American Comics: Tales of Cultivator

Chapter 78: Meeting, Experiment, Disappearance (5k chapter)

When Qin lost his deer (meaning the empire was in chaos)(t.c :it was pian to get what it really meant apericte that ), the world chased it!

Without Kingpin, the Underground Emperor, not just New York, but the entire Federation's Underground Forces were stirring restlessly.

There was nothing for it. As soon as Kingpin died, the territory he left behind was a piece of juicy, fatty meat, and everyone wanted to step forward and take a bite.

For the Federal Government, if handled improperly, it would cause violent conflict throughout the Federation.

No one could bear this consequence. Even the owner of the White House, if handled improperly, his re-election might fall through.

For this reason, the owner of the White House urgently summoned his Advisors overnight to study countermeasures.

"Kingpin is dead. Then let's just support someone else to replace Kingpin's position! Is this even something we need to think about?"

In a small office meeting, the Secretary of State of the Federal Government, also the Republican Party Whip, seeing the President and his colleagues all looking worried, directly expressed his opinion.

The President's eyes lit up upon hearing the Secretary of State's words. He needed to settle this matter as soon as possible before his approval rating dropped.

"Andre, do you have any good candidates?"

Secretary of State Underwood put on a smile: "I don't have any dealings with those Gangsters, but Moon recommended a candidate."

"A speculator. He provided a large amount of political contribution when Moon was running for Governor."

Mentioning political contribution, our President's eyes lit up.

"Although Gangsters are lower-class citizens, their large numbers also represent a rich voting bloc."

Underwood expressed his suggestion: "So this candidate must be obedient. Moon and his father are both Elders in the party; I still trust his judgment!"

"Who is the candidate Moon recommended?" The person asking was a woman around fifty years old, wearing a business suit, with a somewhat serious complexion. She was Linda, the Chief of Staff of the White House.

This position is equivalent to the Director of the White House Office, the highest-ranking official in the Federal President's executive office, and also a Senior Assistant to the Federal President.

This is a position with great power, often called "the second most powerful person in Washington."

Underwood took a kraft paper bag from the side and opened the document bag.

He took out a pile of documents from inside and distributed them to everyone present.

"An Asian?"

The Secretary of the Treasury glanced at the photo of Tang Song on the first page of the documents and mumbled a sentence.

He was a white supremacist racist, clearly having no good feelings towards an Asian.

"Bowen!" The Secretary of Defense next to him heard his words and reminded him.

When he met Underwood's gaze, which was gentle yet scrutinizing, the Secretary of the Treasury was startled.

Underwood was not only the Secretary of State but also the Republican Party Whip. He had the right to remove all hidden dangers that threatened the party's security.

Racial discrimination is a major hidden danger that affects votes for any party.

The Secretary of the Treasury showed a fawning smile towards Underwood, picked up the documents in his hand, and started reading.

"Asian, Stowaway, are you sure there's no connection with The East?"

The President finished reading the documents and asked Underwood.

Underwood showed a confident smile: "I have already had our CIA Director check his background; there's no problem!"

After the President heard Underwood's explanation, he didn't say anything more and asked the others present.

"Does anyone have any different opinions?"

Several attendees expressed that they had none, but a hint of discomfort flashed across the face of a white man, which was seen by Underwood next to him.

"Then it's decided. Support this Asian named Tang to replace Kingpin's position, but tell the FBI, the necessary procedures must not be omitted!" The President saw that no one raised objections and quickly made the decision.

"Just like Kingpin, evidence that can send this Asian to prison at any time is prepared in the FBI's archives!" Underwood told the President about his preparations, while not forgetting to warn his colleagues:

"With a noose, we can get an obedient hunting dog! Kingpin's large-scale manufacturing of counterfeit money strained our relationship with the Federal Reserve! If it weren't for our Mr. Lewis's best efforts to stop it, he would already be in prison now and wouldn't have caused such big trouble!"

Federal Vice President and President of the Senate Lewis glared at Underwood with a grim complexion and argued: "Whether Wilson Fisk is involved in the counterfeit money case or not, the CIA is still investigating. Andre, it's too early for you to conclude!"

Underwood put on a smile: "CIA intelligence shows that the source of most counterfeit money can be traced back to Kingpin, Mr. Vice President. Kingpin is not being wrongly accused."

Lewis looked at Underwood, his breathing became somewhat rapid.

Kingpin was his man; this was no secret among the Federal High-level Staff. Sitting in this position, who among those present didn't have a few proxies?

But Lewis didn't understand why Underwood had to target him.

"Alright!" Seeing the two men clashing, the President quickly stood up to mediate.

