Cyber ​​God: Abyss Walker

"I won't interfere with your choices, but before that, I must tell you one thing: I have no money."

The doctor didn't try to persuade Wang Yu at all, but instead said something else that completely stunned him.

"ha?"

Wang Yu was genuinely surprised to receive such an answer from the doctor. Given the doctor's expertise, he shouldn't be short of money from any angle. However, after a few seconds of careful thought, Wang Yu realized that the doctor probably didn't have much savings.

The residents of the kennel wouldn't have the money to pay for the doctor's treatment. Those organs wouldn't be worth the money elsewhere, and the doctor probably doesn't leave the kennel most of the time. Besides treating patients, he's probably busy treating his own daughter, so it's understandable that all the funds are spent on that.

"I can perform the fourth-generation adaptive modification surgery for you using biomass as the raw material, but the second-generation modification surgery requires some additional raw materials from the black market, and I don't have the money."

The doctor offered a brief explanation, while reiterating the somewhat strange fact that he had no money.

"Understood. So, how much common currency do I need to provide for this?"

Wang Yu stopped dwelling on the matter and went straight to the point, asking how much money he needed for the modification surgery.

"5000 universal currency. This is what I've calculated to maximize the success rate while minimizing the amount of money required. Of course, if you choose the fourth-generation adaptive modification surgery, I won't charge you extra; it's already included in our agreement."

The doctor gave a prompt answer and even prepared a form containing the necessary materials, which was then displayed on Wang Yu's personal terminal for him to review.

"Understood. Let me discuss this with Old Fish Head. I can't come up with that much common currency right now, but there should be an opportunity later."

Wang Yu glanced at them briefly and realized they were all chemical products he didn't recognize. He decided to trust that the doctor hadn't ripped him off; it was better not to question the choices of professionals in areas he didn't understand.

He simply doesn't have that much money right now. Even if he converts all the points he's accumulated in the chips in the mine into universal currency, it would only amount to a maximum of 1000 universal currency. The price of the most basic arm prosthetic modification on the normal market is about 50,000 universal currency, while it's cheaper on the black market, where 30,000 universal currency would be enough, but there's no guarantee of quality.

Wang Yu had already made up his mind. He would go down to the mine again, to the "cemetery" in Pit 13, to retrieve the Tianzhou Group products that had somehow appeared there, and then exchange them for common currency. Something from one of the four giant enterprises in Xindu could be exchanged for a considerable sum of money in the abandoned city, no matter what.

"Sure, come find me anytime you have the money, and I'll get the necessary materials and prepare for the surgery as soon as possible."

The doctor nodded in agreement.

"Thank you, I'll be going now."

Wang Yu thanked the other party. Although the agreement involving the doctor's daughter tied their interests together, this stable connection of interests was one of the guarantees that Wang Yu was willing to trust the doctor. However, the doctor was indeed one of the few people in the abandoned city who could be called a "good person" in his eyes. The other one was the landlord of the kennel.

After leaving the doctor's residence, Wang Yu went to prepare for his return trip to Pit 13. The door was closed, leaving only the doctor and the biological tissues and organs that could not be considered "living" inside.

"Click click click..."

The door was locked a second time. The doctor got up and walked to one of the walls in the workroom. The wall slowly rose up, revealing an especially huge petri dish behind it. Rather than a petri dish, this thing was so big that it almost occupied half the space of the room. It was more like a large aquarium tank.

Inside the petri dish, which was deliberately kept dark, a floating figure could be vaguely seen amidst the dense network of tubing. However, it was unclear whether it was an illusion or not, but a part of the figure's body seemed to have merged with the shadow, becoming indistinguishable from it.

The spreading black threads were unclear whether they were real darkness or the other person's long hair, but what was certain was that the few parts of the figure's body that were visible in the dim light were normal flesh, and this proportion was much larger than it had been two months ago, almost a qualitative change from zero to one.

"Just a little longer, I'm about to succeed..."

The doctor placed his hand on the transparent wall of the petri dish, murmuring softly. His steady words revealed an unspoken hope, a possibility he had spent countless hours searching for.

