Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 279 Burying the Legend, Awakening the City [1.1 words]

"This city died after that explosion."

This is how the "Killer Boy from New York" views Night City.

Adam Smarshall clearly didn't want to understand why there were contradictions in the world, or why humans would try to kill each other.

All he knew was that whether it was killing people trying to steal his food in the slums of New York or pointing large-caliber weapons at unarmed civilians during his service, the moment he pulled the trigger was perfect and satisfying.

In fact, whenever he was starving, he would pick up a dry, moldy loaf of bread stained with blood and dirt from the ground but would never eat it. Instead, he would think about how people could avoid the meaningless behaviors of eating and sleeping.

Legal killing was his lifelong dream.

Kicked out of the military and left to languish like a dead dog on the street, he didn't know why that old man, Arakawa, had taken a liking to him.

It could be because of their bad record, or it could be because they became test subjects who were described by those in white coats as "lacking empathy".

In short, all sorts of prosthetics began to appear on his body.

Every night, to others, the stinging and itching sensation when flesh and cybernetic bodies come into contact at the cold boundary is excruciating and requires large amounts of suppressants; but Adam doesn't think so. He believes it is a necessary price to pay for power, and besides killing, this is the only feeling his numb body can remind him that he is still alive.

If it weren't for that nuclear explosion, he would have liked to live his whole life in this city.

Morgan the Black Hand—as long as we haven't defeated him, everything still has meaning!

Among the ten lone wolves of Night City, Adam, who had not yet completely lost his physical body at that time, ranked high, and the one who steadily suppressed him was that old-fashioned American man.

Just as Adam believed, he thought that only complete cybernetic modification could help humanity break through its limits. The cyber-psychosis that was everywhere in Night City did not bother him at all. He felt that this was the natural selection of the survival of the fittest, and the weak would be destroyed by the strong.

When Morgan's black hand efficiently and simply completes the company's commissions with minimal negative publicity, Adam creates even bloodier and more impactful commission scenes.

The dead could include anything, but that's just his style.

After each commission, Adam would silently consider whether he had outdone Morgan Blackhand, but in terms of efficient killing, Night City's evaluation of the two was almost identical—in fact, the guy had a better reputation because Morgan Blackhand never indiscriminately killed civilians or innocent bystanders.

At the height of the battle between military technology and Arasaka, Adam publicly declared war on Morgan Black Hand.

However, what he overlooked was that his high-profile killings and declarations of war made Arasaka clean up his messes time and time again.

He was more furious at Morgan Black Hand's indifference than the company's internal condemnation of him.

The feeling was like being transported back to his childhood, pointing a gun at a few gang members who had bullied him and his family—they laughed as they pointed at their cheap weapons and provocatively slapped him again.

This was also the first time Adam killed someone.

Until the relationship between Arakawa and Gunko reached an irreconcilable point.

In every conflict, Morgan Blackhand was like a slippery eel, always leaving Adam, who was carrying out the defensive operation, empty-handed after completing his mission.

There are many reasons for companies to declare war on each other, and Adam doesn't want to think about who is right and who is wrong.

All he wanted to know was when Morgan Blackhand would appear before him in all his glory, so he could use his body, which was almost 50% cybernetic, to crush that slick American. By the way, he hated the cigar Morgan Blackhand was smoking.

The opportunity has finally arrived—

For Adam, however, it was not the end, but more like a nightmare, a dream destroyed by a nuclear explosion.

"Adam, where is [Robert]?"

The man, with chrome-plated arms and a dark, unfathomable gaze, held a gun in one hand. Despite the numerous wounds on his face, his expression remained calm, showing no sign of fear throughout.

Robert?
"Uh...that rock 'n' roll idiot?"

Heavy Hammer spat out a mouthful of bloody saliva, the hot breath from Sianwistan on the back of his neck making his eardrums ache. "I don't know, maybe he was killed on the spot after my squad broke down the door?"

"Time is running out, child."

Morgan Blackhand raised his arm, the mechanical watch on his wrist as meticulous as his angular face.

“ACPA… Cybernetic body, you really go all out on yourself. With every piece you lose, you’re further away from being human… I don’t know what Arakasaka and you bastards are thinking.”

