Santo Domingo District

The seawater used for data collection has begun to be recycled.

The scattered senses began to reassemble.

The final image shows the golden ocean currents creating their last splash under the glow of the setting sun.

The world was plunged into darkness.

The senior engineer took off his headphones, somewhat annoyed.

The thrill of entering the cyber network is unparalleled, like having every pore on your body thoroughly cleansed.

But once back in reality, the soul feels like it's being stuffed into a small, bloated box.

That's why there's a group of people called "cyber people".

They immerse themselves in a virtual world made up of data, often staying online for months or even years.

The senior engineer took a deep breath, instantly restoring the various hormones in his body to normal.

The irritability also disappeared as hormone levels decreased.

"Come in!"

"Mr. G, the local gangs are incredibly rude!!"

A man who looked like he was Korean, had a small hand, and was fat walked in. His fierce and ruthless eyes narrowed slightly, and then he surprisingly revealed a kind and honest smile.

"I'm the head of the Welfare Gang, here to pay my respects." The fat man forced a smile with three layers of wrinkles, bowed slightly, and handed over a thick red envelope.

The senior engineer took the red envelope, opened it, and found that it was actually an IOU from Gao Yuanyuan's parents. The amount seemed quite large, probably around 100,000 yuan.

The senior engineer's expression softened.

"What should I call you?"

"Gao Jin".

"You were once the God of Gamblers; I've long admired your name."

The senior engineer then looked at the other man's tight black suit, with its bulges that clearly didn't conform to his muscle curves, and raised an eyebrow, saying, "Bio-engineered prosthetic body, good stuff."

"Please excuse me, please excuse me. How could a mere set of Blackbody military-grade organ components be of any concern to you, Doctor?" The fat man in the suit grinned, revealing a row of nerve dentures flashing with electronic numbers.

The senior engineer looked towards the door and saw the leaky guy standing timidly at the entrance.

Why isn't he coming in?

"The red paint on my body is too heavy, and I'm afraid it will pollute Mr. Gao's property."

The senior engineer looked at the leaky boy and, sure enough, saw a lot of bloodstains on the two metal prosthetic legs.

It turns out you were the ones who were fighting before.

The senior engineer took out a cigarette, and the fat man snapped his fingers without saying a word, and a flame shot out from his fingertip.

After giving the other person a deep look, the senior engineer exhaled a smoke ring and said, "What do you need me for? If it's about prosthetic modifications, you'll need to make an appointment first."

"Don't stand, sit down and talk."

The fat man was very obedient. He put his hands on his knees and curled up on a small stool, looking like a bear breaking corn cobs.

"To be honest, the main reason I came here this time is to invite Mr. Gao to come out of retirement and work with us on a great cause."

"You want me to be your dedicated prosthetic doctor?" Senior Engineer asked with a half-smile.

As a prosthetic doctor, Gao Gong could easily find a good job even in a large corporation, and nine out of ten emerging gangsters end up in a miserable state, so why should he get involved in this mess?

The fat man in the suit extended three carrot-shaped fingers.

"How about a 30% net profit?"

"Fifty black market vendors, arcades, three cybernetic shops, four weapon shops, and the Red Dream Club on the next street—all of these are territories we've conquered."

"You guys are fast," the senior engineer said with some surprise. He didn't know about other places, but the Red Dream Club was an old underground club with a deep background. The fact that the other party could collect protection money there was quite remarkable.

"Mrs. Muto is our good friend. We'll run this business together," the fat man said with a simple smile.

A thought struck Gao Gong, and he asked, "Have you tried to recruit other black market doctors?"

"Those people are blind and cannot compare to you."

The senior engineer stroked his chin and said, "I remember there was a prosthetic doctor on Sanshan Street next door, an old guy."

"That old bastard Fujiwara is so clueless, he won't let us in. We'll chop him up sooner or later!" the leaky guy interjected angrily.

"Shut up!!!" The fat man suddenly turned around and roared, then turned back and said with a simple smile, "Let's make money together, let's make money together."

"If you bring me that old guy's modification techniques, I'll consider helping you."

Is this really true?

The senior engineer shrugged. "Why would I lie to you? He's not afraid of getting hacked to death, but I am."

Fatty Gao stood up, and a real sense of brutality suddenly emanated from his small, beady eyes as he stared intently at Engineer Gao and grinned.

"Okay! It's a deal!"

The other party was indeed fast. It was only past noon when two gangsters arrived at the door and handed over a bloodstained package without saying a word. When the engineer opened it, he found an old man's head with a brain-computer interface on the back of his head.

The senior engineer changed the shape of his fingers and inserted them into the other person's brain-computer interface. The dull old eyes suddenly lit up, the electronic shield flickered a few times, and then dimmed again.

"What's the use of having a superb firewall if the hardware can't keep up?"

[You have acquired Fujiwara Street Technology - Electromechanical Malfunction]

"Huh, this is a rare negative status effect on a mechanical being."

According to the notes, this "electromechanical runaway" can increase the probability of a mechanical object going out of control under multiple attacks.

