Marvel's Death Merchant

“Alright, the password: 9003,” John Connor said smugly to his lookout friend.

"Who taught you this?" his friend asked in surprise after John Connor cracked the code.

“My mom, my biological mother.” John Connor said as he pressed the $300 option on the ATM, then placed his hand on the banknote slot and waited. “Come on, baby, come out… That’s great, it worked!” John Connor handed the card-cracking device to his friend next to him, excitedly pointing at the $300.

“Great, this is really easy money.” John Connor waved the dollars in his hand and said excitedly to his friend next to him.

"We're done. That was easy." The two delinquents laughed and high-fived each other in celebration of their success.

"Is she your mom?" John Connor was putting money into his backpack, which contained a photo of his mother, Sarah Connor. The delinquent said this because John's adoptive parents saw her often.

“Yes!” John Connor coolly tossed the photo back into his backpack, his expression not very good.

"She seems pretty cool," the delinquent said admiringly. John's performance had made him admire his mother as well, since such abilities weren't something just anyone could cultivate.

“No, she’s mentally ill. That’s why she’s locked up in a mental hospital. She tried to blow up a computer factory and was shot and arrested.” John Connor said dejectedly. He said this because he also felt bad. After all, John had been alone all these years, and it was impossible for him not to resent his mother’s foolish behavior.

"That's really something!" the delinquent exclaimed in amazement.

“Yes, she’s a complete loser,” John Connor said coldly.

“Alright, let’s go spend some money,” John Connor said to the delinquents, trying to change the subject. The two of them spent the money on gaming.

As John and the delinquents rode their motorcycles across the intersection, a tall, cool-looking white man in a jacket and sunglasses silently watched John leave from below. This man didn't assassinate John; he was clearly John's T-800 protector.

---The dividing line for the birth of Skynet---

"Change position, good. All sensors are working properly." "Yes, this is a new part. There's a slight fault in the wiring." In the Cybertron Corporation's research and development lab in Los Angeles, researchers were busily developing the most primitive Skynet. The clearly defined Dyson teams were unaware that they were creating the world's most terrifying artificial intelligence—Skynet.

“Mr. Dyson, the materials team is preparing to…” In the Skynet research lab, a researcher in his twenties wearing a light blue shirt looked at Morse Dyson, the black scientist who was observing the research progress, and immediately ran over to say to Dyson seriously.

"What's wrong?" The researcher saw that Morse Dyson didn't react, so he shook him. Dyson reacted when he was shaken and asked in confusion.

"The materials team is going to do an experiment this afternoon, and you need to sign your approval. Take 'it' out, okay?" The researcher in the light blue shirt shook the pen in his hand and said seriously to Dyson.

"Got it?" Dyson patted the researcher on the shoulder, and then the two of them walked into the core laboratory together.

"Mr. Dyson, I know I'm new to the company. But could you tell me something?" The researcher asked Dyson, who was about to push open the glass door, with a puzzled look on his face as they approached the location where the T-800 chips were stored.

"What?" Dyson said calmly as he pushed open the glass door and turned to look at the researcher.

"Do you know where 'it' came from?" the researcher asked, looking into Dyson's eyes.

“I asked them too, do you know what they said?” Dyson turned around, pointed to the researcher’s chest, and said helplessly, “Don’t ask!” After saying that, he walked directly into the place where the T-800 and the robotic arm were stored.

"Hello, Mr. Dyson, are you alright?" In the core laboratory, the military security personnel, noticing Dyson's less-than-ideal complexion, asked with slight concern.

"It's alright," Dyson replied casually.

"Insert the key, turn left 3, 2, 1," the security guard reminded Dyson. This shows the level of secrecy surrounding the T-800 chip. Of course, cheap biological weapons are even more secretive because they are not only inhumane, but could also easily destroy the world after infection. Sometimes, biological viruses are more dangerous than nuclear weapons.

---Someone's dividing line---

As the Terminator storyline unfolds, in a newly built French-style private villa in the forests of suburban Los Angeles, surrounded by other villas, are fully armed men bearing the Umbrella insignia, dressed in black special forces uniforms. These cold-blooded elite clone soldiers are clearly not to be trifled with.

