12. Shocked Coulson

John, who had just returned home, didn't go back to the lab or anywhere else. Instead, he went directly to his room and lay down on the bed, deep in thought about everything that had happened today.

John wasn't depressed about Stane's death or anything related to him. He just felt exhausted. Ever since killing Stane, John had been feeling utterly drained, as if all his physical and mental strength had vanished.

After lying down for quite a while and calming himself, John figured out the reason: particle energy and mental power.

Yes, John was certain that in his haste to save Tony and Pepper, he had used up all his particle energy and mental power in an instant, which left him completely exhausted afterward. That was also why his attack had been so devastating—Stane hadn't even realized what hit him.

Thinking about all this eventually caused John to drift into a deep sleep. He didn't know how long he had been asleep, but when he opened his eyes, he saw Tony standing nearby, looking worried. Beside him stood Pepper.

"Hey, how are you feeling?" Tony asked softly.

After a moment of silence, John replied, "I caused you trouble, brother."

Waving his hand dismissively, Tony replied, "No trouble, no trouble. Don't overthink it. If you hadn't killed Stane, I would have done it myself. Simple as that. So don't blame yourself for this."

John immediately realized that Tony had misunderstood him. But he didn't clarify, or gave any explainetion about the issue of mental exhaustion.

"Anyway, brother," John said, trying to change the subject, "I also saw Agent Coulson there. Did he cause you any trouble? He seems to be from some government agency."

Tony thought back to his encounter with Coulson the previous night.

*****

Coulson had been busy helping innocent people on the freeway and hadn't witnessed how Stane was killed. However, what he did see shocked him deeply. To get answers, Coulson had approached Tony, who was standing with Pepper in his broken armor.

"Hello, Mr. Stark. I'm Agent Coulson from the Strategic Homeland Intervention, Enforcement, and Logistics Division. I have a few questions, and I hope you can help clarify some things," Coulson said, his expression serious.

When Tony heard the name of the organization, he was dumbfounded.

"Isn't that a mouthful?" he remarked sarcastically.

Coulson's expression didn't change—he was used to such comments.

"We're working on shortening it," he replied. "Now, my first question: What happened to the big iron suit over there?" he asked, pointing to the lump of metal nearby. "And what about Mr. Stane?"

Tony was silent for a moment before giving a vague answer.

"Well, I had to put in some extra work to beat the big guy. As for Stane… he should be inside. I think."

Tony's evasive response alarmed Coulson. Just the thought of someone being inside that crushed metal lump made Coulson feel sick. Though he had seen many things in his career, this was on another level. Calming himself, he asked another question.

"What about the other armor suit? Why did it leave in such a hurry?"

Tony didn't want Coulson or anyone else to know about John, so he came up with a random excuse.

"Oh, that? It's one of my newer suits. It has self-driving capabilities, so there wasn't anyone inside, if that's what you're wondering."

Before Coulson could probe further, Tony quickly ended the conversation.

"All right, I'm exhausted, so I've got to go. Pepper, let's leave—we've got a lot of work to do."

With that, Tony and Pepper walked away, leaving Coulson behind. Coulson's eyes, however, stayed fixed on the metal lump as a wave of unease swept over him.

****

At the mansion, Tony continued explaining to John, "That's what happened. You don't need to worry too much. Coulson was with Pepper when the attack happened, so they won't blame anyone for Stane's death. Now get some more rest."

As Tony stood to leave, John spoke up. "Brother, you should focus on the rune I gave you last time and practice hard. I know it's boring, but the rewards will exceed your expectations."

Tony nodded seriously and left with Pepper. Pepper remained mostly silent, still shaken by what she had witnessed at Sector 16.

Later that afternoon, John woke up and decided to leave the mansion for some fresh air. He walked to the cliff near the mansion and, after some thought, began practicing the elemental abilities he could currently control. He didn't want to lose control again like he had last time.

For the next three hours, John practiced manipulating various elements. With fire, for example, he would ignite flames in his palm and use his mental power to shape them into fireballs, arrows, long strings, and even multiple fireballs at once.

But fire wasn't the only element he worked on. John also practiced with water, nature, and his newly obtained metal element. He experimented with various techniques to control these elements. Even when he felt exhausted, he meditated to recover and repeated the exercises.

After three hours, John was tired and ready to return, but suddenly, a golden ring began to materialize in midair before him.

At first, John was startled, but he quickly calmed himself. He knew who was coming. As the Ancient One, it would have been impossible for her not to notice such significant elemental fluctuations. While ordinary people might not sense anything, someone as experienced and knowledgeable as the Ancient One would detect it immediately.

However, John was worried about something entirely different, and a wave of nervousness washed over him.

"Does she know I'm from a different world, or was she just attracted by the fluctuations?" John wondered to himself.

As he contemplated, the golden ring grew larger and stabilized within moments. Then, a figure stepped out of it.