I, V, Gotham Legend

"What big boss? What kind of half-baked title is that?" Ma Long frowned. "How did you pass the interview? Who used connections?"

Baker was scared, but he also felt aggrieved.

He originally thought that Match Malone, as a big shot who was making a lot of noise recently, should have gangsters under him who were similar to the ones he had seen in his childhood.

In addition, this organization has the protection of V. Baker, who has always dreamed of revitalizing the Bertinelli family, tries every means to beg for permission to join him.

Who would have thought that the bartender position he got by paying a large sum of money in bribes was just a job, and even the bar where he worked had a formal license.

I thought joining the Next Life was the starting point of a gangster career, but I didn't expect that this was not a gang at all. Baker's original intention was crooked, but he accidentally got on the right track.

He still remembered the first time he met the huntress here. That guy also looked angry and wanted to beat someone up. However, after hearing the specific details of his work here, he couldn't even keep a serious poker face.

The huntress never beat him up again after that, but every time she passed by him, she gave him a mocking smile as if on purpose.

Ma Long shook his glass again and finally sighed: "You are not suitable for our hotel. Go home after you get your salary this afternoon."

"No! Wait a minute, I also got this position with great difficulty!" Baker panicked.

Although the job of a bartender is different from what he imagined, as long as he is still under Malone, there is still hope. If he is fired, then he will really have no hope at all.

"Please, I'll do anything." Baker began to play the victim. "I have a wife and daughter at home, and an orphan from my brother's family. My whole family depends on the money I make."

“……” Malone is a kind-hearted person. When he saw Baker’s look, he actually softened a little. But to survive in Gotham, one needs to be not just kind-hearted.

He wanted to cold-bloodedly fire the incompetent bartender, but he noticed the information on the work badge on Baker's chest.

"Your name is Beck Bettinelli?" Malone raised his eyebrows.

"What's wrong? Big...Boss." Baker was a little uneasy.

"Nothing, I just thought of a friend." Malone sighed, "For that guy's sake, I can keep you for a while. Go to the kitchen to find Parsons and learn how to make cocktails from him."

"Thank you, boss..." Baker was grateful.

He thought that his deceased brother and Ma Long had some old ties, which made him feel a lot more relaxed.

But Marlon had no relationship with the rest of his family. As for the Bertinelli family, apart from having heard of their names, only their orphan Helena knew him.

For Helena's sake, he was willing to take in this unruly parent. More importantly, he also knew Helena's annoyance about Baker's desire to become a gangster.

As long as Baker is still working for him, he can forget about getting involved with the gang.

Looking at Baker's happy back as he went to the kitchen, Malone poured out the liquid in the glass with an expressionless face.

……

Instead of leaving the afterlife through the main entrance, Valerie walked down to the basement and went straight to her teleportation device.

After a deafening noise and blinding white light, Valerie arrived on the Krypton spaceship.

The Kryptonian spaceship was currently floating 400 meters above the outskirts of Gotham, in stealth mode for the sake of secrecy.

At this moment, Joe was lying on a rocking chair, reading a book leisurely. For an AI, acquiring knowledge is not so troublesome, but this can make him feel more like a human being.

"Good morning," Valerie greeted Joe.

"According to Earthling time, it's afternoon now." Joe looked up from his book.

"It's morning for me." Valerie shook her head and said, "By the way, you are a projection now, right? Can you hold the book?"

"What are you talking about? This is also a projection." Qiao stood up the book and it immediately disappeared. "I projected the knowledge I gained from connecting to the Earth network into a form that is familiar to Earthlings."

"I don't quite understand. You can get the information directly, but why do you have to make it into a book?" Valerie's smart brain was a little overloaded. "Then do you go through your program before projecting it into a book? It's like "You have to read the book before you write it"."

“My programming is more complicated, but I can manage not to understand it when I project the book,” Joe explained.

Valerie felt it was amazing: "When you browse the Earth's network, do you ever think that all humans deserve to die?"

"...You've watched too many movies." Joe was a little helpless. "However, if I were a pure new AI, it would be possible, but now I am the continuation of Jor-El's consciousness."

"Okay, I understand." Valerie walked towards the interior of the spaceship and brought the topic back to the point. "I came back this time to borrow the Kryptonian laboratory. It should be installed on your spaceship, right?"

"Yes, there are, it can't compare with the professionals on Krypton...but you should be able to modify it." Joe understood Valerie's creator-like handicraft ability.

"That's good... I just remembered today that there is something very important that I haven't studied yet." Valerie walked in front and took out a metal box from her pocket.

