Chapter 161: Chasing Killian
After dealing with the situation there, Silas turned and returned to his room.
The Room
Silas rested his feet on the desk, spinning a pen between the fingers of his right hand. He was currently pondering the issue of the Extremis virus. The Extremis virus was undoubtedly a useful asset, capable of providing unexpected benefits if utilized correctly.
However, Silas didn't plan to use the Extremis virus to enhance himself, but rather to strengthen his subordinates. The abilities of the ordinary Black Shadow Corps were still far from enough in the Marvel world. They would need to be at least as capable as Therrus to truly be valuable in later combat. Or perhaps he could rely on the ultimate form of the Shadowkhan Eaters, who were the strongest fighters in the Black Shadow Ninja's lore. Only then might they prove useful. Currently, ordinary Black Shadow Ninjas are only useful for their sheer numbers and for gathering intelligence. Black Shadow Ninjas like Little Black are exceptions, while Black Shadow Ninjas like Big Black are the norm.
"I wonder if they can find anything," Silas murmured to himself.
Silas had captured Sylli and Brock earlier specifically to study the Extremis virus. As for the person to research the Extremis virus, that could only be Little Black. However, Little Black now had an assistant, Alpha. Alpha could help Little Black with many calculations, saving a lot of trouble. This was why the hostages were placed in the Shadow Realm, kept in special containers so they wouldn't be corroded and assimilated by the black mist within.
The Shadow Realm
Little Black sat in front of the console, continuously typing on the keyboard. Alpha projected virtual images beside him.
"Extract a tube of blood," Little Black instructed.
A mechanical arm then grabbed Sylli, who was strapped to the experiment table, and extracted her blood.
"Alpha, begin DNA analysis," Little Black said.
The Ten Rings
"All the bio-enhanced fighters are missing, and the dispatched subordinates have also vanished. Tell me..." Killian asked, his face gloomy as he looked at his subordinate, "What are you going to do about this?"
"..." The subordinate remained silent. He didn't know what to say and was afraid of angering Killian by saying the wrong thing. Maintaining silence was the safest option now.
"What good are you all to me!" Killian punched the desk in front of him in anger, smashing it.
"I think... it doesn't matter much. After all, we have so many fighters..." said a man nearby, whose chin sported a long beard and whose head was tied with a braid.
"Shut up! You need to understand that you are just a puppet we put in front of the public, and we can replace you at any time," Killian snapped, pointing at the Mandarin.
The Mandarin immediately stopped talking and quietly ate potato chips, making a crunchy crunch~ crunch sound.
"F*ck!" Killian walked up to the Mandarin, grabbed the potato chips from his hand, and threw them at the Mandarin's face, roaring, "Get out!"
"Yes, yes, yes." The Mandarin, startled, crawled on the floor and quickly scrambled out of the room. In a place where others couldn't see, a trace of malice flashed in his eyes.
"Hmph~" Killian's chest heaved up and down with anger.
As time slowly passed, Killian recovered his composure and said, "I'm going to see Pepper and propose a collaboration with them."
This statement confused the subordinates a bit. As people who knew Killian well, they were aware that he deeply resented Stark, so why would he seek to cooperate with them?
"I want Stark to understand what it feels like to be betrayed!" Killian snarled menacingly.
Killian decided to approach Pepper Potts, who was now the CEO of Stark Industries. He believed that with his technology and charm, he would surely win Pepper over. Then, using Pepper, he would seize the entire Stark Industries! Oh no! It should be Killian Industries!
"Prepare the car!" Killian stopped at the door and said, "Also, find out exactly how our bio-enhanced fighters went missing."
"Yes!"
"...I'm sorry, your idea is great, but it doesn't fit with our company's plan," Pepper politely declined Killian. Since Tony had closed down Stark Weapons Industries, they were no longer pursuing the manufacturing sector. Killian's proposed technology clearly had military applications, which was why Pepper refused. Also, for some reason, Pepper just didn't feel like Killian was a good person.
"Alright, no worries. I hope we get a chance to collaborate in the future," Killian quickly changed his expression, put on a smile, shook hands with Pepper, and left.
After Killian left, Happy, Pepper's bodyguard, followed him. He wanted to find out who Killian was and how he dared to flirt with his boss's woman.
Noticing the 'fat mouse' behind him, Killian's mouth curled into a slight smile. He had an opportunity, and it was time to give Stark a taste of his own medicine.
Mid-air
"Woohoo!" Peter swung between the buildings. He was in a good mood after having just helped an old lady who had fallen down.
"Hmm? Happy?" Peter landed on a skyscraper's glass window. He remembered Happy; he was Mr. Stark's driver.
"Where is he going?" Peter looked around curiously, then saw that Happy seemed to be tracking someone.
"Hmm..." Peter tilted his head. He decided to follow and see what was happening. What if he could help?
Killian was strolling slowly down the street, then turned into a corner.
"Follow him!" Happy felt he was one step closer to the truth.
But Peter, from his bird's-eye view, thought otherwise: "Oh no~ Mr. Happy is in danger!"
The moment Happy turned the corner, a person was facing him, shouting with an open mouth. That person's body was radiating bright red light.
"Watch out!" Peter shot a web, grabbed Happy, and pulled him away.
Bang! Unfortunately, Peter was still a step too slow. The explosion's aftermath still reached Happy. However, it wasn't as severe as in the movie. Thanks to Peter's quick reaction, Happy only sustained minor injuries to his arm.
"Argh!" A ringing noise echoed in Happy's ears, giving him a massive headache.
"Are you okay, Mr. Happy?" Peter quickly helped Happy up and asked.
Happy vaguely saw Peter's figure. He weakly raised a finger, pointing forward, and said, "Don't let that culprit escape..."
"Okay, but you..." Peter was worried about Happy.
"Go! Hurry!" Happy insisted, enduring the pain. Although he couldn't clearly hear what Peter was saying, the priority now was to chase Killian.
Seeing Happy's strong will, Peter could only nod. He summoned the Spider Squad to look after Happy and went off alone in pursuit.
"Spider-Man?" Killian spotted Spider-Man high in the sky. That red tights outfit was quite recognizable, after all.
"Troublesome." Killian didn't want to engage with Spider-Man right now. Based on the organization's observations, Spider-Man was quite a nuisance.
After a moment's thought, Killian picked up his communicator and said, "Send some bio-enhanced fighters over." Then, he quickly started running.
"Hey! Stop!" Peter shouted at Killian on the ground.
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