CHAPTER 147: CHAPTER 97: THE DRIVER

The armored vehicle weighing several tons was coming toward them, like a herd of charging rhinos, and more disgustingly, the onboard weapons never ceased their attacks.

John was hit by multiple bullets.

He ducked behind a stationary muscle off-road vehicle, smashed its window with several shots, then slipped inside.

Bam!

As soon as John sat down, he was hit.

A desert walker pressed against the left rear wheel of the off-road vehicle, continuously pushing forward with a loud friction noise.

John felt a sharp pain in his internal organs.

He bent down to dismantle the circuit board and used techniques known to car thieves and transport drivers to start the vehicle—one of the characteristics of non-branded vehicles was poor anti-theft functionality.

Whirr!

John floored the accelerator, kicking up sand, forcibly squeezing out of the encirclement.

He drifted and collided along the internal roads of the scrapyard, observing the chaotic battlefield through the window:

Camp members were shooting their guns.

Nando shouted angrily amidst smoke.

Flaming muzzles were visible everywhere, explosives rolled chaotically on the ground, overturned vehicles burned in the thick smoke, smoke and sharp noises enveloped the whole world, and the chaos continued to grow...

Alonna sat still, leaning back.

No matter how John shouted, there was no response.

The voice channel showed her signal was extremely poor.

He activated the scan and saw:

Dozens of red data streams were connected to Alonna from different directions of the scrapyard, like countless data shackles, trying to penetrate her implants.

Rumble, rumble, rumble...

Countless vehicles surged in, including a smart motorcycle with only half a handle left, an unpainted commercial sports car, and a large engineering vehicle with a storage tank.

The motorcycle was the fastest, leaping over obstacles like a meteor crashing toward Alonna.

She tried to lift the weapon in her hand, but every joint was so stiff it felt like it had been welded together; she could only curl her knees, preparing to withstand the impact.

Suddenly, an off-road vehicle dashed through the obstacles.

It swerved from the side, knocking over the motorcycle, and braked sharply next to her.

The loosely hanging car door opened.

"Get in, quick!"

John saw the dense convoy through the rearview mirror but turned to find Alonna sitting in place, seemingly struggling to move.

"...Tsk, f*ck!"

He leaped over the console, grabbing her arm and pulling her into the passenger seat, quickly turning the vehicle around.

An out-of-control vehicle crashed into the rear of their car.

John took the opportunity to change direction, flooring the accelerator to leave, as successive sounds of collisions and explosions came from behind.

"Turn around... go back..."

Alonna struggled to speak.

The red data streams were still fighting for control with her, with golden and red colors flashing in her pupils.

"The device... is controlled, won’t let us leave... have to go back and kill the hacker."

"Go back?"

John glimpsed the dense vehicles in the rearview mirror, then occasionally looked back at Alonna.

Rumble, sizzle~

The chaos reached its peak and exploded.

The steel frame network hanging in midair emitted terrifying bending sounds, with dust flying from every corner, and the earth trembled from the mechanical overload roar.

Everyone couldn’t help but look up.

Blue currents crawled and spread over the metal scaffolding, high-voltage cables snapped and fell, ropes with hooks began attacking people, and massive electromagnetic suction cups roared...

Clang, clang!

Scattered metal shells, the wreckage of abandoned vehicles, and even prosthetic body fragments stained with blood all began flying toward the sky!

The iron plates acted like black holes, with interlaced magnetic storms sweeping the entire scrapyard.

Empty cars were completely pulled up.

The thick ropes swung, and the steel structure, unable to bear the weight, collapsed across the road, blocking the escape route.

[They won’t let us leave.]

[Hey, those bastards have gone all out; they wouldn’t let you go back alive, would they?]

Whoosh~

Sizzle sizzle—

A massive metal hook sank into the ground, scooping up debris and passing over John’s off-road vehicle.

Sizzle, bang!

"F*ck."

John was burned by the roaming current, and the glass on the other side was shattered by iron fragments.

Alonna slightly recovered.

The scrapyard was under the control of Ironfoot Kelp’s assistant; automatic turrets, hovercars, and all vehicles equipped with smart chips were the enemy’s weapons.

She was also a primary target of the enemy.

"If you want to survive, you have to kill the hacker."

"Your implants are locked, even if you charge in recklessly, what combat power do you have left?"