"What is this?" Joe felt a faint signal on the box.

"Have you seen it?" Valerie opened the box, revealing the Mother Box inside.

NO60.Mother Box

Valerie hadn't expected Joe to know. It was not like she wasn't familiar with Kryptonian technology, which was almost completely different from this box.

But Joe showed a shocked expression: "Mother Box? Where did you get it from?"

"You know?" Valerie asked in surprise. She thought for a moment and took out another Rubik's Cube. "What about this one?"

"..." Qiao stared at the Rubik's Cube for a while, then shook his head, "Isn't this the Rubik's Cube of Earth... I've never seen it... You haven't answered my question yet, where did this Mother Box come from?"

"I stole it from Lex." Although Valerie currently felt that the Rubik's Cube was more dangerous, she was still stunned by Old Joe's serious expression.

"The Mother Box... is a very dangerous thing. I only know that the people of Apocalypse have been looking for it... How could it be..." Joe was suddenly stunned, "I see..."

"...What did you understand?" Valerie felt uncomfortable seeing the Riddler's look.

Fortunately, Joe didn't plan to be a riddler: "There is a very famous dark force in the universe, invading the universe like a tide. Their leader is called Darkseid."

Joe recalled that he seemed to be back in the research institute and chatting with his colleagues about some gossip in the universe.

"I haven't had much interaction with them, and everyone in the universe keeps a distance from them, but I still know that they are always looking for something."

"Are you looking for this?" Valerie held up the Mother Box and examined it carefully.

"Strictly speaking, this thing is just like a computer. As far as I know, only people from Apokolips can make it, but I don't know what its specific functions are." Joe lowered his head and said, "But something that Darkseid has gone to so much trouble to find must not be this simple."

Valerie understood the seriousness of the matter. She put the Mother Box back into the box and said, "So we're just going to let it go? We're not going to study it anymore?"

"..." Qiao was also hesitant, "Has this thing always been on Earth? How many are there?"

"I don't know." Valerie felt a headache.

She regretted not watching more DC movies before traveling through time. She remembered that there was a movie about an alien army invading the earth.

At the time, there was a lot of controversy over the director's cut, so much so that even Valerie, who didn't care much about American comics, had heard about it. Unfortunately, she didn't go into it in depth at the time, and just took a look at the comments and the war of words online and that was it.

Now Valerie regrets it very much. If she had spared a few more hours to watch a movie, she wouldn't be in the dark now.

Joe was also hesitating. He closed his eyes, and the energy-rich projection flickered back and forth.

Finally, as if he had made up his mind, Qiao opened his eyes and said, "We should study it."

Valerie looked at him thoughtfully.

"Apokolips... Darkseid's planet is technologically advanced, but our Krypton is not bad either." Although he was confident, Joe was nervous inside. If he made a mistake, the consequences would be unimaginable.

But Joe still thinks it has to be done: "We can't just watch this thing stay on Earth and do nothing. That's no different than waiting to be invaded."

Valerie understood what he meant. She closed her eyes and then raised the corners of her mouth confidently: "Then let's get started. Since I came to this world, I have never seen anything that I can't solve."

Joe nodded according to the Earthlings' habit, and then his projection disappeared on the spot like turning off a light. A green light lit up on the floor, pointing to the depths of the spacecraft, just like the path pointing the way in an RPG game.

Valerie followed the path and walked to the laboratory with ease - in fact, she knew the exact location.

Apart from the alien-style materials, the design of the Krypton laboratory is almost the same as that of the Earth's. Before entering the room, you have to be sterilized by some kind of gas, and then enter the room, which is a spotlessly white and sterile room.

"There's a monitor here." Joe's projection appeared next to Valerie again, and he pointed to a box on the table.

The box lit up, revealing a design on it.

"Let's start with this laboratory. We need to transform it into an absolutely secret room where not even a single signal can leak out." Qiao set the first goal.

Although Valerie's original purpose of coming here was to become stronger, plans cannot keep up with changes, and figuring out the purpose of placing the Mother Box on Earth has become one of the main goals at present.

This thing looks like a computer and can also amplify signals. It first reminds people of something like a coordinate base station. Once activated, it may send coordinates to the universe and attract alien legions with darkness written in their names.

Before studying the mother box, you must first make foolproof preparations. If there is a signal released, you can intercept it, and if there is a pollution leak, you can block it. Only then can you be called a qualified researcher.

Valerie's major lab renovations lasted well into the evening, and she spent more time gathering materials than building things.

Theoretically, every time the spaceship is summoned again, the modified things inside the spaceship will be reset, but for some reason, there was no change in the modification of the laboratory this time.

