2077: V really knows how awesome he is

"Song Zhaomei! Song Zhaomei!" Miles called out twice, and seeing that the other party did not answer, her tone softened: "Zhaomei, do you want to take some medicine?"

Song Zhaomei then looked up: "No, I won't eat! I mean I'm fine..."

But she didn't look well at all, and Miles doubted whether she had any normal logic or could report information accurately.

The new US president nodded to the security personnel beside him, who then stepped forward, grabbed Song Zhaomei, and forcibly injected her with a syringe despite her struggles and objections.

As the liquid was slowly injected, Song Zhaomei's struggles weakened, and once the injection was complete, she calmed down completely.

"Are you feeling better, Akemi?" Miles asked.

Song Zhaomei said expressionlessly, "I'm sorry, Your Excellency, the X-46 affective agent is working properly, and my physical condition and mental indicators have returned to normal."

Miles clearly wasn't genuinely concerned about the other person and immediately asked, "Where's what I asked you to take?"

"We only got 7%."

"Didn't you say you had already cracked the Netherhound's system?"

"We did break through, but I just encountered an obstacle."

"Obstacles?"

“A super hacker who was no less skilled than me.” Song Zhaomei stated bluntly, “I was attacked suddenly and had to stop downloading data. I fought a great battle with the attacker in cyberspace, and I ultimately returned victorious.”

"Where is that hacker?"

"He should be dead, but I haven't confirmed it."

Why wasn't it confirmed?

"Because I was very scared at the time."

Miles frowned: "Scared? Song Zhaomei, you have disappointed me greatly. The new America spared no expense in nurturing you, and you have betrayed the nation's trust."

Song Zhaomei lowered her head: "I'm very sorry, Your Excellency President."

"An apology is meaningless. Return to cyberspace immediately and retrieve all the data related to Project Beidou!"

"Yes."

Song Zhaomei spoke loudly, but stopped in front of the hacker chair.

Her hand holding the data cable trembled uncontrollably. She picked it up and put it down several times, but she never dared to insert it into her head.

The fear of the life-or-death battle that had just taken place finally broke through the chemical barrier, and the emotions that had been forcibly suppressed surged out all at once, causing the lark to faint.

Miles looked at him and said two words: "Doctor."

The medical team went over to check and reported, "X-46 has failed."

"Start using X-47 tomorrow." Miles waved his hand and prepared to leave.

"If I may be so blunt, Your Excellency, Song Zhaomei's body is already at its limit. If this continues, she may die."

Miles stopped in his tracks: "How much time does she have left?"

"At most six months, maybe only a few months if things go smoothly."

“I understand. I will find a replacement for Song Zhaomei before that happens.” Miles then left.

This is just an ordinary day for a lark.

V withdrew his gaze from Song Zhaomei's crossroads optical prosthetic eye, which was "warning".

That's right, she didn't die. In fact, the one that fought the lark just now was just one of her cybernetic clones. That thing probably used up about 60% of her computing power. The bronze colossus and all that were just illusions. The real tracking program was actually the dust that the cybernetic clone eventually turned into.

Those shattered data fragments may seem harmless, but they can multiply on their own like living organisms, first forming a complete code, and then assembling into a complete program.

Simply put, it's somewhat like a cell. Individual single-celled organisms combine to form multicellular tissues and organs, and these tissues and organs come together to form a living person.

V was certain that humans currently lacked a similar programming theory, which explained why Song Zhaomei's personal ICE remained unresponsive. As for the origin of this technique, V thought of a certain giant jellyfish, but she didn't have time to delve into it yet.

In short, she had already left a hidden door on Song Zhaomei, allowing her to force Kotori offline at any time, completely eliminating the possibility of this super hacker playing a role in the subsequent war. As for Miles... V couldn't worry about that for the time being; her immediate priority was the armed takeover of Arasaka's Tokyo headquarters.

With the computing power that had been allocated returning, V quickly completed the programming of the Chimera combat AI. She retrieved her personal data cable and jumped off the behemoth, while Kurt Hansen had just lit his third cigarette.

"It took five extra minutes. Did you run into trouble?" the Dogtown boss asked.

