Cyberpunk: From Dogville to Legend

Chapter 415 The Two Emperors Solve the Situation [1 words] (Last Chapter)
Rebecca dared not close her eyes.

The man appearing in the car just now was definitely not my imagination.

Rebecca had never met Johnny Silverhand in person, but she had seen the "flop" rock star at the steakhouse bar that Mann loved... except he was wearing a low-cut, suit-style leather jacket, but looked exactly the same.

Are you sure...you're alright?

Lin Yue dared not easily give Rebecca an omega-blocker, after all, Rebecca was still unable to eat and her body was extremely weak... The side effects of the omega-blocker were still very obvious.

Rebecca's face was pale...

She tried to convince herself it was just an illusion, but she couldn't.

Lin Yue called out to himself from inside the car, and the strange shadow that had appeared in front of him vanished instantly.

"Yeah...I'm fine."

According to Misty, this medication should be taken when that guy appears; taking it when the relic response is not active will lead to more severe side effects.

Moreover, Rebecca needs some quiet time by herself.

That guy only exists in her head; there's no real person in the house. Rebecca doesn't want to be a nuisance all the time...

After all, Rin can't be with him 24/7.

"Okay, you must have a lot of things to do, but I can manage on my own..."

Rebecca patted the medicine bottle beside her and forced a smile to reassure Lin Yue.

"Okay, let's go!"

Rebecca shoved Lin Yue, grabbed a weapon, and yelled, "If you keep dawdling, I'll shoot you!"

Lin Yue raised his hands in surrender, indicating that he would leave immediately.

I glanced at Rebecca several times before leaving.

Although both of them wore smiles that seemed more like jokes, their expressions sombered as the automatic door opened and closed…

The door was like a wall separating two worlds. Rebecca, lying on the bed, hugged her knees, her loose pigtails draped over her like silk, and the faint glow of the back of her neck made her eyes appear to be tinged with an eerie red. Her expression was more like a blank stare.

As Lin Yue exited, the automatic door closed behind him, and Suzuki said beside him, "Mr. Rin, the hovercar is ready on the helipad. We need to remain completely concealed throughout this trip to Arasaka. Ms. V asked me to convey your..."

"There are still many tough nuts to crack within Arasaka that Yoriyuki can't suppress; they're all guys clamoring to wage war against us and our military technology."

Lin Yue nodded slightly.

"Has V said anything about Relic?"

Suzuki paused briefly…

"That's what Ms. V meant... The first thing you did during your meeting with Arasaka Yoriyuki was to figure out how to resolve Ms. Rebecca's relic issue—forgive my bluntness, but as soon as Ms. Rebecca found out about her situation, she has been trying to get more resources from Arasaka."

"pity--"

Suzuki didn't finish his sentence.

The doves and the naive ones took away a large amount of Relic's research foundation. The scientific teams on Honshu were either killed or taken away... Now it seems that what's left for Arasaka is a piece of incomplete basic research. Many scientists on Honshu, and even scholars who are not related to Relic, have been transferred to Night City by Yorihiro...

They need to find a way out of these things.

Lin Yue glanced at the door, then placed his hand on Suzuki's shoulder. "I'll go to Arakawa by myself."

Suzuki was somewhat taken aback.

In Suzuki's eyes, Lai Xuan was a dangerous person from Arasaka, and it was hard to guarantee that he wouldn't do something to Lin Yue... In fact, Suzuki was completely unaware that Lai Xuan had been saved by Mr. Rin. Lin Yue didn't have time to explain, and just smiled and said, "If Lai Xuan touches me, do you think Night City will be peaceful?"

Suzuki had a knowing look on his face.

Emma is said to have already contacted Gilafa in Europe, but progress is not very good.

Gilafa remains wary of Night City.

"No matter what noises come from inside the room, don't go in unless... it's too loud, or Rebecca's vital signs within the subnet malfunction—"

Suzuki frowned.

Is that so-called consciousness really that powerful?
Lin Yue sighed, "We need to get Rebecca and that consciousness to communicate and reach an agreement. This time, I'll find a way from Arasaka to temporarily suppress this consciousness... otherwise..."

