Chapter 47: Destruction and Immortality!

Chapter 47: Destruction and Immortality!

"Understood! I will urge Otter to expedite the development of the 2.0 version of the Soul Killer AI!" Harada Toshiro responded seriously, not daring to show even the slightest laxity.

After speaking, Harada suddenly asked, "What about Sato Hiromi, Jojiro Seifuku, and the other Tiger Claw underlings... how should we handle them?"

The Soul Killer AI project was of immense importance. Besides a few core executives of the Arasaka Corporation, only those insignificant Tiger Claw lackeys were aware of it.

"They did well in this matter; reward them accordingly. Let them continue to work in Night City," Saburo Arasaka replied, feeling particularly satisfied now that the Soul Killer AI was in his possession.

After all, the world would eventually learn of the Soul Killer's existence, so he saw no need to silence them. Besides, Sato Hiromi and Butou had proven efficient in their work, making them potentially useful in the future.

After all, I am not a devil, Saburo thought to himself.

"So, does this mean the business plans in Watson will be shelved for now?" Toshiro couldn't help but ask further.

Initially, Arasaka Corporation had planned to use Kabuki as a springboard to capture the Waterfront and Northern Industrial Districts, facilitating business expansion.

However, the sudden rise of LA Corporation in Little China had made them tread cautiously.

Months of discreet investigation revealed that LA Corporation was a weapons manufacturing company without any significant backing. At the very least, they had no direct ties to Militech, nor were they a subsidiary, as previously speculated.

"By the way, the hacker Lucy, whom our company has been hunting for a long time, is currently employed at LA Corporation. Should we negotiate with their leader, Li Ang?"

Lucy was a hacker trained by Arasaka from a young age. She knew many details about Arasaka's internal networks, and any leaks to other companies could result in catastrophic losses for Arasaka.

Hearing this, Saburo fell silent. Through the holographic projections, the Arasaka executives could see his contemplative expression.

At this critical juncture, Saburo was reluctant to complicate matters further. A company that rose so rapidly must have some powerful backing.

Moreover, Arasaka had been unable to uncover specific details about LA Corporation, suggesting that Li Ang might be connected to rogue AI forces beyond the Blackwall.

After all, besides AI beyond the Blackwall, who else could possess such advanced weapons manufacturing capabilities and rise so quickly in Watson?

"Leave the business in Watson for now. Avoid provoking LA Corporation. Focus on perfecting the Soul Killer AI before considering anything else," Saburo finally declared.

"As for Lucy… if we can't bring her back, find an opportunity to eliminate her. Make sure it's clean and thorough."

"No one else should benefit from what we can't have."

Saburo's tone was calm but carried a hint of exhaustion. His prolonged battle with Militech had drained him significantly.

Saburo couldn't guarantee how much longer his aging body could sustain his corporate empire. His greatest desire now was immortality.

The challenges Arasaka faced were numerous: Militech's relentless aggression, the EU's deep-rooted strength, the complex network of Cuban interests, and the increasingly frequent incursions of rogue AI.

And yet, only Saburo Arasaka could hold everything together.

"Understood," Toshiro replied. Judging by his expression, he was already considering testing the 2.0 version of the Soul Killer on Lucy.

Shortly after the meeting concluded, Harada Toshiro and his team headed to a secret room in headquarters, where Alt Cunningham was being held.

Alt was lying on a chair designed for deep diving into cyberspace, a device capable of lowering body temperature and protecting the brain from data corruption.

Cyberspace, a virtual domain constructed by network administrators using data density and resistance, allowed hackers to move freely as supercomputers via deep-diving equipment.

Alt Cunningham was currently in cyberspace, using her console to recompile the new version of the Soul Killer AI.

Beside her were three elite hackers who had also entered cyberspace.

Through real-time holographic feeds from Arasaka's hackers, Toshiro could see Alt manipulating her console, generating countless strings of AI code within the divine carriage server's data sea.

From the completeness of the code framework, it was clear that the 2.0 version of the Soul Killer was only days away from completion.

Saburo's immortality was within reach.

---

Little China, LA Corporation Headquarters.

Li Ang stroked the head of his cyber Doberman, "Pilot," deep in thought about his next steps.

Pilot was a gift from Lucius, a sleek and imposing cybernetically-enhanced Doberman that Li Ang had aptly named.

Watching Li Ang idly petting Pilot's head, Johnny Silverhand was growing increasingly impatient. Time was running out, and Alt needed rescuing urgently.

"Li Ang, I'm just asking to borrow someone! Do you have to take forever petting a dog?"

An hour ago, Johnny had told Li Ang about Militech's involvement and the need for Morgan Blackhand to assist him in rescuing Alt from Arasaka.

He had expected Li Ang to agree immediately, but to his surprise, Li Ang appeared hesitant and deep in thought.

Johnny couldn't help but grumble, "Can you just give me a straight answer? The longer you wait, the colder the trail gets!"

His outburst drew a glare from Maine's team.

Maine glowered at Johnny and growled, "Watch your tone, rocker boy. You're asking our boss for a favor, so show some respect!"

Johnny wanted to snap back, "Who the hell do you think you are?" But remembering he needed their help, he swallowed his retort.

Li Ang finally spoke. Instead of agreeing, he asked, "When was Alt captured?"

Although Li Ang knew Arasaka's intentions for capturing Alt, he wasn't sure how long she'd been missing.

If it had been over a week, the 2.0 version of the Soul Killer might already be close to completion.

The difference between the 1.0 and 2.0 versions lay mainly in memory optimization, but the 2.5 version would be a game-changer.

The 2.5 version would gain true self-awareness, becoming a program matrix capable of capturing human consciousness and replicating souls.

Destruction and immortality would lie in the hands of its user.