Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Latest information in Chapter 538 [5.2K]

For Rebecca, this was undoubtedly a new beginning.

She's tried everything, but her life is still hanging in the balance, and she doesn't intend to place all her hopes on someone else...

So she was more cooperative in this ward than ever before. The thing she did most every day was sit on the windowsill and look at the scenery outside Night City. She had a feeling that this city would be the source of hope for the future, and she planned to do everything she could to help Rin achieve her dream of going to space.

"Crystal Palace".

Rebecca looked at the flyer that Rin had brought.

It seems that Rin also knew that if Rebecca was not given any information and was left to suffer such a life-or-death test... no one could live with hope forever, so Lin Yue revealed all of Kang Tao's guesses.

Crystal Palace is above any other enterprise; cutting-edge technology, and even technologies that do not exist on Earth, can be traded and stored there.

However, going into space is not a good option right now, at least at the level of Arasaka, there are countless eyes watching, in addition to the numerous agent societies that Hanako has planted on the ground.

"If I were you, I'd be lying in my comfortable bed right now... why would I be doing something so dangerous? That guy genuinely wanted to save you."

Johnny lay on the sofa, speaking in a lazy voice that seemed indifferent to life and death and that nothing could arouse his interest.

Rebecca knew she couldn't just sit and wait for someone to save her.

This time, for the first time ever, she didn't angrily confront Johnny. Instead, she jumped out of the window and asked, "Johnny, if it were you... how would you plan to live?"

Johnny was silent for a moment, then sat up and stared intently at Rebecca. "If I hadn't gone through all this with you, I think I would have encouraged you to find my old subordinates... Hmm, once we find our old subordinates, we can storm the Divine Carriage. No matter how many people there are, there's always hope of saving the Abandoned Tower, isn't there?"

Before Rebecca could speak, he continued, "But you and I know that this path is completely unworkable now. Our lives are not in the hands of Arasaka—at least Arasaka can't do it right now."

It was rare to hear Johnny speak so realistically, and Rebecca chuckled a few times at this guy who wouldn't learn until he was faced with a fatal blow.

"Why do you think that guy named... uh, Lai Xuan couldn't do it?"

Johnny voiced his opinion, his tone rising and falling as if to feign a state of resignation, "Damn it, did you see that, Rebecca? So many corporate henchmen who could have crushed a town, all of them were crushed by him! Like a swarm of ants, they had no chance to fight back at all!"

"Plus, he cares a lot about your life... Even if Arasaka Yorinobu had ten lives, he wouldn't dare to lie to that guy."

"cold…"

"He's an awesome guy."

This is someone Johnny rarely praises repeatedly during his conversations with Rebecca.

At least in terms of action, Johnny was too embarrassed to call Lin Yue a "company dog" anymore... He remembered the guy who suddenly appeared in cyberspace that night. Although the chilling feeling made him uncomfortable, his power gave the two souls, bound together by life, a lot of comfort.

"You know what? He said he hasn't seen Johnny in ages—"

Johnny covered his forehead. "I really can't remember where I've seen this person before."

It was rare for Rebecca to see Johnny get his comeuppance, but Rin didn't lay a hand on him, which proved that in Rin's understanding, Johnny wasn't the terrorist he was rumored to be.

Actually, after arguing with Johnny in her head for so long, Rebecca thought Johnny was a chatterbox who sometimes misjudged people, but she had to admire how accurate his criticisms were in certain situations.

For example, Rin bet that Miles would make the agreement, while Johnny was the only one who didn't think so from the beginning.

"Who knows? That guy seems to be able to see our future."

After a long silence, Rebecca finally spoke softly.

Johnny cursed under his breath, but dared not use any harsh words to address Rin again. He just felt particularly bored and wanted to go out for a walk.

"If you're free, let's go out, get a car, light up our best cigarettes, floor the gas pedal, and go for a drive to clear our heads."

Johnny's up to his crazy ideas again.

