No one knew just how much Nolan desired this.
Money was the source of his power.
For his current self, nothing was more important than wealth.
The second-generation Super Soldier Gene clearly could no longer support his current level of intense battles.
And although his Mechanical Legion was already powerful enough, it still had major flaws when facing truly terrifying opponents.
One day, he hoped his Mechanical Legion would be able to demonstrate enough strength against any enemy, no matter how powerful they were.
Just like now.
When facing an enemy like Thanos, his Mechanical Legion could only serve as support.
He was a businessman, not a warrior.
Although becoming stronger had always been one of his goals, if he could simply sit behind the battlefield, drink coffee, enjoy fine wine, and watch his enemies turn to dust, wouldn't that be much better?
Why become a fighter when he could be a summoner?
The only problem was that for him right now, building the Mechanical Legion was not as cost-effective as upgrading to the third-generation Super Soldier Gene.
After all, in this era of the Marvel Universe, the gap between individual strengths was simply too enormous.
Soon, under the pressure of possible alien invasions, Nolan immediately organized a new weapons exhibition.
This time, he placed his Titan Armor on display as one of the main products.
Besides that, he also brought out the G5 Robots.
Although these robots lacked powerful long-range attacks, they were extremely qualified as swordsmen.
In close combat, they were practically unbeatable among cost-effective combat robots.
He even displayed some advanced tanks and several laser weapons.
The current development of Earth's weapons was far too backward.
If they wanted to compete against Thanos' army, the difference was simply too great.
Nolan did not want Earth to eventually rely only on Lock Technology's weapons to fight.
At the exhibition, most people's attention was focused on the Titan Armor.
Many of them had fiery looks in their eyes.
"You're selling this giant machine too?"
Major General Roger spoke.
His throat felt dry.
This was Titan Armor.
The equipment that had once overwhelmed even gods.
Even during the battle against the alien army, the terrifying firepower of the Titan Armor had left a deep impression on everyone.
Without the support provided by those Titan Armors, the battle probably would not have ended so easily.
"Of course."
Nolan smiled and nodded.
His eyes also carried a hint of excitement.
Of course, he knew how attractive the Titan Armor was to these people.
The Titan Armor could be said to be one of his signature creations.
If Tony Stark's Mark-series armor was the military's obsession...
Then the Titan Armor was the military's dream.
In their eyes, a mature Titan Armor equipped with a proper combat system could completely dominate a battlefield.
"If the Air Force wants to purchase them, I can give you a 5% discount."
"Only 5%?"
Major General Roger smiled.
Then he said:
"I thought that since we were the first ones to express interest, you would at least give us a 25% discount."
He understood very clearly.
For this kind of equipment, Nolan would definitely ask for an outrageous price.
But there was nothing they could do.
This was a monopolized product.
There were only two choices.
Buy it or don't buy it.
As for lowering the price, even without thinking too hard, he knew it was impossible.
Nolan smiled and explained:
"Sorry, Titan Armor is still considered a laboratory product.
The cost required to manufacture it is far higher than you imagine, so a 5% discount is already my limit."
"Fine. Tell me the price."
General Roger spoke.
"8.5 billion."
Even though General Roger had already prepared himself for the price, when he heard the number, he almost jumped.
"Mr. Lock, are you joking with me?
8.5 billion could be used to build an aircraft carrier!
Even after the discount, this price is enough to make us give up."
Not only him, but the Army and Navy representatives also frowned and began speaking.
This price was simply beyond what they could afford.
And they were not just buying one Titan Armor.
One Titan Armor might be powerful, but a single unit alone could not change the entire battlefield.
However, Nolan's expression did not change at their complaints.
"8.5 billion is already the price I calculated after considering the production cost.
You should understand the strength of Titan Armor.
As for aircraft carriers..."
He paused slightly.
"Why do you think Titan Armor is not an aircraft carrier?"
