The device John built was a 20 cm square metal box with two mechanical arms extending from its sides, capable of agile movements. One arm ended in a metal hand with five fingers that could flex and extend. John planned to use this metal hand to operate the keyboard.
The other arm had a cover that could fit over a mouse. At the corresponding points for the left and right mouse buttons were two retractable metal rods, with a wheel in the middle. The rods could click the mouse buttons, and the wheel could move the mouse wheel.
On top of the metal box was a camera facing the computer screen. A wire extended from the back of the box, which could be plugged in for power.
After completing the assembly, John put on the expensive second-hand neural control device he had bought.
The neural control device could convert brain waves into radio waves and vice versa, allowing the human brain to perceive them. Inside the metal box was a wave receiver and transmitter that could connect with the neural control device.
Once activated, the images captured by the camera on the metal box were transmitted via the wave transmitter to the neural control device, then converted into images in John's mind, just as if he were seeing them with his own eyes.
With a thought, John issued a command. The next moment, the mechanical arms on the sides of the metal box began to move. The right arm operated the mouse to open the browser and clicked on the address bar. Simultaneously, the left arm typed a string of letters on the keyboard and pressed Enter.
Immediately, a website opened up.
John took a deep breath and excitedly removed the neural control device.
His idea actually worked!
The neural control device was originally designed to directly link brainwaves with electronic devices, making the use of a mouse and keyboard unnecessary. Directly inputting signals into the computer would be much more efficient.
However, John opted to control a robot through the neural control device to operate the keyboard and mouse. It seemed absurd, as anyone else would simply use their hands to operate the computer directly.
Even in the boosting industry, which requires high control precision, no one would use such a convoluted method. Why complicate things when you can use your hands?
But John insisted on doing it this way.
Given the current performance of neural control devices, directly inputting signals to the computer was inefficient. It was better to go through the additional step of using the keyboard and mouse. Additionally, this method allowed John to divide his "computational power" to operate multiple computers simultaneously, enabling him to do the work of several people and earn multiple incomes.
For ordinary people, this would be impossible, as multitasking is beyond human capability. But for John, who had "absorbed" a computer chip, multitasking was a piece of cake.
Steadying himself, John put on the neural control device again, controlled the robot, and searched the internet for information. He found that the most popular game recently was a 3D online game called "Galaxy Wars." Consequently, the demand for boosting services for this game was the highest, with numerous online shops offering such services.
The game's content was relatively straightforward: players controlled characters to battle monsters on various planets, collect materials, and craft equipment.
John downloaded the game and gathered a plethora of game guides and tutorials to study.
Feeling thirsty, John got up, poured a glass of water, and drank it. Throughout this process, the neural control device remained wirelessly connected to the metal box, allowing the robot to continue operating the computer without interruption.
As long as there was a signal, John's location did not matter.
The handmade chip fused with John's brain worked seamlessly with his mind, perfectly handling multiple tasks without any confusion.
Time passed, and as night fell, John ate a simple meal and continued his intense research.
A wave of fatigue washed over him, and at that moment, John felt something peculiar. It was as if his consciousness split into two parts: one part was his original consciousness, which was very tired and even somewhat foggy, while the other part continued to function tirelessly.
John didn't try to control the tired part, allowing it to "sleep" while the other part remained alert, using the neural control device to operate the computer and study the gathered information.
John marveled at this phenomenon. "This is incredible. My body can rest, but my consciousness can keep working."
The next morning, the alert part of John's consciousness woke the body up. After some stretching, John felt completely refreshed, ready to run ten kilometers.
In this state, John spent three days studying the game. Afterward, he bit the bullet and bought a high-level account to experience all the game content, practicing for several days until he mastered everything.
At this point, John could confidently say that in terms of game operations and skills, few players could match him. No matter how precise or fast their controls were, could they outperform a computer?
Although game cheats no longer existed, John was a human cheat, smarter and more adaptable than any typical cheat program!
After studying the pricing of boosting services offered by other shops, John summarized the general pricing trends for various game services.
The warehouse management job he previously held paid about $2000 a month for nine and a half hours of work daily, averaging around $7 per hour.
This wage was just enough to get by.
Manual labor jobs, like those at construction sites or logistics centers, paid around $12 per hour.
In the online game boosting industry, services with no technical requirements that purely consumed time offered about $6 per hour, even lower than his warehouse job.
More skilled services could pay $8 to $9 per hour, with the highest reaching around $15 per hour.
But earning $15 per hour required being an exceptionally skilled player.
Anything beyond that was custom work with no standard pricing, negotiated individually.
John thought it over and registered a shop offering game boosting services, launching his first product.
A task to hunt 1000 Sand Monsters on Huang Hai Planet, priced at only $20!
This task, even for skilled players, would take five hours to complete, meaning John's hourly rate would be just $4!
Compared to the usual $6 per hour, this was a third cheaper!
Such a price was very attractive. Given the strict management of online shopping platforms, reducing the risk of fraud, John received an order shortly after posting the service.
John used the robot to contact the customer, log into the game, and navigate the character to Huang Hai Planet to start hunting monsters.
Meanwhile, John relaxed in his chair, scrolling through his phone for more information and knowledge, planning future developments, and controlling the robot to operate the computer, multitasking effortlessly.
Five hours flew by, the monster-hunting task was completed successfully, and the customer confirmed the order, leaving a positive review.
"Hope to serve you again~" John warmly greeted.
Looking at the $20 in his account, John felt a surge of excitement.
"I need to buy more computers as soon as possible."