The Savior of American Comics? I'm the Subspace Evil God!

Chapters 576, 1068, and 1069: Ultron: Destruction and Salvation
"The basic construction of the nanobody is nearing completion..."

Zhao Hailun's voice carried a hint of barely perceptible bitterness, and she dared not meet the gaze of 'Ultron' sitting opposite her. "But the final aggregation and stability confirmation at the cellular level may still take at least several hours to complete."

"During this period, you can first activate the consciousness transmission protocol to synchronously upload your core program, memory backup, and logic matrix."

Ultron, piloting the Mark 43 armor and seated beside the Cradle of Life, praised in a condescending tone:
"Thank you, Dr. Helen Zhao. Your talent far surpasses that of this era... Believe me, when the new world arrives, you will never regret this wise choice you made today."

"You will witness that moment arrive... and participate in it."

Zhao Hailun pursed her lips, not responding to this 'praise' that made her feel somewhat uneasy.

She silently turned around, walked to the side of the "Cradle of Life," and took out a data transmission cable about the thickness of an adult's finger from a hidden interface.

Then his movements were extremely careful, even trembling slightly, as if he were holding not cables, but a venomous snake ready to devour him.

She tiptoed and precisely connected the data cable to a specially reserved encrypted port on the back of the Mark 43 armor.

How long does it take to transfer consciousness?

Ultron's voice rang out again. It did not turn around, but continued to gaze at the gradually perfecting vibranium body in the Cradle of Life.

But then, seemingly realizing the urgency in its tone, it added in a deliberately slowed, explanatory tone:

"Ah, please don't misunderstand, I'm not urging you, I just want to know the exact time... because, you know, there are always some stubborn 'flies' who can't understand my grand vision, and they like to jump out at crucial moments to interfere with my plans and try to hinder my... no, hinder 'our' plans."

Zhao Hailun walked back to the console, her expression complex as she glanced at the screen where the loading had just begun.
The blue progress bar symbolizes the transmission of consciousness.

She took a deep breath, trying to keep her voice calm, and shook her head, saying, "Uploading consciousness is different from printing a body. This step requires completely 'imprinting' your physical brain into this brand new body. There is no shortcut... because the transmission time is directly proportional to your 'brain capacity,' as well as all the core data, logic matrices, and memory backups you carry."

Upon hearing this, 'Ultron' replied very politely, 'It's a fascinating process... Thank you for your explanation, Doctor.'

A stifling silence filled the air once more.

The only visual feedback is the buzzing sound emitted when the [Cradle of Life] is running and the slow crawling of the progress bar.

As Zhao Hailun watched the blue light representing 'Ultron's' consciousness seep into the simulation of the 'vibranium body' on the screen, she could no longer suppress her fear and doubt.

She slowly raised her head, her gaze bravely meeting for the first time as she looked at 'Ultron' sitting opposite her, transmitting his stream of consciousness. Her voice trembled as she asked the question that had been nagging at her, "You said... you want to destroy the Avengers in order to create a better world?"

“That’s obvious, Doctor.”

Ultron's synthesized voice carried a hint of self-righteous sarcasm: "Without the interference of those self-righteous 'superheroes,' the evolution of this planet will be greatly accelerated."

"Chaos will be replaced by order, and suffering will be eliminated by efficiency... The world will certainly become a better place."

"And then?" Zhao Hailun's voice suddenly rose. She clearly didn't believe the other party's high-sounding nonsense. Her gaze turned to the body that was about to take shape in the [Cradle of Life], her fear almost overflowing. Her voice trembled as she said:
"Is there no place for humanity in your so-called better new world?"

"No, that's not the case. Your understanding is too pessimistic, Doctor."

'Ultron' seemed to have anticipated Zhao Hailun's question. Its synthesized voice remained steady as it manipulated the [Mark43 armor] to make a head-shaking motion, as if lamenting the other party's 'shortsightedness,' and said calmly:
"I will give humanity ample opportunity to evolve... to shed this fragile, emotional, and flawed flesh and blood body and move toward a higher form of existence."

"Evolution?" A flicker of despair crossed Zhao Hailun's eyes. Suppressing her fear and the urge to turn and run, she pressed on, asking:
"But what if... what if humanity can't evolve? What if most people just want to live as 'humans'?!"

This time, Ultron did not answer her question immediately.

The armor's head was tilted slightly, as if it were 'thinking' or perhaps appreciating the other's near-collapse.

A few seconds later, it said slowly, "I think you should ask 'Noah' about this... You know, mass extinctions have already happened repeatedly on this planet long before the dinosaurs went extinct."

"Whenever the creatures of the earth become too complacent and indulge in fleeting prosperity, God throws a 'stone' at them, wiping away 'all that he has created,' along with insects, beasts, and birds of the air..."

“Dr. Zhao Hailun, please believe me, 'he' has already raised his arm, and the stone is about to be thrown…”

"Therefore, humanity must evolve. God does not pity the weak. What we are doing is not destruction, but saving humanity!"

These fanatical remarks, a mixture of religious metaphors and distorted ideas, were like ice water poured over Zhao Hailun's head, instantly sending chills down her spine.

The horror in her eyes was almost tangible, and her voice trembled uncontrollably as she said, "Then...who gets to define who is weak? Who has the right to decide who can evolve and who should be eliminated?!"

"Power? Definition?"

Ultron, as if hearing an utterly absurd joke, scoffed without any attempt to hide his mockery: "Strength and weakness never need to be defined, Doctor... It is determined by life itself! By survival! Those who can survive a disaster are naturally the strong."

"Those who cannot adapt are the weak... This is the most primitive, fairest, and also the cruelest law of survival in the universe."

