Marvel's Venom, starting with a Hydra undercover agent.

But he never expected that Ivan would not die, but instead live well under the protection of some people.

Tony asked into the phone, "Is that Hammer? He's the one who got you out of prison, right?"

“Looks like you already guessed it,” Ivan said, biting a toothpick.

He then continued to Tony, "What your father did to my family forty years ago, I will do to you in the next forty minutes."

"I hope you're ready."

Tony wanted to say something more to buy time, since the location tracking was about to succeed.

But things don't always go as planned. Just when they were about to track down Ivan's location, the call was disconnected.

"Damn it!" Tony cursed under his breath as he looked at the interrupted tracking and the disconnected phone call.

He immediately searched for information about Hammer Industries on his computer, and what came into view was a poster announcing that they would be showcasing their new weapons at the Stark World's Fair that evening.

In a flash, Tony had a general idea of ​​what Ivan wanted to do.

He hurriedly said to Jarvis, "Jarvis, quickly help me assemble the armor suitable for the new reactor."

“As for the new reactor, there’s no need to test it; I need it now.” With that, Tony grabbed the newly manufactured Arc Reactor from the table.

Just as Tony was about to switch the power source in his chest, the laboratory door creaked open.

Holm was standing at the door, looking at Tony's anxious movements with some suspicion, and asked, "Who were you talking to just now?"

Seeing Holm appear, Tony's eyes lit up, and he quickly said to him, "Agent Clint! You've come at the right time! Ivan Vanko just called me. He's going to cause trouble at Stark's World's Fair. Everyone around the Hammer Industries booth is in danger!"

“Ivan Vanko?” Holm said incredulously.

"It's Ivan Vanko. Didn't the news say he died in a prison in Monaco? But actually he didn't die. Justin Hammer took him out of prison and used him to develop the Iron Soldiers."

“That guy just called me, declared war on me, and said he wanted revenge. He must have mixed a lot of his own tricks into the development of the Iron Soldiers. That idiot Justin Hammer was used by him without even realizing it. Now there’s going to be big trouble.”

Tony had clearly figured out Ivan Vanko's plan. He was in a hurry, and as he spoke, he shoved the new Arc Reactor into his chest.

As the new energy matched and took effect, he couldn't help but gag, "Ugh~ It tastes like rust!"

After he finished speaking, Holm took out his phone and told the others at S.H.I.E.L.D. the news, and quickly arranged for manpower.

Seeing Tony already donning his armor, Holm sneered inwardly, secretly feeling sorry for Garrett and Hydra.

They also planned to make the best of both worlds: to nurture Hammer Industries into a behemoth like Stark Industries, without wasting Ivan Vanko's value, and then bring him into Hydra after completing their business with Hammer Industries.

But things don't always go exactly as planned. Now, a variable has emerged. If things had gone according to the original plot, they wouldn't have gotten a single hair from the Hydra.

World's Fair

At the Stark Industries booth at the World's Fair, Justin Hammer, still dressed in a silver-gray suit and wearing a headset, swayed to the music as he walked to the center of the stage.

As he made his movements, the audience below applauded enthusiastically.

"Thank you all for coming to Hammer Industries' showroom. Today, I'll be here to introduce you to the secret weapon that you've all been curious about."

Justin Hammer smiled smugly and said that he had spent a lot of time and resources promoting today's opening.

These actions include, but are not limited to, playing golf with senators who have always been at odds with Tony Stark, discussing hot topics with journalists, and spending lavishly, plastering advertisements all over the world.

This was an unprecedented move, demonstrating his confidence and belief that Hammer Industries would become a hot topic of discussion after today's exhibition.

"For a long time, our country has always ordered brave soldiers to fight."

"Then Iron Man appeared, and we thought things would change and no one would die from war anymore."

"But unfortunately, he was unwilling to disclose his advanced technology to arm our brave soldiers."

"It's not fair, and it's not what a good American citizen should do, but it's still a great invention that quickly made headlines around the world."

Justin Hammer immediately targeted Stark Industries, which had been facing numerous troubles lately, right from the start.

This action greatly excited the journalists who were viewing the exhibition below.

After all, what they love to see and enjoy most is this kind of confrontational scene.

Some reporters had already quietly pointed their cameras at Pepper, the new CEO of Stark Industries, to see his reaction.

Faced with Justin Hammer's relentless tirade, Pepper, sitting in the audience, didn't show anything overtly, but her aura seemed to freeze.

Justin Hammer, standing on the stage, smiled confidently and said, "But today, my friends, the newspapers are about to face an even bigger problem, because they will run out of ink."

After he finished speaking, the staff behind him went on stage and quickly moved the table in front of Justin Hammer away.

Justin Hammer took a few steps back, then opened his arms and continued, "Ladies and gentlemen, today I would like to introduce to you a brand new face of the U.S. military, the Hammer Steel Soldier!"

As he finished speaking, the screen on the booth began playing footage of soldiers marching, and at the same time, rousing music began to play in the venue.

As Justin Hammer continued his introduction, rows of steel soldiers slowly rose from the audience.

"Army Steel Soldiers!"

"Naval Steel Soldiers!"

"Air Force Steel Soldiers!"

"And the last of the Marine Corps' steel soldiers!"

For every type he named, rows of steel soldiers rose up from below.

Depending on the type, the colors and weaponry of those steel soldiers also differ.

The tan army and their long-barreled machine guns, the dark blue navy and their cruise missiles on their shoulders, the light blue air force and their jet engines, and the black camouflage marines and their unique weaponry.

As the steel soldier appeared, the audience erupted in cheers and applause.

