The days of being a spiritual mentor in Meiman.

Chapter 3703 The Age of Mercury (23)

Chapter 3703 The Age of Mercury (Twenty-Three)

The scene was so reminiscent of Ron and his friends driving a flying car to Hogwarts in Harry Potter that Schiller was momentarily stunned. It wasn't until the car stopped in front of him that Stark smugly waved at him: "Stephen told me there's a flying car in your favorite fantasy movie, and I knew you liked this. I'll get you one for your birthday!"

“There’s no need for that,” Schiller said, shaking his head. “Wait ten minutes, I’ll go change my clothes.”

Since it was just a regular family gathering, formal attire wasn't necessary. Schiller chose a short-sleeved shirt. Considering the Avengers' base had a backyard that might get very sunny at midday, he wore a sun hat. There was a swimming pool in the backyard, so he wore flip-flops. Carrying the food and gifts, Schiller got into the car.

Peter and Stark were both dressed like they were going on vacation, both in T-shirts and shorts. Stark, however, wore a flashy short-sleeved jacket with an American flag pattern, as if he wanted to steal the spotlight from Steve on this important day.

They drove all the way to the skies above the Avengers headquarters. Stark yelled in the group chat, and the people inside rushed out of the back door. Steve, wearing a white T-shirt, shielded his eyes with his hand, looked up, his eyes filled with disbelief.

“Jesus!” Steve slowly walked towards the vintage car parked in front of him. “What is this?! This…”

As Stark stepped out, he slammed the car door shut, leaned back, and burst into maniacal laughter: "A Stark hovercar! A classic 1950 model!! How about this gift?!"

Steve was visibly stunned and speechless. Stark's assessment of him was far too accurate. In Steve's mind, true luxury cars weren't the sleek sports cars of today, but rather the kind of luxurious classic cars that wealthy people drove when he was young. As a little boy, he dreamed of owning such a cool car. What's more, this thing could fly!

Steve gently touched the hood of the car. It was a little hot from the sunlight, but the smooth, glossy paint still told his sense of touch how well the car was made.

Stark pressed a button on the remote control, and the car instantly levitated, about half a meter off the ground, but remained perfectly stable. Everyone else who had followed him out gasped in surprise.

"My God!" Nick ripped off his sunglasses, unable to hold back, and swore in front of Steve. Logan, the Wolverine who had followed behind, stared wide-eyed. Clearly, none of these old guys disliked this luxurious classic car.

The only one who remained relatively reserved was Charles. He nodded and said to the mutant beside him, "I used to have a car like this at my estate in England. I think it was a Jaguar. But it was a legacy from the Xavier family, and it couldn't fly..."

Steve opened the car door and got in. Peter raised his hand and said, "Captain, I'll teach you how to operate it. I..."

Before he could finish speaking, a group of people with gleaming green eyes pushed him aside. The car was instantly full. Stark, still in his suit and gear, flew up with the car and said, "Alright, let me teach you old fogies how to drive..."

The others discussed the flying car enthusiastically before returning to the building. Schiller was among them, and when he went inside, he found that the entire Avengers headquarters had been transformed.

The walls of the room were completely transformed into a Stars and Stripes color scheme, entirely covered in red and blue stripes and decorated with party stars. Stars hung everywhere you could. The very top of the walls was covered in small triangular Stars and Stripes pennants. Various Captain America posters adorned the walls.

“Are you sure Steve likes this?” Schiller couldn’t help but ask. “I know he’s patriotic, but this is Steve’s birthday, not America’s birthday… Oh, wait a minute, today is indeed America’s birthday.”

“He wanted to arrange it this way himself,” Carter said. “He might be more patriotic than you think.”

The group of old guys who had gone out to drive the cars returned quickly. Steve was visibly excited, his face flushed. The others were also loudly discussing the car's brand. Stark walked in last, strolling in slowly, then leaned against the back door frame, arms crossed, head held high. His smugness needed no further explanation.

Steve went back and patted him hard on the shoulder, saying, "No matter what gifts anyone gives me in the future, I will never take back my opinion. This is the best gift I've ever received!"

Schiller could tell that Stark, though outwardly reserved, was probably ecstatic inside. If his nickname was "Iron Can," then this was like dropping a huge bomb into a can. To prevent it from exploding, Schiller quickly said, "It's about time, let's put the food out."

Cardi nodded and said, "Come on, whoever has more dishes, I can help you get them."

"Hey, wait a minute!" Wanda, who was eating potato chips, quickly threw the snacks aside and rushed out, saying, "We need to film a food demonstration video! It's where everyone holds up a dish to the camera and says what they brought. The fans asked us to film this two weeks ago, and we can't go back on our word! Eddie... Eddie! Did you bring the camera I told you to bring?"

"They're here!" Eddie carried the equipment in through the front door, placed the tripod in the corner of the room, and then told everyone to disperse. They each went to get their own dishes and lined up to go and display them.

This video is very simple, and there's nothing that needs editing; it's a single, continuous shot. You can upload it directly after filming.

It's rare to see so many superheroes gathered together these days, so the video quickly went viral. However, many people were tagging a somewhat unfamiliar name in the comments.