……

"The network... the doctor's personal terminal should have been connected by now, right? Only in this way can goods be purchased on the black market. Unfortunately, this thing is not so easy to obtain."

Wang Yu walked downstairs to Old Fish Head's shop, pondering the list of items the doctor had just listed. The Internet, something that had achieved almost complete coverage on Earth in the 21st century, was not something easily accessible in this world with its anomalies.

Accessing the network directly without using specific channels and filtering out contaminated information from the network with a smart chip is tantamount to suicide. The mind, will, and even the body will be devoured by the anomalies hidden within the network information flow, not to mention the parallax monster, a derivative of the "observer effect."

Anyway, the internet is something Wang Yu can't access right now, and wanting to understand the past of this world is basically a pipe dream. He wonders if he'll have a chance to access the internet in this world if this succeeds.

While pondering, Wang Yu had already reached the first floor. The shop door was closed, and Old Fish Head was performing repairs on customers outside through the door. This was a habit he had developed after the other person's head became like this, which was probably a good thing for both the customers and him.

"Old Fish Head, I've brought a message and would like to discuss a business deal with you as well."

Wang Yu knocked on the back door and spoke to Old Fish Head inside.

"Come in. Is this what you mentioned yesterday? Do as you please."

Old Fish Head responded, and the mechanical door opened, letting Wang Yu in. He casually found a spot to sit down on the mountain of parts next to the busy Old Fish Head.

"It is indeed what I mentioned yesterday. To put it this way, I found a relatively intact Tianzhou Group product in the cemetery below Pit 13. I plan to go down and retrieve it, but I don't have any channels to handle it other than the gang. I think cooperating with you is a better option."

Calmly explaining his plan, Wang Yu knew that he needed someone to help him deal with the item, and he didn't know many people in this world. Old Fish Head was the most likely candidate to cooperate with him.

"What did you say, Tianzhou Group!?"

Old Fish Head was quite good at grasping the key points. Upon hearing the company name mentioned in Wang Yu's words, he immediately stopped what he was doing, disregarded the customers outside, and turned around to look at Wang Yu with disbelief.

"Well, but I can't guarantee that it hasn't already been discovered and taken by someone else, so there's another, more conservative cooperation plan. I'm sure there's a mechanical dog down there that's over 80% mechanized. I need some equipment to kill it and exchange its heart for universal currency."

Wang Yu nodded firmly in affirmation of Old Fish Head's question, and then introduced another alternative plan. This was a safety measure, just as he would undergo fourth-generation adaptive modification surgery if this attempt failed.

The heart of a mechanized organism is also a valuable item. As the power core of mechanical life, it is more advanced than a regular artificial heart. A mechanical heart for a dog costs around 50,000 universal currency, while a human's heart would cost twenty times that amount.

"Seriously, Wang Yu, have you ever had a mental pollution assessment done? Putting aside the fact that Tianzhou Group's products are almost a fantasy, even if you were given equipment that could harm mechanical dogs, you wouldn't even have time to react before you were killed by mechanical dogs that are over 80% mechanized."

Old Fish Head's ugly, bulging eyes, as ugly as a fish's, were fixed on Wang Yu. After the modification surgery, his normally moist eyes no longer needed to blink. It was clear that the other party still harbored a great deal of distrust. Indeed, what Wang Yu said was not very realistic in the ruined city, or rather, almost impossible.

"Do you think I have the money to do that? I know this sounds unrealistic, so I'll give you a general overview, and then you can judge for yourself."

Instead of rushing to prove his point, Wang Yu recounted his experiences in detail to Old Fish Head, letting him judge for himself. These firsthand facts were the most convincing evidence.

"..."

After hearing the news, Old Fish Head fell into a long silence, his eyes swaying unconsciously, a little viscous liquid flowing from his mouth where sharp fangs had grown, and his half-developed gills opening and closing slightly.

