Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 566 - 484: The Taoist

Chapter 566: Chapter 484: The Taoist

Drinking cola is even more decadent than drinking alcohol. Drinking too much alcohol can make you feel muddled and comfortable, as if you’re floating in the clouds, with every cell in your body expressing dizziness and pleasure. As for cola, drinking too much just makes your teeth sour and your stomach bloated.

Rinne tossed the cola bottle into the distance, and the cleaning robot scrambled to pick it up, resembling a white, oval-shaped little dog. The sound of the door opening made her turn her head. Xu Yang came out wearing a mask and pajamas, and Rinne tried hard to get a clear look at the healthy and plump woman behind him, but the door closed before she could get a good look.

"That..." Rinne had a thousand things she wanted to ask Xu Yang.

Who is the woman? How does he withstand it? Does he still have the strength now?

"Where should I put it?" Nidelaide brought in Seeking Shadow, folded it into a bundle, and placed it in the corner. She started a self-check program in standby mode, collecting memory fragments. He turned his head to see Rinne and Xu Yang, "Yes, I’m out of place again, I’ll go now."

"Little guy in black knows well how to assess the situation, hurry up and go." Rinne leaned back and put her right foot on the sofa. She pondered on her own about what Xu Yang had hidden under his coat. Like Nidelaide, was there another thicker coat under the coat?

"Take a seat." Xu Yang asked Nidelaide to stay, "So, was the anime convention fun?"

"It was awesome, the biggest one in the last 20 years," Nidelaide spoke with relish about these kinds of events. He spent too much time on this and it had become a habit, "I really hope it can be held next year. Similar entertainment activities usually get bombed twice, like the Colosseum celebration, the champion wasn’t even decided before the Martinez and Yama showed up. Thankfully, nothing absurd happened this time."

"It’s all thanks to your team." Xu Yang turned on the smart screen, which was showing the grand scene after the Harada Anime Cinema was emptied, and the sales booths and culture shops in the surrounding blocks were still open all night, ensuring that customers who still had energy could continue to consume.

The brilliant lights shone on the fans’ overly ostentatious clothing. They were made up as various characters, turning the streets into a grand parade of anime history, with performances by all the famous anime characters. Such a relaxed atmosphere was enviable, making one want to really relax. A decade later, a group of youngsters who had grown up would say their birth began on this night.

The grand event also greatly enhanced the reputation of Kyoto Infinity and Nestor Corporation. Audiences around the world further recognized the strengths of the two enterprises; one could provide the best entertainment activities, and the other could provide the most commendable security services. Well-coordinated, they were seamless together.

Rinne lay on the sofa, tucking her feet into the depths of the couch. At least Xu Yang liked cleanliness; the public areas were kept spotless.

She liked the quiet atmosphere here, liked the advanced and convenient facilities, liked the friendly companions, and liked Xu Yang, who had dramatically improved her hacking skills. She closed her eyes and fell silent.

"If things go well until the second half of the year, Nestor Corporation will have the capacity to launch an attack on Black Fire Innovation," Xu Yang thought about the company cities still in the hands of Black Fire Innovation. As the security contractor for the Northern Archipelago District, they had reason to clean out the Blackfire troops there, to declare their proactive strength to the world officially, while also securing a cooperative relationship with Xia.

"Things won’t go smoothly. Fame, and a whole lot of opposition from various places." Nidelaide explained, "It would be good if we could make an anime that improves the image of witches."

"How so?" Xu Yang was skeptical, "Make witches cultural emissaries? To express the hope for peace and prosperity? What everyone actually sees isn’t like that at all, some witches are very dangerous."

Yes. Witches can’t live with humans. Rinne thought with her eyes closed. She was a witch herself, dangerous, arrogant, and selfish; that’s how people viewed her. Moving from one ronin team to another, she provided them with hacking skills – plug and play, nomadic. The small teams also often perished overnight, lacking the rationale for perseverance. Perhaps witches should be gathered up and sent into space on a rocket, leaving humans alone, free from mutual animosity.

"It’s not like that." Nidelaide suddenly said, "First of all, witches are both beautiful and powerful, such a terrific group of witches, by coincidence, joined our society and life, helping us solve countless troubles. Like the deus ex machina, they easily fix things normal human technology can’t solve, using their smart wisdom in scientific research. Uh, even the Witch Brain Matrix could be considered ’super black tech’ provided by witches. From this perspective, we can’t thank witches enough."

This guy made some nice points. Rinne closed her eyes and turned over.

