Chapter 2239

"On the eve of the war's end, nothing could break into Stark Tower, but this didn't mean Pepper wouldn't get hurt. Several explosions occurred at the edge of the building at that time, and the building shook severely. Pepper was too fragile; she broke her arm and possibly two ribs," Stark said slowly.

"What's more serious is her mental problem. I don't think the war scene scared her. She is a quite strong person who has walked out of countless disasters, and this time is no exception."

"I think the problem has always been the relationship between us," Stark said somewhat agitatedly. He hammered the railing with his other hand and said, "She doesn't believe that I chose to give up competing for Stark Tower at the last moment. She started to get confused about who her lover really is. She doesn't know whether she should believe the criminal evidence released by the media. Her mind is splitting."

"I must stay by her side, but when everyone points their fingers at me, I must go to quell bigger troubles, otherwise she couldn't survive either."

Stark closed his eyes in pain and said, "If I didn't go with them, or if I escaped on my own, they would definitely accuse Pepper of harboring a criminal."

"My surname is Stark. They would honestly go through the judicial process for the sake of the Stark Group, but Pepper is just my secretary. Besides me, she is almost helpless. I can't imagine what they would do to Pepper to find out my whereabouts. Even if it were just imprisonment, Pepper couldn't hold on in her state."

"You are wrong to the point of absurdity," Schiller evaluated in a tone of stating facts. "If you are not a naturally heartless madman, don't do things that only madmen would do. If you do, you must make up your mind early to cut off your feelings."

"I don't need you to repeat all this again," Stark roared. "It makes no sense to stand here and talk coolly after everything has happened. Is this all the level you have? Doctor?!"

"I am not a psychiatrist," Schiller shook his head and said, "but I must frankly admit that some of my actions led to your current situation, so I can give you some useful advice."

"What is it?" Stark stared into Schiller's eyes, but didn't see much information from those unfocused eyes.

"Pepper needs company, but you can't be by her side. You know that before she makes a final choice, she won't go with you, and her physical condition can't support your certain forced, almost kidnapping-like behavior."

Stark was silent, but he had to admit that Schiller summarized it very accurately. In terms of treating Pepper, he almost couldn't find any way out.

The White Can isn't a good person, but although he often looks like a crazy villain who ignores the consequences for profit, as long as he still cares about profit, he isn't a pure madman.

What was reversed in him was his view of good and evil, and only his view of good and evil. The abundant emotions that once existed in Stark's brain still followed him like a shadow, only this time he cast them all on Pepper.

"What advice do you have?" Stark asked, staring at Schiller's eyes.

"The only one who can give her company is Stark. Since you can't, let another one go."

Stark shook his head and said, "Do you think I haven't thought about it? But he has no body, he's just an electronic consciousness. Stark Tower is now sealed, and Pepper is also being investigated by the FBI. The two of them simply can't meet."

"If your backup consciousness can't go to the real world, then let Pepper become an electronic life too."

Stark stared blankly at Schiller. He raised his voice in disbelief and said, "What?"

"You know how to back up your own consciousness, so you can upload Pepper's consciousness to a computer in the same way. This way, you can avoid the FBI's investigation of him, and also let her have your company."

"This... this won't work," Stark stammered and said, "This is very dangerous, and, and what about her body?"

"Hand it over to the superheroes—Captain America, Spider-Man, or even S. H. I. E. L. D. Director Nick. When they know this is an unconscious, injured body, and that if something goes wrong with the body, it might lead to Pepper's death, they will definitely ensure the safety of this body."

Stark was stunned for a while and then realized. That's right, superheroes are just such people. They pursue procedural justice. If a person is guilty, they must go to court to accept judgment, and cannot be killed privately.

Pepper's condition is already so severe that she has lost consciousness, so no matter what the FBI wants to do, the heroes will definitely protect her well. This concerns what they pursue most, and they will definitely go all out.

Stark looked at Schiller with a complex expression and said, "The psychological treatment you conducted on those superheroes was all used by you for this? Manipulating them, and then exploiting their loopholes?"

"I said, I am not a psychiatrist."

Stark took a deep breath until his chest was filled. He turned his head to one side and said, "You know what I'm thinking now. You will mock me for being cowardly, hesitant, and indecisive."

"It is human nature not to want to share the object of one's true love with others, but don't forget what gave you the advantage in front of Pepper."

Schiller's words were blown into Stark's ears by the wind. He had never hated the sound of the wind as much as he did today, because those noisy noises made Stark unable to distinguish whether this was sincere advice or manipulation.