Rebecca shook her head in refusal. "Rin said she'll assign us a task later, taking us to meet a group of people. We should put finding our own way out last—"

Of course, Rebecca hadn't forgotten that Johnny had said back in the Commonwealth that if he could return to Night City alive, he would take her somewhere.

"And the place you mentioned."

A relieved smile appeared on Johnny's face.

As they were talking, the two met Rin, who looked travel-worn; apparently, she was on her way to some kind of performance…

Rebecca already knew about this, but unfortunately she had no musical talent whatsoever, though she could at least dance... so she could be considered to have a tiny bit of artistic ability, right?
"Kerry?"

Rebecca kept repeating the name, but Lin Yue's gaze fell behind Rebecca. There was actually nothing there, but from Rebecca's perspective, it was Johnny standing with his arms crossed.

Johnny also looked thoughtful when he heard Kerry's name.

“Rebecca, what I’m about to say might be a little hard for you to accept.”

“But I hope you can let Johnny take control of the body at the appropriate time, as this will help your progress in gaining control of your consciousness.”

Lin Yue didn't want to see that damn guy either, but he had no choice...

Rebecca's jaw nearly dropped when she heard this. "That guy's head is full of nothing but smoking and drinking!"

Lin Yue nodded, and simply said, "I will make sure he doesn't do anything outrageous. You two will share the burden... Also, Kerry needs a guy who understands music to put together this performance. Johnny is the key to winning them over."

"The situation in Europe is urgent now, and I can't guarantee that this matter will be fully resolved, so I have to ask you—"

Before Lin Yue could finish speaking, Rebecca waved her hand and shouted.

"Okay, okay, you're making me sound like some unreasonable person... Fine, I'll just come out. Who knows what you rock singers are all about?"

Johnny chuckled.

"You don't understand. Kerry, that coward, looks like he can be easily manipulated, but he's actually very arrogant inside."

"I heard he's signed with a record company now and might be having a great time, but before long he'll be complaining that he's lost himself—a complete idiot!"

Rebecca listened in silence for a while.

Clearly, this Kerry rock star's popularity in Rebecca's eyes had dropped even further...

However, Lin Yue's exaggerated news didn't stop there: "Given the current situation in Europe, I may need to stay in Europe for quite some time. My help to you is limited to the internet... and only to Night City."

"So the band still needs you to take on this responsibility and help complete the performance."

"This is what I promised them."

ha? !

Rebecca shook her head vigorously; if it were her raspy voice performing that, it would definitely be a very serious performance disaster.

But when she saw Johnny walk up to her with a smug look on his face, she felt a surge of anger rising within her.

"All right!"

Rebecca didn't dare open her eyes, but simply shielded Lin Yue with her hand. "I promise you, since you have so much work to do, I, Rebecca, will definitely handle things perfectly for you!"

Lin Yue smiled, pondering the key to breaking the deadlock in Warsaw, when the Black Hand, who had received treatment from Arasaka, suddenly walked in through the automatic door.

With the unexpected appearance of this person, Rebecca's mood undoubtedly improved, and she was so happy she almost jumped for joy.

"Holy crap! You actually survived that?"

Just as Rebecca was chattering away, looking at Black Hand's unharmed body, a pair of gloomy eyes outside the door and a white-haired samurai in a pristine white suit aroused Rebecca's suspicion.

Goro Takemura.

Rebecca had seen this man with eyes like a wild beast. Ironically, he looked so much like Hino Hidetoshi, yet he exuded an aura that kept strangers at bay.

“Takemura, you’ve arrived.”

Lin Yue was not surprised by Zhu Cun's arrival, but gestured for him not to stand outside.

The proud samurai was unwilling to bow his head; he was only acting out of his incomprehension and desire for revenge.

"I'm glad you and Black Hand are both safe and sound."

Lin Yue stood up, a hint of relief showing in his eyes.

At least the powerful forces that can be found in this world are slowly gathering around him, which is a good thing... Compared to eliminating these important figures in Lin Yue's memory who can change certain events, keeping them and making them weapons to attack the corrupt class of this world is also a good approach.