Adam simply roared, "You don't actually want to carry around something like nobility on your person, do you?"

"What's so respectable about being a dog for the company?"

Morgan heard a cacophony of voices through his headset. His squad had completed all their tasks and was constantly calling him for permission to retreat.

The Adam of the past, with his human-like face and keen hearing, immediately smiled. "Trying to run? Just like your previous requests, you can burrow deeper than a mouse—"

"Do not."

The wind on the rooftop made Morgan Blackhand's leather jacket flutter loudly, and the wind seemed to be forcefully drawing in his cigar.

"Only a madman like you would think that everyone is willing to be a pitiful wretch, get the money, and then run away—you, covered in cybernetic implants, who don't even want to be human, are probably one of those people, right? One day, when Arasaka removes your cybernetic implants, you'll become a pitiful wretch kneeling and licking those people's shoes."

Sharp language elicits a response often because it is authentic.

Adam's sore spot is right here.

"As for me... I declined the company's request to join the board of directors. I'm also afraid that one day I'll become a madman sitting on the board."

Morgan Blackhand slowly recounted his story while loading bullets into the magazine.

"Adam, all companies are the same... We can't stop the world from changing—"

"But people have to have a bottom line; if everyone is like you Arasaka, using programs to turn people's souls into cold numbers, making people in the future willing to abandon their lives and become a bunch of emotionless... AI? A new life form, what a joke."

The lone wolf's eyes lit up, and even though his arm trembled slightly from the lacerated wound, he still raised his gun and aimed it at Arasaka's killing machine.

"Remember this: I'm here today to bury machines like you and things like Arasaka that are capable of turning this world into hell."

For the first time, Adam's manic expression showed surprise.

What is the reason for this?
Soul Slayer, Digital Soul—what do they have to do with the enemy I'm about to defeat?!

As long as I keep killing and keep moving forward, I can abandon everything for this thrill!
Clearly, Morgan the Black Hand saw Adam's expression of utter confusion, and a look of almost mockery and pity appeared on his face as well.

Just like his disregard for Adam.

"Forget it, a jerk like you probably wouldn't understand anyway—"

His voice gradually became more resolute!
It was clearly audible even amidst the howling wind!
"I'll give you three minutes to beat me, Adam!"

Defeat me!
These words infuriated Adam.

However, even with Adam fighting with intense anger, he still failed to achieve the three minutes Morgan had promised.

Because three minutes later, with the man's agile movements and nimble shooting style, Adam still couldn't touch him. On the contrary, Morgan Blackhand seemed to be dangling Adam between his arms and his legs—

"Manager Adam!"

"(Soundbite)...A nuclear bomb! Those bastards from the military science department brought a nuclear bomb!"

Adam heard his subordinate's terrified voice and suddenly broke into an excited smile.

"Have the guts!"

Morgan Blackhand pulled a submachine gun from his trench coat and slashed past Adam's side with an eerie motion. A series of clattering bullet casings followed as many bullets struck key areas of Adam's prosthetic body.

The technical expert's mastermind is truly legendary.

Adam's excitement intensified, and a violent tremor ran through him. The two looked up and saw the Arasaka Flying Ship rapidly moving towards the side of the city on the sky.

The voice of the Black Hand could be heard amidst the roar of the engine.

"Arasaka, always Arasaka!"

This is a mockery of Adam becoming an unwanted dog, and Adam's speed suddenly increases.

However, when anger takes over, it often leads to foolish decisions. Adam was a fraction too slow to turn around, and a grenade flew to the back of his neck. Just when he thought that he could simply knock it aside and resolve the risk, Morgan's cold eyes and the grenade were perfectly aligned in an instant!
boom!
Adam only remembered that he looked down on everything. He had clearly crushed the team that this guy brought, but he was just one move short.

"You cunning and deceitful scum!"

In the blood-red world, the shadow of Morgan's Black Hand swayed.

With his hands in his pockets, he simply said, "Adam, machines can never beat humans."

Just then, in Adam's confused eyes, the notification from inside Arasaka became clearly visible.

