Chapter 1
Malibu, the most luxurious villa by the sea.
In a basement that was larger than the entire house of an average family.
Bang and boom!
Deafening heavy metal music raucously roared through the air.
The strong rhythmic melody seemed to ignite the whole scene.
Tony Stark immersed himself in this delightful tune, tinkering with some tools, performing modifications on an expensive car.
It couldn't get any more comfortable.
"Sir, Miss Pepper is calling."
The volume on-site was suddenly turned down, and Jarvis's voice rang in his ear.
Usually, Tony Stark wouldn't bother with anyone at such times.
After all, nothing in the world was greater than Tony Stark's pleasure, right?
But Pepper was, very clearly, an exception.
"Patch her through!"
Tony Stark gave the order to Jarvis without a second of hesitation.
Swoosh!
The next moment.
A projection screen materialized in front of Tony Stark.
On the screen.
Stood the impeccably professional assistant, Pepper Potts, in her business attire.
"What's up?"
Tony, without looking up, greeted Pepper while continuing his work.
"Everyone has been waiting for you for half an hour. Why are you still at home?"
Pepper didn't beat around the bush and directly questioned.
"Because I never planned on attending that boring meeting!"
Tony defended himself righteously, "It's a total waste of life, I can hardly bear a minute of it."
"Tony, I've already told you that meeting is important."
"All the shareholders are there, waiting for your report!"
Pepper felt her blood pressure rising but still patiently tried to persuade Tony Stark.
"Then I'm even less likely to go. Can you imagine me cooped up with a bunch of old men?"
"Good heavens, what a disaster!"
Tony Stark remained his usual unserious self.
"So what about the meeting?"
"Let them wait, it's not the first time."
Tony Stark stated as if it were a matter of course.
Pepper looked helpless but was out of options.
Who else but America's most capriciously irresponsible playboy billionaire could be her boss?
"Anything else?"
Tony Stark dove back into his modding work.
"Alright, I'll try to find another excuse."
Pepper conceded defeat.
And with that, she ended the call with Tony Stark.
Tony Stark, meanwhile, continued to immerse himself in his modification project.
Snap!
Tony Stark put down a wrench casually when his movement suddenly paused.
He noticed that a black notebook had appeared next to him on the workbench.
???
Tony Stark's brows furrowed slightly.
What the hell?
Where did this notebook come from?
He had set up this workbench temporarily during his afternoon modification session.
And no one else had come in during the entire process!
So.
How could such a notebook suddenly appear?
"Could Pepper have been here?"
Tony Stark racked his brains and could only think of this possibility.
Pepper knew his house's passcodes, and she had the freedom to enter and leave his place.
Even if Pepper did visit, unless there was a special circumstance, Jarvis would not specifically inform Tony Stark!
Well, that made it clear.
It must have been Pepper who had visited before, but Tony was so wrapped up in his "work" that he hadn't noticed her!
The question is.
Why would Pepper leave so quietly without saying a word?Despite Tony Stark having deduced the truth, something still didn't quite add up in his mind.
"Jarvis, has Pepper been here before?"
Tony Stark asked Jarvis about the situation.
"Sir, when are you referring to exactly?"
"The last time Miss Pepper came was three days ago."
Three days ago?
That can't be right!
There wasn't even a workbench here three days ago!
"Are you certain it was three days ago?"
Tony Stark was starting to get confused.
"Sir, I am very sure!"
Jarvis replied with certainty.
Tony Stark began to sink deep into thought.
This time, no matter how hard he thought, he couldn't figure out what was going on.
"So, who put this notebook here?"
Tony Stark stopped racking his brains and picked up the notebook to directly question Jarvis.
After all, nothing could escape Jarvis's notice.
"Sir, the notebook wasn't placed there by anyone."
"It appeared... on its own!"
But Jarvis gave Tony Stark an answer he had never anticipated.
"Jarvis, now is not the time for jokes."
Tony Stark didn't take it to heart, thinking that Jarvis was just teasing him.
After all.
His artificial intelligence really was very smart; teasing the boss was just standard protocol.
"Sir, you'll see for yourself."
Swoosh!
Jarvis said this and projected an image in front of Tony Stark.
It was the image of Tony Stark busily working at his workbench, and the main focus was indeed that workbench.
As for the time, it was fifteen minutes prior.
The image clearly showed there was no notebook on the workbench.
But after the progress bar advanced a few seconds.
Swoosh!
Very abruptly.
A notebook appeared out of nowhere on the workbench.
???
What the hell!
Even with Tony Stark's high IQ, he was completely flustered at this moment.
It seemed the notebook had indeed materialized on its own!
Could it be...
Did someone master the technology of spatial teleportation and transport this notebook here?
Or could it be...
Jarvis was hacked, controlled by the person behind the scenes to trick him?
"OK, whoever you are, you've successfully got my attention now!"
"Let's see what's so special about this notebook!"
Tony Stark was thoroughly intrigued.
He picked up the notebook and began to inspect it closely.
[Zhou Cheng's Diary]
The title page with these large characters immediately caught Tony Stark's attention.
So.
This notebook is actually a diary!
But ~ who is Zhou Cheng?
Tony Stark tilted his head and thought hard but couldn't recall anyone by that name.
However, Tony Stark didn't dwell on it too much; he quickly flipped to the next page.
His expression immediately changed to one of intrigue.
[My goodness, I'll just say my goodness!]
[Guess who I saw on TV? Iron Man Tony Stark!]
[What the heck, have I actually crossed over into the Marvel universe?]
[Why is this happening to me?]
???
Why is this Zhou Cheng calling himself Iron Man?
Such a title seemed totally out of the blue.
And... the guy claims to be a time traveler?
While Tony Stark had never come across the term "time traveler" before.
But putting it into context, it was evident that the person was implying they came from a different world!
A parallel universe?