Laboratory

When Henry regained consciousness, the crescent moon was high in the sky. It was clearly the middle of the night.

The California desert in autumn was still a bit chilly. Kitty, the little Tiger who had eaten her fill, was curled up in Henry's arms. It was hard to tell whether she wanted to warm herself or help her owner stay warm.

The surroundings were quite calm, and the venomous snakes and scorpions common in the desert didn't even approach Henry's direction. It's as if even if they coiled around him, they wouldn't be able to pierce through Krypton skin.

Remembering he had missed dinner and unable to bear the hunger, Henry picked up Kitty and headed towards his container-style laboratory. He assumed he had just been half asleep and didn't think much of it.

The lock hanging on the door was just a cheap one bought from a hardware store.

If a container shop is spotted in a place like this, using a high-grade lock would be like posting a sign saying "There's no silver buried here," telling others that something is wrong, which is why a good lock is needed for protection.

A regular padlock serves only to deter honest people, not malicious ones. It tells those who see it that this is not a refuge, and no one should enter without permission.

Because refuge cabins typically located in remote areas do not use locks or other personal devices to restrict access for strangers.

He opened the door; the container house was pitch black inside, but that didn't stop the Kryptonian with his Super Vision. Henry walked to the back of the container house and turned on the power.

The lights, representing civilization, instantly illuminated the interior of the container, revealing everything.

The container house had no partitions inside; it was essentially just an empty 40-foot container. Henry simply placed some things inside and used it as a living space.

Even the ventilation vents of the power generation equipment were in good condition, maintaining ventilation inside the container and leaving no strange smells.

Henry's wind power generation equipment wasn't like a windmill, a conspicuous man-made structure standing in the desert. That way, anyone who saw it would know there was something wrong with it.

Henry designed a wind tunnel that gathers winds from all directions, disguised as a natural landscape. The wind turbines inside the tunnel are then installed at the convergence point to generate electricity.

The Sun Pharma panels have also been similarly camouflaged. It's safe to say that unless you observe them up close, from a distance or in satellite photos, you definitely won't be able to tell that there are any man-made structures here.

Considering the issue of freshness, only some emergency dry food was placed here. Fortunately, there is a single-burner stove, so preparing some hot food is not a big problem.

The switch that was turned on earlier was actually hidden among a bunch of shelves. Apart from emergency food, the shelves contained raw materials that could be used to synthesize medicines.

In the corner was a sofa bed where one could sit or lie down, and the remaining space was filled by a long table displaying various glassware. Those beakers, conical flasks, funnels, and other items were the equipment Henry used to synthesize drugs.

However, the glass bottles are now clean and don't emit any strange smells. It's just that the container room is well-ventilated, and dust easily accumulates. Even with screens added to the vents, it's not enough to prevent fine dust from getting in.

Henry had considered setting up a BB series core robot here for routine cleaning and maintenance. However, the core robot required a server for computation, which would consume a considerable amount of electricity.

Although wind and Sun Pharma power generation equipment was installed in the laboratory, along with a diesel generator as a backup, the power supply could not be fully utilized.

Therefore, this is mainly a place for chemical synthesis. Other work that consumes a lot of electricity is still carried out at the rented house.

Arriving in a new place, curious Kitty continued to look around. She even climbed onto the table with her front paws, trying to jump on it like she did at home.

Henry had no intention of paying attention to the little Tiger. Mainly because the glassware on the table was easily broken; and secondly, he didn't want the child to develop a habit of taking whatever he wanted.

The hierarchy within the family is quietly established through this back-and-forth struggle. Verbal authority is useless to a Tiger; you have to demonstrate it through actions.

So when Henry saw Kitty stand up and try to jump onto the table, he didn't hesitate and hooked her foot, sending Kitty tumbling to the ground.

Then, undeterred, it went up again. Henry hooked it again. It went up again, and continued hooking. A third time...

Ah, they've really gotten into it!

Henry simply kicked Kitty over, stomped on her belly, and pinned her down. Finally, he could eat his freshly warmed canned pig feed in peace...

It was the middle of the night in the middle of nowhere. Even with Super Speed and the ability to fly, getting to a 24-hour fresh food supermarket would require flying a considerable distance. Henry, suffering from laziness, could only make do with what he had in the lab.

As for the Tiger struggling desperately at his feet, scratching him with its claws, it couldn't hurt the Kryptonian in the slightest, nor could it break free from that strange foot. At most, it would just tear his trouser leg, a mere token of its concern.

Henry finished the canned food in a few bites. Only then did he put down Kitty, wash the dishes, and then check the remaining ingredients on the shelf. He pondered which materials he needed to replenish in order to make the new medicine.

Some raw materials can be obtained through legitimate channels, but buying some regulated materials is more complicated and requires finding connections and spending more money.

Although it's similar to buying finished medicine directly—some are easy to buy, some are not, and you have to go through the black market—the prices are worlds apart. The claim that one can of medicine can buy a ton of raw materials is by no means an exaggeration.

Kitty, now freed, lost her initial energy from jumping on the table and instead followed Henry around, biting and scratching Henry trouser legs as if seeking revenge.

Even after being gently pushed away, Kitty relentlessly charged forward to continue her unfinished mission.

Okay. Playing with Tiger? The Kryptonian ' constitution is overwhelming in every way, so they probably won't be afraid. But it looks like it'll wear out their pants...

In just a short while, although the pants weren't torn into strips, the hems were already tattered.

However, Henry had also taken stock of the materials and made a procurement plan. Most of the expenses could be covered by the 600,000-plus illicit funds, without needing to use the bank account.

Leaving aside the regulated materials, even the unregulated materials can be sourced from underground suppliers. Although the price will be higher, it can be bought with illicit funds. Compared to the high percentage of losses from money laundering, this price difference is acceptable.

Furthermore, purchasing through public channels means that a purchase record is left behind. If this happens to CIA intelligence analysts, they could very well analyze one's behavior from these records.

This ill-gotten money was also the reason Henry wanted to make some medicine as a backup. He used to only make medicine when he needed it, and didn't have the habit of stockpiling medicine.

Insufficient funds were one issue, but another was the inability to estimate the amount of medication needed from the outset. Developing medications that wouldn't be needed would be a waste of both money and time. This estimated amount was only possible after more than six months of operating experience.

As for the remaining money, Henry opened a secret door in a shipping container and put it into a safe in the cave.

This money is not suitable to be kept in Black Clinic or a rented house. It would be better to put it in this secluded laboratory.