"Worth over a hundred million?"
Raymond smiled and shook his head.
The truth was, even the simplified version of the Extremis Virus cost several million dollars per vial. As for the perfected version, its cost was nearly a hundred times higher than the simplified one!
The harmless version? Its production cost was just as high as the perfected version—also starting in the hundreds of millions.
That's exactly why, despite AI Industries' massive resources, they couldn't afford to mass-produce the perfected virus and instead had to develop a simplified version.
Raymond had fully understood this when he told Tony he didn't need any extra rewards—just a few vials of the perfected Extremis Virus would do.
At that time, since the harmless version hadn't been developed yet, Raymond had planned to ask for the perfected one.
After all, he wasn't some selfless saint. He wasn't about to wipe out Killian and hand over all the spoils to Tony for free.
He knew exactly how valuable the perfected version was. And even if Tony cleaned up the aftermath of the AIM incident, he'd never truly get to take over the entire company—just a piece of the pie at best.
So asking for a few vials of the perfected virus was neither greedy nor a loss—it was a fair and win-win deal.
"That's still crazy expensive…" Seeing Raymond shake his head, Fang Mo thought he meant the virus was just slightly below a hundred million dollars per vial.
But to him, it made no difference—anything in the tens of millions was already a number beyond comprehension.
Roland felt the same way.
Even though she was from a wealthy background, hearing that one small vial of medicine cost that much still felt hard to believe.
Raymond saw the misunderstanding and didn't bother to explain. Instead, he smiled and said, "Your turn now, Mom—"
He pulled out a new syringe, ready to give Roland a dose as well.
"Stop messing around, I'm not even sick. Why would I need that?" Roland waved her hands, clearly refusing. "Can this be returned? Maybe you can get a refund…"
A medicine that costs tens of millions per shot? No thanks.
She also suspected Raymond had borrowed money to get it and didn't want her son to end up deep in debt.
"No refunds. A friend gave it to me," Raymond replied.
"What kind of friend gives you something that expensive?" Roland asked, skeptical.
"Don't worry about that. Just let me give you the shot first." Raymond opened the vial.
Roland quickly grabbed his arm. "Edward, talk some sense into him. I'm not sick—why would I need this? Can't you just listen for once?"
"Worth over a hundred million?"
Raymond laughed and shook his head.
Just one vial of the simplified Extremis Virus already cost several million dollars to make. The perfected version? That cost nearly a hundred times more.
And the harmless version Raymond used? That was just as expensive as the perfected one—at least several hundred million dollars per vial.
That's why even a wealthy company like AIM Group couldn't afford to mass-produce the perfected version and had to develop a cheaper, simplified alternative.
Raymond knew all this. That's why he told Tony Stark he didn't want money—just a few vials of the perfected version. Fair trade. He wasn't going to clean up Killian's mess and walk away empty-handed.
Raymond also knew that even if Tony got to handle the aftermath, there was no way he'd get full control of the company—just a piece of it.
So in the end, asking for some perfected Extremis Virus wasn't greedy at all—it was just smart.
"That's still crazy expensive…" Fang Mo thought Raymond was saying it cost less than a hundred million—but tens of millions was already mind-blowing enough.
Roland felt the same. Even as someone from a wealthy family, she couldn't wrap her head around the idea of a tiny vial being worth that much.
Raymond noticed the misunderstanding but didn't bother explaining. He smiled and said, "Alright Mom, your turn—"
He pulled out a fresh syringe.
"Don't joke around, I'm not even hurt. Why would I need this?" Roland waved him off. "Can we return it? Maybe get a refund…"
Something that cost tens of millions per shot? No thanks.
She also thought Raymond must have borrowed money for this and didn't want her son in debt.
"No need. A friend gave it to me," Raymond replied.
"What kind of friend gives you something that expensive?" she asked, still suspicious.
"Don't worry about that. Just take the shot." Raymond moved to open the vial.
Roland grabbed his hand. "Edward, talk some sense into him! I'm fine! Why would I need this shot? Why doesn't this kid ever listen?"
Fang Mo looked a little torn.
He knew the two vials of "Extremis Virus" that Raymond got had something to do with the famous Iron Man, so he didn't doubt that they were gifted by a friend.
But he only knew the virus could heal his paralyzed legs—he didn't understand why Raymond wanted to give it to Roland too.
That put him in a bit of a dilemma.
Raymond knew he had to explain it, so he said, "Dad, go get a kitchen knife."
Without asking, Fang Mo went to the kitchen and brought back a chopping knife.
"Now what?" he asked.
"Cut your arm with it," Raymond said.
"What are you talking about?!"
Roland got nervous. "Who tells someone to cut themselves like that? Are you two crazy?"
But Fang Mo seemed to realize something. Without hesitation, he cut his own arm!
"Edward, what are you doing? Are you two trying to give me a heart attack?!"
"Calm down, look here," Fang Mo said, lowering the knife and pointing to his arm.
Roland looked over and saw something unbelievable—the cut Fang Mo had just made wasn't bleeding.
Under his skin, it looked like fire was flowing, and the wound quickly healed, like nothing had happened.
From the time he cut himself to the moment it fully healed, it took barely ten seconds.
"This… this…" Roland was stunned again.
Even Fang Mo himself was shocked.
He had only thought the virus would heal his legs, but he never expected it would give him powers .
Did this mean he was invincible now?
Fang Mo suddenly felt like a lonely master at the top of the world… though if Killian were around, he'd definitely remind him to chill out.
Still, he couldn't help being excited for now.
"Now you understand why this little vial is so expensive?" Raymond looked at his mom.
Roland nodded in a daze.
Before she could snap out of it, Raymond gave her the shot too!
A few minutes later, Roland finished transforming.
From that moment on, all four members of Raymond's family were no longer ordinary people—they were now part of the superpowered world!
Roland was chopping vegetables in the kitchen, and out of nowhere, she cut the back of her hand on purpose.
She looked at the slowly healing wound and grinned.
Raymond, who was helping steam rice, noticed and rolled his eyes. "Mom, I didn't give you the Extremis Virus so you could play with your own blood…"
Actually, this wasn't even the first time she had cut herself.
Since the injection, she had already done it at least seven or eight times—just the ones Raymond had seen. Who knows how many times she had secretly tried?
Raymond was getting a headache.
Even Killian probably never imagined someone would use his virus .
"I was just curious…"
Roland laughed and asked, "Raymond, do you think your dad and I count as mutants now?"
"Of course not. Don't assume everyone with powers is a mutant. There are lots of superpowered people who aren't mutants."
"Then do you think your dad and I can be a superhero couple who fight supervillians?"
"Please stop, Mom. With your level of power, if you met a real supervillain, you'd get wiped out in seconds."
"What if we add Clarice to our team?"
This kind of superpower Q&A had been going on all afternoon, and Raymond was starting to go numb.
He never imagined his mom actually wanted to be a superhero.
Now he was starting to regret giving her that shot.
Luckily, his dad Fang Mo was acting more normal—otherwise, Raymond really would've lost it.