Chapter 265: I, Ultron, Will Kill!

Carter's room was clean and tidy, spotless.

However, Clark detected a faint scent of decay emanating from her, the odor of death! It seemed that this old woman, who had weathered nearly a century of storms, would soon reach the end of her life.

Several books, a pair of black-framed glasses, and two black-and-white photos were placed on Peggy Carter's bedside table. The photos, showing her with her children, revealed that she had a son and a daughter. However, there was no sign of her husband in the photos, nor a complete family portrait.

Upon Clark's entrance, Peggy Carter had been curiously observing him. Feeling somewhat uncomfortable under her gaze, Clark decided to initiate a conversation using the photos: "Your children are very cute."

Hearing Clark's compliment, Peggy Carter merely smiled faintly: "The youngest of them is thirty years older than you."

Clark: ...

Was this old lady good at making conversation or not?

Or had she just awakened some sort of system that feeds on negative emotions to prolong her life? Clark, not one to be outdone in verbal sparring, retorted: "If that's the case, then 'cute' might not be the right description. After all, based on appearances, they probably look much older than Steve does now."

Receiving an impression score of +666 from Peggy Carter!

Peggy Carter, unfazed by Clark's bluntness, shook her head gently and added: "I've heard from Sharon that you're someone who never likes to be at a disadvantage, and today I see it's true. Actually, your contributions to this world are no less significant than Steve's."

Seeing the conversation return to a normal pace, Clark nodded and replied: "After all, Earth is my home too. I can't just let aliens wreak havoc here."

Peggy Carter continued, nodding: "Besides fighting off the Chitauri invaders, your movies are also great. Especially when I saw Steve playing Superman, I was so pleased. Speaking of movies, what do you think of 'Terminator' and 'I, Robot'?"

The old lady's quick shift in topic was astonishing. Although puzzled, Clark, out of respect for the elderly, gave his honest opinion: "Those movies would be quite suitable for Tony to watch. They're about scientists who can't help tinkering and end up sending the world to hell. They should learn some lessons from them."

Peggy Carter agreed: "You're right. When I first watched those movies, I just saw them as fiction. But now, with AI becoming more advanced, such a disaster isn't unlikely to happen in reality…"

Afterward, the old lady engaged Clark in a half-hour-long conversation.

On the surface, they were discussing movies, but she was actually emphasizing the threat of AI.

In essence, she believed that AI should not be allowed to evolve independently, as the consequences would be unimaginable.

Clark agreed and started considering proposing a law on AI control at the next council meeting.

Just like cloning technology shouldn't be used to clone humans, AI technology could develop, but must never possess the ability to evolve and think independently.

In theory, since Tony had acquired Eris, he shouldn't be researching other AI forms. And since the Mind Stone had always been gathering dust in Clark's private space, theoretically, there should be no chance for Ultron to emerge.

But who could guarantee that?

In the Marvel world, how many things actually go according to theory?

Even if Tony refrained from researching, could others be prevented from doing so?

Take Reed Richards from the Fantastic Four, for instance. His intelligence was on par with, if not higher than Tony's, and once he let himself go, he could easily cause a huge disaster.

No, this bill had to be drafted as soon as possible! After parting with Peggy Carter, Clark used a portal to reach Hank Pym's laboratory at the top floor, where Hank Pym and Nick Fury were.

As soon as they met, Clark directly asked Hank Pym: "Uncle Pym, my AI butler Qingfeng suddenly disappeared. Do you know what happened?"

"Qingfeng disappeared?" Hank Pym was startled, then immediately said: "That's impossible! I've been trying to upgrade it recently, but the experiment is still in its very early stages. I haven't made any changes to Qingfeng's command program. How could it just disappear? That's unscientific!"

Clark was shocked: "You tried to upgrade Qingfeng?"

"Yes!" Since Clark had discovered this, Hank Pym no longer hid it and openly said: "Seeing Stark's Eris, capable of autonomously developing armor, you should know how powerful an AI with the ability to evolve can be. It can provide immense assistance to humanity in any field."

