Chapter 3408

"This cannot be a coincidence." Peter looked at the data on the screen and said, "Certain forces have influenced gene expression, causing humans to undergo a special secondary evolution. I think this might be a curse that only works on specific genes."

"Like black skin?" Miles asked.

Peter shook his head and said, "Of course not. Targeting skin color has no meaning, and everyone present at the time was black; it didn't have to be those two. It should be that this technology itself has limitations and requires selecting people with special gene slots to be effective."

"What do you know about the Sky Factory Project?" Stark turned his head and asked.

Neither Peter nor Miles knew exactly who he was asking. Peter spoke first: "This plan definitely won't work."

"Why?"

"Otherwise, China would definitely do it." Peter said, "Their population is larger than ours, and their per capita living space and per capita arable land area are relatively small. If they could utilize the space in the sky, they would definitely be able to greatly increase everyone's per capita living space."

"If such a thing that benefits people's livelihood had no drawbacks, they would definitely do it. Even if there were some small drawbacks, they would apply it on a small scale first. Once such a project starts, it can't be hidden. We haven't heard any rumors, so it must not exist."

"Where would the problem be?" Miles scratched his head and said, "I think this plan seems quite feasible; it doesn't seem to have any major problems. Putting all the factories high in the sky wouldn't cause any ground pollution, isn't that a good thing?"

"Factories will definitely produce pollution." Peter said, "The problem lies in where we want to discharge the pollution. If factories are on the ground, the pollution is either discharged underground or into the water system, and some is discharged into the air.

The Sky Factory Project is good in every way; it can create jobs and free up ground space. But Roxxon seems to have never mentioned the issue of pollution. I think the key lies here."

"Tony, if it were you, how would you handle the pollution problem of the sky factories?" Peter asked.

"Discharging it into space is the best method." Stark said, "But if so, the factories must be built very high up."

Considering Miles was present, Stark didn't use those technical terms. He said in the simplest language possible: "If the factories are built too low, not to mention blocking the sunlight, you can't directly build sewage pipes leading to space. Then you would have to use transport equipment to carry it back and forth, and the cost would be too high."

"So if it were me, I would build the factories in low Earth orbit, then choose a specific place in space as a pollution dumping site, collect the pollution produced by the factories, and then periodically send it into the sun to be destroyed. This is the simplest method."

"Do you think Roxxon would do that?" Miles asked.

"First, they have to have that technology."

"But I heard they are quite powerful." Miles said, "They seem to have space equipment too."

"Why do you always hear about their benefits?" Stark narrowed his eyes. He looked at Miles and said, "Where did you hear these things?"

Miles was slightly startled and said, "I don't know either. Maybe I saw it on TV news, or maybe I read it in some newspapers or magazines, or otherwise I heard others say it."

"Where is your home?" Peter asked suddenly.

"The Bronx." Miles replied, "Why?"

"It seems they have been targeting the Bronx with propaganda for a long time." Peter said, "Even when you already know that Roxxon might be related to the minotaur, your impression of them is still quite good, which means their propaganda is quite successful."

Miles fell into thought, seemingly trying to recall where he got these impressions. But after thinking for a long time, he shook his head and said, "I really don't remember much. I'm not a person who likes watching TV, let alone newspapers; those are entertainment methods from the last century.

I don't have many friends either. Occasionally, I help an old couple living next door clean up, but they like raising flowers and fish the most and never talk about politics, let alone tell me about Roxxon..."

"Some public opinion propaganda is just that subtle." Peter said, "Roxxon spent a lot of effort promoting in the Bronx; it couldn't just be for their stock price."

"They want people to support their Sky Factory Project." Stark said decisively.

"Tony, if the factories were built according to the method you mentioned, would there be much profit margin?"

Stark shook his head and said, "Not only is it not large, but in the years after construction, it might be equal to zero. Not losing money would be good enough; it can only maintain production while solving the pollution problem to the greatest extent."

Peter touched his chin and said, "Roxxon doesn't have such strong social responsibility. I guess they don't intend to deal with pollution at all; they might not even have thought about building the factories that high."

"You mean they intend to build the factories right above our heads?" Miles said in disbelief, "Wouldn't that block all the sunlight? And some factories have air pollution; what about the residents below?"

"They wouldn't care at all." Peter said, "Rich people want to move factories away from themselves, but there must be a place to put them. Buying land in the Bronx costs a lot of money, and it might trigger various parades and smashing."

