Xu Wenwu’s Anomaly

In this conference room, through Shaun and Xialing’s account, Oaks finally gained a true understanding of the Ten Rings as they saw it—and of their father—

The leader of the Ten Rings, Wenwu.

Even with Tony’s intelligence network, he had failed to obtain a photo of Wenwu, much less detailed information.

So Oaks, who had never watched that movie before, had been immensely curious about Wenwu—

What kind of person was this ruthless figure who had secretly influenced history for a thousand years?

But after listening to Shaun and Xialing’s account, he frowned and fell into thought.

"Don’t you… think this is strange?"

He raised his head and looked directly at the baffled siblings.

"You said your father lived with your mother and the two of you when you were children. Then, while he was out buying groceries, his enemies came to your home, and your mother was killed protecting you…

"The most absurd part is that those enemies got away completely unscathed?"

Oaks looked utterly incredulous.

"Who was your father? The bearer of the Ten Rings. And both of you know exactly what kind of power the Ten Rings possessed…

"Even if he had given up the Ten Rings at the time, he was still a formidable figure who had dominated the world for a thousand years. How could he have made such a basic mistake?"

Watching the siblings’ mouths gradually fall open, Oaks helplessly spread his hands.

"Neither of you thought something was wrong? With that much power and influence in his hands, even if he retired from the world, how could he not consider the grudges he had left outside?

"After losing his overwhelming military deterrence, what would happen? Your father should have understood the tragedies that had unfolded throughout history over the past thousand years better than anyone.

"You were living in the heavily defended Ten Rings headquarters, not some unguarded paradise hidden from the world. Were there really no guards or defensive measures at all?

"The Ten Rings’ technological capabilities weren’t weak either. Was there not even an alarm system or a telephone for communication?

"Since those enemies dared to attack your home directly, they must have confirmed that your father had completely lost the ability to use the Ten Rings—

"If your father hadn’t revealed a weakness, I truly find it hard to imagine a legendary powerhouse like him having his home raided by a group of ordinary gangsters!"

Oaks shook his head, filled with a sense of absurdity.

"Sorry, I don’t know whether your father spent those thousand years for nothing, but if he had paid even the slightest attention, those so-called enemies would never have been able to step into your courtyard!

"And the most incomprehensible thing was that it happened right in front of you two, as if by some miracle—

"Not even movies would dare write it like that!"

Oaks even wanted to praise those people for their underworld honor!

They killed someone’s wife but spared the children. Were they certain the children lacked the ability to retaliate, or were they trying to leave themselves some room, hoping the children would not seek revenge?!

Did the mighty Mandarin truly have no deterrent value at all in front of those people?

Just how weak did he appear to outsiders at the time that his enemies would make such an almost "merciful" choice?

"This…"

Shaun and Xialing were stunned.

For all these years, whenever they recalled that scene, all their thoughts had focused on their mother’s death.

They had never once considered that the entire thing had been so bizarre, so unreasonable!

"What was going on…"

Shaun carefully recalled the scene again, only to realize in despair that, just as Oaks had said, it was riddled with flaws!

When his father had put the Ten Rings back on and taken him to seek revenge, he had seen it clearly—

Those people had been utterly worthless.

Not merely worthless before the Ten Rings; even before Shaun as he was now, they would still have been utterly worthless.

Simply put—

They had been nowhere near qualified to be Wenwu and the Ten Rings’ opponents.

Iron Man would have been more like it.

Yet those trash-like people had killed his mother after she lost her powerful magic, then talked about underworld honor and spared him and his sister when they were young?!

Only the strong spoke of underworld honor to the weak!

Had his father been weak in their eyes?!

Or…

"There must be something wrong here!"

It was Xialing who spoke. She clenched her fists tightly, countless complex emotions flashing through her eyes.

"President Lin, thank you for pointing out these doubts… This matter had seemed strange from beginning to end, yet we never noticed it all these years!"

"We have to uncover the truth!"

Shaun came back to himself. His expression darkened as he glanced at his sister.

"Lingling, it’s obvious… this has something to do with Dad!

"Looks like I have even more to discuss with him this time…"

Oaks and Xialing both heard Shaun’s fists crack.

"He must be hiding something from us!"

For the first time, Shaun seemed truly resolute. His expression was grave as he looked at Oaks.

"President, please bear witness for my sister and me… To be honest, I’m not confident I can force Dad to tell the truth while he has the Ten Rings, so I may need to use some extreme measures."

"Oh? I hadn’t realized you could be this decisive."

