The tone in Dong Hui's narration was filled with sighs, leaving Lin Miao with mixed emotions.
"So you ended up fighting amongst yourselves."
"The higher-ups decided it was necessary to fight; if we didn't, we would have torn each other apart ntally. No matter which path we took, there could only be one voice, and too many people were watching us at that ti. If we didn't act, it's possible they would have made the first move."
"But we were lucky at that ti; those corporations didn't have the chance to intervene. They ended up fighting among themselves, for two or three decades without a pause. The world was left in chaos, and no one had the attention to spare for us."
"So who won in the end?"
Lin Miao's question brought an awkward smile to Dong Hui's face.
"Of course, everyone lost. How could there be a winner in such a war? But at least the remnants of the island were wiped out, which counts as the only good news."
"What does this have to do with ?"
"Nothing, or rather... a little, but not much. We were just riding the wave. The ones who truly contributed along this path were every departed soul with a noble spirit in human history."
"This ti I'm not here to discuss business cooperation or any such nonsense. Things that can make money, even without , Kangtao will still pay what they owe. I will try to make things convenient for you within my authority. I mainly ca to deliver a ssage from the old man."
"Still alive? Quite long-lived, huh?"
"Passed away, been buried for more than a decade. Not everyone tries to persist like Huang Ban Sanlang, that old immortal."
"..... Sorry, what did he say?"
"He said... 'The hundred rivers flow east, finally entering the sea. When will the sun rise in the east again?'
"He is unsure how far humanity's steps can reach, or which path to take. But he believes that humans should be free, magnificent, and unyielding. Nothing can enslave the soul of this species. Anyone or anything attempting to subjugate their spirit will ultimately et their own demise."
"Is this ant as a warning to ?"
"I don't know. You'd have to ask the old man yourself."
"Haha, well, that'll be a long wait."
Lin Miao chuckled lightly, choosing not to pursue the matter further.
But it must be said, Night City's historical records are vastly different from what the people involved recount. Hearing it firsthand evokes another kind of feeling.
With just a few words, the truly harsh and painful process is glossed over. Even though the other party didn't go into detail, Lin Miao could imagine how brutal the situation was at the ti, certainly not as easily as the other party made it sound.
anwhile, the singing outside the window gently ca to a stop.
"It's true we'll make a better day (我们真的可以创造更美好的明天)"
"Just you and (就靠你和我)..."
As the last lyrics were sung, a huge wave of cheers erupted from the players and employees, each wave louder than the last. At so point, even the road outside Horizon Corporation was blocked, with many people standing on car roofs just to hear the song's ending.
Despite the singing being far from perfect, the heartfelt intention and emotion in it reached deeply into many people's hearts, quietly planting a seed.
Unfortunately, Lin Miao could never comrcialize this song; no matter where the money from it went, it would start a bad precedent.
Perhaps letting it spread by word of mouth, living in people's hearts, is the best way.
"What a beautiful song..."
Dong Hui sighed.
"The person who wrote this song must be a singer with a noble soul, but unfortunately, this era cannot carry their talent."
"..."
Lin Miao wanted to say, it's actually the sa everywhere.
Once the voting segnt began, the votes for the Youzi Chef team rapidly climbed. This voting had no limit on the number of tis, only the segnt limit. In theory, everyone could vote for every program, then see the final vote count. This was to avoid players using unethical ans to grab votes.
Following the concert was the drone show prepared by Stead Bun and her team.
Besides being a simple program presentation, it was actually also a product demonstration.
After all, with robots crawling on the ground, how could flying drones be absent?
Drones from the 2024 era were dwarfed by corporate drones of the 2076 era in both intelligence and detailing. The only advantages might be cost and production speed—you could get a civilian drone for a few hundred RMB. Lin Miao wasn't about to shalessly ask those companies for technology, so opting for a similar developnt direction as doorfra robots made sense.
Practical.
Cheap.
Low-tech, high intelligence.
Several prototype large marauder drones, together with nearly a thousand small drones, roared into the air from the factory ceiling. They have four ducted fans for vertical takeoff and rapid flight, in addition to two small turbojet engines inside, granting high-speed flight.
This wasn't ant for civilian use from the start, being purely military-grade drones, operating in a swarm combat mode, unrelated to people.
However, the current models are just small prototypes and far from ready for mass production. Based on the design, the official model's body is estimated to reach eight ters.
As for the small drones... they are purely replicas of bumblebee drones for players, far from high quality. One could say not much better than 2024-era drones, but more than enough for performances.
As the drone swarm flew higher, their silhouettes gradually disappeared into the night.
Until a mont when the sky lit up with twinkling starlight.
Thousands of drones in formation illuminated a map of Night City in the sky, even marking various districts and place nas, though slightly different from the current Night City.
"Is that... Night City?"
Blue Eyes stood at the window, also paying attention to Horizon Corporation's so-called annual eting.
And this so-called drone performance, initially thought to be unremarkable, stirred emotions that had been calm for years.
Because the drone-ford map wasn't of the 2076 Night City, but of the Night City built at the end of the 20th century, with the year 1997 glowing alongside it.
The year's numbers gradually increased, the map's shape slowly changing, seemingly depicting the city's near-century evolution. On the map, one could even relive the flash of Huangban Tower collapsing...
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