"I can overclock the ICE firmware to cut off his control."

"What if they hack you again?"

"There’s a gap of tens of seconds, and if the distance is close enough, we should have time to kill him."

Alonna stated her assessment.

John understood her expression—if he refused to return, she would drive alone into the depths of the factory.

After hesitating for a moment, he charged into the repair workshop.

Alonna saw him get out of the car, thinking he had given up, and was about to move to the driver’s seat to take over the steering wheel, when the car door beside her was opened by John.

He leaned on the passenger seat, asking.

"How long do you need to unlock the control?"

"The program needs 40 seconds to overclock, then we’ll have about 55 seconds of free movement."

Alonna answered honestly.

John started a countdown on his retina, then carried her out and placed her on the back seat of the motorcycle.

These are all old fuel-burning models, no need to worry about being remotely controlled by hackers.

John picked the one with the fullest tank and the fastest speed, and twisted the key on top.

He said to Alonna to start.

[Countdown: 39s↓]

The motorcycle reared up its front wheel.

The roaring engine made his thighs tingle.

John smashed through obstacles, rushed onto the main road, and drifted in the opposite direction of escape, speeding forward.

[You... lonna... doing... crazy?!]

[...hn... F*ck... wanna die?!]

Angry roars crackled intermittently on the team channel.

The signal source was shielded by the chaotic magnetic field; the hacker’s lockdown radius was larger than imagined.

As soon as John charged out, he was targeted.

A red data stream attacked.

[Messiah’s Eye Reboot: Progress 31%]

But he didn’t slow down, instead floored the throttle, leaping into the air using obstacles.

The motorcycle plunged into a sea of traffic, advancing continuously on the relatively flat roofs of business cars, only landing after breaking through the first tier blockade.

Vroom vroom vroom...

The fierce wind howled past his ears.

John’s brows furrowed tightly, his jacket flapping, the motorcycle beneath him weaving through densely packed obstacles.

Swish, buzz!

A massive metal hook crashed down.

Cables lunged like venomous snakes, azure arcs and tawny flames sparking on the road.

John leaned to dodge.

[Messiah’s Eye Reboot: Progress 78%]

Colorful lines flickered in his vision, which began strobing incessantly, making it harder to judge distances to dodge traffic.

Bang!

A passing armored vehicle clipped off the right rearview mirror.

John remained unflustered, eyes locked on the tower at the runway’s end—the hackers could control the entire scrapyard’s equipment, which was likely there.

[Countdown: 13s]

Alonna still needed some time before she could move.

[Messiah’s Eye Reboot: Progress 91%]

But John would be blind before reaching the tower.

He didn’t tell Alonna, releasing his left grip, and brought her hand into his jacket.

Things happened too fast.

Alonna didn’t have a chance to grab her gear.

She felt John’s gun holster, understood, and held the SOCP Butterfly Knife and revolver.

John broke through the encirclement.

The final stretch was a straight path; passing through the material entrance and exit, cones, wooden crates, and the three-story tower came into view.

[Messiah’s Eye Reboot: Progress 100%]

John’s pupils instantly dilated, Messiah’s Eye slightly heated inside his head.

His vision went pitch black.

[Countdown: 5s]

"Four."

John muttered aloud.

He held the handlebars steady, maintaining high speed, the sound of bullets whistling by.

Automatic turrets on the walls were firing.

"Three."

He floored the throttle—slowing down or stopping now would make them sitting ducks.

"Two."

The countdown’s voice scattered in the wind.

John’s world was black, the motorcycle’s slight vibrations communicated through touch to his whole body.

With weaker composure, they would have toppled over.

"One."

Time seemed to freeze.

The motorcycle crashed into a traffic cone, flipped several times in the air before landing, sliding forward with long sparks and metal debris...

John flew upwards.

Alonna’s Sianweistan activated—blue streaming light trailed from her eyes, the metal screws on her back burned through her clothes, leaving a row of circular scorch marks.

She embraced John as they landed and rolled, using her metal arm to absorb most of the impact and friction.

John tucked his body in anticipation.

He was released, skidding along the ground, stopping when he hit the edge of a wall.

Bang!

The fourth floor’s glass shattered on cue.

Alonna climbed through the window along the iron frame, holding the Vodka revolver and Butterfly Knife.

The armed Exiles turned their heads in unison.

In the dim corridor, crimson lights flickered on.