The ordinary-looking man observing from the sidelines was one of Drex Valen's avatars.
For this incarnation, he had reverted to a standard Kryptonian template, reconstructed using the genetic blueprint stored within the Codex.
Everything he had done so far, including watching Danny Rand's trial, was part of his research.
Drex wanted knowledge.
All knowledge.
Every scrap of information scattered across the Multiverse, no matter how insignificant.
His plan was simple.
Gather it.
Organize it.
Integrate it.
Then use it to discover a path beyond the Multiverse itself.
Would it work?
He didn't know.
But it was worth trying.
Time was the one resource dimensional gods never lacked.
For a being at Drex's level, the experiences of three thousand avatars unfolding simultaneously amounted to little more than a blink.
One of the Three Elders suddenly moved.
The bearded elder's hands flashed forward like a crane's beak.
Danny barely saw the attack coming.
In an instant, the elder pierced through his protective qi and pecked him several times squarely on the forehead.
Thunk. Thunk. Thunk.
Danny reacted instinctively.
His hands moved like fans, creating overlapping defensive seals in front of him.
Had it been bullets, arrows, or even a barrage of missiles, he was confident he could have stopped them.
Yet he couldn't evade a single strike from the elder.
Moments later, several painful lumps had already appeared on his forehead.
The elder withdrew his hand.
"Not bad."
His tone suggested exactly the opposite.
After the commotion died down, Danny and the Three Elders gathered inside a quiet chamber.
The eldest of the three spoke first.
"Danny, you have passed the final trial."
"You are now the sixty-seventh protector of Kunlun to bear the title of Iron Fist."
He paused.
"There is nothing more we can teach you."
Then he handed over a plane ticket.
"I know you possess little in the way of worldly belongings."
"So we purchased a ticket for you."
"Destination: New New York."
"Your homeland is suffering. You will carry Kunlun's ideals with you."
Several days later, Danny stood inside Kunlun's recently constructed airport, clutching the ticket while waiting for an orbital shuttle.
Something felt strange.
The elders had practically thrown him out.
The more he thought about it, the more suspicious it seemed.
Still, home was finally within reach.
That thought pushed everything else aside.
He wasn't returning merely to revisit his past.
He was going back for revenge.
Years ago, Danny's father, Wendell Rand, had discovered Kunlun and trained there as a protector candidate.
Eventually, he returned to America and became a successful businessman.
Alongside his close friend, Harold Meachum, he founded a company that would later grow into the Meachum Industrial Group.
Then came the expedition.
The betrayal.
Harold, secretly obsessed with Danny's mother, arranged Wendell's death during a mountain-climbing trip.
Only Danny survived.
Kunlun's archers had arrived just in time to save him.
Over the years, Danny had quietly investigated everything.
He knew exactly where Harold Meachum was.
And he knew what the man had become.
Harold had rebuilt the company after Wendell's death.
Expanded it.
Strengthened it.
Turned it into a multinational corporate empire.
Danny intended to reclaim what belonged to his family.
His plan was straightforward.
First, contact Kunlun's allies in America.
Second, secure legal assistance.
Third, establish his identity and claim his inheritance.
Finally...
Confront Harold Meachum.
According to Danny's investigation, Harold had repeatedly diluted ownership through financing and expansion.
Yet for reasons Danny couldn't determine, he had preserved a portion of Wendell's original shares.
Perhaps guilt.
Perhaps calculation.
Whatever the reason, those shares remained held in trust.
Even after decades of dilution, they still represented a significant stake in the corporation.
With the proper documentation, Danny would become one of the company's major shareholders.
Kunlun connected him with a law firm operating out of Chinatown.
Once his identity had been verified, Danny paid a staggering inheritance tax bill and formally reclaimed his father's assets.
At that point, he knew Harold Meachum would already be aware of his return.
Danny wasn't worried.
He was the Iron Fist now.
Whatever Harold had become, he couldn't possibly threaten him.
Drex's avatar withdrew his attention from Danny.
The information he wanted from Kunlun had already been gathered.
There was no reason to continue watching.
Besides, something far more interesting was happening elsewhere in New York.
A deafening roar shattered the night.
The ground trembled beneath his feet.
The streets that should have been packed with traffic and pedestrians were nearly empty.
The few people still outside were running for their lives.
Cars sat overturned or smashed together in the middle of intersections.
Buildings bore fresh scars.
Entire sections looked as though they had been attacked by construction equipment.
Or artillery.
Or both.
The neighborhood resembled the aftermath of a small war.
The Hulk and Abomination were fighting.
The Hulk's real name was Bruce Banner.
A brilliant scientist.
Unfortunately, brilliant scientists in worlds like this rarely got to spend their lives doing ordinary science.
Banner was no exception.
A laboratory accident involving gamma radiation had transformed him.
Whenever his emotions spiraled out of control, he became a towering green giant.
A monster capable of tearing apart fighter jets and kicking tanks across battlefields.
General Ross saw potential.
Specifically, military potential.
He wanted to turn the Hulk into the foundation of a new super-soldier program.
The result was years of pursuit and experimentation.
Eventually, a foreign mercenary volunteered for testing.
Using samples derived from Hulk's blood, the military transformed him into something similar.
Something stronger.
Something far less stable.
Abomination.
As always, the inevitable showdown followed.
The ruined buildings around them were proof enough.
Collateral damage had become a local landmark.
After transforming, Emil Blonsky had grown increasingly violent.
Even General Ross himself wasn't exempt from his wrath.
The Hulk, meanwhile, had returned for a much simpler reason.
To protect Ross's daughter.
His girlfriend.
And so the battle began.
Drex wasn't particularly interested in either combatant.
Both were physical powerhouses.
Kryptonians were superior in almost every category that mattered.
There wasn't much to learn from them.
Still...
After a moment's consideration, he decided to approach.
A live-action blockbuster was hard to ignore when it was happening right in front of him.
The yellowish, monstrous Abomination looked nothing like the Blonsky Drex knew from other realities.
This version actually resembled the actor from The Legend of 1900 far more than any hardened mercenary.
At the moment, however, appearances hardly mattered.
He was winning.
Decisively.
One massive foot pressed down on the weakened Hulk's chest.
Abomination threw back his head and roared triumphantly.
The outcome wasn't entirely surprising.
Earlier, Hulk had been injected with an inhibitory serum.
Simply transforming had already consumed much of his strength.
He wasn't in a state where his anger could spiral endlessly upward and smash through every obstacle.
"Hahaha!"
Abomination laughed wildly.
The power coursing through his body intoxicated him.
This was what he had always wanted.
Strength.
The kind of strength that could crush anything standing in his way.
The unbeatable Hulk had fallen.
Which meant there was only one conclusion.
He was now the strongest being in the world.
The king of the mountain.
The ruler of everything.
Clap.
Clap.
Clap.
The sound echoed through the devastated street.
Abomination stopped laughing.
Hulk looked up weakly.
Several fleeing civilians froze.
A lone figure stepped forward from the shadows.
He wore an impeccably tailored black outfit.
Not quite a suit.
Not quite casual wear.
Something in between.
Elegant.
Relaxed.
Refined.
There was an unmistakable aura of mystery surrounding him.
And he was smiling.