Chapter 86: Demon! Phil Urich!

"Mutagen!"

Connors couldn't contain himself. He opened his eyes, his expression complex.

Staring at the turtles and the rat before him—whose forms were similar to his Lizard state—his eyes were filled with unconcealed astonishment and excitement.

"Mutagen… it O'Neil!"

"He perished in a fire over a decade ago, and all his research was reduced to ashes. But to think… before his death, he succeeded!"

Connors muttered under his breath.

Anton raised an eyebrow. From the sound of it, Connors seemed to know April father, the Professor O'Neil who had once worked for Sykes Corporation.

However, as both were leading figures in the field of biological genetics, it wasn't surprising they'd had contact.

"The turtles and the rat are all experiments of the mutagen!"

Connors abruptly focused on the humanoid turtles and the cross-legged rat, Splinter, exclaiming, "With the mutagen, I might be able to perfect the genetic serum, even create a side-effect-free superhuman enhancement formula... Batman, is this your goal?"

"This is merely a coincidence."

Anton face remained impassive. He hadn't originally planned to use Connors and was intending to find someone else to study the mutagen, leveraging it to help Norman Osborn recover and cure his family hereditary illness. After all, the Marvel universe never lacks talent.

However, with S.H.I.E.L.D. being uncooperative and Hawkeye overly aggressive stance being rather irksome, Anton had decided to keep Connors.

If Connors could truly develop a side-effect-free "biological genetic serum" and "superhuman enhancement formula," it would be a contribution to society.

"From now on, this will be both your cell and your research lab."

Anton stated flatly, "I'll provide you with all the equipment you need. Your task is to develop, as soon as possible, a side-effect-free biological genetic serum that can cure disabilities, as well as a side-effect-free superhuman enhancement formula. The turtles and the rat will supervise you."

After a pause, he added, "Norman schizophrenia was triggered by you. In other words, the Green Goblin incident has partly your responsibility. Connors, as Spider-Man would say, if you are truly a good person at heart, this is your chance for redemption! It your last opportunity!"

With those words, Anton rose to his feet, ignoring whether Connors would refuse or not. He nodded at Splinter. "It late I should leave now."

"Alright."

Splinter nodded. "We'll proceed with the plan for The Foot Clan as discussed."

"I'll leave the Green Goblin and Connors in your care!"

Anton glanced at the still-unconscious and severely injured Norman Osborn, then at Curt Connors, who was clearly too thrilled to refuse Anton demands. He headed toward the only entrance and exit of the turtles' underground dojo.

Soon after, shedding his Batman guise, he pushed aside the manhole cover and climbed out of the grimy sewer, feeling a twinge of admiration for the turtles and the rat.

To keep their dojo in the sewer so clean, these turtles and the rat that raised them, Splinter, must have faced incredible hardship.

Even in such dire conditions, Splinter managed to raise Donatello, a purple-masked turtle with a knack for technology and academic brilliance.

It was a living testament to the saying that great talent often arises from humble beginnings.

Anton rubbed his chin thoughtfully, finding a proverb to fit.

It was hard to imagine a humbler family than turtles and a rat living in the sewers.

The rat Splinter had taught himself to become a ninja master and had trained the turtles in exceptional martial arts. Though their abilities were closer to "combat skills" than formal "ninjutsu," the outcome was undeniable.

Afterward, Anton arrived near the Osborn building and contacted Eddie. He was about to discuss strategies for dealing with The Foot Clan when two individuals stealthily pulled him into an alley, carrying a large box.

"What in the box?"

Seeing Eddie and Phil excited expressions, Anton asked curiously, "What did you two find?"

"I just turned into Venom and took Phil for a stroll around the Osborn building. You'll never guess what we discovered!"

Eddie chuckled mischievously as he opened the box in his hands.

Anton looked inside and was taken aback.

Inside the box was a glider, a Green Goblin suit, a handful of pumpkin bombs, and several razor-sharp demon blades...

In short, it was Norman Osborn backup Green Goblin equipment.

"We found these things in Norman Osborn office!"

Phil said excitedly, "Boss, Norman Osborn is the Green Goblin. This is huge news! With this stuff, we can expose his identity—the head of Osborn Corporation is actually a supervillain!"

"This news needs to be handled carefully. The shareholders behind Osborn Corporation are far more influential than those backing the Life Foundation…"

Anton waved his hand, looking at the two with a hint of regret. "Besides, Norman is currently locked up in a temporary prison I just secured. His condition is complicated—some experimental drugs damaged his mind, causing a split personality that gave rise to the Green Goblin. In short, the Green Goblin situation isn't something we can just blow wide open like before."

After a pause, his tone shifted: "Of course, you'll still get your bonus."

"Boss, I don't care about the bonus, but…"

Phil, far from looking disappointed, exchanged a glance with Eddie and mustered the courage to ask, "Can I keep this suit?"

Anton froze.

Suddenly, he realized that Eddie and Phil goal wasn't to expose the Green Goblin true identity but rather to get their hands on this Green Goblin armor and gear.

"I tried it on the suit fits me perfectly!"

Phil said eagerly, "You're all superheroes, and I want to be one of you! And the Justice League—I want to join it! Boss, give me a chance!"

"Eddie, this was your idea, wasn't it?"

Anton looked at Eddie beside him and chuckled in disbelief. "Without your encouragement, Phil wouldn't have dared to say something like this in front of me… The Justice League—you really told him everything."

"Anton, I knew I couldn't hide it from you!"

Eddie replied shamelessly, then added, "Phil been through so much with us already. I think he more than qualified to join the Justice League. Besides, when we're on missions, it wouldn't hurt to have someone handle logistics occasionally, right?"

He chuckled, hearing no rejection in Anton tone.

"Let him stay."

Sure enough, Anton turned to Phil and said, "If you want to be one of us, you'll need to work twice as hard! Not just at the Daily Bugle, but also in the Justice League. You need to prove yourself in both."

"I will!"

Phil excitement was palpable.

"By the way, have you thought of a codename yet?"

Anton smiled. "The next time you make an appearance, you'll need a cool and striking name."

"Demon. How about Demon?"

Phil responded eagerly, clearly having the answer prepared.