Valerie also modified the turret and main cockpit of the spacecraft, but unfortunately they were not preserved after being resummoned like the laboratory.

"Could it be that the laboratory was judged to be upgraded? Then why didn't the turret change... What a headache, it seems that there are still many game mechanisms that have not been figured out." After seeing the clean cockpit, Valerie couldn't help but touch her chin and think.

Valerie had just arrived on the spaceship in the afternoon, and when the sun set, it didn't seem like much time had passed for her.

Just as she sat down on the conference table-like furniture in the cab to rest, a loud voice came from outside.

"Well, calculating the time, it's time to come." Valerie crossed her legs but was too lazy to move.

The sound of the pneumatic door opening was heard, and then Barbara walked in with her schoolbag.

"Good evening... Miss V?"

"Okay, do you have work to do today?" Valerie, resting her head on her arm, greeted Barbara from a distance.

"Yeah, Malone took on some commissions for me." Barbara walked over to the conference table and placed her bag on the table before pulling out a chair and sitting down. "I plan to finish my homework before I go finish it."

It would be a waste of talent for a hacker of Barbara's level to only work when Valerie is on the move, so Valerie gave her the nickname of Prophet and the freedom to take commissions on her own, and she seemed to enjoy it.

Valerie watched Barbara take out her notebook and laptop step by step, and couldn't help but ask curiously: "Didn't you bring my computer?"

Valerie was referring to the computer that was built with the hacker access cabin as the core. In theory, it is now an exclusive computer assigned to Barbara by the company.

NO61. Let’s just change the world

"My skills aren't there for more advanced computers, and with that level of computer... I'm afraid something might go wrong," Barbara said sheepishly.

Valerie probably understood: "You are still being polite to me. That kind of machine is nothing. I can make as many as I want."

"..." Barbara hadn't seen Valerie's technical ability directly, but she had heard about it through various rumors. She nodded to show that she understood, but still wanted to decline. "Your host has some plug-ins specifically for hacking. The effect is very powerful. I think using it for a long time will make me lose my skills."

"Not really, it's just a prop." Even though she said that, Valerie didn't insist any more. She lay back in the chair and continued to be in a daze. Suddenly, she seemed to remember something and sat up again. "By the way, can I use that hacking function?"

"?" Barbara tilted her head. "I just started teaching you how to hack recently. You can't rush this."

"No, it's a simpler method." Valerie shook her head. "For example, I look at a target, and then you hack into the target I see here. Will this work?"

"Isn't that what we've always done?" Barbara frowned.

For example, when she was investigating the hideout of Bane's remnants, she found it by capturing the signal stream of Valerie's location.

"It's a little simpler, just like a shortcut key." Valerie suddenly pointed to the monitor next to her, "I just point like this, and then the monitor lights up the picture I want."

"It's not that difficult..."

"There are more complicated ones." Valerie rubbed her eyebrows, trying to recall the cool hacker skills that she had only seen when she first started playing the game and when watching live broadcasts in her previous life.

But this is difficult to do because the power of the hacker flow lies in the fact that everyone in Night City has a prosthetic body, but this is obviously not the case in Gotham.

The closest thing she can do to hacking is the Mad Hatter's hypnosis, but hypnosis can be easily broken in a combat situation. If she wants it to work long-term, she has to put on a mask like the Mad Hatter did.

"It's so annoying. I might as well carry out a super plan and equip everyone in Gotham with prosthetics!" Valerie has turned evil.

"..." Barbara didn't know what Valerie was suddenly worried about. She scratched her cheek, as if she suddenly remembered something, "By the way, you said shortcut keys?"

"What's wrong?" Valerie looked up.

"... Let's go to the bar first and bring the computer over..." Barbara said a little embarrassedly, "I seem to have some impression."

Valerie sensed that Barbara was keeping her in suspense, but she liked to tell riddles like that when she had an idea herself.

She was too lazy to ask, and rubbed her little feet on the ground, causing the chair she was sitting on to slide back a meter. Valerie stretched lazily and stood up.

"I'll go and be back in a minute." Valerie said and walked out of the room.

Barbara watched Valerie walk out of the room and heard a deafening noise. She felt there was still some time, so she opened her homework book.

But before she could finish a few questions, there was a loud noise outside the door again, and Valerie had returned.

"What happened?" Barbara asked worriedly when she saw that Valerie only had a chip in her hand.

As far as she knew, it was not easy to disassemble a host of that specification.

"No big deal, I just need to take the hacker access bay apart," Valerie said, and she began to assemble it in front of Barbara.