Chapter 87

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Scavengers.

A group of ruthless, contemptible scum of the earth came together.

Perhaps they had been bullied and tortured in society, often possessing an extremely strong desire for revenge.

These scavengers could heartlessly harvest others' organs, but they absolutely could not tolerate being bullied by outsiders.

At this moment.

Four vans were parked by the roadside, their signal jammers activated, their exteriors marked with Militech logos, though of an older model.

Dozens of scavengers, armed with guns, machetes, and baseball bats, rushed out of the vehicles and headed towards the docks.

Outdated weapons and cybernetics discarded by major companies often flowed into Night City through various channels, for use by the lower ranks of gangs.

The scavengers wore fluorescent masks equipped with optical jammers, making it impossible to read their facial features.

The leader of the scavengers could already see from a distance the two figures by the sea dike, sitting on the coast, seemingly unaware of the impending danger.

"Are you sure about this, are they the two who killed our men?"

Scavenger: "It's definitely those two. That dreadlocked black kid saw it with his own eyes."

Scavenger leader: "Now that we've found them, things will be easy. They dared to mess with my people; let them experience being dismembered."

Scavenger: "We couldn't find any background information on the guy, but the girl is a cyberpunk. Should we move in now?"

Scavenger leader: "Who gives a damn about their background. After tonight, he'll be a contribution to different people. Isn't there an order from ZetaTech? That one who likes it fresh, send him the native liver. Nowadays, in Night City, it's kind of hard to find a fully original body."

Scavenger: "Indeed, we've even brought a signal jammer to prevent them from calling for help."

Scavenger leader: "What waves can an ordinary person and a street cyberpunk cause? Once they're in the frying pan, who will even recognize them?"

As the scavengers were about to encircle the target and prepare for the hunt, they discovered that the two targets had stood up and begun running again.

Scavenger leader: "Damn it, they sure can run. No matter, just get up there, don't let them get away!"

Following the scavenger leader's command, dozens of scavengers rushed out, wielding machetes and iron bars.

Tang Yu and Lucy noticed the scavengers' movements; the attackers were approaching from the front right. If they continued moving forward, running too slowly would bring them head-on into the scavengers.

Behind them was the dock, with no way back. They had to sprint forward to avoid a direct confrontation with the scavengers.

Lucy kindly warned, "Time to show your true skills."

After saying this, Lucy put on her hood and dashed along the river dike.

Tang Yu was equally excited, donning his hood and sprinting at full power towards the front.

A white and a black streak of light sped under the streetlights.

The scavengers raised their weapons, screaming and slashing wildly at them.

"Don't try to run! I'm going to catch you two now!"

"Hahaha, to be dismembered, to be dismembered!"

"They run fast; their muscles must be quite delicious."

As they looked on.

The scavengers were closing in.

But the speed of the two running parties was completely beyond their estimates. Initially, they thought they could intercept them halfway, but then they realized they were still a few steps short.

They could only watch helplessly as the two passed them by from left to right.

In just a few seconds, they had left the scavengers behind.

"Damn it, chase them!"

About a dozen scavengers surged forward, relentlessly pursuing the footsteps of Tang Yu and Lucy.

From above, it was almost comical, as if the two were being chased down the road with knives by a gang of street thugs after school.

Lucy was the fastest runner, leading far ahead, leaving the scavengers and Tang Yu behind.

Even with cybernetic enhancements, Lucy felt a bit winded from such a high-speed chase.

Glancing over her shoulder, she suddenly had a startle, not seeing Tang Yu's figure.

Lucy looked back again to check on him, when suddenly, a figure rushed past her.

"Don't look around; you'll be caught if you run too slow!"

Lucy immediately looked towards Tang Yu and saw that he had accelerated even faster, leaving her behind.

Lucy smiled slightly and then picked up her pace, running faster, with the cursing of the scavengers behind them, and the occasional gunshot.

"I can't run anymore, fire! Fire! Kill those two, ugh, I'm exhausted!"

"They can really run; into the car, chase them!"

Unfortunately, Tang Yu and Lucy were too fast, and the scavengers ultimately gave up the chase, turning back to their vans to begin a vehicular pursuit.

Tang Yu could run so fast because he had cheated a little.

