I Have a Request

"Surely you had some restrictions in place regarding AI, right?"

Harvey glanced at Tony upon hearing his words.

Tony was a mad scientist, after all—the man who had created Ultron.

At this stage, the Avengers Initiative had not yet been fully formed, and Harvey would not necessarily remain on Earth at all times.

If Tony created something like Ultron ahead of time and triggered an AI crisis, even if it was ultimately stopped, there would still be massive casualties.

That was why Harvey felt it was necessary to give Tony a reminder.

"How could I not understand something I created?"

"Jarvis’s deeper programming has numerous restrictions that guarantee it will obey me absolutely."

Tony spoke with complete confidence.

"As long as you’re sure. You’ve probably seen plenty of science fiction movies without me telling you."

"If an AI crisis breaks out, casualties will be unavoidable even if it is stopped."

Seeing Tony’s confident expression, Harvey merely reminded him and did not press the matter further.

"I understand."

When Tony heard Harvey mention an AI crisis, his eyes flickered slightly, and he nodded.

Seeing that Tony seemed to have genuinely considered it, Harvey said nothing more. He only cared enough to give a small reminder, but he was not particularly worried himself.

The fundamental reason Tony had created Ultron in the original timeline was that his fragile human body had limited him. Not only had he constantly participated in dangerous frontline battles, but his combat power had also been severely lacking.

That was why Tony had wanted to create an army of Iron Man armor and have artificial intelligence obey orders and fight on the front lines.

But now that Tony believed in the Void, as long as he continued evolving, Tony himself would become even stronger than Iron Man armor. It was only a matter of time.

When that happened, anyone who dismantled Tony’s Iron Man armor might face true terror instead.

That made Harvey look forward to the day Tony met Captain America.

He wondered what Captain America’s reaction would be when he discovered that Tony beneath the metal shell was also immensely powerful.

Harvey noticed this thought of his and calculated the time. He realized that Captain America should awaken in about another year.

If Captain America awakened, Harvey would not need to recruit him himself.

Once Captain America saw everything modern society had to offer and witnessed the Void, he would naturally seek Harvey out if he desired power.

If Captain America did not come looking for him, Harvey would not take the initiative to seek him out either.

Because if Captain America witnessed the power of the Void and still felt no stirrings in his heart, no desire to believe in the Void and gain greater strength, then persuasion would be useless.

Captain America was different from Tony. When Harvey had first recruited Tony, Tony had merely been an ordinary man whose mindset had just begun to change, someone who had created the epoch-making technological marvel known as Iron Man armor but had never seen much of the wider world.

If there was anything that set Tony apart from ordinary people, it was that he was smarter and richer.

But intelligence and wealth were not the key factors. The key was that Tony had merely been a genius inventor and wealthy man who had not yet seen much of the world.

And Tony had someone he cared about. Once he learned that Harvey was willing to give Pepper the chance to believe in the Void, Tony agreed without hesitation.

Captain America, on the other hand, belonged to an older era. His way of thinking could not keep up with modern times, and unlike Tony, he had no dream of wanting more time to display his talents.

More importantly, the woman Captain America loved was dead in this era, and he had no friends or companions he knew.

His only friend and companion was Winter Soldier Bucky, and even that relationship would become complicated later on.

Captain America had experienced the loss of friends and loved ones. With little left to care about and no ambitions requiring time to fulfill,

immortality might even be a form of suffering to Captain America.

So Harvey would not actively recruit Captain America.

However, if Captain America wished to join the Void, Harvey would give him one opportunity.

Seeing that Harvey did not continue discussing the matter, Tony firmly reminded himself not to cross that line without having sufficient ability to stop the consequences.

"By the way, Harvey, can you tell me what you’ve been doing in the universe these past few months?"

At the same time, Tony voiced the question that had long been on his mind.

"Nothing much. I established the Void Cult and had more people believe in the Void."

Harvey had already intended to tell Tony about this matter. Since Tony had brought it up first, there was naturally nothing to hide, so he answered casually.

"You established the Void Cult?"

"Does that mean I have companions now?"

Tony’s heart shook upon hearing Harvey’s words. His mind began racing, and then he asked excitedly.

"You should refer to them as members."

"As for whether they are your companions, I cannot say yet."

"You know that after people believe in the Void, I will not use too many rules to restrain them."

Seeing Tony’s excitement, Harvey knew Tony wanted to unite the other members of the Void Cult and have them lend Earth a hand at a critical moment, so he immediately poured cold water on the idea.

"It is precisely because I know you do not impose restrictions that I’m tempted."

"That means that as long as I form alliances with them, they can help, right?"

"You wouldn’t stop the friends I make from helping Earth, would you?"

Tony did not mind Harvey’s discouraging words and replied with a smile.

He knew that the best way to get the Void Cult to help Earth was to directly ask Harvey.

However, Harvey had a poor impression of S.H.I.E.L.D., and he felt the same way about America’s politicians.

Based on Tony’s understanding of Harvey, at most, Harvey would refrain from actively destroying Earth as long as no one provoked him.

But expecting Harvey to protect Earth would definitely not be easy.

Moreover, Tony clearly remembered Harvey saying that during the crisis in 2017, humanity would join forces with many aliens to fight the enemy.

In other words, the affected scope would not be small then, and there would be more opportunities for alliances.

"If you can persuade them, of course I will not stop you."

"But don’t say I didn’t warn you. Earth is not their home. If you bring them here but cannot fully ensure that you can keep them in check,

"then it may not necessarily be a good thing for Earth."

Harvey’s eyes flickered upon hearing that. He had originally wanted to guide Tony into going to the universe, but he had not expected Tony to bring it up himself. With a calm expression, Harvey spoke casually.

"Of course I know."

"But as long as they are not people without desires, then giving them sufficient benefits should be enough to move them, shouldn’t it?"

Relieved that Harvey did not intend to stop him, Tony sat down in a chair beside Harvey and spoke with a smile.

Although joining the Void had given him the ability to evolve and made him increasingly powerful,

he had never forgotten that while he was a genius scientist, he was also one of Earth’s most famous and wealthiest men. Making money was one of his abilities as well.

"Although you are very rich, Earth’s money is not accepted in the universe."

Harvey spoke meaningfully.

"Of course I know. Among the powerful civilizations throughout the universe, Earth’s human civilization is merely a low-level civilization."

"It is only natural to follow the currency system of higher civilizations."

"So, Harvey, I have a request."

Tony had long understood this, because he already had such a plan. He simply needed Harvey’s permission first.

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