"Today I also have to meet with the President of *Country. If there are no other matters, today's meeting ends here!"

"Mr. President, can we appropriately provide some help to that Asian? This way we can avoid large-scale violent conflicts within the Federation!"

Underwood proposed a suggestion at this time.

"Help?" The President hesitated for a moment: "Directly using the authority of a government department to help a gangster..."

"Mr. President, we are just using the Military's strength to deal with some gangsters who affect the Federation's stability. Just leave this matter to Raman to handle. If I'm not mistaken, the Department of Defense has a directly subordinate special forces unit!"

Underwood looked at the Secretary of Defense next to him...

The Secretary of Defense was an Elder with graying temples and a sturdy build. Seeing Underwood push the matter onto him,

He looked at Underwood, and the two exchanged a look.

...

"Andre, I need an explanation!"

After the meeting, Underwood and the Secretary of Defense walked out of the White House together.

Right in front of the White House entrance, the Secretary of Defense looked at Underwood and questioned him.

The matter of cracking down on gangsters could be handled by the Police Officers in each state and the CIA. He didn't quite understand why Underwood had to push the matter onto him.

Underwood took out a safe key from his person and handed it to the Secretary of Defense.

"This is the key to the safe in the Swiss Bank Vault. Inside is stored a batch of bearer bonds..."

The Secretary of Defense took the key, feeling the number on it. His expression was somewhat complex. He looked at Underwood with doubt.

"Andre, this isn't like your style. Do you think at our position, we would lack money? I don't understand why you're doing this. Could that Asian be your illegitimate son?"

Looking at the Secretary of Defense's slightly mocking face, "Do you really not lack money, Raman! Your military expenditure hole is too big, so big that you have to collude with bank people for insurance fraud!"

Hearing Underwood's smiling words, Secretary of Defense Raman felt a chill shoot straight up his spine to his heavenly spirit, and cold sweat immediately broke out on his head.

"You!..."

"How did I know?" Underwood smilingly interrupted the Secretary of Defense:

"A super yacht suffered a maritime disaster and sank. Traveler's Insurance Company will have to pay a huge insurance payment for this luxury super yacht. This astronomical figure is enough to bankrupt this insurance company ranked in the top ten in the Federation!"

Secretary of Defense Raman looked sharply at Underwood. He knew this viper hadn't exposed him and certainly had his intentions.

"State your conditions!"

"First use your special forces to complete the President's command! Raman!"

Underwood patted the Secretary of Defense's shoulder, turned around and walked towards his car.

"Oh right, Raman, as old friends, you wouldn't find someone to kill me to silence me, right!" After walking two steps, Underwood stopped, turned his head back to look at the Secretary of Defense's gloomy face, and teased.

The car drove on the bustling streets. Secretary of State Underwood sat in the back seat resting his eyes, reviewing his actions today.

This was his daily habit, and it was precisely this habit that allowed him, who was good at thinking and reflecting, to reach the position of Secretary of State today.

Underwood did not know Tang Song. The reason he worked so hard to facilitate this matter in the meeting was not because of the wall of US dollars Tang Song sent, nor solely because of the suggestion Moon made to him.

He needed a voting bloc, a voting bloc that could be perfectly controlled. Moreover, Underwood received intelligence that this Asian had some connection with the Vatican.

In a Federation where Catholicism is almost the state religion, the Church's appeal cannot be underestimated.

If he truly wanted to sit in that position, winning the votes of those followers was key for Underwood.

This was also the reason he targeted Lewis at the White House meeting. If Underwood's plan succeeded, Lewis, this Vice President, would be a major obstacle on his path upwards.

...…

Returning to the Pentagon, Secretary of Defense Raman sat in his office chair, veins popping on his forehead.

He couldn't understand how such a secret plan could be known by Underwood, this viper.

Looking at the two red telephones on the desk, he hesitated for a moment and finally picked up the one on the left.

"Connect me to General Duke!"

......

Oscorp Tower. Tang Song, who had just finished attending the board of directors meeting, accompanied by Professor Connors, was visiting Oscorp's laboratory.

After obtaining the consent of most of the board of directors, Tang Song, this new director, took over six of Oscorp's sixteen laboratories.

Pure white sterile rooms, the most advanced research equipment on the market.

As well as the most advanced research teams.

Sterile operating tables, the surfaces of the restraint straps coated with a layer of soft alloy.

The first to enjoy this treatment was a vampire.

This was the gift Tang Song brought to Oscorp, and also the reason many directors sided with him.

