Starting From Night City

Su Xiao gave the three of them a look.

Signaling for them to go out first.

The three were confused.

Letting them go just like that?

However, out of trust in Su Xiao, V, Jack, and Lucy still left the studio one after another.

"Tha... Thank you."

"Don't thank me yet, I'll ask you, if I let you go today, can you promise me you'll never do this job again?"

Gottfried nodded repeatedly: "I promise, I promise."

Su Xiao's gaze shifted from him to Frederick, who was clearly terrified beside him, "Can your son also promise?"

"Me?" At his father's signal, Frederick quickly added, "Yes, of course, sir, we won't do this again, we... we'll find something else to make a living."

Hearing their promise, Su Xiao seemed to believe them.

He revealed a sunny smile, just like Homelander's.

"Really? I don't believe you."

The father and son were stunned.

Then they saw Su Xiao step out of the studio, pull out a grenade, and throw it inside.

He then closed the studio door, along with the father and son's screams, inside.

BOOM!

An explosion.

The father and son were blown to bloody messes.

They couldn't be more dead.

Some people might not understand.

They might even think that these father and son were just trying to make a living and didn't deserve to die.

But that wasn't the case.

To use a common analogy:

Regular Dreams are like the Japanese adult films you spread in a group chat.

If someone downloads them, they'll thank you later.

But Black Market Dreams are the kind that normal people would find extremely uncomfortable, with no positive emotions, and only generating negative energy. Sending links would only lead to being beaten up by enraged group members.

With the editing skills of this father and son, they could have completely worked as editors for regular Dreams.

And they would absolutely not have to resort to starving.

Why bother editing Black Market Dreams?

To put it bluntly, it's all for money.

The money earned from editing one Black Market Dream is ten times that of a regular Dream.

Perhaps even more.

It's easy to go from frugality to luxury, but hard to go from luxury to frugality.

They had already made a fortune editing Black Market Dreams.

Now, if they were to go back to editing regular Dreams, earning only a tenth of their previous income.

Would they do it?

If they would, they wouldn't have entered the Black Market Dream industry in the first place.

Furthermore, even though many people are engaged in editing Black Market Dreams, due to the explicit content of Black Market Dreams, many choose to change careers after making a quick buck.

Because editing Black Market Dreams is also a form of self-harm, both mentally and physically.

No one can stay in this line of work for long.

However, when Su Xiao and the others entered the studio, the father and son not only showed no signs of discomfort from the content of the Black Market Dreams.

Instead, they were enthusiastically discussing how to edit the disgusting content to achieve the best effect.

Damn it, these two were actually enjoying it.

Even in Night City, people like this are not uncommon.

People like the father and son, the perverts among perverts, the cream of the crop, truly deserved a free one-way ticket to heaven.

Let God have a taste.

The group left the factory area and arrived at the designated delivery point.

Su Xiao inserted the original Black Market Dream that killed the Priest's son into a hidden card slot above the output port of the vending machine.

He then made a phone call to Regina.

"Regina, I've put what you needed at the designated location."

"Good job, Su. Damn, I wish I didn't have to deal with this kind of work. Hopefully, this will flush out the mastermind and close the case."

Chapter 53: Mercenary Holy Land! Afterlife!

A few days later.

Su Xiao, who was exercising early in the morning, received another call from Regina.

"Su, it's Regina."

"Hi, is there already another job for me?"

"You could say that, but not entirely. Strictly speaking, it's a follow-up to the last commission."

"Last time?"

"Bryce Stone, do you remember him?"

"The touring priest from the TV station?"

"I'm glad you remember. He needs your help again."

Bryce Stone's son had been murdered and turned into a Black Market Dream.

Su Xiao called V, Jack, and Lucy, and they got a lead from a merchant specializing in Black Market Dreams on Winding Street.

Following the clues, they eventually found the original footage of the Black Market Dream and entrusted it to Regina to deliver to the client.

Su Xiao thought the matter was settled.

How could there be a follow-up?

"Did that original footage fail to help him find the killer of his son?"

Finding clues from the original Black Market Dream footage wasn't something anyone could do.

More importantly, if the other party was also an expert, they likely wouldn't leave any clues behind.

"No, it's not that. In fact, he found a clue, and that clue brought him a lot of trouble."

"It's not convenient to discuss over the phone. Come here directly, let's talk in person."

"Okay, where can I find you?"

"Afterlife."

Su Xiao ended the call with Regina and then called the others, arranging to meet them at the entrance of Afterlife.

V and Lucy were fine.

Jack, upon hearing the location, became emotional and said excitedly.

"Su, where did Regina say we're meeting? Afterlife? The day has finally come for us to enter 'Afterlife'."

"Why are you so excited, Jack?" Su Xiao couldn't understand.

"'Afterlife,' do you understand? That's the heart of Night City, Su. Foster, Old Snake, Morgan Blackhand. The most powerful mercenaries and Fixers you've ever met, heard of, or can imagine are all there."

Jack became more and more excited as he spoke, "Being able to discuss cooperation in 'Afterlife' means that we are not far from becoming rich and famous."

Afterlife Nightclub was unlike Ember Nightclub.

The latter was a place for the wealthy to spend their money, so it was built in a luxurious high-rise building.

Afterlife Nightclub, as a mercenary holy land, was hidden away in the alleys and streets.

It was very down-to-earth.

"Isn't this a bit too down-to-earth?"

Getting out of the SUV, Su Xiao couldn't help but complain as he looked at the entrance of Afterlife Nightclub before him.

In fact, he had been in Night City for some time.

Su Xiao had heard the name "Afterlife" more than once.

But when he arrived at this place for the first time, the scene before him confused him.

As a mercenary holy land, he had expected to see shining neon signs and holographic projections.

But there were none of those.

It was too ordinary.

So ordinary that if Su Xiao hadn't known beforehand that this was Afterlife Nightclub.

He would have probably thought it was just another ordinary bar.

Jack laughed heartily.

"Good wine needs no bush, amigo."

With that, Jack took the lead and walked inside.

Not upwards, but downwards.

The walls of the stairwell were covered in small advertisements and graffiti, with trash piled up in the corners.

Perhaps because it was Su Xiao, V, and Lucy's first time here, Jack, who was also experiencing his first time like a maiden entering her bridal chamber, acted like a tour guide and started explaining.

"This place used to be a morgue, pretty interesting, right? This place is older than all of us. Back then, when people died, they had to be buried properly."

They walked down the stairs and through a corridor.

Following Jack, they arrived at the end of the corridor.

A burly mercenary stood guard outside the door.

Behind him was the Afterlife nightclub.

Seeing the four of them approach, the burly mercenary didn't move an inch.

"Halt, who are you?"

Jack first pointed to himself, then introduced the others: "I'm Jack, this is Su, V, and Lucy."

However, the burly mercenary didn't buy it at all.

"Hmm, are these names famous?"

"They will be soon. We're friends of Regina Jones, she booked a table for us inside."

The burly mercenary said nothing, and lights flashed in his eyes.

He was clearly using his built-in communicator to contact Regina, who was sitting in a private room inside.

"Ms. Regina, I have three people here who say they're looking for you."

"Alright, I understand... She said for you to go directly to private room four to find her. If you don't know where private room four is, go ask Claire at the bar."

The first part of the burly mercenary's statement was directed at Regina, while the latter part was spoken to Su Xiao and the others.