Chapter Forty: The Green Demon and the Serum

“Hey, Michael?”
“Hey, Gwen.”
Michael glanced at Gwen and then continued reading his book.
“Do you know the Green Goblin?”
Gwen got straight to the point as soon as she sat down.
“I do.”
“Do you have any way to help me find him?”
“No.”
Gwen slumped over the table in frustration, her pouting face looking rather playful.
Michael dared not look at her. Lately, he didn’t know what was wrong with him; he found himself increasingly unable to resist Gwen. Every smile and frown of hers seemed so captivating.
“What’s wrong?”
Michael couldn’t bear it any longer and closed his book, looking at Gwen.
“I made a bet with my dad. If I catch the Green Goblin, he’ll support me becoming Spider-Woman.”
Michael couldn’t help but chuckle.
So childish. Are you sure he’ll keep his word?
Gwen noticed Michael’s mocking smile and glared at him, her look full of menace.
Michael caught her expression and quickly restrained his laughter.
“It’s been three days, and nobody knows what the Green Goblin is up to.”
“He’s investigating you. The Green Goblin is a high-intelligence criminal. He’ll scrutinize all your abilities and choose the best way to deal with you. So, lately, you should stay indoors.”
Michael knew the Green Goblin’s style—he’s a clever, ruthless fellow.
He once orchestrated a fire, disguised himself as a victim, and successfully ambushed Peter.
Among all the villains Spider-Man has faced, the Green Goblin is by far the most cunning; the rest fall short by comparison.
“But what about everyone else?”
Gwen didn’t want to give up. Ever since she became Spider-Woman, she’d seen too many criminals roaming the city.
“Gwen, if you want to defeat the Green Goblin, you must be patient. Otherwise, I’ll lose you.”
Gwen blushed at Michael’s words.
“All right.”
Seeing Gwen agree, Michael finally felt relieved.
“Yes, to hunt, you must understand your prey—and be even more patient than it.”
Gwen nodded, half comprehending, and recalled what Mrs. Martha had said that night.
“Right, let’s not talk about this. Michael, how do you treat yourself?”
Michael hesitated for a moment, then replied, “Genetic serum. It’s similar to Dr. Connors’ theory, but I’ve learned from his failures.”
“That’s too dangerous, Michael.”
Gwen knew well what had happened to Dr. Connors, such a good man ruined by the serum.

She suddenly thought of the Green Goblin; his physique was far beyond ordinary—could it be related to the serum too?
“I’ve already tested it and confirmed every step. There’s no such high risk.”
Gwen grabbed Michael’s hand. “You should have told me.”
“Michael, I know you want to be healthy—”
Michael interrupted her.
“Are you trying to stop me, Gwen?”
Gwen looked at Michael, hesitated for a moment, then said, “I know I can’t stop you. Let me be there when it happens, all right? I don’t want to lose you, Michael.”
Their eyes met, and Michael didn’t hesitate much.
“All right.”
…
“Pepper, you know I’m clueless about running the company.”
With that, Tony pressed Pepper into the boss’s chair.
The message was clear: from now on, Pepper would manage the company.
Under Tony’s persuasion, Pepper had no choice but to agree, making Tony a hands-off boss.
“Got a moment?”
Happy knocked on the door, afraid of seeing something he shouldn’t. Anyone could see Tony’s attitude toward Pepper.
“Come in, Happy.”
Happy came in and handed Tony a stack of documents.
“Tony, here’s the guest list for the gala. See if there’s anything you want to add.”
Knowing Tony disliked taking things from others, Happy thoughtfully placed the documents on the desk.
Tony picked them up and glanced through. He’d heard of most people, but actually knew only a few.
But these were all giants in their fields; he could handle a few words with them.
“Happy, who’s this? The name sounds familiar, but I can’t recall who it is.”
Happy looked and said, “That’s the genius chemist and biologist. They say his talent rivals yours. The main reason we invited him is that he’s now a major shareholder in our company.”
Tony finally remembered. Many had compared him to Tony, but rumor had it he was born with a rare illness.
“A shareholder?”
Pepper added, “When our stock was at its lowest, he bought up shares with everything he had. He now holds more shares than anyone else outside the company.”
Tony boasted to Pepper, “See, someone believes in me. Now he’s rich.”
Pepper smiled. “Indeed. My investigation showed he was never interested in stocks before—just dabbled occasionally. After cashing out, he’d stay away from the market. This time, buying so much of our company’s stock was very shrewd.”
Tony nodded.
“He must be an interesting person.”
“I don’t see any problems—invite everyone on the list.”
Pepper handed the list to Happy.
Tony turned to Happy and said, “In my name, send him two bottles of good wine.”

Elsewhere, Gwen and Michael arrived at the laboratory.
“Wow, this is your lab. But why do all these machines look so familiar?”
Michael raised an eyebrow. “Dr. Connors’. I’m borrowing them, you could say.”
“Borrowing? Did you ask him?”
Gwen was a little puzzled.
“No, I used my personal access to move them here. Dr. Connors probably doesn’t know.”
“That’s stealing.”
Gwen was a bit shocked.
Michael shrugged, unconcerned. “Norman agreed. Worst case, I’ll return them when Connors comes back.”
Gwen was speechless. Will Dr. Connors ever come back in his lifetime?
“If not for this equipment, I wouldn’t be able to start my experiment.”
“What are these bats?”
Gwen looked at the bats hanging motionless in their cages, clearly not having eaten for some time.
“Vampire bats—specially bred for me. Just like the spider that bit you.”
“They look disgusting.”
Despite her strength, Gwen—as a girl—still found such creatures repulsive.
Michael pouted. “Spiders are disgusting too.”
Gwen shot him a look. “You hold grudges, don’t you?”
“I do.”
“So what’s your treatment method exactly?”
Gwen noticed a row of serums on the shelf, each marked with symbols: lizard, spider, human, bat, wings, and so on.
“What are these?”
“Serums.”
Gwen quickly grasped what each serum corresponded to.
“What’s the one with the human symbol?”
“Super serum—same as Captain America’s. Inject it, and you gain the perfect human’s extraordinary physique.”
“The perfect human?”
Gwen was puzzled.
Michael explained, “Captain America’s super serum wasn’t derived from animals but from humans. It’s the optimal solution for human genetic evolution.”
“Unfortunately, human evolution has always lost genes. Our bodies keep getting weaker, while our brains grow smarter.”