Chen Long noticed his gaffe and, seeing the strange looks from others, felt a bit embarrassed. He quickly changed the subject, saying, "Old Man, I know we're here for the demon, but it's not the right time yet. Director Fury's VIP passes allow us to tour the building, but only after the exhibition ends. Rushing now is useless."
The exhibition spearheaded by Stark Industries was not something anyone could just attend. Furthermore, given Stark Industries' influence, the number of people wanting to attend would be immense, and they couldn't possibly accommodate everyone.
Therefore, to limit attendance, the exhibition was scheduled to last a week. Those who wanted to attend the opening ceremony on the first day required an entry ticket, which was distributed entirely at random. If you got a ticket, you could come; otherwise, you were out of luck. This was Tony Stark's initial idea.
Later, Pepper felt that this entirely random distribution method was inappropriate and problematic. After all, the purpose of holding the exhibition was to enhance Stark Industries' influence and showcase its capabilities. If the ticket holders were all ordinary citizens, it would still have some effect, but it would fall far short of the intended goal.
To this end, after much discussion between Pepper and Tony, an exasperated Tony compromised. In addition to the regular entry tickets, a limited number of VIP passes were introduced. These VIP passes were distributed selectively to invite individuals with social influence. To distinguish them from ordinary entry tickets, VIP pass holders were also granted the privilege of a guided tour of Stark Tower.
The VIP pass in Chen Long's hand was specifically obtained by Nick Fury to investigate the demon within Stark Tower, and it was sent along with the materials.
When Chen Long first received the VIP pass, he was quite pleased and headed straight for the building upon arriving at the venue.
The result was being stopped by the security guards at the entrance.
Unlike last time, Chen Long now held a VIP pass, and it clearly stated that the holder could tour Stark Tower with a dedicated guide.
Upon seeing Chen Long's VIP pass, the security guard was initially taken aback. His expression quickly turned respectful. After checking the pass and confirming it was legitimate, he made a phone call, briefly explaining the situation. Upon receiving clear instructions, the guard returned the pass to Chen Long.
Chen Long, expecting to be allowed in after his pass was verified, was once again met with a closed door. The reason given was that while VIP pass holders could tour Stark Tower, it could only be done after the exhibition concluded.
Originally, the VIP passes were intended for people of status. To highlight their exclusivity, the privilege of touring Stark Tower was added as a bonus.
Those who received VIP passes were typically influential figures, and with their social standing, gaining access to Stark Tower would have been a simple matter of a phone call. What they desired was a sense of superiority over ordinary people.
Hence, the security guard's initial surprise upon seeing Chen Long's VIP pass, followed by his hasty call for instructions. In the guard's eyes, VIP pass holders were not people he could afford to offend, and a misstep could cost him his job.
Upon receiving the call, Pepper was also quite surprised, not expecting to encounter such an oddity. Someone was actually trying to tour Stark Tower with a VIP pass. However, the words had been spoken, and she couldn't easily go back on her promise. In her frustration, she decided to exploit a loophole in the VIP pass's terms.
When the VIP passes were first distributed, it was indeed stated that they allowed for a tour of the building, but no specific time was mentioned on the pass itself. Pepper was using this ambiguity to postpone the tour until after the first day of the exhibition, hoping to make the person give up.
Chen Long had no choice but to attend the exhibition first and then enter the tower to search for the demon, as the rules were set. Despite his reluctance, he had to comply.
Did his old man not understand that one must abide by the rules on someone else's turf? But time was of the essence. Every minute that passed increased the possibility of the demon breaking free, and his old man was truly worried.
As Chen Long and his father were talking, a hand tugged at his pant leg. Chen Long looked down to see a child wearing an Iron Man helmet, about the same height as Xiao Yu.
"Is there something you need, little one? Have you lost your family?" Chen Long crouched down, offering a friendly, big-brotherly smile.
The child tilted his head, and then white light began to emanate from its eyes, followed by a mechanical voice.
"I am the Mechanical Terminator. I will conquer this world."
What set Chen Long apart from other archaeologists was his exposure not only to things explainable by science but also to many things that science couldn't explain.
Hearing the child's sudden declaration startled Chen Long, making him jump about three feet in the air like a startled cat.
"Hahahahaha..."
Seeing Chen Long's frightened reaction, a crisp laugh came from inside the helmet.
Upon hearing the familiar voice, Chen Long frowned and asked, "Xiao Yu?"
The helmet opened, revealing Xiao Yu's true face.
Chen Long's expression darkened considerably after entering Xiao Yu. It wasn't entirely because Xiao Yu had scared him, although that was part of the reason, but definitely not the whole story.
Chen Long was angry because, at this hour, Xiao Yu should have been in bed, resting well to attend school the next day, not appearing here.
Chen Long was quite traditional in some aspects, particularly when it came to children's education.
Chen Long believed that while family education was important, and parents, as the first teachers, often needed to lead by example, setting a good role model for their children, school was even more crucial.
Chen Long believed that for Xiao Yu at this stage, her best course of action was to focus all her energy on her studies, strive for excellent grades, get into a good university, and then find a stable job after graduation, living a quiet life, rather than getting involved in such dangerous affairs.
"Xiao Yu, shouldn't you be in bed sleeping right now?"
In response to Chen Long's question, Xiao Yu shook her head and said, "Tch, Uncle Long, do you want me to miss such a grand exhibition opening ceremony? This is an exhibition spearheaded by Stark Industries, and their souvenirs are super cool."
As she spoke, she couldn't resist showing off the Iron Man helmet on her head to Chen Long.
"Oh, Xiao Yu, don't forget you have school tomorrow. You've already missed a lot of classes during these past few days you were missing. Besides, how did you get in without an entry ticket?"