Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 760, Section 174: I Want to Save Xiao Song

"He's a dangerous opponent, but if we work together, we should be able to take him down."

Although V also sensed a certain threat from Aguilar, he felt that if he and Li De went together, Aguilar shouldn't be a difficult opponent.

"Don't be careless, V. Hansen has more than just Aguilar at this banquet."

Li De glanced at the surrounding crowd:

"With most of the Netherhounds' manpower deliberately sent out by Hansen, what kind of people do you think are left behind? See the Netherhounds on guard in the distance? Each of them is equipped with military-grade gear. I even saw the latest model of cybernetic bodies. Those things are supposed to be absolutely not for sale. I wonder how many people have deals with Hansen and need him to maintain their interests."

"It would be strange if an arms dealer didn't have good stuff on hand."

V was not surprised at all. After all, in a place like Night City, even vending machines on the street might be hiding a few prohibited weapons. He remembered that Carl had once compared it at the Rebirth Bar, where the volume of arms transactions was more than all the black markets in North America combined.

Night City is a monster controlled by a corporation.

From the skyscrapers of the city center to the slums of Watson, every inch of air smells of contract ink mixed with gunpowder. This city is like Constantinople in the 21st century, a city that companies yearn for, the only difference being that the cross has been replaced with a company logo and the Hagia Sophia has been replaced with the Arasaka Tower.

There was a reason why Arasaka Kei chose to establish his second headquarters here.

Before the Fourth Corporate War, Night City was already the most important trading hub on the Pacific coast, with tons of weapons, cybernetic devices, and data chips flowing through it every day, as frequently as medieval caravans traversing the Silk Road.

As for Dogtown? It's just a scale that naturally shed from the behemoth that is Night City.

The arms business controlled by Hansen and his men is, in the end, just another manifestation of the city's inherent violent instincts in another corner.

As night falls, the weapons gleaming coldly in the stadium's underground warehouse are not fundamentally different from the neon lights atop Arasaka Tower. After all, in the arms trade, the world's number one or two will never be places like Dogtown, which can only serve as trading venues, but rather corporations.

V inexplicably recalled information he had seen in a film before: in the past, the top players in the arms trade were all major international powers, but now, it's just that the countries have been replaced by companies.

Companies are born out of profit, so it's only natural that they would sell things they 'shouldn't' sell in order to make a profit.

Just as V was examining the equipment held by the ghost hounds in the distance, a string of letters came through his communicator.

Those were the letters Johnny sent him.

Johnny did not follow V and Reed into Gemstone Green this time. He and Oliver stayed on a floor of Gemstone Green as backup, while Jack and the team sent by Blanca escorted the president out of Dogtown.

V was a little confused by Johnny's attention. According to the time, this wasn't the agreed-upon time for contact. What was Johnny doing?
"After I arrived at Gemstone Green, I reconnected to the Lark's signal. This is a message she sent. It might be some kind of code. Now I understand how that girl contacted me. She actually used the Black Wall to contact Relic and communicate with us."

"She's completely insane. I finally understand why Rosalind Miles insisted on bringing her back or killing her. The New America has secretly interfered with the Black Wall. If this gets out, the whole world will go crazy over this shitty news." Listening to Johnny's words, V hadn't even processed the fact that the lark had sent the code when he heard an even more crucial word.

"What, the Black Wall?"

What is the Black Wall? The Black Wall is rumored to be the only barrier formed by various companies and skilled hackers uniting to block the rampant data AI on the old network after the Great Data Crash. It also represents the old network that once connected the world.

In other words, if a crazy hacker is not worried about a stray AI behind the Great Firewall crawling into his brain and driving him insane or blowing his head off, then he can simply cling to the Great Firewall and communicate through the old network that still exists today.

This is strictly prohibited by various companies and even countries, because no one knows whether doing anything rashly to the Black Wall will break this only barrier that humanity can use to stop the rampant AI, causing the entire human world to perish with a second data collapse. In other words, if anyone attacks the Black Wall, then it will become the enemy of humanity.

The lark's act of communicating with Relic through the black wall is no less than dancing next to a nuclear bomb that could explode at any moment, and even occasionally slapping the bomb. The fact that she knows how to do this shows that she has done many crazy things before.

V instantly understood why Rosalind Miles insisted on having them bring back the Lark or simply kill her. The Lark was now like a nuclear bomb—a bomb that, if detonated, would not only destroy the Black Wall and bring disaster to all of humanity, but would also destroy the New America under attacks from various countries and companies around the world.

"This is insane. The things these big companies do are crazy. I shouldn't be surprised at all."

V only knew that the Voodoo Gang often dug up the Black Wall, hoping to let the wandering AIs on the other side enter the pass so that the traitors could welcome the king's army. He never expected that they were all doing this in secret.

Such thoughts didn't linger in V's mind for long. After all, no matter how crazy he was, the situation was already in front of him, so what could he do?

"We might need to have a serious talk with Li De."

After sending the password to Li De, letting Li De, the only one who could crack it, know that it was sent by the Lark, V said, "Perhaps we really should think about the Lark issue more carefully."

"You already know?"

As a member of the FIA, Reed was not qualified to know the relevant information, not because he lacked the authority, but because he shouldn't have known it. However, before he set off, Rosalind Miles stopped him.

Then, every word she uttered was like a precise bullet, piercing through the professional creed that Li De had built up over the years. The country's most loyal agent was told a truth that was enough to overturn all his understanding.

So when V spoke in that tone, Li De immediately understood. It wasn't surprise or confusion, but a kind of weary understanding—like someone who had walked too long in a downpour finally seeing the expected lightning.

"I know what you're trying to say, V."

Li De looked at the lark.

"But if possible, I still want to save Xiao Song."

(End of this chapter)