Players Invade Cyberpunk

The players' downtime didn't last long; only half a day passed before the Chaotic Blade Association once again amassed their forces.

Before the two sides could exchange pleasantries, artillery shells rained down on the players' positions.

The already cratered hillside was once again subjected to brutal devastation, with dust billowing and smoke filling the air.

Thankfully, most players had burrowed underground to hide, leaving only a few pairs of eyes on the hillside to observe the enemy. Otherwise, the number of survivors after this barrage would have been questionable.

"Is this the place that held you at bay for a whole day? Doesn't look all that impressive."

Olivia glanced at the bombed-out trenches, puzzled, and asked Light.

"Why can't I see a single corpse? Did you guys clear out the bodies?"

After a brutal battle lasting over ten hours, both sides had left behind over two hundred corpses. Most of the Chaotic Blade Association's wounded had been carried down the hill, but no one bothered with the dead, at most dealing with them after a victory.

Friends would be buried, while those with less favorable ties were dismantled and sold.

"Nope."

Light shook his head.

"We didn't have time to collect bodies yesterday; the folks on the hill must have carted them off for looting."

"How kind indeed."

Olivia found it rather amusing. If it were following the ways of the Chaotic Blade Association, they'd string up enemy corpses, dry and whip them as a means to terrify opposition rather than wasting time collecting them.

However, being one of the lowest forms of gangs, the Chaotic Blade Association might unfathomably ignore that players retrieving bodies wasn't for humanitarian purposes but rather absolute recycling.

Not even bone shards would be left behind.

Soon, news from the artillery company arrived; the planned shelling had concluded. This round of bombardment lasted longer than any recorded yesterday, making the company commander responsible for artillery terribly upset. Each shell was essentially money, and without ammo, a cannon was less than scrap.

"Send the dogs out to scout, then have a batch follow them. Let's see if Huang Ban's marketing is all talk."

The dogs Olivia referenced were among the military supplies provided by Huang Ban.

The initial plan was to save resources and use ordinary methods; however, considering the formidable enemy, skimping at a critical time was unwise.

Under her command, several large trucks opened their side doors to release the lurking cybernetic dogs from their cages.

The cyber world has a near-religious obsession with cybernetic modifications, and besides humans, many animals have undergone similar treatments.

That includes creatures like cats and dogs, which have been weaponized since the 2020s, and the industry is now mature.

Players caught sight of them not long ago in the Watson District of Night City; these hackamis were highly mobile, capable of infiltrating tight spaces to launch ambushes, causing players significant trouble though their numbers were limited, and they didn't follow beyond battle.

As for why use living creatures instead of purely mechanical dogs, let's say rogue AI is a framework where anything fits.

And for corporations, maintaining biological computers with a few pounds of food is far cheaper than producing and maintaining hi-tech chips.

If humans can be used, why use machines?

These mechanical dogs were much larger than hackamis, each standing at about 1.56 meters in length and 70 to 80 centimeters in height, weighing over a hundred kilos, their hybrid mechanical and biochemical bodies exuding a mysterious vibe. They stood, swaying their heads as if waking from slumber, their mechanical eyes constantly shifting to assess their surroundings.

One by one, they leaped from the trucks, stretching their bodies. Their movements were lifelike, almost indistinguishable from real dogs.

Unless you noticed the guns, rocket launchers, and flamethrowers mounted on their backs.

Like dogs have beast tamers, these cybernetic dogs had controllers. However, to prevent hacker invasion and paralysis, the communication time of controllers was extremely short, disconnecting right after issuing a command.

"Go get 'em, darlings."

Several members from the Chaotic Blade Association, equipped with controllers, sent instructions to the dogs' minds. The dogs, who a moment ago were sniffing around their peers aimlessly, immediately took off with lethal intent towards the hillside.

Huang Ban wasn't bothered to train them into army dogs in advance, opting for mass breeding modification, using behavioral chips for all actions—a rather effective consumable for complex terrains and guerrilla warfare.

Watching the mechanical canine troops dash uphill, Olivia remarked regretfully,

"Too bad there aren't more of them. If we could breed hundreds or thousands, we wouldn't need to send humans to their deaths."

Albertson coldly commented,

"Hm, their lives are worth more than yours."

The cost for one mechanical dog was around ten or twenty thousand, with selling prices tripling that. There were nearly a hundred cybernetic dogs here, and a Chaotic Blade Association member's life was worth less than two hundred bucks to Huang Ban.

"What? Favoring mechanical dogs won't mean you're cavorting with them, right?"

Olivia didn't bother squabbling with corporate lackeys, simply shook her head and walked away.