After a while, all was silent. Rinne, half-bound by drowsiness as if stuck in mire, opened her eyes wide and saw Xu Yang working at his desk at night.

"Did Nidelaide leave?" Rinne didn’t see anyone else.

"He left half an hour ago." Xu Yang didn’t look up, "He went to Aizu City for some business."

Rinne thought of the woman who had been with Xu Yang before.

"Who was that woman?" Rinne frowned at Xu Yang, "I knew it, someone of your caliber certainly leads a lively O life."

"You don’t need to know." Xu Yang was like a wall to Rinne, impermeable. "Let’s talk about you instead. It seems you’ve overlooked something."

Rinne thought about Lu Jing, who had left coldly. She regretted that only now did she think of that good kid; she had been half-awake for too long.

"Lu Jing—" Rinne said, "Lu Jing has become a bit strange."

"That’s just what I was about to say, shouldn’t she be with you guys?"

"She walked away indifferently, she..." Rinne’s heartbeat quickened. A good child wouldn’t easily turn into that.

"How much do you understand about her? Which company does she belong to?"

"Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing?"

"The Lu Clan and some other capital groups control it," Xu Yang said somberly, "making it a massive conglomerate... Lu Jing was originally dispatched here as a green-clothed maid to gain experience, and now she is directly under Lu Sizhou."

"..." Rinne felt a hint of fear, "So she is being manipulated?"

"Of course, you know she’s laden with treasures that enhance her ability to protect her life," Xu Yang explained, "Because Lu Jing possesses exceptional potential, ’Anti-Magic Power’, given time she will become Xia’s trump card against Witches, so she is under close watch, everything she experiences is Lu Sizhou’s scheming in the shadows, aimed to foster her growth so that she may eventually become Xia’s guardian, capable of protecting millions in the face of Reality Manipulators."

"She is still so unripe! She’s a good kid." Rinne sat up from the sofa, "Not some tool. She is just a Lower-rank Witch, like me..."

"So she is treated like a blank slate. I believe Lu Sizhou has noticed this too, and she will find a more subtle way to make Lu Jing feel fear and cower," Xu Yang pondered.

Just like in Silla, where Lu Sizhou once forced Lu Jing to accept Mireya’s control, to make her understand her place.

Rinne felt a headache coming on. She had actually let Lu Jing apply for a Digital Mind, which was worth a fortune—God knows how her parent company would use this to arrange her life.

"That—please lend me that black Shuttle Machine!" Rinne leapt down, Xu Yang tossed the keys to her, and she dashed toward the garage.

After Rinne left, Pan Ruiyi quietly slid the door open.

"Finally gone." She said to Xu Yang, "Shall we continue?"

"I think Rinne will encounter some trouble," Xu Yang reflected, "I fear it won’t end well."

Meanwhile, Lu Jing had already been taken to the Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing Administrative Office located in Shangjing, resembling the embassy buildings of the old era, the entire structure imposing, its facade stamped with the logo of Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing—a discreet and majestic Azure Dragon clutching the Cardinal Star in its claws.

Armed armored guards were on alert around the building, with plenty of Damage Control troops stationed inside the office to protect the interests of Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing in Shangjing. Most of the executives owned extensive properties in Shangjing, which, like the company’s stores and warehouses, needed constant vigilance.

When Lu Jing arrived, the soldiers at the entrance cleared a path for her. She entered the office in silence, everything feeling like a return home. Inside an underground office, Lu Jing saw the Jade Automaton sitting beside a metallic desk.

"Hello, Lu Jing, my name is Shi Qing," it said, "By Miss Lu’s command, you shall receive a Digital Mind kit and become an even better version of yourself."

"...What?" Just hearing the words ’Miss Lu’ was enough to send chills down Lu Jing’s spine.

"Liu Tianshi will explain it to you," Shi Qing said.

Lu Jing turned her head and saw an agelessly youthful Taoist with white hair approaching down the hallway. His skin was all synthetic, colorless and pale, dressed in a synthetic fiber Taoist robe with twisting rubber cables attached behind his head. Nutrient solution and storage units maintained his health and knowledge, supporting his lofty topknot, signifying his identity of an ancient ascetic.

They had cultivated inside their caves until now, startled out by the thunderous noise of the mountains being developed. When they left their cave, Heavenly Cardinal Manufacturing transformed them with better artificial kits that greatly aided their pursuit of Eternal Life.

Life as Eternal as the Heavens.