Cyber World

Gao Gong dazedly opened his eyes. He lifted his metal-clad palm upwards, but it refused to obey.

Scorching sunlight streamed through the torn roof of the car, bringing not only heat but also a trace of radioactive nuclear dust. This radiation affected his already damaged electronic ocular implant (right eye), causing it to "snap" and completely shut down.

He had been shot at least three times and stabbed in the chest. His skin itched and burned. It must have been from the car crash, with glass shards and debris from the vehicle in front hitting him head-on. That's how his right eye was destroyed.

The most crucial point was—

This wasn't his body!

I painstakingly stole an NPC template from that PUA sanctuary, the 'Mind Collective,' and was in the process of interstellar transmission. What's going on? Did the natural disaster invasion happen early?

Feeling the intense pain from all over his body, Gao Gong couldn't help but grimace.

Ever since he uploaded his consciousness to the data terminal and transformed into a main brain AI, he hadn't experienced such a severely injured state for a long time.

Pain signals surged from all over his body to his central nervous system, like a storm, pouring into his brain.

It was unbearable, he felt like throwing up!

I haven't been human for years, why do I have to endure this kind of suffering!

Could it be that the Civilization Council discovered my player identity? Impossible, I covered my tracks perfectly and disguised myself so well. I've been lurking from the early stages of the game to the late, never dying, no change in information state. How did they find me!

"They instantly swapped my body, preventing my rebirth mechanism from activating."

"This kind of operation—unless they simultaneously destroyed my millions of virtual personas, AI clones, consciousness sub-bodies, soul viruses, and logic information bodies hidden on various planets, did some advanced civilization use a 'Wonder Weapon' on me?"

"Weren't the cosmic wonders already mostly destroyed by the natural disaster?"

"Did someone foresee my plan to become a guide for the natural disaster and kill me in advance?"

"Was Ximen Qing killed by Wu Erlang before he could seduce Pan Jinlian? That's just unreasonable!"

His stomach churned, his throat felt like it was stuffed with chili peppers, blood flowed from his nose and mouth, and the increasingly weak thumping of his mechanical heart all made Gao Gong realize one fact.

He was about to die!

As if stimulated by the proximity of death, his brain neurons suddenly contracted. Neurotransmitters surged along the axons to the terminal, and the host's memories flooded out like a tide.

It was the brief life of the owner of this body.

In the memories, the owner of this physical body was named Gao Gong, a veteran mechanical hunter who spent his life in the Iron Sand Desert. He survived by hunting radiation beasts and mechanical bio-beasts, earning 'bounties' from factories and city corporations. He occasionally worked as an assassin, escort, or bandit. Because he was ruthless and always avenged his grievances, he had a considerable reputation among hunters and was nicknamed the Lone Wolf of the Wilderness.

The reason he ended up in this state was due to an ordinary escort mission.

The cargo being transported was the Iron Sand Desert's specialty: energy ore.

According to Gao Gong's calculations, this job should have been extremely easy.

Even the most powerful native warlords in the Iron Sand Desert wouldn't dare to lay hands on the 'factory's' cargo.

But to everyone's surprise, when the convoy reached the Great Rift Valley, a group of wanderers suddenly attacked. Their scouts were instantly killed, and there was no time to issue a warning. The attackers' formidable firepower was unlike any native force, directly paralyzing the entire convoy.

The mine workers and escort guards were all brutally killed. Even he, a veteran bounty hunter, was overwhelmed. He was ambushed and stabbed from the side, his consciousness extinguished, directly leading to this transmigration.

The reason he didn't die on the spot was that during the process of human mechanization, some vital organs had been replaced with mechanical components.

In this sudden confrontation, the mechanical hunter Gao Gong was killed, while a new consciousness traversed time and space, successfully merging with the deceased.

Gao Gong became Gao Gong.

In Gao Gong's fragmented and chaotic memories, there were two groups attacking the convoy. One group dealt with the guards on the convoy, while the other group directly targeted him.

After defeating four opponents, he was ambushed at close range, stabbed through the chest from behind, and pinned to the driver's seat. Blood and artificial protein fluid dripped "sizzle" down the blade.

Heavy footsteps echoed, the sound of boots crunching on sand. A mechanical head poked through the car window.

