Chapter 22: Sacrifice
[Late June 2008 – S.H.I.E.L.D. was quite annoyed when you publicly acknowledged yourself as Iron Man, though you didn't think it was a big deal. Only Tony Stark sniped sarcastically that you were shameless—but he still admitted it was pretty cool.]
[July 2008 – Tony Stark traveled to Afghanistan to sell weapons. However, with your advance arrangements, John Wick helped him escape danger, and Stark safely returned to the U.S. He met with you personally to express his gratitude.]
[August 2008 – Your Pineapple Corporation has now expanded into the energy sector. Your graphene batteries are now being supplied for electric vehicles.]
[September 2008 – The U.S. Senate summoned you, demanding you hand over the Iron Man suit on the grounds that individuals may not privately possess weapons of mass destruction. You flatly refused. Unexpectedly, at the hearing, Tony Stark—America's biggest arms dealer—testified in your favor, arguing that the Iron Man suit was not a weapon but a high-tech prosthetic. He really came through for you, blatantly lying with a straight face. You decided to temporarily forgive him.]
[October 2008 – Your friendship with Tony Stark deepened. Out of a sense of brotherhood, you decided to gift him an Iron Man suit. Though Stark arrogantly claimed he never accepted gifts from men, he still took it. Also this month, you received a pleasant surprise—your research on graphene earned you a nomination for the 2008 Nobel Prize in Physics, and you won.]
[November 2008 – After winning the Nobel Prize in Physics, you steadily rose to legendary status. Thanks to your influence, your Pineapple Corporation's stock price continued to soar.]
[December 2008 – At the Nobel Prize awards ceremony in Stockholm, you met Dr. Erik Selvig, a physicist and astronomer, along with his student Jane Foster. Selvig had also once been nominated for the Nobel Prize. He was attending this time as an invited guest. You and Jane hit it off instantly—and ended up in bed.]
[January to March 2009 – Tony Stark helped you upgrade the Iron Man suit two more times, improving firepower, speed, and endurance. However, he seemed disinterested in superheroing. His real goal was proving he was more capable than you in research. From his perspective, the time spent upgrading the suit would've been better spent dating more models.]
[April 2009 to March 2010 – Over this period, the suit was upgraded twice again. One night, S.H.I.E.L.D. Director Nick Fury invited you to join the Avengers. But why call it the "Avengers"? Why not the "Pineapple League"? Fury's face turned green when he heard your suggestion.]
[April 2010 – Just like in the original timeline, a hammer fell from the sky in New Mexico. Though you didn't pay much attention, you got the gist through Black Widow. After a fierce battle, Thor reclaimed his hammer and defeated the Destroyer—but didn't win over his love. That's because Jane Foster was vacationing with you in New York.]
[July 2010 – Hulk and Abomination clashed in downtown New York. Naturally, you didn't sit this one out. Thanks to your foresight and tactical planning, the battle caused minimal damage and no civilian casualties. Your fame soared even higher. Late at night, you sometimes wondered: if a real crisis hit New York and a nuke was launched, would you make the same choice as Tony Stark and fly it into a wormhole yourself? Probably not.]
[September 2010 – Nick Fury once again invited you to join the future Avengers team. After some thought, you accepted—because the offer was just too good to refuse.]
[November 2010 – With your help, Captain America was retrieved early from the Arctic and brought back to New York. Aware of future events, you warned Nick Fury not to study the Tesseract. He agreed.]
[March 2011 – A surprise: Jane Foster was pregnant with your child. You were seriously caught off guard. Though you weren't planning to get married just yet, you were genuinely thrilled. After discussing it, you both decided to keep the baby. (Joy +2)]
[January 2012 – Your first child was born. Looking at that tiny life, you felt a new connection to the world. (Joy +2)]
[June 2012 – Everything was going smoothly—both your personal life and your career. But then you discovered that Nick Fury had broken his word. He was still conducting secret experiments on the Tesseract, trying to harness it as a source of limitless energy to develop powerful weapons. In mid-June, Loki appeared at the underground facility, stole the Tesseract, and corrupted Hawkeye. Shortly afterward, at Fury's suggestion, the original Avengers assembled: you, Captain America, Black Widow, Thor, Hulk, and Hawkeye. You weren't happy about it—but you still joined.]
[July 2012 – Despite your best efforts, you ultimately failed to stop Loki's plan. He used the Tesseract to open a portal in New York, unleashing a massive Chitauri invasion. You and your allies fought with everything you had, but couldn't hold the line. Minutes later, when the UN Council launched a nuclear missile, you hesitated for less than a second—then made your choice.]
[Years later, everyone who was there could still remember it clearly: at that moment of utter desperation, a silver-and-white Iron Man suit soared into the sky, carrying the nuke headlong into the wormhole without hesitation. Someone had to make the sacrifice—why not you? Worst case, you'd just start over.]
Summary: You lived an incredibly brilliant life—not just in science, but in business as well. Some say humanity's greatest anthem is one of courage. And at that moment, in many people's eyes, you embodied justice and bravery.
Worth noting: after your death, Tony Stark took up your mantle and became the second-generation Iron Man, joining the Avengers.
At least in this timeline, many years later, when Tony Stark snapped his fingers to save humanity, it's likely your sacrifice—leaving such a deep impression on him—played a big part in his choice.
Evaluation: B+
World Exploration: 56.8%
Because your exploration exceeded 40%, you received 3 Traversal Coins.
Due to your massive impact on global scientific development, you received an additional 4 Traversal Coins. Keep up the great work!
[Simulation ended. Host, please make your choice.]
[Option 1: Randomly obtain three skills or specialties acquired during your traversal.]
[Option 2: Randomly obtain three items acquired during your traversal. Note: The Iron Man suit does not include an Arc Reactor. The Arc Reactor is a special item from the "Endless War" world and must be drawn separately from that reward pool.]
Zhou Ning: "…"
Although he didn't want to admit it, if it were really him in that moment, he probably wouldn't have chosen self-sacrifice.
As for why the simulated version of him made that choice—maybe it was for friendship, maybe for family, or maybe just a split-second impulse.
But he had no regrets. There was nothing to complain about.
As for his choice...
Since Option 2 had a high probability of granting the Iron Man suit, but without an Arc Reactor it'd be practically useless, the decision was easy.
Zhou Ning chose Option 1 without hesitation.
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