Cyber Era Witch
Chapter 870 - 708 Black Panther

Chapter 870: Chapter 708 Black Panther

That night, the Cyber Specter sensed a significant change in the surrounding electromagnetic force; a strong magnetic field was rapidly approaching.

It used the cameras to scan the area and noticed the Netherworld Thunder God standing 100 meters away from the Tsuchigumo dormitory.

She too had been drinking, her expression sharp and wary.

The Netherworld Thunder God’s gaze was fixed straight on the Tsuchigumo’s room, as if trying to see through some secret matter, then she lifted her head toward the pitch-black night sky, seeming indecisive.

Was she worried about Tsuchigumo? The Cyber Specter analyzed. Or perhaps coveting Tsuchigumo’s power?

Once the little sister in the organization, she had become a person of importance, a fact likely hard to accept for her, being such a proud Witch.

However, the Netherworld Thunder God’s next actions were extremely peculiar.

She looked up at the starry sky, closed her eyes, and murmured to herself.

"Oh, esteemed Witch Goddess... Please bestow upon me my Second Magic..." she whispered her prayer.

After her prayer, she left Tsuchigumo’s residence and returned to her own quarters.

The Witch Goddess... Has it really become so popular?

But this was probably just a minor influence; only by proving herself in front of all Witches could she truly become the Witch Goddess.

The next day, after sobering up, Tsuchigumo felt exceptionally unkempt, so she decided to drive the Cyber Specter to Zanges for a spin and rent a room to take a bath.

Because of physical constraints, Tsuchigumo could only drive a convertible with a reclining seat. She drove an old clunker out of the garage, made by a local car factory; everything from the technology to the parts was terrible, Tsuchigumo called it "Little Deer."

"Let’s go," Tsuchigumo climbed into her car.

"Are you sure it can still run?" The Cyber Specter doubted the car was in good condition.

"Trust me," Tsuchigumo turned the ignition key, "I’ve been driving it for over a year now."

The Cyber Specter sat in the back, Tsuchigumo pressed the gas pedal, and the engine made a sickly roar as the bumpy journey immediately began.

Experiences in cars come in many tiers, and riding in Tsuchigumo’s was of the lowest. The smooth comfort common in nice cars was utterly vanished in Tsuchigumo’s junker.

It had a terrifying inertia when starting, as if intentionally trying to make people dizzy, and a very poor braking quality, as though ready to slam people to death against the seats at any time. The suspension system and shock absorbers were also roughly made, where one felt more like a violently treated package rather than a passenger in the car.

But Tsuchigumo was quite comfortable, driving at 60 miles down the covert dirt road toward Zanges, leaving the dust and shrubs behind on both sides. They couldn’t take the highway, to avoid being tracked by Black Fire Innovation.

Tsuchigumo gripped the steering wheel with both hands, rhythmically tapping the car floor with her boots.

"Those aircraft are headed for The Scar of the World," the Cyber Specter looked up.

Tsuchigumo glanced briefly at the sky, about seven white reconnaissance planes were flying north-east.

They were like a finely coordinated flock of small birds, silently cutting through the clouds.

"It’s said that The Scar of the World is over 5,000 kilometers long, equivalent to the distance from Shangjing to Jialong Slope. What kind of battle would tear such a terrible scar; this world really can’t withstand the battles of Empresses," Tsuchigumo lamented.

"What’s interesting is that Empress could well have become a Witch later on. The legend mentions she gave birth to a child, signifying she was once part of humanity."

"What, is there a way to turn ordinary people into Witches?" Tsuchigumo was still somewhat naive.

"Star Crystal Stones," said the Cyber Specter, "Some magic power is sealed within falling stars, ultimately landing on the ground."

"If magic from a meteor can turn people into Witches... maybe Witches are from space?" Tsuchigumo speculated.

"Many hypotheses have hinted at this," the Cyber Specter replied.

"So in the end, will the Witches... go home, back to the stars?"

"That depends on the will of the Witch Goddess. Maybe she will lead the Witches to the stars, or perhaps, she will try in every way to control the source of the Witches’ power. In any case, she bears a responsibility to the entire Witch clan," the Cyber Specter slowly said.

"The Witch Goddess..." Tsuchigumo thought vaguely.

Tsuchigumo sometimes fantasized about her existence.

In her conception, the Witch Goddess was a noble goddess, always sitting with her back to them, back facing the Witches, or lying on her side, never showing her face, her back glimpsed only through a colorful cloak wrapped around her.

Her true face lay hidden where sound and light vanished, unwilling to reveal itself easily.

Tsuchigumo’s mind wandered limitlessly as the car jolted its way into Zanges’ urban area, moving along the not-so-clean four-lane road.

The surroundings were very noisy, bustling with traffic, the traffic control was poor, forcing the old car to inch forward slowly, and occasionally stalling.

"You should buy a new car, I lost 4 screws on the way here," Cyber Specter said.

"I’m saving up 2 million to retire," Tsuchigumo cautiously said. "Can’t be reckless with money... watch out for the consumer traps."

In an old hostel, where Tsuchigumo often stayed, she booked an hourly room with a bath and went in to clean herself.