"The cell division rate of this species is less than one-tenth of that of ordinary humans. The maximum lifespan of ordinary humans is 120 years. The lifespan of this creature is ten times that of normal humans,"

Professor Connors wore a white coat, his sterile gloves were still stained with blood. He had just finished dissecting this vampire.

"From its teeth, I extracted a rare virus. This virus can transform the host into this life form; it should be what vampires call "the Embrace"! The Embrace, according to legend, vampires can transform humans into vampires through the Embrace."

According to Professor Connors' analysis, the so-called the Embrace is a native parasitic virus.

This virus can be transmitted through blood transmission, but the transmission of ordinary viruses is passive, while the virus inside the vampire's body is controlled by the host.

"Can we remove this virus's bloodthirsty nature?" Tang Song looked through the one-way bulletproof glass at the test subject in the ward.

If we remove the vampire's bloodthirsty nature and the side effect of being afraid of light,

then what's researched would definitely be an elixir of longevity.

"Probably not. The side effect accompanying this mysterious virus is bloodthirstiness. It maintains activity by absorbing trace elements in the blood,"

Professor Connors held a virus research report: "However, by studying another blood sample, it is possible to neutralize this virus, but its effect is also greatly reduced. In terms of cell division, it's less than half of an ordinary vampire!"

The so-called 'another blood sample' is Blade's blood. In Rome, Tang Song used some minor magic arts to obtain some of Blade's blood.

Blade, this half-vampire, gained the ability to not fear light, not fear silver weapons, and walk in daylight.

What he sacrificed was a lifespan far lower than that of ordinary vampires, but compared to ordinary humans, he can already be considered a Long-lived Species.

"Can it be replicated!"

Tang Song looked at the vampire serving as the test subject, his gaze full of interest. Longevity/Immortality is always a pursuit that no one can avoid.

Ancient kings, nobles, generals, and ministers, and present-day wealthy and powerful, all have a fanatical obsession with longevity and eternal youth.

Tang Song was not worried about his own future path; it's just that his personality made him habitually not put all his eggs in one basket.

In the Marvel World, Superheroes have limited lifespans, whereas Supervillains live more freely than one another.

Needless to say, Thanos, as a Bronze Titan, his lifespan is counted in tens of thousands of years.

Those dimensional beings that the Sorcerer Supreme guards against, from the Ruler of the Dark Dimension Dormammu to the Hell Lord Mephisto, each of their lifespans is ridiculously long.

Looking at the Superhero side, Asgardians are considered Long-lived Species, but their God King also cannot escape the suffering of Ragnarök.

Truly - Good people don't live long, while scourges last for a thousand years. Uh, these words seem to include Boss Tang himself.

If he cultivates to the Soul Fusion Stage, theoretically he can achieve longevity equal to heaven and earth, and age with the sun and moon.

Developing an Elixir of Longevity Agent is a reassurance for the other directors of Oscorp from Tang Song, like the carrot dangling in front of the donkey pulling the millstone.

"There's some difficulty. According to the blood analysis results, this parasitic virus and ordinary human gene simply cannot coexist," Professor Connors' eyes were full of doubt and inquiry.

"This test subject is simply a miracle. The parasitic virus and his human gene are in a state of balanced symbiosis."

"This is a one in ten million chance. Wanting to perfectly replicate it, the difficulty is probably not small!"

Tang Song frowned, but wasn't surprised.

Most Superheroes in the Marvel World cannot be replicated.

After Spider-Man was bitten by a mutated spider, he gained superpowers.

If it were an ordinary human, it would be a miracle if they could make it to the hospital after being bitten.

Bruce Banner was irradiated by gamma rays and transformed into the Hulk.

And injecting the serum cultivated from his blood resulted in Abomination.

Captain America goes without saying. After him, the original super serum became a swan song.

The mutation inside Blade's body is simple to explain: his mother was bitten by a vampire while pregnant with him, and he was born half-human, half-vampire.

This chance is even smaller than winning the lottery.

"This project is set as A-level, but the research progress doesn't need to be too fast!"

Tang Song researching the Elixir of Longevity Agent was just a gimmick. His real focus was still Professor Connors' genetic recombination technology.

"How is Peter Parker's blood analysis?"

Not long ago, Midtown High School received a charitable donation of five million US dollars, used to improve the school's teaching quality.

At the same time, the donor also arranged for every student at Midtown High School to have a free physical examination.

Including but not limited to blood count, urinalysis, chest examination, cardiac ultrasound, etc...

Among them, Peter Parker's four tubes of blood, for some unknown reason, appeared in this laboratory at Oscorp.