As he spoke, Lin Yue took a step.

Suzuki vaguely heard a muttered sentence: "I wonder what that bastard will teach Rebecca."

The Dreamers were organized and efficient. Following Suzuki's instructions, Lin Yue boarded the Dreamers' main building's helipad through a special passage.

"Arasaka Tower."

Lin Yue sat in the holy sword that Lai Xuan had given him and verbally stated his destination.

"Hello, you are about to enter a military-controlled area, which may pose a risk to your personal safety. Are you sure you want to go?"

Lin Yue looked helpless...

“Brandon…”

Brandon's face appeared on the holographic screen of the hovercar.

"Hehe—congratulations on getting through this ordeal, Rin. But I really don't recommend you go to Arasaka Tower; there are too many bad people in the company."

Lin Yue said irritably, "Stop being naughty. Besides... isn't this the company right now?"

Brandon activated the hovercar, and when it reached its forward altitude, he lazily revealed a relaxed smile. "This isn't the company, this is my home... My good friends are all alive, and I've even gained another friend."

Lin Yue glanced at Brandon subconsciously.

"Who?"

Brandon looked puzzled. "Don't you know? Rebecca brought back a new friend, just like you, though of course far from someone as emotional and peaceful as me."

Lin Yue slowly bent down, placed his hands in front of his nose, and looked intently at Brandon.

Perhaps it was Relic's connection that allowed Brandon to immediately detect Johnny Silverhand's presence the moment Rebecca entered the Dreamers' subnet.

"He's not a good friend."

The hovercar emitted a sound indicating that its destination had been confirmed.

Brandon scratched his head, thinking that only those considered "good friends" could enter the Dreamers family.

Lin Yue casually remarked, "That guy is just a bastard."

……

The room was very quiet.

Rebecca could even hear her own heartbeat.

The physical weakness brought her extreme drowsiness. She really wanted to lie comfortably in bed and have a good sleep, and then wake up as if nothing had happened.

She wasn't afraid when she held a machine gun facing a room full of Vortex Gang members, nor was she afraid when the ACPAs fell from the sky, but she was afraid of a guy who could bring her death and who could appear at any time...

She chewed her fine, silvery teeth with a grinding sound.

In certain situations, fear can gradually turn into anger, which is a physiological self-protection mechanism.

Rebecca made up her mind; she would rather watch that bastard Johnny Silverhand come out than have a stranger standing next to her while she slept.

Lin Yue must have sent someone outside. She didn't want to lose face like that and only be able to be considered a sick member of the team from now on.

With so little life left, she didn't want to waste it on fear and weakness.

If one day she faces an irreversible situation, pseudotriazine will be her last card, a clean slate that won't cause trouble for anyone.

I just feel like the room isn't bright at all today...

It was dim and dark...

Body…

As Rebecca's head slowly slid off her knees and she fell asleep on her side...

Suddenly, a screen on the wall not far from her bed flickered with an effect similar to that of an electronic device (only from Rebecca's perspective). After a flash of digitized fluorescent green, a man wearing sunglasses leaned against the wall.

"Where am I?"

He paced back and forth...

However, he couldn't leave the room at all when he walked; he could only go around in circles, appearing randomly in various places as if he were teleporting.

"Uh…"

The girl's face was half buried under the soft pillow. She should have been fast asleep, but perhaps because of Johnny Silver Hand's actions, she began to enter a half-awake state.

"Who are you?!"

"Are you Arasaka's bastard?"

The man continued pacing irritably, and no matter where he went, Rebecca's pupils, beneath her drooping eyelids, followed his every move.

"Get out..."

Rebecca's voice was very soft, as if she were in a state of sleep paralysis, and subconsciously she strongly rejected the appearance of this consciousness.

However, the man seemed not to hear Rebecca at all, and the logical leaps in his speech were very obvious.

Give me a cigarette.

"I need to light this up before I can even know what the hell this crap is going on! I need a cigarette, give it to me now!"

