Su Sheng, feeling refreshed, washed up, dressed neatly, and left his room. As he walked into the kitchen, he saw Laurel preparing breakfast. Casually, he said, "Teach her how to work out and strengthen her lower body while I'm gone."
Laurel nodded in agreement.
Thea Queen was still in bed, likely exhausted from the previous night's activities. After Su Sheng and Laurel finished breakfast, he headed to his workshop to study the energy crystal left behind by the Reverse-Flash, preparing to modify it into a power source for his steel suit. His goal was to use the energy matrix from the crystal and see if it could provide perpetual kinetic energy. The Discipleship, his ship, didn't need to refuel and automatically recharged during travel, which was a highly advanced technology.
This transformation was no small task and required a deep understanding of both energy systems and advanced mechanics.
Su Sheng had a lot on his plate: researching how to use the Speed Force to travel through space, modifying the energy matrix for his battle suit, and even with his accelerated thinking thanks to the Speed Force, these projects were not quick fixes. Especially the spatial research—it would take significant time and experience. Fortunately, his enhanced cognitive speed allowed him to transform the energy crystal into a matrix reactor for his battle suit within just one day.
He installed the matrix reactor in his steel suit, replacing the original power source, and the results were impressive.
The new system had enough power to level an entire building without running out of energy—a massive upgrade from before! The next day, Su Sheng had Laurel and Thea test the new suit's capabilities while he headed to Mercury Labs on his own. Since the particle accelerator explosion and the forced closure of S.T.A.R. Labs, Mercury Labs had risen in prominence. Led by Tina McGee, Mercury Labs was known for its cutting-edge research. Tina and Harrison Wells were once scientific rivals, but after the Reverse-Flash took over Wells' identity, their relationship soured even further.
Both S.T.A.R. Labs and Mercury Labs were home to brilliant minds.
S.T.A.R. Labs had the Flash, Killer Frost (Caitlin Snow), and Vibe (Cisco Ramon), while Mercury Labs had its own roster of talent, including thieves and ballistic experts. At some point, Caitlin Snow had even joined Mercury Labs.
Standing in front of the towering Mercury Labs building, Su Sheng walked inside.
The lobby on the first floor was bustling with people. There was a security checkpoint near the elevators where visitors had to either swipe a card or sign in. A nearby lounge area displayed various Mercury Labs products.
Su Sheng glanced around before activating the Speed Force, instantly turning into a streak of yellow lightning as he zipped through the building.
"This color is really awkward," Su Sheng muttered to himself, before suddenly slowing down as he spotted a blonde woman with black-rimmed glasses in a white lab coat storming out of an office with a suitcase.
Time seemed to freeze around her, her angry expression locked in place. Su Sheng approached her and casually plucked the ID badge from her coat.
"Bri Lavin? Isn't she a thief? A computer genius too, with a solid grasp of machine applications," Su Sheng noted as he left her file alone, memorizing her address before resuming his search for tachyons.
Swish. Swish. Swish!
He moved up through the building, floor by floor.
Finally, as he neared the top floor, Su Sheng found a lab with extremely high security.
The access control for this lab was intense, with multiple layers of security.
"This is the place!" Su Sheng chuckled, vibrating his molecules to phase through the wall and enter the lab.
In the center of the lab was a sealed chamber.
The tachyons were inside.
Su Sheng phased through the chamber's walls and grabbed the tachyon device.
As soon as he emerged, he heard hurried footsteps outside, followed by security guards bursting in with guns drawn.
"Put it down..."
"Silent alarm?" Su Sheng scoffed as he walked toward the door.
"Put it down, or we'll shoot!" one of the guards yelled, but Su Sheng ignored them, continuing to walk as they opened fire.
Bullets whizzed past him, but he lazily swatted them aside.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
Amidst the hail of bullets, Su Sheng walked forward unscathed.
The security guards, dumbfounded, hesitated before rushing at him. Su Sheng flickered slightly, and the guards collapsed to the ground. By the time they scrambled to their feet, Su Sheng was gone.
Back at the Discipleship, Su Sheng began studying the tachyon particles. The energy generated by tachyons was far more potent than the Reverse-Flash's energy crystal. With careful study, Su Sheng was confident he could create an exceptional battle suit.
Meanwhile, the theft of tachyons from Mercury Labs sent shockwaves through Central City. Both the Flash and Barry Allen, in his role as a police forensic scientist, rushed to the scene.
Since regaining his speed, Barry's connection to the Speed Force had deepened, making him faster than before. The previous day, he had successfully captured the Gas Men but was unable to apprehend the other metas, Multiplex and Peek-a-Boo. Just when he thought he'd have time to focus on freeing his father, the incident at Mercury Labs occurred.
It didn't take long for Barry to realize that Su Sheng was behind the theft. After all, Su Sheng hadn't bothered to hide his identity or destroy the security footage.
The police issued a wanted notice for Su Sheng, but Barry knew it was futile.
A regular police force stood no chance against someone like Su Sheng. It would only lead to more casualties among the officers. Barry informed Joe West about the situation and returned to S.T.A.R. Labs to brainstorm a solution.
As soon as Barry arrived at the lab, he was stunned to see Su Sheng already there.
"You..." Barry was at a loss for words.
Su Sheng paid him no mind, instead pointing to the tachyon device and some schematics he had laid out for Cisco. "There it is, see? I haven't figured out how to convert the tachyon energy into something smooth and controllable. Once activated, the energy output is too high and melts the surrounding equipment. I've tried replacing the components with more heat-resistant materials, but I haven't found the right one yet. Do you have any suggestions?"