I Will Never Submit to Miss Grim Reaper - Chapter 296
Chapter 296: Cyberpunk: Milk Cat Esports
On the compact screen of the laptop, a scene of an extraterrestrial planet was currently displayed.
It was a somewhat desolate planet, with small spacecraft and ground explorers faintly visible around. Because the planet lacked an atmosphere, one could see the vast expanse of the starry sky simply by looking up. Judging from the stars overhead and the three stars engaging in three-body motion, it seemed this place didn’t belong to the solar system.
From the displayed image on the laptop, it seemed to be a first-person perspective game, similar to games like “Cyberpunk,” probably to enhance immersion.
“Is this a copy?”
Taking the laptop, I first tried to follow the settings of most games from memory, pressing the WASD keys to take a few steps, then moving the camera around and searching for relevant control keys.
Grappling hook, gathering, exploration, pistol attack… Is this still a shooting game?
“It’s sort of a copy. According to the setting, we’ve come to a planet hundreds of light-years away from the Milky Way to collect resources, following a scavenger-like path.”
Seeing my confusion, Sikong Yue explained beside me.
“The gameplay of this game is very free. If you’re a casual player and like building houses, you can buy your own house in the city and build it according to your preferences. If you’re a professional architect, you can even help design exclusive living spaces according to customer needs.”
“They’ve even set up an internal trading system, but they deduct five percent tax when the transaction is completed. If you’re a player who likes competition, you can also go outside Earth to battle others. Weapons can use public templates, or you can DIY them.”
“Huh?”
Hearing this, I was still a bit puzzled. “DIY weapons? What does that mean?”
“This game has been in development since 2011. It’s been over ten years now, and the money invested by that tycoon in Honor District of Shenzhen City has almost been squandered. A decade in the making, the internal systems of the game are very complex,” Sikong Yue explained patiently while opening the weapons in the backpack.
“Take this AWM sniper rifle, for example. You can buy it in some firearm shops in the game’s Earth. But if you want a truly unique sniper rifle, you can search for raw materials in various places and craft it yourself. You can even modify the templates. You could start with the AWM template, then lengthen the barrel, change the bullet caliber, or if you like anime, you could paint the gun a softer color and print a cute girl’s pattern on it.”
“Different materials result in different attributes. According to the game’s setting, Earth has been developed to a considerable extent. Iron bought from ordinary merchants, meteoric iron fallen from the sky, and metals from other planets in outer space, like this… using different materials on the barrel, stock, and bullets can enhance various attributes. Some might increase penetration, some might extend shooting range, some might enhance accuracy, it’s all completely random,” Sikong Yue explained.
Hearing this, I was somewhat astonished. “Completely random?!”
“Yes, completely random. This game’s main feature is the randomness of attributes and even certain aspects like texture are random,” Sikong Yue confirmed.
Sikong Yue opened the large map, pulled the interface back, found Earth, selected a city, and teleported.
“This teleportation function is only available in the test version. I mainly want to show you the cities in the game,” she explained.
After a black screen lasting for more than ten seconds, a surreal night scene appeared on the computer screen— a bustling metropolis filled with LED light tubes and billboards, streets crowded with sleek aircraft and cars. Even though Xiongxiong’s computer was running at low graphics quality, this scene was enough to leave me thoroughly impressed.
I couldn’t help but wonder what it would be like to watch the game on the small TV at home after it’s officially released…
“Buildings like these are all inherent structures of NPCs in the game. NPCs will randomly find houses to rent or directly purchase houses, and after buying a house, they will randomly arrange their own homes. Where they put their computers, desks, and chairs are all random. However, most NPCs will follow certain rules when arranging their homes, so you won’t see situations like putting a toilet next to a bed.”
“This…” I hesitated for a moment. “Sounds a bit like Minecraft?”
“Yes, it’s similar to Minecraft. Nuo, now that you mention it, I know how to explain it. In Minecraft, villages appear randomly, and players can find materials to craft weapons, like a diamond sword, right? But if a player finds diamonds near lava, picks them up by the roadside, or goes to the moon to use the metals there instead of a sword handle, the attributes of the weapons made will all be different. Even the diamond sword itself can have custom designs.”
Xiongxiong controlled his character to walk towards a residential area. “If a player fancies this neighborhood, they can either rent it or buy it. Once they do, the house becomes their home, protected by law. They can hang an electric lamp at their doorstep, and if it’s DIY, the brightness, shape, and color of the lamp will be different from the system’s bulbs.”
“Some bulbs might emit strong red light, while others might have a brighter westward glow. Similarly, if all the furniture in the house is DIY, each piece will be unique. Applied to the entire world, this rule creates a colorful era of the Aquarian Palace.”
“That sounds like a lot of freedom,” I mused.
“But how do people make money when the world is just starting, and no one has any money? And if it simulates reality completely… do you need to eat?”
“Everyone starts out equal. At the beginning, when nobody has money, you can earn it through ideas, like helping NPCs with tasks, doing odd jobs, or even utilizing your real-life skills to make money as a newbie in the game,” Xiongxiong explained.
She walked over to a nearby mirror, allowing me to see the character’s appearance in it.
“As for eating… take a look.”
I gazed at the mirror. “A robot?”