Rebecca stared blankly at the man, her body trembling, and she let out a sneer.

The man, hands on his hips, seemed to have reached his limit. He hesitated for a moment, then rushed to the bedside and shoved Rebecca hard!

"Arakawa Company dog!"

Rebecca was suddenly jolted awake by the fact that she had actually been pushed by her own hand!
After her brain was forcibly restarted, Rebecca's face immediately contorted into a ferocious expression when she saw the guy who had appeared in the car standing by the bedside. "Fuck you!"

Johnny Silverhand was clearly taken aback for a moment.

"Let the fuck out of here!"

Rebecca refused to budge, forcibly restraining her arms, and glared fiercely at the man who was wearing a bulletproof vest, with long, slightly curly hair and a stubble beard.

"You think I don't want you to get the hell out of here? Shut up! Don't bother me anymore, you burnt piece of trash!"

Johnny Silverhand could no longer withstand Rebecca's intense verbal assault—

"You dare say it again?!"

He grabbed Rebecca by the shoulders and forcefully pulled her off the bed.

Rebecca tried to resist, but strangely, she couldn't control the movement of suddenly falling off the bed...

To outsiders, Rebecca was just attacking herself and throwing herself around, but in her own eyes, she had already begun a power struggle with this bastard.

Rebecca, however, was too weak with only one arm to defend herself...

Fortunately, Johnny only pulled Rebecca off the bed, pointing his silver fingers at her and cursing her incessantly, but he didn't intend to lay a hand on her. He just used the same simple and extreme curses as Rebecca.

"Come on, kill me if you dare!"

Rebecca waved her remaining gorilla arm, yelling, "If you don't kill me, I'll fucking kill you!"

Johnny pointed his silver finger at Rebecca and continued, "I'm not interested in girls who can't even tell the front from the back! Damn it! Let me out of here! What kind of company would hire a child laborer like you? Are all the people dead?"

Rebecca casually picked up a gun from the wall and aimed it at Johnny Silverhand.

"Try getting any closer to me!"

gun? !

Silver Hand looked at his empty palms, and his expression seemed to calm down a bit.

Rebecca's gun barrel moved in tandem with Johnny Silverhand's every step...

However, Johnny Silver Hand's movement was no longer a matter of physical speed; he could blink, appearing like a phantom in an instant right in front of Rebecca's face!

He reached out and slapped Rebecca's pistol away, then immediately began fighting with her.

Rebecca kicks, Johnny punches—

Rebecca, who had just stood up, was quickly pushed to the ground again.

"I'll say it again, go to hell—"

"Let me leave!" (Johnny)

"Get out!" (Rebecca)
The overlapping sounds at the beginning and the separate sounds at the end filled the ears of the two people…

In that instant, both consciousnesses were stunned.

"I'm..."

Johnny stared at his hand in disbelief, and as Johnny moved, Rebecca's hand moved in sync...

"Depend on!"

The feeling was incredibly strange, as if I could control two different bodies simultaneously, and my mind was rapidly experiencing two different lives...

Johnny was also stunned.

How can it be? !
Before I closed my eyes, I had many thoughts of resentment, but when I opened them, this is what happened, just like what you feel after waking up from a nap...

"Fuck the chip!"

Johnny Silverhand's voice always had a vague, electronic feel to it.

He reached down and felt around his neck...

Rebecca's face darkened, and she immediately lay down and grabbed the pistol that had been knocked aside.

"You stupid idiot who's asking for trouble! If you pull it out, you'll die right now!"

Johnny was very stubborn. Even though Rebecca's brain-computer interface had been filled with bulletproof skin by Old Man Vince, he still grabbed the approximate shape of the Relic chip under her skin and tried to tear open the skin to forcibly pull it out.

Knowing that the slot was already deformed, the gun in Rebecca's hand eventually fell to the ground due to a sudden short circuit caused by poor chip contact.

Pat-pat...

Rebecca reached behind her neck for the chip, her vision already being torn apart by data, turning into complete darkness…

Fortunately, with this forced short circuit, Rebecca didn't have the strength to pull the chip out... even though this action wasn't under her conscious control.