[Attention//Emergency plan will be activated in 30 seconds//At that time, the nuclear bomb in the lower test area will be detonated//Please take evasive action//]

Morgan Blackhand nodded.

He indicated that because his team of hackers had also accessed Arasaka's subnet, "you lost."

The terrifying sound of the nuclear countdown tore through the helpless Night City, slamming its hammer into the ground, "Again!"

The only response he received was the sound of footsteps. He stood in front of Adam, and even this top lone wolf of Night City couldn't escape in those thirty seconds. He just looked at the raging beast on the ground with pity. "Arasaka's nuclear bomb, consider it for Silver Hand, for Ultraman, for... for those who still remind us that we are human companions."

"Goodbye."

As the flames engulfed the man's composed eyes, the heavy hammer looked like a pitiful wretch, howling as it tried to provoke him.

However, fire is the fastest thing in the world; it devours all life. Its orange glow brightens the sky, and through the blur, only the retreating silhouette of Arasaka's spaceship can be seen...

When Adam's remains were dragged out by the bio-soldiers, he thought he would die with dignity like Black Hand. However, just as Black Hand had said, he prayed for Arasaka to give him a chance, and for that he was willing to become Arasaka's asset and hand everything over to Arasaka.

Since then, Adam has avoided talking about the "outcome" and has never encountered such a guy in the city.

So... this city is dead.

All that's left is companies tearing each other apart with human lives for profit; the formidable rivals of yesteryear are nowhere to be seen.

……

"Oh!"

The moment Adam's body hit the ground, he propped himself up, attempting to attack the tower's other supporting structures. However, a sniper rifle bullet caused a brief jolt in Adam's combat warning system, forcing him to activate his S.A.S ...

His gaze met that of the woman with black hair as smooth as silk.

"You whore who sells stocks, I knew you weren't on Arasaka's side."

The woman simply put away her gun coldly, and Adam immediately sensed something was wrong. He retreated rapidly, fearing he was still within the area where the network had been hacked.

Lin Yue felt as if his limbs had been chopped off, and at the same time, his prosthetic lungs were issuing warnings, indicating that there might be multiple injuries.

It wasn't until the woman beside him pushed the cooling medicine into Lin Yue's mouth that he recovered and was temporarily relieved of the maddening pain.

“V…”

Lin Yue knelt on the ground, the perforated steel floor beneath his knees creaking, his face contorted in pain. "Why now, at this critical juncture..."

His goal up to this point is to ensure Lai Xuan can complete all these plans, and to give V a position within the company that allows him to protect himself…

But now, with V right under Adam's nose, everything has vanished like sand.

V looked at the man's arm, which he was using to shield her, and remained silent for a long time, wanting to say something but unable to.

“The military science department is all mixed up with you, so you shouldn’t have come, nor should you have said something like that you’re going to die with someone else, Minister V.”

Lin Yue was panting heavily. The hovercar that V had come in had long lost its ability to hover due to interference and had fallen to the other side at an angle. In other words, this tower was their last resort.

What should I do?
Lin Yue's first thought was not about himself, but how to get V out of trouble.

The heavy hammer in the distance hadn't left; V had said that Xintian was entangled with the military science department—

"V!"

The stunned woman's hand was grabbed by Lin Yue. The bloodstains on his face made the details unclear, but his eyes were frighteningly bright.

"Retreat in the opposite direction, I'll go up and connect to the network..."

"There's only one way. Use this tower to launch a large-scale attack on the network carrier. Charge towards the side with the weakest defense, understand?"

"Hey! This is just the beginning. Lai Xuan will definitely help you stay in Arakasa. Then—"

The woman's cold hands pressed firmly against the man's face, her forehead touching his.

At that moment, it was as if my overloaded, burning head had regained a sliver of clarity…

V closed his eyes.

She wasn't sure how she felt when her subordinates told her about Nitta's collusion with the military, whether she should stay in Arasaka and just be a fool praying, or fight alongside him to the end.

"Hey, calm down."

V spoke softly, while Lin Yue's blood-filled nostrils were filled with the delicate scent of a woman's lipstick and perfume.

