章 184: Chapter 183
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Late at night, at the company square.
Colorful lights weaved together to form a neon night scene, as two large holographic koi fish, one blue and one gold, swam slowly in midair.
In her high-level office in the Militech building, Meredith Stout stood, cigarette between her fingers, quietly overlooking the night view below. Cigarette butts and ashes scattered around her feet.
She wore a grave expression and kept lighting one cigarette after another, her mind completely detached from the dreamy neon vista.
Her gaze remained fixed downward as though piercing through the layers of traffic below and into the depths of the earth.
Militech did not want to see a completely autonomous Night City, free from the influence of New America. It wasn't in their interest.
Even though New America officially acknowledged Night City's 'independent' status, the city was still deeply intertwined with New America in terms of culture, economy, transport, geography, and networks.
However, new developments had emerged. Arasaka had proposed a new infrastructure project aimed at creating an independent network empire.
If this new infrastructure project succeeded, Night City's global influence would surpass all previous levels.
Reclaiming Night City would then become even harder for Militech.
Therefore, gathering the necessary intel to sabotage the activation of Arasaka's spatial matrix was a significant challenge for her.
The usual approach would be to mobilize their undercover agents within Arasaka to gather important intelligence, formulate a plan, and then act.
Even if a few agents were sacrificed, it would be worth it if they could disrupt Arasaka's matrix space activation.
The intel suggested that those involved in constructing the matrix space had undergone extensive training by Arasaka, leaving no room for inserting undercover agents.
Furthermore, once the matrix space was built, it would be almost fully automated, requiring no human maintenance.
In other words, even if Militech wanted to compromise Arasaka's matrix space security, they wouldn't have the chance.
Meredith saw only two options to achieve her goal.
One was brute force—hiring mercenaries to do the dirty work, but the success rate was uncertain, and failure could lead to leaks.
The other was to wait and continue gathering intel, hoping to find an internal solution.
She had been pondering this problem, hoping to find a viable approach.
Why was Arasaka so keen on this new infrastructure project, being the first to agree to connect to the matrix space and even having their top executives make special phone calls for it?
Meredith sensed a whiff of conspiracy. The more eager Arasaka appeared, the more likely they had ulterior motives.
Maybe she hoped to complete this task from her superiors with help from Arasaka.
Meredith knew well that any mistake could affect her future career at Militech, and she felt she was very close to the next step up.
No matter what, the matrix space had to be shut down.
Meredith planned to gather more intel on why Arasaka was so proactively involved with Arasaka's project.
With the matrix space activation time approaching, it seemed today was a lost cause with Arasaka.
Meredith stubbed out her cigarette and was about to leave when her screen indicated that her secretary needed to report something urgent.
She had the secretary come in and returned to her desk to await the report.
The secretary hurried in, looking anxious.
"Supervisor, there are two important updates regarding Arasaka."
Meredith nodded for her to continue.
The secretary quickly went on.
"Arasaka Corporation's cooperation with Arasaka on the new infrastructure project and agreement to connect to the matrix space were ordered by Saburo Arasaka. This directive was given under urgent status according to reliable sources."
Saburo Arasaka?
Meredith's pupils contracted, her expression growing more serious.
This meant that even Saburo Arasaka, far away in Kyoto, was concerned about Arasaka's actions.
If it was Saburo Arasaka's order, it was highly unusual.
Despite operating in Night City for so many years, Arasaka never earned Saburo Arasaka's approval.
The fact that Saburo Arasaka hated this city was a well-known rumor among the company's upper echelons.
A man of Saburo Arasaka's status would typically focus on global affairs. Why would he be interested in Night City's ten-year development plan?
Night City becoming more 'independent' wouldn't necessarily benefit Arasaka.
Relatively, though, Militech would be worse off than Arasaka.
Meredith couldn't tell if Arasaka was fanning the flames or holding back another card.
One thing was clear.
It didn't make sense for Saburo Arasaka to issue an urgent order unless there was more to the story that could impact Arasaka or even Saburo Arasaka's rule.
The secretary, seeing her superior remain silent, waited a moment before reporting the second update.
"Arasaka's maglev tunnel on the outskirts was attacked by an unknown force, and they're requesting our support."
"Drone footage indicates that the attackers are from the Nomad clan, though the reason for the attack is unknown."
