Indescribable cyberpunk

Above ground mall, underground market.

Here's a summary of the state of Watson District in an online forum.

But few people know another sentence that may sound strange: the underground market in Watson District is not in Watson District!

This sounds like a sick sentence. Since it is an underground market in Watson District, why is it not in Watson District?

As a foreigner, Zhu Jue undoubtedly knew little about the situation in this city. When he heard this from the store manager, he had the same reaction as most people who heard this fact for the first time, with a face full of confusion.

Fortunately, Zhu Jue had an old Shuguang City resident who was willing to give him a detailed introduction.

Even if the latter is voluntary.

As the elevator sank, the surrounding light gradually fell into darkness. When it passed a certain critical point, the four walls that originally seemed ordinary suddenly flashed with large grotesque fluorescent coatings. Zhu Jue, who was about to continue asking, saw At this scene, he subconsciously stopped talking and took Feng Chime, who was a little anxious due to the changes in the surrounding environment, from his shoulders to his arms.

The moment the elevator door opened, a mechanical clown stood beside the door, with exaggerated oil paint smeared on the fuselage. Its right hand looked like Edward Scissorhands, full of sharp blades, and its left hand held an unactivated weapon. He carried a large chainsaw on his shoulder, opened his mouth and shouted with a mouth full of fangs: "Welcome to the Underground World!!!"

Pa~

The frightened wind chime stretched out its claws and slapped the clown on the head. It immediately flipped over and some sparks sprayed out from the cracked fault.

The store manager next to him broke into a cold sweat when he saw this scene, and he twisted his neck quite uncomfortably.

"Hey, what are you doing standing around, let's go!"

When Zhu Jue saw that the wind chime had dismantled other people's belongings, he hurriedly walked a few steps away from the place, fearing that some strange guy would rush up and ask him to pay for it.

However, before running a few steps, Zhu Jue stopped where he was.

It's not that he was stopped, but that he was confused by the surrounding situation.

The light in the subway station here is extremely dark. Basically, the distance between the two is more than 5 meters, and the other person's face and clothing are blurred.

Rhythmic and compact drum beats combined with low roars and some tunes that are difficult to understand are filling the entire subway station. Just like the incandescent lighting seen in the Heywood District before, there is no incandescent lamp. It all relies on The searchlights covered with steel covers hanging on the surrounding walls and the fluorescent coating lighting on those walls not only do not look like a serious subway station, but more like a nightclub.

There are few people in the crowd who are wearing normal clothes. Some people have weird patterns on their faces and are walking around wearing a pair of orange night vision goggles. Some people only wear a sleeveless leather jacket, and the colorful tattoos on their chests follow his pace. It changes into various forms, and some people show off their mechanical prostheses with great fanfare. Judging from the shape and structure, even Zhu Jue, a person who doesn't know much about this aspect, knows that he has made illegal modifications. If he puts it on the ground If you are caught on surveillance camera, you will be sent to jail immediately.

They are unscrupulous here!

What was even more bizarre was that Zhu Jue also saw several gang members with mohawk hairdos, each holding a long gun, patrolling back and forth with steps that they did not recognize as relatives. Those who didn't know it thought this was their territory.

What Zhu Jue didn't know was that this subway station store was really their territory.

"As we all know, there are 6 subway lines in Dawn City, which connect six districts of the city respectively. However, only five of them are currently in public operation because the gang problem is extremely serious. The subway line was abolished five years ago, and all stations on Line 6 ceased operation, but this is just a superficial phenomenon. Please follow me, the waiting area is here."

The store manager led Zhu Jue to the platform, avoiding several waves of gang members in groups, and stood in front of the dilapidated full-height screen door. There was an ambiguous gasp and two entangled words coming from the darkness not far away. The figure proves that there should be no cameras here.

"Are you trying to say that this is the subway line that was abolished?"

Zhu Jue felt the special atmosphere around him and asked directly.

"Yes, this line was officially abolished by the Shuguang City government, and all the original line stations were out of service. However, under the operation of Shuguang City's underground forces, this line was restarted three years ago. Only But it became a special train, only responsible for travel between two areas, Watson District and Pacifica District."

The store manager, who had been reluctant before, knew that he couldn't run away, so he simply concentrated on explaining, hoping to gain some impression points with Zhu Jue. He just asked not to be like that unloaded donkey.

Under the store manager's narration, Zhu Jue gradually became familiar with the situation in Watson District.

The so-called underground market in Watson District is actually located in the slums of Dawn City. It is an urban area regarded by the Dawn City government as a garbage collection place. Various black market transactions that are difficult to put on the table are placed there. The adverse effects there are much smaller than in regular urban areas.

