Visitors from Kamar-Taj

After sleeping for less than six hours, Tony got up, put on Mark 3, and returned to Los Angeles.

Half an hour later, Fitz rushed to the airport with a huge pile of luggage.

Naturally, the others could not stay idle either. Under Old Wang’s command, they cleaned up and made room for the new equipment.

Once Skye had calmed down, she reached an agreement with a major construction company from the East. With the funding in place, the project team and construction crews quickly arrived and began the intense, rapid construction.

When countrymen met countrymen, their eyes filled with tears.

It was not quite that dramatic, but Old Wang was still delighted to see familiar faces. He promised that anyone who finished within the stipulated time would receive a generous bonus, roughly equal to half a year’s salary.

The entire construction period was only three months.

As long as the money was in place, neither speed nor quality would be a problem.

The diligence and ingenuity of the Chinese were naturally plain for the whole world to see. The pace of construction left Eli and Lucy utterly astonished.

Old Wang’s standards were high, and the total floor area was enormous. This was by no means a small laboratory, but a gigantic facility comparable to a national laboratory—or rather, a company.

The prototype of the "Azeroth Group" had already emerged. Skye quickly registered the company, with its headquarters in New York—

That tiny grocery store.

This place was the branch office.

Its name was no longer the "Darkhold Laboratory," but the "Azeroth Laboratory," a very plain name.

Each building was an independent laboratory, such as the "Physical Engineering Laboratory" headed by Fitz and the "Biochemistry Laboratory" headed by Simmons.

Recruitment aimed at the public, schools, and certain departments proceeded smoothly with the help of Fitz and the others.

This was a commercial society. Higher salaries meant greater competitiveness, not to mention that what Old Wang had in greatest abundance were the research subjects scientists valued most.

In just half a month, a huge wave of scientists, master’s students, and PhD candidates was on its way.

Although the working conditions were somewhat poor and the confidentiality requirements extremely strict, the excellent compensation and prospects still left these high-tech talents very satisfied—

Especially after hearing that their boss had close ties with Mr. Stark.

Of course, what excited Old Wang most was Stark Industries’ continuously rising stock price.

Tony officially announced that Stark Industries would become the world’s largest clean energy company, providing inexpensive, stable, comprehensive clean energy to Los Angeles, as well as more than three hundred cities across over twenty countries worldwide. He also planned to move its headquarters to New York.

A Stark Tower, set to rank among the ten tallest buildings in New York, was about to break ground.

Old Wang seized the opportunity and recommended his diligent, conscientious countrymen.

Fitz reported the progress to Old Wang punctually every day.

Tony’s abilities naturally needed no questioning, and Fitz was highly capable with his hands as well. Working with Tony, he learned a great deal every day. Even a casual remark from Tony could give him insights that no one else could offer.

Though more often than not, they were meaningless nonsense… from Tony.

During this process, Tony grew increasingly interested after hearing Fitz inadvertently reveal knowledge about the Darkhold.

He was ready at any moment to jump into the pit Old Wang had dug for him.

The days passed one by one.

The two worked together seamlessly. With J.A.R.V.I.S.’s help, they quickly assembled the purchased and custom-made parts, and a complete set of cutting-edge equipment finally took shape.

After a simple test, the entire set of equipment was flown to San Juan aboard Tony’s private plane.

Equipment that was excessively precise and complicated was often difficult to install as well.

Lucy and the others were purely theoretical researchers. Otherwise, they would not have risked leaking classified information to ask Eli to manufacture quantum batteries in the first place.

Under such circumstances, they could only watch helplessly before Old Wang sent them back to research the Framework and Quantum Brain, squeezing out their remaining value.

Tony was a busy man. As the chairman of Stark Industries, he obviously could not come over to work as an installer.

Fitz could only install the equipment himself, with Eli assisting him.

It took a full half day before they finally finished.

The complete set of equipment occupied a massive room, and only a very small number of people were allowed inside.

For example, scientists.

For example, test subjects.

"Matt, bring Whitehall over!"

At Old Wang’s command, Daredevil hurriedly complied.

"Whitehall, it’s time for you to prove your worth."

Whitehall barely looked human anymore. Under Skye’s "careful care," he had spent a full month in "bliss," dying and reviving every day. Even someone as insane as him could barely endure it. No one knew how many times he had passed out from pain, or how many times he had awakened in agony.

Scientists rarely took their own lives. Their devotion to science made them cherish life more than most people.

But Whitehall only wanted to die now.

How many times had he awakened in the dead of night, wishing he were in hell rather than among the living?

He would rather endure Satan’s whip than Skye’s vibrations.

He was certainly not going to heaven, but even hell was better than this world.

Chinese blood flowed through Skye’s veins. When it came to the art of tormenting people, who could compare to those ancestors who had too much time on their hands?

This was inheritance.

His mangled body was bound to the test bench with belts and ropes. Large amounts of nutrient solution and saline flowed into his veins, making it impossible for this prominent Hydra figure, who had been protesting through hunger strikes, to die even if he wanted to.

A helmet was placed over his head. Countless probes and electrodes were attached to him or pierced through his skin, while weak electrical currents of varying frequencies and intensities flowed in and out.

Amid his constant twitching and groaning, the brain mapping had begun.

On the screens of more than a dozen instruments, flickering points of light and restless waves continually appeared. A beautiful three-dimensional image of a brain slowly lit up.

"Uh, this may take a little time."

Fitz gestured as he explained, "Everyone’s brain is different, and everyone has a different amount of memories. The older a person is, the more memories they tend to have, the more complex the relevant areas of the cerebral cortex become, and the more difficult the mapping is. Whitehall has lived for nearly ninety years, so mapping him is much more difficult than mapping a young person. There are also dozens of other influencing factors…"

"Just tell me how long." Old Wang cut him off.

"Uh… all right. At most, one day." Fitz raised a finger and waved it.

"Good."

Just one day. That was not too much.

Since the Winter Soldier had spent most of his time asleep, he should have fewer memories than Whitehall.

But each of The Hand’s Five Fingers had lived for more than a thousand years. Their memories far exceeded Whitehall’s.

If they had to do them one at a time, would that not take nearly two months?

"Make a few more sets."

Old Wang made a quick estimate and said, "At least five sets."

"Actually, there’s no need."

Fitz suddenly thought of something and picked up a helmet from the side. "The equipment has sixteen input ports. It can support the brain mapping of sixteen people at the same time. They just need to wear the helmets."

Old Wang: "…"

Were all scientists like this?

If they were not arrogant maniacs like Tony, then they were passive, tight-lipped types like Fitz?

Or exhibitionists like Banner, running around everywhere in nothing but oversized shorts?

"Bring the Winter Soldier and the Five Fingers over. Map them simultaneously and upload them simultaneously," Old Wang ordered.

Then he paused slightly.

His Pandaren instincts told him that another crisis was approaching.

And his sufficiently powerful mind sensed the change in space at the very first moment.

It was a spatial fluctuation similar to Teleportation. Someone was crossing space to come here.

Old Wang seemed to sense something and turned his gaze toward a spot ten meters away.

A golden ring of light appeared, and more than a dozen people stepped out from within.