“A hacker got into your system, and I took care of getting rid of him for you,” V said casually.

"Damn, which faction does it belong to?"

"The New America".

"It's that old hag Miles again! One day I'll sell her off to Cloudtop!" Kurt Hansen gritted his teeth in anger. "What's she sending people for? To find loopholes in my defenses?"

“No, she’s looking for a project called ‘Little Beidou Project.’” V asked, “How much do you know about this project?”

"That was a military technology project designed to bypass the Black Wall. That's all I know. Oh, by the way, I heard they also caught a roving AI back then."

V nodded: "Project Little Beidou is also known as 'Cynosure.' In astronomy, this word also refers to the North Star because it is relatively stable in the night sky. Ancient explorers and navigators used it as an important reference point. The reason why military technology uses this name is probably because it calls itself a Columbus exploring the old network on the other side of the Black Wall, and is the first explorer to come into contact with the roving AI."

"Explorers?" Kurt Hansen sneered. "A bunch of fucking idiots!"

“I agree with you. But it seems that Miles hasn’t given up yet.”

"Should we expose her? Although everyone is secretly working on black walls, it's strictly prohibited internationally. Not to mention, the internet surveillance alone will give Miles a hard time."

"A single hacking incident doesn't prove anything, and she might even turn the tables on me. I don't want to create any unnecessary complications at this critical juncture."

"Are we just going to let that old hag go like this?"

“No way.” V laughed. “We know we only have one piece of evidence, but Miles doesn’t. I’ll send her an anonymous message. Let’s cover up as much as we can, at least make her suspicious for a while and not dare to do anything rash.”

"Okay, let's do it!"

V came to Dogtown to restart the Chimera. Now he has removed Solomon Reed and Alex, two thorns in his side, added a debuff to Song Zhaomei, and even caught Miles with a small handle. He has exceeded expectations in his mission.

After handing over control of the Chimera to Kurt Hansen, V set off for the Watson Industrial Complex. The underground factory there had been converted into a surface-level facility, and they were currently working intensively on the testing and modification of the isomers.

Chief designer Kayo Nakamura came to greet him, and on the way to the factory, V saw a familiar figure.

It's Jack.

Wearing a safety helmet and holding design drawings, he was methodically explaining the key points and priorities of the work to the workers.

"he……"

"His name is Jack. He used to be a gang member in Heywood, and when he applied for the job, he did manual labor. But because he was hardworking, self-taught, and diligent, he worked his way up to become a key technician. Any job he handles, even the most complex installation of large equipment, is absolutely reliable and handled with utmost care!"

V nodded. Indeed, she knew Jack was reliable better than anyone else.

Kayo Nakamura was generous with her praise. Having once been from the bottom of society, she knew better than anyone how much those at the bottom needed opportunities. She had been through the rain, and even now that she was successful, she had never forgotten to help others.

"Jack is not only technically skilled but also incredibly kind; almost all of his coworkers have received his help. Oh, and he even taught Shengxiong how to play basketball and exercise. Shengxiong and Jack are very close; Shengxiong treats Jack like an older brother. Sometimes, Jack's words are more impactful than mine. I'm truly grateful to Jack. I'm so busy with work that I rarely have time to spend with Shengxiong. To express my gratitude, I even wanted to introduce Jack to a girlfriend, but when I asked, I found out he already had a girlfriend. They were planning to get married next week, but..."

Kayo Nakamura didn't finish her sentence, but V already knew the answer.

Her face darkened, and she shouted in an almost stern voice, "Jack, you come here!"

Jack turned his head and saw V. He first looked pleased, then realized V was genuinely angry and ran over with his neck hunched.

"President V, you called me?"

"Tell me, why did you cancel the wedding with Misty?"

"It wasn't canceled, it was just postponed."

"Then why postpone it?"

"Uh……"

"Say!"

V's angry shout startled Jack, who stammered, "To join the reserve team."

V was even angrier: "The reserve team only recruits single people with no relatives. Even if you don't marry Misty, don't you still have Mrs. Wells?"

Although he didn't know why the famous CEO V knew so much about his family background, Jack honestly answered, "My mother and I have severed our mother-son relationship."