Several military personnel dressed in uniforms, who looked very dignified, also showed great interest; these steel soldiers were indeed a sight to behold.

On the stage, Justin Hammer basked in the enthusiastic applause and cheers, and continued with a smile, "As you can see, they are much better than cheerleaders."

"Although this is revolutionary technology, the battlefield still needs real soldiers to coordinate."

"So, last but not least, let us have the honor of presenting the first prototype of the Iron Armor, the All-Round Threat Response Combat Armor, and its pilot, Air Force Major James Rhodes!"

At the very front of the booth, a fully armed, silver-gray steel warrior is slowly rising.

The person inside was clearly Rhodey, who drove off in the silver-gray Iron Man armor on Tony Stark's birthday.

This silver-gray steel armor is quite different from its original appearance. It now has a lot of weapons and equipment on its exterior, and a huge machine gun barrel is mounted on its back.

Clearly, after the steel armor was removed, the military carried out a comprehensive modification and weapons upgrade.

The difference in the appearance of the steel armor also shows that Tony's ideas are very different from those of the military.

Tony's Iron Man armor is generally simple, streamlined, flexible, and versatile, capable of handling a variety of combat situations. With the support of a unique weapon system, its combat power is also extremely strong.

Judging from the modifications made to Rhodes' armor, the military clearly prefers this intimidating look and wants to mount all types of weapons on it.

The performance on stage continued, and as Rod made his full appearance, he looked at the audience below and raised his hand in salute.

The steel soldiers behind him also saluted in response to his movement, and the sound of steel clashing against steel immediately echoed throughout the entire venue.

Justin Hammer, standing next to him, also saluted, his face looking very resolute and his gaze very firm; his performance was perfect in every way.

Hearing the cheers and applause from the audience, Justin Hammer secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

The demonstration was over, and everything went perfectly according to his plan without any mishaps.

According to his original plan, the Iron Soldiers should have more activities and even firepower demonstrations to show the military leaders in the audience.

Just before the mission was about to begin, Ivan Vanko told him that the Iron Soldiers were far from being completed.

The other party told him that the steel soldier could only be displayed but not demonstrated. He could wave his hand and salute, but he could not do anything else.

Demonstrating firing is even more impossible, because the weapons mounted on them are only for show; they cannot be fired.

Ivan Vanko's words infuriated Justin Hammer, who immediately returned to the factory warehouse, dropped his usual amiable facade, and ordered his men to teach the man a lesson.

He could no longer tolerate Ivan Vanko's arrogance. The other party repeatedly ignored his demands, taking advantage of his needs, treating him like a sucker, using his resources but not giving him what he wanted.

If Rhodes and the military hadn't asked him to heavily arm and demonstrate the Iron Man armor, he wouldn't know how the exhibition would have continued.

As Justin Hammer pondered this, he decided to have a proper talk with Ivan Vanko when he got back, to make the other man understand who truly held the upper hand.

If Ivan Vanko can't provide what he wants, then he might as well just let the other person really become a dead man.

As his thoughts were racing, a bright arc suddenly streaked across the distant sky.

Tony, piloting his gold and red Iron Man armor, landed heavily on the stage, eliciting cheers from the audience that were far more excited than ever before.

Chapter 185, Garriott's Unreasonable Demands

When Tony Stark appeared, the cheers from the audience became even louder.

Their voices reveal that, although Rhodes also has Iron Man armor, the public still largely approves of Tony Stark.

“We’re in big trouble,” Tony said to Rhodes.

Rhodes saw Tony approaching and said helplessly, "Tony, stop messing around. There are civilians here, and I'm just following orders. We can't start a fight here."

“You’ve misunderstood. What I mean is that everyone here is in danger, and we need to get them out of here as soon as possible. You have to trust me now,” Tony said as he stood next to Rhodes.

Rod retorted, speechless, "I said the same thing last time, but I got a really bad beating at your house, don't you remember?"

Hearing that even Rhodes didn't believe him, Tony had no choice but to tell the truth, even if it might alert the enemy: "Justin Hammer and Ivan Vanko are working together. Something's wrong with these steel soldiers, and even you might be a little off."

Upon hearing Tony's words, Rhodes said in disbelief, "Ivan Vanko is still alive?"

Justin Hammer walked up to Tony's side. He didn't know what Tony was there for, but seeing how enthusiastic the audience was, he pretended that he had invited Tony and kept waving to liven up the atmosphere.

Seeing Justin Hammer approach, Tony walked up to him and asked directly, "Where is Ivan Vanko? Don't play dumb with me, I know you're the one who got him out of Monaco prison."

"What? Are you kidding me? Isn't he already dead? What does he have to do with me? How could I possibly do something illegal?" Justin Hammer, of course, couldn't possibly admit that Ivan Vanko was with him.

He had no idea what was going to happen next; he just felt that Tony was there to steal his thunder.

Hearing Justin Hammer's feigned ignorance, Tony became furious. He grabbed Hammer by the collar and lifted him up, saying, "You idiot! You've been fooled! These steel soldiers are under his control. He's going to launch an attack here!"

"So stop dreaming unrealistically and start thinking about how to find yourself a better lawyer. After today, you'll probably be the sinner of all of New York."

"Now! I'm giving you one last chance. Where is Ivan Vanko?"

Hearing Tony's angry roar, Justin Hammer was also a little confused. He was still unwilling to confess, but Tony's words had obviously shaken him, and he also sensed that something was wrong.

Just as Tony was about to press for more information, Rhodes behind him said in a panic, "Shit! This is bad! I've been hacked and I can't move at all."