Preliminary Completion

After his heated exchange with Sabretooth, Black Super's status within the Brotherhood of Mutants was established. Nobody wanted to fight someone who was so quick to open their heart; not everyone has three or four hearts waiting to be ripped out.

Mystique wanted to get the three Sabretooth hearts back, but Black Super refused.

Magneto, though not having accurately predicted this outcome, was mentally prepared for it, which is why he remained silent. After all, he had initially tacitly agreed to a two-way conflict.

Ultimately, Sabretooth and his gang acted on their own initiative, and Magneto couldn't possibly have been without his own thoughts. Anyway, Sabretooth wasn't dead; he'd just suffer a bit. Black Super was still quite measured in his actions...

Knowing one's limits? Where did that thought come from? Magneto reflected. He recalled the other party's behavior when they first met; at least he was speaking human language now. So, it's best not to push him into becoming the Clown-Sup.

For the rest of the time, Henry continued to take care of the elderly Catherine Hepburn during the day, while also devising the synthesis process for his target drug.

When it was time to sleep, they went to the Brotherhood of Mutants ' secret base to put their daytime ideas into practice and see if the results were as expected.

Because they only appear at night, Henry hasn't encountered many Mutants since arriving at this secret base. Having learned his lesson from Sabretooth, few dare to come and swagger around.

Magneto, the person who cared most about the research, would occasionally check in on the progress, in accordance with Black Super's schedule. But he couldn't stay for too long, as sleep was still very important for the elderly.

Besides him, there's also Selene occasionally comes to Black Super's for heart-to-heart talks, the kind where they probe each other's secrets and try to find out what's going on. But after being burned once, Black Super avoids this girl like the plague.

Synthesizing a substance isn't actually that difficult; the main challenges lie in controlling the costs of commercialization and the ease of operation. The reason for the cost concerns is that the Brotherhood of Mutants doesn't have enough funds for Black Super to squander.

The daily expenses for food and drink for nearly a hundred people in this secret base are considerable. Even if they can save on gas costs and rely on the mutant abilities of a few individuals to cook food, the food won't just magically appear.

Even the multi-functional electron microscope that Henry had Magneto build has many parts that are clearly pieced together from scrap materials. Magneto's abilities can control metal, but he hasn't evolved to the point where he can control paint.

So, thinking Brotherhood of Mutants is wishful thinking. The materials needed for experiments are only raised by Mystique scrimping and saving, with her long face and constant pleading.

Black Super had absolutely no intention of funding Mutants. He claimed to sponsor Vampires hunters, but in reality, it only involved Blade and Abraham Whistler. Besides them, there was also Red Guardian Alexei Shostakov.

Blade and his crew have their own ways of making money, so they don't rely entirely on Black Super's funding. Alexei is a professional spy; I heard he's even looted a lot of safe houses left over from the Red Empire era.

In any case, neither group often asked Black Super / Henry for money, but they would often ask for small tools or rare special equipment. Supporting them was not like supporting an army, which was a real drain on resources.

Although I've never seen the Mutants here go out to work and don't know the source of the Brotherhood of Mutants' current funding, if I were to generously donate money just because they're struggling financially, I doubt any amount of money could fill this bottomless pit. So I might as well not give them a single penny.

Since he didn't want to fund Mutants, and even less did he want to be at Mystique's mercy, Black Super could only be frugal, rather than squandering research materials.

Finally, just before Halloween, preliminary results were achieved in the synthesis of the X-Gene- induced drug.

Magneto, of course, was present to witness the completion of the potion. However, looking at the clear, colorless solution, the old man had a sense of unreality and asked, "This liquid, which looks just like tap water, really works?"

Black Super replied, "The drugs synthesized using other methods before, although more expensive, produced the same final product. Injecting those drugs into white mice did not produce any obvious, or even fatal, side effects."

"Besides white mice, we have also conducted experiments on larger animals to prove that the drug is at least safe and harmless. However, to see if the drug can really work, we can only risk conducting human experiments."

"Because other animals, including chimpanzees whose DNA is closest to humans, don't have X-Gene to use as a research reference. Aside from trying to induce the X-Gene in a normal person, do you think we should test the potential harm of this drug on Mutants?"

Magneto asked in surprise, "This potion is harmful to Mutants? Is it like the Terrigen Crystal of the Inhumans?"

Shaking his head, Black Super said, "Terrigen Crystal are highly toxic to Mutants; it's the other components inside that are causing the problem. Theoretically, it has nothing to do with this X-Gene inducer."

"I used the Mutants blood samples and live samples you provided to test whether the drug would have any unexpected effects. The experimental results show that the drug is safe for Mutants."

"However, our induction process involves more than just the medication; there are other stimuli as well. With that added variable, I also think we can't ignore the possibility of unexpected changes. It's up to you to decide."

It's true that Magneto had the blood sample provided. The only invasive procedure he would tolerate was drawing blood.

As for the live samples, they were the three hearts donated by the Sabretooth. They were frozen immediately after being removed from the body, and maintained a certain level of activity after thawing. Black Super took one for research without hesitation.

The reason is that Black Super and Sabretooth's group have different schedules, so they don't run into each other. Otherwise, seeing his heart being messed with, that nearly two-meter-tall burly guy would probably break down.

However, during the research process, Black Super did not constantly test Magneto's limits. He only requested blood samples when necessary, and the experimental process and results were disclosed to the Mutants.

He never once asked for a live donor, but silently used the heart offered by Sabretooth for experiments. That's why Magneto turned a blind eye.

Once the drug was ready, only the final step of practical verification remained, Black Super finally passed the buck to Magneto. Finding volunteers for experiments was simply too much trouble, and Black Super wasn't keen on getting involved.

Another drug for dementia was developed earlier than the X-Gene- inducing drug, and he is currently struggling with the same issue.

Should we first try to verify the drug's efficacy, or give it directly to the elderly woman?

Magneto, however, didn't have as many concerns. Perhaps, faced with the greater good in his heart, many things were worth compromising on. He simply asked, "What are your requirements for the test subjects?"

After thinking for a moment, Black Super said, "Considering that we can't be sure what abilities the test subjects will ultimately gain, I suggest you find a volunteer. At least that kind of person won't come back to cause trouble out of resentment."

"What If...? this volunteer is only resentful because they received a bad ability, at least that bad ability shouldn't cause us too much trouble."