The red light of the visual collector swept back and forth across his chest and skull, emitting a "squeaking" sound, as if ready to fire another shot.

"Target confirmed."

The opponent's voice synthesizer emitted a bland, toneless mechanical synthesized voice, but for some reason, Gao Gong detected a hint of excitement.

In interstellar society, many mechanical lifeforms develop a peculiar "interest" in the flesh of intelligent species, scientifically known as "Mechorrhea."

It's worth noting that although the opponent had a metal head, the skin exposed outside the military uniform was a pale complexion, without veins or skin texture—a clone body?

This appearance was somewhat familiar.

"Is the person not dead?" Another voice seemed to sound from outside the car. Due to his blurred consciousness, the voice sounded distorted and ethereal.

Gao Gong noticed that the flesh around the opponent's neck appeared to be significantly peeled back, as if the head was directly inserted into the chest cavity. Exposed wires and fluid tubes confirmed this.

"Inferior implantation system, nerve splicing below level 4, not even micro-bionic. This stuff can only be sold as junk in the civilization black market, and the lowest-grade mechanical junk at that."

The mechanical head seemed to have no intention of firing another shot. Instead, it reached out and fumbled around Gao Gong's body.

"As expected, they want to go for it while it's hot!"

Just as Gao Gong's rear end tensed, the opponent pulled something out of Gao Gong's pocket.

It was—a reserve citizen identification card for Mechanical City!

This was a treasure that everyone in the Iron Sand Desert dreamed of!

This small booklet had almost emptied the original owner's savings. Otherwise, with the original owner's net worth, it wouldn't have been possible to take on such a low-level escort job.

And according to the plan, in a few more months, after saving up the expenses, the original owner would have set off for the Sleepless City he longed for, with aspirations of making a name for himself.

Become a city dweller!

But how did they know?

As the opponent bent down, Gao Gong's gaze fell upon the emblem on the chest of their gray bulletproof vest: a shield of flesh and blood, and a metal spear.

This is… the Flesh-Machine Knights of Ji Lie Star?

Distant memories suddenly rushed closer, aligning with 'Gao Gong's' own memories. Gao Gong was shocked to realize that he seemed to have traveled back to the Cyber Proving Ground at the beginning of "Cyber World," also known as the Newbie Village, and this was a year before players even arrived.

The cyborg before him was an artificial soldier of the Knights. The Flesh-Machine Knights (also known as the Vengeance Knights) were another dark force opposing Mechanical City. They were a terrorist organization aiming to overthrow the rule of Mechanical City, with their influence spread across the post-disaster continent. Rumor had it that the leader of this organization was an artificial intelligence from the pre-civilization era.

So, the 'Beast-Machine Disaster' hasn't begun, Sleepless City hasn't fallen, and the corporate wars are still in the preparation stages.

A series of cyber-waves like memory loss, personality resets, and pheromone viruses are still a long way off.

Is this planet still under the computation of the three Mother Cities?

At this point in time… the Knights should be preparing to launch the first battle of the Beast-Machine Disaster – the 'Hydra Campaign'!

This is an early expansion pack that players never participated in!

"Kill him!" the distorted voice sounded again.

"No, this flesh body is quite good. It will be my collection. I want to keep it fresh so I can switch to it at any time."

"The agreement… is not being honored… with your group's cooperation…"

"Inferior scum, remember, the Knights do not accept threats!"

As the words "Flesh-Machine Knights" were spoken, an electronic panel suddenly appeared before Gao Gong, revealing the 'Skull's' attributes.

Knight Artificial Soldier:

Level: 9

Body Modification: 11

Class: Artificial Soldier Lv7

Health: 80/80

Stamina: 50/60

Mechanical Energy: 50+30

Personal Attributes: Strength 9 Dexterity 9 Endurance 9 Intelligence 9 Perception 9

System Modifications:

Electronic Combat Brain Lv5 (Increases Mechanical Energy by 30)

Pain Ablation: Lv4 (Cuts off the pain system in the flesh)

Fanatic Consciousness: Lv5 (A fanatical warrior whose loyalty is stabilized by a mechanical brain)

Skills: Basic Shooting Lv6 Blade Kill Lv5 Charge Mode (Faction Specific)

Notes: A low-level combat unit composed of an electronic combat brain and a cloned flesh body. The electronic brain ensures their loyalty, and the cloned flesh body ensures their production.

