Tony took the file, quickly scanning the names on it.
Black Widow, Hawkeye, his gaze lingered for a moment on a pending slot, Bruce Banner.
"Interesting list." Tony tossed the file back to Fury.
"But I have a question, who is this team commanded by? S.H.I.E.L.D.? The World Security Council? Or some secret organization I don't know about?"
Fury's expression became inscrutable: "In special circumstances, the team will have autonomous decision-making power."
"Meaning, in the end, you still have to listen to you."
Tony shook his head, "Sorry, Nick. I'm not good at taking orders, especially from a leader who is a self-righteous old man."
Tony paused, hesitating slightly, and finally said, "Also, I dislike working in an organization that is more than half infiltrated by HYDRA even more."
Nick Fury's single eye narrowed: "HYDRA? How do you know?"
"Xiao." Tony lied flatly, "He has a... special ability, he can see through disguises. He said at least one-third of the Agents in S.H.I.E.L.D. are working for HYDRA."
The laboratory fell into a dead silence.
Fury's expression became unusually serious, Tony could tell he was evaluating the credibility of this information.
"Even if this is true," Fury finally spoke, his voice low.
"It precisely shows that we need someone like Xiao to join. His ability can help us clear out spies."
Tony walked back to the window, looking at the New York night view: "Xiao is not the kind of person You can control, Fury. His power is far beyond your imagination."
"No one is uncontrollable, Stark." Fury's voice carried a dangerous undertone.
"Including you."
Tony turned around, meeting Fury's gaze: "Threats don't work on me, Director Fury. I have a better partner."
The air between the two seemed to freeze.
Finally, Fury took a step back, putting away the projection device: "We will continue to investigate your partner, Stark. If we find he poses a threat to the public.."
"Save it, Nick." Tony waved impatiently.
"Instead of wasting time investigating Xiao, why not check your own Base. I heard Agent Sitwell has been particularly interested in the Tesseract recently?"
Fury's expression instantly became alert.
Sitwell is a S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent, responsible for multiple classified projects.
Tony deliberately mentioned this name precisely to verify the intelligence Xiao Han deliberately told him about the HYDRA infiltration.
"Thank you for your... reminder." Fury finally said, turning towards the elevator.
"But our conversation isn't over, Stark. S.H.I.E.L.D. will be watching you."
After the elevator doors closed, Tony let out a long breath and sat down in a chair.
Jarvis immediately reported: "Sir, a thermal signal is still detected on the top floor, someone is lurking in the ventilation system."
Tony sneered: "Black Widow, I guess? Let her stay, she won't find anything anyway."
He walked towards the hidden safe, took out the modified serum, the blue liquid shimmering with an alluring glow under the light.
"Jarvis, prepare the injection procedure." Tony's voice became firm.
"If S.H.I.E.L.D. has already started acting, we need to speed up."
"Sir, are you sure you want to use an untested biological Agent?" Jarvis asked.
"According to protocol…."
"I wrote the protocol, Jarvis." Tony interrupted him.
"And... I trust Xiao's technology."
As he said this, even Tony himself was a little surprised.
He had always been slow to trust anyone, let alone an alien with unknown power.
But a certain intuition told him that Xiao Han was serious, and that serum was indeed a gift as he said, not a trap.
"Also," Tony continued, "Initiate the Iron Legion plan, I want all Mark series armor in combat readiness."
"Executed, Sir." Jarvis responded, "But based on the analysis of Mr. Xiao's abilities, our weapon systems are almost ineffective against him."
Tony looked at the liquid in the test tube, a smile playing on his lips: "Who said it's for dealing with Xiao?"
He put the serum into the auto-injector, his eyes becoming sharp.
S.H.I.E.L.D.'s sudden visit confirmed his suspicion, Fury would not easily let go of someone like Xiao Han.
And if HYDRA had indeed infiltrated S.H.I.E.L.D., then more dangerous enemies might already be acting in the shadows.
"Prepare the holographic projection, I want to redesign the Mark armor." Tony rolled up his sleeves.
"Also, contact Rhodes, tell him the weekend gathering is canceled, I have more important things to do."
As the auto-injector pushed the blue liquid into Tony's vein, a strange warmth instantly flowed through his entire body.
He felt his muscle fibers reorganizing, nerve conduction speeding up, and senses becoming unusually sharp.
"Vital signs stable, all indicators significantly increased." Jarvis reported, "Preliminary testing shows muscle density increased by 240%, bone strength increased by 180%, metabolism..."
"Based on muscle density analysis, at full power, he can exert a force of 16.7 tons."
"Sir, you have surpassed Captain America…."
Tony stood up without listening to the end, feeling the power surging within him.
He casually picked up a metal wrench, and with a gentle squeeze, the hard steel deformed like modeling clay.
"Wow." Tony murmured softly, his eyes sparkling with excitement, "Xiao wasn't lying, this is indeed version 3.0."
He walked to the center of the laboratory, suddenly accelerating into a run, becoming almost a blur in the eyes of ordinary people, then easily leaped three meters high, landing steadily on the workbench.
"Sir, your heart rate is slightly elevated." Jarvis reminded him.
"That's because I'm too excited, Jarvis!" Tony laughed loudly as he jumped down, "This feeling... it's incredible!"
But soon, his expression became serious again.
Enhanced physical fitness was just the beginning, he needed more preparation to deal with the coming storm.
Whether it was from S.H.I.E.L.D., HYDRA, or more dangerous enemies.
"Jarvis, send a message to Xiao." Tony walked towards the armor assembly area, "Tell him... I accepted his gift, and I can't wait to see what surprise number two is."
Outside the window, the New York night sky was covered with dark clouds, a storm was brewing.
And inside Stark Tower, a brand new Tony Stark was also being born, no longer just a technological genius, but a true superhuman.
Tony knew that from tonight onwards, everything would change.
S.H.I.E.L.D., the Avengers project... these once important terms became less critical after Xiao Han appeared.
"With this kind of power and technology..." Tony looked at his clenched fist, muttering softly to himself, "Maybe we really don't need S.H.I.E.L.D. anymore."