"When a Titan Armor unit is equipped with supporting robots, how is it different from an aircraft carrier and its escort fleet?"
"Besides, aircraft carriers can only operate on the ocean, while Titan Armor is far more flexible."
"I am not exaggerating when I say this is a land-based aircraft carrier."
"And I guarantee that if a fully equipped Titan Armor unit attacks an aircraft carrier fleet, the final winner will definitely be the Titan Armor."
"Believe me, the cost of building one Titan Armor is far cheaper than building an entire carrier fleet."
A Navy Vice Admiral nearby frowned deeply.
"That may be true, but the deterrence of a carrier fleet is far greater than you imagine."
"Titan Armor has advantages, but it cannot replace the role of a carrier fleet."
He was not saying this to insult Titan Armor.
It was simply reality.
Even Nolan had to admit that against a large-scale bombardment, Titan Armor would eventually show its limits.
The energy shield on Titan Armor was excellent, but its endurance was not unlimited.
A carrier fleet was different.
A complete carrier fleet possessed various missile defense systems and bombardment capabilities.
It could independently launch a massive war.
The two were fundamentally different.
But so what?
Even if aircraft carriers could not be replaced by Titan Armor...
Could Titan Armor itself be replaced by aircraft carriers?
Obviously not.
So Nolan only looked at everyone with a faint smile.
Lower the price?
Impossible.
General Roger's mouth twitched.
"A damn businessman..."
He cursed in his heart.
But even knowing Nolan Lock was a difficult person to deal with, it did not matter.
They already knew he was a businessman who valued profit.
But what could they do?
They still had to buy.
"The Navy wants 15 Titan Armor units. I hope we can get the 5% discount you mentioned."
The Navy Vice Admiral was the first to speak.
General Roger immediately looked at him.
"What does the Navy need so many Titan Armors for?"
His expression darkened.
The Navy Vice Admiral had just blocked his chance to negotiate.
The Navy Vice Admiral immediately replied:
"Nolan Lock is right. Our current carrier fleets still have major weaknesses."
"But if we combine Titan Armor with carrier fleets, then in future naval battles, our chances of victory will greatly increase."
"Fine. The Air Force needs 22 units."
Major General Roger spoke helplessly.
The moment he said it, he felt his heart ache.
However, the person whose heart hurt the most was the Army General standing nearby.
Everyone knew that if aliens invaded again, the Army would most likely be the first force to face them.
In other words, the Army would become the main force against alien enemies.
Therefore, the government had allocated a large amount of funding to the Army to upgrade their equipment.
But even so...
This price...
They couldn't possibly spend the entire military budget on Lock Technology, right?
After all, the equipment they wanted from Lock Technology was not limited to Titan Armor.
For example, those tanks that had shown incredible performance before.
And the energy weapons carried by those robots.
Even though the current Army was gradually upgrading and replacing their weapons with Chitauri laser technology, the difference between them was still enormous.
To build a full energy weapon force, they would also need matching advanced combat armor.
Mjolnir Armor was out of the question.
But what about other equipment?
Even the black armor used by the Avengers would be extremely valuable.
And he had no doubt that Lock Technology had such equipment stored away.
Just like the Delta Power Suit from back then.
As Nolan Lock's status continued to rise, the things he had done in the past were no longer secrets.
It was just that no one dared to challenge him because of them.
"The Army wants 100 units."
When the Army General spoke, everyone looked at him in shock.
"Are you insane?"
That was one hundred Titan Armors.
One cost 8.5 billion.
A hundred would be 850 billion!
How much was the Army's annual budget?
Was he planning to spend an entire year's funding on these Titan Armors?
The Army General shook his head.
"I'm not insane."
"The Army has received support from the Council."
"These 100 Titan Armors are not only for the United States Army. Other nations' military forces will also receive them."
"In the future, we will face alien invasions, not human enemies."
"So this time, we are preparing for a joint military operation."
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