“Here, take these and keep them safe.
This stuff is worth a fortune, and this kind of knowledge isn’t easy to come by.” Sandra handed a pack of datashards and braindances to Ruan Xian.
“I get it.
Knowledge is power.” In a cyberpunk world, netrunning knowledge was true power.
The only difference between a high-end netrunner and a god was that they couldn’t achieve physical immortality.
But they could upload themselves to cyberspace, achieving a digital ascension to become a half-human, half-AI entity.
Powerful netrunners and AIs built their own ghost towns beyond the Blackwall.
They were truly as terrifyingly powerful as ghosts.
“I’m heading out first.
Take care, Teach.
Message me anytime if something happens.
I can get anywhere in Watson in a flash.
As long as you don’t get cornered by Militech or Arasaka armies, I’m confident I can bust you out.” Ruan Xian could not wait to go back, learn some badass skills, and pull off some major moves.
“Uh-huh, sure, I believe you, kid.
If there’s anything you don’t understand, just message me.
I’ve got enough confidence to teach you.
But if you really can’t get the hang of it, don’t be too discouraged.
Everyone has their own strengths, you know?” Sandra replied.
“I understand.
See you around.
I’m off.” Ruan Xian waved goodbye, stepped out of Sandra’s apartment, and bolted.
Downstairs, he bought some XXL burritos and hot dogs at the Nyorai Hotel, stocked up on some Manticore and Real Water, stuffed them into his motorcycle’s cargo trunk, and high-tailed it back to his hideout.
—Press F to Enter Tank—
He ran red lights all the way to his temporary safehouse.
This crappy area didn’t even have street signs, let alone the NCPD.
But it did have vending machines selling snacks and submachine guns.
Capitalism really was something else.
“Okay, let’s have a look.” Once back on his own turf, Ruan Xian grabbed the secondhand BD wreath he’d looted from the Scavengers.
Slipping it on along with the tutorial BD and learning chips he had mooched off the wealthy lady, he lay back and plunged into the Spirit World.
Spiritual Vision active.
Data Appraisal initialized.
[Basic Netrunning Tutorial (Datashard): A datashard programmed with a basic netrunning tutorial.
Inserting it into a neural link immediately grants the corresponding skills.
Complete mastery requires continuous practice.
If the chip is removed before the skill is truly mastered, the netrunning skills (basic) will be immediately lost.] [Minimum Requirement: Intelligence 4] [(Note: The minimum requirement doesn’t mean you should actually use the bare minimum.
Playing a game with the minimum system requirements only gets you low-res pixelated graphics.
If your Intelligence is 4, please do not waste this high-end, premium chip.)]
“Who are you mocking, punk?
Intelligence discrimination, much?!”
[Basic Netrunning Tutorial (Braindance): A learning braindance recorded via a BD cyberware.
After use, the user can experience the recorder’s learning process.
Guided by professional masters, with the student pumped full of cognitive enhancers throughout, this BD helps you truly master netrunning techniques—from uploading quickhacks to constructing new programs, from BD editing to hacking vehicles. Get faster updates on novelping dot com.
Everything you want to learn is here.
This BD also includes a bonus advanced tutorial: Introduction to Data Fortresses.
You’re getting an absolute steal!] [Minimum Requirement: Intelligence 4] [(Note: Learning this with Intelligence 4 is practically suicide.
If you really try to learn this with the minimum requirements, you might as well just die.
Spare this BD, and spare yourself.)]
“Motherfucker, even if I can’t learn it normally, I have a cheat.
Shut up, system.” Ruan Xian fully grasped the situation.
It seemed the chip was plug-and-play, essentially granting him a skill.
“But only by using and studying it continuously can I truly master it.
If I don’t use it, it remains exactly as it was when recorded, and I can only use what’s on it.” After reading the appraisal results, it took Ruan Xian ten minutes to piece everything together.
Getting a skill from a datashard was like learning a fireball spell in a game.
Once learned, its stats would remain completely static.
He had to use it repeatedly and thoroughly digest it to engrave the skill into his synaptic pathways.
Only after truly mastering it could he make adjustments to the “fireball” himself—turning a fireball into a fire cloud, concentrating the fire elements to make a bomb, or reducing its power in exchange for a faster cast time.
A braindance, on the other hand, was like taking an online class, but with a first-person immersive experience.
The user would feel exactly what the student in the recording felt.
Because the recorded student had been pumped full of dopamine, caffeine, and cognitive stimulants the entire time, anyone using the BD would feel both euphoric and razor-sharp.
“Awesome.
As expected, braindances aren’t just for watching cyber-tits and jacking off.
Making illegal black BDs is practically amateur hour.