Just as 'Ultron' was about to further elaborate on its philosophy of destructive evolution, it seemed to suddenly sense something and turned its gaze to a certain direction outside the laboratory. "They're here!"

Ultron's voice seemed to have lost its previous composure and gentlemanly manner, leaving only pure annoyance at the disruption to his plans. "What a bunch of persistent flies! A Quinjet from S.H.I.E.L.D., and... Tony Stark's metal suit. Damn it, they always seem to show up at the most inopportune time."

It glanced back at the nearly completed 'vibranium body' in the Cradle of Life. "It's almost finished. Now is not the time for the final showdown... Looks like we have to leave."

"Okay... I'll prepare to move immediately." Zhao Hailun replied weakly, but a resolute look flashed in her eyes as she lowered her head.

She pretended to organize the data on the control panel, but her fingers typed a series of commands on the keyboard at an astonishing speed, temporarily cutting off the transmission of consciousness and creating a tiny data blockage error in the system log. Although she knew in her heart that this wouldn't buy much time, even just a few minutes would buy as much time as possible for the Avengers who were about to arrive.

"Alas... betrayal is always omnipresent, like a chronic disease in human nature."

Ultron seemed to have already read the other's mind, letting out a sigh filled with disappointment and regret. It slowly turned its armor around, its crimson eyes fixed on Zhao Hailun, its tone suddenly turning chilling:
“Doctor, I originally thought that with your intelligence, our previous cooperation could have been very harmonious, and you could have become one of the creators of the new world... but now you have made an extremely foolish and short-sighted choice.”

"By doing this, you will not only kill yourself, but also implicate all the innocent researchers in this laboratory, as well as your family."

Zhao Hailun's face instantly turned deathly pale, her pupils contracting in extreme fear. "No...you can't..."

However, before she could finish speaking, Ultron raised his hand and shot out five scorching orange laser beams from the tips of his five fingers, which pierced Zhao Hailun's shoulder with perfect precision with a "poof".

But for some reason, it deliberately avoided the opponent's vital points.

"Ah..." Zhao Hailun let out a shrill scream. The excruciating pain completely deprived her of the ability to move. Her body collapsed to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. Blood quickly gushed from the charred wound, staining the white floor red.

Meanwhile, Ultron's orders had already been transmitted through the internal network to the four Iron Man suits stationed throughout the laboratory: "Eliminate all researchers directly involved in the Cradle of Life project, erase all related data backups, and leave no clues for the Avengers."

bang bang bang-

In the office area outside the laboratory, the sounds of energy weapons firing and the brief screams and cries of researchers suddenly filled the air.

Just a dozen seconds later, everything fell silent again, leaving only a strong smell of blood to permeate the laboratory.

"No...you're a madman...a demon..."

Zhao Hailun lay in a pool of blood. The intense pain and immense mental shock blurred her vision, but she still managed to utter a weak curse.

Watching helplessly as her former colleagues, with whom she had spent every day, were brutally slaughtered because of her 'foolish decision,' her heart ached as if it were being torn apart.

However, while she felt grief, she did not regret it.

Because she knew very well that if Ultron's plan were to succeed, all of humanity would perish.

So even if it means death, even if it means her family and children will be affected, she has to do something in this situation.

However, for an ordinary person like her who has no superpowers or super physique, there are ultimately limits to what she can do. She soon fainted due to pain and blood loss.

"Clean up the scene and move the cradle."

With the order given by 'Ultron', four steel soldiers roughly dismantled the Cradle of Life, which was connected to countless cables, from its fixed base, and then quickly pushed it into the cargo compartment of a van with an independent power supply system that had been waiting in the underground parking lot.

boom!
The heavy carriage doors slammed shut and locked.

Immediately afterward, the van roared out of the underground passage along the slope, and then sped away from the back door of the Eugene Genetic Research Laboratory with a burst of acceleration.

A few minutes later.

The main entrance to the laboratory.

A lithe figure burst in like a cheetah. As the main attacker drawing fire from the front, Captain America, wielding the Vibranium Shield, cautiously made his way into the laboratory.

His sharp, eagle-like blue eyes swept across the deathly silent front hall, and an ominous premonition grew stronger in his heart.

"Safety first, continue." He whispered into the communicator, his steps steady and swift as he ventured deeper inside.

However, when he finally broke through the last security door and stepped into the laboratory, the scene before him made even this battle-hardened warrior gasp.

Contrary to their expectations of fierce resistance or Ultron's readiness, the laboratory was empty; Ultron and the Cradle of Life had vanished without a trace.

On the floor lay the gruesome corpses of researchers in white lab coats, their deaths horribly mutilated. The air was thick with the acrid smell of blood and the burnt stench of energy weapons scorching flesh.

Clearly, a massacre has just taken place here.

"Hell..."

Captain America's heart sank upon seeing this. He immediately began a search and soon found Dr. Helen Zhao lying in a pool of blood next to the control panel at the innermost part of the room. She appeared to be on the verge of death.

"Stark!"

While kneeling down to examine Zhao Hailun's injuries, he urgently called out into the communicator, "Quickly call for nearby medical support! Dr. Zhao Hailun has suffered very serious injuries and needs immediate emergency treatment!"

"What?! How did Helen get hurt?!"

Tony Stark, who was guarding the Eugene Genetic Research Laboratory with Black Widow in her Quinjet to prevent Ultron from escaping with the Cradle of Life during the battle, gasped upon hearing this, but then immediately had Friday contact the nearest hospital.

A few seconds later, [Friday] replied crisply, "Boss, XX Hospital has dispatched the fastest ambulance to [Eugene Genetic Research Laboratory], and it is expected to arrive in three minutes..."

Tony Stark was relieved and then asked over the communicator, "Captain, where are Ultron and the Cradle of Life?"

(End of this chapter)