The Creators: From Night City

Page 386

So Vincent lay back down on the bed.

"Don't forget the party tonight."

He reminded the other party.

"Unforgettable," Panan tidied his clothes and began packing the tools on the table into his gun holster.

In Night City, you can live without your house key, but you absolutely must carry this thing with you at all times.

After leaving Vincent's staff apartment, Parnan searched around before finally finding his car in the newly built underground parking lot.

Taiping Prefecture is not connected to the Night City local area network, and the company's AI 'domain' currently focuses on administrative functions and has not developed functions such as automatic parking.

Of course, Panan isn't worried about anyone stealing the car, since there are practically no petty thieves daring to cause trouble in the newly built employee apartments of [Anti-Entropy] in Taiping.

Even if they did exist, the armed police of "Anti-Entropy" patrolling the streets would teach them what the iron fist of order truly meant.

It's laughable.

Taiping Prefecture, once a desert of order, has been transformed into the district with the lowest crime rate and the highest happiness index among all residents of Night City.

It is said that the old men in the city hall had been clamoring to redraw Taiping Prefecture into the map of Night City, but after Arasaka Tower was breached by [Anti-Entropy] a few weeks ago, their clamor instantly fell silent.

No homeless person doesn't love a car, and even though Panan doesn't have to drive around the badlands all day, a 'luxury car' is still her ultimate pursuit.

However, her concept of a 'luxury car' is different from the common understanding of a luxury car.

The wanderers value practicality and combat effectiveness more.

Panan's car definitely lives up to this 'luxury' standard.

Four-wheel suspension, run-flat tires, capable of withstanding most bullet impacts.

【Reverse Entropy】Armory product, dragon scale armor plating, ignores small caliber bullets.

The vehicle is equipped with a miniature synchro turret on the roof and a honeycomb missile system built into the trunk.

Four independent motors, along with the unique nano-explosive transmission system of [Reverse Entropy], bring this vehicle 2400 horsepower.

If all of these things are within Panan's comprehension, then the miniature fusion battery, which serves as the energy hub of the vehicle, is completely beyond her understanding.

Chapter 792 The Bright Family Assembles

This energy battery technology, originating from the world of Sword Star, has become the core power source for various armors, combat equipment, devices, and weapons under the command of [Anti-Entropy].

A battery the size of a forearm is enough to power Panan's 'armored off-road vehicle' for fifty years without sleep.

Of course, its high price also requires Panan to work hard day and night for a whole year.

This is just the price of the most basic fusion battery model in the arsenal.

However, Panan, who loved his car dearly, gritted his teeth and redeemed it, installing it on his beloved car.

There's a saying that goes, cheap goods only have the advantage of being cheap, but good goods only have the disadvantage of being expensive.

Having access to virtually unlimited energy, besides being able to floor the gas pedal and saving a lot on fuel costs, the most noticeable change in Panan's driving style is that he can now turn the air conditioning up to its maximum setting.

In the past, when driving on this barren land, energy was one of the most precious resources. When delivering goods, drivers often had to carefully manage the amount of alcohol-2 fuel in their vehicles, and often couldn't even afford to turn on the air conditioning. It was common for them to be drenched in sweat, their trousers soaked through.

As a woman, Panan is no exception to this practice, and because of her gender disadvantage, she often gets even wetter.

After all, her car is a gas guzzler, so she has to be extra careful with fuel consumption during daily driving.

Fortunately, things are different now.

The car drove straight to Dogtown along the newly built Martin Avenue, within the half-hour time limit. Panan's heavy SUV drove through the newly built west gate of Dogtown, into Badlands, and brushed past the ruins of the original Biotech Protein Farm, which had been reduced to rubble by a tornado, before arriving at the Laspa Lapas Motel, located east of the Zeta Technologies solar power array.

Although the hotel is in the middle of nowhere, it's situated on the main road leading south from Night City to the border station, and business has always been decent.

When Panan arrived, Mitch and Scorpion had been waiting for a long time.

Where is Thor?

Panan stopped the car, but did not see the family leader, so he asked.

“They’re inside,” Mitch said, gesturing towards the hotel with his arms crossed.

The Las Paz Motel also operates as a bar, restaurant, and auto repair shop, offering a diverse range of services like a general store. But that's precisely why guests from all over can find what they're looking for here.

"Drinking alone in silence?"

When Panan found Saul at the bar, the stubborn, bold, and principled man was holding a bottle of tequila right in his hand.

Saul didn't speak, but instead gestured for Panan to look at the television screen hanging overhead.

The television is currently broadcasting Channel 54's flagship news program, "Your Business, My Concern."

As you can tell from the name, this is a financial program. Saul doesn't usually watch this type of program, since homeless people don't have any fixed assets.

