Starting as a Mechanical Hunter

’Experience is evenly distributed, give the blueprint to Baozi, he works at the prosthetic store, see if we can trade it for something, and as for this ’Deep Image’ product, I’ll put it up for auction, any objections?’

No one had any objections, a very fair distribution, Sister Ji even took a bit of a loss.

Soon, Sister Ji made the product’s attributes public.

Basic Social Chip: Implanted in the parietal language processor, enhances communication skills, and increases the character’s charm attribute value, Charm +10.

’What is this thing? A Social Bull Chip? Good stuff!’ Plane

’I think you’re the one who needs it the least,’ PP Boss teased.

’How about we give it to Brother Hei Bing, I feel like he’s a bit introverted, this could help him with task communications in the future,’ Plane sent a funny emoji.

’Good idea!’

’Same here.’

’...Are you guys looking to die?’ Hei Bing No. 2

After the jokes, everyone agreed to give it to Sister Ji, after all, without her, there wouldn’t have been this mission.

Plus, with this Social Bull Chip, Sister Ji’s chances of getting tasks increased.

If Sister Ji couldn’t take them, they still had to be passed to them.

’No worries, I’m leaving the group.’ Rainy Night with a Knife and No Umbrella

’Don’t, Brother Yuu, Handsome Umbrella, look how well we cooperated this time, wouldn’t it be more convenient to stay in the group if there are more tasks in the future?’ Sister Ji quickly persuaded.

She realized that the most reliable person in this small group is this literary fellow.

And since she claims to be an ’assassin broker’, she needs at least one assassin under her.

Through the profile picture, she knew this one had successfully changed profession and became a formal assassin.

An assassin, wow, even the profession name sounds badass!

Brother Umbrella didn’t reply but also didn’t leave the group.

’I’m going to the gang to do some brick-laying, anyone wanna join?’ I am a Big Muscle Dominator.

’Count me in.’ Red Flower Demon

’Take me too!’ Plane

’@PP Boss, you have memory loss, my boss might have a way to treat it, want to check it out?’ I Love Eating Buns

’Sure, I took a half-day off anyway, I’m free,’ PP Boss replied.

The group chatted for a while, and soon, I am a Big Muscle Dominator, Red Flower Demon, and Plane went to the Welfare Gang to do brick-laying.

Meanwhile, I Love Eating Buns and PP Boss headed to the Neural House.

Hei Bing No. 2 went to do a lucrative debt collection task.

Everyone went back to their own places.

PP Boss curiously looked around, she had been to Hanging Street, only at night.

Hanging Street at night was even livelier than during the day, but it had a unique charm during the day, with the coming and going Transformers, dilapidated buildings, swaying overpasses, begging robotic beggars, fierce thugs, haggling over a few cans of synthetic food, flying cars in the sky, holographic ads passing by, and the red-glowing mechanical eyeliner.

It all constituted a harmonious yet bizarre picture.

”Post-apocalyptic vibe, interesting!”

”Hmm, what did you say?” Baozi asked.

”Nothing much.”

Baozi was just about to say something when he suddenly saw Rainy Night with a Knife and No Umbrella standing at the door.

”Hey? Brother Umbrella, what brings you here, getting a prosthetic upgrade?”

Brother Umbrella looked up at the two, briefly said: ”Taking a mission.”

”Hidden mission, so envious!” Baozi said jealously: ”Even as an internal employee I don’t get such benefits, and you get it first, it’s unfair!”

PP Boss, not familiar with the other side, could only awkwardly smile.

Somewhat unexpectedly, the assassin guy across also nodded slightly when he saw her.

’This abstinent guy doesn’t seem that hard to get along with,’ PP Boss thought.

”Oh, new goods again?”

Baozi glanced and exclaimed; he knew his little shop had new arrivals every so often, recent ones were three Fine-level weapons, the Electronic Runaway Electric Stick, a tracking sniper rifle, and something similar to a wide-range flash grenade, Neon Rocket.

This time the new arrival was a Network Implantation Chamber, though also Whiteboard, it was priced 30% cheaper than the market.

”Hey, PP, do you need this thing? If you want, I can try getting it at an internal rate for you, PP?”

Baozi turned around only to see PP Boss staring starry-eyed at the approaching Gao Gong, her face turning red.

”So handsome!!”

”My boss is indeed very handsome, but no need to get so—Whoa, boss, you’re stunning today!!!”

Gao Gong ignored the comment; ever since he shifted professions to a Cyber Hacker, his original charm of the Rich Lady Love Prototype was gradually translating into reality, which caused even his cheap sister to give him a few more glances this morning.

”Aren’t you off today?”

Baozi, with a flattering face, said: ”I was worried business would be too good for you to handle alone, boss, wasn’t I?”

”Speak human language.”

”Boss, I got something good, came to you to give it a look.”

Then he took out the blueprint sent by mission.

Gao Gong glanced at it.

Personality Modifier (Basic): Through rough brain module adjustments, causing significant change in the modify-ee’s temperament, 30% chance of becoming a vegetable, 20% chance of going mad, 40% chance to modify personality, 5% chance to trigger hidden personality, 5% chance to induce cyber psychosis.

”Where did you get this blueprint?”

”Hehe, a friend gave it to me.”

Is this friend called system?

Gao Gong figured with one look, this guy must have done a mission this morning, isn’t the mission reward this.

