[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer":3,"chapter-cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-308":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"english","Cyberpunk: Cross-dimensional Science and Engineering",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":20,"prevChapterSlug":21,"totalChapters":22,"novelImage":23},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":16,"volume":17,"translator":18,"content_hash":19},1151799,1495,"Chapter 308 - 287 Escalation","cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-308",308,"\u003Cp>\"WNS Emergency Broadcast!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"An oil storage warehouse in the Northern Industrial District has exploded!\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Preliminary investigations indicate that this incident is an escalation of a street gunfight into the night.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"The explosion was caused by a runaway vehicle crashing into the storage station, leading to a massive fireball and smoke...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The scenes shown on TV looked like the apocalypse; a giant fireball rose into the sky, and the shockwave shattered all the street’s glass in an instant!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"It’s estimated that about 20,000-60,000 gallons of ethanol fuel of various grades were incinerated. So far, the owner of the oil storage, Respect Logistics, has not responded further.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"This marks the eleventh street conflict in Watson District this year. Some officials suggest that Night City’s government should increase law enforcement in that area, and, if necessary, enlist Arasaka Company’s premium services.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Experts claim that Arasaka Company has vast experience in dealing with declining industrial areas, citing its law enforcement success in Chiba City, Japan...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ordinary people would be scared by this news; Lille knew immediately that it was Brick leading a raid on the gas station.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the scenes captured on TV were really exaggerated:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Mushroom clouds had appeared!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This symbolized that the conflict within the Vortex Gang had become completely open. The whole city would know Brick wasn’t dead yet and was at war with his former buddy, Royce!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In the last scene shown, attentive viewers could see several Vipers speeding out of the flames. The guys with guns were even burning, and the machine guns atop the vehicles were spewing fire.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The vehicles were definitely worth the price.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>While listening to the news, Lille put on prosthetics doctor gloves, and his mechanical arm switched out replaceable hands for prosthetic surgical tools.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>V and Jack laid on the operating tables, and Lille, along with Little Octopus, started adjusting their prosthetics simultaneously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jack’s Gorilla Arms mainly had two issues: impact beyond the load capacity deformed the parts, and there was abnormal internal wear.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thankfully, the damaged parts weren’t custom-made; they were the kind old Vic often used in surgeries, not hard to find.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>V’s adjustments were mainly based on the recent performance of Krensky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The last two battles had proven Little Octopus’s Krensky Drive to be quite stable. Compared to the standard Krensky used by ordinary people, it activated faster, with broader trigger conditions, almost matching the entry-level Si Anweisitan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Si Anweisitan’s active activation still played a key role in combat.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>So the next step for Lille was to begin attempting to fix Kantao’s Qian-ti seriously.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before that, adjustments, recordings, and comparisons needed to be made to all neural-linked prosthetic implants, including the Mantis Blade—\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The first step was the repair, and with Little Octopus, Lille could use traditional AI training models to find patterns among the numerous Si Anweisitan operations and then implement repairs.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Typically, these \"numerous Si Anweisitan\" data are highly private and hard to find in different models of Si Anweisitan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But now things were different: The Vortex Gang had the highest number of cyber psychos with these prosthetics.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If conditions allowed, the next step would be to boost the power of this Si Anweisitan.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lille still hadn’t analyzed the Super Dream he got from V, which recorded detailed states of Qian-ti overload.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Kantao was very interested in that data and wanted V as a test subject.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But Lille hoped to solve this problem himself.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The more obscure the technology one embeds in oneself, the worse it often ends up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As the surgery was about to end, V looked at the TV and said, \"This situation sounds serious, like many people are going to die.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lille nodded, \"It’s more like there will undoubtedly be many sacrifices when there’s a power shift.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jack lay on the operating table, looking up. \"This doesn’t feel too good; after all, this thing...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"I haven’t finished talking yet.\" Lille powered up Jack’s Gorilla Arms, causing Jack’s arm to jolt.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He put away his surgical tools and signaled them to get up.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"...In times like these, some focus on eliminating enemies, some focus on self-preservation, but only those who gain local support become the ultimate winners in difficult times.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In essence, all Night City’s gangs rely on local support.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Six Street Gang wreaked havoc in the lawless Saint Domingo, but before that, they attempted to establish laws, killing many corrupt NCPD officers.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Valentino was the role model for Haywood’s street kids; they believed in Catholicism, had their own set of rules, and fiercely opposed corrupt NCPD, the Scavengers, and corporate pets.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Then there were the Tiger Claw Gang relying on Japanese support, the Mox Gang relying on sex dolls and lower-class workers, the Voodoo Gang relying on locals from Taiping State...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Every gang was the same: profiting from local industries, arming their thugs, and using armed force to control the area, maintaining order to keep the region running smoothly and continuing to leech off it.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Vortex Gang, though somewhat unique, wasn’t too different. Now busy with internal conflict, their territory became a no man’s land.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Adkaduo could seize this chance to expand their influence.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Alright, get to work. First, deliver the goods, then see if anyone in Watson North District needs help.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>V got up and stretched, \"I have one more question: Why isn’t Military Technology stepping in? The Vortex Gang might not be enough.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Deploying corporate forces in Watson is vital; both Arasaka and Military Technology are eyeing it. Just know that.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Also, don’t underestimate the Vortex Gang; they’re called cyber psychos for a reason.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>\"Tch, just a bunch of junk, nowhere near Sister’s Mackinaw and Flying Motorcycle...\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>V patted Lille on the shoulder, \"And we have you, the great inventor.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lille responded irritably, \"Pay attention and stop daydreaming.\"\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Sender: Brick]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Brick: Buddy, this car looked like trash, but it was amazing in a fight!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Brick: I transferred the remaining money. Got more cars? Send some over.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Brick: Damn, Royce had a lot of stuff.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Transfer: +150,000 Eddies]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Mysterious Hero: Of course, how many do you want?]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Mysterious Hero: I have even better stuff. Interested?]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Brick: What stuff?]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Mysterious Hero: Can’t unlock the Centaur Mecha? I have the driver and can flash it for you, 50K each.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>...\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Royce sat in his control room, seething with rage while watching the playback footage!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The surveillance showed Brick taking advantage of his knowledge of the storage station to connect a line and steal oil. If Royce hadn’t altered the patrol route, the ethanol might have been stolen completely!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But then his goons started shooting, and Brick lost his cool. The back-and-forth shots blew up the oil tank!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>At the current ethanol price of 5.3 Eddies per gallon, this loss was over 100,000 Eddies!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>On top of that, Brick stole the station’s funds, totaling a loss of over 400,000 Eddies!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This explosion pissed off other Brick loyalists in the Vortex Gang. What was supposed to be a painless takeover now turned into a civil war!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>And there was no choice but to fight!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>No sooner had he spoken than gunshots rang out in the All Foods factory!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Royce grabbed his pistol, striding forward while sending messages:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Recipient: Anthony]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Royce: Did you see the news? Brick the bastard found some armored vehicles and robbed the storage station.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Royce: Don’t play dead. Send some real support!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Royce: If I die, you won’t get any data!]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Anthony: Useless.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Anthony: I can’t act too openly. List the prosthetics you and your factory use. I’ll send you an upgraded driver.]\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Anthony: Do not, fail, again.]\u003C\u002Fp>",1253,"2026-06-03T12:33:12.909Z","2026-06-03T12:33:19.803Z",1,"novelbin.me","e785175a56b1338c2eeeb74427d48cdb46f44b51ff5d4a0f9f4caab2b8c2655a","cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-309","cyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-chapter-307",1068,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fcyberpunk-cross-dimensional-science-and-engineer-cover.jpg"]