radicalducati Chapter 78 Temporary Number 5
Chapter 78 Temporary Number 5
Chapter 78 Temporary Number Five
Seeing Maeve's burning gaze, Butcher paused for a moment, then smiled with a hint of disbelief: "If it really exists, then it is indeed possible."
"But the question is, where do we find them?"
He flipped through the documents in his hand again, and then suddenly took out a photo.
There are eight superhumans in the photo, each wearing a suit.
The soldier boy stood prominently in the center, with Black standing to his side, now part of the Super Seven.
"Blood for blood?" Butcher glanced at the photo a few times, muttering the name of the superhero duo.
Blood for Blood was the most famous superhero team of the last century, until it was replaced by The Seven and gradually faded from public view.
The group was centered around Soldier Boy, the world's strongest superhero at the time, with other members including Countess Crimson, Gunpowder, Black, Mind Storm, Bugman, and the Dynamite twins.
Maeve pointed to the man and woman closest to the soldier boy in the photo and said, "The Crimson Countess was the soldier boy's girlfriend, and Gunpowder was his second-in-command. They are the two most likely to know the specifics of what happened back then."
Butcher nodded, but then asked, "Blackie is your teammate now, why don't you ask him?"
Maeve shook her head speechlessly: "Even if that guy could talk, he wouldn't tell me."
.
Butcher recalled the scene of his previous battle with Black and agreed with Maeve's statement, no longer hoping for that possibility.
Just then, he saw Maeve reach into her bag and rummage around for a while before suddenly throwing a punch at him.
"What is this?" Butcher asked, looking at the green liquid in the glass tubes in his palm after taking it.
Maeve raised an eyebrow, a slight smile playing on her lips, and said with a knowing look, "It's something that can make you stronger."
Waterhouse, conference room.
Defense Secretary Robert Singer pinched a small glass tube between two fingers, glanced at the green liquid inside in the sunlight streaming through the window, and turned to look across the street: "Temporary Compound Five?"
Sitting opposite him was a well-dressed, elegant black man, Stan Edgar, the president of the Water Corporation.
Edgar smiled and explained, "That's right. Although the sales department hasn't officially decided on its name yet, calling it Temporary Compound No. 5 is quite appropriate."
"Just one dose can give your soldiers superpowers for 24 hours a day."
"When the time comes, they will return to normal."
"Is the effect stable?" The Minister of Defense pushed up his glasses and looked down again at the tube of green medicine in his hand.
"It's still being improved, but we'll finish it soon," Edgar said frankly, without holding anything back.
Although he was saying that the product was not yet mature, his tone was full of convincing confidence.
However, the person he was talking to was no ordinary person.
Robert Singer is no ordinary man who has risen to the position of Secretary of Defense; he would not be so easily influenced by others.
He sat down, slowly turning the vial of temporary No. 5 medicine in his fingers: "If its effects are temporary, it means the Ministry of Defense will have to keep buying it."
"Your regular Compound No. 5 costs five million per dose. How much do you plan to sell this for?"
Edgar seemed unconcerned and said casually, "About two million."
"Heh, so you're saying that in a month-long operation, each soldier would cost $60 million, and a squad would cost $600 million?" The Secretary of Defense chuckled.
Edgar understood the implication in his words, and instead of answering directly, he suddenly changed the subject and asked, "How's your campaign going?"
Upon hearing this, the Defense Minister looked at Edgar and changed his tone: "Thank you for your donation to my political action committee—"
Edgar smiled and nodded slightly: "The people like Southerners in the White House, but what will they think of you if you don't give brave soldiers the opportunity to have superpowers?"
The Defense Minister's expression gradually turned serious: "The appearance of superhumans in the military will absolutely cause chaos!"
"Many of your superheroes have done things that would warrant prosecution for war crimes!"
Faced with this responsibility, Edgar stared at the Secretary of Defense sitting opposite him, pressed a button on the remote control without expression, and the conference room door slowly closed.
Only after the entire conference room was sealed off did his expression suddenly change, and he sighed helplessly, "You're right."
"What?" The Minister of Defense thought he had misheard.
"I say, you're absolutely right!" Edgar's voice suddenly rose.
"If every superhero were like Red Dawn, that would be what I really want to see."
"Unfortunately, apart from Red Dawn and a few others, the vast majority of superheroes have a lot of troubles to deal with."
"Let me tell you a secret, I actually hope that Vought can completely leave the superhero industry within five years."
"Nonsense." The Defense Minister's face said, "Do you think I believe that?"
Edgar spread his hands and described his vision: "Our company should be a serious company, a defense and pharmaceutical company, not a baby management center that deals with emergencies every day."
"1
He walked up to the Minister of Defense: "But you don't need to worry about these trivial matters."
"Because your soldiers will only have their superpowers temporarily for 24 hours."
"Wouldn't this kind of product be more suitable?"
