After giving a few final instructions to Steve, Wang Ye returned to the observation platform.
Dr. Erskine, seeing that their exchange was complete, turned to Howard and said, "Let's begin, Mr. Stark."
Howard nodded, donned his protective goggles, and began activating the equipment. Once the enhancement platform sealed itself into a closed chamber, he turned the valve to inject the vita-rays.
Immediately, a blinding white light shot out from the chamber, forcing everyone to look away.
"Ten percent."
"Twenty percent."
"Forty percent."
"Sixty percent."
"Eighty percent."
As the intensity of the vita-rays increased, so did the brightness.
Inside the chamber, Steve felt his skeleton breaking and reconstructing. His muscles tore and healed repeatedly, bringing searing pain that almost made him lose consciousness.
Yet, despite the unbearable agony, Steve gritted his teeth and endured, refusing to utter a single scream.
The experiment continued.
Everyone observed the sealed chamber below with tense anticipation.
"Ninety percent."
"One hundred percent! Energy output is at maximum!"
Dr. Erskine watched the chamber intently, the bright light illuminating his worried face.
Wang Ye, on the other hand, remained composed, knowing Steve was on the brink of completing his final transformation—this was just the calm before the storm.
Soon, the high-powered equipment began sparking and smoking under the strain of the overload. Eventually, everything shut down, and the white light inside the chamber dissipated. It now stood quiet and motionless.
Everyone collectively held their breath.
Dr. Erskine signaled Howard to manually open the chamber.
As the hatch slowly opened, it revealed a transformed Steve—taller, more muscular, and radiating strength.
The experiment was a resounding success.
Seeing Steve's remarkable transformation, everyone heaved a sigh of relief.
The newly-revamped Steve looked visibly elated. Though he felt a surge of power coursing through him, his body struggled to adapt, leaving him slightly unsteady.
Dr. Erskine and Wang Ye helped the wobbling Steve out of the chamber.
"Master, I did it!" Steve said weakly, unable to hide his excitement.
"How are you feeling?" Wang Ye asked with a proud smile, now seeing eye-to-eye with the newly tall Steve.
Steve glanced around. "Feels like I've grown quite a bit taller."
"You sure have!"
At this moment, Agent Carter walked over. Normally stern and composed, even she couldn't resist brushing her hand across Steve's perfectly chiseled physique. Nearby, a nurse swallowed hard, visibly flustered.
But just as everyone was basking in the joy of their success, a Hydra spy detonated a hidden bomb on the platform.
Amid the chaos, the spy shot Dr. Erskine in the chest. Blood splattered across the doctor's white coat.
Dr. Erskine looked down at the blood on his chest, stunned and momentarily unresponsive.
The spy, seeing the doctor still standing, fired a second shot into his other side. This time, Dr. Erskine clutched his chest in pain and collapsed dramatically to the floor, his expression a mix of disbelief and fear.
The spy then snatched a vial of the super serum and bolted.
Everything happened in the blink of an eye.
By the time the crowd reacted, Dr. Erskine lay on the ground, struggling for breath.
Steve rushed to his mentor, trying to lift him.
The "dying" doctor shook his head, weakly pointed at Steve's chest, and wordlessly conveyed a message: Stay true to who you are.
Finally, with one last effort, Dr. Erskine bit into a concealed blood pack and spat out a mouthful of blood, tilting his head to the side as he "passed away."
"No!" Steve cried out in anguish, his anger fueling him as he chased after the spy.
Agent Carter, sticking to the plan, had already started pursuing the spy but watched helplessly as he climbed into a getaway car. She raised her gun and fired a few rounds as a token effort.
Steve, unaware of the plan, wasn't about to let the spy escape. Letting out a roar, he sprinted after the vehicle at superhuman speed.
In an incredible feat, Steve leaped across moving cars, eventually landing on the roof of the spy's car.
With sheer strength, he tore a hole in the car's roof, grabbed the bewildered spy, and threw him to the ground.
Passersby stopped in awe, murmuring to each other, some even snapping photos of the "divine" Steve in action.
Agent Carter watched from a distance, stunned by the serum's power but troubled by the sight of the spy, her trusted agent, lying incapacitated.
"Talk! Who sent you?!" Steve demanded, his grip on the spy's collar unrelenting.
The spy, realizing there was no escape, bit into a cyanide capsule hidden in his tooth.
"I'm just the vanguard. Your efforts are doomed to fail. Hail Hydra!"
With that, he foamed at the mouth and died.
Steve, overwhelmed with anger and despair, finally calmed down after the spy's death. Looking around at the crowd and then at his own body, he felt dizzy and faint.
At that moment, Wang Ye arrived with soldiers to secure the scene and remove the spy's body.
"Master, Dr. Erskine—" Steve began, his voice heavy with grief.
Wang Ye patted his shoulder and said softly, "The doctor left peacefully. You are his legacy. Don't forget his final words to you."
"I won't…" Steve whispered, wiping his tears before collapsing from exhaustion.
Wang Ye quickly caught him and laid him on a prepared stretcher. Medics rushed him to a hospital.
"Will he be alright?" Agent Carter asked, concerned.
"He'll be fine—he just needs time to adapt to the serum's effects," Wang Ye reassured her with a smile.
"But good thing Pat reacted quickly and got in that second shot on the doctor. Otherwise, this performance could've flopped!"
He chuckled. "Especially the way the doctor sold it with that last spit of blood—absolute perfection!"
Agent Carter rolled her eyes. "You've got time for jokes? Get back there; there's a mess to clean up!"
With that, she returned to the lab, leaving Wang Ye to follow behind, a sly grin on his face.
(End of Chapter)
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