Extremely conflicted—that was the other person's state. Wang Yu's description didn't include much personal opinion; it was simply a straightforward account, making it very real. In Old Fish Head's opinion, it was indeed true…

"I'll accept this collaboration, but you may lack understanding of Tianzhou Group's products. Without the key, there's virtually no way to safely open that kind of box. If you can't open the box, you'll have to accept that I forcibly dismantle it. I'll take the parts from the box and give you a satisfactory price."

"I will provide you with the equipment, so if you retrieve the mechanical heart and sell it, we'll split the profits 30/70, how about that?"

Old Fish Head ultimately chose to accept the cooperation, and at the same time told Wang Yu about the Tianzhou Group, information that the people of the Waste City rarely knew, and prepared to reach a more detailed agreement with Wang Yu.

Wang Yu could tell that Old Fish Head knew more about Tianzhou Group's products than he did, and valued them more. The other party had only mentioned the mechanical biological heart casually, and his attention was entirely focused on Tianzhou Group's products.

"it is good."

Old Fish Head's proposal wasn't unreasonable, and Wang Yu didn't think he had the ability to open the box. He felt it was best if the other party could handle this matter that required connections; he was a man who was never greedy, and right now he just needed money, the more the better…

"Come with me. I'll prepare the basic equipment for you. As for anything else, you'll have to choose for yourself. The materials I have are only enough for me to repair one item."

Old Fish Head beckoned, signaling Wang Yu to follow him to the warehouse.

Following the other party into the warehouse filled with miscellaneous items, Lao Yu opened two hidden containers, took out two damaged items, and placed them in front of Wang Yu.

The first item was something that looked like a pendant, but instead of a gemstone or other ornament, it was a coil hanging on a thin metal cord. It looked unremarkable, but the precision inside was probably beyond Wang Yu's comprehension.

The second item was a single right-hand glove, with a metal structure covering the glove body made of some unknown material. The glove body had raised bumps evenly distributed on the palm, connected by amber lines.

Old Fish Head pointed to the two items and introduced them to Wang Yu.

"Both of these items are from New City, produced by a subsidiary of the Fourth Enterprise. They are standard products, but their effects far surpass those creations in the Waste City. However, they probably can't compare to the one you found. I only have enough materials to repair one of them. Choose one."

"The Dijiang Type 1 Phase Engine allows you to enter a secluded space and travel short distances unimpeded by those you exclude. It can be used three times and lasts for ten seconds."

"The Polaris Electromagnetic Shield generates a strong electromagnetic field that can protect against a range of attacks, including standard bullets, and can also deflect blocked projectiles with great force. It should last you about three minutes."

Listening to Lao Yutou's introduction of these two products, which could be identified from their naming conventions as belonging to subsidiaries of two giant companies, "Great Wall" and "Tianzhou," Wang Yu gained a deeper understanding of the difference between the abandoned city and the new capital.

Even these damaged and defective products, once repaired by Old Fish Head, have an effect far exceeding that of ordinary products from the ruined city.

After a moment's thought, Wang Yu chose the glove, thinking it would be more useful.

"Polaris Electromagnetic Shield? Sure, I'll repair it to a usable state by today and prepare the other standard equipment for you. When do you plan to set off?"

Old Fish Head didn't ask Wang Yu for his reasons for making that choice. He simply picked up his gloves and walked towards his worktable. He didn't plan to receive any more guests today.

"The longer we delay until tomorrow, the more likely things will change, and I don't have much time left."

Wang Yu responded that he would set off once the two dice were fully restored at midnight.

"You seem to be in a hurry."

"Yes."

"Good luck to you, and good luck to me too."

"Um."

……

The next day, before the faint sunlight could pierce the dust-filled sky, Wang Yu was already standing at the entrance of Mine No. 13. On his right hand, he wore the repaired Polaris Electromagnetic Shield Glove, and in the large backpack on his back were the equipment that Old Fish Head had prepared.

Now that he had survived the ceremony, Wang Yu's identity here was no longer the same as before. When he arrived at the place where he rented protective suits, Wang Yu took out two chips.

"All the points here can be exchanged for tools used inside the mine."