IRON MAN: BROTHER DON'T CAUSE TROUBLE

After discovering a way to obtain new runes, both Tony and John dedicated the next week to inventing new ones.

Within that week, John successfully replicated 15 ability runes, each tied to a different element. This remarkable achievement was possible because only John could perceive the runes using his Eye of Truth. If Tony could also see the runes and the abilities John discovered, they might have uncovered even more.

After collecting as many ability runes as possible, John left Tony and began to closely examine this new type of rune. Two days later, he concluded that these runes were merely sub-branches of their respective elements, not the elements themselves. By inscribing an ability rune, one could directly master the corresponding ability. For instance, inscribing a Fireball ability rune would immediately grant mastery over the Fireball spell.

However, for John, these ability runes held little value. He already possessed multiple elemental manipulation runes, making these new runes redundant for him.

"If I were to establish a wizard academy, these runes would be invaluable. To collect more ability runes, founding a wizard organization might be essential," John mused. Depending solely on Tony to gather more runes wasn't feasible.

"One step at a time," John muttered, casting aside distracting thoughts. He began meditating, focusing entirely on his primary goal: reaching the fifth stage or the peak of the fourth stage of a Star Wizard.

Without any disturbances, two months passed. As predicted, John's mental power surged to 20 points, and his bones had significantly strengthened. Now, one crucial task remained: inscribing the runes. John had already decided on the runes he would inscribe.

He had three runes from Thor's hammer and three more he discovered a month ago—two during a flight while observing dark clouds and one upon landing.

Reflecting on his recent trip with Tony, John considered the journey boring but ultimately rewarding due to the acquisition of these runes.

In total, John possessed six unused runes ready for inscription, a necessary step to complete the third stage.

Over the course of a month, John meticulously inscribed these runes into his spiritual sea, discovering their meanings along the way.

The three runes from Thor's hammer turned out to be a Thunder rune, a Flight rune, and a Seal rune. The Thunder rune allowed elemental manipulation, the Flight rune granted the ability to fly, and the Seal rune could suppress or seal someone's power, much like Thor's own power was sealed.

The new runes from the dark clouds were a Heat rune and a Cold rune—simple but versatile. The final rune, found upon landing, was an Earth rune, another elemental manipulation rune.

With all six runes inscribed, John resumed meditation. Without any obstacles, he broke through to the fourth stage of a Star Wizard, increasing his mental power to 21 points.

Opening his eyes, John assessed his condition. "Hmm... Physical strength has increased, and particle energy within my body has grown. No significant changes, but that's fine," he murmured to himself.

"Now, let's test these new runes."

Seeking solitude, John headed to the cliff behind the mansion, his usual practice ground. The serene environment and isolation made it the perfect place for his experiments.

John took a deep breath, stretching out his hand. With a thought, a spark of electricity flickered to life on his palm. He watched the spark intently before absorbing the thunder into his body.

Continuing to generate and absorb the thunder energy, John reached his limit after a while. Without hesitation, he stretched out both palms, channeling all the stored thunder energy between them. In an instant, a vibrant, purple thunderbolt began to form, crackling with power.

With a mental command, John unleashed the thunderbolt towards the ocean. It shot forth like a divine punishment, striking the sea with immense force. The resulting explosion echoed like a thunderclap.

"Ca-boom!"

The sound reverberated through the air, leaving John in awe of his newfound power. His thoughts raced, "Just manipulating the thunder element wouldn't generate this much power, but once I combined the electricity rune with the thunder manipulation rune, the results were astounding."

As John was lost in thought, Tony came flying in his Iron Man armor, landing beside him. He stared at the spectacle John had created.

Due to the explosion, a dense fog covered the area 200 meters in front of them. After a few seconds, as the fog began to dissipate, Tony snapped out of his shock and asked, "How the hell did you do this? Did you break through again?"

John, still gazing at the aftermath of his power, responded, "Well... I kind of did. And I think you can do the same once you reach the fourth stage."

"The fourth stage, huh? I only just reached the third stage not long ago. Isn't it supposed to take longer as we progress? So how did you progressed so fast." Tony questioned.

"Remember the rune we got when you discovered the new element for your reactor? I later found out that it wasn't just an inscription rune, but a meditation rune. That's why my progress has been so fast."

Hearing this, Tony came to a realization. "So that's how it is. Well, I'm going to look into it now." With that, Tony flew away.

Watching him fly, John remembered that he could now fly too, using the flight rune. He started experimenting with it.

While John and Tony were busy with their advancements, Nick Fury was feeling tense. Just a while ago, he had received news that the Tesseract was behaving unusually. He was currently on his way to investigate the matter.

Fury believed that harnessing the power of the Tesseract would give them the means to protect themselves against any threat. Therefore, nothing could be allowed to go wrong with the Tesseract.

(Sorry, guys, for the late update. I was busy with some work, and it will take at least a month to finish. So, please don't expect regular updates this month.)