Four Parties Take Notice

In the open space beside the processing plant, two police officers were firing their guns at a Mechanical Spider.

Amid the hail of bullets, the Mechanical Spider kept making abrupt starts and stops, moves so unnatural they could have enraged Newton enough to flip open his coffin lid.

Even with such extraordinary movements aiding it, the two officers, though decent shots, were completely unable to hit their target.

"See that, Commissioner George? This spider-shaped intelligent robot not only has a sound structure, but it is also equipped with an evasion system I specifically designed. I call it the Spider-Sense System. It imitates a spider's instinctive reactions when facing danger and can effectively evade all kinds of threats, including gunfire."

"Because Spider-Bots react faster than normal humans, ordinary aimed shots simply cannot hit them. Especially in complicated environments like indoor areas, hitting them with a gun is nearly impossible."

Wang Khan handed a Mechanical Spider to George and let it crawl across his wrist.

Though he had seen it many times already, George still found it unbelievable. Gwen, meanwhile, was not merely impressed—she lavished praise on the Mechanical Spider's design.

"Boss Wang..."

"Just call me Wang, Ms. Stacy."

"In that case, you can just call me Gwen. If it hadn't been for those Smart Spiders last time, I probably would have died at those criminals' hands. Thank you for saving my life."

"Haha, as an upright New York Citizen, I had to lend a hand when I encountered something like that. Compared to everyone else, I simply have better technology."

Humility was not exactly popular in the United States, so Wang Khan's response was full of confidence.

"Wang, I noticed that your Smart Spiders draw on a great many spider movements and habits. You must be quite accomplished in biology as well, right?"

"I have a Master's Degree in biology from Columbia University."

"Really?! What a coincidence! Before long, I'll be attending Columbia University as well."

"Is that so? Then that makes you my junior. Nice to meet you."

Wang Khan naturally knew Gwen would attend Columbia University; that was how it happened in the movies. He just did not know whether the current Gwen knew Peter Parker yet.

If this followed the comics, Gwen had not only met Parker long ago, but had also been his first love. Among Spider-Man's girlfriends, Gwen ranked ahead of Mary Jane.

But if this was based on the movies, especially the Original Spider-Man Trilogy, Gwen only met Parker after attending Columbia University.

Though Gwen and Parker's relationship appeared beautiful, its ending was tragic. From that perspective, it would be better if Gwen did not know Peter Parker yet.

Gwen had been a gifted biology student in the original story. Now, having just graduated from high school, she was already showing her fondness for biology. She asked Wang Khan many questions related to the subject, and he answered every one of them with ease.

As for Commissioner George, after testing several functions of the Mechanical Spiders, he was equally satisfied.

As a precinct commissioner, he was not like Winter, spending most of his time in an office overseeing the bigger picture.

George frequently went on operations and rushed to the front lines to direct the scene. Because of that, he understood all sorts of field situations extremely well. Drawing on his experience, he found these Mechanical Spiders immensely practical. They could effectively make up for ordinary officers' shortcomings in combat, defuse crises, and greatly reduce police casualties.

The NYPD's casualty rate was not low, especially for officers in Hell's Kitchen. They ran into gang shootouts every other day. Even if they habitually arrived afterward, there was still the possibility of being struck by stray bullets.

With Mechanical Spiders, they could be sent to scout shootout scenes, determine when to intervene, and identify the safest direction from which to do so.

In short, these Mechanical Spiders seemed as though they had been designed specifically for the NYPD. George could not find fault with any of their functions.

George had only come to test the Mechanical Spiders' functions. As for the price, the relevant government departments would naturally handle that. However, since Wang Khan had saved both his and his daughter's lives, George promised he would put in a good word for him and fight to get Wang Khan a higher price.

In any case, the NYPD order was practically secured, and Wang Khan had also earned the goodwill of everyone there. He had successfully opened up the situation.

While Wang Khan's Umbrella Corporation was progressing smoothly, Hammer Industries was not doing so well.

After Tony Stark shut down the weapons division, a vacancy appeared among the military's weapons suppliers. This should have been a tremendous opportunity for Hammer Industries.

Unfortunately, Hammer Industries' technology was too mediocre. Though the military was interested in working with them, it demanded technological breakthroughs. Otherwise, it would seek cooperation with Osborn instead.

Though Osborn's main business was biopharmaceuticals, it also had some involvement in weapons. Moreover, compared with Hammer Industries, the king of knockoffs, Osborn possessed independent research and development capabilities.

With Stark Industries looming over them before, Osborn could only develop in the biopharmaceutical field. Now that Stark Industries' weapons division had shut down and Tony Stark was still holed up tinkering with his armor, Osborn wanted a slice of the pie as well. This made Hammer Industries extremely nervous.

"How is that Sunshade or Umbrella Corporation doing? Have you snatched the NYPD order?"

After only a few days, Justin Hammer already had dark circles under his eyes, and his mood was extremely foul.

"Boss, Wang Khan now has a very good relationship with the NYPD's top brass, so I'm afraid we no longer have a chance at that order."

"Can't you contact the higher-ups directly?"

"That won't work either. The mayor was saved by Wang Khan this time. With that connection, we should still..."

"Fuck!! Then buy that Sunshade Corporation for me. Isn't his company's registered capital only five million? Offer him fifty million. If he still refuses ten times the price, then use some methods."

Justin Hammer was getting anxious. Furthermore, he did not want to acquire Wang Khan's Umbrella Corporation simply because he had more money than sense; he had recognized the potential of the Mechanical Spiders.

The military wanted them to make a technological breakthrough. If they acquired Umbrella Corporation, perhaps they could solve that problem.

In fact, it was not just Hammer Industries. Major companies such as Osborn and Stark had also recognized the Mechanical Spiders' technological breakthrough and wanted to acquire it. Even S.H.I.E.L.D., an organization impossible to avoid in the Marvel world, had begun paying attention to Wang Khan's little Umbrella Corporation.

With so many companies setting their sights on him, Wang Khan had no choice but to start hiring people to deal with their annoying harassment.

"Sarah Carter, what made you want to apply to a small company like mine? With your qualifications, major companies like Apple, Microsoft, and Amazon should be fighting to hire you, shouldn't they?"

Looking at the beauty calling herself Sarah Carter, whose appearance was identical to Agent 13 Sharon Carter from Captain America 2, Wang Khan knew that S.H.I.E.L.D.'s Motherfucker Nick had already set his sights on him.