Meredith was somewhat surprised by the attack on Arasaka's outlying construction site at this particular moment.
She promptly had the secretary show her the footage. She inserted the chip into the reader on her desk, and a scene of a high-speed chase in the wasteland during the night appeared on the screen.
The video was short, showing a small group attacking the site, followed by drones swarming out and the workers giving chase in their vehicles.
These armed drones were Militech's equipment, and the site's smart security was Militech's responsibility, with Arasaka having some command authority.
Meredith observed the footage and soon noticed several issues, so she asked.
"This tunnel has been under construction for a long time, right? Have you found out where it leads?"
The secretary responded in a serious tone, "We have. It leads beneath the company plaza, part of Arasaka's new infrastructure project's main transport routes."
A glint of recognition flashed in Meredith's eyes, as if she realized someone else was even more eager to sabotage the matrix space.
Additionally,
She noticed that Arasaka's people focused only on the modified off-road vehicle, ignoring other points of attack.
"Who are the people in that off-road vehicle? Can we identify them?"
The secretary immediately reported, "The drones can't detect the people inside, but we found leads on the vehicle."
"The vehicle belongs to Panam Palmer from the Aldecaldos clan. She frequently runs transport routes in the Badlands and takes on jobs from the Afterlife bar."
Hearing this intel, Meredith felt more confident and stood up, issuing orders.
"Contact Arasaka and tell them we're heading out to support them in the Badlands. Have Gilchrist ready, with three special forces teams for an operation."
She glanced at the time and added, "There's still time. Let them play a bit longer; the special forces will depart in fifteen minutes."
"Let's go watch the show first."
...
Aldecaldos Camp.
Inside a military-green tent, Lucy slowly zipped the tent door, shutting out the dark wasteland night.
Inside, several electronic devices emitted intermittent white light, and a pool filled with ice-cold water stood nearby.
Tang Yu stood before an electronic screen, configuring the necessary programs for deep diving. With the last experience, he added multiple safeguards to increase Lucy's self-protection during the dive.
After closing the curtain, Lucy glanced back at the busy Tang Yu, then walked toward the water tank.
She unbuttoned her collar, letting her slender, fair arms slide out of the sleeves and then let her top slip off her shoulders.
She then squatted down, shedding her pants and underwear onto the ground.
Lucy stepped into the icy water, suppressing the bone-chilling cold without a sound, not even a frown.
She gripped the edge of the water tank, lay back into the water, and the cold waves splashed gently.
Lucy leaned against the tank edge, staring at the tent's ceiling, murmuring, "Tang, I'm ready."
Across the tent,
Tang Yu finished configuring the program, picked up an optical cable connector, walked over, and skillfully removed the bandage from Lucy's nape, embedding the connector.
With the mechanical click of the connection, the deep-dive preparations were complete.
"Be careful," Tang Yu cautioned.
Instead of immediately closing her eyes, Lucy asked in a solemn tone, "It will go smoothly this time, right?"
She realized that the forces behind the matrix space were likely more powerful than she imagined.
Turning back was not an option.
Starting this operation against the matrix space meant a fight to the end.
The dangers Tang Yu faced extended far beyond Arasaka's corporate walls.
She gradually realized that Tang Yu was playing with fire in everything he did.
He was not only playing a chess game against Arasaka but was arm-wrestling with all the major corporations.
Even if he was now seen as a rising star within Arasaka Tower, with a promising future ahead.
The fact was,
This was also his most dangerous time. The higher he climbed, the larger the whirlpool he was drawn into, with one misstep leading to total ruin.
Arasaka, Militech, Biotechnica, Kang Tao, and now Night Corp.
Tang Yu was already standing at the eye of the storm, continually facing the predatory eyes of these towering giants.
Lucy did not understand why Tang Yu chose this path or his reasons. There were many secrets hidden in his world.
Tang Yu, thinking Lucy was worried about the deep dive, reassured her. He now possessed 'weak electrical control' and could still utilize some former hacker skills.
Even in cyberspace, he could watch over Lucy. He smiled and said confidently,
"Don't worry, everything will go smoothly." Tang Yu reached into the water as he had before, holding her wrist.
Lucy was surprised, looking at Tang Yu's hand holding hers, feeling a bit of warmth flow through her.
"Let's hope for good luck this time." Lucy softly closed her eyes and entered cyberspace.
