Ch: 380-387
Chapter 380: gamma rays and CPH4
Of course.
This was definitely not the reason Locke resisted Lorraine.
The main reason was that Lorraine was already dead—gone and buried—and furthermore, whenever anything involving Lorraine's lingering spirit occurred, a mission would pop up. However, compared to other missions, these were not only troublesome but also very time-consuming!
To put it simply.
The effort and reward of the mission were not quite proportional.
Even capitalists know not to do things with low profit margins. While players sometimes do things without a mission, that is entirely based on their mood and the ease of the task.
A mission like Lorraine's could be called a mission chain in a game.
What normal player would be idle enough to take on such a mission?
So... Locke gave Betty Ross a polite smile, expressing his stance regarding Lorraine, and then said nothing more.
Betty Ross's tone faltered slightly, but then she smiled and nodded: "Alright."
Locke thanked her.
In the office.
"Here."
"Thank you."
Gwen stood up to take the water cup handed over by Dr. Bruce Banner and said thank you, then looked at the seated Bruce Banner: "Dr. Banner, are you the one in charge of Jessica's treatment?"
"No."
Bruce Banner shook his head: "I am the person in charge of matters related to the super-soldier serum."
To be precise.
It was around this time last year that he accepted General Thaddeus Ross's request to join the Military, primarily responsible for replicating the super-soldier serum and related work.
For example, a series of projects using the power of technology to enhance soldiers.
"However..."
Bruce Banner put down the water cup in his hand, stood up, grabbed a file from his desk, then walked over and handed it to Gwen, saying: "Because Ms. Campbell has no life-threatening danger despite ninety-six percent of her body being exposed to the g-element, this is a point of great curiosity for us that needs to be researched."
Gwen looked at Bruce Banner, who was solemnly saying she needed to be researched, and opened her mouth slightly.
Locke flipped through the documents Gwen handed over beside him, listening to Bruce Banner's words without any expression.
He's a scientist, after all.
It's normal, especially for a scientist who isn't good with words and doesn't understand social etiquette; not knowing how to speak tactfully is a very common thing.
In the end, Gwen didn't say anything. Instead, she concentrated her attention on the thick series of examination reports in her hands.
Then... Gwen blinked and noticed one of the names.
"The patient's blood has undergone ultra-fine analysis, confirming the presence of CPH4."
Gwen was slightly stunned and looked up at Bruce Banner: "Doctor, Jessica's blood also contains CPH4, though in a very trace amount."
This reminded Gwen of Irene, who went hunting and then came back with CPH4 detected in her body. Speaking of which, CPH4 components seemed to have been detected in Irene's body as well.
Locke also noticed Jessica's blood analysis report.
However... this was normal.
In the potions produced by the system, CPH4 was present in most of them. However, the highest concentration was in the Purification Potion given to Irene back then. As for the components in the life potion, it was just as Gwen had said.
It was there, but very little!
After all, they were two different things. The main component of the Purification Potion was CPH4, while in the life potion, CPH4 was at most used as an additive.
Bruce Banner nodded, then paused slightly and looked at Gwen: "Also contains? Did Dr. Connorsdiscover CPH4 somewhere else as well?"
He was very curious.
Because CPH4 is almost impossible to manufacture artificially. In nature, the only ones who produce CPH4 are pregnant women; furthermore, it is only generated in the sixth week, and the amount is extremely small, making it impossible to extract.
Bruce Banner was very clear about Dr. Connors' research. Seeing as CPH4 provides the necessary energy for the formation of the fetal skeleton, it seemed logical for Dr. Connors to research CPH4.
Gwen shook her head, then thought for a moment and said: "Dr. Banner, do you remember a paper regarding the research of CPH4 published last year, around October?"
Bruce Banner nodded: "Of course."
Gwen said: "I happened to participate a little in that experiment, though only as an observer."
Bruce Banner's eyes lit up, and he quickly asked Gwen about the results of that experiment.
Last October, there was a paper that described the constituent factors and sequence of CPH4 in detail.
Bruce Banner frowned and said: "I heard that this was discovered in the blood of an adult, containing several times the CPH4 of an infant. Was it formed after undergoing some kind of experiment?"
Gwen shook her head: "I'm not very clear on that. However, I see what you've written here; you seem to believe that the CPH4 found in Jessica's blood appears to be helping Jessica devour the g-element?"
"It's not devouring."
"Hmm?"
"It should be fusion."
"Huh?"
Bruce Banner stood up and motioned for Gwen to stand up as well. After a short while, he led Gweninto another laboratory.
"Jack!"
As Bruce Banner handed two white coats to Gwen and Locke, he glanced at the nearly empty G-Serumin the freezer in front of him and instructed a man with glasses nearby: "The G-Serum is running low; you can apply for the next batch."
The man called Jack nodded and walked outside.
A short while later.
In front of a microscope.
Fully geared up, as if he wished he could wear another layer of skin, Bruce Banner carefully dripped a drop of Jessica's blood containing CPH4 onto the G-Serum under the microscope inside the sealed box. Then, watching everything happening at that moment, he stepped aside and gestured for Gwen to look.
Locke stood by the side, watching with his naked eyes.
But... with a slight adjustment of focus, his vision was more effective than a microscope.
In his sight.
When the blood containing CPH4 was dripped into the G-Serum, at first, the CPH4 and g-elementminded their own business. Then, as the aggressive g-element seemed to discover the CPH4, it immediately began to boil. It bared its fangs and claws, called its friends, and directly summoned a group of g-elements shouting 'Banzai' or some other nonsense to charge at the drowsy, very Zen-like CPH4 that looked like it hadn't woken up yet.
Then... the g-element was utterly thrashed.
Just as the g-element was roaring 'death to the intruder' and its blade was about to strike the CPH4, the drowsy CPH4 lazily opened its eyes. Then, the g-elements at the very front were instantly turned to ash.
This could no longer be called a crushing defeat; it was a total Carnage!
"This!"
Gwen saw this scene and recalled the S.H.I.E.L.D. scientists' research on Irene's blood. She blinked and looked at Bruce Banner: "Is this why Jessica remained intact despite the G-Serum leak?"
When others encountered a G-Serum leak, even if it was just an arm, it would rapidly die upon exposure.
No one was spared.
The only exception was Jessica, and it seemed that, for some reason, the CPH4 in Jessica's blood helped her, preventing her from being taken out by the g-element in one go.
However.
Gwen took another look at the CPH4, which had returned to its lazy state after repelling the first wave of attacking g-elements, and blinked: "So lazy."
Bruce Banner nodded and gave a short laugh: "Yes, the CPH4 seems to have no interest in eliminating the g-element. We suspect this might be why Ms. Jessica Campbell is still unconscious."
There was CPH4 in Jessica's blood.
But there was also a significant dose of g-element.
In the current situation, it seemed that CPH4 thrashing the g-element was as easy as beating a child, with no pressure at all. However, CPH4 seemed to be a refined gentleman; although it could thrash the g-element, as long as the g-element didn't actively pick a fight, it seemed too lazy to go looking for trouble with the g-element.
But that wasn't the most troublesome part.
It seemed that after the g-element was thrashed by the CPH4 just now, the other g-elements that were originally restless and preparing to join their brothers' hunting activity seemed to realize they couldn't beat the CPH4. When they saw the CPH4, they would turn around from afar or choose to take a detour.
Therefore, Bruce Banner said: "I've discussed this with several other researchers. Perhaps we can try to make this lazy CPH4 become active."
Gwen turned around: "You mean, stimulate the CPH4?"
Bruce Banner nodded: "Yes, but CPH4 is non-renewable. Furthermore, why Jessica Campbell has CPH4in her blood is also a mystery. We can confirm she is not pregnant, so we are worried that if the method of stimulation is incorrect, leading to the disappearance of the CPH4, it will cause trouble."
For instance, once the CPH4 is gone, the thrashed g-elements would find they can be reckless again, and then Jessica Campbell would likely be destroyed by the g-element at light speed, leading to a 'GG'.
Gwen gave an 'un-huh'.
The next second.
Gwen looked up: "If we're talking about stimulating CPH4, actually, in that experiment last year, a doctor seemed to have discovered a feasible method."
Bruce Banner looked at Gwen.
"What method?"
"I'm not entirely sure either."
