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The lights in the laboratory were stark white, and the indicator lights of the instruments flickered non-stop, emitting a faint hum.
Inside the isolation chamber, the ear-piercing infrasound still echoed in the air, and the Symbiote-possessed prisoner struggled desperately under restraint, letting out painful roars.
"Excellent, it seems the awakening experiment was successful… This also proves that noise is still effective against these newly appeared Symbiotes!"
Peter Parker let out a long sigh of relief, a look of satisfaction on his face.
In his opinion, as long as the enemy still had weaknesses, there was still room to salvage the current situation.
"Now, let's gradually reduce the intensity of the sound waves and find the range that can make both of them 'quiet' at just the right level."
As Peter Parker spoke, he stared intently at the constantly fluctuating data on the computer screen, his bloodshot eyes still sharp and focused.
His hands moved continuously on the keyboard, his slender fingers dancing nimbly over the keys like a pianist, producing a series of crisp tapping sounds.
It must be said that Peter Parker's talent in scientific research was absolutely far superior to Gwen and Harry Osborn present.
Just his ample patience alone was something others could not hope to match!
Not long after, a glimmer of excitement suddenly flashed in Peter Parker's eyes, and the corners of his mouth turned upward; he had successfully found the subtle critical value that could keep the Symbiote attached while also keeping it calm.
A look of excitement appeared on his face, and he turned to look at Gwen and Harry Osborn behind him, exclaiming excitedly, "Found it!"
"Peter, you really are a genius!"
Harry Osborn glanced at the Symbiote Warrior in the isolation chamber, who lay quietly on the experimental table as if under a stasis spell, his eyes wide with astonishment and admiration, unable to stop praising him.
Even Gwen, who was standing by, couldn't help but nod vigorously in agreement, but her bright eyes were now fixed on the spiral-shaped special pattern on the Symbiote Warrior's face, her brows slightly furrowed, her expression focused.
This pattern was almost identical to the blood-stained symbol Sheriff Frank had told her about, which was found in Ravencroft Prison!
It seemed there was some kind of relationship between the two that she did not yet understand…
Gwen couldn't help but fall into deep thought, various ideas rapidly spinning in her mind.
At this moment, Peter Parker had already entered a state of engrossed research, his hands rapidly tapping on the keyboard with a clatter, his speed, honed over twenty-plus years of being single, was so fast that it was almost impossible to see his movements.
His eyes were fixed on the computer screen, not blinking once, and he quickly obtained a series of experimental data.
"All the physical functions of this prisoner have been greatly enhanced, but since we currently don't have the detection data of the Symbiote Warriors that appeared before, we cannot yet determine whether this Symbiote has evolved or mutated!"
Peter Parker muttered to himself as he looked at the data, his voice low and focused, as if everything around him had nothing to do with him.
"Huh?"
Suddenly, Peter Parker's eyes widened as if he had discovered something interesting, and he raised his hand to point at a certain data on the computer screen, speaking urgently to the two behind him:
"Gwen, Harry, look… The quantum microwave scanner detected a large amount of abnormal mental energy from his brain, all coming from that Symbiote, and his consciousness seems to be controlled by that mental energy, with extremely low activity!"
"So…," Gwen said, pinching her chin and lowering her head slightly, recalling thoughtfully, "No wonder these Symbiote Warriors act as recklessly as a bunch of brainless Beasts, completely different from the Symbiote hosts that appeared before!"
"Wait a minute!" A look of sudden realization appeared on Gwen's face, and she turned to Peter Parker, asking:
"Peter, I remember you said before that when the Symbiote on this prisoner detached during your fight with him, he entered an unconscious state?"
"That's right." Although Peter Parker didn't know what his goddess was thinking, he still nodded truthfully.
Seeing this, Gwen said with a solemn expression, stating her guess, "If that's the case, it's very likely that someone is using these newly appeared Symbiotes to form a 'mind network' similar to a Hive Mind, which would allow them to control these 'clones' to do evil anywhere, anytime, without hindrance!"
"Hive Mind?!"
Peter Parker and Harry Osborn were both startled at the same time, the latter's mouth wide open as he asked in confusion:
"Spi… ah no, Gwen, it's not that I don't believe your deduction, but the problem is, can anyone really control thousands of Symbiote Warriors at the same time?"
He shook his head as he spoke, "And also, the person behind all this, went to such great lengths, risking exposure, to convert over five thousand prisoners from Ravencroft Prison, but didn't order them to act immediately and attack the city en masse, instead letting them hide in the sewers to ambush civilians returning home at night… This clearly doesn't make sense?!"
However, Harry Osborn's doubts were also Gwen's doubts.
This matter had been shrouded in an incomprehensible strangeness from the beginning; if the real culprit behind the scenes was indeed Eddie Brock, whom she had always suspected, then what exactly did he intend to do with such an elaborate operation?
Gwen bit her lip, lost in deep thought.
Just then, Peter Parker, who had been staring intently at the computer screen, suddenly spoke, "Huh? Come and see this…"
He pointed to a constantly flickering red dot on the screen and explained to the two, "Just now I tried to convert the mental energy released by this Symbiote into corresponding radiation signals, hoping to use reverse tracing to locate the other Symbiote Warriors in New York, but it ultimately failed."
Peter Parker sighed softly, a look of regret on his face, but then he quickly cheered up again and said excitedly:
"However, I unexpectedly discovered this… a very strong signal source!"