This gentle V-shape is something I don't even see when I'm deeply in love.

“I’m here because my name is Valerie, not Arasaka’s corporate dog.”

Lin Yue was stunned.

He just listened to the woman's words and the noise of the wind in his ears.

"We haven't lost yet, and I don't think we'll lose here. I just want to stay with you, that's all."

Lin Yue looked into V's eyes and met his gaze intently.

"I always see a kind of pity in your eyes. Is it because I'm really someone who deserves sympathy? You once said... 'You know what's going to happen in this world,' 'You have all the memories of this world'... Does that mean my story will have a tragic ending?"

Lin Yue nodded, then shook his head.

What should I say...

In every ending, perfection was never achieved.

Even the king who could destroy everything was still fighting for a life as beautiful as a summer flower in the end…

V smiled; she didn't believe this stubborn guy would keep a lie to himself.

But she is V.

V will never give up, no matter what her identity is.

"Is there a different ending, an ending that belongs only to us?"

Lin Yue didn't know how to answer; he just wanted the woman to get out of this mess.

"I'm not here to childishly die alongside my lover."

V reached out and grabbed the cat, then stood up. Her tall, straight figure truly lived up to the word "heroic."

"I'm here to help you win this game. Don't worry... When I took this gun from the squad, I already had them turn it around so we won't run into the military."

That hand, gleaming in the dim sunlight, was a self-modification she made to help her lover. Those golden prosthetic patterns, more decorative than practical, had been discarded long ago while she waited for her lover to awaken from the dead end of Dogtown.

She didn't want to be a spy worrying about a coup in the company's courtyard in Jakarta; she wanted to be the counterintelligence minister of Arasaka.

Lin Yue's expression changed from astonishment to calmness. He knelt down and reached out his hand, standing side by side with the woman.

Smoke and dust seemed to be rising from the distant horizon. Adam, who was reluctant to leave, turned his head to look behind him, still patiently waiting.

"Adam is a sore loser bastard."

V's words are always sharp.

"You made him suffer so much with this cybernetic body that even if it means using the enemy, we will still try to eliminate you."

Lin Yue understood.

The more Adam is like this, the more it proves the power of the panel and Ultra's computing power, making the prosthetic body just an added bonus.

V: "What was your original plan?"

Lin Yue replied, "The original plan was for me to use electromagnetic pulses to surround the squad, but Adam's appearance was too timely. I didn't expect Xintian to sit at the same table with Junke—but that makes sense, it's something he's capable of doing."

"Adam has already retreated over there, and this tower is just a matter of one rocket launcher. I have no choice but to take a gamble."

When V learned that Lin Yue was attempting to use a brain-computer interface to launch a regional cyberattack from the old network, his first reaction was to shake his head.

Lin Yue could only explain, "You think what's keeping Adam and me fighting this far is a prosthetic body? It's a mysterious friend in cyberspace—"

V: "Otto Cunningham".

Lin Yue hadn't expected V to know this name.

That's true. Counterintelligence can easily find out certain things, not to mention that V has now stripped Jenkins of his authority and has the right to access more classified information.

However, in his mind, Ultraman's answer still sounded like a rejection.

"There are two core driving principles behind artificial intelligence behavior: survival and providing a justification for all actions."

"Rin...excuse my bluntness, but your actions could lead to my destruction or attract the attention of more enemies in cyberspace. Moreover, your brain-computer interface is no longer capable of handling such a large amount of computation, unless—"

Perhaps Ultraman didn't want to abandon the partner he had finally found, so he conducted a large-scale search on the internet.

The largest entity retrieval speed outside the black wall is very fast.

But still, nothing was found.

V's voice filled in the rest of the sentence in my ear.

"Unless there are large servers to share the load."

Lin Yue relayed Ultraman's words to V. Compared to Lin Yue, V had a clearer understanding of network technology and could naturally understand the current predicament.

In short: to achieve a large-scale intrusion, excellent cooling equipment is undoubtedly required; secondly, even with the addition of a high-level hacker like V, Lin Yue's brain-computer interface cannot completely paralyze the incoming military science and technology forces.

