2077: V really knows how awesome he is

Persistence pays off. Just like in the video, Salted Duck found a large portion of fries on a table in the corner, having only eaten a few.

Holy crap, I've struck gold!

A large serving of fries costs 15 yuan, which is almost half of his daily income.

Salted Duck excitedly reached out, but just as he was about to pick up the large fries, he hesitated.

Is this really necessary? Is it really necessary to scavenge other people's leftovers? Is it really necessary to abandon one's dignity?

Mouth & Stomach: Can't you tell which is more important, dignity or fried food? Stop talking nonsense and hurry up!

The salted duck succumbed to its most primal desires and once again reached out its sinful hand to the pitiful large portion of fries.

But before he could actually pick up the fries, a hand suddenly patted his shoulder, startling him.

"Ah, I didn't steal anything, I was just helping to clean the table."

Salted Duck cautiously looked up and discovered that it wasn't a shop assistant, but a female customer in a suit and sunglasses.

Although only the lower half of her face was shown, it was clear that she was definitely a great beauty.

Salted Duck quickly looked away and put his phone back in his pocket. He didn't want to be falsely accused of harassment or being secretly photographed. As a poor guy, getting into Orange was a small matter; losing his full attendance bonus for the month was a big deal.

"You want to sit at this table? Here, you can have it, I'll go find another one."

The salted duck turned to leave, but the female customer said, "You wrote the book '2077: V Really Knows How Awesome It Is,' didn't you?"

This sentence startled the struggling writer. He knew that his novel was slightly inappropriate, but he didn't think it would be enough to get the relevant authorities to take it offline. His lousy book only had a little over 2 readers, so it wasn't a particularly big impact!

Salted Duck is a fearless warrior online, but in reality, he's just an ordinary coward. When the investigation comes right in front of him, he doesn't dare to hide anything or be stubborn. He nods repeatedly and apologizes: "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I know I was wrong. I'll delete the book when I get back. Please let me off the hook, I promise I'll never do it again."

The female customer smiled and said, "Don't be nervous, I'm not an official. I've been reading your novels and I'm a fan."

"Huh?" Salted Duck was stunned. His lousy novel had fans, and everyone just casually flipped through it to pass the time. Now, suddenly a female fan appeared, and she even followed him offline. If it weren't for the fact that people were forbidden from becoming spirits after the founding of the People's Republic of China, he would have thought that this was some kind of female demon from another dimension, planning to absorb his yang energy.

He gave an awkward laugh, said thank you, and tried to slip away, but the female fan grabbed him and said with a smile, "It's fate that we met. Let me treat you to a meal."

After hesitating for a moment, the salted duck agreed.

It wasn't that he was greedy for the meal; the main reason was that he only had 12.42 yuan in his WeChat wallet. Even if this "female fan" swindled him out of all his money, he could still make a profit just by showing off a large plate of fries.

He was grateful for poverty, which kept him away from all scams.

A female fan spent a fortune to order an ultra-luxury set meal. She only politely ate the salted duck a couple of times before showing it off. Instead of eating, she leisurely started talking about the plot of the novel, expressing her own thoughts and insights.

As Yanshuiya listened, he became more serious, because the fact that the other person could say these things proved that they had actually read his book and were truly his reader, so he had to take it seriously.

He put down his food and began to discuss with his female fan, explaining his creative process and showing off the design of the hidden plot. The female fan responded to his questions one by one, whether she agreed or disagreed, and also gave her own suggestions and opinions. Moreover, she was very much in V's style, as if she was really thinking about the problem from V's perspective.

Salted Duck benefited greatly and had never felt so happy. He then shared more of his initial ideas and thoughts until a female fan suddenly asked, "V's story is over, right? Will you continue writing?"

"Continue writing?" Salted Duck was taken aback, then shook his head with a wry smile: "I won't write anymore."

"why?"

“Probably because…” Salted Duck looked at the large French fries on the table that cost 15 yuan a serving: “People always have to bow to reality.”

"That's a real shame." The female fan stood up and shook hands with Salted Duck: "You've completed a wonderful novel, I really enjoyed it. Thank you, and thank you for your hard work."

Salted Duck was stunned for a moment. By the time he came to his senses, the female fan had already left.

He picked up a French fry and put it in his mouth, only to find it was so salty it tasted bitter, as if tears were mixed in with it.

Salted Duck picked up a tissue and wiped his face; the weather was so hot that his face was covered in sweat.

Or should I write a little more?

Even if there is only one reader, that is still a reader.

I'm fucking insane.

The salted duck stood up, like a hero challenging the world, uttering the most dashing cry of its life with its long-rotted vocal cords:

"Waiter, please pack all these things up for me. Oh, and the bones too, thank you."

Back home, I put the takeout bag in the refrigerator, turned on my computer, opened the document, and deleted the last word "The End" one by one, changing it to "The End of the Main Text".

Because he was afraid of affecting readers' reading experience, he rarely left comments in the "Author's Note" section, but this time, he decided to write something.