"This looks like some kind of special 'beacon' that is emitting signals."
Harry Osborn frowned, his expression serious as he said, "It seems Gwen was really right this time; someone is secretly planning a big unknown scheme by controlling the prisoners who escaped from Ravencroft Prison through these Symbiotes!"
"But no matter what that guy wants to do, he's already far ahead of us!"
"Peter, can you detect a more precise location?"
Harry Osborn clenched his fist and said righteously, "No matter what that bastard hiding behind the scenes wants to do, the citizens of New York are innocent, so we must do everything in our power to prevent tragedy from happening, and absolutely not let that damned bastard get his way!"
At this moment, the young and promising rich second-generation's voice was filled with a sense of mission that commanded respect.
"Well… let me try!"
Peter Parker typed furiously on the keyboard, his fingers dancing across the keys, and soon a fine layer of sweat beaded on his forehead.
However, in the end, he shook his head helplessly at the two, saying somewhat disappointedly, "It seems that the energy signal released by this Symbiote alone cannot precisely locate the specific location of that 'beacon'…"
"But I can try to make a signal source tracker, and then as long as we release this Symbiote Warrior back, it shouldn't take long for him to lead us to the location of that 'beacon', right?"
"Peter, you really are a genius!" Harry Osborn's eyes lit up at the words, sparkling with excitement, and he immediately gave a thumbs-up in praise, his admiration evident on his face.
"However, if we want to solve this crazy conspiracy once and for all, relying solely on the three of us seems a bit too weak, doesn't it?"
When he thought of this crucial question, the smile on Harry Osborn's face gradually disappeared, and his brows furrowed again.
Peter Parker fully agreed with this and turned to Gwen, who was deep in thought, saying:
"Gwen, should we tell Homelander about this?"
"If the other members of The Seven are willing to join, it would be much simpler for us to deal with those thousands of Symbiote Warriors."
"This… I'm afraid not!" Gwen shook her head with a conflicted expression, biting her lip, and hesitated before saying, "Homelander seems to have put all his energy into a project called the Metaverse recently, and he has no mind for other things at all."
"What's more, even if he had the time, we absolutely cannot let him join… because he would very likely slaughter all the Symbiote Warriors."
Gwen's eyes revealed a hint of reluctance, "Although those prisoners are criminals, they have already received legal punishment, and this time their consciousness was completely controlled by those Symbiotes, so they were not in control of themselves. Therefore, we cannot vent our anger on them."
"Hmm, Gwen is right about that." Harry Osborn looked at Gwen with admiration, nodding vigorously, "In this matter, those prisoners from Ravencroft Prison are actually also victims. We cannot let them become scapegoats for no reason, but…"
After a slight pause, Harry Osborn continued with some hesitation, "It's just that this will undoubtedly greatly increase the difficulty of our operation. The three of us alone cannot deal with thousands of Symbiote Warriors. We need help… the kind that is strong enough!!"
The laboratory immediately fell silent, and the three seemed to be caught in an endless loop from which they could not move forward.
The atmosphere gradually became solidified, so oppressive that it was suffocating.
"That…"
At this moment, a flash of inspiration struck Peter Parker's mind, and his eyes suddenly lit up, as if he had thought of something, and he said excitedly:
"Gwen, if we can't find Homelander and The Seven, what if we directly ask Hyperspace Group for help? Will they lend a hand?"
"Hyperspace Group?"
Harry Osborn's eyes widened, clearly not unfamiliar with this name… No, it could even be said to be a household name!
My dear Peter, you've even managed to get involved with such a massive business empire?
"That's hard to say, but I can try first!"
Gwen was clearly tempted as well, after all, the reputation of Hyperspace Group was practically known to everyone.
After several widely known classic 'savior battles,' this multinational corporation was now almost regarded as a 'savior' by most New York City residents.
But the problem was, New York did not belong to Sokovia after all.
And almost every previous operation by Hyperspace Group was ultimately funded by the Department of Defense and various countries around the World.
As for the current incident, Gwen had always suspected it was related to Eddie Brock.
However, considering that the other party was both an employee of S.H.I.E.L.D. and a member of the New Avengers Alliance, with intricate ties to the official authorities.
So, if Eddie Brock was indeed the mastermind behind this series of events, then if Gwen reported the information she had found to the authorities, it would inevitably alert the enemy, so the path of 'reporting to the authorities' was unfeasible.
In this way, Gwen could not guarantee how successful they would be in 'freeloading' Hyperspace Group's combat power.
But where there's a will, there's a way; if they didn't try, how would they know it wouldn't succeed?
So the three of them put their heads together and discussed enthusiastically in the laboratory, each contributing their ideas.
They ultimately decided to first call Hyperspace Group to request assistance.
At the same time, Peter Parker and Harry Osborn would work together to create a tracking device, and then use the captured Symbiote Warrior to search for the exact location of the 'beacon' that was emitting signals!
...
In an abandoned tunnel several miles beneath New York, the damp walls were covered in moss, emitting a pungent, foul odor.
A colossal 'tree' with a diameter of at least ten meters, resembling flesh and blood, lay across this space.
And beneath this 'giant tree,' thousands of Symbiote Warriors, completely controlled by the Loyalist Symbiote, like obedient worker ants in an anthill, climbed in batches and shifts into designated 'tree holes' on the 'giant tree.'
Their movements were mechanical and stiff, continuously releasing a special mental energy, and the entire tunnel was permeated with a strange and dangerous aura.