Cyber Specter took the chance to switch out its body at a nearby shop, changing from a cleaning Synthetic Human to a cheap office worker robot. This office worker robot, dressed in synthetic fiber uniform, could stay powered on at the workstation for 7*24 hours, proficient in office software skills. Other functions were not advanced, but it had a built-in database for maintaining workplace relationships.

After Tsuchigumo washed up, she changed into black hot pants and a leather bustier, then came out wearing a sunhat, sizing up Cyber Specter’s new body.

"Besides the rivets on your face and the huge seams, you now look almost like an ordinary office worker. This body of yours completely resembles an old-fashioned robot," Tsuchigumo observed.

"If I remove the rivets, smooth out the seams, and switch to skin-like material, my cost would increase tenfold, and thus lose the competitive edge over humans, which would prevent us from pushing humans out of the production process," Cyber Specter looked outside where there was an unusual surge of people on the street.

"Humans are machines that consume food and produce thought," Tsuchigumo walked to the window.

As she stood up, the muscle lines on her thighs were exceptionally clear.

"I’ve noticed that members of Renwang Security are all very strong, from Standing Black Hat, Netherworld Thunder God, Yizhen Tian to you, they are all very tall and sturdy witches," Cyber Specter said.

"Yes, after spending half a year at Renwang Security, then going to Nestor Corporation, I felt a huge difference. It’s like the witches at Nestor Corporation are all soft and mellow, they’re sweet and friendly creatures, speaking delightfully and behaving well, seemingly oblivious to vigilance and danger, living as if in paradise. Witches from Renwang Security, however, are forged from blood and fire," Tsuchigumo muttered.

She wanted to say more but then noticed more people gathering below.

"They are heading to Zanges square," Cyber Specter discerned the information from the traffic heat map, "A popular leader named Ottovan is making a speech."

"Yes! Ottovan! The leader of the Black Panther Society! He is about to lead all the black people to do something," Tsuchigumo got excited, "We have to take a look, or watch the broadcast in the dormitory."

"We’ll go to the scene," Cyber Specter said with certainty.

Zanges square was already thronged with people; the ground of the square was paved with large, evenly-distributed stone bricks, and the crowd assembled there looked like a vast dark sea, the black mass so dense individual faces couldn’t be distinguished. Their clothing was mostly black, as though following some established convention, so black that individual characteristics were lost to view.

Tsuchigumo could leverage her advantage here; she propped herself up with her strong hind limbs and lifted Cyber Specter up with her front limbs. This way, they could rise above the crowd, barely managing to see the speaker on the central stage from several hundred meters away.

Behind Ottovan was a massive bronze statue, depicting a white officer standing tall with a chest thrust out, his face looking dignified and his demeanor stern.

"Look... the statue of Warlord Keith, the most powerful man in Zanges," Tsuchigumo looked towards the statue.

Standing at the base of the statue was Ottovan, a man with a broad frame, dressed in a formal suit, donning a red tie, and bald. He had thick lips and was whispering to his aides next to him.

Around him were several guards wearing black panther-shaped armor, separating Ottovan from the emotionally charged black people. The chubby, amiable Ottovan was markedly different from the muscular men by his side.

"Ottovan, the chairman of the Black Panther Society, our big data analysis had predicted he would be a burly, muscular strongman in order to lead a violent group. Observing him in person, however, he turns out to be just an average, friendly chubby man," Cyber Specter commented.

"I was also surprised at first. The members of the Black Panther Society are all ferocious warmongers set on opposing Warlord Keith, yet the chairman of the Black Panther Society is just... an intellectual, a lawyer!" Tsuchigumo exclaimed.

According to the database, Ottovan is 40 years old. He was born in Zanges and was sent to the Gaul region to study under a special program by the former mayor of Zanges, earning a law degree from the Gaul Political Academy. He long worked in legal services before joining Intercontinental Strategic Consulting Company, serving as a senior researcher in the corporate strategic think tank and has written many journals on corporate geopolitical crises, releasing numerous magazines in his name.

Since Zanges was occupied by the adventurer Warlord Keith, Ottovan had been actively serving as the representative of the black people.

After a slight pause, Ottovan began speaking to the eagerly awaiting public.

"My respectful brethren! I am honored to stand here and talk to you, beneath the shameful statue of the colonizer Keith!" he addressed the crowd with his resounding voice. "I am deliberately standing in its shadow because I know it is just how our entire race has been living under Keith’s suppression! These days won’t last long. Now is the time to lift ourselves out of this suffering! Our proud race will eventually see the justice that we deserve!"

"Ooh ooh!"

"Ottovan!"

"Black Panther Society!"

"Destroy Keith!" People waved their fists, voices swelled like waves, one louder than the other.

Such a grand assembly attracted over 20,000 city dwellers to the site, and the live broadcast was being transmitted through telecommunication signals to the entire Hot Tree Continent, so all black people could feel the encouragement in Ottovan’s words.

Ottovan’s repeated speeches profoundly supported the black people’s rise, with more and more gaining the courage to join the Black Panther Society each day, coming from other areas to Zanges, becoming part of the Black Panther Society.

And the mission of the Black Panther Society was also very clear.

Fight until the colonizers are driven out, leaving none behind!