The villa is surrounded by lawns, with gentle terrain, making it ideal for one person to live in. This villa is where Tang Tian currently resides, and it also facilitates someone's manipulation of the plot. Of course, this place was provided and built free of charge by the military as a private villa. This person accepted the military's goodwill, and on the first day of the plot, Tang Tian wasn't in a hurry. The situation was still under control, but Skynet was something this person absolutely needed, while also ensuring that history continued as it should. This person's task was to maintain history to gain benefits and allow Skynet to be created, ideally making it appear as if they created it themselves...

"Boss, target number one has been spotted." On the golf course outside the villa, a captain dressed in a black special forces uniform respectfully addressed a successful man reclining on a deck chair under a parasol.

"I see! Jorge, you guys continue monitoring, but for John Connor's survival, the primary target is the liquid metal robot. Don't worry about him." Tang Tian snapped his fingers, and the security personnel next to him automatically took out Cuban cigars and chilled red wine from a box. After taking a puff of his cigar, Tang Tian thought for a moment and said casually. Of course, the appearance of the T-1000 was also within someone's expectations.

“Yes, boss,” Elite Captain Jorg Sothos said expressionlessly. Having been enhanced with the milder T-virus, Jorg Sothos had become a new human, perfectly fusing with the telekinetic abilities generated by the virus. Because Tang Tian had spent 100 years enhancing him, the number of new humans fused with the T-virus had greatly increased, achieving a 6% success rate in creating new humans with superpowers. The comprehensive breakthrough in Colony 1's biotechnology also greatly satisfied Tang Tian. Meanwhile, experiments on new humans using the Veronica virus and the G-virus were ongoing.

"These are genuine cigars from Cuba, Jorge, have a taste!" Tang Tian generously took out the cigars and casually and quickly tossed them to Jorge Sothos.

"Not bad, boss." As Tang Tian quickly tossed out the cigar, Yog knew that his boss was testing the power of the T-virus to mass-produce new humans, so Yog used his telekinesis to wrap the cigar in his hand, took a puff, and said without hesitation.

"The T-virus fusion generating telekinesis is really impressive. If the citizens of the future Empire are New Humans, the Empire's strength will definitely be even greater. However, the Crystal from the Superpower Runaway will also possess such power." Tang Tian waved his hand, signaling Yog Sothos to go back to his mission, while Tang Tian muttered to himself.

"The current situation is that the plots of 2 and 3 cannot be affected, while plot 4 is the main time point for plunder. However, if I participate in the establishment of Skynet, I can also gain benefits more easily. On the contrary, opposing Skynet and helping humanity will not only not bring benefits, but will also cause corresponding troubles. Therefore, the wisest thing is to play both sides and gain benefits from both." Tang Tian, ​​sitting on a lounge chair on the golf course, closed his eyes and calmly considered the pros and cons.

This Terminator world is arguably the more complex of the several worlds, but Tang Tian still thinks it's best to handle it simply. Without the massive knowledge imparted by The Matrix, it's truly a headache for someone whose brain capacity has been reduced to pre-liberation levels. However, things will work out in the end, and Tang Tian certainly wouldn't want to miss out on the benefits of the Terminator world.

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Chapter 41 Contact

"I'm going to exchange some coins, I'll be right back." In the noisy arcade of the shopping mall, John's good friend, a delinquent, looked into John's eyes and said as he saw that the arcade machines were out of coins.

“Okay!” John replied casually without saying anything more. Meanwhile, T-800, having identified John Connor as their target on the highway, followed him to the shopping mall and packed the stolen shotgun into a box. Of course, US law prohibits carrying firearms in public places, a rule modified by the future John himself. T-1000, unable to find John at his adoptive parents' house, searched everywhere for him and headed towards the shopping mall.

The advanced Terminator T-1000 is a ruthless assassin dispatched by Skynet. Aside from carrying out its mission to kill John, everything else is an obstacle, easily destroyed within its reach. Its shapeshifting ability, similar to Mystique's, is comparable to the analogy of an eagle and a chick. Its hands can transform into sharp blades and spikes, and its body can become anyone it touches, inevitably killing anyone it mimics. The T-800 never gained the upper hand in its battle with the T-1000, only managing to submerge it in molten steel thanks to backup power. This demonstrates the T-1000's advanced technology. Of course, in the Marvel universe, only a few mutants like Magneto, Professor X, or certain superheroes might truly grasp its unpredictable and deadly nature, much like Mystique.

