Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 275 - 247 A Glimmer of Hope

Chapter 275: Chapter 247 A Glimmer of Hope

Not wanting to delay, Xu Yang skipped the other activities, directly left the private box, exited through the side door, and returned to Blackfire Innovation. He slowly looked through Todd’s messages while waiting on the Shuttle Machine for A40 to come in, which it did quickly.

"You seemed very silent earlier," Xu Yang observed it.

"What, isn’t that cool?" A40 was confused, "One must do something cool, right? The less you talk, the more dazzling it is. That’s the style of a master."

Once back on the Shuttle Machine, it returned to its constantly active state, spinning the Fury in its hand as if facing an invisible opponent.

"Do you feel the enemies are undeserving?" Xu Yang observed it.

"The Colosseum Arena is filled with nothing but chickens and dogs, completely clueless about combat!" A40 brimmed with confidence.

Just then, a huge aqua-blue Shuttle Machine slowly approached and landed on the other side of the apron. A team of people disembarked, including a middle-aged man in a white coat carrying a sword, who was quickly escorted away by other staff, followed by a horde of floating eyeball robots belonging to various media outlets.

"Is he also here to compete, that samurai in white?" A40 looked toward the man entering the Colosseum.

"Maybe." Xu Yang scanned briefly, only a name popped up.

The man in white was Han Shishan, from the giant corporation Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing, working as an outsourced staff member. He was a resident samurai at the Colosseum Arena, fighting for the reputation of Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing. Xu Yang checked Han Shishan’s official Colosseum profile, which boasted an impressive combat record. At 45 years old, he had debuted early and had been fighting in the arena for 27 years, still active on the front line.

"That guy is old, has frivolous footsteps, and a shifting gaze. Instead of a samurai, he seems more like a celebrity!" A40 commented.

"You fought very well just now," Xu Yang handled the handover procedures within Digital Mind, transferring the ownership of Shijin Mansion to New World Mechanism.

"Indeed." A40 said, "It was exhilarating: slaughter, combat, a place tailor-made for me. Defeating and then killing enemies, that’s what I’m meant to do!"

"Then, keep up that mentality and perform well in the main event of the festival," Xu Yang said.

Blackfire Innovation left the Colosseum, heading straight for Shijin Mansion. Before transferring the personnel and materials, they first needed to renovate and repair the entire building.

A40 looked back at the Colosseum Arena, its gaze lingering long on the stadium, its hand tightly gripping the Fury.

"Boss, what’s the name of that man in white?" A40 asked.

"Han Shishan," Xu Yang operated on the central console, setting it to auto-navigation mode as the downpour pounded relentlessly on the shuttle’s canopy.

"How many consecutive wins does he have?" A40 persisted.

"Guess."

"10 matches?" A40 speculated, "In the Colosseum, surviving 10 matches makes one a master, right?"

"336 consecutive victories," Xu Yang said.

A40 fell silent for a while, rebuilding its mental model.

"So, those I killed before don’t even count as salted fish?" A40 remarked.

"Work hard," was the response.

"Are all the warriors in the festival of that level?" A40 inquired.

"Perhaps," Xu Yang replied with a light smile, "He participated in the last festival and made it to the top 16."

"Then he has lost before. How can he still have 336 consecutive victories?" A40 was confused.

"In regular matches, despite the deathmatch rules, there are occasions when the opponent is spared," Xu Yang explained, "In his career, he has participated in 600 battles. The most dangerous defeat was 15 years ago, in the last tournament. The one who defeated him was a samurai from Kyushu High Pavilion. Considering the complex relationship between the two corporations, they spared his life."

Xu Yang downloaded Han Shishan’s latest Colosseum battle, which took place at the beginning of the month, a recording from September 1st of that year. He forwarded the recording to A40, which watched intently without looking away.

To promote Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing’s classical weapons and armor, Han Shishan always fought with a simply decorated sword, dressed like a wandering swordsman, with three different brands of hip flasks hanging at his waist. After a 15-second lengthy advertisement, he entered the arena to fight another sophisticated giant combat robot.

It was almost like... wizards dueling. In the seasoned Colosseum warrior’s combat, the fight had evolved from two-dimensional to three-dimensional including environmental destruction. In front of Han Shishan, the large robot hammered the solid ground with siege weaponry, causing the sturdy venue floor to cave in. Han Shishan then soared into the sky, seemingly using portable flying equipment to avoid terrain interference.

Later, Han Shishan attacked the large robot from above, and a fierce attack and defense battle broke out between them for 7 minutes. During this time, they utilized every corner of the venue space, with very brief intervals between attacks, and a slight distraction could lead to missing 3 or 4 opportunities for strikes.

Even the official recording couldn’t capture all the details. A40 could re-model the battle in its processor, but key data was missing, preventing an understanding of the opponent’s specific actions.

One thing was certain.

Neither Han Shishan nor the large robot opposite him was an opponent A40 could defeat.

"Han Shishan will also participate in the upcoming festival," Xu Yang said, "However, his odds of winning the championship are very slim, at 15 to 1; almost no one believes he can win. Clearly, there are other, more powerful and terrifying warriors participating."

"I can’t win the championship," A40 admitted.

"Of course," Xu Yang said, "Just focus on gaining experience. As you yourself said, the Colosseum is prepared for you. You will be stationed there long-term by me, receiving tempering from the prolonged battles and eventually undergoing a transformation."

