Doing Good Without Leaving a Name

Justin Hammer was a man of action.

Since he had his eye on Ivan, he naturally could not just sit around and watch.

There were less than six months left before the Department of Defense’s deadline, and the expo was even sooner, less than two months away. He had to get the Hammer Steel Soldiers sorted out as quickly as possible, or nothing good would be waiting for him.

Tony Stark was irreplaceable, but he was not. Though he called himself a "weapons expert," aside from acquiring weapons from foreign arms companies through various channels and modifying them, he basically had no real skills.

Simply put, Hammer Industries was not a company that relied on innovation and research. It was a semi-finished-product processor that depended on shady backroom deals, low-price sales, and Department of Defense support.

Although Hammer Industries’ market value was far below Stark Industries’, after Stark Industries shut down its weapons division, Hammer Industries had risen with the tide and was now worth over five billion dollars. Yet its actual annual R&D investment did not exceed fifty million dollars, an absurdly low figure, and a considerable portion of it was inflated.

He had only recently obtained R&D funding from the Department of Defense. Otherwise, he would never have been willing to spend the money.

To put it bluntly, he was merely Tony’s substitute—and not even the only one. If he was disobedient or incapable, he could be replaced at any time.

So he was anxious.

That very day, he frantically made calls and personally paid visits, using one shady deal after another to settle everyone in the prison system.

This was the United States. As long as you had money, anything could be done.

They found someone built roughly like Ivan Vanko, got him into prison, staged an explosion that killed him, and disfigured the body beyond recognition. The arrangements had already been made, so they could muddle through it easily and take Ivan away without anyone noticing.

Sitting on the office sofa with one leg crossed over the other, Justin leisurely drank the most expensive coffee while waiting for the call.

By now, it should have been handled over there, right?

Sure enough, only a few minutes later, the phone rang. "Mr. Hammer, we’re on your private jet. We’ll arrive in thirty minutes at most."

"Pick up the pace. I can’t wait!" Hammer chuckled and hung up.

Through friends in the relevant departments, he had learned quite a bit of insider information. Ivan’s father had actually been one of the inventors of the Arc Reactor. Ivan’s abilities were clearly worth recognizing.

As long as Ivan could build an Arc Reactor and solve the energy problem, his Hammer Steel Soldiers, derived from Mark 1, would be able to "come alive." Each unit was priced at 125.7 million, while the actual production cost was no more than thirty million. The profits would be enormous.

Heh heh, Tony, you big idiot!

I really have to thank you. If you hadn’t shut down Stark Industries’ weapons division and refused to hand over the Iron Man armor and the Arc Reactor, how could such a huge order have fallen into my hands?

Justin was delighted. He narrowed his eyes and sank into fantasy.

From what a certain high-ranking Department of Defense official had implied, although the first batch only consisted of twenty soldiers, more orders would follow if they performed well. The United States was so vast—how could a few hundred units possibly be enough?

Then there would be maintenance, weapon and accessory replacements, and other orders. The net profit would be at least five hundred million a year. Though his stake in the company was not particularly large, it was still nearly twenty percent.

In other words, he could make at least one hundred million a year?

Thinking of this, Justin felt as though he were floating. It felt wonderful.

After lying there for a full half hour, he frowned slightly.

Why had they still not arrived?

For some reason, he suddenly felt uneasy, as if something had gone wrong.

Just then, his phone finally rang.

"They’re here?"

Overjoyed, Justin quickly answered it.

Just as he was about to speak, his subordinate’s terrified voice came through the line.

"M-Mr. Hammer, Ivan is gone!"

Carrying the burly man, who weighed at least two hundred pounds, Old Wang sprinted through Hammer Industries’ private airport.

He had simply opened a door to get nearby, spread out his psychic surveillance, and waited for Justin Hammer’s private jet to land. Once the cabin door opened, he sent out his primordial spirit, exchanged for Invisibility, knocked Ivan out, and took him away.

Without anyone noticing.

It was that simple!

After running to an empty spot, Old Wang opened a door and arrived at the physics engineering laboratory.

Fitz was busy developing equipment needed for virtual technology when he suddenly heard a thud.

He turned around and saw a burly man with a flashy hairstyle lying sprawled on the floor before him in a most undignified pose.

"I-Ivan Vanko?"

He recognized him at once. After all, he had seen him on the cafeteria wall screen just yesterday. Why had the boss brought this man here?

Could he be the top scientist the boss had mentioned before, the one who would help him develop the Quantum Brain?

Was he really capable?

"Don’t overthink it. His abilities are actually about on par with yours, and in some respects, he’s even inferior to you."

Old Wang clapped his hands and nodded toward the equipment beside them. "He’s yours. Brain Mapping, Memory Upload—extract the knowledge in his mind. I believe that within the next year, your research capabilities will rise to a whole new level."

He’s mine?

Fitz froze for a moment, then understood what the boss meant.

Reading someone else’s memories at will could easily affect a person. But if he only absorbed the scientific knowledge, which was relatively fragmented and did not contain much personal emotion, there naturally would not be much of a problem.

So this man wasn’t the top scientist you told me about, Boss?

Then when exactly are you going to fulfill what you promised me?

Old Wang had no interest in staying and soon left.

As the final boss of Iron Man 2, Ivan was fairly capable. The Hammer Steel Soldiers he had modified, regardless of their technological sophistication, had at least nearly killed Iron Man and War Machine while fighting two against one.

Such ability was far beyond the likes of Obadiah.

Fitz was a diligent learner, and this method of learning through directly reading memories was highly efficient. Before long, Fitz would surely become a top scientist in nuclear physics, military manufacturing, intelligent control, robotics, and many other fields.

That kind of versatile scientist was what he wanted most!

"Without Ivan Vanko, the Hammer Steel Soldiers are doomed to fail. The Department of Defense definitely won’t let Justin Hammer off the hook."

Old Wang rubbed his chin. This seemed like a perfect opportunity.

Giving someone timely aid was better than adding flowers to brocade.

Hammer Industries had already received over a hundred million in R&D funding and orders worth billions. It was now truly the leading arms supplier, and the Department of Defense bigwigs certainly would not want to see it collapse.

Justin Hammer and the people behind him naturally wanted that even less.

He might as well leave him hanging for a few more days.

Once he was truly desperate, Old Wang could appear as a savior. Presumably…

He could get quite a few benefits out of it, right?

"Perhaps… I should help publicize it?"

Old Wang rubbed his Qingming acupoint, and an idea formed in his mind.

"Justin, Justin, you’d better not thank me!"