Gwen shook her head and then said: "At that time, the doctor said he accidentally used a gamma ray generator, and it seemed to have stimulated the CPH4."
Bruce Banner: "..."
381. Jessica in Danger
Bruce Banner jolted!
Gamma rays?
Speaking of which, Bruce Banner was no longer sleepy. After all, Bruce Banner could be said to have been linked to gamma rays even before he was born.
Before Bruce Banner was born, his father, Brian Banner, also an excellent scientist, had already been studying gamma rays.
He even successfully discovered the third form of gamma rays.
The day after his discovery, his wife told Brian Banner she was pregnant.
This was a double blessing.
But... gamma rays, at the time, scientifically speaking, only had two forms: particle flow and electromagnetic waves. Because of this, after Brian Banner announced the discovery of the third form of gamma rays, he was met with skepticism from the entire scientific community. The most important point was that Brian Banner never captured the third form again after that.
Because of this, Brian Banner was gradually alienated by the scientific community.
After all, science doesn't care about faking, but if you fake something and get caught, especially something so outrageous, you're insulting everyone's intelligence.
Therefore!
Bruce Banner's main business was also gamma rays, with the goal of helping to vindicate his father, proving that his father was not a liar, and that gamma rays indeed had a third form.
A mysterious form!
Unfortunately, so far, even though Bruce Banner earned six other doctorates to find this third form, he has not discovered it.
However, Bruce Banner could say that if he claimed second place in gamma ray research, no one would dare claim first.
Right now?
When Bruce Banner heard Gwen suddenly mention that gamma rays could activate the very 'Zen' CPH4, his eyes immediately lit up. He confirmed with Gwen, "Are you sure?"
Gwen nodded, "Yes, but I only heard it mentioned. I don't know if it's actually true."
Because at that time, they had already gone out to sea to fish.
As for later... Irene had returned to Chicago, so Gwen didn't know what happened afterward.
Gwen looked at the eager Bruce Banner, "Dr. Banner, you shouldn't have..."
Before she could finish her sentence.
Bruce Banner excitedly ran outside. After he left the room, he realized Gwen and Locke were still in the lab, yelled "Wait!" and then vanished with a whoosh.
Locke and Gwen exchanged glances.
After a while.
Locke asked curiously, "Gamma rays can stimulate CPH4? Why haven't you mentioned it before?"
Gwen shrugged, "I only remembered it when I saw CPH4 just now. After all, CPH4 cannot be artificially produced. How would I know that Jessica would also have it in her body?"
As she spoke.
Gwen was a little curious, looking down at the blood test report she had just received, "How could Jessica have CPH4 in her body? Like Irene, could it be..."
Locke raised an eyebrow, "What?"
Gwen looked up at Locke, "I remember Irene said she encountered a vampire. Do you think Jessica might have also encountered that vampire?"
Locke's mouth twitched, "Jessica was dragged into the hospital in broad daylight, wasn't she?"
Gwen nodded, "Good point."
Locke chuckled, looking at Gwen who was deep in thought, and quickly pulled the conversation back, "Can gamma rays really stimulate CPH4?"
Gwen snapped back, humming, "That's what was said at the time, but I didn't ask if it was true."
Locke smiled, "Then why did you tell Dr. Bruce Banner about this?"
Gwen was very serious, "Scientific research is a process of continuous trial and error."
Locke shrugged, "So, the ones who can destroy the Earth will always be scientists!"
This statement is equivalent to a get-out-of-jail-free card for scientists.
Experiments went wrong.
Scientific failure is inevitable. Are you criticizing me, trying to hinder our scientific progress?
So... compared to science, Locke preferred the supernatural. At least, the supernatural was individual, unlike science, where after success, it's uncertain whether it would benefit ordinary people. One misstep, and ordinary people might even have to pay for so-called scientific experimental failures.
Doctorates could be obtained.
But expecting Locke to turn his car around and race towards science was out of the question.
Just then.
The laboratory's sliding door opened, and then a small but certainly expensive piece of equipment was pushed in by Bruce Banner.
Gwen stared at the equipment, stunned.
Then... Gwen blinked, really wanting to ask Bruce Banner if they needed interns here. Good heavens, the military was indeed rich and powerful. Could such a piece of equipment, costing tens of millions, be pushed around so casually?
Uh... if it were anyone else pushing this equipment, they would probably be shot by soldiers directly.
But the person pushing this thing was Bruce Banner, Bruce Banner with eight doctorates.
Soon.
In the laboratory, there was a flurry of activity.
After a while.
Bruce Banner finished adjusting the equipment, then, along with the others, walked out of the room. After closing the door and confirming it was sealed, he pressed the switch in his hand.
Instantly.
The equipment that Bruce Banner had just moved in began to operate. With the power coming online, followed by a buzzing sound of the system rotating, a gamma ray immediately shot out with a whoosh.
The next second.
The equipment shut down!
A few minutes later.
"My goodness!"
Bruce Banner looked up at Gwen next to him, "I can't believe it, it actually worked."
Gwen took Bruce Banner's place and looked into the microscope.
What she saw!
Originally, the 'Zen' CPH4 had now transformed into a fighting force, launching an all-out attack, almost covering the entire screen. The previously existing G-elements were not only gone, but not even a single trace of them could be found.
"It really worked."
"Mm."
Bruce Banner nodded, carefully took out the blood from the sealed box, then turned around, put it into a specialized blood testing machine, and pressed the start button.
Gwen, looking excited, said to Locke, "Jessica can wake up."
Locke didn't speak.
He was curious... what if Jessica woke up and still didn't transform into Jewel?
Then what about his mission?
By the way... how was Jessica's awakening described in the original plot?
Locke opened his memory database, then searched for nothing, finding only one sentence: Jessica mutated after coming into contact with chemical raw materials from a military truck.
It really made no sense at all.
Locke felt a bit speechless. It didn't even follow basic logic. The feeling of the plot destroying its own setting and then having him come in to fill in the gaps suddenly appeared in Locke's mind.
However, just as they were waiting for the blood test results, the laboratory door was suddenly pushed open in a hurry.
"Supervisor!"
A bespectacled military scientist said to Bruce Banner, "The patient is fading fast."
Bruce Banner immediately turned around, "What?"
The joy on Gwen's face instantly collapsed, and she too looked disbelieving.
Three minutes later.
Locke and Gwen rushed back to the laboratory they had just left. Bruce Banner walked straight in, while Locke and Gwen were stopped outside.
"What's going on?"
Gwen looked at Sam, who had been watching there, and was slightly stunned to see Jessica seemingly lying well on the bed, even looking better than before after the bandages were removed, "What happened to Jessica?"
Jessica seemed no different from before.
But... the few people surrounding the operating table looked terribly nervous.
Sam was also confused, shaking his head, "I don't know."
He also didn't know what had happened.
Just now, when Jessica's bandages were removed, Sam had breathed a sigh of relief, as he was worried about damage to Jessica's skin, but that didn't seem to have happened.
Jessica's skin was very white, even visibly smooth.
However.
Just after the medical staff changed Jessica's clothes, the situation changed. Several medical staff seemed terribly nervous, and then this scene unfolded before them.
So!
What exactly happened?
Just then.
Mrs. Jones, who was leaning against the glass, seemingly trying to get a clear look at Jessica, let out a gasp, covering her mouth, "Oh my God!"
Sam and Gwen snapped back to attention.
"What's wrong?"
"Jessica..."
"..."
Gwen and Sam walked closer, looking inside, and when they saw Jessica, whose clothes had been removed again, they couldn't help but frown.
On the operating table, Jessica, whose clothes had been taken off again, had skin that had turned a strange purple color.
"This is..."
Gwen was slightly stunned, "G-elements?"
Were the G-elements rioting?
That's not right.
Jessica had CPH4 in her body. Although the content was far less than Irene's at the time, according to the CPH4 content in the blood sample from the lab, at the very least, CPH4 could stay in Jessica's body for about another week.
With CPH4 present, how could the G-elements possibly break through CPH4's defenses and start a riot?
"God!"
Bruce Banner, who was in the operating room, looked at the rapidly appearing results and exclaimed, "These damned G-elements have evolved!"
It seemed that after understanding the 'Zen' nature of CPH4, these G-elements had learned their lesson, evolved, and then chose to destroy areas where CPH4 was not present.
