Players Invade Cyberpunk

They are very similar to players, and their worldview is layered with a human-made, rather substantial filter, though theirs exists only in terms of social class. When they encounter true reality, it shatters completely.

Not far from Da Haguai, you can hear the rumbling artillery from the city, with truck-mounted guns firing while racing across the plains. The echoing sound lingers on the fields for a long time, and even in the sky, you can catch a fleeting glimpse of flashing lights, which are the jets and drones fighting.

However, the atmosphere in South City District is different from what the reporters imagined. The atmosphere here is stifling and oppressive; everyone is hurriedly busy, too preoccupied to glance at these outsiders. Even the world is layered with a gray, hazy filter, making it somber.

The further you go in, the closer you get to the war, until you reach the war zone hospital.

When you join the war as a child, you have a fantasy: others will die, but you won’t...

However, when you are seriously injured for the first time, that feeling evaporates.

The ground is covered with blood, and people constantly carry stretchers with wounded people into the hospital. Blood drips from their wounds, and medical staff don’t even have time to clean it up, letting the bright red blood cover the oxidized and solidified brown stains layer by layer. The smell of blood mixed with disinfectant is so overpowering that it’s hard to breathe.

The widespread use of exoskeletons makes the scene lighter compared to a hundred years ago, but physical pain still exists.

Wounded soldiers are everywhere, with each stretcher bed occupied by people wrapped in blood-stained bandages. Their damaged exoskeletons are removed, and the massive blood loss leaves them pale, the pain from their wounds persistently causing them to groan.

A female reporter sees this scene and is immediately overcome by nausea, especially when a transport platform pushing a cart full of blood-drenched, mangled exoskeletons passes in front of everyone, causing someone to vomit.

There’s no sight of the dapper, battle-ready soldiers, the beautiful and delicate nurses, or the experienced, blunt officers they imagined before they arrived here.

There’s only the bloody reality.

"This is no fun, it’s all dead people everywhere."

The youngest girl among them crosses her arms and complains.

"I want to go home."

She begins to yearn for the warmth of the manor just as they arrive here.

Henry shakes the camera in his hand.

"Hey, we hardly managed to come out here, we can’t just slink back in defeat, we’d be laughed at by those guys, and I still need to shoot a documentary."

The scene before him makes it difficult for Henry to associate them with the group he imagined who would bravely sacrifice themselves and create miracles.

And it makes him all the more curious, what are these soldiers fighting for?

Is it like the mercenaries, for money?

But if it’s just for money, why can’t the soldiers in Europe do these things?

"But I don’t want to go! It’s disgusting here! Who knows, these guys might even grow maggots after they die!"

The young lady’s voice is filled with disdain and sharpness, attracting the attention of the wounded soldiers around her, making her feel like she said something wrong and shrink back.

"Alright, you stay here then, wait for us to come back, or just go back to the ship."

Henry looks at the others, and several women say they won’t go to the frontline anymore.

"I’ll stay and take care of her, leaving Lolita here alone isn’t good."

"I’ll stay too, the battlefield ahead is too dangerous, just hearing the artillery makes me unable to sleep at night."

As for the boys, they certainly won’t be the first to say they want to stay, as they’re still in a competitive state among each other. Whoever speaks up to stay would definitely be looked down on by their female companions and become the butt of jokes among their male friends.

"Then let’s go."

After leaving behind a security team, Henry calls the remaining five or six companions and drives toward the North City District.

The Wildman gave them passes with significant privileges, allowing them to go virtually anywhere except restricted areas. Going to the front line is even better; if they get killed by the enemy, it would save everyone some trouble and provide material for stories.

In this world, any Geneva Conventions have long been torn to shreds. Forget wartime journalists, even military doctors aren’t spared.

However, Lin Miao is still cautious. After all, they are the offspring of European nobility and have paid a lot of money — tens of thousands. If something were to happen, it would be hard to justify, and there would be considerable trouble.

So, he orders through the Wildman for the frontline to find a couple of retired squads to guide this group around the frontline, allowing them to look around the combat zone casually.

When they feel bored, they’ll be tossed to the eastern front to let the players show them enough action.

The ones called over happened to be Mann’s squad, which had suffered nearly half casualties, along with another infantry squad.

"Dear audience, I am Henry. Wing, and I am now in the most dangerous place in the world, bar none. A day ago, Da Haguai was hit by a nuclear bomb and is still under the conflict between two armies. Watch as the host brings you live coverage from the frontline."

"Beside me are Zorik and Laurie..."

Henry attaches the camera to a personal drone and starts livestreaming.

But his stream isn’t on Horizon, it’s on the most popular streaming platform in Europe right now, with tens of millions of users.

"What are these guys doing?"

Mann asks, puzzled.

With a bandage on his head, David replies,

"It’s a livestream...like the ones you usually watch with pretty girls."

"Damn... these guys are treating the battlefield like a chance to make a quick buck?"

If it weren’t for his mission, Mann would really want to punch these guys in the head.