Rose Petrol Bar
Gao Gong sat in the corner of the bar, with a classic cocktail from the bar in front of him, which was also Black Rose's favorite, called 'Flaming Chariot'. The cup sparkled with a blue flame, reminiscent of the blaze from a motorcycle's exhaust.
The taste was quite bitter, with a sensation of gasoline mixed with cola.
Although Black Rose hadn't returned, the bar was as lively as ever, full of people seeking information, making deals, chatting nonsense, and spending money to get drunk. All aspects of life were on full display.
"Sir, someone wants to buy you a drink," a bionic female waitress approached with a drink on her tray.
It was apparent this bionic being was of low grade; the seams at the joints were obvious, and her smile was unnatural, indicating she only had basic AI service downloaded, without a personality template.
Gao Gong didn't speak but waved his hand.
There was a silent sigh in the shadows.
A bearded man frowned, downed his petrol beer in one go, stood up, and walked out without looking back. He didn't have a left hand, replaced by a large hunting rifle.
"Even an Elephant Hunter isn't good enough? His standards are too high!"
"He's been around for a long time."
"Yeah, I once saw him blow the head off an E-level Radiation Elephant with his big double-barrel shotgun, that was a large Radiation Beast."
"Well, he has that kind of capital."
"He's just an old-timer, what's so great about that," a newcomer suddenly protested.
"Young man, don't get it twisted, in the desert, seniority is the least valuable asset."
A Mechanical Hunter scoffed and shook his head.
"Indeed, if you can bring back the head of a Reaper Commander and the bodies of four D-Level Reapers, you'd have the right to be that picky too."
The newcomer was stunned and instinctively asked, "Reapers, those close-combat monsters that even chainsaws can't cut through?"
"Yes, a total of five heads, Automobile City hasn't seen such a bounty in years."
"Impressive!"
Gao Gong finished the 'Flaming Chariot' and ordered the waitress for another 'Beautiful Lady'. Indeed, this brandy-flavored aromatic cocktail suited him more.
Today, over a dozen people had offered him a drink, yet Gao Gong hadn't accepted a single one.
Not because the offers were from men,
Nor out of fear that they would 'pick up the body' — well, maybe a little afraid of that.
Even women made offers.
However, their intentions weren't pure either.
Women solely interested in hooking up with men generally wouldn't target him, as frequent patrons of this bar knew somewhat about his relationship with the female bar owner.
Women of powerful men and men of powerful women are not to be messed with—though it might be thrilling.
The main reason was that accepting their drinks equaled accepting their invitation to team up.
According to aerial satellite images from the factory, at least dozens of beasts had appeared around Automobile City.
The Security Corps had issued strict orders: within five days, regardless of their tactics, they had to assemble at least a three-person armed squad.
In this sort of freely formed team scenario, strong Mechanical Hunters naturally received a warm welcome.
As a Central Oasis, Automobile City housed many renowned Mechanical Hunters, but few lone wolves without fixed teams.
And even among such unique experts as lone wolves, someone with Gao Gong's achievements had a rare standing.
Yesterday, when Gao Gong brought back five Reaper corpses, the entire military supply warehouse was alarmed, and even the usually dismissive logistics supervisor came out to exchange pleasantries.
Everyone knew that Gao Gong had taken down a C-level Reaper—for the second time!
After finishing yet another drink, Gao Gong checked the mechanical clock atop the bar; it was about time for him to go pick up his supply from the military warehouse.
"Wait!"
As Gao Gong reached the door, a bald man suddenly got up and marched aggressively towards him, shouting, "I'm Black Death Ape. I think I'm qualified to be your teammate."
In the background of the low jazz music, Gao Gong lowered his head to tap the bottom of a cigarette pack, pinched a cigarette with his lips, and surveyed the man in the dim horizon.
This guy was tall, over two meters, though not due to indigenous body mutations but from having undergone skeletal strengthening surgery—a form of enhanced bone hypertrophy.
His muscles were bulky and a bit bloated, likely the result of some inferior bio-muscle implant. Whether due to implantation issues or muscle model problems, it gave the impression of wearing oversized clothing.
Most striking were his oversized metal arms, three times the size of normal arms, with forearm protrusions likely being flamethrowers, and each carrot-thick finger had nine metal joints.
These things would definitely hurt when used to hit someone.
"Imported Gorilla Arms from Nightless City?"
"Good eyes!" Black Death Ape's eyes lit up. He casually grabbed a bottle, clenched his hand, and 'crack', 'crack', he quickly turned it into a pile of glass shards.