Of course, the Meta clan is an exception. As the vagrant clan that developed the world's first power armor, the Meta clan has transformed itself very successfully. With the money from selling the power armor patent technology, they established the Meta Corporation, built Meta Port, started a global transportation industry, and became a capital group among the vagrants.

Although the Adcado clan is large, they fight independently and do not participate in the financial market or invest capital in it.

But the reason Saul was so focused was because the topic of this program was stock market analysis after the attack on Arasaka Tower, which was closely related to them.

After all, the Adcardo clan members working in transportation under [Anti-Entropy] number in the tens of thousands. [Anti-Entropy]'s huge and fixed shipment volume has turned them into an affiliated transportation department that works for a fixed salary. [Anti-Entropy]'s goods are also delivered to all parts of the new United States and various autonomous states by these wanderers who are scattered throughout North America and a large part of South America.

The transportation routes they pioneered were like countless capillaries, pumping [Anti-Entropy]'s exclusive cargo from Night City, its heart, to every corner of North and South America.

It can be said that Thor and many other members of the Adcardo clan are deeply bound to Anti-Entropy, sharing its fate in its prosperity and its decline.

The TV presenter excitedly discussed stock market trends with all viewers, loudly predicting the downfall of the Arasaka Group.

Good evening, viewers of Night City!

First, as usual, let's review the stock market situation over the past two days.

As the screen switched to a stock market chart, Thor laughed dismissively.

He turned to Panan and said, "See that? This downward trend is even uglier than an old lady's underwear."

Following the attack on Night City's headquarters by Anti-Entropy, the Japanese giant's stock price plummeted by 27%. According to stock market analysts, this downward trend is expected to continue. We contacted Night City's NCPD to try and understand the specific circumstances of the attack, but received no response.

As the mouthpiece of military technology, News 54 has been relentlessly attacked by Arasaka's media outlets after being brutally beaten by Anti-Entropy. Now that they've seized this opportunity, they're going to smear it to the bitter end as well.

However, what they said was true; after all, data doesn't lie.

The program is still ongoing.

However, other reporters from our station risked their lives to film the scene. [Anti-Entropy], the force that first emerged on the Badlands, swept through the entire Arasaka Tower with overwhelming force, flattened the Arasaka beach, and destroyed several of Arasaka's data centers worldwide. Their actions were incredibly ruthless.

The leak of a large amount of business data is also the fundamental reason why Arasaka's stock price has continued to decline.

At this point, the host mysteriously pulled up a number and explained it to the audience.

The panic has now spread to global financial markets. It is estimated that the financial losses caused by this round of crashes led by Arasaka have exceeded 8000 billion euros. However, at this critical juncture, Arasaka Saburo, the core figure of Arasaka, announced his retirement. The new CEO of Arasaka Corporation, Arasaka Yorinobu, has no intention of fighting back and has announced that he has begun to evacuate all office staff of the Night City branch to Tokyo.

Whether this was a timely business decision to cut losses or a cowardly act is a matter of opinion, and we won't comment further here.

However, due to the impact of this series of events, I only want to say one thing to all my friends here, so listen carefully!

[It's better to cut your losses early than to suffer physical pain; don't suspend your trading and regret it later!]

But the run-down motel was clearly not frequented by 'financial professionals' who needed his advice; it was filled only with penniless laborers.

A drunkard, already completely intoxicated, continued his Night City-style taunts and complaints at everyone in the room.

"What's the point of stock market fluctuations? These corporate dogs are always biting each other all day long. If you ask me, let them all die instead."

"Shut up!"

Panan shouted at the other party.

She's holding the rice bowl of [Reverse Entropy], so you can't just smash her pot in front of her.

Chapter 793 The Meta Clan

"Hey, why are you being so fierce? I didn't do anything to you." The customer immediately became unhappy.

"Have yours," the bartender said, pouring another glass of whiskey and placing it in front of the other person, skillfully defusing any potential conflict.

"Let's go," Thor said, picking up his bottle of liquor and leading the way out of the hotel after watching the show.

"Are you still upset about the new troubles coming from the south?" Panan asked.

“It’s normal for some members of the Santiago family to be envious and blind to the truth, since they’re not located near Night City or Anti-Entropy.” Thor is a stubborn and principled man, but he’s also very pragmatic.

Although some members of the Santiago family, who lead the entire Adcardo Wanderer clan, have objections to the binding with [Anti-Entropy], and several other clans have asked Adcardo's leaders whether Adcardo intends to completely align itself with corporate capital and betray the Wanderer community, Thor knows perfectly well that, aside from anything else, the increasingly prosperous lives of hundreds of families, including the Bright family, cannot lie.

He believes the current leaders of Santiago are also well aware of this.

