After finishing a shower, Harry poured the oatmeal into a bowl and then turned on the black-and-white television. He sat on the sofa and started eating.
The black-and-white television only had three channels, all of them being from the central broadcasting station. Due to not requiring a subscription fee, Harry would always turn it on during meal times, even though there wasn't much to watch.
"According to official data, the game helmet called 'Pure Land' has sold nearly 200 million units in the mainland. This game is developed by..."
Harry was eating the oatmeal quietly, but when he heard the news on TV, he was shocked and almost spilled the oatmeal in his bowl.
"More than 200 million helmets have been sold. How many young people will be poisoned by this!" Harry stared at the black-and-white television in disbelief.
"This game was developed by many leading companies around the world. It took several years to develop and received strong support from many countries. According to the analysis of our country's experts, this game can not only alleviate the employment difficulties in our country but also allow the sick and disabled to enjoy another life inside..."
Harry was a little confused. He had stopped playing games a long time ago, so he didn't pay attention to this either. However, when he heard this news, in addition to being shocked, he was even more unbelievable.
Especially when the expert said that this game could help our country alleviate employment difficulties!
Alleviating employment difficulties meant that people could earn money in the game. Harry knew and had also opened a so-called studio.
However, as long as a game could make money, there would be a large number of studios participating. Moreover, the game company was also trying hard to crack down on this, causing it to be impossible to develop in this field.
But this game, Pure Land, promoted player development within the game, allowing them to establish their own studios and teams. As long as they have the ability, they can freely develop.
Harry's eyes lit up at the thought of over 200 million players. He just needed to set up a studio with a small group of people and make a good amount of money, considering his past experience in running a studio.
However, after a moment, Harry immediately shook his head. What if he couldn't make money? Not only would he lose his job, but his whole life would be ruined.
After deep contemplation, Harry decided against it. It would be better to stay stable. After all, he had a job and income. Although the salary was a bit low and his life was a bit difficult, he could still get by. He had already been addicted to games before and didn't want to get trapped in that cycle again.
...
Other than a phone call from the company in the morning, there was no else phone call until nighttime.
Harry looked at his broken phone. It was already 10:00 p.m. He yawned and turned off the lights. Then, he lay on the bed and fell asleep soon after.
...
"Oh, yeah, ah!"
"Ah, ah, ah!"
"Oh baby, you're shouting so loudly. Great!"
"Hum, you bastard!"
"..."
The loud sound jolted Harry awake from his drowsiness. It was coming from the neighboring room, and he couldn't help but scratch his head in frustration. Almost every month, out of the thirty days, twenty of them would appear these noises, disturbing Harry's sleep in the middle of the night.
Renting a place here had its advantages, but this particular issue was causing Harry great distress. Yet, he had no real solution. He couldn't simply go over and ask them to keep it down.
Harry glanced at his phone to check the time. It was already 11:20 p.m., and he had only managed to sleep for a little over an hour. He was still deeply exhausted, but he had to work tomorrow. Helplessly, Harry closed his eyes, hoping to get a bit more sleep. However, the noise from next door was so loud that he couldn't fall back asleep at all."
Harry tossed and turned in bed, unable to fall asleep for a long time. But his sleepiness was completely gone. Finally, he sat up from the bed.
Harry yawned in frustration. He got up and turned on the lights in the room. He went to the table and took a sip of water.
But at that moment, as Harry took a sip of water, the light from the helmet packaging box on the table reflected off the label, emitting a dazzling, colorful glow that caught his eye.
Harry paused for a moment, then picked up the packaging box and carefully examined it.
Could this thing transport him into the game just by wearing it? A realism level of 99%? Immersive experience? Also, one could make money from it?
Harry scoffed, finding it hard to believe.
"What if I give it a try?" Harry hesitated inwardly. Although the game's marketing was incredibly hyped, he knew that most game advertisements tended to exaggerate and just capture attention with flashy claims.
"But what if it's really as advertised?" Harry's breathing became rapid, and his mind grew restless. After all, even the government had endorsed the game, with experts coming forward to vouch for it. Although Harry didn't trust experts' opinions, he trusted the government. Could the government deceive people?
Besides, what harm could it do to try? At worst, the helmet would become second-hand, and he would lose a few bucks.
In addition, Harry was not sleepy yet, and the noise from the neighbor was still going on. After thinking for a while, his eyes flashed with determination. With trembling hands, finally, he opened the box of the helmet and took out the helmet inside.
It was a very exquisite helmet. It was completely black and made of a special material. Under the light, it shone brightly.
As he carefully examined the helmet, Harry found an instruction manual beside it and quickly picked it up to read.
After checking for a while, Harry took a deep breath and followed the instructions in the manual. He put on the helmet and lay flat on the bed. Then, he reached out and pressed a button on the helmet.
"Full-body scan in progress..."
"Scanning successful!"
"Identity verification in progress..."
"Verification successful!"
"Binding identity information..."
"Binding successful!"
"Welcome player Harry to Pure Land!"
...
A few voices sounded in Harry's mind. Then, his vision blurred. When it became clear again, he appeared in a white space.
"Hello, I'm Monica in Pure Land!"
A palm-sized fairy flapped its small wings and slowly flew in front of Harry.
Harry ignored Monica. He stood there in a daze, his face full of disbelief. He looked around carefully, then lowered his head to look at himself and realized that he was only wearing a pair of shorts.
"Wow..." Harry's breathing hastened as he quickly touched his body. The sense of the touch was extremely real, just like reality, with a realism level of 99% indeed. Harry was completely shocked.
After a while, Harry slowly came back to his senses. He looked at the cute Monica with big eyes in front of him and couldn't help but reach out to touch her.
"Hello, welcome to Pure Land!"
Monica was very cute. She didn't avoid Harry's hand. Instead, she enjoyed it and let Harry caress her.