"I've done my research on you; I know you're skilled with knives and also wield a big sniper rifle," Black Death Ape struck a bodybuilder pose, his bio-muscles inflating like balloons, with no veins visible, only pale artificial fibers.
"I'm also good at close combat, capable of mid-to-long-range as well. I can attack or snipe, we'll be the most compatible partners!"
Gao Gong, with a hazy gaze, exhaled a puff of smoke and said, "I don't have a problem, the problem is you can't do it."
"Why can't I?" Black Death Ape widened his eyes and thrust a pair of gorilla arms right under Gao Gong's nose.
"Look closely! This is the latest version of the 'Impact Type III'!"
To be honest, the equipment's not bad; on the system panel, it could at least get a 'Fine' rating.
It's just that the person is lacking.
Gao Gong took a few more puffs, flicked the cigarette butt into the ashtray, didn't explain, and prepared to leave directly.
"Wait, you can't leave without explaining yourself clearly!"
Black Death Ape was furious, his mechanical hand gripping Gao Gong's shoulder fiercely, the mechanical grip meeting titanium alloy bones, producing a 'squeak' of pressure.
"The equipment's fine, it's just that your legs are no good."
"You what—"
Amidst the loud metal music, Gao Gong suddenly turned around, moved into the middle gate, hooked his foot, extended his leg, and lightly stepped on the inner side of the opponent's ankle. The opponent's slender ankle couldn't bear the heavy body weight, 'crack' it fractured, and Black Death Ape crashed to the ground with a 'boom', clutching his leg and screaming miserably.
"Leg! Leg! My leg!!"
"Sports system transformation rate less than 4%, and you actually installed such a big gadget on yourself," Gao Gong shook his head, gestured for a few bartenders who had already reached for their guns to back off.
"A bit reckless, friend."
Body transformation is a meticulous and all-encompassing engineering that isn't just about having the stronger prosthetics.
In fact, the stronger the prosthetics, the harder they are to install, and even harder to remove. You could say that each high-level prosthetic transformation is equivalent to passing through the gate of hell.
And once the prosthetic compatibility is inadequate, this character is wasted.
If a player is wasted, they can start over, but if this NPC is wasted, there's truly no saving them.
In Gao Gong's view, the Mechanical Hunters in Automobile City more or less have some issues with over-modification.
Perhaps they don't have problems at this stage, but when they want to advance further, like exceeding the level 10 main profession threshold or the level 20 hurdle, they'll find that their body transformation has been exhausted, and there's nothing left to modify.
'Maybe this is an opportunity.'
'Mechanical transformation has reached a dead end, turning to biological transformation is another path, but mechanical rejection is a big issue.'
Even a Mechanical Transformer with relatively balanced attributes like Gao Gong is extremely cautious facing mechanical rejection.
And those who go to extremes with body transformation, encountering mechanical rejection is almost inevitable.
He couldn't force biological transformation on the other party.
That would only create a bunch of cyber psychosis patients.
Gao Gong headed south, driving up to a modern military building.
The building ahead had a rare freshness in the desert, with the main building, airport, ranges, and various off-road obstacles—all made of authentic materials but giving off a strange foamy feeling.
This should be the result of a major corporate military contractor using 3D printing technology.
This is the Security Corps' military supply warehouse.
You could see quite a few members of the Security Corps engaged in real combat training, while their opponents were 'Radiation Beasts' projected using virtual projection technology.
Their melee weapons landing on different parts of the 'Beasts' would cause varying levels of damage.
And the VR glasses they wore deepened the immersion.
"Not a bad practice, no wonder the Security Corps are becoming increasingly formidable fighters."
Gao Gong smiled, his gaze shifting to another side, where a Security Corps armed team was systematically clearing obstacles in a simulated concrete jungle.
These experiences often require Mechanical Hunters to learn at the cost of their lives.
But is this training method really advanced?
At least the front-line failures haven't proven it.
"Welcome, Mr. Gao," a robot approached, speaking in an uninflected electronic voice.
"So, has my loot's value been confirmed?"
"It has been confirmed, a total of 2124 Contribution Points. Do you need to see the details or would you like to shop first? We just imported a new batch of intelligent weapons; do you want me to take you for a tour?"
"Let's take a look first," Gao Gong blinked, seemingly asking offhandedly, "By the way, can I ask, which military contractors are these weapons from?"
"Tabor Defense System, Marubeni Global Security, Mas Sharpness."
Familiar names all.
"Mas Sharpness," Gao Gong repeated, this company that would later become famous for its radical body transformation, already entering the weapons market by this time.