Oaks raised an eyebrow and pointed at himself.

"You haven’t forgotten what I came here for, have you… Your father’s Ten Rings was already a target I needed to deal with.

"Whether as an Avenger or because of Tony, I need to investigate the Ten Rings thoroughly.

"But as the young master—and, well, young mistress—of the Ten Rings, what you’re doing will be seen as betraying your master and destroying your family."

Originally, Oaks had planned to wait until the father and son finished talking before appearing to have a discussion with Wenwu.

But if Shaun was right…

"President, if this really was a tragic accident, I’ll kneel before him and apologize in person—

"But if Father orchestrated this whole thing, then Mother, my sister, and I were nothing but cold chess pieces and props in his eyes!"

Shaun’s expression was serious, but his eyes were clear. He knew what he was doing.

"I don’t know what his purpose was, but when it comes to the enemy who caused our mother’s death, I don’t care about any so-called betrayal of master and family!"

He could still recall how his father had been dejected and lost after his mother died.

That utter despair, that complete loss of will to live, and that blazing fire of vengeance…

If his father had been acting all along, then what a terrifying person he must be!

What kind of actor could portray all of that so convincingly?!

What exactly had he done it for?

Shaun did not dare think any further.

He could only pray that it had all been a misunderstanding and hope his father could provide a reasonable explanation for every one of these doubts.

"It seems you’ve thought it through…"

Oaks glanced at Xialing. She did not object this time, and the way she looked at Shaun had softened considerably.

"Then let’s do this. I’ll go with you, but unless your lives are threatened, I won’t reveal myself."

"You can talk to Wenwu as you please. The two of you pose no threat to him, and you’re his biological children. I believe you’ll get more information that way than if a huge threat like me stands beside you."

"Thank you, president."

Shaun let out a breath of relief. As long as Oaks was there to back them up, he could cast aside all his concerns.

He had not completely overcome his fear of his father yet. If he and Xialing faced Wenwu alone, he feared he would not even be able to say much.

"Dad, I hope… it really wasn’t you…"

"Oh? They suddenly appeared in Changsha? Together?"

At the Ten Rings headquarters amid the mountains, Wenwu, dressed in white and with deep, unfathomable eyes, set down the ancient text he had been studying and looked at the subordinate reporting to him.

Razor Fist, a tall and muscular young man, had lost his right hand. In its place was a prosthetic that could generate an energy blade.

"Yes, sir. After the young master escaped our surveillance, the young mistress did the same. Despite our full efforts, we were unable to determine how they appeared in Changsha separately from New York and Macau."

Razor Fist reported respectfully.

"But based on the young master’s Benevolence Society membership, we have reason to believe this was the work of the Avenger Druid."

"An Avenger… Heh, that makes sense. President Lin’s Asia Branch of Benevolence Society is in Changsha. It seems he has already discovered our organization’s headquarters and learned Shaun’s identity."

Five metal rings engraved with mysterious runes encircled each of Wenwu’s arms. These were the Ten Rings that had allowed him to conquer for a thousand years and remain immortal.

"Does he intend to destroy our organization? After all, his relationship with that Iron Man is quite good…

"Hmm, as an Avenger, his position is inherently hostile to ours. I had merely expected Tony Stark to come."

"Sir, the Tony Stark incident was nothing but a farce created by an actor…"

Razor Fist cautiously glanced at Wenwu.

"You have already captured him. Though his acting skills are indeed remarkable, if we hand him over…"

"The matter in Afghanistan will not be so easily brushed aside."

Wenwu smiled and waved a hand, showing none of the gravity one would expect from someone facing a powerful enemy.

"Since Iron Man did not come in person and this Druid, who has deep ties with China, came instead, it means they do not want to make a big spectacle of it—

"Come to think of it, I should thank Shaun. If he had not been in the Benevolence Society, that Druid, who values personal bonds so greatly, would hardly have remained quiet until now.

"Logically speaking, with Shaun and Xialing there, they should have known the location of our headquarters long ago and could have attacked us at any time. Now they have revealed the whereabouts of those two children…"

He rested his chin on both hands, his eyes flickering.

"It seems the two children at least understand that relying on outsiders to deal with their own father would not look good.

"So be it. Since they are willing to come, they must have come to understand certain things during these years away from home."

Wenwu fell silent for a moment, then nodded.

"Arrange a plane. As their father, I will personally go and bring them home…

"Let’s see how much my son has improved over the years!"

"Yes, sir!"