Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 937, Section 147: Disaster
After dealing with these cyberpsychotics who weren't really obstacles, Carl immediately began searching the warehouse, and upon hearing the commotion outside, he called the special operations team.

The Vortex Gang outside wasn't deaf to the gunfire and commotion; it wasn't surprising that they noticed. However, Karl didn't have time to chat with the Vortex Gang members right now. Rather than wasting time like this, he'd rather let the Special Operations Team handle it and focus on the search.

Although it feels like the trail has gone cold, it's not entirely hopeless. Even the most meticulous plans can have flaws, and we might just find some clues.

Following the scent of blood deeper into the area, Karl finally found the source of the blood, and even with his extensive experience, his brow furrowed slightly.

Because the situation in front of us was just too terrible.

Carl wasn't unfamiliar with bloodshed; he had wiped out countless scavenger outposts that resembled slaughterhouses. But even in those scavenger outposts, the scavengers themselves had a sense of value.

Scavengers are probably the most adept at judging a person's value. They can quickly identify valuable organs and prosthetics in a person and then dismantle them accordingly.

In other words, if cleaners want to break down people, it must be a purposeful process that requires a certain level of expertise.

Although scavengers are even more disgusting than cockroaches, and you can't get enough of killing them no matter how many times you kill them, you have to admit that they are quite skilled in this area.

But the scene now unfolding before Karl presents a completely different, even more bizarre, logic.

The bodies were not randomly disposed of, but arranged according to some incomprehensible pattern.

The main bodies were placed in the center at a specific angle, as if forming the basis of some kind of symbol. Their chest cavities and skulls were precisely dissected, and certain organs and tissues were missing.

More corpses, like used consumables, were piled up haphazardly in the corner, forming a horrifying little mountain.

On the ground, the viscous blood did not flow naturally, but was deliberately guided to outline a huge, distorted, and now completely destroyed pattern.

The whole scene resembled a massacre more than a slaughterhouse.
A meticulously planned sacrificial ceremony.

Sacrifice.

That's right.

Carl realized what he was thinking.

This looks exactly like a sacrificial ritual.

"This Vortex Gang is even crazier than I imagined."

Carl's gaze swept over the corpses on the ground. Judging from their blood-soaked clothes, which still gave them a sense of familiarity, they were the people who had gotten out of the black vehicle.

It seems that the moment these Vortex Gang members went berserk, they were treated as sacrifices in a ritual.

'This stench of blood is truly unbearable.'

Carl heard the sounds of the special operations team arriving and negotiating with the Vortex Gang outside. He briefly suppressed the pungent smell of blood and began searching the area.

After experiencing a psychotic episode, the Vortex Gang's cyberbully shouldn't have the consciousness to process things, so he might have left some clues, which is what Carl is looking for now.

At the very least, we need to figure out what those guys from the Vortex Gang are doing.

Carl's search did indeed lead him to several information chips quickly. These came from the corpses of SSI members on the ground, indicating that their deaths had merely been dealt with, and their internal information records had not been destroyed.

Carl hadn't expected the information records of these SSI members, who seemed to be used merely as tools, to provide him with much intelligence. However, to his surprise, one of the members seemed to have a habit of recording neural connectivity data in real time.

In other words, his information recording chip was directly connected to his thoughts, and Carl found some clues from the records on his chip.

Putting aside all the things that happened that day, Carl began reading straight to the last part.

At first, it was just a bunch of random complaints and fears.

"The mission seems to have failed. The captain ordered us to retreat, but we ended up in Vortex Gang territory. Can the Vortex Gang protect us?"

"Oh, so there's an evacuation route. That's good. I don't want to face KK. It's insane. Why do I have to run into KK while doing surveillance work? If the pay wasn't so high, I wouldn't do such a stupid thing."

Following this complaint were some remarks that Karl considered almost equivalent to raising a flag.

"After this is over, I'm going to quit my job no matter what and go back to being a regular security guard. The money I've made in the last two years is enough for me to rent a decent apartment. I can live a comfortable life even if I just coast along. I hope I never run into KK again. No, let alone KK, I hope I never run into the Vortex Gang either."

As I write this, the content suddenly becomes unsettling:
"The Whirlpool Gang said they were going to hold some kind of ceremony, something about a sacrifice to Lilith. The captain said something was off. He recognized the Whirlpool Gang leader and said that guy was a notorious madwoman. He'd heard her talk about sacrificing herself to liberate the gods and all that. He told us to be careful."

"But we're allies now, so nothing should go wrong, right? I can't just suddenly have a cyberbullying episode at a time like this, can I? Oh well, I'd better hold my gun tighter."

At the end of this record is a chaotic and incredulous thought filled with disbelief and terror.

"Why are they suddenly acting strange—they're lunging at us! Ah! Guns! My gun misses! The captain's neck—no! Don't go—"

The information record ends abruptly at the end, clearly indicating that this SSI and his teammates were caught off guard and killed in a sudden attack by the Vortex Gang.

Carl looked at the last message, then glanced at the mutilated corpse on the ground, its face unrecognizable. Even though they were enemies, Carl silently offered a blessing for the fallen.

Since you left a message, I hope you can still have some beautiful moments in your final moments before you die.

After the thought flashed through his mind, Karl looked at the other operation records. They were all similar in general, but none of them were as detailed as this SSI's records, which were still being kept until the very last moment.

In every record, it is mentioned that members of the Vortex Gang repeatedly chanted 'Lilith'—the goddess they worshipped.

god.
Carl recalled the truth behind the scenes and instantly understood what this so-called 'god' really was—nothing more than an illusion woven by wandering AI.

Could it be that a branch of the Vortex Gang, similar to the Voodoo Gang, has emerged that worships AI? They actually treat a wandering AI as a god and even hold sacrifices for it.
But Carl immediately recalled the abnormal behavior of the cyberpsychotics he had encountered before.

That roaming AI does seem to have some strange abilities, managing to make utterly insane people follow certain rules and avoid attacking each other. For the Vortex Gang, who could turn into cyber psychopaths at any moment, perhaps it really can be considered a kind of 'help'.

However, if this kind of assistance continues to expand...

A mayor under AI control, and members who can be manipulated at any time and prone to cyberbullying.
This is absolutely a disaster for the future of Night City.

(End of this chapter)