"Alright, alright, sir, I can explain," he said hurriedly.
"You should know that the predecessor of Flowing AI was Data Life. Their core code structures are almost identical.
"The Blackwall won't be able to identify what it is—nor will it try to. The Blackwall doesn't analyze; it only attacks. Once triggered, it launches indiscriminate area-wide annihilation. Everything within range gets wiped out.
"I won't let my baby touch something like that, and you'd better not either. You may be strong, but you don't understand the Blackwall's true nature at all!"
Hearing Xiao's implication, Hansen immediately stopped making excuses and instead spoke in a low, meaningful tone.
"The true face of the Blackwall?"
Xiao paused slightly.
Truthfully, he didn't know much about it either. Even in the original records, the Blackwall was barely explained. All he knew was that it had been constructed by top-tier netrunners and network supervisors.
It had appeared almost overnight—much like the Walls in Attack on Titan—as if it had suddenly manifested to save the entire Net from collapse.
"Xiao," Mr. Hands said quietly, his voice suddenly dropping several octaves, "have you heard this saying?"
"Hope often comes from darkness."
After that brief hint, he fell silent.
As if some absolute taboo prevented him from saying anything more.
Xiao's pupils shrank.
Then, slowly, a smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.
"(⊙o⊙)… I think I understand now. That's… quite an interesting statement."
"Xiao, don't do anything reckless," Hansen urged through clenched teeth.
"Data Life is a taboo. You really cannot touch it. Maybe you should ask yourself—why is there no longer any technology that collects human thought patterns directly from the Net?"
Before he could finish—
The cyberware embedded throughout Hansen's body suddenly surged into overdrive.
Smoke billowed from multiple joints.
A terrifying amount of heat erupted inside him.
[Cyber Virus · Prosthetic Overheating]
Something had launched an attack—attempting to burn him alive.
Yet it was clearly holding back, using only a crude intrusion program, as if unwilling to fully expose itself.
"N-No—wait, let me explain, I was just—!"
Hansen lurched to his feet in horror, but the entity hijacking his body had no interest in explanations.
It only knew one thing:
Someone had leaked information that should never have been revealed.
Xiao sensed the intrusion as well.
But the Cyber Dimension responded instantly—its vast data flow swallowing the invading signal whole, crushing it utterly.
"Flowing AI… now that's interesting."
Xiao captured the attacker's remaining traces.
It was a rogue AI, wandering outside the Blackwall—yet capable of slipping through it with ease, striking both Hansen and Xiao simultaneously.
So the Blackwall…
It clearly wasn't just the crude defensive firewall described by network regulators.
Nor was it merely a chaotic wall of garbage code meant to suppress circulating AIs.
"Relax, Hansen," Xiao said calmly.
"As long as you're in Night City, no one will lay a finger on you."
He snapped his fingers.
The colossal data torrent of the Cyber Dimension condensed into a gaping digital maw, surged along the network lines, and devoured the cybervirus ravaging Hansen's body.
As for the rogue AI that poisoned him—it tried to flee the moment its counterpart was erased.
But Xiao's computational power was backed by an entire world—and hundreds of thousands of believers.
Most of the AI's structure was shredded and consumed on the spot.
Only a fragment of its core escaped, fleeing back beyond the Blackwall in despair.
"Th-Thank you… Mr. Xiao…"
Hansen collapsed onto the sofa, gasping for breath.
"It's settled," Xiao said flatly.
"Let your daughter complete the incubation of that data-lifeform. Don't let me be the one to ruin it."
A projection of a neural-link chip appeared in Xiao's hand. He flicked it toward the screen.
At the same moment—
Inside a luxurious private suite in Kabuki, a silver-white chip materialized out of thin air and landed silently on Hansen's desk.
Hansen stared at it for a long moment before quietly putting it away.
Frankly, he was terrified of such incomprehensible methods.
"Go see the Mechanicus bishops," Xiao continued.
"They'll bless you and your family. Once the machine spirit is activated, no cybervirus will ever be able to invade your prosthetics again."
"Thank you… truly."
Hansen's once-upright posture now looked frail, his entire body trembling faintly.
This was a warning.
A reminder of the absolute gulf between him and Xiao.
And also a message:
Flowing AI had marked him.
From now on, only Xiao could shield him from its assassination attempts.
"Rogue, I've got a job for you."
After hanging up, Hansen made another call.
"Speak. I'm listening."
Rogue Amendiares took a slow sip of golden rum—pure, unaugmented, distilled from 100% sugarcane.
No additives.
No synthetic accelerants.
No labor-boosting tech.
One bottle alone was worth 500,000 eurodollars, purchased directly through Mechanicus channels. Even money couldn't buy it—only status.
Using her authority, she'd managed to secure exactly one bottle.
"Find me a hacker," Hansen said.
"Skilled. Fast. Clean."
"Easy enough. I'll send them over," Rogue replied lazily.
"And don't call me for this kind of thing again. Text messages only."
She paused before hanging up.
"And don't forget to pay."
"Understood."
Xiao transferred 10,000 eurodollars without complaint—though he couldn't shake the feeling that he'd somehow been looked down on.
Rogue's efficiency lived up to her reputation.
Less than half an hour later, a blonde woman wearing an orange-and-black jacket and a red visor mask arrived at Xiao's residence.
"…Kiwi?"
Xiao recognized her instantly.
The netrunner from Edgerunners.
The woman froze.
"…You know me?"
After a moment's thought, she assumed Rogue had already briefed him.
"Yes," she replied simply.
Xiao clicked his tongue.
So it really was her.
As the timeline edged closer to 2076, familiar figures were emerging one after another—like mushrooms after rain.
First Sasha and Maine.
Now Kiwi.
They were all surfacing far earlier than expected.
"So," Kiwi asked, "you're the client. What's the job?"
"Let's see if you're up to it," Xiao said, tossing her a dimensional chip.
"Kill a piece of dark data.
Do that, and I'll pay you 200,000 eurodollars."
The chip wasn't ordinary.
Embedded within it was a specialized anti-corruption program.
Kiwi's task was simple—yet deadly:
Enter the Cyber Dimension.
Hunt down the dark data birthed from countless distorted human thoughts.
Erase it completely… and convert what remained into clean, normal data.
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