Green Goblin Is Born

After obtaining Harry Osborn's blood sample, Lin Hai began wrapping up the experiments already underway.

His research into the Osborn hereditary disease had reached its final stage. With Harry's blood sample, he could begin targeted research.

In the days that followed, everyone was under immense pressure. With Harry's consent, Lin Hai told Gwen and Peter—who had not yet become Spider-Man—about the Osborn family's hereditary disease. He wanted the two of them to help, so the four could complete the research together, but he also wanted to prepare them for what might come.

That way, if the Green Goblin truly appeared later, Peter and Gwen could quickly spring into action instead of panicking.

Amid the frantic rush against time, mid-June arrived. All four of them were top students, so their research did not interfere with their final exams. If anything, compared to the work they were doing now, even college courses were nothing special.

When the bell signaling the end of the final exam rang, Lin Hai was still using his fountain pen to fill in the last line of an equation. The other students cheered and rushed out of the classroom, while he merely set down his pen and rubbed his aching eyes.

"Another perfect paper, Lin." Gwen Stacy leaned against the doorframe, her blonde hair gleaming in the sunlight streaming through the window. "Though I doubt you even took the exam seriously."

Lin Hai smiled and stuffed his stationery into his backpack. "The exam was just a formality. I'm sure it was the same for you."

"Not at all. I've been studying very seriously lately." Gwen smiled and blinked.

That was true. Gwen was always so diligent, but exams were never a problem for her either, because she was always first in her class.

The hallways of Midtown High School were packed with students celebrating the end of the semester. Lin Hai and Gwen made their way through the crowd toward the parking lot behind the school. Peter and Harry were already waiting there, engaged in a heated discussion.

"But if we alter the base sequence, the side effects may affect neuronal synaptic transmission." Peter pushed up his glasses, his fingers sketching molecular structures in the air.

Harry folded his arms, brow deeply furrowed. "Then we need a delivery system that targets only muscle cells."

The moment Lin Hai approached, their discussion stopped. "Is Plan B ready?" he asked directly.

"Freshly drawn. I added anticoagulant as you instructed." Harry nodded and took a silver cooler from his backpack. Inside was his blood sample.

"My father asked about my extracurricular research project again today." Harry's voice sank. "I told him we were working on nanomaterials."

Gwen patted Harry on the shoulder. "Hang in there for a few more days. Once we complete the first phase of testing, we'll be able to bring him good news."

"Assuming our theory holds up," Peter cut in. Under Gwen's glare, he shrank back. "I mean, it definitely will."

Harry's private laboratory in Osborn Tower.

Harry swiped his card to unlock the door. Once the four of them filed inside, Lin Hai immediately placed the blood sample into the analyzer. Complex genetic sequence data began scrolling across the screen.

Harry had disconnected his laboratory from the Osborn Group's data network to keep unrelated people from discovering that they were researching the Osborn family's hereditary disease. If outsiders learned that the central figure of the Osborn Group was seriously ill, it would undoubtedly have a major negative impact.

Harry's stated reason was that if a few high school students made a mistake, at least they would not drag everyone else down with them. Since he was the heir to the Osborn Group, everyone turned a blind eye and allowed it.

"Begin cross-comparison," Lin Hai instructed. "Gwen, handle the mitochondrial abnormalities. Peter, check the neurotransmitter receptors. Harry, monitor changes in enzyme activity."

The four swiftly got to work. Only the clatter of keyboards and the hum of machinery remained in the laboratory. Lin Hai stood before the central console, staring at the rotating DNA double-helix model in the holographic display.

Lin Hai looked at Harry. "Harry, how serious is your father's condition now?"

Harry's fingers clenched tightly around the edge of the lab bench. "He's started talking to himself lately. Sometimes he suddenly flies into a rage, then goes back to normal. The doctors say it's temporary schizophrenia caused by stress."

The four fell silent. Lin Hai knew Norman Osborn's condition was worse than Harry described. The Green Goblin personality was taking shape.

An alarm suddenly sounded, and an encrypted message lit up Harry's phone. He glanced at it, his face turning even paler. "It's from my father's assistant. He said the official test volunteers from before have all been used up, and they can't recruit another batch anytime soon. So my father is planning to test it on himself."

"What?" Gwen cried. "The experimental data hasn't even been fully verified!"

"What formula is he using?" Lin Hai asked urgently.

Harry tremblingly pulled up another file. "The Third-Generation Enhancer he developed. It's much safer than the first generation, but the side effects are still there!"

Lin Hai's mind raced. No one knew yet what effects the Third-Generation Enhancer would produce, but he knew one thing: barring any surprises, Norman Osborn would completely transform into the Green Goblin after the test.