This is—a system template!

Gao Gong was both shocked and delighted. With a thought, as expected, the familiar panel lit up again.

Compared to the rudimentary player template, this dark gold game panel was much more magnificent and beautiful, with much more content.

Name: Gao Gong

Race: Carbon-based Human

Total Level: Lv 12

Body Modification: 24

Consciousness: 10

Primary Class: Mechanical Augmenter Lv8 (You are an excellent mechanical hunter; powerful ambition grants you brutal strength)

Secondary Class: Factory Worker Lv4 (You were a child laborer in a human augmentation factory; ambition drove you onto a different path)

Health: 10/100 (Flesh body near death) (Mechanical body heavily damaged)

Stamina: 29/108

Mechanical Energy: 96

Personal Attributes: Strength 15 Dexterity 9 Endurance 13 Intelligence 8 Perception 9 Charisma 4

Free Attribute Points: 0

Personal System:

Musculoskeletal System 9%

Nervous System 5%

Endocrine System 1%

Circulatory System 5%

Respiratory System 1%

Digestive System 1%

Urinary System 1%

Reproductive System 1%

System Modifications:

Endoskeleton Reinforcement (Locomotion System): Your human skeletal structure has been replaced by titanium alloy mechanical bones. Although mass-produced by the factory, they still grant you sufficient mechanical strength. Strength +5, Endurance +3, Agility -2.

Bionic Joints (Locomotion System): These power joints work in conjunction with the mechanical endoskeleton, featuring built-in micro-motors that require timely charging. Agility +2.

Combat Ocular *1 (Damaged): Enhances your visual imaging. Visual range: 500 meters (adjustable).

Mechanical Heart (Circulatory System) (Semi-Damaged): Your initial attempt at modifying yourself into a higher-level cyborg.

Skills:

Full Strike (Modification): With your endoskeleton mechanized, every attack you make will be at the peak of your strength. Critical Hit Rate +6%, Stun +6%. There is a chance of a negative status effect: "Concussion."

Precision Shot Lv5 (Advanced): As an excellent firearm user, years of combat have given you a superior feel for guns. Firearm Damage +10%, Recoil -5%, Critical Hit Rate +5%.

Brawl Lv8: You are a fighting expert. When using bare hands or blunt weapons, Attack Power +15%, and Block Damage Reduction increases by 10%.

Basic Maintenance Lv4 (Class): You possess a certain level of repair knowledge and have methods for maintaining firearms and vehicles. Repair Success Rate +5%.

Mechanical Hunter Augmentation Lv5 (Class): Allows for a degree of modification to your combat body, increasing the probability of capturing prey.

Individual Combat Power: Tier 0 (Mechanical Augmenter) (In a planetary civilization, you barely qualify as acceptable cannon fodder.)

Specializations: None

Class Knowledge Tree: None

Hoo, these base stats, quite the tough guy!

The game panel has two pages. When switching to the second page, a gray box popped up.

"Civilization Template not yet unlocked. Please meet the requirements before opening."

Gao Gong's heart trembled, his expression complex.

"What they said in the game forum was true! There really is a second Civilization Template!"

As early as the late stages of the game, many players suspected that in addition to the players' own "Class Template," "Cyber World" should also have a "Civilization Building Template." Otherwise, in the later stages, players alone would find it almost impossible to contend with various powerful high-level civilizations, let alone the immensely costly process of civilization ascension.

During the invasion of the three great natural disasters, players were captured, dissected, and researched by various civilizations. They managed to reverse-engineer a "Civilization Template" from the "Player Template." The result was that NPCs in this game leveled up even faster than players. Can you believe that!?

This caused the game's grind to skyrocket. The forums were filled with complaints, and threads requesting modifications to the game's difficulty were posted daily. However, instead of the lazy developers, what arrived were NPCs who could track people through their internet connections.

In reality, massive mechanical arms descended from the sky, alien monsters tore through the atmosphere, artificial intelligence controlled the nuclear arsenals of major nations, and species viruses ravaged the globe.

Virtual reality and reality inverted, and NPCs became the true high-level players.

Cyber World had become a real-world cyberpunk.