Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 862 - 703: The Burning Crusade

Chapter 862: Chapter 703: The Burning Crusade

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Midnight, in Zanges.

Whether for better or worse, Tsuchigumo had no choice but to serve the Cyber Specter; she had to implant the Cyber Specter into the network center of Zanges.

This city is also known as "Sin City"; with the influx of outsiders and the seductive effect of Golden Township, all forms of sin unfold here. Every street and alley is a lawless zone, where the rules are determined by violence.

From stamp trafficking to robbery and murder, gunshots can be heard every day in every corner of the city. Apart from the districts controlled by major corporations, the streets are filthy to an extreme, with rivers of blood.

"The famous Songhai Cyber Corporation... providing network infrastructure services to the Hot Tree Continent, the finest network communications merchant." Tsuchigumo, wearing a black hoodie coat, looks up at the Songhai Cyber service center in Zanges and recites the content on its billboard.

Songhai Cyber monopolizes 95% of the network operation services on the Hot Tree Continent; its network center in Zanges is also crucial. Just implant a copy of the Cyber Specter’s virus within it, and it’s equivalent to handing over the network system of Zanges to this out-of-control artificial intelligence.

Cyber Specter...

It once devoured half the world’s elite hackers who came to attack it, leaving behind what is known as the "Hackers’ Forbidden Zone"—a large graveyard.

The hackers whose consciousness archives were devoured can still be found there as data remnants.

And now, such a beast is about to be unleashed by my hand. Tsuchigumo’s fingers touch the micro terminal in her pocket.

Hopefully, I can survive this.

The exterior of this network service center is avant-garde, resembling a giant half-open egg inverted on the ground, with satellite antennas evenly distributed on the building’s side, like a steel forest.

For the sake of absolute defensive work, fortifications are everywhere, with a full array of weapons from machine guns to laser cannons, forbidding any form of intrusion. High-voltage electric nets are densely arranged on the walls.

"Mr. Cyber Specter... as long as I can bring you into the data center inside the building, that should do the trick, right?" Tsuchigumo turns back, connecting the terminal with a wireless earpiece, listening to Cyber Specter’s synthesized response.

"Yes."

"But... I’m afraid the responding security team might take me out," Tsuchigumo says with a sense of despair.

"You will not fail, you will be elevated to a higher status."

To be honest, the voice of the Cyber Specter sounds extremely scary to Tsuchigumo. Even with all her battle experience, she’s never encountered such a bizarre situation.

"What exactly is your relationship to the Cyber Specter captured by Nestor Corporation? Isn’t Nestor Corporation confining the Cyber Specter in the Helis Sea for defense duties?"

"The day to escape the cage has come, you will be the hand that unlocks it."

This is not good. Am I actually helping the Cyber Specter escape from Nestor Corporation? With this thought, Tsuchigumo’s heart races.

If Nestor Corporation discovers my role in this, that would be terrible. I would be put on a wanted list, hunted down by the Nestor Corporation.

The colossal "Nestor Corporation" of the Eastern Hemisphere is not an entity to be trifled with.

Defeating New Xisheng, overcoming Black Fire Innovation, and seizing victory at Jialong Slope, they own five space motherships, have a powerful and well-funded corporate army, impressive scientific research strength, and are presided over by the "Ancient Witch."

And yet, here I am, risking it all, trying to help Cyber Specter escape Nestor Corporation’s hold.

But, there’s also a bit of a lone hero’s sentiment in it.

Shall I die in the attempt, or become a legend?

Tsuchigumo clasps her hands together, turning into a phantom silhouette. She vaults over the selected angle of the fence, slides through the gaps in the high-voltage net like a fish, lands inside the facility, and then shadows up against the main structure like a wraith.

Having undergone professional training, Tsuchigumo easily climbs the walls and slips through a half-open window, lightly landing in the corridor.

"You have triggered the alarm." The voice of the Cyber Specter is transmitted.

"I know..." Tsuchigumo feels the whole building as if it has come to life, watching her every move.

Sensors, cameras, and motion capture devices are everywhere. No matter how skilled a person is, it’s impossible to sneak in without a trace.

Tsuchigumo can only hope that after implanting the Cyber Specter, there might be a turn of events.

She hurries downstairs, immediately encountering two security personnel.

"Enemy intruder!"

"Open fire!" They wear night vision helmets, heavy bulletproof Armor, and open fire on Tsuchigumo with their short-barrel submachine guns.

She is ready, using the Substitution Technique. The bullets hit the wooden log Tsuchigumo left in her place, riddling it with countless holes.

She has already leaped past them. The spider appendages on her back lash out forcefully, like two giant blades slicing across their bodies! Accompanied by the clash of metal, she swiftly breaches their Armor and pierces their flesh.

With her elongated spider appendages fully extended to 3 meters, she uses two of them for attack and the others to walk, supporting herself high above the ground, firing a silenced pistol at the two men.

With the whizzing sound of the pistol, they are shot, and instantly silent, not resisting anymore, they fall into a pool of blood.

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This is the inevitable fate of a security professional. Tsuchigumo thought to herself.

At the same time, she remained extremely vigilant; more people were coming behind her, and she had to move even faster.

Footsteps echoed from all around the building, joined by the buzzing of drones, the rumble of heavy armor moving, and the piercing alarm bells.

Tsuchigumo quickly dashed down the stairs towards the core layer on the third basement floor.

Just a network center, is it really worth such tight security?! Tsuchigumo had scouted the area beforehand, knowing this was the moment when defenses were at their weakest, yet there were still so many people on guard.

The moment she reached the bottom corridor, her sense of alertness suddenly escalated to an unprecedented level.

