"James, I need some inside information about yesterday," Dave whispered, leaning closer, his voice low and conspiratorial.
"What?!" James blinked, visibly startled by Dave's intensity.
"Man… you're not a man of culture," Dave sighed dramatically. "Tell me what happened yesterday!"
"S**t, man of culture…" James chuckled, shaking his head. "You're unbelievable."
"Yeah, yeah, I'm the worst. Now spill it!" Dave urged, his fake laugh poorly masking his desperation.
James tilted his head, scrutinizing Dave with suspicion. "How do you not know what happened? It was huge—national news level huge! Everyone's talking about it!"
"Haha… something happened…? Of course, I know…" Dave trailed off before sighing. "Alright, just tell me already."
With an exaggerated shrug, James launched into a dramatic recount of the previous day's events. As expected, he embellished most details, but Dave sifted through the theatrics, piecing together the actual story.
"Damn!!!"
"Yeah, damn! My thoughts exactly," James nodded, grinning. "And remember this: stick close to Yasmine. She's destined for greatness."
Dave nodded absentmindedly, but his thoughts were elsewhere. I have my own cheat. I should be able to compete with them, right? No, no, no! I need to stay under the radar… Sh*t, I almost let my excitement took over.
"Alright, let's head back," Dave muttered, eager to divert attention. The two returned to the classroom, but Dave was lost in his thoughts.
So that's why she was surprised … Sigh.
The next session took place in the Awakening Arena, a vast, dome-shaped chamber bathed in a faint bluish glow. At the center, an intricate mandala pulsed softly, etched deep into the polished floor.
"Alright, students," the teacher announced, her tone calm but commanding. "Assume your meditation posture. Close your eyes. I will activate the Mantra Mandala to aid you in gathering cosmic energy. Focus on forming your cosmic seed."
The room quieted as the mandala began to glow, its patterns coming to life with radiant energy. A low hum filled the air as streams of light spiraled upward, enveloping each student in a cocoon of cosmic energy.
Inside Dave's void space, Spark's voice echoed, calm yet precise.
[We already have the planetary core, host.]
"Right," Dave said, his gaze fixed on the shimmering ALLSPARK core. "So, how do we proceed?"
[Setting up plan…] Spark paused briefly. [...Plan setup complete. Recommendation: Mask planetary development and project false data externally. Allocate gathered energy to advance the ALLSPARK's computing capacity and continue planetary formation.]
Dave nodded, deep in thought. "Alright. First, mask our activities at all times."
[Affirmative: Masking initiated. Protocol will remain active unless manually disabled. Note: Over drafting energy may cause masking to malfunction.]
"Good. Now, redirect the energy. Forty percent to planetary formation, sixty percent to ALLSPARK."
[Energy redirection complete.]
"How long to form a basic planetary body?"
[Approximately one week, assuming no additional complexities.]
"Hmm… Yasmine and the others might have better resources than my Cosmic Forge, so there's no point in hiding the core's formation, but let it stay hidden. Speaking of which—have you synchronized with it yet?"
[Affirmative.]
"Tsk. Then why didn't you tell me?"
[Mann… don't be my mother-in-law. Acting like a system is exhausting, you know?] Spark grumbled, her tone laced with faux irritation.
Dave chuckled despite himself. "Alright, alright. Just tell me your functions."
[Currently, I can create a virtual world capable of mirroring reality entirely.]
"Wait… like a game? Like SAO?"
[Yes, but far more advanced than that lame game.]
Dave's eyes lit up. "Hoho… Cool, cool! Can we make a VRMMO game?"
[Affirmative.]
"But… can it make me stronger?"
[Affirmative.]
Silence hung between them for a moment.
"And… aren't you going to tell me how?"
[You're such a pain in the a**. Honestly, why were ten-year-olds chosen for awakening?]
Dave burst out laughing. Spark's sarcasm was becoming more humane since integrating with the planetary seed.
"Okay, okay! I'll stop pestering you. Just let me know when we get there."
[Affirmative.]
"Hehehe… Let's start by creating our virtual world," Dave said excitedly.
[What type of virtual world should I create?]
"What? What type? Are there types of virtual worlds too?" he asked in confusion.
[Yes. Here are some options:
- Cultivation World
- Mechanical World
- Beast World
- Pokemon World
- Ordinary World
Additionally, you can induce apocalyptic scenarios like:
- Ice Age
- Zombie Virus Outbreak
- Meteor Shower
- 2012
- San Andreas -style disasters.]
Dave's eyes widened. "Man… so many options! I don't know what to pick—they all sound amazing!"
He paused, deep in thought. "Sparky, how about we don't specify a single type? Let's let players choose how they want to develop their world."
As he spoke, his excitement grew. "And we could include beasts and Pokémon for taming! Oh, and cultivation techniques alongside advanced tech like spaceships. Damn… I'm a genius."
He spread his arms wide, grinning like a mad scientist. "Let's make an open world where everything is possible: cultivation, science, beasts, Pokémon, lifestyle—whatever they want!"
"hehehe.." he laughed in excitement when he thought about everything, he will be able to do.
[Interesting idea. This is why sentient beings with imagination develop faster. Despite my vast computational abilities, I cannot generate these ideas. Sigh… ] Spark lamented not letting Dave hear her thoughts.
[Is this the limitation of my kind? Is this why we are not truly alive?]