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"Then what about this festival," A40 said, "this festival?"

"This festival will help you witness the powerhouses from all walks of life. That’s all it’s good for," Xu Yang replied.

A40 became quiet.

"But Huang Feng sent me an email," A40 sat on the cabin ground, "I said I would only open it after winning the championship."

"What’s stopping you from checking the email isn’t winning or not winning," Xu Yang patted A40 on the shoulder, "it’s you."

A40 buried his face in his hands, anguished.

"This little competition has already saved us tens of millions in funds," Xu Yang said, "we’ve thoroughly made our money back, no need to be too hard on yourself. The festival is just a stage for big capitals to show off and compete with each other, not participating is fine."

A long silence.

Then, A40 lifted his head.

"I want to win the championship," A40 said. "Then open the email sent to me by Huang Feng."

"Oh?" Xu Yang’s tone was calm, "In that case, you might never open it and ultimately miss the contents of that email for a lifetime."

"Huang Feng is at Black Fire Innovation," said A40.

"Yes," Xu Yang nodded, "in Taiya Archipelago, head office or somewhere else."

A40 knelt on the ground, bowing deeply to Xu Yang.

"Please! Send me to the festival!" it raised its voice gradually, "The one I’m in contact with, ’Huang Feng’—she’s a remarkable, strong, and determined Witch, and I am but a nobody. I want to grow, to become stronger! If I can win the championship at this festival, surely my fame will reach her, to the other end of the world, right?"

Its head hit the ground with a loud noise.

"I want Huang Feng to hear my name!" it shouted, "I want Huang Feng—to be proud of me!"

Xu Yang looked out the porthole at the rain curtain, lightning flashing and thundering, the Innovation moving decisively through the gloomy weather, completely unaffected.

"Every difficulty you’ve faced so far," Xu Yang helped A40 up, "is because you’re not strong enough. This competition won you the Shijin Mansion, along with a 33% discount, saving about 40 million in funds, consider it your own earnings, let’s use it for an upgrade."

"Yes." A40 was visibly uplifted.

After arriving at the Shijin Mansion, the inside was well equipped, furniture already half installed, Xu Yang purchased a large amount of office furniture, getting the main office decorated first, then preparing for the Witch Division’s activity room and Farosa’s secret chamber.

During the renovations, he contacted President Taro Tanaka of Tanaka Intelligence, specially inviting him to make a trip, Taro Tanaka was very busy. But once Xu Yang stated his purpose, Taro Tanaka still made time to visit.

Taro Tanaka resided in a giant eyeball robot, which traversed the city just like the ubiquitous delivery drones and surveillance drones, without causing any sense of disharmony.

"It’s been a while," Taro Tanaka settled in the Shijin Mansion’s landing pad, the robot’s limbs extended, crawling like a spider on the walls and ceiling, "A40 and Mr. Xu."

"How have things been lately?" Xu Yang had changed into new clothes, sitting in the office.

"I apologize deeply, I’ve been absorbed in technological development and neglected maintaining client relations," Taro Tanaka spoke through the eyeball robot in synthesized tones, "I hear you plan to send A40 to participate in the Sixth Colosseum Combat Festival hosted by Sakura Witch?"

"Of course," said Xu Yang, "it’s addicted to fighting."

"It wouldn’t pass even the preliminaries," Taro Tanaka sounded quite matter-of-fact, "A40 isn’t ready yet."

"We don’t need the preliminaries, we go straight to the main event," said Xu Yang. Thanks to previous assistance, Kirino Reisei would grant certain concessions in this event.

"With this, can you win?" A40 lifted Fury.

"My apologies, but whether standing or kneeling, you can’t win," observed Taro Tanaka, "The main event of the Combat Festival! Sixty-three corporations, sixty-three frontline samurais, even if it won’t be like last time with many giant corporations, those remaining are still renowned businesses. If they’re defeated by a newcomer, their reputation would be tarnished. A40, going there would only result in a heavy blow, something I don’t wish to see. Perhaps giving up is a better choice?"

"A40 will enter the fray adorned with Tanaka Intelligence advertisements, and it has a reason it can’t lose," Xu Yang said, "Upgrade it, Mr. Tanaka."

"Tsk, tsk..." Taro Tanaka floated within the office.

"Victory is crucial for both of us," Xu Yang looked at him, "this building we’re in is the result of A40 earning it with two slashes. The economy is in a bad way, and the Colosseum offers crazy opportunities. It’s convenient to leverage small bets into big wins, and it would be too bad to miss out. If the A40 from Tanaka Intelligent Company could rise in the Colosseum, becoming a supernova, that would smooth the way for your future endeavors."

"You have me convinced, Mr. Xu, and I truly hope that our product can achieve excellent results in the competition," said Taro Tanaka, "I have always believed in the potential of Synthetic Human technology. If A40 can win, even one round, two rounds, just reaching the top 16 would mean my years of effort haven’t been in vain."

"The championship is too far-fetched, let’s set our sights on the top 16," Xu Yang looked toward A40, "Huang Feng will still see your name by then."

"Yes!" A40 affirmed with determination.

Having made up their minds, Taro Tanaka also entrusted the company’s affairs and stayed to work at the Shijin Mansion.

The three of them discussed plans through the night, figuring out how the insignificant A40 could break through the encirclement and bite off as many opponents as possible in the luxurious Combat Festival brimming with formidable enemies.

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