Roosevelt Station

Two weeks later.

The detailed structural design had been far more difficult than he'd imagined. It took Li Si a full two weeks to finally complete the first draft of his first creation.

The bulk of that time had gone into the mechanical limbs and power system.

To ensure the joints were flexible, he studied countless design examples for the mechanical arms in the limbs and crammed on medical textbooks. In the end, he settled on a biomimetic structure.

The number of sections in the mechanical limbs' bones matched those of a human body. Every joint, including the finger joints, was connected by magnetic spherical rollers that could rotate a full 360 degrees without any blind spots.

Each mechanical arm was packed with twenty-eight tiny motors made by Stark Industries, which controlled its movements with precision. The arm's main power came from a three-stage hydraulic system, giving it a theoretical punch force of ten tons.

This was only the raw strength of the mechanical arms. Taking into account the momentum of a punch and the transfer of mechanical energy through the other components, their explosive force could reach roughly eighteen tons.

The legs had slightly fewer small motors, with just sixteen. That was enough for legs that didn't need to grasp things or operate tools.

In exchange for using fewer small motors, the legs had four large motors and a hydraulic system to provide hybrid power. Their theoretical output force was sixteen tons, with an explosive force of twenty-four. In pure strength, they already matched Spider-Man—and might even surpass him.

Next came the power supply. Li Si had hesitated for a long time before making his final decision.

The enhanced lithium battery technology of his home Earth was outstanding in terms of capacity—even Graphene Batteries couldn't compare. Graphene Batteries, on the other hand, had the advantage of charging and discharging much faster, at least five times faster than enhanced lithium batteries.

After much deliberation, Li Si finally chose Graphene Battery technology. Faster charging and discharging meant a more powerful energy output. As for capacity, it only needed to be sufficient.

Because of the Graphene Batteries' limited capacity, he had to design the power supply as a series battery pack of eight large Graphene Batteries. He also separated the power systems for the robot and sports car forms.

He planned to keep the internal combustion engine for the sports car form, while adding a small generator to convert some of the engine's mechanical energy into electricity for storage. That way, the battery pack would stay fully charged and could be topped up at any time.

"Next, I just have to wait for the parts to arrive. I'll also need to find a way to get some weapons."

After listing all the parts he needed on paper and placing the orders, Li Si finally relaxed and stretched out comfortably on his bed.

Many of the parts needed custom specifications and shapes, and their machining tolerances were quite demanding. They couldn't be made in a short time. Besides, he didn't have enough money to buy all the parts yet, so the Transformer project would have to be put on hold for now.

Next, he needed to find a way to get enough money. He also had to figure out how to obtain the Scientist Template.

The requirements for obtaining the Scientist Template were extremely high. He had to earn a relevant degree, or reach a certain level of expertise and gain some recognition in academia. At the very least, he had to publish a few papers and become known to his peers.

Those were only the basic requirements. The hardest part was the final one: becoming a key member of a project at a top-tier laboratory.

The first two requirements wouldn't be difficult. His Level 4 Mechanical Knowledge was more than sufficient, and it would be easy to build a reputation. Once the Spider-Man storyline began, his Transformer design would inevitably be exposed. After that, he wouldn't be able to avoid fame even if he wanted to.

The only real obstacle for him now was the final requirement. To meet it, he either needed talent or money.

If he had enough money, he could simply set up a lab of a sufficiently high caliber. But top-tier research equipment was outrageously expensive. The cost would be astronomical for him right now.

Relying on talent would be even more frustrating. Li Si had no trouble with either the standard knowledge-level assessments or the genuine knowledge tests in full-immersion mode. But talent alone wouldn't be enough. At best, he'd become an assistant in a lab. To become a key member, he'd still have to work his way up.

That would save him money, but he couldn't afford to waste time. If he spent a year or two—or even longer—working his way up, it would be far too late.

"Either way, I'll have to start with Oscorp. I might as well pursue both options at once. If nothing else works, working my way up is still an option!"

With a plan already taking shape, Li Si's lips curled into a faint smile. He sprang out of bed, got ready, pulled on a hoodie, and left home.

He hadn't forgotten that a massive treasure from the Spider-Man storyline was waiting for him to claim. It hadn't started yet, but that didn't stop him from getting to it early.

New York's D Line, Pershing Square Platform.

Roosevelt Station was a secret branch platform beneath Pershing Square. When it was first built, it had served as a station for President Roosevelt, allowing him to travel without revealing his polio symptoms. But by now, the branch had long been abandoned, and it was no longer a secret.

Li Si stooped to crawl through a wall that had long since collapsed. The sight of the old railway tracks, abandoned for who knew how many years, filled him with excitement. After cautiously checking that there was no one around, he climbed onto the platform.

He found the turnstile on the platform and inserted an old-fashioned token he'd bought some time ago. After waiting quietly for a few seconds, he heard a series of clicks around him. Only then did Li Si finally relax and smile.

The clicking was just the beginning. As faint tremors shook the platform and dust drifted down, the tracks beneath it slowly split apart. A carriage from an old train gradually rose into view.

The carriage was what he'd come here for—or, more precisely, what was inside it.

Although Roosevelt Station had been abandoned, it had actually been converted into a secret laboratory by Peter Parker's parents, Richard and Mary Parker. Before they died, they uploaded all their research data on gene-splicing experiments to a computer inside the lab.

That research data was valuable. With it, his Biological Knowledge would gain a huge amount of targeted experience.

And he hadn't forgotten that this experiment was what had created Spider-Man and the Lizard. If he could fully understand the research, he could make not just Spider-Man, but even a Pig-Man or Husky-Man.

Looking at the whole of Marvel Comics, this was probably the easiest—and only complete—superhuman creation technology to obtain. The others either had damaged records or serious flaws.

Osborn had spent years searching for this research. In the end, it would fall into Li Si's hands.