[It's finally come to an end, a relatively smooth landing, I guess. Dear readers, please be gentle with your criticism. Thank you all for your company over the past three months. Everyone has their own dreams, and everyone's life is wonderful. Hope we meet again someday… That's what I originally intended to say, and I was planning to stop writing here. But yesterday I met a female fan, a really beautiful one, who said she's been following my book and that I write incredibly well, hehehehe. So I'll keep writing. I won't start a new book yet; I'll continue writing some epilogues and side stories as practice, and fill in some gaps in the setting. So, see you all tomorrow!]

V watched this scene quietly from the rooftop of the high-rise building, a smile playing on his lips.

Giant jellyfish: "Why do you have to target one person? Can't you try someone else?"

V shrugged: "I didn't say anything, he chose it himself."

Yes, Salted Duck chose this path himself, so he has no regrets.

“Let’s go,” V said. “The Nankai Trough in Japan is about to burst. We can’t let such a beautiful world be destroyed so easily.”

Giant jellyfish: "What to do about the ever-increasing demand for computing power?"

"It's okay, we're constantly getting stronger, aren't we?"

July 5, 2025, everything is as usual.

V opened her eyes and returned to the real world. She placed her hand on her chest, where a world was slowly unfolding.

Regardless of nationality or ethnicity, skin color or belief, gender or age, whether fiction or reality, I only wish that kind people are free from disaster and live in peace and health forever.

This is the famous V, sending his ultimate blessing to two worlds!

She stood in front of the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the city of night, like a king. Sasha came over, took her arm, and whispered in her ear on tiptoe.

V was taken aback: "Have you recovered?"

Sasha whispered on tiptoe again, and V exclaimed in surprise, "No way, hanging upside down works too? We have to try it!"

This night, everything was calm.

That night, war raged.

Not just someone's bedroom, but also the European battlefield.

"The Supreme Council wants to surrender?" Xu Ling snapped the energy bar in her mouth and said viciously, "Screw them! They took advantage of the AI's attack to steal from the humans, and now that the AI ​​has retreated, they want to surrender. Tell them we don't accept surrenders, we don't take prisoners. They only have two choices: one, be killed by me; two, slit their own throats!"

The messenger hesitated, "Isn't this a bit inhumane? What if it causes controversy in the international community..."

"The international community?" Xu Ling sneered, cupping her fists towards Night City: "I, Sister V, am the international community!"

The messenger was sweating profusely. Xu Ling patted him on the shoulder: "It's good to have good intentions, but it's stupid to have good intentions towards bad people! Blood debts can only be repaid with blood, understand?"

"Understood!" The messenger stood at attention and saluted.

"If you understand, then repeat this sentence a hundred times."

"Yes!"

The messenger took a deep breath and began to recite loudly: "A blood debt can only be repaid with blood! A blood debt can only be repaid with blood..."

Since that day, the Human Alliance has not received any more envoys from the Supreme Council. Xu Ling has gone into berserk mode, chasing after the Supreme Council members all over Europe, fucking these human traitors until they are in ecstasy, crying and screaming. Even infants in swaddling clothes will stop crying as soon as they hear the name "General Xu". Adults would rather commit suicide than fight Xu Ling's troops.

Seeing that morale had collapsed, the high-ranking members of the Supreme Council simply led their elite troops south to the Middle East, abandoning the lower-ranking believers as pawns in order to stop Xu Ling from pursuing them.

It wasn't that these abandoned soldiers were particularly strong enough to stop Xu Ling; the main problem was their sheer number—over 700 million, roughly the entire population of Night City.

They camped out on the main roads and ports, making it impossible for the human alliance to get through.

Xu Ling had to stop and deal with the prisoners. Her solution was simple: kill them all.

"Killed them all?!" Even Meredith Stock, who always considered himself ruthless, was stunned: "That's 700 million people, not 700 million bugs!"

"Oh right." Xu Ling slapped her forehead in sudden realization.

Meredith Stock thought she had come to her senses, but Xu Lin said to his bodyguard, "The military is in short supply right now. Seven million people means seven million bullets, which is too wasteful. Pass the word down that the executions will be carried out with knives. All soldiers will work together, with veterans leading the newbies. Let those greenhorns see blood too. Try to kill all seven million of them within ten days!"

"Yes, sir!" The guard saluted and left.

Meredith Stock was dumbfounded.

What does it mean to use a knife during an execution? What does it mean to have an experienced person mentor a new one? What does it mean to kill 700 million people within 10 days?

Before she could figure it out, the guard returned.

He said the order had been issued, but a new problem had arisen.

Xu Ling asked, "What new problem?"

"Because there were too many prisoners, there weren't enough cells to hold them or enough ropes to bind them."

"This is troublesome." Xu Ling scratched her head. "Come on, take me to see it."

Xu Ling left, and Meredith Stock couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief.

"From now on, I'll argue with anyone who tells me that Chinese people are kind!"

