129

Chapter 129: Project Ultron

"How about lending me the scepter for a few days before I return it? I have some research that requires it."

A few days later, Stark approached Thor with this request.

Thor was currently training Wanda to control her emotions. As the prince of Asgard, mastering emotional control was a fundamental skill.

Upon hearing Stark's request, Thor's eyelids twitched. The Ultron project seemed to be the only reason Stark would need to borrow the scepter for research.

In fact, if Thor had his way, Ultron would never have come into existence. Simply confiscating the Mind Stone would prevent Stark from accessing Ultron.

However, this would mean that Vision would never be created, causing the Avengers to lose a key member. Also, if Thor kept the Mind Stone, it might be of little use to him.

Thor then thought about something else.

While watching movies in his previous life, he had always wondered why Thanos, possessing an Infinite Gem, would so easily let Loki take it and cause chaos on Earth.

Even if Loki succeeded, wouldn't that provoke the Ancient One? Wouldn't the Ancient One risk losing the gems and their forces?

Although according to the rules, the Ancient One wouldn't intervene, Thor doubted that the Ancient One would remain passive if a giant leviathan attacked the hospital where Strange was.

Furthermore, whether it was the Ancient One absorbing dark power or Doctor Strange using the Time Stone to negotiate, it was evident that Kamar-Taj was not strictly rule-bound.

Another puzzling issue was how Vision, one of the Avengers' strongest members, could be severely injured by Corvus Glaive, indicating that the Mind Stone might have been tampered with.

Perhaps the Ultron project's failure was due to a problem with the Mind Stone?

If such a Mind Stone were kept in Asgard's treasury, it would be a ticking time bomb. It would be better for Stark to create Vision, who could serve as a combat force and also help find any flaws in the Mind Stone.

As for Ultron, once he decides to eliminate Stark, he will not relent until he succeeds.

In any case, Ultron's strength is limited. No matter how many robots there are, they will not be insurmountable. After a brief consideration, Thor agreed.

"Alright, you can use it for your research. But let me remind you, avoid conducting human experiments like Baron Strucker did."

Although the likelihood of such an occurrence was slim, Thor mentioned it just in case.

"You want to develop artificial intelligence but haven't shared this with the rest of the team?"

Stark, knowing he couldn't handle the Ultron research alone, quickly enlisted another brilliant scientist—Bruce Banner.

There was another suitable candidate, a doctor named Helen cho, who had even contributed to the future development of armor—nanotechnology. Unfortunately, Thor admired cho greatly, and she had agreed to work in Thor's research center two days ago.

If Cho were involved in the Ultron project, she might inform Thor, leading him to disapprove of the plan and reclaim the scepter prematurely.

Faced with Stark's unrestrained vision, Banner questioned the plan.

"Yes, I haven't informed them."

Stark replied seriously: "Because I don't want to waste time on endless debates.

"We need to armor this world. The Chitauri invasion in New York won't be the last. There will undoubtedly be more alien invasions in the future. The Avengers can't handle them all."

Banner nodded: "Yes, which is why he keeps urging me to make peace with Hulk rather than trying to eliminate him."

Thanks to Thor's reminder, the relationship between Hulk and Banner was more harmonious than in the original timeline. While it couldn't be fully controlled, Hulk would view anyone Banner disliked as an enemy, and Hulk would protect what Banner valued.

"Relying solely on superheroes isn't enough to protect the Earth.

The Earth is vast, but the number of superheroes is limited, and there will always be areas that cannot be covered.

If the Ultron project succeeds, we can use the robotic army to combat the aliens.

By keeping people out of Earth's defenses, Earth will be safer."

Stark continued to persuade Banner.

Banner was somewhat swayed and said hesitantly: "Surrounding the whole world with armor seems rather cold."

"I've seen colder scenarios. This fragile blue planet needs Ultron, and the peace of our time requires it," Stark said earnestly. In his terrifying vision, he saw all superpowers vanish. At that time, humanity would rely solely on the armor.

"Alright, I agree." Moved by Stark's arguments, Banner agreed to join the research.