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Chapter 285: Ch.284 Death Spores

Though the area it covered was small, it had the advantage of being highly controllable, avoiding widespread chaos while still being deadly enough.

It couldn\'t kill enhanced individuals, superhumans, or mutants, but it could significantly weaken them. Even Red Skull, if poisoned, would instantly become an ordinary person.

On Earth, no one but Su Ming knew the true origin of the Death Spores.

It originally wasn\'t in this form but was a black flower called the Death Spore Flower, which grew in Helheim, the realm of the dead among the Nine Realms.

For warriors who believed in the Norse gods, if they died a glorious death worthy of songs, Odin would send a guide to escort their soul to the paradise he had created—Valhalla, the Hall of the Honored Dead.

This place, hidden somewhere on a peak in Asgard, was very secluded.

The honored souls could wrestle, drink, sing loudly, and enjoy everything they could imagine there.

But if a warrior died in a less-than-glorious way—such as dying of old age in bed or drowning after falling off a boat drunk—then, sorry, there was no place for you in Valhalla.

Instead, you would end up in Helheim, keeping company with Hela.

After all, Odin had secretly sealed Hela in Helheim, ensuring she couldn\'t escape, so he might as well send the unworthy dead there too.

These unfortunate souls accumulated in Helheim, falling from the sky and piling up like mountains. And Hela could only keep company with these spirits every day.

Over time, their souls, affected by Helheim\'s unique climate and Hela\'s intense resentment, caused the growth of a type of black flower that spread death and despair.

This was the Death Spore Flower.

Hela was fond of these flowers, often using them to decorate her chambers.

Of course, Helheim was eternally dark, and everything there was black, so these black flowers didn\'t offer much in terms of beauty. And since Hela couldn\'t leave Helheim, these fearsome plants served little purpose in her hands.

The land of the dead was covered with these flowers, as common as wild grass.

But Loki was different. He knew many hidden paths through space, allowing him to travel freely between the Nine Realms without using the Bifrost and without being detected.

He didn\'t know Hela was imprisoned in Helheim; the place was a pitch-black world, and they hadn\'t crossed paths there by chance.

He thought of it as a dumping ground for the Nine Realms—a place for discarding waste, an eternal night devoid of any scenery.

But he knew that the place contained a unique plant that was quite amusing—it could turn mortals into piles of black ash and render gods powerless for a short time.

So, he stole some flowers from Helheim and returned to Asgard, planning to prank Thor and make him embarrass himself in front of everyone—maybe even make him lose control in front of Sif.

However, Odin noticed the plot, scolded Loki thoroughly, and locked him up.

But confinement couldn\'t hold Loki for long, so he soon escaped, taking his Death Spore Flowers with him to Midgard, or Earth.

He gave the flowers to Baron Stryker, encouraging him to start a massacre, just to watch the chaos unfold. But Stryker found that using the flowers in their original form wasn\'t practical, so he took some time to turn them into a liquid toxin.

Unfortunately, Loki didn\'t stick around to see the effects, as Heimdall captured him and brought him back to Asgard, where Odin reprimanded him and confined him for a few more years.

However, neither Odin nor Heimdall remembered the liquid form of the Death Spore virus, and Stryker had no idea where the "mysterious black-haired youth" had gone. But the virus proved to be effective, so Stryker continued refining it.

He worked on increasing its volatility, boosting its transmission speed, and replicating it artificially. He spent years in Japan, pouring all his time into this research.

And that\'s how the Death Spore bomb came into existence.

Of course, the development of each universe varies slightly. For instance, in Earth-12591, Stryker directly gave the toxic flower to Little Mustache, tricking him into thinking it granted immortality.

He intended to poison Little Mustache and take the top position for himself, but instead, Little Mustache turned into a zombie after ingesting it, spreading the infection to the entire German army and eventually taking over the world.

Stryker remained a lowly servant and became a zombie himself—his grand scheme backfired.

"Look, Doctor, isn\'t it a beautiful color?" Red Skull pushed Zola\'s shoulder, bringing him closer to the row of test tubes containing the virus.

Red Skull had spies among Stryker\'s ranks, and one of his loyal subordinates had sacrificed himself to steal some samples, only to be reduced to dust by Stryker\'s wrath afterward.

But Red Skull had achieved his goal, and there was always another minion to take the fallen one\'s place.

As Zola was practically dragged forward, he felt like his shoes might catch fire from the friction—he had no desire to look at the substance.

\'Red Skull doesn\'t have to worry; he\'s enhanced and would only feel unwell for a few days if exposed. But I\'m just an ordinary man! If I inhale even a little bit, I\'ll die immediately!\'

But he didn\'t dare voice this thought, so he forced a smile, allowing Red Skull to press their shoulders together, their faces almost touching.

"Yes, Schmidt, I see it. My eyesight isn\'t that bad yet."

"Good, then. You have twenty minutes to implant the Death Spore virus into my clone. I want it to be remotely detonatable outside the blast radius. And yes, integrate a few of my Cosmic Cube batteries—I want the explosion to be powerful enough."

Red Skull released his grip and turned to leave. He had already decided that he would send one of the clones, rigged to self-destruct, to Zemo\'s rendezvous.

"Good luck, Doctor. Don\'t feel too pressured, but if you fail, I will be very disappointed—extremely disappointed."

Red Skull cast one last glance at the doctor, his large, round eyes conveying a clear message, then walked away quickly.

He had already planned everything. When Zemo and the clone fought alongside each other against Captain America, he would detonate the bomb from a distance, taking out both Zemo and Captain America in one blow.

As the footsteps faded, Arnim Zola lifted his glasses, vigorously wiping his face with a handkerchief, which was now soaked.

There was no choice—Red Skull\'s orders had to be carried out, or he would be the one to die.

Zola carefully picked up one of the vials containing the dark liquid, cradling it in both hands, and hurried off to his lab.

He had to thaw the clone, calibrate the Cosmic Cube battery, modify the Death Spore bomb, install the remote control, and brainwash the clone—all within the same timeframe.

Even for a world-class physicist, time was tight, and he had to race against the clock.

Red Skull never made empty threats.

Especially with these subtle death threats—Zola had seen it many times before, and those who disappointed him always died in horrific ways.

Zola didn\'t believe in any "paradise with the true god." He was a scientist, originally just a scientist who wanted sufficient funding and research materials.

Outsiders would never understand how insane Hydra truly was until they joined—and once inside, there was no way out alive.

"If things continue like this, I\'ll end up dead at his hands one day. It\'s time to prepare my backup plan—to transfer my consciousness into something Red Skull can\'t destroy..."

As Zola jogged down the hallway with the vial in his hands, his mind raced with plans to escape Red Skull\'s clutches.