Otto, inside the cyberspace, looked down at the connection point below. Having infiltrated the military technology data fortress, she naturally understood the military's intentions.

Nitta's rebellion brought together a faction of Arasaka's forces with the Military Science Academy.

Their goal for this trip is to eliminate Lin Yue, this embodiment of the Black Wall!
Unable to achieve a favorable outcome, Ultraman could only choose to cut at the appropriate point.

Although she has abandoned her feelings, she is still full of dissatisfaction with the current situation... because V, another target of the AIs, is also caught up in this chaos.

Rin's uncertainty means that these digital life forms in the online world will require a long search...

However, the biggest difference between Ultraman and AI is that she has a positive attitude towards human creativity in certain situations, especially that woman named V.

After V learned of Ultra's intentions, she glanced at the convoy speeding towards them in the distance, thought for a moment, and said, "It's not just us who don't want to lose, Rin."

Seeing that Rin hadn't reacted yet, she said a name.

Where is Lai Xuan?

"The best chance might be with him. Let me look for him."

V, using the PC in his hand, flew his fingers across the keyboard as he said, "Rin, have your friend in cyberspace protect the connection line. I'm preparing to conduct a cross-region search."

Lin Yue did not hesitate at all, and Ultraman did as requested.

Time passed by, and just a few minutes later, Lin Yue saw military pickup trucks modified from Emperor off-road vehicles in the dust on the horizon. Without exception, they were all armed vehicles capable of launching missiles!
Just as Lin Yue was about to pick up the cat and stop him, a command that V had discovered from the state's network caught his eye.

[Command // Request Near-Earth Satellite Deflection // Provide Temporary Network Communication for North American Coordinates (23939, 48129) //]

Ultraman, silently floating in the boundless space of cyberspace, observes this woman through all the data.

Lin Yue's face twitched.

V, as if having accomplished something trivial, stood up and pointed to the PC. "Arasaka's subnet is being interfered with, unable to obtain accurate satellite communication time. You need to connect this network cable to the brain-computer interface and attempt code communication multiple times. I've already written the operating procedure. And—"

"No need to thank me, get to work."

Just as Lin Yue grabbed the network cable, a whooshing sound accompanied V as he pinned Lin Yue to the ground, causing the entire iron tower to tremble violently!
The creaking and shaking sound was crystal clear. Lin Yue looked up and saw that the support structure of the tower spire above had almost crashed onto their platform…

The lingering smoke and dust in the air signify that the military has officially begun firing!

Lin Yue's expression hardened, and he quickly switched positions with V. V raised the cat and knelt on one knee, his ponytail swishing behind him as he moved, and the sniper rifle scope was pointed at the lead vehicle carrying the vehicle-mounted bullets.

The moment their breathing calmed, the bullet from that large gun pierced the driver's seat without hesitation—

The electromagnetically accelerated bullet seemed to be twisting in the air the moment it entered the bulletproof glass, and then!
Wow!
A cloud of blood immediately rose from inside the car!
The out-of-control vehicle suddenly veered 180 degrees to the side. The sniper rifle's tip followed the out-of-control vehicle closely. Just as the vehicle next to it barely dodged the out-of-control car, a beautiful bullet trajectory was immediately imprinted on the out-of-control car's fuel tank cap.

The powerful weapon instantly caused the fuel tank full of methanol to explode!

Wow!
The vehicles that dodged the first fireball but not the second were quickly overturned by the fireball, crashing into several other vehicles as they rolled, causing the convoy to immediately scatter.

V's lips curled up, he put away his gun, and didn't even glance at Lin Yue, who was trying his best behind him.

His gaze swept down at Adam Hammer, who stood there...

At that moment, Adam received Nitta's instructions—

Because this idiot was using Arasaka's battlefield communications, V could hear him too.

"Stop those two guys, they're accessing the old network!"

V stood silently for a few seconds, picked up Lin Yue's katana from the ground, and as if glancing at Lin Yue who had sunk into the cyber network, murmured:

See you over there.

call!
She jumped off the platform, using the blade as a grip to slow her down, and with a piercing metallic scraping sound, V landed steadily on the ground.