"Friends, I need your cooperation—not only to cure Mr. Osborn, but also to deal with any... other situations that may arise." Lin Hai looked at his three companions, especially Harry.

"You mean if my father's experiment fails..." Harry's voice caught.

Lin Hai nodded. "We need to prepare for the worst. Peter, Gwen, remember that 'extracurricular equipment' you designed? It's time to upgrade it."

Gwen's eyes lit up. "My biomechanical gloves can be enhanced with adhesion capabilities."

Peter was already sketching designs on his tablet. "My electromagnetic disruptor will definitely come in handy!"

Harry looked at his three friends, and the fear in his eyes was gradually replaced by determination. "I'll keep refining the cure. For my father, and for myself."

Lin Hai felt the energy within him stir restlessly. Whether it was his awareness of approaching danger or his tension over the coming battle, time was running out. The Green Goblin was about to be born, and they had to create the antidote before it happened.

Or prepare to face an out-of-control supervillain.

Night had fallen over New York. Norman Osborn stood before his computer, trembling fingers tapping at the white keyboard. The monitor's blue glow reflected in his sunken eye sockets, making his once-handsome face look ghostly. Beneath his lab coat, his emaciated body could barely support his tailored suit anymore. The hereditary disease was consuming him from within.

"Mr. Osborn, the Scientific Ethics Committee has once again rejected the application for human test volunteers," the assistant said carefully. "They believe the safety data for the Third-Generation Enhancer is still insufficient."

"Get out." Norman's voice was quiet, yet it made the assistant fall silent and immediately retreat.

After the laboratory door closed, Norman violently swept the instruments from the table onto the floor. The sound of shattering glass echoed through the empty laboratory. He braced both hands against the metal counter, gasping for breath as sweat dripped from his forehead.

In the smooth, mirrorlike metal casing of a nearby machine, another Norman sneered at him.

"Look. They all want you dead." That Norman tilted his head, his lips twisted. "The moment the board discovers your condition, they'll take over your company. The investors will pull their funding too. Even your son is pulling little tricks behind your back."

Norman closed his eyes. "Harry is only doing a school project."

"A school project?" The voice from the side turned sharp. "Do you really not know what he and those little geniuses are researching? They're researching you! Researching your son! Researching how to cure the family curse that turned you into this!"

Norman opened his eyes. The other version of himself was staring at him with a savage expression he had never worn before.

"They don't have enough time, Norman." The voice suddenly softened, taking on a seductive tone. "You know what your only chance is. It's in the safe right in front of you."

Norman's gaze shifted to the biometric safe by the wall. Inside was the last dose of the Third-Generation Enhancer.

"It might kill me!" Norman protested unwillingly, turning his head away.

"If you don't inject it, you'll definitely die." The glass reflected another Norman's vicious, twisted smile. "Think about it. Super strength, super speed, super healing—all from the enhancement. Is there anything more important than living?"

Norman's breathing grew more and more rapid. The hallucinations had become increasingly frequent over the past few weeks. Sometimes, he could no longer tell what was real and what his mind had fabricated.

Last night, he saw spiders crawling all over the ceiling. At this morning's board meeting, he had been certain that the chief financial officer's head had turned into a pumpkin.

The final stage of the hereditary disease—neural degeneration—had begun.

Norman tremblingly entered the code and pressed his palm against the scanner. The safe slid open soundlessly, cold air spilling out. A syringe filled with fluorescent green liquid lay quietly atop the velvet lining.

"For Osborn Industries," Norman muttered, picking up the syringe.

"For yourself," the Norman in the glass corrected.

Norman rolled up his sleeve and drove the needle into his arm. The instant the green liquid slowly entered his vein, a violent burning sensation spread through his body along his veins. He let out an inhuman howl and collapsed to his knees.

The laboratory lights began to flicker. Norman's vision was swallowed by green. He felt his bones restructuring, his muscles tearing and healing, his nerve endings assaulted as though by thousands of needles at once. The pain surpassed the limits of human endurance, only to abruptly cease at some critical threshold.

Norman slowly rose to his feet and found that his vision had become clearer than ever before. He clenched his fist and felt surging power racing through his veins.

Even the faintest sounds in the laboratory were crystal clear: his assistant breathing in the next room, a cleaner pushing a cart upstairs, even the mechanical hum of a distant elevator.

He looked toward the glass at the side of the laboratory.

The Norman in the glass smiled at him. It was a twisted, insane smile unlike any he had ever made.

"Finally... free~" Norman's voice carried boundless relief and madness.

Norman smashed the glass with one punch. In the glittering shards, countless Green Goblins grinned viciously at him.