"It's better to just throw the factories above your heads. It doesn't cost money, and even if you want to oppose it with violence, you can't reach them. As for how many people will die in the Bronx, they don't care."

Miles clenched his fists but slowly loosened them. He said, "They even want us to be grateful, just like how they brought us here and gave us seemingly fair treatment, and then want us to thank them."

"Don't get bogged down in racial issues." Peter shook his head and said, "We must unite all forces, including white, Asian, and Mexican-American people. If it's only black people, it will turn into a racial conflict, and then it will pass without any real impact."

Miles sighed and walked to the chair nearby to sit down. Just then, he saw the moon outside the window getting brighter and brighter.

A beam of moonlight arrived suddenly. Stark turned his head and saw Moon Knight passing through the floor-to-ceiling glass and slowly walking into the laboratory.

"Did you find anything?" Stark asked.

Schiller didn't speak, but gently tapped with his staff, and a silhouette of international news appeared in the air, mentioning exactly China's Jupiter development plan.

Stark frowned. He didn't think of what this had to do with the minotaur for a moment. Jarvis reminded him at the right time: "Roxxon Energy has mining points on Jupiter."

Stark curiously took the kitten. This kitten was exceptionally affectionate, constantly kneading on his hand. Stark brought it closer to look, then moved it away, and said, "Fine. Let's hope little Morgan can get along with it."

"It's not clear yet." Jarvis said, "Conservatively speaking, the technology they use is different from the mainstream technology direction on Earth."

"And what about not conservatively?"

"What they are using should be alien technology, and it is alien technology with magic involved."

Stark's face became ugly. He said, "Don't tell me that Roxxon is full of aliens, and that for the past few decades, Earth's energy has been in the hands of aliens."

"It's not that pessimistic, sir." Jarvis said, "The vast majority of Roxxon's employees are human. Except for Dario Agger, other senior managers should also be human."

"Then is that Agger an alien?"

"Not clear." Jarvis paused before answering, "But regardless, it is an undeniable fact that the alien exploration and mining technology Roxxon is currently using does not belong to humans."

"Is it possible that they themselves..."

"No traces of any technological evolution have been found." Jarvis said, "The mining bases they placed on Jupiter have never had any updates or iterations. They have always been operating as usual, and from the beginning, it was a quite mature technology."

Stark took a light breath, obviously realizing that things were much more complicated than he had imagined.

"Can you determine which civilization's technology it is?"

"I am comparing it, but the number of civilizations with such technology is too large, and it will take some time."

"Keep an eye on Jupiter first." Stark said, "If there are any emergencies, you don't need to tell me first; you can handle it yourself."

"Who are we helping?"

"What?"

"If China wants to mine Jupiter, they will inevitably send equipment and people to scout. And if Roxxon wants to claim Jupiter as their own, a conflict will inevitably break out between them. Who are we helping?"

"Does that even need to be asked? Of course, help China! How long has China been participating in the solar system development plan, and they've already built starships. Roxxon has been mining Jupiter for so long; what have they brought to Earth? These shameless resource thieves!"

Then Stark became puzzled again. He said, "What about the things they mined from Jupiter? The entire solar system is under my nose; how come I've never seen them transport Jupiter's resources out?"

"As far as I know, sir." Jarvis replied, "They only mine, they don't transport."

"Huh?"

"Otherwise, it means their transport methods are beyond the scope of my monitoring, which is why I said there might be magical factors involved."

"No, this is the important thing. I have to find a way to investigate." Stark said, "Help me prepare the equipment; I'll go to Jupiter to see for myself."

Then he turned to the others and said, "This is no longer a problem in the Bronx. Roxxon might be colluding with aliens, and we need to figure out what they are actually doing."

"Miles, your home is in the Bronx. You must keep a close eye on it recently. The New Warriors team will also cooperate with you. Once an emergency occurs, you contact them."

Miles nodded, and he wasn't angry because Stark suddenly changed the investigation target. He could certainly distinguish between priorities. The Bronx is indeed important, but obviously, it can't be more important than the safety of the entire Jupiter or Earth.

"How is your use of magic?" Stark looked at Peter again and asked.

"It's okay." Peter nodded. He floated into the air with a light leap, his body surface emitting a faint glow brought by the power of faith.

"Moon Knight, are you planning to go with us, or stay on Earth to continue the investigation?"

After some thought, Schiller said, "I'll go with you."

"Then there's no time to lose." Stark said, "I'll go get the equipment, and we'll set off now."

(End of chapter)