John draped himself in the yellow blanket, a symbol of the injured.

His leg was immobilized, and leaning on a crutch, he followed Eden out of the chaotic Bolago Club.

The West District's commercial area had suffered a heavy blow.

The Special Operations Team began to purge all armed forces around the building, affecting all surviving gang members.

John could clearly hear the screams.

The faint wails in the gale were definitely not something a madman could make. Some were just survivors left in the building, maybe clinging to a handgun for safety, or crying out due to neural implants affected by network jamming, or merely a little too close to the firearms and ammunition on the ground…

No one was spared.

Clearance enforcement by the SAT was extremely ruthless.

They were the last line of firepower suppression in the city, with no compromises, never shying away from any dangerous mission.

The base of the Bolago Building was already surrounded by ECPD and SAT vehicles.

Electronic red alert lines, combined with a cyberspace lockdown, affected the city's network within a kilometer radius.

Even normally moving private cars would be remotely taken over, and if they forcibly approached, they would not be met with warnings and inquiries, but with ground firepower from a hovercar.

"All clear, sir."

A member of the Special Operations Team came to report the results to Eden.

Although they spoke in normal voices, it was terrifying to hear, especially with the SAT's multi-eyed tactical helmets, covering the areas above the nose, resembling insect eyes.

Eden didn't hide his task assignments from John.

The chaos at the Bolago Building triggered the city's defense bottom line.

The Special Operations Team formally entered the West District.

It included but was not limited to street lockdowns, gang fight mediations, hunting, and killing deranged cyber lunatics.

This was a massive clearance operation.

Eden issued a series of tasks, then glanced back at John.

"Are you sure you don't need medical assistance?"

"I have a trustworthy doctor. Well, I'm a bit concerned you might turn me into one of them, which is… a bit discomforting."

John deliberately kept his distance from the Special Operations Team members.

The aura these killing machines exuded instigated an instinctive aversion – like the most primal human disgust and fear.

Angelica had already been sent out.

Mr. Vito's intelligence had been acquired.

John still wanted to confront Bone Shards.

He vaguely sensed there was an issue with tonight's commission and also wanted to know what was going on with that body in the freezer.

[Mission Objective Updated]

[Find Bone Shards' location. (Unaccomplished)]

The Special Operations Team took over the scene.

Normal vehicles stood no chance of escaping the hovercar's surveillance.

Eden must know the whereabouts of the Black Gold Gang's high ranks, and he lent John a "permitted passage" vehicle.

John sat in the driver's seat, candidly and sincerely retorting.

"What can I do for you? Hey, Eden, after this network monitoring issue, I'd really like to have a chat with you."

"First, get your arm and leg fixed."

Eden glanced at him expressionlessly before leaving the scene, surrounded by SAT members fully equipped with advanced prosthetic bodies.

"Arm and leg? Haha, alright."

John let out a self-mocking chuckle.

Single-armed and on one leg, he drove the worn-out Calormen through the holographic projection of the electronic alert lines, leaving the scene of the Bolago Club.

The coordinates Eden provided were at the edge of the West District.

John knew there was a casino there, belonging to Bone Shards, and he directly shut off the navigation system to squeeze the car into a shadowy alley.

He was in terrible shape now, with no chance in a fight, not a good time for a face-to-face confrontation.

But John couldn't wait.

He needed to seize every survival clue.

[Dan Street - Auto Casino]

The car engine cut out.

The ground of the damp alley was a silvery white.

The signs on the spiraling parking lot and high-rise facades glowed in various fluorescent hues.

The music was noisy and unpleasant.

It seemed to have some protective function, occupying people's minds, filling the void deep within.

[Mission Objective Updated]

[Proactively engage with Bone Shards. (Optional)]

[Secretly infiltrate the casino. (Optional)]

John didn't think Bone Shards would welcome him.

He stumbled through the street, blending in with the crowd like a wretch emptied by ghouls and muggers, not even the sex workers bothered to spare a glance.

It wasn't John's first time here.

He located the junction box extending from the casino's wiring, silently approaching, and used Igdrasir's single arm to choke out the smoking guard on duty.

The Black Gold Gang had pulled a lot of manpower to deal with the chaos in the West District.

John wasn't worried about being surrounded, and after a simple check, he extracted a data line and hacked into the closed-circuit cameras.

[Auto Casino - Administrator's Reception Room]

Bone Shards lay sprawled out on the sofa, arms outstretched, the custom shirt open at the collar, revealing tattoos and the heat dissipation patterns of subdermal armor on his chest.

"Ratlidge!"

The man opposite the sofa barked harshly, calling Bone Shards by his real name.

"You're in charge of on-site security!"

"Ha, what do you mean?"

Bone Shards opened his eyes slightly, nonchalantly asked back.

The man on the sofa opposite was restless.

He was a high-ranking executive at Jingke Heavy Industry, seemingly from the faction opposing Vito.