The effect of a short circuit in a relic chip comes on quickly and goes away quickly...

As she got up from the cold ground, the pistol was lying beside her.

She tried to find the medicine Misty had given her, and soon found the medicine bottle that had fallen to the floor during the fight.

"Well…"

Rebecca chose the medicine from the gun and the vial.

Just as Rebecca grabbed the medicine, Johnny Silverhand, who had been scratching his head nearby, suddenly noticed her movement and slapped the medicine out of her hand, knocking it to the ground. As the bottle spun, Rebecca charged towards Johnny's phantom.

She threw herself against the back of the sofa, only to realize that she was completely powerless against Johnny.

Johnny also discovered that Rebecca couldn't move herself...

He was thinking about what to do.

Johnny is not a villain, but he is not a good person either.

So his first thought was still about the situation that terrified him.

“I don’t know what’s going on… I’m just slowly infiltrating your consciousness, and there’s nothing I can do about it.”

"What the hell?!"

Rebecca only gave the guy a cold laugh.

"I'm definitely still alive, there's no way I could be stuck inside a stupid chip! It must be... It's some kind of trick by Arasaka!"

Rebecca retaliated with her sharp tongue.

"You've been dead for ages, you know that, Johnny Silverhand..."

"Night City used your name as a recipe, and the steak they grilled was more thoroughly cooked than a nuclear bomb, with an incredibly rich flavor—ha!"

Rebecca's way of cursing is both eloquent and forceful, and she also has the unique characteristic of always speaking with great force, regardless of whether she is weak or not...

Johnny was stunned by the scolding.

After a long pause, all he could do was put his hands on his hips and rub his hair in frustration.

"Fuck-"

"If we were outside, we could definitely have a great chat, but we don't have time now!"

Rebecca had had enough of this annoying, noisy guy...

She no longer felt fear of Johnny Silverhand; instead, she felt anger and resentment. She needed to find a way to shut him up!

"What do I care if I don't have time!"

"Wait, I'll make you get the hell out of here right now, you bastard!"

As she spoke, Rebecca had already grabbed the medicine bottle, thinking of tilting her head back and pouring the omega inhibitor into her mouth... Her head was starting to feel dizzy from the heat emanating from Relic's activation.

She didn't want a stranger to control her body—

Perhaps we can catch Johnny off guard before he notices.

However, Rebecca's actions could not escape Johnny's eyes. He knocked the drugs over, making a mess on the floor, and then growled, "I'll borrow your body for now. Although you don't quite fit my image, you're good enough."

"Not bad, cybernetics? Hmm..."

Rebecca felt her body stiffen completely, as if she had become a bystander, watching helplessly as her hand moved from the scattered drugs toward the gun.

"Damn..."

Johnny rested his hands on his knees, looking down at the girl. "Come on, right now, shoot yourself in the head, and I can leave."

Rebecca looked like she was undergoing a weight training session, her expression one of great difficulty... She could only rely on her self-control to stop Johnny from harming his body.

Although his hands were trembling, as if he were wrestling with an invisible hand, he still couldn't help but reach towards the gun.

"Rubbish!"

A sudden surge of power welled up within Rebecca's will—

But before he could kick the gun away, his hand gripped the deadly weapon tightly.

immediately--

Johnny grabbed Rebecca by the collar with his silver hand, staring at the pistol in her hand. "Shoot yourself in the head, now! Shoot me and I can leave!"

Rebecca watched as her hand moved uncontrollably toward her temple, her curses growing increasingly vile. Johnny, too, was struggling against Rebecca's willpower; it was a battle of wills to see who would win first.

Johnny: "Your memories disgust me. You actually mingled with those company dogs?" Rebecca really wanted to give this guy a big middle finger: "You think you're so great? Drunk and using old people as shields, you dog killer! Fuck you!"

As the gun drew closer, Rebecca growled, "You're the idiot from that rock band..."

"If I can't live, you can't live either!"