"Damn it."
Bruce Banner looked at the report in his hand, gritting his teeth, "Quick, take her to the Gamma Lab!"
The few people were instantly stunned...
382. Purple Man Thomson
Buzz buzz buzz!
In the Gamma Lab, all personnel had evacuated, leaving only Jessica Campbell lying on the operating table. As the advanced gamma device in the room operated, no unusual light was emitted.
After all… gamma rays have no color. At the very least, gamma rays have a higher frequency than ultraviolet and X-rays, so they cannot be observed with the naked eye.
However…
It should be blue.
Locke, standing outside with everyone else, watched the blue light flickering intermittently in the lab, his gaze subtly shifting.
Gwen beside him looked tense.
Sam was the same.
As for Mrs. Jones, if Mr. Jones hadn't been supporting her, she probably would have fainted.
Dr. Bruce Banner and Dr. Betty Ross, on the other hand, observed the lab with a scientific investigative gaze, Dr. Bruce Banner's eyes particularly fervent.
It seemed he wanted to know if gamma rays could transform the Buddhist-like CPH4 into a fighting chicken, making them eliminate the G-element that boiled over at the slightest provocation, as if they were injected with adrenaline.
Jessica on the operating table presented a strange purple hue.
Just now… when she was pushed from the other lab to the operating table in the Gamma Lab, the purple on her body had gradually changed from a light lavender to the deep purple it was now.
This was a sign of the G-element's destruction. If it continued at this rate, the purple on Jessica's body would become even more intense until it burst.
Fortunately…
After the gamma device started operating, it seemed this situation did not occur.
The purple on Jessica's body was halted.
"Phew!"
Gwen glanced at her watch, which showed five minutes had passed. Seeing the purple that was now visibly receding, though still requiring careful observation, she couldn't help but let out a sigh of relief and looked at Bruce Banner: "It worked?"
Bruce Banner nodded: "Yes, it worked."
"Really?"
"Jessica is okay?"
Sam and Mrs. Jones heard the conversation and immediately turned to Gwen. After all, compared to the less approachable Bruce Banner, Gwen was more familiar to them.
Gwen hummed in affirmation, looking at Jessica, who was still very purple inside but definitely fading. She nodded: "It looks like the gamma device did activate the CPH4 in Jessica's body. The G-element has no resistance against CPH4."
She didn't dare to say too much.
After all, this was just the result of a blood test. However, the reactions that would occur after irradiating CPH4 with gamma rays, activating it, and then having it eliminate the G-element, were not yet known.
From a rigorous scientific standpoint, it shouldn't have been done this way before the blood test results were out.
But… Jessica's condition was critical. If they didn't find a solution, she would die.
Gwen thought to herself and looked at Bruce Banner: "Dr. Banner, the blood test results should be out by now."
Bruce Banner nodded, gave a few instructions to Betty Ross beside him, and then turned and walked towards the lab where the blood tests had been conducted.
Gwen also said something to Sam, and then she and Locke went over.
Sam also wanted to go.
But his knowledge was limited. Although he recognized all the letters and names on the various test reports, he didn't understand them when they were put together.
Thinking this, Sam felt that perhaps Bruce Banner looking at him like a chicken was actually quite reasonable.
In the lab.
"Huh?"
After Bruce Banner, Gwen, and Locke re-entered, they saw the open blood testing machine and paused slightly. Bruce Banner asked a lab assistant, "Where's that blood sample?"
The lab assistant looked up, stood up, and retrieved the recent blood test results and DNA test results. He handed them to Bruce Banner and said, "A blood sample from Building Three just came in for testing, so I took out the sample that was in here. Dr. Kevin Thomson was going to the storage room anyway, so he took it with him."
Bruce Banner didn't hear the lab assistant's full explanation. After taking the blood test results and DNA test results, his entire attention and focus were on the blood test results in his hand.
"God!"
"Oh my gosh!"
Gwen, holding the DNA test results in her hand, also couldn't help but exclaim as she looked at the data.
Locke, however, was looking at the lab assistant.
Bruce Banner and Gwen were oblivious to the lab assistant's words, caring only about the test results. But Locke was not that kind of person.
He had clearly heard what the lab assistant said.
Kevin Thomson?
Why did that name sound so familiar?
Locke raised an eyebrow.
His Memory Palace opened. As Kevin Thomson's name was entered, the program managing his Memory Palace quickly began to search for any traces of that name.
The next second!
A piece of information was retrieved by the Memory Palace program!
Kevin Thomson.
Codename, 009!
MI6 agent.
"Hmph!"
Locke raised an eyebrow, finally remembering when he had seen the name Kevin Thomson: "A big fish?"
He had directly stormed the MI6 headquarters by the River Thames and had even spent some time in their archives.
And Kevin Thomson was someone he had inadvertently seen when he was extracting the list of MI6 agents, intending to sell it for a good price. But later, MI6 compensated him with a full one hundred million, so Locke had no intention of selling the list.
Not for now, anyway.
Locke came back to his senses and looked at the lab assistant: "Excuse me, the Dr. Kevin Thomson you just mentioned, does he look refined, with a full beard, and his hair slicked back?"
The lab assistant nodded: "Yes, Dr. Kevin Thomson is a PhD from Oxford University. Do you know Dr. Thomson?"
Locke smiled slightly: "Sort of."
He really is a spy, then?
Well, well.
Locke couldn't help but remark inwardly. He had just joined the CIA and hadn't even started working yet, and a spy had foolishly jumped right into his sight.
Waiting for a rabbit to hit a tree stump?
Locke felt a bit like the protagonist of that idiom. Look, he hadn't done anything, and a spy, like that foolish rabbit, had crashed right in front of him.
Never mind, consider it returning a favor to Anonymous.
Locke thought to himself. Under normal circumstances, even if he saw a foreign spy, he wouldn't interfere. But right now, Anonymous had used a huge favor to get him into the CIA without an exam.
This favor had to be repaid.
Locke thought to himself.
Gwen and Bruce, on the other side, also snapped out of their respective test reports. They exchanged glances, then swapped their data, and subsequently fell into a state of shock again.
Seeing this, Locke walked out of the lab door, took out his phone from his pocket, and dialed Mandy's number—that is, the phone number of the CIA colleague who had just led him and Gwen in.
Earlier, Mandy had exchanged phone numbers with Locke when they parted ways.
Soon.
The call connected.
Mandy, who had just walked out of the operations lab, spoke, "Mr. Bourbon, is there anything I can help you with?"
Locke stood in the hallway, watching lab personnel occasionally pass by, and smiled slightly, "Ms. Mandy, that's what I should be saying to you. You should be asking me, 'How can I help you?'"
Mandy paused for a moment, then laughed, "Alright, Mr. Bourbon, how can you help me?"
"A spy!"
"…What?"
"An MI6 spy, right here in this base, just discovered."
"What?!"
Although Locke wasn't face-to-face with Mandy, just hearing her words, he could feel the shock and disbelief on her face at the other end of the phone.
He chuckled.
Locke turned to glance at Gwen and Bruce, who were discussing the test data report in the lab. Without any further suspense, he said to Mandy on the phone, "Kevin Thomson, an MI6 spy from London. Just saw him."
"Kevin?"
"You know him?"
"…Yes."
Mandy's voice rose slightly. Then, seeing a soldier walk past her, she smiled and nodded, walked to the side, and lowered her voice: "I did Kevin's background check."
Locke raised an eyebrow and shrugged: "Well, now's your chance to mend the fold after the sheep are lost. Don't worry, you help me, I help you. I won't report you to Langley."
Mandy rubbed her forehead: "No, how is this possible? Where's the proof?"
"Proof?"
"Mhm."
Locke picked up his phone, typed a few things, and then, "Check your phone."
Mandy paused slightly, opened her phone, and then, seeing the file that had been sent, she directly opened it. Immediately, a clear MI6 personnel file roster appeared before her.
In this document.
Kevin Thomson's name and photo were clearly visible, and even his internal MI6 codename was very clear.
"Holy shit!"
"You're welcome."
Locke heard Mandy's shocked exclamation, the corners of his mouth curving upwards as he chuckled, "Mandy, I don't know anything, okay? Don't ask me. I'm just here to see my friend, and by the way, make a friend."
Having said that.