Schiller clicked on the person's profile and found that she was an internet celebrity known as the "Food Judge," a Black woman from Jamaica. Her fans were tagging her, wanting her to be the food judge for the superheroes.

The other party seemed to be recording a video. Not long after, the account posted a new video. The camera was pointed at her face.

“Many people asked me to do this, so here I am. I hope you don’t mind, superheroes. I’m a fair person, and I won’t make exceptions for you just because of your past contributions.”

"Hello everyone. We are Wanda and Jarvis. This is the Provençal stew we brought..." Wanda and Jarvis showed it to the camera. The brightly colored vegetables were neatly and evenly arranged on the plate, looking very appetizing.

"25 years in prison, no parole! That stuff doesn't taste like anything. Next!" said the food judge.

"Uh, hello everyone. I'm Peter Parker. I brought my aunt's best raspberry pie." Peter held up a large plate of raspberry pie to the camera. The pie had an enticing golden color. He even cut the pie in front of the camera, making an extremely crisp sound as the knife cut into it, and then the bright pink jam flowed out.

"Fifty years in prison without parole—to your lawyer, the prosecutor who brought the case, and the Uber driver who took you to court. And you, boy, you'll get the keys to the city! Next!"

"Hi everyone, this is Carter. I made Steve his favorite beef pie. But I don't usually cook, so this was done with Steve's help." Carter showed her masterpiece to the camera. A beef pie sat on a baking sheet, fried to a golden brown, with juices still flowing inside.

"Out of respect for your love, the court finds you not guilty and drops all charges against you. However, you could have done more. I'll be watching you." The culinary judge pointed to his eyes and then to the screen.

“Hi, it’s Eddie. I have to explain, I was actually making a lava chocolate cake, but this guy…” Eddie pointed to the bean sprout-like venom on his shoulder, then said, “He ate all the cakes last night. So I had to make some butter toast this morning…”

Eddie shows the toast he's placed on a plate to the camera. It looks pretty good, but it's actually quite small, about the size of a toaster.

"Death row!!!" roared the Gourmet Judge. "To your little pet! You! And your lawyer! Next!"

"Good morning! I'm an anonymous S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and a huge fan of Captain America. This is a birthday cake I made for him. The decorations are fondant, and I spent all night working on it. I whipped the buttercream myself, and I baked the cake myself..."

"Serve the pear blossoms! — To the prosecutor who brought the charges against you, and the witnesses he brought, and to the court that all the charges against you were dismissed. You can go now, sir. Next!"

“Okay, I’m a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent too, and my partner is a scientist. This is the Olivier salad I brought. And this is the big rye bread my partner and I made together. This is a modified version, not as hard…”

Ivan shows the dishes to the camera, while Natasha provides voice-over commentary.

"Ten years in prison, no parole! All the Russian bread I've ever eaten has been as hard as the boulder Sisyphus pushed! The salad salvaged your image a bit, otherwise you'd be on death row too. Next!"

“Hello everyone. I’m Charles Xavier, and this is my partner…” Charles tried to pull the person next to him, but couldn’t budge him. He had to carry the plate and show the plate himself. “This is our German roasted pork knuckle. It’s a specialty from his hometown. Although it’s meat, it’s not greasy at all…”

“I completely believe you, Blue Eyes. The court has ruled all charges against you invalid. But the police officer who arrested you and the prosecutor who brought the charges against you will be hanged. Next!”

"Uh, hello everyone. I'm Polaris. This is tiramisu that my boyfriend, Iceman, and I made. Please believe me, it's incredibly fresh. We made it this morning, and he blew on it, and it became chilled..."

Polaris seemed a little uneasy. She clearly felt that the tiramisu was rather ordinary compared to the more distinctive dishes served to everyone else. However, her tiramisu looked beautiful; it was on the same large plate as Peter's, and the cake was covered with a thick layer of coffee powder. When you cut into it, the layers were clearly defined, and you could even see ladyfingers underneath – clearly an authentic Italian preparation.

"25 years of solitary confinement—for the policeman who brought you here and his police dog. And you, you can go, ma'am. The court has ruled all charges against you invalid. Next!"

“I’m Hawkeye. This is the Iowa-style cured bacon I brought. I know most people eat smoked bacon, but you have to try this home-style version from my hometown. It will completely change your perception of bacon. It’s not dry at all, but incredibly tender…” Hawkeye showed his creation to the camera. There were about three or four strips of bacon on the plate, with perfect color and fat-to-lean ratio.

"The court has acquitted you for now, but that seems a bit underwhelming. You could have done much more, and I'll be watching you closely..." the culinary judge said, narrowing his eyes.

"Hello everyone. I'm Dr. Schiller. These are Peking duck and Cantonese roast goose that I brought. I certainly put a lot of effort into making them, but it was all worth it. I have to tell you just how crispy the skin is..."

"God! Who brought him here? Who?! This police officer will be stoned! And you, doctor, we'll plant 100 trees in your name. We'll also erect two statues of you in the city, one holding a duck, and the other holding a goose. Next!"