The next day, when Connors arrived at the Stark Tower Laboratory, he saw Banner with two dark circles under his eyes and Stark clad in Mecha. This sight was rather eerie, causing Connors to freeze for a moment.
He put down the folder in his hand, dusted the ash off his jacket and said: "Sorry, I'm a day late. I've just arrived from a laboratory in Los Angeles. My two new graduate students have made a mess out of the project, I just finished dealing with the trouble."
"Honestly, I was going to tell you not to bother coming, as the two of us, especially me, have almost finished the work," Stark said in a heightened tone.
"Really? Koenig told me that you guys didn't make a move on the biotech project, and Old Osborn just called to say you've been delaying some blueprint for two days now...
Banner slapped his forehead, saying, "Alright, that should be my task, I almost forgot."
Connors walked over to him, shook his hand and said, "I've heard about you from colleagues at the Los Angeles lab. He must have been your classmate at MIT... Oh, right, I heard you've made quite an achievement in cryogenic experiments. In that case, take a look at this..."
Connors took a document out of the folder and gave it to Banner who adjusted his glasses and squinted at it, asking, "What is it?"
"It's a brand new cryogenic technology, initially intended for developing chilly weapons. However, after discussing with some colleagues at the Los Angeles Cryogenic Lab, we thought it could be utilized in the cosmic base too."
"I know it's a cryogenic technology, I was just asking, when did humanity's cryogenic technology reach this level? Dense ice? Isn't that only theoretically possible?"
"You have to ask Shiller about that, ask how his genius friend managed to come up with such an absurd technology."
With that, Connors handed the document to Stark and said: "We've made some progress in researching dense ice. This material can be used for the roofing of the Mercury Base. It offers high transparency and can block the enormous heat from the Sun."
Stark skimmed it and said," This is better suited for alien colonies as glass or something. Automated factories don't need it since there aren't any living people there. Everything runs according to the program, we don't need lights, let alone natural light."
"Don't rush, aren't you currently researching the supporting structure beneath the Ring Mountain? This material will satisfy you."
Hearing Connors say this, Stark took another look at the document. Connors then added," What's more, this means that we are not restricted by raw materials anymore. Didn't you complain about it on the phone before? Wakanda is unwilling to furnish more Vibranium."
"They are not unwilling, they simply don't have that much. Even if they had plenty, it wouldn't last forever. The upcoming Solar System development plan would require a massive amount of metal. I must save money for Earth…"
Stark picked up the document again, scrutinized it and said: "You are right, it can replace some metal structures. More importantly, it's convenient for molding."
"Exactly. With this, we can realize the overall structure, no need for patchy work anymore, let me see…"
Stark began studying the document. In the background, Connors said: "I'll upload the file to the Central System later. Make sure to check."
Stark waved his hand without looking back. Connors didn't mind. He walked around the experiment table to Banner and said: "I need your help. The liquid breeding technology provided by Osborn might be applicable to the thermal insulation layer of the alien base deck. It will counter the extreme temperature difference between day and night on Mercury."
So far, all three of them had their own projects. Stark mainly dealt with mechanical engineering projects like the overall structure of the base, arrangement of assembly lines, setting up automated programs, and the most important part - the energy problem.
Banner was in charge of terrain modification and environmental adaptation, while Connors dealt with bioengineering. Osborn was also involved, but not as the main lead. He only provided some biotechnologies.
More importantly, there was an off-site helper - Reed Richards from the space station.
Reed was hailed as the smartest man on Earth, theoretically the most intelligent among all humans. Building space bases and studying the cosmos were his forte. Initially, Nick wanted to bring him on board as the main force.
But his space exploration mission was at a critical stage. Though the solar system development plan was crucial, near-Earth research was equally important.
There was already Stark, Banner, Connors, and other excellent scholars for the Solar System Development Plan. But for near-Earth exploration and research, Reed was pretty much a one-man army. Bringing him back would leave his intricate research projects unattended.
Nevertheless, Reed, who was in the space station, had heard about Stark's plan. The two geniuses clicked instantly.
Hovering in mid-air in the space station, Reed said to Nick through his communicator, "I didn't expect him to be so audacious, to propose such a plan…"
"If my research wasn't at its most crucial stage, I'd also want to return and participate in this thrilling project."
"If you could speed up, you might catch up with us for a field trip to Mercury. As I told you before, with the aid of magic power, things can be much simpler."
Reed held the communicator between his head and shoulder while flipping through the data with his hands, and said, "But I need to remind you not to rely too much on magic. It's not something that belongs to the human race. We have to find our own way."
"Don't worry, some people not only want to rely on magic, but also want to claim it for their own... anyway, let's not talk about that. Have you conducted any research on stars?"
"I have done a lot of star research, but most of it is not deep enough because it is too far from the human race to exploit stars."
"Hmm... Indeed, but... I mean... suppose, just suppose, if the human race wanted to blow up a star, what should we do?"
"Blow up a star? What are you talking about? Why should the human race blow up a star? Our solar system... it's called the solar system, and you're planning to blow up the sun?!"
"Not the sun, but a giant star with a mass about 120 times that of the sun..."
Before Reed could ask, Nick spoke to him as if he were reading from a script: "Now, we have several options. We have something that can absorb solar energy and convert it for our own use. The benefit is that it's completely controllable, but the absorption limit is not high..."
"Then it's useless. You said it's a giant star with a mass about 120 times that of the sun. If this device can't completely absorb all the energy from the sun, it will be even more useless for a giant star."
"Okay, we have another plan. We have something that uses magnetic power. Don't ask me about the specific principle. I don't understand it either. Anyway, it can control the magnetic field."
"If you don't tell me the upper limit of this power, how can I judge whether it can detonate a giant star?"
Nick sighed, and Reed heard him on the other end of the phone saying, "You tell him, I really don't understand."
"The maximum magnetic power he can control is unknown."
A voice somewhat unfamiliar to Reed sounded on the other end of the communicator. Shiller said to him: "But I estimate that it should be able to move large planets, bend and control light, reach atomic level at the microscopic level, create wormholes, pass through space, control gravity and the unified field..."
"Stop talking, let's use this." Reed said very affirmatively, "If it can really reach the level you said, then detonating a star is no big deal."
"I know, his power is very likely to detonate a star, but I hope to understand the principle."
"If his control of magnetism has reached this level, there are actually many ways."
"Let me be clearer, I want a method with the greatest destructive power..."
"Destructive power?" Reed was only puzzled for a moment, and then he reacted, saying, "You don't want to blow up a star, you want to use a star to blow up something else? What is worth detonating a giant sun for?"
"You don't need to worry about that." Nick's voice sounded on the side, saying, "We'll call you to watch the fireworks when we're ready."
"Well, if you want the most destructive power, it's definitely a supernova explosion. At least within the scope of my knowledge, it has the greatest destructive power."
"Theoretically, it's not difficult to artificially induce a supernova explosion. If you say that thing can artificially arrange atoms, it's even simpler. I'll send you my research materials on supernova explosions later, and you can have a look."
"Okay, I have no other questions to ask for now, so next time...."
"Wait! What are you guys trying to do? Why do I feel like you're going to make a big move?" Reed asked.
"...Indeed, this is a big plan." Nick said.
Then Reed heard Shiller's rather indifferent voice on the other end of the phone, like a merciless undertaker gathering bodies on a cold night.
"That's right, I call it... the Glory Plan."