"In a completely immersive game that is 100% real..."

Earth

 in a certain university computer room.

As Ye Wei read the group chat messages, the first image that flashed in his mind wasn't about the game but rather a blank display of justice.

To elaborate, it was his modded Skyrim with 200+ mods, and over 100 personally crafted wives coming back to life from the save file.

Going into further details would be too much to share, or his account might be at risk.

His nickname in the group was "Wakes Up Over a Dozen Times a Night," but due to its length and lack of refinement, fellow group members simply called him Night Ten.

"It's true, literally."

"Sight, hearing, smell, touch, taste... everything is the same as the real world. The game's time flow is 1:1 with the real world, with a time difference of about 12 hours. Because the technical principle involves interference with dreams, playing the game is equivalent to sleeping."

The person typing these lines was nicknamed "Light."

This solemn single-character nickname, along with the group name "Cow Horse Club," seemed out of place. So, the group's quirky members occasionally referred to this person as "Ultraman," "Gaia," or even "Boss" or "Awesome."

Level 8 Gale (Admin): "Is this some fantasy setting? (Laughs)"

Future Looks Bright (Admin): "And it sounds a bit dated, like an early web novel's description of virtual reality games."

White Horse Passing Through the Gap (Group Owner): "Haha, are you talking about wearing virtual reality headsets? I used to enjoy reading those back in my school days."

One Night Wakes Up Over a Dozen Times (Admin): "To be honest, this setting is just unreasonable. Would the game developers really do it just for the players' enjoyment without making money? "

Ye Wei didn't read these novels, but he felt that having received nine years of compulsory education, he should pursue reasonability over mere enjoyment, unlike others. So, he preferred fantasy and supernatural genres.

Future Looks Bright: "Bro, you're too serious. If we're talking about reasonability, making readers outside the novel enjoy it is more reasonable than letting fictional game developers make money, right?"

Level 8 Gale: "No promoting pyramid schemes."

The topic quickly deviated. Although the Cow Horse Club was a gaming group, it rarely had such serious discussions about games, especially about a completely imaginary "game" that didn't exist.

However, even though the topic had gone completely off track, the initiator of this topic, the guy named "Light," stubbornly brought it back.

Light: "I mean, if."

Light: "If such a game really existed, would you guys play it?"

Looking at the group chat, Ye Wei shook his head with a smile. Wasn't it obvious?

Wakes Up Over a Dozen Times a Night: "Of course! Why wouldn't I? A 100% real game, why not give it a try, you know? (Laughs)"

Level 8 Gale: "+1, but regarding the setting you mentioned, I have some doubts. If game time is equivalent to sleep time... wouldn't it be more reasonable to apply this technology to work?"

White Horse Passing Through the Gap: "Damn, are you the devil??"

Future Looks Bright: "Then I'll just go to sleep honestly. (Bitterly smiles)"

Quit Smoking: "You guys, are not sleeping in the middle of the night, but are dreaming in the group."

"LMAO!!!"

More and more people were joining the conversation in the group. Some didn't send messages but were quietly interested in peeking at the screen.

The game group, consisting of 200 members, usually had around ten to twenty active participants. Occasionally, there would be two "he knows you, but you don't know him" new faces, and upon inquiry, it turned out they had been silently observing for over two years.

The guy named Light, however, paid no attention and continued to immerse himself in his own world.

"In fact, the company I recently joined is developing a completely immersive virtual reality online game."

The lively group chat fell briefly silent. But soon, as if planned, a series of messages popped up.

"What the heck?"

"Is it real or fake?!"

"Wow, brother! I almost believed it. (Laughs)"

Ye Wei thought this guy was playing too much. A completely immersive virtual reality online game? 100% real? That's a load of nonsense. As Big Gale said, if such a thing existed, would it be used for gaming???

Of course, he didn't quite agree with direct application in the office. In his imagination, if there were such amazing technology, it would be used in the military first. Imagine training special forces with that! 

The guy named Light didn't say anything more, just threw out a website link.

Ye Wei casually opened it, only to find the game's official website. The website design was not impressive, seeming like they couldn't even afford a graphic designer. The empty page had only three stark lines.

[100% Real Virtual Reality Game - "Wasteland OL"]

[Current Reservation Count: 0]

[Reserve: yes/no]

Ye Wei chuckled. After all the buildup, turns out it's just an advertisement. Whether it's a scam or the website is just overloaded, who knows?

However, the reservation count did seem realistic, without fabricating an eight-digit online user count or claiming even the lowest-level players were joining.

"Fine, I'll see what you've got, whoever you are."

Holding the mouse, he clicked "Yes." Unexpectedly, the anticipated registration page didn't appear. Aside from the reservation count changing from 0 to 1, nothing else changed.

"This crappy game doesn't even require account registration?"

This unconventional move left Ye Wei confused. He couldn't quite grasp if this was an ad or not.

Could it be malware?

Not likely.

In this day and age, antivirus software is almost obsolete. Could there still be viruses that infect with just a click on YES or NO?

Even in the university computer room, he wasn't afraid of such things.

...

[Reservation Count: 11]

Wasteland, Shelter No. 404 Resident Hall.

Looking at the numbers in the webpage backend on his computer screen, Chu Guang sighed in relief, releasing his tightly gripped mouse.

"Is this enough?"

The answer appeared before him in two lines of text.

[Task completed.]

[Reward: A set of carbon nanotube bulletproof vests, reward points +5.]

The wall on one side of the room vibrated faintly. As the curved alloy door panel opened, a black vest lay on the platform behind the door.

The conveyor belt delivered the vest.

The alloy door closed again, and the room was again back to normal.

Chu Guang immediately stood up from his computer and walked over to pick up the vest. It was lightweight, feeling much like silk pajamas – soft and smooth to the touch. It was hard to imagine that such a thing could withstand bullet shots.

[

Name: Carbon Nanotube Bulletproof Vest

Description: Effectively absorbs bullet kinetic energy, disperses impact force within durability limits, resisting a certain degree of piercing and cutting damage.

Durability: 100%

]

Rewards obtained from the shelter system would be registered in the inventory, complete with product descriptions and usage instructions. Chu Guang quickly took off his shirt and put on the vest close to his body.

It felt a bit chilly at first, but he soon adapted.

At this moment, a cylindrical metal object in the corner of the room emitted an electronic sound with no fluctuations in pitch.

"Congratulations, Master. It seems you've completed the first task."

"Can you not speak out of the blue like that?"

"Understood, Master."

That robot, resembling a trash can, was named Little Seven. Strictly speaking, as the assistant to the manager of Shelter No. 404, it didn't have a name, only a number - 777. But Chu Guang found it troublesome and gave it a name.

As for who Chu Guang was and why he was in Shelter No. 404, that story begins on a windy, dark night a month ago...

X-------------------X

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