"Do you recognize this face?" A white police officer in uniform asked a delinquent teenager who had just exchanged his game tokens in the crowded shopping mall.

"No, I don't know him?" The delinquent who saw John's photo in T-1000's hand glanced discreetly at the spot John had discovered while playing the game, and chuckled, saying he didn't recognize him. Of course, only a fool would admit it directly. Seeing the police looking for John, the delinquent assumed they knew about what happened that morning, so he pretended not to know to T-1000, using this as an excuse to inform John, who was playing the game.

Watching the T-1000, disguised as a policeman, continue questioning others, the delinquent glanced behind him to see if anyone was following, then nervously jogged over to John, who was playing a game.

"John..." The delinquent who had just run up to John only managed to say this one sentence.

"Not now." John, who was having a great time, ignored the delinquent and assumed he wanted to continue playing the game, so he refused.

"Hey, that's not what I wanted to say. There's a cop looking for you, look!" the delinquent said to John, who was engrossed in playing the game console with his right hand pressed against the outside of the machine.

--- Divider ---

"Cop..." John listened to the delinquent's nervous words and looked out of the game console. He just happened to see a policeman showing a photo to a passerby. Combining this with what the delinquent had just said, it was obvious even to a fool that the cop was looking for him.

"Brother, you should go now," the delinquent said with a sense of loyalty.

“Okay, be careful,” John instructed.

"The person you're looking for seems to have gone that way..." The delinquent and John saw T-1000 approaching and pointed in a fake direction. Of course, T-1000 didn't kill anyone; it simply pushed aside everyone blocking its path, including the delinquent. The reason T-1000 didn't kill anyone was simply to change history and prevent the US government from finding out.

"Bang bang... Chirp chirp..." Bullets flew in the alley of the shopping mall's arcade. T800 stood behind John and exchanged fire with T1000. Although the shotgun was powerful, the large silver holes instantly healed. As a fully liquid Terminator, he was immune to most thermal weapons. His weakness was that he could only be used in extremely cold and hot conditions and his movements were restricted.

"Fire at target number one, protect the important personnel. Bang bang bang bang!" Elite Captain Yog Sothos and his ten team members, who had been lying in wait in the alleyway of the arcade, saw that the important target assigned by their boss was in danger. Without hesitation, they all pulled out M4A1s and fired at the T-1000. The dull thud of bullets hitting their targets echoed intermittently. Needless to say, all shots hit their mark. This time, the electromagnetic weapons and various energy weapons in the Terminator dimension had been shelved, so only gunpowder weapons could be used—also for historical reasons.

"Rat-a-tat-tat." The cold gunshots of the action team rang out continuously, and countless metal storms turned the T-1000 into countless silver-white sieves. After the T-1000 was knocked down, Arno and John quickly left.

The T-1000, fired by members led by Yog Sothos, slowed its recovery slightly with special bullets, occasionally squeezing out deformed bullets from its silvery-white bullet holes. These bullets were indeed unusual; to avoid altering historical accuracy, Tang Tian had only ordered a slowdown on the T-1000's advance. Therefore, these bullets were hollow-point bullets, dumdum bullets—bullets prone to deformation and capable of inflicting massive damage—effectively designed to hinder the T-1000's recovery. In addition, there were compressed 'liquid nitrogen' bullets; if these hit any living being or robot, they would be pulverized. The instantaneous release of the compressed bullets, resulting in a -196°C temperature, would reduce everything to fragments.

--- Divider ---

"Continue to lie low. If important targets are in danger, special bullets can be used." Yog Sothos used telekinesis to restrain the standing T-1000 and said to the crew around him.

“Yes, sir.” The other 10 enhanced clone soldiers replied expressionlessly to their captain, Yog Sothos.

While someone bought time, T-800 had already run far away with John Connor. After scanning T-800's location with his telekinesis, Yog released the struggling T-1000, allowing history to continue its original course. Freed, T-1000 didn't immediately run towards John's location, despite Yog's restraints. After all, the Terminator's target was the future leader of humanity. While imprisoned, T-1000 had used various forms to attack these powerful creatures, but all failures led the Terminator to continue directly towards its goal after its release.

