From Night City Author: Bishamonten
Introduction:
"You pondered replacing your own human arms with mechanical prosthetics to gain greater strength. But what if there were a way to achieve the same effect with external mechanical equipment, without chopping off your arms?"
"20 Potential Points consumed. Obtained improved blueprint—Power Gauntlet."
"You pondered whether the Power Gauntlet had room for further expansion. You needed to collect a Tyran Steel Spine, Ankle Reinforcement components, a smart chip, any weapon module... You pondered combining them. Surely, you could create even stronger equipment."
"100 Potential Points consumed. Obtained advanced blueprint—Exoskeleton Armor."
"Detected that you possess Blade Mastery LV10, Strength LV10, Evasion LV10, Block LV10, and Meditation LV10."
"In this age when cyberware ran rampant, you had never lost yourself in madness-inducing modifications. Instead, you had persisted in tempering your body and sharpening your mind until body and mind became one."
"No matter how powerful a weapon or cyberware might be, it could never rival inner peace."
"You comprehended the Unrivaled Sword Dao."
Adam Smasher stared at Su Xiao before him, dumbfounded. "What the fuck kind of monster are you?!"
I Don't Believe It. How Could Posting a Thread Possibly Make Me Cross Over...
Cold. Trembling.
When Su Xiao opened his eyes, he saw the unfamiliar, mold-spotted roof of a tent.
He wore a blank expression.
Where was this?
How had he ended up here?
He closed his eyes and thought for a moment. Soon, he recalled what had happened before.
He had just posted a thread on the Hedgehog Cat APP.
Then he had lost consciousness.
When he woke up again, he was already here.
No fucking way.
Could posting a thread really make him cross over?
Intense arguing drifted in from outside the tent.
It piqued Su Xiao's curiosity, and he couldn't help turning his ear toward the voices.
"McCoy, you know the family's situation as well as I do. You shouldn't have brought him back."
"Was I supposed to watch him get taken by the Random Blade Society, then pretend not to know what those damned bastards would do to him?"
"He's not family. He has nothing to do with us. Are we supposed to help every person who runs into trouble in the Badlands?"
"I can't speak for anyone else, but since I happened to run into this kid, I can't just stand by and do nothing."
"Fine, if you insist... But he can stay here for a week at most. And while he's in camp, the rations he consumes will be deducted from your share."
The argument stopped.
Su Xiao hurriedly lay back down on the bed, pretending he had only just woken up and hadn't overheard their conversation.
A man around thirty years old walked into the tent.
The man wore an old Exoskeleton Armor. The armor's surface was covered in scars, and no one knew how many deadly battles it had been through.
"You're awake."
Su Xiao sat up in bed, putting on an expression of someone who had just awakened from a deep sleep and was still confused.
"Where is this..."
"My name is Sam McCoy. This is the Buckle Family's camp. Don't worry. You're safe now."
The Buckle Family?
It was an unfamiliar term Su Xiao had never heard before.
Seeing that his expression didn't seem faked, the man across from him didn't grow suspicious.
"It's normal that you haven't heard of the Buckle Family. For outsiders like you, understanding the families, Tribes, and factions of the Nomads is asking a bit much."
"But compared to that, I believe there's something else you should be more concerned about."
"The camp's cyberware doctor had to drill a hole in your head earlier to remove the bullet... You can take a look for yourself."
As he spoke, McCoy handed him a mirror.
Su Xiao took the mirror.
Then he discovered, to his surprise—
Although the person in the mirror had a bandage wrapped around his head, it had done nothing to diminish his original good looks.
Holy shit!
He looked fucking handsome after crossing over!!!
"Although our camp's cyberware doctor has excellent hands, how do you feel? Any dizziness, blurred vision, nausea, or anything like that?"
Su Xiu covered his head. "I... I'm fine..."
"That's good, that's good... Um, if you don't mind, I'd like to ask who you are and why you appeared in the Badlands."
McCoy couldn't help growing curious about this young man shrouded in mystery.
The Badlands were filled with danger.
Aside from corporate convoys, Nomads, and the Random Blade Society, hardly anyone dared appear in the Badlands.
Much less alone.
From the outside, Su Xiao looked neither like a Nomad nor a member of the Random Blade Society.
As for a Corp Dog, he looked even less like one.
That was because Su Xiu lacked the signature suit worn by Corp Dogs.
But rather than being a Corp Dog, McCoy had another bold idea.
Perhaps Su Xiao was actually from several decades ago.
McCoy had come to this conclusion because the cyberware doctor who treated Su Xiao's wounds had told him so.
Not only did Su Xiao lack a single implant, he didn't even have Neural Slots.
This was 2077, after all.
Even the most traditional people had Neural Slots installed.
Otherwise, they couldn't do many things.
McCoy had never seen such a "pure" human in his life.
Faced with McCoy's question, Su Xiao said nothing.
Seeing Su Xiao's silence, McCoy nodded understandingly.
He didn't say anything else. He merely patted the headboard. "Get some rest, then. I won't disturb you."
Several days later.
Su Xiao wandered aimlessly around the camp.
After asking around over the past few days, he learned that this was a Nomad camp called the Buckle Family.
Yet whether it was the Buckle Family or the Nomads, Su Xiao had no impression of either.
When he thought of a people who made their homes everywhere, the first thing that came to mind was the Gypsies.
But these people were very different from Gypsies.
Vehicles specially modified for off-roading, cowboy hats, jackets, leather coats, all kinds of long guns and heavy weapons...
What kind of Gypsies were these?
It wasn't until they mentioned Night City that Su Xiao finally understood.
Good grief. He had crossed over into the world of Cyberpunk 2077.
Back when the game's first trailer had been released, he had been just like the other players—waiting eagerly, counting the days.
However, in order to enjoy the game more when the time came...
Aside from the earliest trailer, he hadn't watched any of the later trailers, gameplay demonstrations, or Night City Wire broadcasts.
He had merely given his PS4 a thorough dusting and waited for the game's release.
Although the repeated delays had gradually worn down some of his patience,
As the saying went, good things came to those who waited. The delays were also meant to polish the game's quality.
That was acceptable.
But when the game finally released, while the disc was still on its way, the internet was already flooded with negative news.
After getting the game, he did indeed encounter quite a few bugs.
And Su Xiao had played on a PS4, making his experience even more torturous than that of PC players.
He hadn't even finished the prologue mission where V started as a corporate employee before he had been forced to put the game down.
And it stayed down for two years.
He heard that most of the bugs had been fixed.
Just as he was preparing to play, he heard the officials say that a paid DLC would be released the following year.
Buying the paid DLC together with the base game would be cheaper, and he could enjoy everything in one go.
So Su Xiao decided to wait a little longer.
He had already waited two years. What was one more year?
In the end, he didn't get the paid DLC. Instead, he crossed over into the world of Cyberpunk 2077.
When Su Xiao entered the logistics area, the camp's only mechanic spotted him and immediately sneered.
"Ah-ha, look what I found. The 'Young Master' has finally woken up."
A classic American insult.
Just as expected of America.
But Su Xiao ignored him.
Instead, he looked around the logistics area.
The logistics area wasn't large.
Aside from the mechanic and a workbench for repairing firearms,
most of it consisted of discarded junk and useless scrap.
When the mechanic saw Su Xiao ignoring him, his expression darkened.
Nomads lived in family units, which inevitably caused some Nomads to be hostile and wary toward outsiders.
Everyone in the family had to contribute.
And the mechanic's work was the dirtiest and most exhausting of everything in the Buckle Family.
Before you continue