"Superpowers for Everyone Plan?"
Even saying it out loud sounded weird to Luca.
"So, getting my hands on the Compound V formula means I'm destined to walk the same dark path as Vought International?"
Of course, Luca was just running his mouth.
Even if he did launch a "Superpowers for Everyone" initiative, his company—offering stable, selectable Superpower Capsules—would be infinitely more ethical than Vought, which secretly experimented on babies and forced random, often dangerous abilities onto an unsuspecting public.
More importantly, the capsules created by the [Superman Gene Extractor] allowed for painless modification. And if a user wasn't happy with their power? They could simply extract it and swap it for another.
It was convenient for the buyer—as long as they had the money, they could change powers like changing clothes.
And for Luca? It ensured he always had a kill switch.
"Capsule Corp technology in the left hand for convenience, Superpower Capsules in the right for enhancement."
"Wait, I'm not Vought... I'm basically Dr. Briefs from Dragon Ball!"
"No, no, what am I thinking?!"
"I haven't even made a budget version of the Superpower Capsule yet, and I'm already worrying about mass market distribution?"
Realizing his thoughts were spiraling, Luca shook his head to clear out the nonsense.
Still, staring at the vial of [Compound V] in his hand, he couldn't help but follow that train of thought.
"Hmm, maybe I shouldn't rush into public sales."
"If I can extract some utility powers—like enhanced stamina or the ability to go without sleep—I could distribute them internally to Aurantius Group employees first."
"Yeah, let employees take out loans to buy the capsules, then work overtime more efficiently to pay off the loans!"
"Wait, since I can extract the powers back, it shouldn't be a purchase. It should be a rental. If they quit, they have to return the power."
"Heh, better yet, I can customize the capsules to ensure they have zero combat potential. No risk of an uprising."
The more he thought about it, the more Luca found himself laughing.
If he actually did that, forget the Dimensional War with Hell. He could probably walk into Hell right now and replace Mephisto as the Devil King.
In reality, with Aurantius Group's army of intelligent robots and bio-clones, Luca didn't need to exploit human employees for efficiency. No matter how obedient or efficient a human was, they couldn't compete with machines or genetically engineered clones.
Sokovia was Luca's power base. He provided jobs for ordinary people mainly as a social policy, to prevent the population from becoming completely useless and dependent. Given his resources and technology, the standard of living and welfare in Sokovia were already miles ahead of any other nation.
With his current reputation and image in Sokovia, even if he demanded something absurd like prima nocta, half the population might hesitate but eventually agree.
Joke over. Luca carefully placed the [Compound V] back on the table to avoid breaking the only sample he had.
Then, he picked up the other glowing component.
The blue light screen popped up again.
[Spirit Pressure Restraining Eyepatch]
[Source: Bleach Universe 3/5]
[Creator: Mayuri Kurotsuchi]
[Core Component: Nick Fury's Eyepatch]
[Synthesis Materials: 4 miniature mouths with sharp teeth, 4 miniature eyeballs, 1 miniature energy absorption device]
[Item Description: A custom-made eyepatch created by Mayuri Kurotsuchi for Kenpachi Zaraki. Its primary function is to suppress Kenpachi's immense Spirit Pressure (Reiatsu), lowering his combat ability so he can better enjoy the thrill of battle. The eyepatch endlessly devours the spiritual energy generated by the wearer, capping their power at a specific level. Once removed, the wearer's full power returns instantly.]
[Tip: Spirit energy is just a form of energy. Although the eyepatch suppresses pressure by devouring energy, the consumed energy isn't stored inside the patch. Instead, it is released back into the world.]
That's right. The second glowing item Luca found in the Skrull station wasn't some piece of alien tech. It was Nick Fury's eyepatch.
Maybe some Skrull had a weird collection hobby, or maybe they kept it for disguise purposes. Either way, Luca recognized it the moment he saw it.
Since it was a synthesis material, there was no way Luca was giving it back to that one-eyed schemer.
Besides, Fury was now a fugitive hiding in some hole. No one was going to miss a simple eyepatch.
However...
"I wonder if this thing works the way I think it does?"
Initially, when he saw the description for the [Spirit Pressure Restraining Eyepatch], Luca wasn't particularly interested.
He wasn't a battle maniac like Kenpachi Zaraki. Why would he want to suppress his own power? Just to show off? To play the "pig to eat the tiger"?
Besides, this wasn't the Soul Society. Even if he didn't "hide" his power, ordinary people couldn't sense his energy anyway. There was no point in suppressing it.
But since he hadn't synthesized it immediately, Luca had time to overanalyze the description.
Specifically, this part: "the consumed energy isn't stored inside the patch. Instead, it is released back into the world."
"If 'the world' refers to the dimension where the energy originally came from..."
"And if the eyepatch only consumes energy without damaging the physical body..."
These thoughts had been flashing through his mind for days. Now, it was time to test them.
He glanced at the fish tank where Baymax had prepared some mini sharks (for the "sharp teeth" requirement), but then shook his head. Instead, he picked up the metal models of eyeballs and sharp teeth he had prepared on the other side and placed them into the circle.
"The system's judgment criteria are as loose as ever..."
The corners of Luca's mouth twitched, but he threw in a solar panel as the "energy absorption device."
"That works too... I should have tried an airbag to see if 'kinetic energy absorption' counts..."
While still muttering nonsense, he mentally commanded:
Synthesize!