Locke decisively hung up the phone
383. The Birth of Jewel
Yes.
Let's be friends.
Locke's greatest virtue: he'd rather prepare for a storm than patch the fold after the sheep are gone.
Once he earns his fifth doctorate and graduates, he'll take his business global. Then Ia's assignments will be his bread and butter. The more contacts he makes there now, the smoother those missions will run later.
Nothing else to say.
Mandy, who joined before him, already has informants everywhere—literally across the planet.
So… trading one spy for Mandy's friendship is a damn good deal.
What?
Catch the spy myself?
No need. A friend matters far more than nabbing some operative.
Back in the lab.
Bruce Banner was already telling a tech, 'Go to storage and bring me that blood sample. I want to rerun the test.'
The tech nodded, brushed past Locke, and headed out.
'God!'
Bruce exclaimed, turning to Gwen. 'These numbers are unbelievable.'
Gwen gave a soft hum, eyes on the door Locke had just exited. 'Locke, you won't believe this.'
'The DNA shifted?' Locke asked.
Gwen blinked.
'How did you—'
'g-element gives off radiation; so do gamma rays. DNA changing isn't exactly shocking.'
'…'
She looked at his matter-of-fact face, shook herself, and handed over the printout. 'See for yourself.'
Locke took the sheet with mild curiosity.
At a glance
it was Jessica's DNA report. Page after page of figures, every single one topped by a red upward arrow.
Jessica's genome had been upgraded across the board.
'Oh, right.'
Bruce snapped his fingers, called to Gwen, then dashed to a workstation. A flurry of keystrokes pulled up another file. 'Ms. Stacy, look at this one.'
Gwen stepped over, eyes widening at the screen. 'This… is from before Jessica's exposure?'
Bruce straightened, excitement blazing. 'No. This is Captain America's genetic profile.'
Gwen stared. 'Captain America's?'
'The only surviving copy,' Bruce said.
Cap had vanished, but his blood hadn't; after the transformation he'd spent a stretch as a lab rat.
Without that baseline, re-creating the super-soldier serum would have been nearly impossible.
But now—
Bruce's gaze burned into the monitor. 'For decades the Military tried to replicate the serum and failed. We finally know why.'
Gwen's lips parted. 'You mean Ph4?'
He nodded.
Locke arched an eyebrow.
Super-soldiers?
Hold on—I came to witness the birth of Jewel, not some upgraded grunt.
'God.'
Gwen laid the two reports side by side—Jessica's fresh one and the freshly printed Captain Americabaseline—and gasped. 'Every metric of Jessica's is higher than Cap's. How?'
'Likely the dose,' Bruce said.
'Hmm?'
'Even at his peak, Rogers received only about a hundred millilitres of g-element. Jessica Campbell was drenched in it.'
He sighed. 'Pity the Ph4 concept hadn't been proposed yet. By the time it was, we never connected the dots—and we can't retroactively measure how much Ph4 Rogers carried.'
For years every researcher chasing the serum blamed the g-element formula, certain Abraham Earl Jin had falsified the numbers.
So Banner and the rest kept picking apart Earl Jin's recipe, searching for the missing ingredient—until tonight.
"The super-soldier serum—what matters isn't the serum, it's the soldier."
"…What?"
Bruce Banner came back to himself and looked at Gwen. "That's what Dr. Abraham Erskine told the researchers beside him when he saw the pre-serum Steve Rogers—back when the man was the last person anyone would pick to become a super-soldier."
Everyone assumed the remark had no deeper meaning.
But now?
It seemed Erskine had already spelled out the serum's real secret: the soldier himself.
Soldier!
Or rather… only a soldier whose body carried Ph4 could undergo true metamorphosis under the combined action of g-element and gamma rays and emerge as a super-soldier.
g-element.
gamma rays.
Neither of those was essential to the super-soldier serum; Ph4 was the core. The g-element and gamma rays were merely catalysts and binders. What ultimately made Captain America was not the serum, but Steve Rogers.
"God…"
Bruce rubbed his face, staring at the two data sheets. "No wonder we've never managed to re-create the super-soldier serum. No wonder Erskine shouted that his treasure had finally appeared the moment he read Steve Rogers' lab report."
What does Ph4 actually do?
It appears only during pregnancy, supplying the energy a baby's bones need; it shouldn't exist in an adult.
And pre-Captain Steve Rogers?
His scores were abysmal—physically weaker than a child.
His bones were brittle.
That's why he'd been rejected again and again. In World War II they were desperate for bodies; say you wanted to fight and they'd hand you a rifle—yet even then they kept turning Rogers down.
Seen in that light…
Erskine's choice made perfect sense. He wasn't indulging a whim; in Rogers' original screening he'd spotted the unnoticed signature: Ph4 present.
That's why he called it…
Treasure!
Locke cocked an eyebrow at Banner's muttering.
"Treasure… girl?"
"Hmm?"
Gwen blinked at Locke's off-hand remark, then smiled. "Jewel—Jessica. It fits."
Locke stared at the bright smile she flashed him.
The next instant…
Ding!
Quest complete: "Birth of Jewel"
Reward: 20,000 achievement points, 20,000 potential points
Status updated!
Name: Locke Broughton – Sole Player
achievement points: 360,000
Potential points: 360,000
Current location: Dimension Zero
Domain: Land of Light Dimension Domain
"…"
Locke's mouth twitched.
He'd never expected it to happen like this.
So Jewel had been born—through him.
No mutation, not even any super-natural trigger.
Mutations and super-powers all need a source.
But Jessica hadn't mutated; she'd simply… ascended to a higher life-level.
Exactly like Captain America Steve Rogers.
Because his life-level rose, he became the man who could fight anyone to a standstill.
Goodfellas.
Locke shook his head, half amused. All this time he'd worried about how Jessica would become Jewel—and who would power her once she did.
Miraculous.
He couldn't help laughing.
Banner, listening to Locke and Gwen, nodded. "Yes—and Jewel is an even rarer treasure than Captain America."
How much Ph4 had Rogers carried?
How much g-element had he received?
Most important…
Yesterday's blood work showed values that left Rogers' old genome in the dust; the numbers spoke for themselves.
So…
calling Jessica "Jewel" was perfect.
And the biggest news: after decades of failed attempts, the super-soldier serum had finally been cracked again—
and it had been cracked by him and… Gwen.
This was going to be headline-making.
384. The Birth of the Purple Man
Dr. Bruce Banner's eyes burned with intensity.
Gwen's face was flushed.
Locke… when he returned to the Gamma Treatment Room, he was still pondering a question.
For instance, if he hadn't been there, would CPH4 have existed in Jessica's body, and would she have become Jewel?
Analyzing the original plot, this question doesn't seem to be a problem.
But…
After all, this wasn't a movie, but reality, so Locke felt that this question, like the chicken or the egg dilemma, was a philosophical one.
Inside the Gamma operating room, Jessica, undergoing gamma ray treatment to activate the CPH4 in her body to eliminate and devour the G-elements, still lay quietly, occasionally a strange purple light flickering into existence.
"Huh."
Gwen suddenly thought of a question and looked at Bruce Banner: "Dr. Banner, I've read the data, and it seems that Steve Rogers's genes showed signs of collapse during the Super Soldier Serum process, and the experiment was almost called off.
It was Steve Rogers who insisted on completing the experiment, right?"
Bruce Banner nodded: "That's right."
Gwen asked curiously: "But why didn't Jessica have that problem?"
She could become the second Captain America just by sleeping.
Pah!
No, that's not right, Jewel?
Bruce Banner looked at Gwen: "Perhaps this is also because the CPH4 content in Ms. Jessica Campbell's body far exceeds that of Steve Rogers?"
Gwen blinked.
Although they could no longer know the CPH4 content in Steve Rogers's body before he became Captain America, Steve Rogers's blood report was on file.
At the very least, from that data, although there were some abnormalities, if one didn't look closely, there wasn't much difference.
However, the CPH4 in Jessica's body could be completely detected, without even needing very precise instruments.
This, it seemed, was another major piece of evidence to corroborate that Jessica was indeed the true Jewel.
Sam, standing nearby, was utterly confused: "Wait, what Captain America? How did the topic get dragged into this?"
The Jones couple also looked bewildered.
Gwen snapped back to reality, looked at Sam, and was slightly startled: "Didn't I just say?"
