Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 432 - 389: The First Stop

Chapter 432: Chapter 389: The First Stop

"Miss Lu has ordered us to negotiate with Wei Shiyue," said Spiritual Fire with a heavy tone. "Now, all we can do is change our plan to offering condolences to Wei Shiyue."

"Dragons, such powerful creatures..." 102 couldn’t help saying.

"Modern Entertainment is the most powerful corporation in Silla," Song Chaoxun said confidently. "We will unify the whole of Silla."

needed to send the information she had gathered back to the Northern Archipelago Continent, so that the adults could make a comprehensive judgment, but with no internet access, she had no choice but to ask Song Chaoxun.

"Do I have to download that software to access the internet?" 102 asked. "What does that software do?"

"The software has prepared 24 dedicated channels for healthy websites," said Song Chaoxun.

"Only 24? Why so few?" 102 didn’t understand.

"It’s just like traffic regulations," Song Chaoxun explained to her. "Since drivers are allowed to drive only on broad highways, why can’t netizens be allowed to visit only healthy websites? It’s all for safety. Last year we had only 18, and now we are getting more and more progressive."

"What about the deep anonymous network?" 102 asked, having learned to dive deep into the network under Xu Yang’s influence.

"What’s that?" Song Chaoxun looked surprised.

Oh no! 102 felt troubled.

"Take us to see Mr. Li Gaoping," said Spiritual Fire. "Miss Lu has entrusted me with some important messages to convey."

"Yes," Song Chaoxun led them on their way.

Above the 120th floor of the building, Song Chaoxun was no longer qualified to enter, nor was the Nestor Corporation Guard Squad; they were all stopped by Silla’s mechanical soldiers. Only Spiritual Fire and its accompanying personnel could go up and meet the chairman.

needed to find a place with unobstructed network access to transmit the information she had learned in Silla back home.

"Where are you going?" 101 saw 102 walking out.

"Whip your brains into shape," 102 reached the terrace, turned left and right, and arrived at a composite leisure area.

She saw a few surprisingly beautiful boys, around 12 to 16 years old, as pretty as young ladies, watching the seasonal series of Kyoto Infinity, which was a reboot with rather unconventional standards, not something that seemed likely to be offered by a healthy internet. They were loudly discussing crude topics on the sofa and smoking stamps, a sickly sweet odor wafting through the air.

A service robot arrived carrying a large platter full of fresh salmon sashimi, sea urchin sushi, lobsters, and a seafood platter, along with two bottles of wine.

knew she had come to the right place.

When the robot put down the platter, 102 followed it back and found her way to the restaurant on that floor. In a bright and clean operating area, a female chef from the Northern Archipelago was preparing beef, and a Mr. Helpful robot was cleaning the sink.

"Sorry! Delighted to meet you! Can I connect to the hometown network here?" 102 asked.

"There’s a port on the wall of the employee canteen, but the network is slow," the female chef replied without looking up, busy perfecting the premium Wagyu beef. It seemed she was used to answering such queries.

"Thanks!" 102 followed the network cables, found the port on this floor, and plugged in her smartphone. Indeed, she connected to the wide-area network services.

She quickly dived into the deep anonymous network, located a site hosted by Xu Yang, downloaded a breakthrough software to her phone, and then swiftly disconnected and left.

Using the method previously agreed upon with Lila, 102 used the breakthrough software to forward the information she had collected with two layers of password encryption.

All settled! Clever 102 thought to herself. Right, there is also another team; Du Qianqian and her group, I wonder what they could be doing in Silla.

When 102 returned, she found that Spiritual Fire had already descended, its face lacking expressive features, always maintaining a kind of smile that wasn’t quite a smile, which made 102 unsure whether its mood was good or bad.

"We’ll rest for a day and a half, then head to Xingping North Road to attend Wei Shiyue’s funeral," Spiritual Fire said. "It’s said that there are many bandits and warlords active along the way, and once we leave Yidu City, the danger level will surge exponentially. We’ll have to trouble you all for the escort."

