To be honest, while a building that stands a hundred or so feet tall sounds pretty standard, there's a difference between a regular office block and a solid metal fortress.
A standard building with ten-foot ceilings per floor feels very different from a massive industrial workshop where the interior open space soars to over a hundred feet. It brings a completely different level of shock and awe.
"Tsk tsk~ If nothing else, the look of this thing is seriously intimidating."
"But let's see what the inside of this Yuri Base has to offer!"
Luca stepped forward and pressed one hand against the massive metal door.
With a thought, the heavy doors rumbled and slid open to both sides.
"It looks cool, sure, but this rough-and-tumble style is a bit loud... I wonder if there's room for improvement."
However, just as Luca was teasing his new 'big toy' and preparing to locate the main control room to check the internal data of the Yuri Construction Yard, he froze the moment he stepped inside.
He stood there, stunned.
Not because of the machinery, but because lying right there on the metal floor of the base was something extremely familiar.
"What??"
"Why is the Mind Stone here?!!"
Yes, right there in front of Luca, the pale yellow Mind Stone was just lying quietly on the ground.
It hadn't vanished during the 'synthesis,' nor was it embedded in some important slot as the base's core.
This cosmic treasure looked like it had been casually tossed on the floor like trash.
In that instant, Luca recalled the guess he made when he first obtained Loki's Scepter.
Back then, he noticed a difference in intensity between the white light emitted by the scepter itself and the light coming from where the gem was embedded. Plus, his System interface explicitly listed the core component as 'Loki's Scepter.'
He had suspected that the item the Mind Stone could synthesize might be different from what the scepter could synthesize.
Unfortunately, since the gem was fully encased by the scepter, he couldn't touch it directly to check the synthesis panel.
He had debated whether to risk destroying the scepter—and potentially losing the chance to make the [Yuri Construction Yard]—just to pry the gem out and check.
Who would have thought that now, after the Construction Yard was fully synthesized, the Mind Stone would be left behind?
More importantly, the Mind Stone lying quietly on the floor was still emitting that soft white glow reserved exclusively for core components!
"So... synthesizing the Yuri Construction Yard only consumed the casing? Basically, in the eyes of the System, the scepter and the stone are two separate items?"
Although he phrased it as a question, Luca already knew the answer.
After all, this was undoubtedly the best possible outcome for him.
Luca didn't waste time dwelling on the 'why.' He abandoned his plan to check the Yuri technology tree immediately and hurried over to the Mind Stone.
"Uh, is it safe to pick this up with my bare hand?"
Despite his hesitation, his body was honest.
To check the synthesis panel of his 'broken System,' he had to physically touch the core component.
Just to be safe, Luca momentarily shifted into his 'Human-Dragon Form' to boost his physical resilience, then reached out.
Well, okay, being a bit cautious, he chose to touch it with his mechanical right hand.
The arm was counted as part of his body by the System, something he had verified long ago.
The next moment, there was no dramatic backlash of Infinity Stone energy, nor did he collapse and convulse on the floor. Instead, a pale blue synthesis panel popped up casually.
[Vision]
[Marvel Universe 1/5]
[Creator: Ultron]
[Core Component: Mind Stone]
[Synthesis Materials: 33 lbs Vibranium, 1 Nano-grade Biological Tissue Synthesis Instrument, 187 lbs Biological Tissue, 2 Different AI Programs, 1 Bolt of Lightning]
[Item Description: Vision, a member of the Avengers. An artificial lifeform possessing characteristics of both biology and intelligent machinery. Originally a body created by the intelligent lifeform Ultron for himself, it fuses the Mind Stone, Vibranium, and artificial tissue from the Regeneration Cradle. However, through a twist of fate involving Tony Stark and Bruce Banner, it was fused with parts of the J.A.R.V.I.S. program and ultimately activated by Thor's lightning, becoming a unique lifeform with a true soul.]
[Tip: As a unique existence centered around the Mind Stone, Vision's power level has a massive variance between his floor and his ceiling. But hey~ isn't that just how the power of the mind works?]
"Huh? Vision? I can synthesize stuff from the Marvel Universe too?"
Muttering under his breath, and seeing that his 'right hand' contacting the Mind Stone didn't cause any issues, Luca simply picked it up.
His mind, however, was still glued to the System panel.
Even though it was the legendary Mind Stone, it could only synthesize [Vision]—a guy whose performance in the source material was honestly kind of underwhelming.
But thinking about it carefully, it made sense.
"Well, at least it didn't just offer to synthesize another Mind Scepter..."
However, looking at the 'Synthesis Materials' on the panel, Luca—who wasn't particularly impressed by [Vision] to begin with—couldn't help but complain.
"I mean, these requirements aren't totally insane, but if I actually gathered all this stuff... couldn't I just build Vision myself? I could probably even substitute the Vibranium with E-Carbon. Why go through the hassle of using the System?"
Although Luca knew Vibranium was likely superior to his current 'E-Carbon' across the board, he had avoided it due to cost and difficulty of acquisition.
But if it's only 33 pounds... I might not need to mess with those lunatics in Wakanda. I could just rob the black market... what was that smuggler's name again? Whatever, I'll look it up later. If Ultron could rob him in the movie, why can't I?
Of course, gathering materials was a problem for later. Luca's mind immediately jumped to another possibility.
If I rely on the System to synthesize Vision, there are benefits. At least I wouldn't have to worry about loyalty. And it would be even better if the metaphysical rules gave him some sort of conceptual power!
Uh, wait. What kind of conceptual power would Vision have? A 100% chance of getting his head crushed?
But looking at the description, this seems to be the movie version of Vision with the stone stuck in his forehead. If I synthesize Vision, and then pry the Mind Stone out of his head... could I use it to synthesize a new Vision?
For a moment, Luca's thoughts went completely off the rails, totally forgetting that he was currently standing inside the [Yuri Construction Yard].
Meanwhile, the Mind Stone in his hand seemed to flicker almost imperceptibly, masked by the white glow of the synthesis light.