Sam opened his mouth: "What do you think?"
Gwen chuckled: "Alright, Jessica is in excellent condition now, because…"
Before she could finish.
Beep!
Beep!
Beep!
A piercing red light instantly flashed through the room.
Everyone was stunned.
What's going on?
The next second.
The door was pushed open, and several soldiers rushed in from outside.
Several of the soldiers quickly walked towards Betty Ross.
Betty Ross frowned.
"What's happening?"
"Security breach."
A captain said to Betty Ross, "Minor issue!"
"Security breach?"
"Yes."
Betty Ross pressed on: "What kind of security breach?"
The captain glanced at Betty Ross, then his gaze swept over the other people present, hesitating to speak.
Betty Ross, whose father was a big shot in the military, said in a deep voice: "Speak!"
The captain said: "Intelligence from Langley confirms that Dr. Kevin Thomson is an MI6 spy!"
"What?!"
"Kevin?"
"Dr. Thomson from Building Three?"
Bruce Banner was also slightly stunned, seemingly remembering something, but then immediately forgot it.
Just then.
The walkie-talkie rang.
"Sir."
"Speak."
"Avin Hawkins's body was found in the blood sample management room."
"…"
Betty Ross gasped at these words and looked at Bruce Banner: "Oh my god, Avin."
Avin was the lab technician Bruce Banner had just sent to the blood sample management room to retrieve blood samples.
Bruce Banner suddenly froze.
A flash of inspiration.
"Damn it!"
Bruce Banner remembered something and looked at the captain: "Are Jessica's blood samples still there?"
The captain, seeing the expression on Bruce Banner's face, seemed to sense a major problem and quickly repeated Bruce Banner's question to the person on the other end of the walkie-talkie.
The answer seemed obvious.
And… not only were Jessica Campbell's blood samples missing, but also all the blood samples that had previously been contaminated with G-elements.
"Shit!"
"They must be after the Super Soldier Serum."
"Damn it."
This thoroughly confirmed that Kevin Thomson was a spy, and then, Betty Ross and Bruce Banner instantly became tense.
No doubt.
Kevin Thomson was after the Super Soldier Serum.
But… Kevin Thomson wasn't in Bruce Banner's experimental group, but in Building Three next door.
Although he could come over to visit, he had no chance of getting involved in the Super Soldier Serum research.
The only possible contact would be with the blood samples in the blood sample management room.
The captain, listening to the conversation between Bruce Banner and Betty Ross, also realized that this was a complete disaster: "Immediately seal off the building! No one is allowed in or out!"
"Understood!"
"Received!"
Outside.
Mandy got out of the pickup truck, looking at the soldiers who had already surrounded the building tightly, she rubbed her forehead, looking up at the not-so-tall, only twelve-story building, squinting her eyes: "Good thing we found out early."
She had just heard over the walkie-talkie what Kevin Thomson had taken.
It was a bit of a close call.
If Kevin Thomson had succeeded, and the Super Soldier Serum blood had leaked out, hehe, Mandy felt that she might be assigned to some potato-digging country.
There was no human rights there.
But for now, it was fine!
Kevin Thomson was still in this building, unless he could fly, he couldn't escape, and there was no helicopter on the roof of this building.
"Quick!"
"Faster!"
"Check everyone's IDs, be thorough."
"Go go go!"
On the tenth floor of the building, a soldier pushed open the bathroom door, weapon in hand, looking serious, and with a bang, he kicked open a stall—it was empty—then prepared to kick open the second stall.
"Bang!"
The stall door was kicked open directly from the inside, and then, with a thud, it directly hit the soldier's face, followed by a knee strike from Kevin Thomson, who was wearing a white lab coat and had a bushy beard.
"Boom!"
With a muffled thud, the soldier was directly knocked unconscious with a concussion, and then, with a thud, he elegantly fainted to the ground.
"Shit!"
Kevin Thomson bent down, disarmed the soldier, and with a click, checked the contents of the weapon's magazine, reloaded it, readjusted his backpack, looked up, his eyes flickering: "That fast, huh?"
He was a little confused.
He had clearly calculated that even if Avin's body was discovered, he would have already left the building, but what was the result?
Good heavens… it seemed that he had just followed Avin into the blood sample lab, and the alarm went off the very next second after he had dealt with Avin.
Did I get exposed?
But how was I exposed?
Kevin Thomson cautiously pushed open the bathroom door, looked around, then, adjusting his hat, quickly turned and entered the emergency stairwell.
The next second.
Kevin's gaze met a team of soldiers walking upstairs.
Instantly!
"He's on the tenth floor!"
"Bang bang bang!"
"Rat-a-tat-tat!"
"Ah, shit!"
In an instant, sparks flew in the tenth-floor emergency stairwell of the building, and then, in less than ten seconds, the sound of gunfire disappeared.
"Team D!"
"Team D!"
"Shit!"
A military officer standing next to Mandy, hearing no response from Team D, quickly said to the others: "He's on the tenth floor, damn it, he's on the tenth floor."
No doubt.
If Team D hadn't had an accident, they should have had one.
"Thud!"
The lead soldier who first arrived at the tenth-floor stairwell confirmed this: "Someone is seriously injured, repeat, someone is seriously injured."
"Damn it."
In fact, Kevin Thomson wasn't doing well either.
He hadn't chosen to go up to the eleventh floor or down to the ninth floor.
Still in a small room on the tenth floor, Kevin Thomson, clutching the wound on his abdomen, cursed angrily, then opened a small notebook from his backpack, inserted a USB drive, selected the file, and chose to transfer it directly.
No choice.
He hadn't done this before because he was worried about exposing himself during the transfer process.
Now?
It had already come to this.
Kevin Thomson winced, looking at the large gash on his stomach, still unable to understand how he had been exposed.
This was unscientific!
"Sir!"
"Speak!"
"Signal transmission detected on the tenth floor."
"Exact location!"
"On the tenth floor…"
Mandy hung up the phone and said to the officer next to her, who was using a walkie-talkie to command the soldiers inside to quickly find the damn spy: "He's still on the tenth floor, the location is…"
The officer turned to look at Mandy, and before Mandy could speak, he immediately grabbed the walkie-talkie: "Damn it, quick, everyone to the tenth floor, he's still on the tenth floor."
"Was the signal interception successful?"
"Done, sir."
"Signal transmission point?"
"South Africa."
"…"
Mandy chuckled at her people's words: "Alright, as long as it wasn't transmitted out."
She had thought he would transmit the data directly to London.
Unexpectedly… In the tenth-floor warehouse.
Kevin Thomson, drenched in cold sweat from excessive blood loss, felt the approaching footsteps, looked up, and with a bang, used his last bit of strength to smash the glass tube in his hand directly onto the floor.
Thud!
The warehouse door was kicked open.
What met their eyes.
Amidst the purple mist, accompanied by Kevin Thomson's screams…
Chapter 385: Another Day of Big Profits
"shit!"
"What happened?"
"That scream."
"Oh my god."
Amidst the chaos, countless personnel working in the building rushed out in an orderly fashion, then looked up at the tenth floor. Even from such a distance, the screams were clearly audible.
"Let's go."
"Ah."
Locke looked at Gwen, who had come back to her senses, and said, "A spy has been discovered. There's no point in staying here."
Gwen snapped back, "Then Jessica…"
"Let's come back tomorrow."
Locke said, then whispered, "You don't want the CIA to find me and ask me to work with them later, do you?"
Gwen shook her head.
She only supported Locke treating his CIA work as a hobby, just as her mother Helen supported Georgegoing fishing. But if George were to rely on fishing for a living, her mother Helen would scold George to death.
A man must have hobbies, but he must never become obsessed with them.
This is what her mother Helen told Gwen.
Gwen thought for a moment, then said to Sam next to her, "Sam, Locke and I are leaving first. If Jessicawakes up, remember to call us."
Sam nodded, still a bit stunned.
His mind was still a bit frozen, still wondering what Gwen meant when she said Jessica was about to become more Captain America than Captain America.
Gwen then said goodbye to Mr. and Mrs. Jones and walked with Locke towards the audi parked not far away.
But… they walked for nothing!
The Base was locked down, and no personnel were allowed to leave.
