He pursued the direction where the Shadow had vanished, as captured by his Radar Sense.
Daredevil did not follow.
But he didn't relax.
His Radar Sense remained active, tracking the faint infrasound vibration.
The vibration signal was now extremely chaotic and violent, no longer the regular penetrating sound it had been before.
It was more like the lament of countless strings being plucked simultaneously, then snapping all at once.
The Shadow's condition was worse than expected.
The Halon fire suppression system's interference with her Phase Shift ability far exceeded William's expectations.
This was good for him.
A healthy Shadow, perfectly in control of her abilities, would be a big problem for William.
An injured Shadow, on the verge of collapse and in desperate need of help, was the perfect potential client.
The tracking signal led him deeper into Brooklyn's industrial district.
This area was near an abandoned shipyard.
The air was thick with the salty tang of sea salt.
The source of the vibration stopped moving.
It was in an old warehouse marked 'Abandoned'.
William stopped in front of the warehouse's roll-up door.
The padlock on the door had long been corroded beyond recognition by the sea breeze.
A padlock was meaningless against someone who could phase through walls.
He circled to the side of the warehouse and found a high ventilation duct.
Mechanical Induction silently activated.
There was power.
And the wattage was not low; an independent cable was connected from underground, clearly a later modification.
Someone inside was using high-energy consumption equipment.
William removed the grille of the ventilation duct and slipped in as silently as a cat.
The interior space was large, filled with discarded marine parts and oil drums.
But in the center of the warehouse, there was a completely different scene.
A cleanroom, enclosed by a thick plastic membrane, was brightly lit inside.
Various precise electronic instruments and energy stabilization devices that William didn't recognize were arranged within, emitting a low hum.
A makeshift secret laboratory.
The Shadow was there.
She lay on a metal bed in the center of the laboratory.
Parts of her White combat suit were damaged, revealing the skin beneath.
But that skin... was flickering.
William saw her face clearly.
A young female, with short brown hair and sharp features, but her face was now contorted with bone-deep pain and despair.
Her body was rapidly switching between solid and ethereal, like a digital image on the verge of crashing.
At times she was clearly visible, at others she became a blurry cloud of particles.
With each switch, she let out a suppressed, agonizing groan.
The chaotic vibrations captured by the Radar Sense were the sound of her body disintegrating at the quantum level.
Quantum imbalance.
Ava Starr, the tragic victim of a lab accident.
Her ability was not a gift, but a curse.
She needed to constantly absorb vast amounts of energy to stabilize her molecular structure, otherwise she would be torn apart, erased, in endless pain.
Until she completely dissipated from this Universe.
She moved through various laboratories like a Shadow, not for wealth.
But in search of technology to save herself.
Or an energy source that could temporarily relieve her pain.
William observed the whiteboards on the laboratory walls, covered in complex formulas.
Quantum physics, energy confinement... she had been desperately trying to save herself.
This was a desperate client, frantically struggling to survive on the brink of death.
William lightly jumped down from the ventilation duct, deliberately letting his heel make a crisp 'click' against the concrete floor.
"Who's there!"
Ava abruptly sprang from the bed, her body instantly dematerializing.
After a violent flicker, she roared and lunged at William with a speed difficult for the naked eye to perceive.
Her right hand became a White blur, aiming straight for his heart!
William quickly retreated.
Heaven knows what would happen to him if she touched him.
Missing her strike, Ava's form flickered again.
She tried to maintain a physical state to attack William, but her body wouldn't obey, and her anger couldn't translate into effective physical harm.
Her control was rapidly deteriorating.
"It seems your condition isn't quite suitable for any form of close combat, Ms. Starr."
William calmly adjusted his suit and tie.
"Shouldn't we sit down and talk peacefully?"
"Get out!"
Ava recoiled in terror, her body beginning to flicker violently again.
She tried to grasp a stabilizing rod on a nearby instrument, but her fingers passed through it again and again.
"Damn it! Damn it! Damn it!"
She frantically slapped at the equipment, but couldn't touch anything.
She was losing physical connection with the real World.
William watched her, his tone calm, almost cold.
"You're 'dissolving', Ms. Starr. Or, to use more professional terminology, your molecular structure is undergoing irreversible dissociation due to uncontrolled quantum tunneling effects."
Ava stopped her futile actions, she looked up, her translucent face filled with bitter hatred.
"How do you know my name? What are you doing here? To mock me? Or to capture me?"
"Neither. I'm here to offer you a solution."
"A solution?"
Ava's voice was full of mockery, as if she had heard the funniest joke of the century.
"You, in a suit, can solve problems of quantum entanglement and phase imbalance?"
"I can't."
William admitted frankly, then changed the subject.
"But the company I represent can."
He opened his briefcase, pulled out a contract, and pushed it towards Ava.
