Recruitment

"Keep a close eye on Dr. Octopus, don't lose track of him."

"Don't worry, boss. I already have someone following him."

Fang Ye nodded and dismissed Max.

Although Dr. Octopus was strong, he was just one person, and at most, he could provide some assistance in attacking S.H.I.E.L.D.

S.H.I.E.L.D. had been well-established and had government support, and their technological capabilities were not to be underestimated.

"It's time to meet Tony..."

Fang Ye had another card in his hand, and that was Oscorp.

Fang Ye planned to sell Oscorp to Stark Industries. He wouldn't ask for money or shares in return; what he wanted was the design blueprint for the reactor and the source code for the AI program, Jarvis.

While Mystique had successfully infiltrated and stolen the design for the Iron Man armor, the reactor blueprint and Jarvis' source code were proving to be more elusive.

The reactor blueprint had been in Tony's mind all along, and as for the source code, it was almost impossible to steal it without shutting down and restarting Jarvis.

"Tony values the Iron Man armor greatly. I wonder if he'll agree to this?"

Fang Ye wasn't very confident about whether Tony would agree. If someone had offered Oscorp in exchange for the Hulk serum in the past, Fang Ye wouldn't have even given it a second thought.

The Iron Man armor was Tony's forbidden area, and the likelihood of him agreeing was slim. But no matter what, Fang Ye had to give it a try.

Fang Ye made a call and set up a meeting with Tony in the evening at a high-end café on Sixth Avenue.

As night fell, at the agreed-upon time, Fang Ye teleported directly to Sixth Avenue and found Tony had already been waiting.

"Hey, Feng, you're late."

"You're the early one!"

Fang Ye smiled faintly and pointed to the brown clock on the wall of the private room—it was exactly eight o'clock.

Tony wasn't known for being punctual, and he had often stood Fang Ye up in the past.

"Well, today, I arrived early. Do you have something to talk to me about?" Tony asked.

"Yes," Fang Ye nodded, not denying it.

Tony probably had some knowledge of the birth of the Tesseract and might even know about the conflict between Fang Ye and S.H.I.E.L.D. over it.

Perhaps that was why Tony hadn't arrived late this time; he must have suspected that Fang Ye had something important to discuss.

"I plan to sell Oscorp to Stark Industries. Are you interested?"

"Oscorp..."

It was impossible for Tony not to be interested, but Stark Industries' cash flow wasn't particularly abundant at the moment. Acquiring Oscorp might be a stretch for them financially.

Fang Ye naturally knew the situation at Stark Industries, but he also believed that Tony would be tempted.

"Feng, you're also a shareholder of Stark Industries, so you should be aware of the company's current situation. Although I'm really tempted, our cash flow isn't sufficient at the moment..."

"I know! But I don't want money, and I don't want shares. I just want two things."

"What are they?"

"The reactor design blueprint and Jarvis' source code."

Tony hesitated. The value of Oscorp was undoubtedly higher than the design blueprint and source code, and the deal would definitely be in his favor.

If Stark Industries acquired Oscorp, it would become one of the top three conglomerates in the United States, a crucial step for its future development.

However, the Iron Man armor was Tony's forbidden zone, and he would never allow anyone to get their hands on it. So Tony was torn between the two options.

"In fact, rather than saying I want to sell Oscorp to Stark Industries, it's more accurate to say I want to sell it to you. Because I plan to withdraw my investments from the United States, and Oscorp will be sold cheap to someone else. I'd much rather give the benefit to my only friend."

Seeing Tony hesitate, Fang Ye was delighted because it meant there was hope.

At least Tony didn't reject him outright. To increase his chances, Fang Ye played the emotional card, hoping to touch Tony's heart.

"Tony, I really need the Iron Man armor. If you consider me a friend, you should help me just this once! I promise the Iron Man technology won't leak out!"

"Let me think about it."

"Alright! Take your time, and I'll wait for your answer."

Fang Ye knew that going too far would be counterproductive. He had said what needed to be said, and now it was up to Tony to decide.

They stopped discussing Oscorp and chatted about other topics instead.

After an hour, Fang Ye and Tony parted ways, and Fang Ye teleported back.

"I hope Tony won't disappoint me..."

If he could obtain the reactor design blueprint and Jarvis' source code, Fang Ye could create a team of Iron Man armors.

That would make attacking S.H.I.E.L.D. much easier.

Each Iron Man armor was costly to build, and most corporations couldn't afford to create a team of them.

But Fang Ye lacked nothing except money. Since he couldn't take it with him when he left the Marvel world, he might as well use it where it was needed.

The next day, Fang Ye summoned Electro-Man Max.

"Where is Dr. Octopus right now?"

"He's in the Bronx."

Fang Ye nodded and asked Max to lead the way.

Max could transform into an elemental form, so he was naturally fast. In a moment, they arrived at the location in the Bronx.

With Max as his guide, the two of them arrived at the entrance of an abandoned factory.

"Is Dr. Octopus here?"

"Yes, boss. There's a basement under the factory that serves as Dr. Octopus's temporary laboratory, and he's down there now."

"Take me there!"

"Sure!"

Entering the factory through a broken door, they arrived at the underground laboratory, where they indeed found Dr. Octopus.

At this moment, Dr. Octopus seemed to be conducting some experiments.

"Who's there?"

"Hello, Dr. Octopus. I'm Fang Ye."

Fang Ye smiled slightly and paid no attention to the four menacing mechanical arms behind Dr. Octopus.

Max closely followed behind Fang Ye, keeping a vigilant eye on Dr. Octopus to prevent him from suddenly attacking Fang Ye.

"Fang Ye?"

"Yes, it's me."

Dr. Octopus naturally recognized Fang Ye. He probably had some knowledge of Fang Ye—after all, over ninety percent of Americans were familiar with Fang Ye.

As Fang Ye observed Dr. Octopus, he appeared to be short and slightly overweight compared to most Americans. His appearance was quite ordinary, and if it weren't for the four mechanical arms, he would have looked like an ordinary person.

As Fang Ye was sizing him up, Dr. Octopus was also scrutinizing Fang Ye. In truth, he didn't know much about Fang Ye, only that he was the uncrowned king of the financial world.

"Dr. Octopus, Max should have told you. I'm here to invite you to join us again. I will support your research, and you should know that I'm not short of money!"