"hacker…"

Heavy Hammer hated these web crawlers that spread rumors online. Without saying a word, he charged toward where the woman was standing.

[Entering fast-track cracking mode!]

The world in V's eyes fell silent...

Only enemies!

[Prosthetic Body Malfunction]

[Reactivating the Prosthetic Eye!]
Adam felt a flash before his eyes. Although the powerful ICE didn't bother him with its quick counterattack, V's next move caused his running path to deviate significantly.

Cyberpsychosis!
Adam felt a blur before his eyes, and a strange, familiar shadow appeared beside V.

Morgan's mastermind?!
Adam roared and instantly leaped up, slamming down towards the spot where Morgan Blackhand was!

boom!
V's legs are also implanted with lynx claws, making her move very lightly. Since you are faster than the hacker, the hacker will do everything she can to put you on the same starting line as her!

"I thought you were really like what everyone in Arasaka said, fearless of anything."

When Lin Yue stood on the tower, he even dodged dozens of meters away.

If it weren't for Nitta, he would have been waiting there for the military personnel to arrive.

"It seems that among the Night City Lone Wolves, Adam probably lost to Blackhand."

Adam's crimson eyes snapped open amidst the smoke and dust!

"You bitch, say it again?"

With a slight smile and a katana in hand, she exuded a fierceness rarely seen in most beauties.

"Isn't that the truth?"

call!
Adam suddenly appeared!

……

"Damn it!"

As Nitta watched the broadcast of the military vehicle, he became furious to see Adam, whose prosthetic body was clearly malfunctioning, still stuck with a hacker.

Just as he was yelling orders for the military personnel to open fire, a young man's hand landed on his shoulder; it was the young officer next to Lucas.

"President Nitta, is it appropriate for Arasaka to command soldiers in military technology?"

Nitta's face darkened, and the soldiers next to him immediately restrained him.

The young officer rubbed his chin, while Nitta was slammed onto the table, spitting as he roared, "You guys have other intentions with this guy?! Don't be ridiculous!"

"That guy is a devil, he's Satan! Anyone who gets involved with him will die!"

"Kill him quickly! I can provide you with information about another Blackwall receptor!"

"Kuso!"

However, after a moment of silence, Nitta's face turned completely ugly.

The young officer looked at Lin Yue on the broadcast screen and said, "But we're more interested in this guy, sorry."

Nitta's face looked as if his father had died, and his struggling body became limp.

Whether it was to satisfy his desire for revenge or to retaliate against the contempt shown to the higher-ups at Arasaka headquarters, his entire life was a failure.

The young officer looked at the indistinct figures above and asked himself, almost as if answering his own question, "What are you doing?"

Immediately afterwards——

"Have the squad approach and use President Nitta's voice model to force that woman away from the tower!"

"Yes!"

……

In the vast and boundless cyberspace, Lin Yue's virtual avatar stubbornly continued to repair the data links.

Ultraman's massive body lay horizontally above, and within the boundless, dark old net, the blood-red data streams resembled the tsunami of military and industrial AI released within the Respectable Logistics that day. With each wave of Ultraman's hand, the thin lines falling from above would pierce through them, transforming them into strings of data spores that fell like snowflakes.

"Ultraman! V, how is V?"

Ultraman didn't speak, but patiently continued his work of stopping the roaming AI.

She didn't intend to relay the terrible situation outside—

now.

After dodging a heavy hammer attack, V raised his gun and fired at the military soldiers who were trying to climb up the parked car using the cable. Immediately, a burst of gunfire rang out, hitting V and the heavy hammer without any regard for the consequences, causing sparks to fly from their bulletproof leather bodies.

Adam had his back to the tower.

“I’ve said it before, no one in this city is stronger than me.”

If Adam in the past was crazy, at least he had some respectable pursuits.

He is now a complete fanatical madman.

V didn't hesitate to upload a large number of quick hacks to the heavy hammer, and then immediately turned around, attempting to use his katana and quick hacks to break into the formation of the military soldiers!

However, concern can lead to confusion.

V had just dodged the heavy blow, but he didn't expect that this guy would turn around and throw a punch directly into V's chest!