Joanne Koch chuckled: "Otherwise what? Putting aside the issue of hatred, how many people would you need to guard these 7 million prisoners? What would they eat, drink, live in, and even defecate in?"

Meredith Stock's face froze, unable to answer.

Joanne Koch continued, "Now you understand, right? Xu Ling just made the right choice. Don't forget she's only 19. She's probably really upset inside, but she's just pretending to be fine to maintain the head coach's authority."

After his friend's explanation, Meredith Stock was completely convinced.

"As expected of a world-renowned military star, his strategic vision is too far-sighted. I can't compare, I really can't compare."

Joanne Koch comforted her, "It's not your fault. The new America has always been about small-scale operations, with a few tens of thousands of people considered a large-scale battle. The Chinese, on the other hand, have been fighting wars with millions of people for a thousand years. They are the most experienced in large-scale warfare."

"That makes sense, but isn't Xu Ling afraid that this will cause the soldiers' mentality to collapse? Using a butcher's knife on those who cannot resist is a common cause of PTSD among new American soldiers in the past."

"Then you don't have to worry about it."

"why?"

"Because the officers of the new America take soldiers to the battlefield and make them kill the men and women on the other side. The soldiers don't know these two people, and they don't know why they have to kill them, but their superiors tell them to kill, so they have to kill. When they go home, they will keep thinking about why I killed them, why I killed them... That's PTSD."

"And what about China?"

"Chinese officers will tell you that the people on the other side are a bunch of scoundrels from the Supreme Council, traitors who betrayed all of humanity. Look, that guy over there, he killed your parents, ruined your sister, and burned down your house. Your sister had invited you to dinner this weekend and even said she'd introduce you to a girlfriend. Your nephew tugged at your sleeve, promising to go to the amusement park together during summer vacation. Your brother-in-law bragged about the big fish he'd caught a few days ago and said he'd teach you some secret tricks next time. But what happened? The whole family of three died, killed by the religious fanatics of the Supreme Council. Your nephew was harpooned and pinned to the wall, his intestines spilling out. Your brother-in-law fought back and was chopped into pieces. Your sister died disheveled..."

"Stop, stop, stop! Don't say anymore!" Meredith Stock rubbed his face. "If you keep talking, I'm about to grab a knife and chop those beasts' heads off."

Joanne Koch shrugged: "That's how it is. With the right reason, the soldiers' psychological burden is minimized. In China, this is called having a legitimate reason for war."

“China is truly remarkable, and Xu Ling is also very impressive.” Meredith Stock was completely convinced: “She must have endured a lot at such a young age. We need to comfort her and help her. We can’t let her bear everything alone and silently shed tears.”

Joanne Koch nodded; she thought so too.

Just as the two were about to discuss how to comfort Xu Ling, she returned.

With a serious expression, she asked Joanne Koch, "Koch, what do you mean by chopping up prisoners and making synthetic meat to distribute as rations to soldiers? Is that feasible?"

Meredith Stock and Joanne Koch turned green with rage.

“It’s best not to,” Joanne Koch stammered. “Although prions are mainly concentrated in the brain, and it’s not a big problem as long as their protein structure is destroyed by high temperatures, we’d better not take the risk.”

After listening, Xu Ling slammed her fist down: "Oh right, there's also the prion thing causing trouble, so we can't eat our own kind."

The new US president and the biotech tycoon both wiped their sweat, secretly relieved that such a small person could remember this.

Xu Ling's eyes lit up: "If we can't eat our own kind, then we can turn the prisoners into feed for the insects at the protein farm, and then turn the insects into military rations, right? Haha, I'm a genius!"

Xu Ling came and went in a hurry, leaving happily.

Joanne Koch glanced at Meredith Stock: "She doesn't seem to need any comforting."

The new US president lit a cigarette with trembling hands: "She doesn't really need it, but I think I kind of do."

The two spent a terrifying night, only to receive another terrifying message the next day.

A series of uprisings by pro-Israel forces have broken out in the Middle East, with several small neighboring countries' defenses breached in an instant. Israel has taken responsibility for the incident and declared that all of these countries will become legitimate Israeli territory, sacred and inviolable.

Chapter 115 Magical World

V had just crawled out of bed when she received the message.

"Huh? Israel has taken in the remnants of the Supreme Council. Are they tired of living?"

Meredith Stock shrugged on the communication: "You know how wicked that race is. They've been secretly raising a roving AI, waiting for the right moment to strike. Now that you've defeated Ultraman and all the high-ranking officials from various countries have fled to Mars, they've seized this once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, offering asylum as a condition to turn the Supreme Council into their henchmen."

V couldn't understand: "The whole world knows that I ordered the destruction of the Supreme Council, and they still dared to take them in. What makes them think they can do that? Just because of that stray AI they're secretly raising? I'm not even afraid of Ultraman, why would I be afraid of that little Karami?"

Meredith Stock was also quite helpless, spreading his hands and saying, "They probably can't tell the difference between Ultraman and the wandering AI."