As her data-conscious form began to take shape, she sensed a signal source in the blue data ocean—the matrix space signal Maine's team had located.
Without hesitation, Lucy reached out, instantly teleporting towards the signal source.
Like traversing the depths of the stars, layers upon layers of coded data streams flashed by, reaching the destination in mere moments.
Lucy's expression tightened as she took in the surroundings, her heart sinking.
As expected,
The matrix space wasn't just a simple network server but secretly contained gateways to cyberspace.
What chilled her even more was that this passage was set outside the Black Wall.
At this moment, Lucy stood beneath the gigantic Black Wall in cyberspace, staring into the abyss beyond via a signal.
This was her old nightmare—since escaping the Arasaka secret base, she hadn't ventured beyond the Black Wall again.
Lucy clenched her teeth, hesitating whether to cross the Black Wall to the other side.
She knew all too well the dangers that awaited there. One step forward could mean no return.
The rogue AIs had become far more dangerous after years of growth and evolution.
Not to mention the countless malicious programs and electronic viruses lurking beyond the Black Wall, ready to annihilate her data consciousness.
However.
If she didn't cross the Black Wall, she wouldn't be able to retrieve the crucial information Tang Yu needed. All of Maine's team's efforts would go to waste.
Lucy tightened her fists, making a difficult decision.
Just as she was at a crossroads, a familiar voice echoed in her mind.
"Don't be afraid, I'm here."
Hearing this, Lucy's hesitation turned into resolve. She unclenched her fists and smiled quietly.
"Heh, this is insane."
Raising her hand, blue light flickered, causing ripples on the gridded Black Wall.
That was the program passage sanctioned by the Black Wall, recognized as a safe way to traverse beyond it.
Even though Lucy remembered Arasaka's method of crossing, times had changed, and NetWatch's means were more reliable now.
After initiating the traversal passage, Lucy floated forward, touching the ripples.
In an instant, she seemed to step into a mirror, arriving in the dark, endless old net.
In the threatening darkness, Lucy had to stay constantly alert.
To avoid detection by rogue AIs, she enveloped herself in a cloaking protection program, preventing any abnormal data flow around her.
With the stealth protocol in place, she carefully ventured deeper into the dark.
Occasional flashes of light streaked through the void, resembling lightning.
Ghost-like data clusters, which sometimes appeared as human faces, wandered around, emitting indescribable wails.
Since most of the old net's content was human-related, these programs learned massive amounts of human knowledge, gradually taking on anthropomorphic forms.
Lucy was accustomed to these sights and carefully proceeded toward the signal source.
She bypassed layer after layer of obstacles, breaking through weak points whenever possible, narrowly avoiding rogue AI numerous times.
Finally.
Lucy navigated the labyrinthine barriers and reached her destination—a blue code-formed space matrix.
She immediately extracted a wire from her wrist, connecting it to the space matrix to scan its core program.
As time ticked by, the massive data flow detection put Lucy in excruciating pain, her brain's neural endpoints overheating.
Enduring the discomfort, she finally completed the scan.
The space matrix's gateway was temporarily sealed; it needed a main program to operate effectively.
Lucy retracted the wire and prepared to return to the cyberspace within the Black Wall.
Suddenly.
She sensed several abnormal data streams approaching her. Without hesitation, she activated a firewall.
A defensive glow encased Lucy, fending off the incoming malicious code spikes.
Fortunately, the firewall was high-level, protecting Lucy's data consciousness without endangering her life.
Clarifying the situation, Lucy recognized familiar shadows in the darkness, which made her pale.
The Voodoo Boys?
Only then did Lucy realize that the Voodoo Boys, previously brain-burned by Alt Cunningham, had reappeared as AIs in the old net.
They weren't brain-burned but forcibly uploaded consciousness data into cyberspace, evading NetWatch's capture.
Before Lucy could react, countless worms swarmed her firewall, burrowing their way through.
Crap!
Just as Lucy planned to escape, the worms exploded, shattering her firewall.
Exposed and defenseless, Lucy's strong signal drew unwanted attention.
Lethal program spikes closed in on her. If hit, she'd disintegrate into data fragments, never to return to the real world.
In a flash.
A pale blue arc enveloped her, blocking all incoming spikes.
The data codes touching the arc disintegrated instantly.