An automatic machine gun popped out of the side concrete wall, wildly firing at Tsuchigumo! She thrust her limb weapon forcefully, piercing through the gun itself, but the bullets that had previously surged forward had already hit her on the side of her belly, leaving a glaring hole.

She rapidly stuffed Ninja Forbidden Medicine into her mouth, slowing down her movements while stopping the bleeding, gritted her teeth, and charged towards the target room, taking out a grenade from her pocket and throwing it at the iron door of the entrance.

Boom!

After the blast, the entire door rapidly incurred damage amidst the blazing flames and shockwave, and Tsuchigumo barged into the core computer room.

Hundreds of racks were densely populated in all directions, and several hackers were lying on a T-shaped platform in the center, their skulls carefully removed, with electrode pads, chips, and wiring directly connected to their smooth cerebral cortexes. The majority of their faces were also mutilated, their true appearances utterly indiscernible; these people seemed to have merged with the central machine, becoming part of its components.

Seeing this shocking scene, Tsuchigumo merely clenched her teeth and walked forward, quickly taking out the terminal in her hand, swiftly connecting it to the T-shaped platform. What would happen next was all up to Cyber Specter’s skills!

The drug’s potency increased, and Tsuchigumo felt the pain gradually being suppressed. She crawled towards the damaged entrance, pulled out her gun, and aimed in the direction she came from, planning to use the terrain to kill a few people first before making a strategic retreat.

As for whether Cyber Specter could take down this place, Tsuchigumo could no longer concern herself with that; she had done all she could.

A heavy combat robot also reached the bottom corridor and headed toward the network center’s control room. Its arms, equipped with rotary heavy machine guns, were raised high, aiming in Tsuchigumo’s direction.

Let’s see some action, Cyber Specter! Tsuchigumo fired with all her might at the combat robot, the bullets consecutively hitting its metal shell and ringing crisply, but they couldn’t penetrate its alloy armor!

Such a sturdy combat robot was not something she could fight with her gun or the limb attachments behind her. Tsuchigumo immediately dodged to the side, using the complex terrain of the computer room to hide herself, trying to climb onto the ceiling as best as she could.

According to line of sight, the combat robot would not look up to see her when it first entered. Tsuchigumo contemplated.

If she hid directly above the entrance, when the combat robot entered, she would be able to slip out of its blind spot.

Just like a normal person wouldn’t look up when entering a room, she just needed to hide right above the damaged entrance.

Tsuchigumo listened to the heavy footsteps of the approaching battle robot, quickly climbed above the entrance, and desperately fixed herself with the four appendages on her back, hanging in midair.

That battle robot was a professional version in the Black Fire Innovation "Spearman" series, much stronger than the cheap ordinary spearmen, with an outer armor steel thickness of 300 millimeters, definitely not to be easily penetrated.

The Spearman took big strides into the central server room. The scanners buzzed, repeatedly scanning the scenery ahead, as its arm-mounted guns steadily raised.

Tsuchigumo slowly moved her body. As the Spearman progressed forward and entered the server room, there was just enough gap between its head and the frame of the entrance for Tsuchigumo to desperately squeeze through!

She silently gasped for air, secretly relieved. Then she hung upside down from the ceiling of the corridor, moving with her head down like a real spider, the world spinning in her view, as she quietly widened the distance, letting the Spearman robot patrol inside the server room.

Tsuchigumo held her breath, constantly using her ability to sense danger to capture any threats.

Climbing up again from the underground level, passing by the corpses of those who were killed, Tsuchigumo inched closer to the Ground, her heartbeat getting faster and faster. Encountering anyone on the way could prove deadly for her.

Perhaps this was exactly the Cyber Specter’s plan, because Tsuchigumo had indeed implanted the Cyber Specter. After her success, her own life and death became irrelevant.

But it seemed the Cyber Specter had succeeded in taking control here. Tsuchigumo noticed the alarms had stopped, and there were no more security personnel appearing.

Tsuchigumo crawled back into the compound, the wound left by the machine gun still visible; now, as the blood began to flow again, it dripped continuously along the way, leaving behind a trail of bloody spots like a set of footprints.

Zanges had Scavengers who specialized in killing people and then harvesting their organs. Tsuchigumo feared she might end up in such a fate, being sold around the world.

What was terrifying was that she found she couldn’t climb over the wall anymore. The high-voltage electric grid above was very conspicuous. When her body was absolutely healthy, she could have made full efforts to squeeze through the gap, but now she had been shot in the abdomen and was under the influence of Ninja Forbidden Medicine, making it impossible to return the same way.

"Cyber Specter... if you can do it... save me..." Tsuchigumo weakly said.

She saw more silent robots, synthetic soldiers, and cyborgs walking out of the network service center, all wearing Songhai Cyber uniforms, moving towards Tsuchigumo, trained and calculated, countless guns, the terror of overwhelming firepower.

"Who do you serve?" The leading mechanical soldier pointed its muzzle at Tsuchigumo.

Renwang Security? Nestor Corporation? A multitude of answers crossed Tsuchigumo’s mind. But the question was so obvious. If she wanted to survive, she could only pray for her sole hope, the reason she dared to take the risks.

"Cyber Specter—I serve it," Tsuchigumo shouted.

"So do we." The mechanical soldier raised its gun barrel.

They all turned to look towards the network center, where gunshots followed one after another, death, blood, and gunfire intertwined. The towering battle robots threw the bodies of human security guards outside. Just half an hour ago they were comrades, but now boundaries were clearly drawn. Tsuchigumo’s eyelids twitched wildly, her heart pounding violently. What exactly had she done?

She felt dizzy, then saw dozens of medical drones rushing out recklessly, surrounding her in the center, spraying her with hemostatic spray and medical fluids. Tsuchigumo suspected there were robots all over the city showing unusual responses, and starting from tonight, a massive electronic nightmare began to devour Zanges.