"Thanks to you, my operations in the federal state have always been supported."

Goro Takemura entered, behaving with restraint and great manners.

However, Lin Yue still wanted to see that guy outside the pinball store who imitated Hino Hidetoshi in a high-pitched voice…

"V told me you found out a lot, and you even helped the mastermind in the process."

Lin Yue reached out his hand.

Goro Takemura seemed surprised that this guy would shake his hand. After hesitating for a moment, he extended his hand and said, "Thank you very much (in Japanese)."

This feeling, so different from Saburo's trust, is that Rin seems to clearly know his thoughts and is able to support his independent actions.

Now, Goro Takemura no longer intended to conceal his investigation results. He first looked around—

“Speak up, everyone in Zhucun is one of us.”

Takemura nodded. "The number of spy organizations that Hua Zi and her group have planted in the Federal State, the Free State, is probably at least five hundred."

Lin Yue was still speechless when he heard the number five hundred.

When did Hua Zi bury these people? That question is no longer important.

Lai Xuan's control is only reflected in the hawks and the Japanese headquarters. North America has always been the territory of the swing faction Michiko. Now that Michiko is on the same side as Hanako, the business of the spy society, Dangerous Girls, etc. has naturally been taken over in its entirety.

"How much of their objective have you uncovered?"

Lin Yue then asked.

As Zhu Cun spoke, Lin Yue nodded to himself.

Besides the so-called stealing the Relic chip from Rebecca's head, another possibility is the assassination or kidnapping of Lai Xuan, which aligns with Lin Yue's conjecture.

However, assassination takes priority over kidnapping, which proves that Hua Zi seems to have come up with a way for Saburo to be reborn without the help of Lai Xuan outside of space.

"But there is another top-secret authorized project, and I cannot find the basis or purpose for this operation at the moment."

Takemura was, after all, a bodyguard by training, and intelligence gathering wasn't exactly his forte, so finding out this was already quite an achievement.

Lin Yue, who had no expectations for what Zhucun said at the end, suddenly heard the key words.

"The only verified and accurate information is that the operation will take place in Night City."

Night City?
In Night City now, apart from the people Miles had let in on his own initiative, most of the network is under his control. Lin Yue really doesn't know how they transmit messages.

At this point, Takemura took out a card.

This card looks remarkably like the answer sheet ruler Lin Yue used to mark answers on exam papers in his past life, except it's about the size of a bound book.

Punch Card

This thing was used to manage computer passwords after the initial network crash, but now it has become a communication tool in the hands of those agents hiding in Night City... Lin Yue was both amused and exasperated.

"This card was obtained from a secret service organization located near Night City."

"I extracted only one crucial piece of information using an old-fashioned decoding machine from the legacy facility—"

"Terrorist Mobile Unit".

Lin Yue frowned and subconsciously took a step closer.

Are you sure you're not mistaken?

Takemura nodded. "I'm pretty sure the decoder won't malfunction. They're passing on information about the Terrorist SWAT team's operations—so you're also investigating the Terrorist SWAT team, right?"

Lin Yue was completely baffled as to why Arasaka Hanako would target the Terrorist Mobile Unit.

He made no attempt to hide anything and recounted the story of his old teammate Mann to Takemura Michi, during which Rebecca also joined in... Ultimately, she and Lin Yue were the people present who cared most about Mann.

"Suzuki is currently conducting the investigation on my behalf."

Lin Yue continued in a deep voice, "I just can't figure out what the connection is between Resurrected Saburo and the Terrorist Mobile Squad."

Having just gleaned some insights from Lin Yue's account of the information center, Black Hand tentatively said, "You said Mann cured Cyber ​​Mental Illness in the Terrorist Mobile Unit, and Rebecca resolved Cyber ​​Mental Illness through conscious assumption, but his personality changed drastically after he was released from the consciousness prison—"

At this point, the voice of the Black Hand began to waver.