The subway station was deliberately placed in the alleyway of Watson District. On the one hand, it was because Pacifica itself is an extremely poor urban area. No one with a little savings would live there, whether they are gang members or underground traders. This is true for both buyers and sellers in the market. The purpose of opening this special line is to provide a unified and reliable transportation line for others.

On the other hand, the government of Shuguang City agreed to the opening of this line in this form because of their considerations. Instead of letting these gang members run around the city with great fanfare every day, eventually making other urban areas a mess, it would also easily cause some For those who follow the trend, it is better to simply set up an underground station specifically in Watson District and tell ordinary people about the name of the underground black market in order to divert their attention, thus achieving the purpose of covering up the real black market in Pacifica City.

Not long after, with a low whistling sound, the train entered the station.

Even the appearance of this train to Pacifica was different from other trains. The outside was covered with all kinds of strange graffiti. When Zhu Jue got closer, he also found a lot of scratches and craters. It was obvious that riding this train was dangerous. It should be a bit high.

Zhu Jue even secretly thought that those people made the lights in the subway station so dark, probably to prevent others from seeing the serious damage to the train.

"What are you looking at? Pay the money!"

As soon as I entered the train, someone shouted at the door holding a square iron box.

The store manager hurried forward and paid two people's money before explaining to Zhu Jue: "The site here is being watched by the Silt Gang. They are responsible for ensuring that no one comes to cause trouble, while the people who get on the bus here are You have to pay a fee of 100 federal coins, which is said to be a ticket, but is actually a protection fee."

“Are all subway stations run by gangsters?”

This method of standing at the subway gate to collect money one by one is really rare.

"There are no ordinary people taking the bus here at all. Even if the government sends people here, it is just asking for trouble. Besides, they also collect money from there. It is an abandoned line. To a certain extent, it is outsourced to here. Gangster power.”

Those who came to the Watson District underground to take this train had only one destination, and that was the Pacifica slum. In the eyes of the government, the people who could go there were poor people even if they were not gangsters.

Let them die?

Regarding the store manager's argument, Zhu Jue was noncommittal. He originally wanted to find a place to sit, but after looking at the seats with strange stains, he thought about it and decided not to let his butt suffer. He just grabbed the hanging ring and kept his eyes on the train. A few lights occasionally flashed outside.

About 30 minutes later, the route indicator light on top of the train door was pushed to the last stop.

Still the same as before, the store manager walked in front, and Zhu Jue followed behind him. He went out from the east exit. There was no elevator here, but a long staircase. The lower part was fine. When he reached the middle section, the stairs on both sides The stone wall looked dilapidated.

Although I haven't seen the scene outside at this time, the shouts and shouts coming from around the subway entrance are enough to prove the excitement in the area.

"Mr. Zhu, please stay calm when you get to the ground later. There may be some genetic beasts around here. They were obtained by several gangs that control the black market."

As if he suddenly remembered something, the store manager turned around and warned.

As if to echo his words, Zhu Jue was just about to say that he knew, when two larger wolf heads poked out from the entrance of the subway station, their thick claws scratching the wall, and a low growl leaked from the interlaced fangs. People feel chilled from the bottom of their hearts.

"That's them. Gang members claim that they can smell the smell of police officers, and they have killed several people before. But that was actually just an act, so you don't have to think that I'm overthinking it."

The store manager was still thinking of a few words of comfort, but when he looked at Zhu Jue, he realized that he didn't even have the slightest hint of nervousness on his face, and was just looking at the two genetic beasts with interest.

"Is this the only level? It looks much worse than that of the Devogene Group."

Zhu Jue was someone who had seen the finished product of the giant beast plan and killed one by the way. It was obviously impossible for such a low-level genetic beast to scare him.

"Do you know anyone from the Dvorgene Group?"

The store manager on the side heard Zhu Jue talking about the name of this genetic group, and was a little surprised and continued,

"Today there is a beast trainer battle in the black market arena. They are genetic beasts that can compete with the mental pollution source monsters in the dangerous areas outside. It is said to be a very exciting battle. If you are interested, I can take you there. have a look."

What the store manager was thinking was that if no one could be found at his address later, he would have to find a place to divert the other party's attention. It would be best to escape quietly while Zhu Jue was watching the game.

Zhu Jue did not reject the proposal immediately. He still remembered the animal tamer plan. At that time, it was just an idea from the brother and sister. He did not expect that the Devogen Group would be successful five years later.