Just like the original plot, the T-1000 stole a large truck and started chasing John in it.

"Bang!" The T800's shotgun hit the tire of the truck carrying the T-1000, causing the truck to overturn and the fuel to explode due to the sparks.

The person in question has already learned about the recent events through the intelligence system. Now, all Tang Tian needs to do is wait and see, and then reap the rewards at the end.

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P.S.: Thank you to "逝去－独舞" for the 100-point donation; the author is releasing an extra chapter as a token of gratitude. I hope everyone will continue to donate, add to favorites, and recommend this book. After the movie's timeline ends, we'll be in the climax of the Marvel universe. Also, I'd like to officially declare that I'm a new author and have no connection to any other similar books.

Chapter 42 Terminator

“Okay, please pull over to the side of the road right now, stop the car! Stop, stop!” John looked at the man who had helped him escape danger, then gestured and spoke to the Terminator protecting him to stop.

"My God, don't misunderstand. You're the Terminator, right?" the person standing by the roadside exclaimed, looking at the T-800 in front of them.

“Yes, bio-mechanical model, type 101,” Arno said expressionlessly, while taking out his shotgun in case of danger.

“Impossible, good heavens. You really are like a real person, I mean... you're a robot at heart, right? You look human on the outside.” John said, seemingly very interested.

“A mechanical skeleton, covering the tissue of living cells in the skin,” Arno said coolly.

“That’s really cool…” John exclaimed.

“I know you’re not here to kill me, so what do you want?” John asked, staring into Arno’s eyes.

"My mission is to protect you."

"Really? Who sent you?" John asked doubtfully, but remembering what his mother had said, he realized that he might have sent you.

"You sent me, 35 years from now, to reprogram me and come to this era to protect you."

"Oh, that's really profound. That guy is a Terminator like you, is that right?" After John and Arnold talked for a while, as it got dark, John casually asked Arnold from his motorcycle.

“It’s the T-1000, a more advanced model,” Arno said casually.

"You mean it's more advanced than you?" John asked in surprise, because Arno, who was protecting him, was already more advanced, and the fact that the one hunting him was even more advanced surprised John.

--- Plot Break ---

“Yes, it’s a biomimetic complex alloy,” Arno said, using technical terms as he drove.

"What does that mean?" John asked, puzzled.

“Liquid metal,” Arno simply stated.

"Where are we going?" John was completely lost after what had happened today, unsure of where to go. That's why he asked Arnold, since Arnold, the Terminator, was the only one he could rely on now.

“For your safety, you must leave this city immediately to avoid being hunted down,” Arno said softly to John, turning his head.

"I want to go home to pack some things before I leave." John's real purpose in going home was to put his adoptive parents at ease. After all, they had raised him for so long, and although their relationship wasn't great, it was impossible for them to be completely indifferent.

“No way, it’ll definitely be lying in wait there.” Arno’s words shattered John’s plan.

"Are you sure?" John asked incredulously.

“I would have done the same,” John said calmly, glancing at Arno.

“Listen, Todd and Gina are annoying… but I need to warn them, to tell them to watch out.” John walked to a public phone booth, reached into his pocket, and realized he hadn’t taken any change in his haste. “Damn it, do you have any coins?”

Arnold's behavior was simply violent; he punched the public phone coin box, and that was it—the free change was taken out.

“Gina, it’s me.” John made the call and nervously spoke to Gina, who was actually T-1000 in disguise.

"John? Are you all alright? Of course, sweetheart, everything's fine. Are you alright?" T-1000 asked, feigning concern. It has to be said that the T-1000 model Terminator is top-notch in both its imitation and adaptability.

"It's nothing," John said simply.

“John, it’s getting late, I’m worried about you. You should go home quickly so we can have dinner together. I’m cooking beef right now,” T-1000, disguised as Gina, said gently, unaware that John had already discovered her secret.

"Something's not right. She's never been this nice to me before," John said to Arno in a low voice, covering the phone. After all, John wasn't usually well-liked by his adoptive mother, partly because of his frequent petty theft.