The basic Personality Modifier is a Level 2 Neural Blueprint, with a market price around 1000~4000. Major corporations have more advanced personality modification technologies, and it’s not likely for individuals to use it. The only market for these blueprints is indeed doctors like him, the Prosthetic Doctor.

”3000 Mechanic Tokens, if you’re selling, I’ll buy it.”

”Deal, deal, deal!”

Baozi quickly agreed. To be honest, this price exceeded his expectations. He originally thought selling it for 1000 Mechanic Tokens would be good enough. After some market investigation, he found that there were simply no buyers for this thing.

The boss still cares about me, huh?

”Oh right,” Baozi quickly pushed the PP Boss forward, ”Boss, my friend here has memory loss, the kind of popular neurological disorder you see on TV. Can you help take a look?”

The PP Boss was placed in front of this very handsome guy. Staring at him with an intrusive look, her face turned crimson as various classic scenes from ancient, modern, Korean, and Japanese dramas of wall-slamming plays repeated in her mind, to the point where she didn’t hear clearly what the other party was saying.

By the time she snapped back to reality, she was already half-lying on the operating table.

”It might hurt a bit. Bear with it.”

The PP Boss’s eyes widened suddenly, and nosebleed started flowing.

Gao Gong operated the surgical arm, preparing to dismantle the opponent’s Network Implantation Chamber, only to see her suddenly cover her nose, leap off the operating table, and dash straight to the restroom.

With a ’bang’, the restroom door was slammed shut.

Leaving only three men staring at each other awkwardly.

Baozi chuckled dryly, ”Um, boss, my friend is feeling a bit unwell. Could you please wait a moment?”

He hurriedly sent her a message.

’Hey, sis, what’s going on?’

’Over-stimulated, over-stimulated, I need to calm down.’

’Over-stimulated? You haven’t even been given anesthesia yet.’

’You don’t get it. This is CP in real life. The immersion is too deep, I need to take it easy. Just give me ten minutes.’

’...’

Gao Gong rubbed his chin. Is my charm really that great?

He shook his head, directly switched panels, and simultaneously upgraded the Cyber Hacker profession, the three Professional Knowledges, and the Professional Skill [Sensory Data Programming] to Level 5.

The job transfer task popped up instantly.

[Job Transfer Task: Hacker Invasion]

Task Content:

1. Hack into the data center of a medium-sized enterprise and obtain enough Sensory Code to establish your own database.

2. Build your own Artificial Intelligence.

’Oh, this job transfer task is easy.’

While it might be hard to say for others, in terms of following the virtual route, Gao Gong is definitely experienced.

He glanced at the three Professional Knowledges. Unlike other professions, the Professional Knowledge for Cyber Hackers can actually be used as skills.

For example, Virtual Invasion at Level 1 is described like this.

Virtual Invasion Level 1: Threatens, disrupts, and destroys execution programs through intracranial programming of Sensory Data.

In simple terms, even without an Electronic Defense Wall, when facing attacks from other hackers and AIs, he can fight back with programming.

However, Virtual Invasion at Level 5 is different.

Level 5: Perform neural hacking on various human organ components, ordinary enterprise hardware, unprotected Prosthetic Bodies, and the operating systems of low-level Artificial Intelligence.

The former is protection, the latter is hacking.

And the latter is the most powerful ability of a Cyber Hacker.

The PP Boss finally came out of the restroom, two rolls of tissues stuffed in her nose, and resolutely lay back on the operating table.

”Let’s get started!”

”...”

Gao Gong came over, initiating Virtual Invasion. Instantly, countless Sensory Data flashed in his eyes, representing his emotions, thoughts, and bodily signals.

The strength of Virtual Invasion is generally proportional to Perception, and Gao Gong’s Perception is the only one to break three digits, reaching the terrifying number of 104.

The other party’s Perception is 4.

So his Virtual Invasion strength is far beyond what the weakling player in front of him can resist, or even detect.

Sure enough, the opponent’s brain functioned very normally, with just a tiny bit of redundant data. If this data is not cleaned up, it will completely decay in ten days, which means her memory of yesterday will entirely disappear.

With a thought, Gao Gong decomposed this data, turned it into hundreds of 0s and 1s, reprogrammed it, patched it, and reintegrated it into the brain system.

The whole process took less than 3 seconds.

”All done.”

”Finished?” The PP Boss was stunned. I just got here, and you’re done already? All those mental preparations for nothing.

But when she recalled, the memories of yesterday flowed back like a tide.

”So that’s what happened!” The PP Boss mumbled to herself.

[Your Neural Repair Surgery is completed, experience +800]

Gao Gong didn’t take this little surgery seriously at all.

In ancient times, memory loss was a scary thing.

But in the Mechanical Era, memory loss is like catching a cold, unless it’s a large-scale flu, nobody cares.

In the Cyber Tide two years later, a worldwide memory loss incident will occur.

The entire planet will be devoid of a single person with complete memories.

And that is just the first wave of the Cyber Tide.

What follows are ’Personality Reset’, ’Neurotheft’, ’Conceptual Parasitism’, ’Pheromone Virus’, ’Ancient Biological War’, ’Turing’s Eastern Expedition’, ’Electronic Brain Graveyard’, and ’Bionic Revolution’.

Each of these significant events is more formidable than the last.

The social structure of Mechanical Split Star collapses under such a tide.