Johnny loosened his grip upon hearing this, and Rebecca, who had plopped down on the ground, swiftly shoved the Omega Blocker into her mouth. Johnny suddenly fell silent, his eyes obscured by his sunglasses, staring intently at Rebecca…

Rebecca felt a brief respite in her throbbing head.

The first meeting with the neighbor in my head obviously didn't go very well...

So relaxing.

Rebecca, panting heavily, stared blankly at the ceiling, her eyelids growing heavy; the effects of the omega-blocker had begun.

After Rebecca fell into a deep sleep, the automatic door opened.

Suzuki, with his tall frame, bent down and picked Rebecca up horizontally. "Wait a little longer, Miss Rebecca. The master is trying to think of a solution."

Following Rin's instructions carefully, Suzuki placed her petite body on the soft bed before turning to pick up the scattered medicine pills one by one, as well as the gun. After picking them up, Suzuki removed the bullets one by one, looking at them with a thoughtful expression...

Clearly, all he heard outside was Rebecca talking, as if she were venting her anger on thin air.

"Johnny Silver Hand... I thought he was Arasaka's nemesis."

"Looking at it this way... he really is a bastard."

……
-
"Welcome to Arasaka Tower."

"Weapons are prohibited inside the tower. Thank you for your cooperation."

Unlike before, Lin Yue thought the hovercar would follow the guidance to the familiar top-floor hangar of the Arasaka Tower. However, the hovercar just floated quietly and eventually flew into the deep tunnel at the gap in the bridge connecting the side of the Arasaka Tower.

He wasn't nervous.

Lin Yue now just wants to know how Lai Xuan is going to talk to him about this.

Rather than saving the world, what he wants to do is save the person he has already decided on...

If he really had to live according to the Black Wall, Transcendental AI, and Barthemos's theories, Lin Yue would rather abandon them.

Lin Yue had experienced the taste of loss, and he did not intend to continue to experience it.

What Lin Yue didn't expect was—

On the side of the hangar of the hovercar, there was a suspended holographic sign that read "No Entry." As the security chief, he then remembered that he had probably parked in the private hangar of President Arasaka Tower, which was previously only the responsibility of the Special Operations Department.

Once the hovercar enters the hangar, it stops projecting holographic images outside the windows; this is a result of the modification of Arasaka Tower's instructions.

Lin Yue was quite surprised when the car door opened.

He saw a man wearing brown sunglasses and a double-layered purple silk shirt staring straight at him, with no one else around...

Even V isn't there.

"Rin, we finally..."

"We met."

Lin Yue stepped off the hovercar, straightened his shirt cuffs, and extended his dark prosthetic hand.

"Mr. Lai Xuan".

Arakawa Yoriyuki looked at this tall and imposing man, his surprise at seeing him in person was undisguised. He looked even younger than he had seen on screen before, perhaps because the holographic image in Tokyo had been affected by a cyberattack.

In short... Lai Xuan couldn't believe that such a young man had united with the world's largest entity to turn the tide in Tokyo, and then rewrote the deadlock in Night City.

"Call me Arasaka Yoriyuki, Rin."

"There are no adults or teachers here, only Arasaka Yorinobu."

Besides his urgency regarding Rebecca's problem, Lin Yue also felt a sense of novelty at seeing Lai Xuan alive.

Having long admired Lai Xuan, and knowing that he always displayed aggression and sharpness in various Arasaka meetings, I was surprised to find that he spoke calmly and understood that this victory was not due to my own efforts.

Lin Yue smiled slightly, showing no intention of repeating Lai Xuan's name.

It's enough that everyone has equal status.

Lai Xuan extended his hand, "Please, let's talk as we walk."

Lin Yue raised an eyebrow slightly, because Lai Xuan had spoken in Chinese…

Although it had some odd intonations of a Japanese person speaking Chinese, it was very smooth overall. After all, he was a top student from the University of Tokyo, and language was a skill—or perhaps, as the president of Arasaka, learning a language only required a chip?
“When I returned to Arasaka, my father sent me to the Arasaka office in Shanghai, China. I met many Chinese friends there and learned Chinese. Of course, they were not company people, but some like-minded relatives and friends.”