"Hypnos is dead! Right in Bolago's office! The Eastern People's electronic dog didn't succeed, Vito just shot him on reflex, that old black bastard really has balls to fire a gun!"

"Hahahaha..."

Bone Shards seemed to have heard a joke.

"A board member is dead, Ratlidge! You can't extricate yourself from this!"

The company executive was so angry he couldn't sit still, half-grabbing the bottle of alcohol.

"Whoa!?"

Bone Shards laughed as he leaned back on the sofa, watching him pass by his back.

The company executive paced back and forth in front of the sofa and the floor-to-ceiling windows.

"You were responsible for on-site security, you had ten thousand ways to kill that old bastard Vito Russell, and his daughter too, why did you fail!? Where are the people you sent to solve the problem!"

"I sent them, unfortunately, that mercenary messed up."

"Bullshit, I'm more curious, what exactly did Vito promise you that made you join forces with him! I'm not an idiot, neither is the board!"

He was aggressive, his eyes glaring wide.

Bone Shards sneered, nonchalantly said.

"Isn't it you who said it yourself? In the face of corporate interests, anyone can be sacrificed... Even if he is a board member."

The company executive named Bazelle heard the implication.

"Some of the old guys on the board wanted Hypnos dead? I told you, with an old scumbag like Vito, how could it be so easy to... Wait a minute, do you know something? Who is plotting? Who else is supporting Hypnos, for the shares or something else..."

"Oh, dear, you really have a lot of questions."

Bone Shards remained calm, as if the chaos in the West District, the death of a member of the Jingke Heavy Industry board, had nothing to do with him.

He teased Bazelle.

"Look at that, you only care about a few things, maneuvers, power, vested interests, business risks... Honestly, at this stage, you still can't escape being a 'company dog', you put collars on your own necks."

"Huh, watch your words, Ratlidge!"

"Sir."

"What?"

"When you call my name, add sir."

Bone Shards' gaze had changed, through the upper part of his glasses, his prosthetic eye seemed to reflect a clear human image.

"That's a basic respect for the Speaker of the Black Gold Gang."

"Heh, then you'll regret not teaming up with us to kill Vito. His influence on the streets of the West District isn't easy to erase, and now, there are two Speakers on the West District streets, who is the Godfather now?"

Bazelle maintained his arrogance in front of Bone Shards.

"We can support you, we can also support others, when the board makes a decision, you're not the only option."

"Whoa, are you threatening me?"

"You could put it that way."

"First of all, you misunderstand me..."

Bone Shards finally put away his smile, sat up straight.

"I don't have a daughter, nor am I as indecisive as Vito, secondly, if I were in Vito's position, all the board members at the scene would have been done for, including you, Mr. Bazelle."

Bone Shards rubbed his empty fingertips, rolling his eyes, his gaze seemed to carry a metallic sharpness, anchoring him through the gap in the frames.

"Vito really has guts, even makes me a bit excited, what does it feel like to kill a board member?"

"You..."

Bazelle stared wide-eyed, wanting to retort, but lacked the courage.

He forcefully placed the bottle on the table by the window, quickly grabbed his suit, and headed towards the only exit in the room.

"You're a f*cking lunatic as well."

The room turned quiet and dim.

The mottled neon and flickering blue and white police lights filtered through the floor-to-ceiling windows, leaving only a deep blue, twisting fluorescent murals, and the ground-shaking music seemed isolated by thick barriers.

John finally dialed Bone Shards' number.

He watched as the other person stretched his neck on the sofa, answering indifferently.

[I thought you'd hung up.]

"F*ck you, Bone Shards, are you messing with me?"

John had figured it out.

Bone Shards and Vito were in cahoots, both wanting to go against Jingke Heavy Industry.

He deliberately arranged for John to infiltrate the venue, giving John the opportunity to approach Angelica while Vito drew attention.

"Aren't you afraid I'd really shoot? How would you explain it to Vito!"

[Whoa, it seems you really figured it out, who told you or something, I need to reassess your intelligence level.]

Bone Shards sat up, looking relaxed.

[Would firing really cost me anything? If that chick got killed, Vito would truly have no worries.]

[However, in my plan, you should have died at the hands of the Eastern People, or been killed by Hypnos, oh, that's that company executive.]

[Vito is a good-natured person, if it were me, you would be of no use now, no need to let you go... Hey, there's a problem here, why did you manage to get out of Bolago Club?]

Bone Shards thought for a moment and laughed.

[Let me guess, Vito wants you to take the chick out of town, right? I know he has some plans set up.]

"You're really a bastard."

[Looks like I guessed right, don't worry, John, I'm a businessman, all in all, you performed quite well tonight.]

Bone Shards' prosthetic eye flickered, waving his fingers in the air.

[I'll give you a reward, in the underground parking of the apartment.]

"What I want isn't money, tell me everything you know about that body, or we won't be done!"

John shrank in the shadows, hands and feet dripping blood.

He could see the corner of the car casino's sign just by looking up.

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