"Allow me to introduce myself, William Rodriguez, Risk Assessor. Our company's business is to handle your kind of... special 'work-related accidents'."
Ava looked at the contract title, an absurd expression on her face.
"'Quantum Phasing Accidental Coverage Agreement'? Are you kidding me?"
"We never joke, especially when it comes to the life and safety of our clients."
William's expression was extremely serious.
Tactical Vision activated, he scanned the surrounding instruments, instantly discerning their structural weaknesses.
"The core risk you currently face is 'irreversible molecular dissociation caused by quantum imbalance'."
"This homemade energy stabilization device, while cleverly designed, uses a stolen, second-hand core energy confinement field generator with over 30% power degradation, and its cooling system is poorly matched with the main unit."
"It can at most prolong your suffering; it's a palliative, not a cure."
"To put it simply, you will die, or live a life worse than death."
Ava's psychological defenses were shattered by his precise analysis.
Her body flickered violently again, and she slid to the ground, curling into a ball.
"You... you can't help me..."
Her voice was weak and desperate.
"Only Dr. Bill Foster can help me, but he needs equipment, he needs a real quantum laboratory..."
William heard the crucial information.
Bill Foster.
Former S.H.I.E.L.D. scientist.
One of the researchers of Pym Particles.
"Equipment, laboratories, and energy are precisely what our company has in abundance."
William approached her, knelt in front of her, and met her pained eyes.
"Your situation falls into the category of extremely dangerous work-related injuries, Ms. Starr. You urgently need an insurance policy."
"I have no money."
Ava gritted her teeth, spitting out three words.
"This insurance doesn't require you to pay cash."
William showed a standard smile.
"We accept labor deductions."
"Labor?"
"Yes. Your ability, Phase Shift, is extremely valuable for our company's future business expansion."
William began his ultimate sales pitch.
"Imagine, Ms. Starr. You no longer need to sneak around like a thief in the dead of night, risking your life to steal incomplete technical data from other people's data centers."
"You just need to work for us, legally and honorably."
"In return, we will provide you with the top medical resources on this Planet, the most cutting-edge quantum technology support, and... an Eternal energy source that will completely free you from pain."
"Who exactly are you?"
Ava asked cautiously.
"An organization dedicated to protecting the basic rights and life safety of extraordinary individuals."
William gave a vague but sufficiently grand answer.
"Why should I believe you?"
"Because you have no choice."
William pointed to her arm, which was becoming almost completely transparent, then stated in a matter-of-fact tone:
"Besides, my client list is far more impressive than you imagine. There are billionaires flying around in multi-million dollar iron suits, living corpses who worship the Moon God and punish evil in the darkness, and even Kunlun successors who have inherited the power of the Divine Dragon."
"Their problems are bizarre, but they all ultimately chose the insurance policy in my hand. Do you think we are just an ordinary insurance company?"
"At your current rate of dissociation, I estimate you won't last until tomorrow morning."
Ava fell completely silent.
Her body flickered faster and faster, her breathing becoming more rapid.
William knew she was experiencing pain unimaginable to ordinary people.
Each molecular tearing and recombination was like being slowly tortured to death.
"We can provide all the equipment Dr. Foster needs, and even better."
William upped the final ante, his voice filled with an irresistible temptation.
"We can even provide a portable, more stable energy source, allowing you to completely escape this intermittent pain and walk in the sunlight like a normal person."
Like a normal person... these five words completely shattered Ava's last bit of resilience.
A strong longing flashed in her eyes.
To escape pain, this was her only pursuit.
"You... can you really do it?"
"As long as you sign, the protection agreement takes effect immediately."
William pushed the contract closer again.
He was like a merchant selling Water to a dying traveler in the desert.
Ava struggled, using her last ounce of will, trying to solidify her form to pick up the contract.
Her fingers touched the screen again and again, but passed through it each time.
"I... I can't sign..."
She cried out in despair, her voice tinged with tears.
"It's okay, we support mental confirmation."
William smiled, extending a hand.
"As long as you genuinely agree, we will record this 'handshake', and the contract will take effect immediately."
He needed Ava's subjective willingness for the system to determine the signing was successful.
Ava looked at William.
This man appeared at too opportune a moment, and his terms were incredibly good.
But this might be the only straw she could grasp before sinking into the abyss.
She didn't want to die.
Even less did she want to live in such pain.
"I... agree."
Ava squeezed out these words with all her might.
The moment she agreed, a system prompt sounded in William's mind.
-------------------------------
I've already uploaded 40 chapters of this story on Patreon!
If you enjoy it, come check out the latest chapters in advance.
[patreon.com/TripleCrown07]
Thank you so much for your support!!!
"And If you're enjoying it, drop a Power Stone for me!"