What Vegapunk had just mentioned was still highly credible. After all, Kaido had been captured multiple times, and Vegapunk must have extracted significant amounts of his bloodline factors. Yet, in the comics' finale, he only cloned a Seraphim based on the Seven Warlords of the Sea.
And then there was Big Mom—a monstrous talent. The Navy had fought her countless times, and surely they must have collected some blood samples from her. Carl didn't believe for a second that the World Government hadn't tried cloning her.
Her clones not appearing later could only mean the World Government failed in their attempts to replicate her.
As for the others—Shanks, being the youngest of the Four Emperors, was naturally gifted. And then there was Whitebeard...
Whitebeard's strength was undeniable, but in terms of raw physical ability, or racial talent, Carl figured that Whitebeard might have been the least formidable among the Four Emperors. This made it plausible that his bloodline factor was somewhat weaker than Kaido's.
Especially after what Vegapunk had just said—how even if a cloning attempt succeeded, the result might be a "low IQ" and "completely different person." This brought Weevil to Carl's mind.
Miss Buckin had always claimed that Weevil was Whitebeard's son, calling him Whitebeard II. Carl speculated that Weevil might actually be Whitebeard's clone.
After all, Miss Buckin had once been a member of MADS, later joining the Rocks Pirates. She had been close to Whitebeard for years, making it all too easy to acquire his bloodline factor. Perhaps, she even directly obtained Whitebeard's essence. Regardless, Carl doubted Vegapunk had a hand in this—Whitebeard had never been captured.
But with Miss Buckin's knowledge of cloning and her access to such rare samples, it was certainly possible for her to have created Weevil.
From this perspective, Vegapunk's words held weight, and Carl temporarily set aside his murderous intentions.
Vegapunk had no idea how close he had come to death. Since Carl was already in the lab, he decided to inspect the instruments. After glancing at the data displayed, he nodded and said,
"All of Stussy's vitals are normal. You can wake her up if you want."
Carl pondered for a moment before asking, "You mentioned she was in there since she was a child. If she wakes up now, won't her IQ be like a child's?"
"No," Vegapunk replied, "there's a special device that regularly transmits knowledge to her brain. Her IQ is higher than most adults'. She's perfectly capable of assisting me."
As he spoke, Vegapunk pressed a button. A hood with numerous tubes was lowered onto the containers—this was the special device he had mentioned.
Carl couldn't help but marvel at Vegapunk's scientific prowess but said, "Isn't it a waste to use such valuable material as just an assistant?"
"Well," Vegapunk hesitated,
"Actually, Saint Saturn wanted her to join CP0. She not only has high intelligence but also considerable combat ability."
"And you agreed?"
Vegapunk gave a wry smile. "It was Saint Saturn's decision. I had no choice."
Carl turned to face Vegapunk, smiling slyly. "Really? I don't believe you'd give in so easily. Didn't you do something to her?"
This time, Vegapunk's response was less natural. He hesitated for a moment before replying, "No, Carl... What are you accusing me of?"
Carl laughed. "Let me guess. You made sure she would subconsciously prioritize you, didn't you?"
Vegapunk's expression froze, and sweat began to form on his massive forehead.
Carl stepped closer, placing a hand on Vegapunk's shoulder and whispered, "Vegapunk, you're not entirely honest. If you let her infiltrate CP0, it would be easy for you to gather secrets from the World Government, wouldn't it?"
A palpable pressure emanated from Carl, and Vegapunk began trembling. Carl continued, "You're a scientist, and I respect your brilliance. But some things are too dangerous to know. It would be a pity if your curiosity cost you your life. Even if you don't care about yourself, think of your hometown. Do you understand?"
Vegapunk gritted his teeth and nodded. "I understand. I'll tell Saint Saturn not to let Stussy join CP0."
"No," Carl said, "she's actually an excellent candidate for espionage. Just change who she's loyal to."
"You want her to be loyal to the World Government?" Vegapunk asked, bewildered.
"She's loyal to too many already. Just simplify it—make her loyal to me. Can you do that?"
"...Yes," Vegapunk replied, defeated.
Seeing Vegapunk's agreement, Carl smiled in satisfaction, but he still wasn't entirely ready to trust him.
Carl didn't understand much about scientific research, but that's what Caesar was for. Caesar, who had always been at odds with Vegapunk, could now become Carl's leverage.
Carl glanced over at Caesar, who was still covering his mouth, and said lightly, "You heard all that, right? You know how to modify the instructions?"
Caesar nodded vigorously, eager to please. Carl said, "You'll oversee Vegapunk during this task. If the results satisfy me, I'll arrange for Saint Saturn to allocate more research funds for you and give you greater responsibilities in the institute."
Caesar's eyes gleamed with excitement, while Vegapunk looked downcast. He couldn't comprehend how Carl had uncovered his secret, which even Saturn didn't know. Yet Carl seemed to know far more than he had expected.
"Vegapunk," Carl added, "I also want you to implant a chip in Stussy. Let's call it the 'authoritarian chip.' Its function is simple: set me as the only authority. That shouldn't be difficult for you, right?"
Vegapunk, now utterly defeated, nodded stiffly. Finally, Carl was satisfied. After giving Caesar a few more instructions to monitor the research, Carl exited the laboratory.
As he passed by Vegapunk, Carl smiled and said, "Come on, check my body. I have some things I need to know."
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+86 chapters on p@treon/tambeerg
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