"Do you think the real self might have already been thrown into prison? It seems reasonable that Hanako Arakawa is interested in this kind of technology that involves the realm of consciousness."

Lin Yue's eyes suddenly lit up.

Although there is currently no evidence, this is undoubtedly a good direction for speculation.

Cyberpsychosis can be cured by using a mind prison alone, but the patient becomes a person who retains the memory and is completely different from the original personality. This process probably requires the important step of reshaping the personality that takes on the prosthetic body.

Whether the process killed the personality of the gentle giant "Mann," changed it, or left Mann's consciousness forever in prison remains to be seen.

"What are you waiting for?!"

Rebecca's head was spinning. "We should grab our weapons right now and rip open the door to the Terrorist Mobile Unit. Let's storm in and find out what's going on!"

"You agree, right, Lowell! And that... Uncle Takemura."

Goro Takemura frowned slightly.

This girl is too fiery; Takemura has always preferred to team up with steady, reliable guys.

"Excuse my bluntness, but no."

Takemura answered Rebecca's question on behalf of the others.

Black Hand was relatively gentle; he beckoned Rebecca over, patted her on the shoulder, and gestured for her to be patient.

"The existing combat power of the Terrorist Mobile Squad in Night City should not be underestimated. Even if we infiltrate with Rin's help... it is hard to guarantee that the Terrorist Mobile Squad will not destroy those technologies."

"Even Hanako Arakawa is considering infiltration, so our forces, which are on the surface, are probably being watched by the Terrorist Mobile Unit all along."

"Those players are even more difficult to deal with than the madman from the game."

Goro Takemura explained the root cause.

Other companies may have clerical positions to some extent, but in the Terrorist Mobile Unit, from top to bottom, all several hundred employees are heavily armed former cyber lunatics. This is why Lin Yue never actively sought trouble in previous incidents.

"I really hope you can use that data to take care of all those cruel guys and get Mann out."

Rebecca could only mutter something under her breath.

As if he were about to explain everything to Rebecca today, Takemura continued, "Cyberattacks require certain prerequisites: a connected device, a sufficiently powerful signal transmission, and a sufficiently wide network. No one will be killed just by walking down the street, but if the local area network you connect to is controlled by hackers, or if you actively connect to unknown devices, your implants and brain-computer interfaces will become targets they can attack at any time."

Rebecca glared at the serious-looking Japanese man.

Lin Yue reached out his hand.

"All right."

“Rebecca…”

"Night City's network isn't something you can do whatever you want and kill whoever you want, but getting information isn't difficult."

"I was thinking of taking you to Europe after the band business was settled... but it seems I'll have to leave the Night City business to you all now."

Immediately afterwards, Lin Yue jumped back and forth between Zhucun and Heishou's faces, asking, "Are you two willing?"

The words were polite, but the two lone wolves didn't see it that way.

Black Hand shrugged, not caring at all. He was now a complete traitor, so going anywhere was less interesting than going against the new America... You see, all he ever wanted was an identity that wasn't someone else's replacement, and to live with dignity.

Miles's strategy of draining the pond to catch fish and burning the forest to hunt only forced the mastermind to turn against him.

This is no one's fault but the man who calls himself "Lowell".

As for Takemura…

His words were still as stiff as ever, like a piece of ironwood that hadn't yet been polished into a wooden fish flower: "Given the current situation, I'm afraid I can't refuse... After all, I've heard a lot of things I shouldn't have heard from beginning to end."

However, Lin Yue was willing to say a few more words about Zhucun.

"If Saburo Arasaka were to live, this world would be utterly doomed."

but…

Zhucun's gaze was sharp, fixed intently on Lin Yue.

"Don't you want to live forever?"

Lin Yue suddenly smiled.

"Of course I'd like to, but there will always be people who disagree, won't there?"

"And we are the ones who disagree."

Takemura readily accepted this answer, which was filled with self-desire and rational choice.

Empty and grandiose theories are meaningless; only actions reveal the truth.

……

……

(End of this chapter)