The Voodoo Boys' data signatures attempted to trap Lucy's consciousness with neuro-freezing viruses.
But a powerful blue arc around Lucy began to charge.
Suddenly.
Like a thunder explosion, it blasted outward, sweeping everything away, leaving only data fragments.
Lucy opened her eyes, bewildered, finding herself alone.
Is the area cleared?
Seizing the opportunity, she swiftly returned to the Black Wall and cyberspace.
Lucy sighed in relief, regaining composure before initiating the exit program.
As Lucy exited.
A massive red figure arrived, absorbing a wisp of residual arc.
With a touch, the red figure dissolved the electric spark into code fragments.
Silently, the red figure vanished.
...
Inside the tent.
Tang Yu crouched by the water tank, holding Lucy's wrist with one hand and clutching his head with the other, looking pale.
Overusing 'weak electric control' had drained him, leaving him weak with a nosebleed trickling.
Holding back the pain, Tang Yu answered V's call—they were in trouble.
Mitch and Scorpion went silent after entering the site, and Maine's team completed their task but hadn't reported back.
V and Panam, both impatient, rushed back to the site, ignoring Tang Yu's attempts to stop them.
After dealing with the Arasaka pursuit, they immediately headed back to the tunnel site.
Tang Yu understood Maine's team had encountered trouble in the tunnel.
Upon receiving V's message, he wanted to head to the tunnel site. But seeing Lucy still deep diving, he stayed put, waiting for her return.
Tang Yu was glad for his patience. In an instant, he sensed Lucy was in danger.
To prevent future threats, Tang Yu exerted his maximum electric control, using his old hacking skills to help Lucy clear obstacles.
While exhausting his energy, his other innate ability, 'indomitable spirit,' rapidly restored his strength.
Slowly, Lucy opened her eyes, finding Tang Yu clutching her wrist, his head hung low in exhaustion.
Pulling the connector from behind her head, Lucy checked on Tang Yu, noticing blood dripping from his nose.
"What happened?!" Lucy asked urgently.
Tang Yu wiped off the blood and stood up, explaining, "I'm fine. Did you find anything in cyberspace?"
Lucy, recalling Tang Yu's severe exhaustion last time, sensed the cost of his mysterious ability.
Worried, she asked, "Really?"
Then.
Lucy stood up from the bath, ice slipping off her skin and splashing back into the tank.
Tang Yu nodded, handing her a prepared blanket, reaffirming, "I'm fine. The situation outside is urgent. Maine's team lost contact."
Lucy's heart sank. The exact scenario she feared had happened.
Seeing Tang Yu's state, she felt a rush of concern. If he rushed over, it'd be dangerous. But not stopping him could endanger Maine's team.
Lucy didn't hesitate and explained.
"Tang, it's a trap!"
"The matrix space is active, with a connection point in the old net outside the Black Wall."
"Clearly, they want to use the matrix space as a medium to help rogue AIs from beyond the Black Wall invade the human network."
"But they still need a main program, similar to the Black Wall—a passage AI program."
"Subnet Poseidon."
Tang Yu's brow furrowed. This aligned with his earlier suspicions; their initial target, V, was part of this plan.
To acquire a program with the Black Wall's attributes, capable of self-evolving, establishing a new passage in the old net, bypassing the Black Wall.
Then.
Whoever controlled the rogue AIs entering the human network would be determined by the mastermind behind Night Corp's power.
These rogue AIs could leverage vast corporate networks, spawning artificial intelligence.
By then, even if corporations left Night City, AI programs would fill their roles.
AI companies, AI cities, AI humans...
Night Corp's ambition surpassed even Saburo Arasaka's dream of immortality.
Hearing Lucy out, Tang Yu knew he had to act.
Delamain was waiting outside the tent, ready to go.
Rising, Tang Yu moved to the tent's entrance. A delicate, cool hand stopped him.
Lucy grabbed Tang Yu's wrist, water droplets dampening his clothes.
Tang Yu turned silently, only to be blocked by two cold, gentle lips, ice-blue breath tickling his nose.
Lucy cupped his face, eyes shut, tears glistening at the corners.
Stunned, Tang Yu gazed at the silver-haired girl, feeling her chill and warmth.
After a long moment.
Lucy released Tang Yu, her neon pupils watching him intently, murmuring.
"I'm coming with you."
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