Corporations must have been using this stuff for learning, research, and brainwashing for ages.” In the game, Ruan Xian had always wondered.
Why were the BDs watched by the street-level scum always filled with either sex or violence?
Theoretically, this technology was the ultimate learning tool.
Slipping in a chip and watching a BD allowed one to learn and apply knowledge simultaneously, letting them master a skill in no time.
Ruan Xian’s Intelligence was currently only 3, which didn’t even meet the minimum learning requirement.
Fortunately, he still had 2 unused Attribute Points.
With his Body at 15, he had more than enough self-defense capability; it was time to invest in the future.
Intelligence: 3 -> 5
“I have two Perk Points left.
Theoretically, they can speed up my learning and growth.
Let’s see how this works.” Ruan Xian stared at his two remaining Perk Points, ready to test their worth.
In the game, you could just assign perks and use them instantly, and you could even respec at any time.
They felt like skill chips that couldn’t be removed and couldn’t grow; once allocated, their effect remained the same till the end.
“Now that it’s reality, though, I probably won’t be able to respec.” Ruan Xian summoned a section of his root totem.
It swallowed the datashard, the BD, and the wreath.
The shard was slotted into Sean Donnelly’s neural link, while the Lotus Root expanded and molded itself into a human-head shape, fitting the BD wreath snugly onto it.
“Man, this looks disgusting.
I’m losing sanity just looking at it.” Ruan Xian’s eyelids twitched, but as long as it worked, he didn’t care.
[Remaining Perk Points: 2 -> 1] [Target: Netrunning (Basic)] [Location: Within Shaman Territory] [Please ensure usage within your territory to achieve the optimal effect.
Time dilation: 99.9% (within territory).
Learning efficiency bonus: (Intelligence × 5).
“Learning Makes Me Happy” (pleasure induction activated; accelerated dopamine and endorphin secretion).
Spiritual Energy consumption: Moderate.
Spiritual Energy recovery speed: Rapid.
Stamina consumption: Moderate.
Stamina recovery speed: Rapid.
Sanity depletion: Low.
Sanity recovery speed: Rapid.
Enjoy your studies!]
“Wait, don’t I still have to study it myself?” Ruan Xian was caught flat-footed.
Before Ruan Xian could even regret it, he plunged into the braindance.
He studied, memorized, took exams, and ran simulations continuously.
Relying on the chip’s built-in skill set and the BD’s foundational tutorials, his temporary Intelligence of 25 (active only during the learning phase) gave him an incredibly rapid learning pace.
During his studies, Ruan Xian even experienced infinite bliss.
The more he learned, the better he felt.
There was absolutely no aversion to studying.
He didn’t want to play around; he didn’t even want to look at his phone.
Without realizing it, Ruan Xian had completely mastered the basic quickhacks on the datashard and the basic cyber-languages in the BD tutorial.
[Academic Skill Mastered: Netrunning (Basic), Netrunning (Introduction to Data Fortresses)] [Skill Level Evaluation: Netrunning (Elite)] [PS: Evaluation criteria based on High-Dimensional Overseer standards.]
Now, if necessary, Ruan Xian could fully design and construct a brand-new software program entirely of his own making.
Depending on the power of the features, his own RAM, and his Intelligence, he could develop a program completely unique to him.
“But there’s no real need for that.
Basic quickhacks are enough.
It’s not like the more features and power a program has, the better it is.
Upload speed, complexity, and RAM usage are also crucial.” Ruan Xian didn’t plan on developing anything insane right now; after all, his Intelligence was only 5.
Once the learning buff from the Perk Point wore off, Ruan Xian clearly felt his thinking speed slow down.
Things he could understand and create instantly during his studies now required prolonged contemplation.
He had indeed mastered basic netrunning skills.
However, the gap between an Intelligence of 25 and an Intelligence of 5 was simply too vast.
The accumulated fatigue and study aversion now hit him as a backlash, leaving Ruan Xian feeling…
a bit nauseous.
“Seems I can’t prepare too many tutorials at once to cheese with a single Perk Point.
Fuck, this feels awful.” Ruan Xian had finished the entire tutorial and mastered it perfectly, but the price was nausea, a splitting headache, and a wave of depression from the post-study backlash.
“Basic netrunning is the most important.
It’s too vast and complex.
I had to learn it.
This is too hard to bear.
I have to increase my Intelligence.
As long as my Intelligence is high enough, the five-times learning multiplier will let me master things instantly.
I won’t have to suffer like this.
Blegh…” Comforting himself while dry-heaving, Ruan Xian decided he had to max out his Intelligence immediately.
The brain was the most important; Intelligence was the most efficient.
Ruan Xian, with his Intelligence of 5, made a decision using his not-yet-super brain.