"Yes!" 102 said cheerfully.

Meanwhile, Xu Yang was recuperating in a secret chamber. To alleviate Farosa’s suppressed rage, he had no choice but to stay in the chamber, estimating that he would have to spend a few days closely bonded with her to mollify her. He needed to care for Farosa’s emotions. Farosa was certainly the most difficult witch to calm in the world, and even Xu Yang had to be careful not to provoke her various forms of nameless anger.

He helped Farosa into her stockings and cleaned the soiled Rainbow Cloak. Farosa lay on her side, flipping through ancient books. Although she had become the Witch Goddess, she had no systematic cultivation method and could only read the deeds of ancient empresses, guessing, trying, and imitating based on these descriptions, in the hope of experimenting with some effective new abilities.

As soon as Xu Yang connected to the information through Digital Mind, he received the message from 102 sent back to Shijin Mansion.

Wei Shiyue is dead?

Xu Yang was naturally upset upon hearing this message.

The daughter of Elder Dragon had died on the Ground, which posed a dilemma on how to relay the news. Mond would certainly be devastated, and his prejudice against the Ground world would grow stronger.

"Focus!" Farosa nudged the part of Xu Yang responsible for launching fish sperm.

"Wei Shiyue... Mond’s daughter," said Xu Yang. "She died in battle."

"Who was she fighting against?" Farosa asked curiously.

"It seems she joined the Righteous Army and attacked Modern Entertainment Company," Xu Yang couldn’t find much information. "Silla is under tight control right now, I’m not very clear about the specifics; outsiders can only imagine what life is like for the Silla People."

"The Dragon girl died, how boring," she said idly, continuing to flip through her book. "Got any more thrilling news?"

"There’s a speech by a civilian candidate today," Xu Yang switched on the smart screen in the room.

"...99% of the citizens of Anjiu City are trapped in a futile cycle of death!" Social activist Takashi Watanabe broadcasted his speech on the streets, seeking votes, "Wages increase, but so do prices. So no matter how hard you work, the daily labor just meets the most basic survival needs. Entrepreneurs full of lies make you believe that’s all you’re worth in earnings, while being ruthlessly mocked by the other 1% of society’s winners... History has reached its least healthy, most chaotic stage! Choose me as your council member, and the city’s change will start tomorrow!"

"This idiot is still talking about ’history,’" Farosa scoffed, "Modern people don’t know the meaning of history at all."

"They also don’t know what it’s like to be buried in the ground for a thousand years," Xu Yang said.

"The most ironic thing," Farosa ignored Xu Yang’s mockery, "is that those with finite lives are trying to discuss ’eternity,’ ’history,’ ’time.’ Where do they get the audacity and qualifications to summarize and assert knowledge about these endless concepts? They can only have a limited perspective, making futile judgments. Only I and the other Immortals are somewhat qualified to pass judgment on these topics. Like his saying ’history has reached such and such a stage’... that’s truly the dumbest thing."

"There’s still no proof that you’re smarter than the average person," Xu Yang said.

"What, does everyone think that?" Farosa frowned, "Do you all think I’m not very smart?"

"I didn’t say that," Xu Yang found it amusing, "What do you think?"

"...I’m starting to suspect that the arrogance of the Little Witches has a foundation," Farosa muttered, "They’re like insatiable wolves. I give them treasures and instead of gratitude, it just feeds their arrogance, with no sense of awe."

"The human heart is unpredictable; the thoughts of a Witch are even harder to understand."

"...I will see if they can actually achieve something of merit," Farosa said with disdain, "They’re useless."

"We will find out," Xu Yang nodded.

Du Qianqian was also ready to depart, to make a fortune in Silla.

She had joined the secret task force of Nestor Corporation, working under the name of The Flying Birds Group.