"I extracted some Gene Fragments from these blood samples, which can indeed neutralize the incompatibility between Human Gene and Lizard Gene! But the research still needs some time!"

Professor Connors explained to Tang Song.

"However, Peter Parker's blood sample is indeed strange. His gene seems to have been modified and has strong Gene adaptability with many modified samples from Oscorp's laboratory. This kind of biological Genetic Engineering is simply a miracle!"

Of course it's a miracle. Looking at the amazed Professor Connors, Tang Song's expression was calm.

The Genetic Modification Technology inside Peter Parker's body was what the couple Richard Parker and Mary Parker researched in Oscorp's laboratory back then.

They certainly left a great gift for their son.

"Professor Connors, are you interested in working for me!"

"Uh!" Professor Connors looked at Tang Song with a puzzled face: "Tang, you are now a shareholder of Oscorp. In principle, you are one of my Bosses!"

Tang Song smiled, looking through the laboratory glass at the busy Bob inside: "I don't mean Oscorp. I recently registered a Biotech Company and plan to set up an Experimental Base. This project is missing a chief scientist. Are you interested?"

......

New York Suburb, where the Farm was originally located.

Engineering Teams are expanding this Farm. The original Farm and Corn Field were directly levelled and rebuilt into a Small Town.

Not just the Farm under Boss Tang's name, several nearby Farms were also bought by him. The future plan here is to build a tourist town.

Out of a sense of dark humor, Boss Tang has already chosen the name - Raccoon City.

The project has been approved by the New York City Government, led by Tang Group. The plan's initial investment is six hundred million US dollars.

Nominally it is to build a cultural tourism project integrating culture and health preservation.

At the same time, Underground in Raccoon City, a Base project with a depth of about three hundred meters is also being intensively rushed to completion.

......

In the following few days, undercurrents surged in New York, and even the entire Federation's Underworld.

Some factions tentatively launched offensives towards the territory left by Kingpin.

Kingpin died, and the factions he left behind were leaderless. Several Mexican Gangs quickly occupied the two South American drug trafficking routes left by Kingpin.

But before this group of drug dealers could celebrate, their entire Gang was completely wiped out.

If this time was an accident,

after the Russian Mafia took over Kingpin's car smuggling business in Europe, the matter of their territory in New York being swept away/levelled by a group of special forces seemed to give everyone who was stirring a heavy blow.

Everyone was waiting and seeing.

While at this time, Tang Song was holed up in his Secret Cave Chamber and began refinement of Magic Tools.

Gold, silver, copper, iron, tin... nearly twenty types of metal filled the Altar to the brim.

In the center of the Altar, a high-temperature furnace with a high-tech feel was releasing heat.

In the high temperature of 20000 degrees, the indestructible Vibranium Ore was slowly melting.

Like Adamantium, once Vibranium Ore dissolves and solidifies under high temperature, it possesses almost indestructible hardness.

Vibranium Ore, Adamantium, and various metals turned into masses of molten metal.

The metals Tang Song chose were very mixed. Among them, the quantity of gold was the most, a total of five tons.

In the Jambudvīpa World, gold has the best conductivity for True Essence.

The metal obtained after refinement of gold is Gold Essence, also called Geng Metal. It is the first choice for Cultivators to refine Magic Treasures.

Restriction Seals were struck into these metal solutions by Tang Song. These high-temperature metal solutions, mixed together, constantly stirred in mid-air, changing shapes.

Tang Song, while casting Magic Technique, fixed these solutions in mid-air. While performing Hand Seals, he struck Restriction Seals representing Killing Intent into these solutions.

The vibranium solution and adamantium solution were rotating, forming a large bell-shaped shell. Gold Essence and other metal solutions formed a dense spiderweb between the two. The spider silk of these spiderwebs was only one percent the thickness of a hair.

Refining this Magic Tool from memory was much, much harder than Tang Song imagined.

A full five days, Tang Song did not take a single step out of the Secret Cave Chamber.

...…

Just as Tang Song was focused on refining his bell, a piece of news directly ignited Wall Street's financial market, and quickly occupied the front page headlines of major Federal news media.

The Federation's most famous playboy, the president of Stark Industries, Tony Stark was attacked by Terrorists in Afghanistan, attacked and disappeared.

As this information spread, Stark Industries' stock price immediately plummeted, even surpassing Oscorp, which recently had a human rights scandal.

Stark Tower president's office

"One hundred million, global bounty. Whoever can rescue Tony, Stark Industries is willing to pay a bounty of one hundred million!"

Pepper Potts hung up the phone and slumped into the office chair.