Seeing the lingering hesitation on the Minister of Defense's face, he added, "Red Dawn, he and your soldiers have carried out countless missions, large and small, without a single failure. They've accomplished their objectives perfectly every time, haven't they?"
"You should be aware of his abilities and discipline."
"But this is only the cooperation between him and ordinary soldiers."
"Just imagine, if you had a team of super soldiers led by him, how amazing would that team be? How much trouble could they solve?"
Upon hearing this, the Minister of Defense instinctively brought the vial of temporary No. 5 medicine to his eyes, gazing at the greenish liquid within, and fell into deep thought.
drop-
As soon as Butcher passed through the security gate, an alarm immediately went off.
A security guard raised his hand to stop him, indicating that he needed to check.
"Oh, sorry, I forgot about this." Butcher drew a pistol from his back waist and handed it to the security guard who had stopped him.
"Oh, nice gun. You can go now." The security guard glanced casually at the gun in Butcher's hand, made a compliment, and let him pass without even checking the gun.
After all, this is an annual gun show, so it's not unusual for people to be carrying guns, is it?
With a strange expression, Butcher tucked the pistol back into his waistband and walked deeper into the exhibition, passing by a series of display stands showcasing various firearms.
Many people attended the exhibition, including a number of minors. Many children, only a few years old, ran around excitedly, picked up this gun to test its weight, and looked at the internal structure of that gun, having a great time.
Even more disturbingly, there were babies who came along in their parents' arms, playing and crying in this noisy environment.
Butcher walked into an exhibition hall and casually found an empty seat to sit down.
At this moment, on the stage, an elderly man fully armed, carrying various firearms and ammunition, is giving a passionate speech.
This man was none other than Gunpowder, a member of the Blood Debt Repayment Squad from back then and the second-in-command of Soldier Boy!
However, the boy who was not even 18 years old back then has now become an elderly man with a face full of wrinkles, nearly forty years later.
"OK, ladies and gentlemen, thank you for coming!"
"Don't forget to mention the promotional code 'Gunpowder' before leaving the venue—buy one get one free on hollow-point bullets!"
After finishing his closing remarks, Gunpowder left the exhibition hall amidst cheers from the audience.
Butcher followed Gunpowder all the way to the restroom and approached him, saying, "Mr. Gunpowder, I'm a big fan of yours. I've bought every single gun you've recommended."
"That Wot VR-15 is just too—"
"Yeah, that gun is amazing, the trigger is so steady." Although it felt strange to be talked to in the restroom, Gunpowder still responded to the fierce-looking middle-aged male fan in front of him.
"To be honest, I've been following you since you were a member of the 'Blood for Blood' group, when you were only 14."
"At only 20 years old, she's already become a soldier boy's assistant," Butcher praised again.
Gunpowder washed his hands and looked at Butcher in the mirror, his tone seemingly changing: "Yes, he's a great man."
Butcher dropped the pretense, a sinister smile creeping across his face: "Oh, really?"
"But I seem to remember you saying something different before?"
He took a folded piece of paper from his pocket, unfolded it, and showed it to Gunpowder: "This is the complaint you submitted to Walter, requesting to leave the Blood Debt Repayment Act."
"The reason is—long-term abuse and beatings by male soldiers?"
"Of course, a company as shady as Walter wouldn't have taken your complaint seriously, would it?"
Gunpowder whirled around, his face contorted with rage, and a low growl escaped his throat: "That's fake! What do you mean by saying this now?!"
Butcher's smile widened: "Relax, buddy, I can keep this a secret."
"But on the condition that you tell me exactly how the soldier boy died!"
"Oh? Perhaps I can just kill you—" Gunpowder glared at Butcher, his face full of warning, as if he would strike at any moment.
But just then, someone suddenly walked into the toilet from outside.
Seeing this, Gunpowder glared at Butcher and walked straight out of the restroom.
Butcher was only a few seconds too late in chasing after it, and by then the gunpowder had vanished without a trace.
After thinking for a moment, he headed straight for the underground parking garage, intending to ambush the person there.
Because he had investigated the license plate of the gunpowder car beforehand, Butcher found the gunpowder car after searching for a short while.
He had just walked to the car when suddenly three gunshots rang out: "Bang! Bang! Bang!"
Three bullets struck him precisely in the heart, and Butcher collapsed to the ground without uttering a sound.
Gunpowder walked over with a smile, looked at Butcher lying motionless on the ground, and sneered disdainfully, "Fool!"
However, his smile didn't last more than a few seconds before Butcher suddenly got up from the ground.
This unexpected turn of events left Gunpowder stunned, his mind reeling.
He was absolutely certain that he hadn't missed, after all, his superpower was that he could guarantee accurate shooting.
Butcher straightened up, shook his neck, and looked at his chest.
Immediately, three bullets that had turned into round metal pieces fell off his body. The places where he was hit were completely unharmed, without even a red mark.