The team was led by Kong Tai and included 50 well-trained Flying Birds Group mercenaries, along with the experienced Mizuiro Yoshioka, the money-grubbing Du Qianqian, the just Seeking Shadow, the capable of bombing anywhere Hosoda Yoshiyuki, and Nidelaide.

Lila had meticulously arranged it, using their personalities for checks and balances—Du Qianqian, greedy and rash; Kong Tai, steady and cunning; Mizuiro Yoshioka, reliably thorough; and Seeking Shadow, with a formidable presence.

As expected, Du Qianqian’s face fell when she saw that Mizuiro Yoshioka was to accompany her.

"Why is it you..." Du Qianqian had been dominated by Mizuiro Yoshioka in their initial assault on the Apple Orchard Food Filling Factory, where Yoshioka had given no ground.

"That’s how it is, I don’t know either," Mizuiro Yoshioka said with a smile, "The reason I’m going with you is to prevent you from getting into trouble."

Du Qianqian, however, was anxious.

If she didn’t do something outrageous, how could she possibly earn 300 million in Funds in one go! But there was no choice, Lila’s orders had to be taken seriously.

She could only act alongside those who, in her eyes, were the most uninteresting and stubborn types. The primary mission was to network with various forces within the Silla region, to spread the influence of Nestor Corporation, with other tasks including investigating Moonlight Princess Wei Shiyue and finding Cui Junyou’s wife and daughter in Silla.

Du Qianqian selected the right disguise.

She found that Black Fire Innovation had announced in a news report the death of some brave soldiers on the battlefield, including an elite paratrooper named Pedro Piar who had died a fiery death, his picture showing his burnt and incomplete body—also a potentially useful observation subject.

"Pedro Piar... Pedro Piar..." Du Qianqian whispered.

In an instant, she had transformed into the image of this elite paratrooper, dressed in black mercenary uniforms, wearing a Blackfire mask, with a utility belt and holster fully equipped, only her eyes visible.

She nodded to herself, satisfied with her new appearance. She then went out to greet the others to ensure they wouldn’t accidentally shoot at Du Qianqian, as she was tired of being hurt by random occurrences.

They boarded a cargo ship heading for the Silla Xingping South Road area, and upon docking, they split up to carry out their respective missions.

On behalf of Cui Junyou, Nidelaide set out to find Old Cui’s family, to see if she could bring the mother and daughter back to Anjiu City, working alongside Seeking Shadow.

Kong Tai, on the other hand, looked for suitable locations to set up camp and build a temporary site for storing supplies.

"I’m going to make money," Du Qianqian reported to Kong Tai.

"Let Mizuiro Yoshioka join you," Kong Tai said while surveying the wilderness of Silla through his binoculars, "This countryside has been ravaged by bandits, it’s not very safe. You two scout around, keep in touch, and we’ll see if we can talk to the local forces."

"Are there any forces from Modern Entertainment Company or the Righteous Army here?" Mizuiro Yoshioka inquired.

"Just bandits, warlords, and mercenaries. Silla has fallen into chaos; other than Yidu City, everywhere is in disarray," Kong Tai reminded.

"We’re tougher than them," Du Qianqian sneered.

"But measure yourself," Mizuiro Yoshioka warned.

Mizuiro Yoshioka and Du Qianqian strolled the rural parts of Silla and soon came across a small supermarket located on the outskirts of a town with several homemade concrete buildings nearby. About a dozen houses had been blasted to rubble, leaving a scene of devastation—a stark testament to the war’s severe impact on the Silla countryside.

Some emaciated villagers attempted to grow vegetables on the embankments between the rubble, with only piles of snow visible in the cool temperature.

A truck approached from the distance, navigating the uneven roads, and from it jumped a number of goons in leather jackets, black mercenary coats, and skull masks. They offloaded goods from the back of the truck in groups of three or five and brought them into the supermarket, seemingly making it their base, with the surrounding survivors clearly wary of them.

"The first stop on our fortune-making journey," Du Qianqian whistled, "We’re going to rob those who rob."