[Note: My internet service provider sucks. Lost internet for a few days. Will upload all the delayed chapters right now.]
Palladium poisoning had always been Tony Stark's deepest secret. The moment Kingpin revealed it, his expression instantly changed.
"You know!?"
"Of course. It's not exactly unimaginable," Kingpin replied, spreading his hands. "Any scientist with basic sense wouldn't think putting an Arc Reactor inside their chest is a healthy idea."
Tony Stark pursed his lips and remained silent.
Though he was eager to find the new element his father had designed, he wasn't sure whether Kingpin was telling the truth. And even if he was, Tony doubted the man had a lead on it.
More importantly, he was Tony Stark the Iron Man. With a prideful nature, he couldn't lower himself to a villain like Kingpin, someone he regarded with contempt.
"Alright, Mr. Stark, enough nonsense. It's time for you to return to Stark Industries. Search your father's files," Kingpin said flatly. "Also, lithium dioxide can alleviate palladium poisoning. And drink more vegetable juice. It's good for you."
[Note: In Iron Man 2, Black Widow ejected Tony with lithium dioxide to alleviate the palladium poisoning.]
Kingpin waved his hand, and two enhanced guards stepped forward to escort Tony Stark out.
Stark didn't resist. Stripped of his suit, his combat ability was negligible, anyone in the room could take him down.
Besides, he was in no condition to pick another fight with Kingpin.
Tony had always been proud. Even knowing Kingpin had helped him deliberately, he wouldn't repay goodwill with hostility, nor would he keep stirring trouble after a loss.
As for how Stark would go about saving himself or uncovering his father's research on new elements, that was no longer Shin or Kingpin's concern.
With Stark no longer interfering, Kingpin shifted focus back to the Hand. While continuing his training in Chi, he also intensified his investigation into the movements of the Hand.
"Have you pinpointed the location?" Shin asked, glancing at the map in Kingpin's hand.
Kingpin smirked. "This is my city, remember? I'm the true king of New York's underworld. The Hand can't move here without me knowing."
Shin nodded in agreement. Kingpin was most dangerous when dealing with his criminal peers. While countless superheroes had defeated him, no underworld rival had ever truly brought him down. Even with temporary setbacks, Kingpin always made a comeback.
There were plenty of supervillains vying to rule New York's criminal empire, more than enough to rival his superhero adversaries. But in the end, most of them were discarded after being exploited by Kingpin. It was clear, that his cunning and ability to manipulate rivals made him a master tactician in the underworld.
At the moment, the map in his hand marked the site of the dragon bones, bones the Hand had gone to great lengths to locate.
The United States has only existed for about 200 years. No one knew what the ancient dragon had been thinking when it came to this land, but in the end, it had died here.
The Hand had consulted numerous sources to pinpoint the dragon bones' location. But the world had changed. That site was now in the heart of New York, one of the most developed cities on Earth.
If you're digging in a wasteland, the Hand could do as they pleased. But digging a massive pit in New York? That's a different story. Had they even bothered to ask the land of the free first?
They were the Hand, not Hydra!
This was exactly why the Hand had tried to partner with Kingpin. Of course, they couldn't reveal their true intent, to find the dragon bones and achieve immortality. If they did, Kingpin would certainly seize the bones for himself.
Initially, their plan went smoothly. They approached Kingpin as drug traffickers and criminals, then slowly revealed their cultist identity.
Cultists digging underground isn't all that strange. Who knows what kinds of rituals they perform? Especially one like the Hand, which actually had supernatural powers and often conducted dark ceremonies.
At first, Kingpin didn't care much. As long as the money kept flowing, he didn't mind how deep a hole they dug in New York.
But after Shin revealed the truth, that the Hand was after the dragon bones that granted immortality, Kingpin naturally became very invested.
He'd originally planned to wait until the Hand unearthed the bones, then betray them. But after seeing Shin's abilities, he decided to take a more proactive approach. Now, he just wanted Shin to secure the dragon bones directly.
Shin, of course, was interested too. Immortality in the Marvel Universe was much easier to attain than in any cultivation world. There were numerous ways to extend life, and dragon bones were among the simplest.
Truthfully, Shin was more interested in the Infinity Formula, a serum that preserved youth and prolonged life as long as it was regularly injected. The downside was that it required continued usage to remain effective.
But he wasn't in a rush. Whether the formula existed in this version of the universe was still uncertain. For now, he'd go after the dragon bones first.
His plan? Take 90% for himself and leave the remaining scraps for Kingpin.
Honestly, even that 10% seemed overly generous. When the Hand rebelled against K'un-Lun, they only managed to steal a few fragments of dragon bone, and those were enough to let the five Fingers live for hundreds of years.
Now, the bones beneath New York were from a complete dragon. With them, the Fingers might live another thousand years. That's 5,000 years between five people. Even one-tenth of that would be 500 years.
Did Kingpin really need a 500-year lifespan? With the superhero era dawning, he'd be lucky to die of old age. Odds were, he'd fall during a clash with a hero.
Then again, this being the Marvel Universe, villains like Kingpin rarely died permanently. He was bound to go through the cycle of death and resurrection several times. The lifespan granted by the dragon bones might just go to waste.
Still, Shin had to remain trustworthy. Even though Kingpin was under mind control, he still retained his will. If the benefits weren't enough, he might start dragging his feet.
Holding the map, Shin no longer needed to wait for the Hand to finish digging. He spoke a few words to Kingpin, then vanished in a flash of lightning.
Moments later, he arrived at the building marked on the map. After carefully surveying the area, he estimated that the dragon bones lay directly beneath it.