Bang!
With a muffled thud, V was knocked back several meters, only managing to avoid being knocked down by bracing himself with his knife behind his feet!
V's teeth chattered. Heavy Hammer, Kenichi Saburo, and Nitta behind them, along with a bunch of guys in Arasaka who had their butts on the enemy's bench—weren't these guys traitors?!

However, because of this attack, soldiers above had already landed on the platform with their guns raised and began to advance upwards in a search posture!
V's eyes narrowed, but Adam's S.A.S ...

V, having created the gap, raised his gun and fired a shot upwards!
The soldier fell to the ground, and Adam arrived in the next second!

V instinctively used the cat to block the attack. This delicate weapon was not well-suited for complex battlefields and was a fragile weapon, so it immediately became unusable.

With no hope of recovery, V could only watch helplessly as the soldiers who had gone up touched Rin, who was still lying on the ground.

"cold!"

V's voice carried a suppressed, mournful tone.

Why is it so slow?

damn it!
at this time--

Inside the cyberspace, Lin Yue saw the data points break again. Feeling anxious, he suddenly stopped what he was doing and carefully searched for any possibility of a connection.

Ultraman casually crushed the stray AI beside him.

"Failed?"

Lin Yue silently watched the data stream in his hand…

In the vast universe filled with stars.

The azure planet looked somewhat duller than when it was younger, and a space station seemed to be slowly moving on the glowing sphere.

As despair and resentment repeatedly unfold on this planet, fates unexpectedly intertwine...

The satellite and that tiny, rice-grain-sized area on the Earth's surface overlapped—

The sound of a connection being established rang out on the unmanned near-Earth satellite server!
This is a melody unique to the brave.

Lin Yue's eyes suddenly opened.

What came into view were four or five black gun barrels and fully armed military soldiers.

These guys seemed to be focused on Lin Yue's prosthetic body, and by the time one of them noticed Lin Yue's eyes were open and looking at him, it was too late.

In my ears was Hanako Arasaka's voice, replacing Yoriyuki Arasaka's voice.

"All of Night City's Aragaka's power is at stake to stop the Black Wall receptor's actions. We have established temporary communication..."

Lai Xuan.

Lin Yue's gaze darkened. Amidst the soldiers' terrified stares, a hand slowly rose, and then—

Clench it tightly!

Ultraman's computing power connected with Arasaka's server, and with the ICE password provided by V, the space station emitted dense vertical lines invisible to the naked eye!

Then these rapidly deciphering target indicators, which could be observed by the prosthetic eye, disappeared into the soon-to-collapse iron tower!
[Warning: Unknown access permission.]

This warning came to everyone's mind.

Tens of thousands of roaming AIs, freed from Ultra's control, watched indifferently as these programs traveled through the pathways established by Lin Yue to new and unfamiliar worlds.

When Adam and V looked at the tower.

The dense red lines turned the entire sky red. V looked down at his chest and body—there was nothing there. And Adam—

The dense data seemed to be merging into blinding specks of light!

This is…

From the depths of cyberspace, those malicious AIs rapidly crack the code; each out-of-control intelligence is a rapid crack.

No brain-computer interface (ICE) can withstand a direct attack from a mobile AI!
Adam mumbled, "What is this?"

The next second—

V seemed deaf, watching helplessly as this world of yellow sand was engulfed by blood-red data!

That is…

It turns out that the black wall Lin Yue used was the same kind of thing as the demons roaming within the cyberspace…

The soldier's mouth, nose, and eyes glowed with a blood-red light, and his body was twisted in a bizarre and contorted posture.

Lin Yue got up from the floor. Sparks flew from the soldiers around him, and red data flashed on their pained expressions. He fell backward with Lin Yue at the center, and he looked at the world with those eyes.

In the blue light, Ultraman was also watching this place.

"Outdated, meaningless code."

Otto said so.

Time suddenly resumed!

The screams of the soldiers beside Lin Yue overlapped with the stench of burning cyber implants amidst the arcs of electricity.

His gaze fell upon the man standing amidst a pile of corpses and burning vehicles below.