When Lai Xuan said this, his eyes glanced at Lin almost imperceptibly.

He was watching to see if Rin was surprised that he was making friends with people outside the company, and unsurprisingly... Rin didn't react at all.

Lai Xuan had a knowing look on his face.

"Your Chinese is really good. I haven't spoken my own language in a long time—"

Lin Yue was somewhat dazed.

"But I still didn't expect you to come pick me up in person. There must be a lot of eyes inside Arasaka Tower."

Lai Xuan walked at a moderate pace, always keeping pace with Lin Yue. Most Japanese men are short, but Lai Xuan's height was inherited from his mother. It is said that Mrs. Michiko was a beautiful, intelligent woman with a good height.

"You're worrying too much."

"They dare not be where I am."

Lin Yue finally understood some of the confidence the leader of the Steel Dragon had. He couldn't beat Sanlang, but he could handle his henchmen.

The two walked along the deep and long corridors of the Arasaka Tower.

There were no security guards or surveillance cameras around him, and Lin Yue's prosthetic body was still in use... If he wanted to, the leader of Arasaka Tower could be easily killed.

There seems to be a reason why Lai Hsuan was able to raise the steel dragon...

This kind of unwavering trust is a boldness that most company leaders lack.

However, Saburo gave him too little time. This eagle had not yet matured and could only take off hastily, then fight in the sky and complete its brilliant but short life.

The two walked side by side in silence, as if they had known each other for a long time. They didn't feel bored or awkward at all, but rather each was thinking about what to say next.

Until we reached the door.

Lai Xuan stopped and looked at Lin Yue with sincere eyes.

“Your partners and team mean a lot to you, and I know that very well—so I want to apologize to you for this unfortunate situation that resulted from my hasty response.”

Lai Xuan nodded slightly.

Lin Yue smiled and said, "Every battle involves sacrifices; it's an unavoidable outcome. As long as there is war, soldiers will die. No general can guarantee that all his soldiers will survive from beginning to end."

"I just don't know how long I can maintain this idealistic mindset."

"Is it a kind of...excessive kindness?"

Lai Xuan shook his head.

"If you can't even protect something important, a person, or... an ideal, then you're not human."

“Ms. Rebecca is a senior member of your team. Let’s go inside and discuss the details.”

The two walked in one after the other through the spacious gate. This was Lai Xuan's private leisure area, somewhat resembling the style of the top floor of the Ganbi Building.

"I'm sorry, please make yourself seated. I didn't have anyone serve you tea or water because I was worried you might feel uncomfortable."

Lai Xuan sat on the sofa opposite Lin, skillfully performing the Japanese tea ceremony, while Lin Yue remained unhurried.

Lai Xuan said only after the hot tea had been swallowed: "Arasaka is doing his best to find a solution while keeping it a secret... I believe V has also told you that Ms. Rebecca's first plan is to use Arasaka's most advanced nanorobots to remove the relic, but at the same time, the prosthetic body will also be completely removed."

"This process does not guarantee that it will not damage Ms. Rebecca's nerves, and may also cause physical injuries that prevent her from moving... But this is the best outcome. In the worst case, she may be in a vegetative state for several years, and the probability of death is not low."

"To be honest, I'm not very satisfied with this plan."

Lin Yue sipped his tea.

Of course, he wanted Rebecca to be lively and healthy, but while drinking tea, he inexplicably recalled those words Rebecca had spoken in a gentle voice he had never heard before—

"Don't run too fast."

His heart ached with the last syllable of his words.

Lai Xuan saw the bitterness in Lin Yue's expression and confirmed that it wasn't caused by the tea.

So he adjusted his tinted glasses, "The second option..."

Lin Yue looked up and met his gaze.

"Charge onto the imperial carriage."

Lin Yue's expression stiffened slightly.

However, Lai Xuan's expression was completely calm. "You and I both know that Hua Zi took everything he was supposed to take... My people can research and develop the Relic digital imprint transfer technology."