Three minutes ago, General Thaddeus Ross, the Military's big boss, personally gave the order, and the guards naturally carried it out. As for the cars that left three minutes earlier, they were gone. But now, no one could leave unless General Thaddeus Ross himself approved it.
"Where is General Ross?"
"The General is on his way from Quantico. With such a big incident, it will probably be tomorrow. Do you need a tent? It's cold outside."
"…"
In the evening.
Locke shook hands with Mandy, who had found him a Room, and looked at the clean suite, saying to Mandy, "Thank you, Ms. Mandy."
Fortunately, he knew someone here, otherwise, he would have to spend the night in a tent outside.
"You're welcome."
Mandy smiled, "We're friends, bourbon."
If it hadn't been for Locke, and that damned guy had succeeded, she would probably be reporting to the country that grows potatoes tomorrow.
Locke nodded, "Yes, but that guy screamed so terribly, he wasn't beaten to death, was he?"
"Beaten to death? His screams weren't because of us."
"Oh."
"When we rushed in, that guy smashed all the stolen blood samples and such. As a result, you know how dangerous g-element is…"
Mandy said, shrugging, "He's already been taken for emergency treatment, but he probably won't make it. I need to wait at the Base hospital, so I'm leaving now."
"…Okay."
Locke and Mandy smiled and nodded, then, after Mandy left, turned and entered the Room.
The next second.
Locke suddenly understood and let out an "Oh."
Alright.
This guy is probably going to turn into the Purple Man.
And… it's because of Jessica that he will become the Purple Man.
The reason?
Kevin Thomson smashed a total of thirty-two bottles of blood samples. Among them, thirty-one bottles contained g-element samples. However, one bottle of blood did not contain g-element; instead, it contained CPH4 that had completely devoured the g-element and was still active under gamma rays.
That is, the tube of blood drawn from Jessica by Dr. Bruce Banner and Gwen during their experiment.
"Hiss!"
Locke gasped, "If that's the case, then the relationship between the Purple Man and Jewel is a bit complicated. From a certain perspective, the Purple Man appeared because of Jewel. In other words, the Purple Man has Jewel's DNA, and their relationship is somewhat similar to mother and son. And in the original plot, the Purple Man turned Jewel into a hot weapon…"
Oh my god.
Locke's eyes widened slightly, and he simply dared not imagine any further.
The scene was too eye-scorching.
No.
Even having this thought was brain-scorching.
Locke shook his head.
Just then.
Gwen, who had just entered the Room and called Helen, came out, then shook the phone in her hand: "I told Mom, I'm not coming home tonight."
Locke said, "Helen didn't ask, did she?"
Gwen shook her head: "I just said I was with you, and Mom didn't ask anymore."
Locke smiled slightly.
He might have a bad impression in George's eyes, but his image in Helen's heart was excellent: handsome, rich, and devoted. Such a good son-in-law was truly hard to find.
So… George must be blind.
Locke thought to himself, preparing to Shower and sleep. He would go back first thing in the morning. Mandy had already said that after General Ross arrived tonight, he should go find Ross and get a pass.
Mandy definitely wouldn't be able to sleep tonight. The appearance of a spy at a domestic Military Basewas a serious security breach and required strict review.
Locke estimated that Nameless should also be on his way.
Therefore.
"Let's go to bed." He didn't want to be dragged off to work by Nameless at night, so he smiled and said to Gwen.
However… just as Locke and Gwen were about to Shower and go to bed, there was a knock on the Room door.
"Who is it?"
Locke and Gwen exchanged glances, then opened the Room door. Seeing Nameless, who was still wearing sunglasses late at night, standing at the door, Locke raised an eyebrow and said, "Frankly, why am I not surprised to see you?"
Nameless spread his hands, "The trouble you caused, bourbon."
Locke looked at Nameless curiously.
Nameless smiled, "Mandy is also my person. I've always demanded that we can choose what to say to The Bureau, but to our own people, we must be absolutely honest. Only honesty can build a good circle."
Locke rolled his eyes, "I'm not planning to join the CIA, not officially."
Nameless chuckled, then his gaze fell on Gwen Stacy, who was standing gracefully inside the house: "I know, so I'm not here for you, but for Ms. Gwen Stacy."
Gwen blinked, pointing to herself: "Me?"
Nameless nodded: "Yes, to meet the great contributor."
"Huh?"
Gwen looked bewildered.
Locke, however, raised an eyebrow.
Half an hour later.
Locke watched Mr. Nameless shake hands with General Thaddeus Ross with a smile, then introduced Locke to Thaddeus Ross: "bourbon, my man."
General Thaddeus Ross looked at Locke: "You're with the CIA?"
Then… without waiting for Locke to speak, his gaze fell on Gwen, and he looked back at Nameless, laughing heartily: "Old friend, you don't trust me."
Mr. Nameless smiled: "No, I just don't trust your subordinates."
General Ross's several deputies listened to these words, eyes downcast.
Clearly.
Mr. Nameless was vouching for Gwen, telling General Ross that Gwen was under Langley's protection, and for his people to put away their petty thoughts.
After all, General Ross might say to silence someone by throwing money at them, but the people executing the task would physically silence them and then falsely report having spent the money.
This was quite normal.
The super-soldier serum has always been the exclusive preserve of the Federal Military. Now, it seems the super-soldier serum has been successfully replicated, which can be considered the highest secret of the Federal Military.
And there are only two people who know that CPH4 is needed as the core, plus g-element and gamma rays, to successfully replicate it.
One is Dr. Bruce Banner.
The other two are Gwen and Locke.
But Bruce Banner is a Military man, and General Ross's man, so his safety is guaranteed. But Locke and Gwen are not Military personnel.
Therefore.
They need to be silenced.
General Ross smiled at Nameless, who had given him a heads-up, then nodded directly to his deputy.
Soon.
Two non-disclosure agreements were placed in front of Locke and Gwen.
Locke raised an eyebrow at the amount listed as the price for confidentiality, then signed without hesitation. He then looked at General Thaddeus Ross and said, "I've always heard that the Military is rich and powerful, and it's truly different."
Look at this hush money.
How generous.
Gwen also signed her name. She hadn't intended to spread the word anyway.
And… this money came at just the right time.
Gwen remembered Locke talking about buying land and building a manor at the cemetery. Now, with this money, let alone buying the land, she could even hire a designer to design the manor after buying the land.
Outside the door.
Locke looked at Nameless beside him: "So, you dragged us here late at night just to give us money?"
Nameless chuckled: "If I didn't take you there now, this Base would probably be in chaos tonight."
This was a Military Base; making someone disappear was too easy for the Military.
But… Nameless glanced at Locke: "You have contact with the Peerless Assassin?"
Locke smiled slightly: "Are you asking about that spy information of mine?"
Nameless nodded.
Locke smiled: "I bought it with real money. You don't think I spent so much money just to vent, do you?"
He genuinely placed the order with real money.
As everyone knows, those thirty million bearer bonds no longer belonged to Locke, but to the Peerless Assassin.
Nameless also knew about this. He looked at Locke: "Considering I helped you earn money, can you give me a copy of that spy list?"
Locke looked at Nameless, a smile playing on his lips.
"Sure, that'll be one hundred million. Thank you!"
386. General Ross has good reasoning
Locke had merely said that he had no interest in actively selling the list.
After all, transactions in the dark world were too troublesome, with various inspections and verification codes. It was almost as if everyone involved suffered from paranoid delusions, as if one transaction could cost them their lives.
But, if someone came to him, Locke would not refuse.
As for the CIA coming to him?
Who he sold it to didn't matter. He was selling a list of agents from London, and his feud with MI6 was well-known. He had spent thirty million dollars to bribe the Peerless Assassin, who then gave him this list as a bonus. He wasn't afraid of MI6 finding out.
In one sentence:
Go find whoever took it. The Peerless Assassin brought me the list, threw it to me, I sold it. Whether your agents live or die has nothing to do with me.
It was well known that Locke only cared about people he cared about; those he didn't care about were just breathing NPCs.
However, unfortunately, the Nameless One did not accept Locke's offer and even declared that Locke was taking advantage of the situation, suggesting that the CIA might consider it if he offered a ninety percent discount.
Locke immediately scoffed at the Nameless One.
Ten million.
If he threw this agent list onto the black market, let alone one hundred million, it would probably sell for two hundred million.
