Chapter 36: The Red Queen and the Sun Staircase (Part 3)

"Sir, these are all the current research advancements of Umbrella Corporation." In Umbrella's West African base, a large computer screen displayed a plethora of data—biology, pharmaceuticals, metal smelting, tempered glass reinforcement, and more—all high-tech products.

It was evident that the products Umbrella had revealed to the public were not even a tenth of what they actually had. In modern society, no company can cover all fields. Even Stark, when creating his Iron Man suits, had to purchase various special metals externally. It's not that Stark couldn't research those things, but human energy is limited, and no one can master everything.

Umbrella had to research all these things out of necessity. Given that their primary research focus was bio-viruses, frequent external purchases would raise suspicions. Umbrella's deep secrecy stemmed from their in-house capabilities.

For example, metal smelting and tempered glass reinforcement were developed to contain test subjects. Umbrella had its own internally used metal series, the TG series.

TG series metal, secretly developed by Umbrella, was extremely strong, at least half as light as other equivalent metals, and had the significant advantage of evading most metal detectors. It could pass through customs undetected by X-rays, making it a crucial component in Umbrella's secrecy.

Tempered glass, on the other hand, was used to contain test subjects. Unlike scenes in movies where subjects break reinforced glass easily, such incidents would never happen in Umbrella. Their reinforced glass, designed to handle the Tyrant series' test subjects, was internally manufactured and rigorously tested, and it was significantly thickened during construction.

All this was possible because of Umbrella's vast financial resources. Many labs face budget constraints and need to minimize costs meticulously. If these technologies were revealed, Umbrella's value would skyrocket. The TG series metal alone could be used to manufacture weapons, vehicles, and aircraft.

For the sake of Umbrella, or rather for his godhood plan, Spencer had spared no effort, but fate was not on his side, and his subordinates were traitors. Otherwise, relying on the Veronica virus, Spencer might have lived much longer. The virus's fifteen-year integration period would not have been a problem for him. Whether frozen for fifteen years or replacing organs, he could have managed it.

After leaving Spencer's castle, Daniel Davis and Ada arrived at Wesker's secret base, which stored data, viruses, and the Red Queen from Umbrella. Using Wesker's identity, Daniel easily rewrote the Red Queen's base code, transferring control. He also changed the Red Queen's voice to a younger girl's, naming her the Red Queen. This led to Ada giving him a peculiar look.

Initially, Daniel didn't understand the look, but later he realized it was akin to looking at a lolicon, making him feel speechless. After spending a few days together, the two had become somewhat familiar. Daniel asked Ada if she wanted a job, considering he was now a billionaire and could provide employment. However, Ada declined.

Ada was a freelance agent, similar to a mercenary, working for whoever paid. At least, that's what she claimed. Daniel wasn't sure if it was true, but based on what he knew, it seemed likely. However, this wasn't her reason for refusing. She enjoyed the adventurous life, walking on the edge, which was her primary reason for becoming an agent.

Ada was somewhat like Black Widow but disliked excessive constraints, which was why she didn't join S.H.I.E.L.D.

"There's no holographic projection system here. I guess I'll need to get one from Stark." Although the Red Queen was an intelligent system, creating the effect of Tony Stark's lab required a holographic projection system.

"Taking all this stuff back to New York won't be easy." Looking at the enormous container in front of her, Ada asked curiously.

For an intelligent system to fully function, extensive hardware was necessary. The bottom of Stark's mansion housed Jarvis's servers. Similarly, the Red Queen's equipment filled an entire container, and this was just the standard setup. Additional features required more external devices.

"Don't worry, this isn't a problem for me. You like adventures, right? This time, I'll show you a real adventure." For Daniel, the container issue was simple, thanks to Pym particles. Though he had run out of them earlier and hadn't made new ones, he still had Pym particle darts.

Despite his favorable impression of Ada, he couldn't reveal all his secrets at once.

"It's just a primitive tribe." The Sun Staircase's location was a primitive tribe. Despite the modern world, some parts of Africa still had primitive tribes, with the most chaotic systems. Just look at Wakanda, capable of creating a camouflage shield yet still selecting kings through ancient rituals. Their vibranium weapons were mostly for close combat. Vibranium hoes, can you believe it?

Daniel's detailed understanding of the Sun Staircase came from a book Ada brought from the castle. It was this book that led Spencer and others to the Sun Staircase. The book, "Natural History Investigation," was written by an explorer a century ago about his adventures in Africa. It detailed the geography, climate, flora, fauna, mineral resources, population distribution, and customs of the areas he traveled through in seventy-two volumes. However, its fantastic content led people to treat it as a work of fiction rather than fact. Due to political, war, and other reasons, this book had become almost extinct.

Spencer's family, being a renowned European family, possessed a complete set of "Natural History Investigation." Young Spencer became curious about the Sun Staircase after reading it and, along with his friends Edward and Marcus, ventured to find it. The book described the Sun Staircase as a necessary step for selecting a king in a primitive tribe. Only those who consumed the Sun Staircase and survived could become the tribe's king, gaining immense power, a lifespan of hundreds of years, and immunity to weapons.

This was why the book was considered an adventure novel. Most believed such abilities could only exist in fiction, not reality. However, young Spencer and Edward, dreamers at heart, sought this power. They found the Sun Staircase and extracted the Progenitor Virus, which led to the founding of Umbrella.

The Sun Staircase reminded Daniel of Wakanda's Heart-Shaped Herb, both offering similar effects. Had this primitive tribe not perished early, they might have developed into a nation like Wakanda. Virus antibodies are hereditary, like Wesker's son, who naturally possessed virus antibodies, making them least likely to fail when consuming the Sun Staircase.

"What is this?" Ada asked, stopping in her tracks as she saw a strange light ahead, like countless floating glass shards.

"An anomaly."

What the "Natural History Investigation" didn't record was that the Sun Staircase wasn't a terrestrial plant but one that appeared in a permanent anomaly within a cave in this primitive tribe.

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