"But even if we know some key milestones, decades of research cannot be accomplished in a few months or weeks."

Lin Yue subconsciously exerted force, but the prosthetic body was too strong, and the ceramic cup cracked instantly, with steaming tea flowing out from the gap in the dark prosthetic hand.

Lai Xuan didn't even blink, nor did he make any rash moves. Instead, he casually picked up a handkerchief and handed it to Rin. "I'm sorry, I didn't pay attention to this... If I had noticed Japan Airlines' little tricks, perhaps—"

Lin Yue shook his head.

"No one is perfect, so there's no need to blame people for things that don't go as planned."

Lai Xuan poured Lin Yue a fresh cup of tea, hesitated for a long time, and finally spoke.

"There's actually a third plan behind inviting you here!"

Lin Yue's gaze immediately fell on Lai Xuan, and Lai Xuan's heart tightened. That gaze was even more intimidating than that of a top assassin like Adam Hammer.

Lai Xuan didn't intend to keep anyone in suspense. He now knew that by doing a good job of repairing Rebecca's intelligence and getting Arakawa to contribute to this matter, he could gain the other party's favor. In addition, Lai Xuan didn't dare to test this unfathomable guy.

“The Relic chip is constantly connected to the Black Wall. Not only Arasaka, but also military technology, biotechnology, Kijitsu, and even Peizhuo Petrochemical have crossed the Black Wall to collect data from the other side.”

“Our biotechnology experts and cybersecurity experts…you guessed it, V is in there.”

"They discovered that in order to collect data, Relic uses a fixed algorithm to forcibly accelerate the speed at which Relic covers consciousness."

Lin Yue's brows began to furrow slowly.

Another black wall...

Lin Yue pondered for a moment, then asked, "How much does the company know about the Black Wall?"

“Although I am the CEO of Arasaka Corporation, believe me, the company may not know as much as you do… When the network crashed, all the major companies were trying to find out where this thing came from. We never believed that this was a program written by network surveillance… at least they received some help.”

"As long as Rebecca lives in an environment with internet access, whether wireless or wired, this thing can always be accessed through the black wall."

Lin Yue nodded.

Otherwise, the lark wouldn't have attacked itself in this way.

"So our people came up with a bold idea."

Lin Yue pursed his lips.

He guessed that the consequences of this method might be unpredictable.

"First, we established an anti-hacking ICE system at the level of the Arasaka database on the connection to Miss Rebecca. At the same time, we can try to temporarily cut off this connection—the gang of scoundrels that you sent Suzuki Takeyoshi to deal with were working for Hanako and Michiko. They set up ground information stations to transmit that thing's data to the sacred vehicle in space."

"Perhaps you could ask the entity that accompanies you. The Kamikoshi (shrine) has now completely lost its connection to any Kamikoshi entrance in any of the Arasaka Towers; they want to expand into space..."

Lin Yue nodded and said, "The ESA space conference's labeling was quite good. At least the Cloud Sea Project was stripped of its authority, and Hua Zi gained nothing."

Lai Xuan replied, "It's just a little trick of imitating you and my father's schemes. V is very perceptive and knows how some things in this world work... so Hua Zi won't have any major ups and downs in the next three years, unless..."

"Unless what?"

Lai Xuan sighed, "Unless Europe can't hold back any longer and starts to contact the European Space Agency on its own initiative."

The young leader of Arasaka stared into Lin Yue's eyes. "My father's century-long operation, the secret service, the underground organization—they will never submit to me. I can use bloodshed to suppress them, but that's not a long-term solution. Once Hua Zi makes contact with the ground, she will have new support."

"They will then try to counterattack."

Lin Yue had a knowing look on his face.

Lai Xuan then steered the conversation back to Rebecca.

“Arasaka can guarantee that Miss Rebecca will not suffer from consciousness corruption for three years, but the problem is... after that, you and I must make a choice.”

Lin Yue straightened up.

I pondered the advantages and disadvantages of each of the three options.

"Rin, it's not that I'm trying to stop you from rushing onto the shrine now."