When some people are around, you might feel they are not important, but when he is gone, you will find that the world really cannot be without him! One day and one night, Pepper was calling everywhere, mobilizing all her connections, wanting to find and rescue Tony.

When Tony was around, she was overwhelmed, having to deal with the women around this playboy, and also manage the company's matters for him.

She had complained, gotten angry. Sometimes she also wondered if it was worth it. Which woman had to wake up early every morning to deal with the women in a playboy's bed for him?

Even though Pepper told herself countless times, she was just doing what a secretary should do.

But when the news of Tony Stark's disappearance came back, Pepper instantly felt like the sky had fallen.

Only then did she know the weight of Tony, this playboy, in her heart.

Pepper slumped onto the bed without regard for her image, emptied her mind, and tried hard to recall what other methods there were.

Department of Defense, Federal CIA... and also the Continental Hotel bounty that Pepper just inquired about from friends.

Whether useful or not, Pepper had tried them all.

"Miss Pepper, there is a visitor!"

Inside the office, J.A.R.V.I.S.'s voice sounded. Pepper tried hard to get up, slightly tidied her clothes and makeup, and opened the entrance surveillance.

At the entrance of the office, stood a middle-aged man wearing a black suit, slightly bald-headed.

Seeing the camera slightly rotate, he showed a gentle smile towards the camera, took out an identification from his pocket: "Ms. Pepper, I am from S.H.I.E.L.D., and I am here for Mr. Tony Stark!"

...…

"You should hurry and save him, instead of investigating finance stock!"

Pepper looked at the man in front of her. After hearing his purpose, she couldn't help but feel a little angry.

Phil Coulson's face was still that of a good-natured person: "Ms. Pepper, this is very important. Mr. Tony Stark's itinerary in Afghanistan was top secret even within the Military. How did that group of Terrorists know the information?"

"We suspect someone inside Stark Industries has connections with the Terrorists. We need to find him and use this to find that Terrorist Base and rescue Mr. Stark!"

Pepper heard Coulson's explanation, and her emotions finally calmed down.

"What we need to do first is find the speculators who short-sold Stark Industries stock during the period from before Mr. Tony Stark's disappearance until the news of his disappearance was announced. This will narrow down the scope of searching for the mastermind!"

Coulson put his thumb and index finger together, making a shrinking gesture: "This will provide us with great help in rescuing Mr. Stark!"

Pepper heard Coulson's words, immediately stopped hesitating, and directly authorized J.A.R.V.I.S. to investigate.

As the artificial intelligence researched by Tony Stark, J.A.R.V.I.S. can easily defeat ninety-nine percent of the world's hackers.

In less than five minutes, J.A.R.V.I.S. filtered out from a pile of funds short-selling Stark Industries stock, several funds with abnormal timing.

Coulson got the first-hand information, and immediately ordered people to start investigating.

On the other side, Obadiah was furious.

He contacted the Ten Rings Terrorists, wanting to get rid of the troublesome big nephew in Afghanistan, but those bastards actually stood him up.

"You violated the agreement between me and the Mandarin, Khwaja!"

"Dear friend, Mr. Obadiah, you didn't tell me the person you wanted to kill was Tony Stark. You get what you pay for. The price you offered cannot buy the life of the president of Stark Industries!"

The big bearded man wrapped in white cloth looked at Obadiah on the other end of the Mobile Phone, his face filled with irrepressible joy.

Tony Stark, this is a rare commodity talent.

He couldn't help but want to hug Obadiah's bald head and kiss it hard twice. With Tony Stark here, what weapons wouldn't they have in the future?

Thinking of this, the big bearded man felt a burst of burning in his heart.

"How much money do you want?"

Obadiah squeezed the Mobile Phone tightly, trying hard to take deep breaths and calm his anger.

"Hello, hello, Mr. Obadiah, are you listening? The signal is bad, beep beep beep!"

*Smash!* Obadiah, furious, directly smashed the Mobile Phone onto the ground.

"With Tony Stark, what kind of weapons won't we have?" The big bearded man walked out of the tent, looking at the cave in the distance, wanting to laugh triumphantly towards the sky.

In the desert where Tony Stark disappeared, over a dozen attack helicopters, dozens of military humvees, and hundreds of fully armed Federal Garrison troops are conducting a grid search and rescue.

Many friends say the quality has dropped a lot after it was put on the shelves. I can only guarantee to write as much as possible and improve.

The main reason is writing while watching the child. Just finished writing a section, then go wash swaddling clothes, change diapers. It affects the train of thought too much.

Alas, if everyone has any opinions, please raise them as soon as possible. I will try my best to correct them.

(end of chapter)