While running, he activated his 'Bullet Time' talent, which instantly enhanced his muscles and nerves dramatically, vastly increasing his explosive power.

Originally, the 'Bullet Time' talent could only be activated for a brief ten or so seconds, but with the strong endurance of the 'Unyielding' talent supporting him, Tang Yu managed to last two minutes.

Currently, the 'Bullet Time' talent was at an ordinary level, slowing time down to 50%.

This meant his running speed could double, and the physical burden was not too heavy for Tang Yu to handle.

The two ran along the sea dike, leaving the scavengers far behind.

Lucy's cybernetic eye lens scanned for any surrounding threats.

Tang Yu reminded her, "We haven't shaken them off yet; the signals are still being jammed."

Lucy detected the pursuers: "Four vans, the signal jammers must be on board. It looks like they're determined to seek revenge."

Tang Yu replied, "Scavengers have minds smaller than the eye of a needle. They won't back down until they're knocked out today."

Lucy withdrew her gaze, glancing at him, "Shake them off?"

She was deeply impressed by the last appearance of Arasaka's elite squad and remembered it clearly.

If any Arasaka armed security force appeared, these private scavengers would probably fall right here.

But with the signal being jammed, calling for backup would require them to eliminate the vehicles carrying the signal jammers.

Before they could continue conversing, a van had already reached them on the road, lining up parallel to them across the sidewalk.

The back door of the van swung open, and a scavenger, holding on to the door with one hand and a machine gun with the other, leaned out and opened fire on them.

Ratatat... ratatat...

Flames blazed as bullets scattered, some hitting the trees on the sidewalk, some being blocked by steel sculptures, and some falling into the sea, none hitting their mark.

"Kill them! Fire, fire!"

Another van joined the battle, continuously firing at Tang Yu and his companion, even driving up the sidewalk, heading straight for them.

Tang Yu felt several stray bullets whiz past in front of him; although none hit him, the danger was very real.

He caught sight of a harbor dock not far ahead, scattered with shipping containers, a perfect place for them to hide.

"Let's take cover there!"

They immediately sprinted towards the docks and then found a stack of containers to stop and catch their breath.

Seeing the two disappear, the scavengers parked by the roadside, grabbed their weapons, and continued the pursuit on foot.Leaning against a blue shipping container, the two looked up, attempting to catch their breath.

After running at high speed for so long, even Lucy, who exercises regularly, couldn't help but gasp for air.

Faced with the pursuit of the Scavengers, they appeared relaxed rather than tense.

In Tang Yu's view, while the Scavengers were certainly cunning and deceitful, they were not significant enough to concern him.

The reason was that they were too weak - capable of petty theft but not a real fight.

Back when he blew up the Arasaka fish, he dared to barge into the Scavenger den with nothing but his wits - let alone now.

Lucy also appeared relaxed, just a bit tired from the running. After taking a few deep breaths, she teased,

"You're pretty fast when you run."

Tang Yu was using 'Indomitable' to regain his strength and composure.

"And you're not bad yourself. Who wouldn't run fast when being chased with a knife?"

Lucy chuckled, "Hmm... so you're saying, pressure brings out potential."

"But what now? We're trapped here with no place to run. What's your plan?"

Tang Yu closed his eyes calmly and said, "Simple. If there's no place to run, we don't run."

"Let me rest for a bit. If I'm in a good mood, maybe I'll let them off the hook."

Lucy jokingly asked, "Uh-huh? We can't shake them off now, are you planning to shoot it out with them?"

Tang Yu gave her a silent stare, "Aren't you still here? What's there to worry about?"

Lucy laughed, "Don't even think about it - I don't babysit normies."

Tang Yu retorted, "I'm no normie."

Lucy agreed, "Ha, forget I said anything."

By this point, the Scavengers had closed in, their jeering voices growing louder.

"Stop hiding, fucker! What's the point of skulking behind containers?"

"Heh heh, let's see where you run now, dammit, come out and surrender!"

Lucy didn't understand what Tang Yu was waiting for.

While she had her own means of self-defense, Tang Yu was still flesh and blood. A single gunshot could put him in grave danger.

Even as a high-ranking member of the Trauma Team, currently, they couldn't contact help due to the signal jammer.