But even if this was poisoned honey, Stark had no other choice, because he knew Schiller was right.

Before the final battle, Pepper had no hesitation at all. She simply didn't admit that the evil Iron Man, the White Can, was Tony Stark. She thought something might have disguised itself as him and never gave him a good look.

What really made Pepper waver was that in the final battle, the White Can gave up competing for control of the Stark Group with the electronic consciousness Stark in order to resist foreign enemies. This made Pepper realize that the evil Stark was also Stark, and Stark loved her.

It can be said that this is the culprit for Pepper's poor mental state. Accepting the love of the evil Iron Man makes her feel guilty, but she cannot deny this love. This is the most tormenting self-struggle.

Stark understood that only by taking a step back like this could Pepper see his love more clearly. The strongest rope that can manipulate a person is not gratitude, but guilt.

"You've done very well before," Schiller said again. He took a small step forward, and Stark had almost nowhere to stand. The overly strong presence made Stark unable to ignore his words at all.

"You accepted the FBI's arrest for Pepper. This must have been seen by her, making the scale in her heart tip heavier toward you."

"Is it a good thing that she can't contact the electronic consciousness? Perhaps not necessarily. Many times, only by comparison can one make a firm choice."

"What do you think your backup consciousness would say to her? Want her to be grateful to you? Of course not. He would only denounce you in front of Pepper for being sensible in giving up, and that you deserved to be arrested."

"But if human emotions could always firmly stand on the side of justice, there wouldn't be so much chaos. When a person's every thought starts from emotion, if you talk to her too much about justice, you will only push her further away."

Stark's hands gripped tighter and tighter. He felt his palms sweating and his arms stiffening.

"Do you think I should do this?"

"Of course, and most importantly, once Pepper makes a choice, our righteous hero Stark won't cling to her like you do. It's more likely that he will feel collapsed and then disappear."

Stark pursed his lips tightly. He stared into Schiller's eyes and said, "You are more despicable than I thought, Schiller. It makes me simply unable to describe it."

"You will never find an accurate word to describe me. There wasn't one before, and there won't be one in the future. You will only recognize a new me at every moment. How does that make you feel?"

Stark tilted his head up in slight pain. His Adam's apple rolled up and down, his head tilted to one side, his arms spread wider, and his body pressed tightly against the railing.

"Everyone in the world should see your ability to manipulate, so they will never call me a person with a tendency to manipulate again," Stark said through gritted teeth. "You damn psychopath."

"I said it, don't define me easily, because you will always recognize a new me through certain things."

Schiller took a step back to the side and finally cleared the way to the room. Stark looked like a corpse that had suddenly fallen from a cross, looking disheveled and stumbling.

He knew that he had suddenly lost his composure, and his nervousness wasn't entirely due to the fatigue brought by the successive wars and interrogations, but more because of Schiller's oppression.

The Schiller he saw today was different from the one he had known in the past. He was too good at using everything he could to oppress others.

When he specialized this into a skill and sublimated it into an art, and then turned this skill into an instinct, almost no intelligent life could resist it.

Stark supported the door frame and walked into the bedroom, then passed through the bedroom back to the corridor, feeling soaked all over, as if he had just fallen into an ice hole and been fished out, so much so that he didn't want to look back and see Schiller standing by the door seeing him off.

At the corner of the stairs, he still couldn't help but look back. Schiller stood in the shadows in front of the door, his figure against the light showing a kind of evil and divinity, making people want to run away in fear, and also want to worship.

"It's rare, Schiller actually gave such useful advice directly," Pamela evaluated after retracting the vine.

She turned her head to look at Natasha, but found that Natasha's face had turned as black as the bottom of a pot, so she couldn't help but ask curiously, "What's wrong? Madam, what are you worrying about?"

"The IQ of this group of damn idiots." Natasha kept glancing at Pamela, the meaning of her words already written on her face.

Pamela looked at her in confusion.

Natasha let out a long sigh and said, "Why don't you understand? When Schiller tells you it's over, it means it's just beginning."

"Payment before goods, goods before payment—the essence is all a trick of changing one's mind. No one can take anything away from him without paying a price. It's just that some Schillers will mark the price clearly, while others will force you into a dead end and then make you give whatever they want."

"Is it really that scary?"

"Do you really think it's over just like that?" Natasha asked Pamela back. "He ran to Schiller for help when he was at his most vulnerable. Schiller kindly pointed out a clear path for him. The two of them parted ways, perhaps never to see each other again?"

Pamela frowned slightly.

"You mean, things aren't that simple?"

Natasha nodded helplessly.