Under Norman's personal supervision, Du Mu's project lab was quickly set up.
The private lab was not only spacious and self-contained, but also equipped with plenty of specialized research equipment and experimental materials for him to use whenever he needed.
Norman had originally planned to assign Du Mu several researchers and assistants to help with his work.
But Du Mu had flatly refused, accepting only Gwen, an intern at the Osborn Group, as his assistant.
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Time flew by.
A few days later, Norman came to Du Mu's lab, eager to hear about the research progress.
He pushed open the lab door, and a strong, strange smell immediately hit him.
Du Mu and Gwen were gathered around a lab table. On it sat a steaming hot pot!
"When you're cooking tripe, you have to follow the seven-up, eight-down rule. Got it?"
"Got it!"
Gwen clumsily swished the tripe around with her chopsticks, looking so focused that she might have been operating some kind of precision instrument.
The two were completely absorbed in their hot pot and hadn't noticed Norman at the door.
"What are you doing!?"
Norman finally couldn't take it anymore and demanded an explanation.
When she saw Norman, Gwen's hand jerked in fright, and the tripe she'd just picked up nearly fell back into the pot.
Du Mu calmly looked up and replied, "Can't you tell? We're developing a Life Potion."
If you hadn't told me, I never would've guessed!
Norman pointed at the bubbling Yin-Yang Hot Pot, a vein twitching at his temple. Gritting his teeth, he said, "Don't tell me that thing in the pot is the Life Potion."
Du Mu explained with a straight face, "That's right, Mr. Osborn. We're developing a hot-pot-flavored Life Potion. In the future, we're planning to develop more flavors so patients will have more options to suit their preferences."
Norman: "?"
What the hell was wrong with him?!
Who would make a medicine in so many flavors? It was medicine, not a snack!
But Norman had no time to dwell on that. He asked directly, "How much longer will it take to make a bottle of Life Potion?"
Du Mu could clearly sense the barely concealed urgency in Norman's voice.
It was obvious that Norman's health was getting worse by the day.
"Could be a week or two, could be about a month," Du Mu replied casually.
At that answer, Norman's face turned livid.
He took a deep breath and said gravely, "Can't you speed up the development of the Life Potion?"
Du Mu asked curiously, "What's the matter, Mr. Osborn? Do you need it urgently?"
"Don't ask questions you shouldn't."
"Fine. This might be difficult. Mostly, it depends on fate."
Norman: "?"
You're a scientist, and you're talking to me about fate and mysticism? What kind of nonsense is that!?
Norman felt that Du Mu was unreliable. His face livid, he said, "I don't care what method you use. You must produce a bottle of Life Potion within two days!"
"I'll do my best."
Du Mu spread his hands. Norman snorted and left the lab.
Gwen set down her chopsticks and looked at Du Mu with concern. "Doom, are you sure this is okay?"
Over the past few days, she'd been eating, drinking, and having fun with Du Mu... ahem, doing research. The two of them had grown much closer.
Gwen was worried that if Du Mu failed to produce the Life Potion, Norman would settle the score with him afterward.
"Don't worry. It'll be fine."
Du Mu waved a hand dismissively. He hadn't planned on working for Norman in earnest anyway.
What use was an NPC who couldn't even give him a quest?!
"Looks like it's time to make a move."
Du Mu took a Black Access Card from his pocket and thought to himself.
After observing the place for the past few days, he'd discovered a secret floor hidden deep inside the Osborn Building. But only Norman's personal access card could unlock it.
Just now, when Norman had come close, Du Mu had slipped the access card out of his pocket.
After giving Gwen a few simple instructions, Du Mu left the lab too.
He didn't act right away. Instead, he slipped into an empty restroom and put on the Disguise Mask.
That's right, it was Stane's mask.
Then he strode toward the elevator and waited for it to come down.
Just then, an employee carrying some documents happened to walk by. He glanced at the unmistakable face in front of the elevator and was instantly shocked.
"M-Mr. Stane?!"
As a former second-in-command and major shareholder of Stark Industries, Stane was well known in both business and tech circles. It was only natural that he'd be recognized.
"Yes, it's me."
Du Mu imitated Stane's arrogant, aloof tone and gave a slight nod.
Just then, the elevator doors opened. He stepped inside and pressed the access card against the reader without hesitation, lighting up the button for the lowest floor—a level never open to ordinary employees.
As the elevator doors slowly closed, the employee outside finally let out a breath and patted his chest.
There was no denying it: a big shot like Stane had a truly intimidating presence.
But soon, he realized something was off.
"Wait, didn't all those news reports a while back say Stane died in an accident?"
"So the person I just saw was..."
The employee swallowed, a chill shooting down his spine.
Oh, God! He'd just seen a ghost!
Ding!
The elevator doors slid smoothly open, revealing the mysterious bottom floor.
Du Mu stepped out and saw that it was nothing like the bright labs upstairs.
Rather than a lab, it looked more like a combination of a high-tech armory and a private research center.
In the most prominent central area stood a sleek green Glider. On a nearby rack were more than a dozen metal bombs shaped like pumpkins, along with a dark green, skintight combat suit.
"Holy smokes, the game designers hid all this loot here!"
Du Mu's eyes lit up.
Without hesitation, he activated auto-loot mode and swept all the weapons and gear into his Game Inventory.
Only then did he turn his attention to an encrypted computer terminal in the corner, connected to a private network.
Du Mu took out his Hacker Phone and easily cracked into the terminal.
As the screen unlocked, a mass of encrypted files appeared.
Du Mu quickly found a classified file bearing the Department of Defense insignia.
He opened it. The file revealed that Norman and the military were working together to recreate a Super Soldier Serum project from World War II.
The report showed that after countless failures, they'd successfully recreated two vials of the serum. But a bright red note beside them stated that they had not been tested on humans and that the risks were unknown.
The moment Du Mu confirmed the contents of the secret file, a system notification rang out in his mind.
[Quest "Investigate the Osborn Group" completed!]
[Rewards: 1,000 experience points, 20 S.H.I.E.L.D. reputation, item "Death Qi Bullet"]
[Item: Death Qi Bullet (The head of anyone hit by it bursts into flames, greatly increasing their physical attributes. They will do everything in their power to complete the thing they most regret not doing before being hit. Side effect: their clothes explode, making them prone to public humiliation.)]