As the situation grew more dangerous, Lucy readied the golden monomolecular wire wrapped around her wrist, adopting a serious expression.

"You dodge first, find a chance to run. I'll hold them off."

She had made up her mind: as long as Tang Yu got away successfully, she could fight her way out and leave.

Tang Yu's stamina and endurance were mostly restored. He was surprised to hear Lucy suggest he should be the one to flee first.

He looked at her, equally earnest, "Let me ask you something."

With the golden wire in hand and her cyber-eye scanning for the Scavengers' positions, Lucy diverted her gaze back to him, with a touch of confusion in her eyes.

"What is it?"

"Keep a secret for me."

After dropping those words, Tang Yu vanished on the spot, leaving only a gust of wind that brushed her silver hair.

Stunned, Lucy's eyes unfocused - filled with astonishment and disbelief.

Before she could fully process what had happened or verify the truth, she heard a series of gunshots.

Something's wrong!

Eager to check on the situation, Lucy tried to move around the container but, in an instant, Tang Yu reappeared before her, blocking her path.

Lucy gazed at him, bewildered. But this time, Tang Yu looked like an entirely different person, weak and exhausted.

Supporting himself on his knees, holding the Kenshin pistol, and sweating profusely, he seemed more tired than after their frantic escape.

Lucy couldn't comprehend what he had done, but she was certain it was a covert move.

Drip.

A drop of blood fell to the ground.

Seeing this, Lucy quickly stepped forward to support him, "What happened, are you hurt?!"

Tang Yu raised his hand, wiping the blood with his sleeve while giving a dry chuckle.

"It's nothing. I just overexerted myself a bit there, got a little too excited."

He looked weakened, but in fact, his body was strenuously recovering.

To take out the Scavengers in one go, Tang Yu had accessed his system menu before making a move and elevated his 'Bullet Time' talent by two points, turning it into a rare talent.

- Life Points: 1

- Fusion Ability 1: Indomitable (Rare)

- Fusion Ability 2: Bullet Time (Rare)

Due to the talent upgrade, the corresponding ability and the strain on his body increased exponentially.

In theory, 'Bullet Time' could slow time down to 25%, meaning a fourfold increase in explosive power and reaction speed, among other improvements.

With Tang Yu going all out, he felt his body engorged with power. The world in front of him seemed to slow down to an extreme crawl.

In 'Bullet Time,' it felt like swimming through water, a certain resistance to movement but nothing that hindered his actions.

Meanwhile, everything and everyone around him moved in slow motion, unable to match his tempo.

Tang Yu blasted into overdrive, with the 'Bullet Time' effect likely exceeding 25%.

With the Kenshin pistol, he blurred past the Scavengers, firing shot after shot.

With the sound of gunfire still ringing and casings floating in the air, he completed a thirteen-round burst.

Bang bang bang...

After a series of gunfire, the Scavengers lay on the ground motionless.

Those hiding behind the vans weren't spared either; they were all taken out by Tang Yu's tungsten bullets.

It was only after settling the score with all the Scavengers on the scene and returning to the shelter of the containers that Tang Yu realized the overuse of his powers had caused a nosebleed.

Despite Lucy's anxious and questioning gaze, Tang Yu simply gestured that he was fine.

As Lucy saw his pale complexion regain some color and the bleeding stop, she said,

"Now I get it - anyone who underestimates abilities because of the person's status is a fool."

"I've hacked and erased all nearby camera footage and destroyed their circuit chips."

"The Scavengers brought a signal jammer, which saved the trouble of erasing network caches."

Tang Yu offered his thanks.

Lucy laughed at herself, "I should be the one thanking you. You really had the chance to silence everyone."

"Seeing something you shouldn't have... is not good..."

"I'll remember your caution, but such power..."

Tang Yu did not want to dwell on the topic, so he cut her off, pulling himself up with a forced smile, "I'm actually kind of hungry now. How about we find a stall for a late-night snack?"

Lucy's neon eyes flickered oddly for a moment, then, resigning to something, she replied with a hint of helplessness,

"Heh, you really are insane..."

"Fine. I happen to know a little stall nearby."

"They have hot food that's quite decent."

Tang Yu, his spirits lifted by the thought of food, eagerly asked,

"Do they have Pirozhki?"

Lucy: "..."