Heavy Hammer's words were indistinct. His once-proud, gleaming silver-white dragon knight cybernetic body looked as if it had been scorched by fire; half his head had exploded, his neck twitched stiffly, and he was uttering incoherent syllables—

"Smart company...butler, relieving your...worries."

V stared blankly at him.

boom!
Heavy Hammer suddenly knelt down!

He tried to reach out, seemingly preparing to attack V, but his limp arm wouldn't lift, and he could only shake it listlessly.

Just then, within Night City's public subnet, the scene of Adam's Hammer and the failure of military technology, due to the rampaging AI, rushed towards the data fortresses of various companies.

These AIs, infected by the Bartmouth Rabids virus, have only one desire: to destroy the company's data fortress!

at this time.

The young officer's face stiffened. The hacker in the hacker chair behind him reacted instantly and attempted to defend himself and transfer the data he had just recorded. However, the ubiquitous, roaming AI broke through the defenses as easily as tearing through cardboard!

The hacker's hand bent as he reached for the sky, his eyes filled with resentment!
Meanwhile, other companies also discovered that their data fortresses had been attacked by unidentified hackers, and those who took the usual measures immediately suffered losses!
Only Ye's data fortress immediately closed the moment the AI ​​invaded.

Everything seemed as if it had never happened…

Meanwhile, the roaming AIs that had entered Night City's public network were still wreaking havoc!

The internet monitoring department noticed the problem immediately.

[Night City Public Network Emergency Notice // All users are requested to disconnect from the network. A large-scale, unpredictable phenomenon is occurring across the network. Please disable all smart devices and await network monitoring and review. // During this period, all network activities by users will be considered illegal. //…]

……

The moment Adam's hammer fell, Ultraman reached out and shattered the link...

"Rin, that's enough."

The hammer's life was indeed as unbearable as his twisted nerves.

When Lin Yue slowly walked behind him, the guy was still able to turn his head to look at him with half of his broken head.

"monster."

These were Adam's last words.

With the cybernetic body suddenly exploding, the number one of Night City's top ten lone wolves died in the wasteland of Night City.

Lin Yue walked up to V and forced a smile.

Under V's astonished gaze, he slowly squatted down.

V looked at it up and down several times.

"Are you... okay?"

Lin Yue simply extended his hand.

“V…Let’s go. I’ll take care of everyone who knows you’re here.”

"but--"

"Two are still alive."

……

Twelve hours later.

More than ten companies, including Kangtao, Biotechnology, and Qilu Si, excluding Arasaka and Junke, announced:
They were attacked by cyber hackers in an organized and planned manner at the same time!
In Night City, there have also been instances of netizens experiencing unexplained system overload after logging onto the internet out of curiosity…

After suffering heavy losses at the hands of hackers, the company used a one-time Black Ice program provided by network surveillance to block these AIs and immediately decoded their data.

When the content was presented to them, they only felt fear.

The city's strongest fighting force has been defeated.

Some companies have already taken things from outside the black wall and brought them inside, putting them at a disadvantage in potential future business competition…

Almost at the same time.

Top executives at major companies have almost all proposed decisions to gain the upper hand in future internal power struggles:

Search for the technological prototype that defeated Adam's hammer and... cultivate lone wolves capable of fighting against the one who killed Adam!
A city half-razed by a nuclear bomb, its former legends crumbled—

It's starting to slowly wake up...

……

……

　【The Serial Killer from New York】: Adam Hammer, whose real name is Adam Smarshall, is a villain who grew up on the streets of New York.

　　Robert: Johnny Silverhand's surname.

　　[He declined the company's invitation to join the board of directors]: Morgan Blackhand was invited to join the decision-making level of military technology, but he chose to be a lone wolf who removed obstacles for the company.

　　[Result]: In the ultimate showdown, Adam is very likely to lose to the Black Hand.

　　[You know what's about to happen in this world], [You have all the memories of this world]: V is starting to believe that what Rin said wasn't nonsense.

　　[Core principle of AI behavior-driven]: According to the cyberpunk rulebook, AI does everything for survival (continuous iteration) and to obtain a perfect explanation for its behavior.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)