Locke felt that the Nameless One was taking advantage of his supposed ignorance of the market.
But!
The Nameless One finally gave Locke a reason he couldn't refuse.
"We only want one copy; we're not buying it outright!"
"..."
Locke raised an eyebrow, looking at the Nameless One, who was trying to buy the list from him for ten million, and paused slightly after hearing that. "What do you mean?"
Buy one copy.
Not buy it outright?
The Nameless One nodded. "We just want one copy. However, if you find a big client in the future and plan to sell it, let us know so we can be mentally prepared."
Locke raised an eyebrow. "Are you using me as bait?"
What normal person would buy this agent list and then tell Langley? You don't even need to think too hard to know what the Nameless One was planning.
Without a doubt.
A big client who could afford to buy an agent list would definitely be a potentially wealthy terrorist.
Wealth was the key.
Locke sneered.
"I look like that kind of..."
"Two layers!"
"Huh?"
Locke stopped speaking and shook hands with the Nameless One in front of him. "Okay, deal. Remember to transfer the ten million. Goods will be shipped upon payment."
The Nameless One smiled and shook hands. "Of course."
"Old fox!"
"So, you need to learn more, little fox!"
The two exchanged smiles, as if everything had been clearly arranged.
Later, Locke would sell the list, make a profit, and then, after splitting the profits with the Nameless One 80/20, make another profit. Including this time, one list could earn money three times.
As for the Nameless One, buying the list this time was a merit. Then, the buyer of the list would be another merit. Most importantly, after catching that buyer, they could raid their home and make money.
So, all things considered, the Nameless One was making a huge profit, after all, gaining both fame and fortune.
Locke could only simply make money.
After a while.
Locke saw his phone vibrate a few times, and then, looking at the two amounts credited to his account, he raised an eyebrow. "Isn't that too much?"
The Nameless One smiled. "It's not too much. I paid first. The money the military gives you guys, I'll just have them give it to me. The military's finance, hehe, they drag things out as long as they can. Aren't I good to you?"
Locke's mouth curved upwards. He took out a piece of paper with a cloud drive account and password written on it and handed it to the Nameless One. "You can open the EXE file inside by changing it to a TXT file."
"Impressive!"
"Not as impressive as you."
The Nameless One smiled, put away the paper, stood up, and said with a smile, "Alright, then I won't disturb you anymore. Good night."
Locke escorted the Nameless One to the door. "Good night."
Turning around.
Locke saw Gwen, looking confused, and smiled. "What's wrong?"
Gwen shook her head. "Why did Mr. Nameless One pay us the hush money on behalf of the military?"
Locke stretched. "It's simple. Falsifying expenses, enriching oneself. It's standard Langley practice."
The money the Nameless One reported for buying intelligence was the actual cost of buying intelligence plus the hush money for Locke and Gwen. This way, the hush money for Locke and Gwen could be perfectly transferred to the Nameless One's own account.
And it was the kind that didn't even need to pay taxes!
"Damn it!"
Locke suddenly thought of the tax issue and looked at Gwen. "By the way, does this money need to be taxed?"
Gwen looked at Locke, somewhat speechless, as if to say, 'What do you think?'
In the Federation.
Only death and taxes are inevitable. Even God himself has to obediently pay taxes, otherwise, the IRS would dare to drive tanks and directly bombard Silver City.
The next day.
Locke and Gwen planned to visit Jessica one more time before heading back. After all, school was starting in three days, and the first New York State High School Student Alliance Knowledge Championship was about to begin. As the main creator, Locke needed to return early to oversee things.
However, Jessica seemed to have been moved.
Locke and Gwen passed through three verifications, and after surrendering their phones and communication devices, they were led by Sam to a room that had been moved underground. The equipment was highly futuristic, resembling a 22nd-century medical bay. There, they saw Jessica lying on a hospital bed, with a similarly futuristic device slowly rotating around the suspended bed.
Outside, there was a wall of screens displaying all of Jessica's data, categorized and updated in real-time.
It looked very unscientific for this time period.
Sam quietly pulled Gwen aside and pointed at the dazzling, dense data on the screens. "Gwen, can you explain it to me?"
Gwen turned to look at Jessica behind the glass, then looked up at the dense data on the screens. After a moment, she looked at Sam and said, "There are no major problems. At this rate, the G-element in her body should be cleared within a month. Jessica should wake up by then."
Sam seemed surprised. "Really?"
Gwen nodded, pointing at the data displayed on the screen. "Data doesn't lie."
Locke, on the other hand, was observing Jessica in the ward, sensing her life force, which, though slow, was indeed growing and upgrading her life form.
However, Locke raised an eyebrow, catching another existing life force that was also upgrading. Following the direction from which that life force came, his gaze fell on another room nearby in this football-field-sized room.
There, another life was also upgrading.
Just then.
The door they had entered through opened, and at the same time, General Thaddeus Ross's voice came from outside: "What do you mean, 'irreplicable'? Aren't there two now?"
As he spoke.
General Thaddeus Ross, with his imposing presence, and Dr. Bruce Banner, along with Betty Ross, walked in one after another.
Bruce Banner glanced at Betty Ross.
Most people, like Sam, if they asked him this question, he wouldn't even bother to acknowledge them.
But even Bruce Banner, with his eight doctorates, knew what it meant to have a sugar daddy. Yet, he had explained many times that CPH4 does not exist in adult bodies, but General Thaddeus Ross was in a state of "I'm not listening, I'm not listening."
In the conference room.
Locke was a bit helpless. He and Gwen had just come to visit Jessica, and now they were invited to the conference room again. To be precise, Bruce Banner had invited Gwen, who discovered the true steps for using the super-soldier serum. Locke was merely an afterthought.
Betty Ross rubbed her forehead. "Dad, the core of the super-soldier serum is CPH4, and CPH4 doesn't exist in adult bodies, and it's irreplicable."
General Ross pointed his finger outside the conference room.
Betty Ross said, "Ms. Jessica Campbell is an exception."
"So Steve Rogers also has this CPH4 in his body?"
"...Yes."
"You just said 'exception'?"
"One or two are also exceptions."
"What about that damn spy then?"
"He's different."
Bruce Banner said to General Ross, "Kevin Thompson doesn't have CPH4 in his body. Instead, when he was trying to commit suicide with the G-element, that bottle of experimental blood containing CPH4 was also absorbed. So..."
"So!"
General Ross interrupted directly, looking at Bruce Banner. "This is replicable."
"WTF..."
Bruce Banner felt a stampede of emotions in his heart. He took a deep breath. He had originally thought that by accepting the military's invitation, he wouldn't have those annoying clients anymore. Clearly, he seemed to have been wrong.
But... Bruce Banner didn't dare to bang on the table with General Ross, who had two armed deputies standing on either side. He didn't want to be dragged out for target practice, so he could only look at Betty Ross across from him with a helpless gaze.
Betty Ross was also somewhat speechless. "Dad, I know you've always wanted to replicate the super-soldier serum, but we have to talk about science."
General Ross looked at his daughter.
"Science?"
"Yes."
"Steve Rogers and Jessica Campbell both have CPH4, right?"
"...Yes."
"This damn spy who ran into my base doesn't have CPH4, right?"
"Right."
"But didn't he absorb the CPH4 from Jessica Campbell's blood?"
"...Yes."
"Hmm."
General Thaddeus Ross nodded, his expression serious. "So, CPH4 doesn't only exist in isolated cases, and it's not irreplicable. It's just that we haven't found the right method yet. I understand correctly, don't I?"
Betty Ross's mouth hung open.
Locke, who was next to her, nudged Gwen.
"Hmm?"
"Gwen, I think George is pretty good."
387. Positive and Reverse super-soldier serum
In any situation, including with people, the most daunting thing is comparison.
It was the same now.
Putting George and Thaddeus Ross together, the more Locke looked, the more he felt that George was actually quite decent. At the very least, George wasn't as stubborn as Thaddeus Ross.
Clearly dealing with something he didn't understand, yet he insisted on using his own worldview to comprehend it.
Locke could swear that if he were Bruce Banner and George were Thaddeus Ross, if Thaddeus Rossdared to keep questioning him after he had already explained, he would have slapped him long ago.
With full force!
Thaddeus Ross would likely have been reduced to a state where not a single speck of dust could be found.
