gave S.H.I.E.L.D. a headache was the Hulk, a human-shaped natural disaster, or the recently emerged Wonder Woman.
They were clearly beyond human limits.
And Lin Feng's uniqueness lay in his ability to seemingly predict the future to some extent, which was very noteworthy.
"Alright, let's leave it at that for today. I'll discuss the Avengers matter with you later. I have some things to take care of, so I'll be going now!" Nick Fury saw that Tony Stark was unmoved, and he knew that Tony probably didn't trust him.
After watching him leave, Tony Stark immediately began modifying the security system. First, Obadiah could sneak in, and now this black, bald-headed guy could too. This made him question his own security system design to a certain degree.
After reviewing all the surveillance footage, he found that unlike Obadiah, who had used authorization to enter, Nick Fury's method was simple and crude: he physically cut the power to his mansion.
Although his mansion had a generator, Nick Fury directly destroyed it. Without power, Jarvis couldn't function either.
Immediately, Tony Stark decided to prepare a large battery in the villa. It wouldn't be used normally, but it could ensure an uninterrupted power supply during critical moments.
"Sir, the diary has updated!"
Tony Stark was in the middle of working when Jarvis's voice suddenly chimed in with a notification.
He immediately stopped what he was doing and started reading the diary.
At the same time, Lin Feng had just returned home, covered in dust. He had just finished his training journey, which took him two months, successfully raising his strength to the Huajin level.
At this point, he was practically unbeatable in all the martial arts schools in America, and after his body was completely transformed by the Super Soldier Serum, he was significantly stronger than ordinary Huajin masters.
A typical Huajin master couldn't even withstand a single punch from him. He even felt like he was a one-punch man.
If he wanted to take his power even further, he would need to reach the legendary Danjin level. However, according to the elders in the national martial arts world, those people might still exist in mainland China, but they were nonexistent in America.
The path ahead would only be explored by himself.
"The timeline in this world is getting weirder and weirder. Tony Stark didn't go to Afghanistan, wasn't kidnapped, but Obadiah was caught. Is this another timeline I don't understand? I'm starting to feel like this isn't the 1999 Universe I know. I really don't understand this world anymore!"
1999 Universe!
Tony Stark stared fixedly at the words, his breathing becoming slightly rapid.
(End of Chapter)