"what?!"

V nearly fainted from anger: "Are you fucking crazy? Mrs. Wells loves you so much, and you actually severed your mother-son relationship with her!"

"No, President V, it was my mother who suggested ending the relationship. I may be a bit of a scoundrel, but I'm not that stupid."

"Mrs. Wells suggested it?" V was taken aback. "Why?"

Jack gave the same answer again: "So that I can join the reserves."

V understood everything in an instant; his anger vanished in an instant, transforming into an unnamed power that was stuck in his chest.

"Do you even know what the reserves are for? Do you even know why the reserves are always full of lone wolves?"

"We know, the reserve team is just cannon fodder, everyone knows that."

"Then why did you still participate?"

"For fame!" Jack answered loudly. "Not for me, Jack Wells, to become famous, but for Night City to become famous. I'm a rough man, I don't understand subtleties, but the priest said this battle must be fought, no matter the cost, no matter how many people die. Because only by fighting, and winning, can Night City stand firm, and only then can the people of Night City truly become human!"

"President V, you're a big shot. Tell me, can we win?"

After a long silence, V spoke.

“Jack, you are the real big shot.”

“There are many, many more important people like you in Night City.”

"so."

"We can win!"

The debugging of the isomers continued until late at night.

V is actively cooperating, and all the technicians are on duty, working overtime to supplement and correct the work.

Two days have passed since the press conference in Arasaka, Tokyo. Most of Arasaka Yorinobu's military forces have been tied down by the "Military Products Expo" in Kanto. He has only sent about one-fifth of his total forces to form an armed takeover force, which is crossing the Pacific Ocean toward Del Coronado Bay in Night City.

Even if it's only one-fifth, it's not something Night City can compete with. Everyone knows it will be a tough battle, a fierce one. Major companies are waiting to see which of the two tigers fight and reap the benefits. The whole world wants to see who the times will choose.

V hadn't slept for over 50 hours, as had the technicians and workers, and I believe most people in Night City were in the same boat. Their health monitors kept alarming, only to be shut down by them. Everyone knew this was bad for their health, but they had to mortgage their future to have a future.

"President V, the 212th impact resistance test."

"Come."

The particle beam weapon fired beams of light, and V manipulated the isomer to open the shield. The energy canceled out, releasing dazzling light and heat, illuminating the present and hoping to illuminate the future.

At the same time, V's communicator rang.

The call connected, and Carter's voice came through: "President V, biotechnology has suddenly surrounded the company plaza."

Too many companies are trying to take advantage of this situation, so it wouldn't be surprising if anyone jumped out to claim they were involved.

"Number of people."

"1400 people, of whom 400 are genetically modified super soldiers."

"They've kept it well hidden. It seems the urban legends were right; the biotechnology soldiers really do grow out of locust farms."

“Arasaka currently only has 1100 troops, and even with the public security guards, it’s less than 1500. In a city where we can’t use weapons of mass destruction, those 400 genetically modified soldiers alone are enough to break through our defenses. President V, I suggest you return to defend immediately. Only you can stop biotechnology now.”

V looked at the colorful ion beam in front of him and shook his head: "I'm sorry, I can't leave here for the time being."

"That……"

"Don't worry, call Xu Ling and tell her it's her turn to play."

"President Xu? She's so young, is she sure she can handle it?"

“Go ahead and do it. No matter how young she is, she is still Xu Shiming’s granddaughter.”

Then Xu Ling, who was fast asleep, received a phone call.

"Okay, leave it to me."

Xu Ling, still half asleep, scratched her stomach as she walked into the bathroom. She took off her panties and plopped down on the toilet. While flushing, she put on a full-face helmet, yawned, and lazily said, "1200 vs. 1400? Okay, the advantage is in my hands."

Chapter 48 The Battle of Reality

V's plan was very effective; her anonymous emails did indeed frighten Miles.

Perhaps because conspirators tend to see everyone as a conspirator, Miles always felt that someone wanted to harm her in secret. To be on the safe side, she decided to temporarily retreat behind the scenes and wait for the Arasaka Battle to be over before reaping the benefits, as required by the military technology side.