Gwen directly rolled her eyes at Locke. Then, looking at Bruce Banner, who was being stared down by General Thaddeus Ross, she spoke up to bail him out: "General Ross, you're not the only one who has thought about replicating CPH4."
Thaddeus Ross shifted his gaze to Gwen, his mustache twitching slightly: "Gwen Stacy, daughter of NYPD Police Superintendent George Stacy, New York City Scholarship recipient, assistant to Dr. Connors at Osborn Biologics, honor student at Midtown High School, and the one who discovered the super-soldier serum completion alongside Dr. Bruce Banner."
"Yes."
"I'm willing to hear your opinion."
"My opinion is the same as Dr. Banner's."
A Top Student's friends aren't necessarily all straight-A students, but they certainly can't be academic failures—especially not someone like Thaddeus Ross, who wasn't just an academic failure but one who felt quite good about himself.
After giving Thaddeus Ross a brief lesson on the properties of CPH4, Gwen said, "Actually... the Department of Homeland Security also once thought about replicating CPH4, but unfortunately, they all failed."
Thaddeus Ross laughed, "The Department of Homeland Security, haha."
Gwen said with a smile, "Their director is named Maria Hill."
"..."
The smile on General Thaddeus Ross's face froze for a moment as he looked at Gwen: "Sorry, who did you say?"
Gwen repeated Maria Hill's name, then shrugged and said, "Director Maria Hill came into contact with CPH4 last year. Anyway, by the time I left, they had determined that CPH4 is non-replicable. It seems General Ross knows her; perhaps you can ask Director Hill. Maybe they've found a way, since after all, they were the first to study CPH4."
This was the truth.
When Irene was in New York, she was studied almost every day like a lab rat.
But... what did Maria Hill manage to study?
Aside from discovering that CPH4 significantly enhanced Irene's constitution, there was absolutely nothing else. It wasn't that they hadn't thought about artificial replication of CPH4, but without a doubt, they had all failed.
Listening to Gwen's words, Thaddeus Ross's expression became slightly familiar.
The Department of Homeland Security, a department cobbled together from various sources, wasn't something Thaddeus Ross cared much about. However, the S.H.I.E.L.D. that Maria Hill could represent had scientific research power that was second to none.
However.
Thaddeus Ross glanced at Bruce Banner, then said to Gwen, "Then, how do you explain Kevin Thomson?"
Gwen shrugged: "Does General Ross know about HIV?"
"...Of course."
"Among ten million patients, only one patient developed a natural immunity to HIV. Countless scientists studied that person for a full ten years and never found a way to replicate that phenomenon."
Gwen spoke as such: "Kevin Thomson is an outlier, just like that patient immune to HIV. He exists, but that doesn't mean he can be replicated. After all, there are always some things that we cannot explain with science."
If science could explain every problem.
Then why would we need Vampires?
And why would we need a Witch?
Gwen wasn't a paranoid scientismist; even if she had been, after seeing Vampires and a Witch with her own eyes, she had long since changed that mindset.
Locke sat nearby, looking at Gwen, his eyes sparkling with admiration.
This was why he liked Gwen.
No matter who she faced, Gwen could always maintain the most composed attitude. After all, even Bruce Banner, the Top Student with eight PhDs, seemed a bit petty when facing General Thaddeus Ross.
He didn't have Gwen's poise at all.
Exactly like that.
Argue back!
I've got your back.
Locke snapped back to reality, his gaze shifting to Thaddeus Ross. If Thaddeus Ross's expression or words were out of line, without another word, he'd release... Zero, and crush his head!
However.
Locke's plan likely wouldn't be realized.
Because... something happened outside.
Beep!
Beep!
Beep!
The piercing alarm sounded once again.
Bruce Banner and Betty Ross were slightly stunned, then quickly stood up and walked out of the conference room.
"What's going on?"
"Over there."
"shit!"
After Bruce Banner and Betty Ross walked out, they saw Kevin Thomson, whose various monitoring devices were all sounding alarms simultaneously. They shared a look and quickly put on their protective suits.
Sam, who was over by Jessica's ward, saw Kevin Thomson triggering the alarms. The joy on his face instantly turned to worry. He turned to look at Jessica, who was lying quietly in the ward, the purple on her body having completely faded away.
"The g-element is surging."
"What about the CPH4 in his body?"
"Gone."
"What?"
Betty Ross shook her head: "The CPH4 in his body has completely disappeared."
After all... Kevin Thomson didn't have CPH4 himself. The fact that the CPH4 in that single drop of blood sample could last for a whole night was already a testament to CPH4's powerful ability to counter the g-element.
But no matter how high the Kung Fu, one still fears a mob.
Or, perhaps the naturally indifferent CPH4 realized after a hormone boost that this was definitely not the place she originally belonged, and so she chose to end it herself.
Bruce Banner was slightly stunned: "Give me a vial of that treasure blood!"
Outside, Locke raised an eyebrow as he heard Bruce Banner's words.
treasure blood?
The next second.
Locke realized what was meant by treasure blood.
Jessica's.
Goodfellas.
Locke couldn't help but mutter to himself. Then, rubbing his chin, he turned to glance at Jessica's ward.
If Jessica were to remain unconscious, wouldn't Bruce Banner plan to stockpile a warehouse of Jessica's blood samples—the so-called treasure blood?
But... even after a vial of treasure blood was injected, Kevin Thomson's condition didn't seem to change at all.
Moreover.
Betty Ross, watching the test results of the so-called treasure blood, handed them to Bruce Banner: "Bruce, look."
Bruce Banner took them and looked, slightly stunned.
The CPH4 content in Jessica's blood had also decreased.
Just then.
Kevin Thomson, who had just been twitching on the bed like a flopping carp, returned to a dead fish state.
Ten minutes later.
Kevin Thomson's genetic test report was released.
"God."
"Is this... the g-element?"
Betty Ross blinked, looking at a certain value in Kevin Thomson's genetic data report, stunned: "He has perfectly fused with the g-element? Not CPH4?"
She continued.
Betty Ross frowned: "Is the test report wrong?"
The destructive power of the g-element was too great; it was fundamentally difficult to fuse with human DNA. This was why they had once suspected that the super-soldier serum formula in their hands was fake.
Irresponsibly speaking, the Military's human experiments for the super-soldier serum from World War II until now numbered at least a hundred, if not ten thousand, and those ten thousand people had undoubtedly vanished without a sound.
However... even the Military didn't dare use their own people. They went to a World-renowned drug-testing hotspot and spent a hundred thousand dollars to find ten thousand human subjects.
Very cheap.
That said, if they weren't worried that the major drug-testing country would also claim the super-soldier serum was not protected by patent, the Military would have continued to use cheap ten-dollar recruits for human drug testing.
"No."
Bruce Banner looked at the data in his hand, looked up at Kevin Thomson who had returned to a quiet state, and frowned: "Actually, there is one person who perfectly absorbed the g-element."
Betty Ross was slightly stunned.
"Who?"
"Red Skull!"
"Who?"
Thaddeus Ross, who had been standing aside without speaking, spoke up: "You mean Johann Schmidt?"
Johann Schmidt, AKA Red Skull.
Captain America's nemesis and the founder of the German HYDRA.
The legitimate HYDRA was Alexander Pierce's branch, but who could help that the other had more fame? Currently, when people mentioned HYDRA, they all knew it as the Third Reich; who knew anything about the legend of the Inhuman Hive?
Bruce Banner nodded: "Yes, supposedly, the first subject for the super-soldier was Red Skull. Dr.Abraham Erskine also once mentioned this. I think it was because of this failed experimental subject that Dr. Abraham Erskine found the core that could truly complete the evolution—CPH4."
It was possible Red Skull also had CPH4 in his body.
But only a tiny bit.
So he evolved, but not by fusing with CPH4 that had consumed the g-element; instead, he completed his evolution with the g-element that had consumed the CPH4.
Locke wasn't surprised at all.
Understanding the super-soldier serum as the Nine Yin Manual worked quite well.
Some people practiced the Nine Yin Manual normally and mastered the Bone-Crushing Claw, like Steve Rogers and the current Jessica.
But some people went the opposite way, practicing the manual in reverse, resulting in the Nine Yin White Bone Claw.
Like Red Skull.
And... the current Kevin Thomson!