The people complaining are just jealous; they're jealous that the [Anti-Entropy] group is backing them up and is living a life of luxury.

The Meta clan's visit is an undeniable fact. They control the port of Meta and their transportation network covers almost the entire globe. They are even more envious of the profits from [Anti-Entropy] transportation than the people of Adcado, and have long wanted to get a share of it.

This time, [Anti-Entropy]'s victory over Arasaka and complete occupation of Night City made them restless any longer, and they took the initiative to come and seek cooperation.

“I hate this job, Saul. It’s like we’re waiting to meet the boss. Mr. Sabur doesn’t usually act like this. Besides, we’re just wanderers, not some company dog ​​named Adcardo.”

Standing by the roadside, Panan ate sand, his resentment reaching its peak.

"Just bear with it. After all, they're from the south. We're all homeless people. Let's help each other as much as we can."

Fortunately, the arrival was fairly punctual. Less than half an hour later, a convoy slowly drove from the border wall to the motel.

The front half of the entire convoy used only Macintosh "Beasts," which are faster than the standard model and equipped with racing suspension, making them ideal for rough terrain. The cargo bed is also very spacious.

The rear of the convoy used the 'Mercedes-Benz Desert Lord', a boxy and imposing off-road vehicle designed specifically for desert terrain.

The vehicle body is constructed from multi-layered bulletproof composite materials and coated with a high-efficiency heat-reflective coating. The windows are narrow to minimize direct sunlight. The "Camel" cooling system equips the vehicle with extra-large front and central radiators, featuring intelligently opening and closing louvers to prevent dust and sand blockage while ensuring stable operation of the engine and transmission under extreme temperatures for extended periods.

The self-cleaning air filter, which uses centrifugal pre-filtration and pulse backflushing technology, can automatically remove sand and dust from the air conditioning filter while driving, greatly extending the maintenance cycle and quality of the vehicle's air conditioning system.

The only drawback is that this model is designed to be too luxurious; it's suitable for travel but not for hauling cargo.

Only the wealthy Meta clan could afford such a car.

The greetings between Adcado and his companions were all sincere, especially since the visitors were acquaintances of Sol and Parnan.

"Hernandez, you really are the leader, kid."

Thor immediately gave the leader a big hug and slapped him hard on the back, making a loud thud. It's hard to say that there wasn't an element of revenge involved.

"Panam, it's been a long time, you still look as dashing as ever."

“You’ve aged quite a bit,” Panan teased.

From their conversation, it is clear that the three have a very good relationship.

The passengers at the back of the convoy also got off. Compared to the Adcado clan vagrants dressed in various clothes, they were dressed in uniform brown and blue uniforms, looking neat and tidy, like more company dogs than vagrants.

The woman in the lead, surrounded by her subordinates, also came over.

"Good afternoon, members of the Bright family. I am Emily Meta of the Meta family."

The woman displayed impeccable manners, and Panan couldn't just give her a cold shoulder for no reason, so he could only force a smile.

Having picked up the people, Thor and Panan, being locals, naturally took the lead and guided the entire convoy to Night City.

“Ms. Emily Meta, I could actually introduce you to the CEO of [Anti-Entropy], so there’s no need to go through a middleman.” Thor was puzzled by the other party’s decision.

The impeccably dressed Emily Mehta spoke politely, but her words carried a subtle hint of arrogance: "Mr. Bright, we are here to formally discuss business cooperation with [Anti-Entropy]. It would be quite impolite to come here abruptly. It would be more formal to go through a formal business visit process via an intermediary."

Panan was assigned to drive and lead the way, while Mitch and Scorpion rode in the car.

As soon as the car door closed, Panan couldn't help but complain.

"This woman clearly thinks that our Bright family doesn't have enough influence with Madam Gloria, so she asked the Santiago family to contact Queen Roger, the middleman in the afterlife. What are you pretending to be so important about?"

“She’s telling the truth. Parnan, the Bright family really isn’t suited to get involved in this world of fame and fortune. We’ve been doing quite well lately, it wouldn’t be worth it to get mixed up with them.”

With a hint of anger, Panan stepped on the gas and pushed the 4-ton heavy off-road vehicle with the force of a supercar.

"Great job, Panan! You really didn't waste your entire fortune. This car modification is awesome!"

Even the usually taciturn scorpion nodded repeatedly.

Mitch's praise finally tickled Panan's funny bone, making her smile involuntarily.

The convoy continued along the Coronado Farm to the intersection of College Street and Malagra Street before heading northwest towards the Afterlife Nightclub.

Construction is in full swing on both sides of the road, and this once dilapidated and ancient district of Night City is undergoing a large-scale comprehensive renovation.

"It's said that these projects were funded by [Anti-Entropy] and undertaken by the Ye family?"