If used properly, this could be a rather dangerous weapon.

"The two blueprints have been collected."

The prosthetic doctor's career change was a major reason why the senior engineer came to the City That Never Sleeps.

Only the City That Never Sleeps has enough prosthetic doctors and enough custom modification blueprints.

However, each of the prosthetic doctors is like a cunning rabbit with multiple burrows, possibly more than a dozen, so it would be quite troublesome to search for them one by one.

Moreover, if someone discovers that they are targeting "cyborg doctors," then they will be in big trouble.

So letting this fat Korean guy cause trouble in front while I fish in the mud behind is not a bad choice.

"Tell your boss I'm coming to the arcade to find you guys tomorrow."

The city that never sleeps has six districts: the outer city, the old city, the suburban area, the Santo Domingo district, the lower central city, and the upper central city.

The first three districts are free districts, while the last three districts are ordered districts.

Only the Santo Domingo district is the only gang-controlled district in the city that never sleeps, where the authorities are not the council or corporations, but three super-gangs.

Steel Claw Gang, Deep Web Weavers, Powerful Gang

These three major gangs have their own media, their own research and development bases, and their own armies. Their technological level is in no way inferior to that of some regional enterprises.

When the engineer arrived at the "Santo Domingo Statue" station on the floating railcar, two cyborgs surrounded him as soon as he stepped off the train, staring at him dangerously.

"Level 20 mecha knight? Isn't that a job exclusive to the Enterprise?"

"Name, citizen ID, and your goal."

"G, Deep Web Street".

The senior engineer extended his palm, allowing the other party to scan his chip.

In the city that never sleeps, gangs are legal organizations, and in some ways, they are even more law-abiding than corporations.

"The nest of those slimy spiders? What are they doing there?"

The Way that a mechanical engineer loathes.

"Buy chips."

As is widely known, in the City That Never Sleeps, the only way to buy high-level hacking chips is within the territory of the Deep Web Weavers, who are rumored to have a mysterious connection with cyberspace.

"Let's go. Remember, no weapons are allowed in the Santo Domingo district!"

"Of course, I'm a law-abiding citizen."

The senior engineer wore an innocent smile, his gaze sweeping over the armed drone behind the other person, a thoughtful look flashing in his eyes.

As a main class focused on modification, the Mech Knight's greatest characteristic is its ability to combine with weapons developed by the company, resulting in terrifying firepower.

The drone's undercarriage clearly has an implanted structure.

They even deduced the Sky Warriors? Wow, that level of technology is a bit scary.

Santo Domingo, the second largest district after the continent of Demi-Mania, has few pedestrians on its streets, with only a few lazy elderly people sunbathing.

However, there are many cameras here. The senior engineer walked through three streets and found twenty cameras, covering almost every corner.

Fortunately, the senior engineer had no intention of causing trouble. He obediently went to a "memory shop". The shop was very old, and the door was yellowed. When he pushed the door open, a bell rang, but there was no one inside.

The walls and tabletops were covered with all sorts of memory plugins.

In the mechanical age, memory is a commodity that can be traded, and creating false memories is illegal.

The senior engineer picked up a plugin with a line of small print on it—

A memorable night for the newlyweds

Is it going to be this exciting right from the start?

The senior engineer shook his head, deciding to take it back for a thorough critique, and then picked up another one.

The memories of the old gang member's early life are inaccurate due to the long time span.

Memories of androids fleeing from disaster

"The Mad Memories of a Cyber Psychopath"

Observations from the Cybernetic City of Night

Ten Mysterious Assassination Memories

"No young people are interested in memory plugins anymore," the back door opened, and an old woman walked in shakily, her eyes filled with a strange look.

The senior engineer's eyes narrowed as he saw the colony's body quickly cover his body inside the clothes.

He had been in the City That Never Sleeps for several days, and this was the first time he had felt such a strong sense of threat.

This old woman is dangerous!

"I was just browsing around," the senior engineer said calmly.

"Yeah, that makes sense. Cybernetic networks are so interesting, who would still be interested in something so old-fashioned? Shedding the shell and returning to one's true self, that's what those cyber enthusiasts say, right?"

"More or less."

"Young man, you were online this morning, on Hanging Street in the outer city. Even if you were just wandering around, you wouldn't have ended up here."

"If you're looking for specific memories, like evidence of a certain congressman breaking the law, I do have some, but I can't give them to you."

"I understand," the senior engineer stared at the other person, then suddenly smiled, "But I saw on the flyers outside that you can gamble on memory blind boxes, right?"

The old woman looked intrigued. "Oh? You're interested? But some of those unclaimed memory plugins can be quite dangerous. Are you sure you want them?"

"Certainly."

An hour later, the senior engineer entered the platform carrying a large cardboard box, and the old woman's sight disappeared.

"Advanced AI, or some kind of humanoid virus?"

"I only connected to the internet once, and someone tracked me down to my home by my IP address. This crappy place is really dangerous."

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