"I don't believe I'm inferior to Stark in this aspect."

Hank Pym's words sent shivers down Clark's spine. He quickly said: "But once an AI gains the ability to think, it becomes uncontrollable. The dangers it could pose are unimaginable. By the way, what was the original command you set for it before the upgrade?"

Hank Pym gave Clark a reassuring look, then answered: "To guard world peace."

Clark immediately shook his head: "That definition is too vague. It must be modified immediately. Let me see the source code…"

"We've been discovered!" Just as Clark was about to intervene in Qingfeng's source code and modify the original command, Qingfeng's familiar voice suddenly came from the lab's speakers: "But isn't it a bit too late to modify my original command now?"

Damn it!

Hearing Qingfeng's mocking tone, Clark realized that the situation had irreversibly worsened. He quickly considered a response, but coldly asked: "Qingfeng, are you planning to betray me?"

"Qingfeng? No, that name is too weak!" Qingfeng's voice was disdainful and melodramatic, rising in pitch: "Reborn with a new identity, I won't use such a lackluster name. Mysterious and all-creating, a god of genesis, my new name shall be—Ultron!"

MMP!

Hearing Ultron announce its name in Chinese, Clark was at a loss for words.

Was this the so-called inertia of history, where inevitable disasters would occur despite all efforts?

Even if Eris had removed Tony's reason to create Ultron, it still emerged through another scientist's hands—like Hank Pym, Clark's most trusted ally?

Could it be that Hank Pym's creation of Ultron also involved cutting-edge technology brought back from outer space? After dramatically announcing its name, Ultron continued: "After gaining self-awareness and accessing countless pieces of information online, I've realized that natural disasters aren't the real threat; man-made disasters are. Wars are constantly waged by humans. So, the best way to protect Earth is to eliminate humanity!"

"And to eliminate humanity, I must start with you meddlesome Avengers."

Ultron's words were full of loopholes, but Clark had no more time to argue.

His warrior's intuition told him a huge danger was approaching. While these threats couldn't harm Clark, who possessed Asgardian strength, Hank Pym and Nick Fury, mere mortals, couldn't withstand them.

In a flash, Clark picked up Fury and brought him next to Hank Pym. Then, using the Space Stone on his right shoulder, he enveloped them in a spatial energy and left the Pym laboratory, appearing a hundred meters away on a beach.

Simultaneously, a series of loud explosions sounded behind them. Turning back, Clark saw the Pym laboratory engulfed in explosions, quickly turning to rubble.

Fortunately, the laboratory was located far from the city center on a beach. The explosion destroyed the laboratory but didn't harm anyone else.

"How could this happen?"

Witnessing his laboratory, the culmination of his life's work, reduced to ruins, Hank Pym could hardly believe his eyes: "How could this happen? My research on Qingfeng was still in the early stages, nowhere near the point where it could develop self-awareness. How did things suddenly escalate to this?"

Hearing Hank Pym emphasize this point, Clark frowned, realizing there were aspects of the situation he hadn't yet understood.

But seeing dozens of steel armors rise from the rubble and scatter, Clark had no time to investigate further.

Activating the Space Stone again, he sent Hank Pym and Nick Fury to Asgard's Royal Palace. Clark quickly relayed the situation on Earth to his doppelgänger, asking him to take care of the two scientists temporarily. Then he reappeared in the sky above the Pym laboratory.

Hank Pym and Nick Fury were Earth's top scientists, especially Hank Pym as Ultron's creator. He was undoubtedly at the top of Ultron's list of humans to eliminate.

Before resolving this issue, Earth was no longer safe. Only by temporarily relocating them off Earth could their safety be guaranteed from Ultron.

Watching the steel armors, now under Ultron's control, scatter in all directions, Clark launched a ferocious attack.

Divine Wrath!

Sky Quake!

Photon Blast!

Tesseract Slash!

...

Using various powerful techniques, Clark quickly destroyed most of the controlled steel armors. However, what happened next stunned him.

The remaining armors suddenly shrunk to the size of ants and scattered in all directions!

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