“There are many things that Arasaka can’t control in space… I’d rather die on Earth with you and the entire Arasaka than send my head up there to be slaughtered in this damned spaceship.”

Lin Yue chuckled softly upon hearing this.

"Oh? To be buried with someone?"

Lai Xuan slowly stood up, leaning closer as he rested his hands on the coffee table.

"because…"

"We both want the company to be destroyed."

Lin Yue's teacup hovered in mid-air.

"Think about it: a company that provides security for low-cost orders to impoverished communities, a company that sends its head to dismantle the Far East's Gilafa, a company that tries to transform Hansen's criminal empire into a safe haven..."

"What are you doing this for, Rin?"

If Lai Xuan had told him these things six months ago, he would have felt that he had found a like-minded ally based on his memories from his previous life.

But now, Lai Xuan, who holds great power, has the best hand to play than in any other timeline.

Power or ideals—which will Lai Xuan choose to uphold?

Lai Xuan stood up and looked out the window, his emotions running high.

"Rin, I know you think I'm crazy, chasing unrealistic dreams with the sliver of opportunity you fought for me; the whole world is already so entrenched, how much longer are we going to live like this, Rin?"

"Are our children, those children standing at the bottom of the tower, ready to welcome the eternally rich?!"

In front of the floor-to-ceiling windows.

Sunlight bathed Lai Xuan; Night City hadn't seen such warm and gentle light in a long time.

It's like dressing Lai Xuan in a crown and a king's robe...

And on the sofa.

The man's face, half-hidden by the pitch-black shadow, was as if carved by a knife. The shadow stretched out towards the ground, like a projection of a king's scepter.

"What should we do, Lai Xuan?"

Lin Yue's words were simple.

Lai Xuan suddenly laughed.

He knew that a guy who could understand the significance of his remote manipulation was no apostle of power; he was just like him... extraordinarily ambitious!
"Cleanse, then use war to restore world order."

Lai Xuan said softly.

pat.

Lin Yue lit a flame with his lighter, dispelling the shadows on his face.

兹…

The cigarette was swallowed by orange-red, like sand slowly flowing through an hourglass before a decision is made.

"What the hell is this 'saving the world' kind of drama?"

Lin Yue muttered to himself.

Lai Xuan wasn't in a hurry; this meeting was necessary... to ascertain the other party's thoughts so that he wouldn't be alone on the road ahead.

Ruolin is indeed extremely intelligent, but she's not like me. Lai Xuan is prepared to die today...

Although it sounds unbelievable, Lai Xuan felt that his efforts only accounted for 30% of winning the game... He didn't know how the game would proceed if Rin wasn't on his side, but even if it meant death, he would still try as he would with his father...

Try to defeat Rin!
"call."

Lin Yue exhaled a puff of smoke, patted the ash off his trousers, and casually rubbed the cigarette butt into the ashtray.

"Lai Xuan".

"I choose the third option."

Lai Xuan pointed to his head, crossed his arms, and shook his head while laughing.

This feeling of not being alone on my path... made Lai Xuan understand what it means to cry tears of joy.

"As for what you mean by restoring order, listen..."

Lin Yue revealed his neat teeth, and perhaps because he was a ruthless warrior, his smile carried a chilling aura.

“It’s really interesting.”

At the boundary between light and darkness, Lin Yue and Lai Xuan reached out and clasped hands.

Lin Yue: "Lai Xuan, then I'll just continue doing what I'm used to doing and what I love to do... Anyway, I don't really like it when people look for me or see me."

Lai Xuan: "Lin, I also have to try to do what I'm supposed to do well—I like the moment when this deformed behemoth turns into a bomb, at least I'm working hard for what I want to do."

Lin Yue shrugged.

"Then you'd better do as you say, Lord Yorinobu of Arasaka."

“I’ve remembered your words very well.”

Lai Xuan knew that the other party was warning him.

Finished.

Lin Yue looked out the window.

The phone kept ringing...

Emma: Gilafa wants to see you.

……

……

(End of this volume)
(End of this chapter)