Gunpowder quickly raised his gun to pull the trigger again, but at that moment, he was too close to Butcher!
Butcher grabbed the barrel and snapped it in two. Then, without hesitation, he clenched his other fist and swung it at Gunpowder's face.
boom!
Gunpowder was knocked to the ground by the right hook. Before he could get up, Butcher, who was rushing over again, grabbed him by the collar with one hand and pulled him up.
Then, another merciless right hook!
boom!
This time, the gunpowder was blasted and spun to the ground, a tooth mixed with blood spurting out of its mouth and onto the ground.
As Butcher approached again, Gunpowder straightened up, and without even standing up, he threw a straight punch.
The guns on his body had been scattered in various places during Butcher's previous attack, with the closest ones being several meters away from him.
He didn't have time to pick it up, so he could only choose the simplest and most straightforward attack.
boom!
His punch landed directly on Butcher's abdomen.
He then stood up, swung his arms, and punched Butcher in the chest with one fist and in the chin with the other.
Boom!
However, his three-hit combo failed to inflict any damage on Butcher; it seemed to have no effect whatsoever.
Butcher grinned, a ferocious smile spreading across his face. He swung his arm and delivered another right hook to Gunpowder's face.
puff--
Gunpowder was sent flying seven or eight meters away by the punch, spitting blood as he crashed into a car.
The car windows shattered, and Huoyao knelt on the ground, his face contorted in pain, unable to muster the strength to get up.
Butcher rushed over to Gunpowder, clenched his fists, and swung his arms wildly, hitting Gunpowder in the face repeatedly.
In an instant, the blood spurting from the gunpowder nozzle almost stained the nearby ground red.
"OK! OK! Stop hitting me!" Gunpowder, powerless to resist, quickly covered his head and face with his hands and shouted.
Upon hearing this, Butcher abruptly stopped punching, but the look in his eyes as he looked at Gunpowder told him that if he didn't tell him what he wanted to know, he would be beaten again immediately.
puff!
Gunpowder coughed up a mouthful of blood beside him, looking miserable: "That's right, the soldier boy used to slap me all the time, just like it said in that complaint letter, it's true!"
"Who cares about that! How did he die?!" Butcher roared.
Gunpowder, like a child afraid of being hit, defensively shielded himself with his long arms while trembling as he said, "He didn't die in an accident. That nuclear crisis incident is complete nonsense—"
"Of course I know that! What the hell killed him?!" Butcher's eyes blazed with anger as he shouted coldly.
"I have no idea."
No sooner had Gunpowder finished speaking than Butcher, without even thinking, struck him hard in the face with Zero Frame.
boom!
"I don't know! I really don't know!" Gunpowder struggled and shouted.
"In 1984, when we were in Niger, I wasn't there when he died!"
Butcher simply didn't believe it: "You must have seen it!"
Gunpowder cried out in despair, "No, I really didn't see anything! I was just a child back then!"
""
"If you want to know, go ask the CIA! We were cooperating with them back then!"
Upon hearing this, Butcher's face showed a hint of surprise:
"CIA?"
Who was in charge of the CIA operation at the time?
Gunpowder thought for a moment, and to avoid being beaten again, he almost instantly retrieved the name from his memory: "Grace! Grace Mallory! Yes, that's her! Is that enough?"
Butcher frowned, then grabbed Gunpowder by the collar again, startling Gunpowder into shouting, "I've said everything I needed to say!"
"Please, I've told you everything I know, please stop hitting me!"
At that moment, Butcher felt a surge of anger rising in his chest, and the thought of "Kill him! Kill him!" kept echoing in his mind.
He grabbed Gunpowder by the collar: "I know you've said it all, but you—you don't deserve to live!"
boom!
boom!
boom!
He struck Gunpowder's head and face with both hands, punching him repeatedly.
Finally, after he threw another punch, a crisp sound of bones cracking rang out from Gunpowder's neck.
Gunpowder was screaming and howling just moments before, but after that, it fell completely silent.
Butcher seemed not to hear or see anything, and continued to swing his fists with a ferocious expression.
one time----
Two times —
Three times —
"ah"
Even so, he still seemed unsatisfied and let out an uncontrollable roar. Suddenly, golden light shone in his eyes, and two laser beams shot out!
This made his eyes feel very uncomfortable, and he couldn't help but close them while tilting his head back.
Two golden lasers swept diagonally across Gunpowder's head as he moved, slicing the car behind him in two!
"ah"
After letting out another painful roar and suddenly opening his eyes to shoot out two golden lasers that lasted for two or three seconds, Butcher seemed to feel much better.
He was panting heavily, looking at his masterpiece with a ferocious expression that seemed to be both pain and excitement.
"Temporary Number Five —"
Thinking of the green injection he had received before leaving, Butcher seemed to understand something.