Inside the workshop, Osiris' processing core instantly parsed the request signal transmitted by Maine.
In fact, Maine didn't even need to report; Osiris' consciousness had already spread like an invisible web, silently infiltrating and covering Arasaka Tower's internal network through the electronic warfare cyberware on Sasha and Kiwi, which he had personally modified and whose technological level far surpassed this era.
Every data node and communication link within the Tower was under his real-time surveillance.
However, as his perception reached the depths of the Tower, it encountered a distinct boundary.
The target, "Mikoshi" — Arasaka's most critical data fortress — had a defense philosophy entirely different from the Tower's other networks.
The nuclear explosion of 2023 and the attack by legendary netrunner Bartmoss served as historical lessons, leading it to adopt the most extreme security measures: complete physical isolation.
It was like an independent brain sleeping in a steel womb, with no electrical connection to the external network, forming a defense line built purely on physical isolation.
Any form of data interaction could only be achieved through a dedicated physical interface located on the ground floor of Arasaka Tower, which was the most heavily protected.
Faced with this purely physical barrier, even Osiris could not overcome it with remote intrusion alone.
He calmly accepted this technical reality and then sent precise coordinates and connection protocols to Sasha and Kiwi via an encrypted data link.
"Sasha, Kiwi," Osiris' instructions directly entered the two netrunners' minds, "Plug your data Probes into the hidden interface beneath the elevator control panel. Frequency: Gamma-7. Protocol: I will provide it."
Upon receiving the command, Sasha and Kiwi acted swiftly. They skillfully located the hidden interface beneath the control panel and firmly inserted the specialized data cables.
The moment the connection was established, a torrent of data surged forth — highly encrypted, complex in structure, and bearing the defensive attack characteristics unique to Arasaka systems.
Had it been an ordinary netrunner, their nerves would likely have been fried and their consciousness collapsed by now.
But they withstood the impact; their neural interfaces and processing centers, enhanced by Osiris, operated efficiently, steadily receiving and organizing this dangerous turbulence.
Osiris' consciousness extended along this hard-won physical channel.
Arasaka's proudly touted firewalls and dynamic encryption protocols were like mere illusions before him.
The underlying principles of his data processing logic originated from tens of thousands of years of accumulated knowledge, presenting a fundamental generational gap when faced with this era's network defense systems.
He encountered almost no effective resistance, and core permissions were quietly seized by him.
"Permission cracked, elevator activated," Osiris' steady voice resounded again in the squad channel. "Your mission is to reach the underground data hall, locate the core server array, and establish a stable physical connection. Once completed, notify me immediately."
The heavy elevator doors slowly slid open. Maine's crew entered, and the elevator began its high-speed descent, penetrating rock layers, heading towards the deepest part of Arasaka Tower's underground.
When the elevator doors opened again, a vast underground space came into view.
It was brightly lit, noticeably cooler than above ground, and the air was filled with the low hum of server clusters operating and the subtle sound of coolant flowing.
Countless rows of tall server racks, like a steel forest, stretched as far as the eye could see.
This was the physical location of Mikoshi — the most critical data fortress of Arasaka's North America Branch.
"Disperse and be vigilant, clear any remaining resistance," Maine commanded.
The squad members quickly fanned out, taking advantageous positions, and the scattered security personnel were soon eliminated.
Sasha and Kiwi, under the escort of Maine and Dorio, found an exceptionally thick core server interface in the center of the hall, connected by countless cables.
"boss, we've reached the core server array. Preparing to establish a physical connection."
"Execute the connection procedure," Osiris confirmed.
Sasha and Kiwi plugged a special data cable, glowing with a faint blue light, into that core interface.
This time, the moment the connection was established, even they, despite being enhanced, felt a strong data shock, as if the information volume of an entire ocean was trying to surge through this cable.
—
In the wasteland workshop, Osiris' main consciousness officially entered Mikoshi through this stable physical connection.
His perception was instantly overwhelmed by an endless stream of data.
But this was not a chaotic flood; it was a carefully organized and encrypted information universe.
Here lay all of Arasaka's research data, financial records, trade secrets, government contracts, competitor weakness analyses, undisclosed technology blueprints... and a massive amount of personal data used for AI training and Soulkiller experiments since the Night City branch was established.
Osiris' consciousness, like the most efficient scanner, retrieved, decrypted, and copied this information at an astonishing speed.
This data was categorized, packaged, and transmitted back to the large data storage units he had prepared in the wasteland workshop.
This was of immeasurable value for him to understand the technology tree, social structure, and power dynamics of this World.
However, his goal was not just this.
Osiris' consciousness continued to Probe deeper into Mikoshi, passing through layers of data barriers, eventually reaching a special area heavily sealed by multiple encryption protocols — the Digital Soul Prison.
As the last logical firewall silently disintegrated before him, the internal scene appeared in his perception.
It was a vast and boundless void constructed from pure code.
Countless faint points of light floated within it, flickering on and off, like a silent star sea.
Each light point was a product processed by the "Soulkiller" program.
It was not a true transfer of consciousness, but a digital soul constructed through memory copying and personality simulation at the moment of the original subject's death.
They were trapped here, neither vibrant life nor pure data, with conscious activity suppressed to the minimum, like specimens preserved in amber, maintaining a state of eternal stasis.
"Although I knew that a large number of digital souls were stored here before I traveled to the Warhammer Universe, seeing it with my own eyes is still very interesting."
In the data space, Osiris projected himself as a young East Asian male with black hair and black eyes, as he was before his cyberware modifications.
He made a gesture of stroking his chin, an action impossible for his real body, which was covered in armor.
Only in the data space could he so naturally simulate such a "human" habitual movement.
While continuing to copy all the data of the entire Mikoshi, including all information about this digital prison, he delved into it, searching for specific "stars."
Soon, he found his targets.
The code identifier surrounding one of the light points pointed to a name — Johnny Silverhand.
Another was identified as — Arasaka Kei.