In the reflection on the computer screen, the protagonist was a robot made entirely of metal, with metallic limbs and a dark head.
“This is our original form. According to the game’s setting, our bodies are on the Age of Aquarius Planet, or everyone is lying down on the Aquarius side, with the machines there sustaining our immortality. Our brain consciousness is connected to this side of Earth, connected to the robots’ chips. According to the setting… we are actually just controlling these robots from the Aquarius Planet. If the robots have an accident and die, then we will return to this side…”
Xiongxiong opened the map again, gesturing towards a super-sized city of machinery.
“We’ll respawn from here… well, I can’t exactly say ‘respawn’. If this robot breaks down, the system will transfer our consciousness to another robot’s brain. The old one will be scrapped, and the new robot is free. It’s sort of like… everyone can respawn infinitely. But if you die with something important on you, you’ll have to come back to retrieve it.”
They really made the “resurrection” setting sound so scientifically grounded!
“Are all people robots?”
“No, they’re not. Robots are just the initial templates. When you have money later on, you can go to relevant personnel in the city to design your gender and physique. It’s like adding muscles and skin. That way, there won’t be any issues about gender equality. You can choose your gender and design it yourself with the money you earn.”
I glanced at Yin Xiamo with a “What do you think?” expression.
“Although I’ve seen a lot of Earth technology,” Yin Xiamo paused for a moment, then continued, “I still can’t help but marvel at the fact that this thing came out over ten years ago when humanity hadn’t even popularized smartphones.”
“Earlier, you mentioned… being skilled in real life can earn money in the game?”
I turned back. “How do you make money then?”
“Just like I mentioned earlier, everyone is born without a gender, right? Some people prefer to be girls, like to look prettier, have a better figure. But they have no concept of what a beautiful figure is. If there are artists or art students in reality who know the proportions of the human body, they can take orders according to the customer’s requirements, design the desired facial features and body proportions.”
“The system provides a way to trade. The person taking the order puts their payment code in their personal center. After designing the customer’s desired blueprint, the customer scans the code to pay, gets the blueprint, and can then go to the corresponding NPC to modify their appearance and body shape.”
Sikong Yue lifted her foot wrapped in white silk stockings slightly and placed it on the other foot. Then she tilted her head back to gesture towards the café.
“It’s the same for architects in reality. If a customer wants to open a shop in the game or has bought their own house in the game and wants it to look nicer, they can find these designers. The designers will then modify the house based on the game design blueprint. Through the game’s built-in trading system, they can complete the transaction by scanning the QR code on the computer screen. Convenient, right?”
“By the way, this game supports VR devices! Imagine a bunch of cute girls having parties in their lovely little houses… hmm?”
I twitched my mouth. “Did you just say something remarkable?”
“No!” Xiongxiong shook his head.
“When my family gave me this test version of the game last month, it took me almost half a month to roughly understand the core gameplay of the game. Then I made the same decision as my dad—to fully support this game to be a big hit.”
Charging transaction fees for in-game item trades… I think I understand how this game makes money now.
More than ten years ago, the development team behind this game had already decided on the “main randomness” strategy. It must be said that each and every member of the team is talented.
If there are tycoons in the game who enjoy slaughter and dislike too many rules and regulations, saying “I’m rich, I don’t want to build houses or make guns, but the weapons in the system’s store aren’t strong enough, I want to make my own.” Then this person will definitely drive a large number of “downstream industries.”
For those who enjoy admiring scenery in the game, if they happen to run into a cave and find a piece of meteoric iron, and it seems that meteoric iron is easier to produce the attribute of “defense penetration” than the system’s default stainless steel, then these professional travelers and treasure hunters will sell this iron to players who like to forge.
The merchant who likes to forge will then collect other materials to prepare to make this gun. Some bosses like guns with cool appearances, such as wanting to put a dragon head on the gun’s head, so they have to find a gun designer. Then, because the meteoric iron didn’t produce the desired defense penetration attribute, the gun has to be remade…
With this back and forth, it seems that everyone can find their own position in the game. And if one day someone’s luck is amazing, for example, someone who likes treasure hunting finds stainless steel fallen from the M78 Nebula, the forging expert produces a super attribute, and the boss buying guns sees that the attributes are so good, they throw a bunch of red envelopes, it will boost everyone’s enthusiasm for the game.
Extending from this situation, some people don’t like fighting, but they like to raise daughters, treating the people in the game as their daughters. They start by finding designers to buy a good “skin,” then they have to purchase various clothing materials, find clothing designers to design clothes…
I remember in some games where you could customize your character’s appearance, like “Blade & Soul,” during the early days of the server opening, there were quite a few bosses who specifically spent money to hire someone to help them customize their appearance. This should be similar.
In the game, you can also design things yourself, but because you’re not a professional, they might not look good. However, every profession can find its footing in this game, thus forming a powerful “metaverse.”
“What about that thing just now… What looked like an alien planet?”
Having roughly understood what “Age of Aquarius” is all about, I examined the game interface.
“Is it like going on adventures to other planets?”
“Yes, that’s also random.”
Xiongxiong controlled the character to “teleport” to a place similar to the “Golden Hall” in “Spirit Cage.”
“This is a temporary wormhole. After the public beta, this will be the place for adventurers to explore. It costs a certain amount of money to enter, and it will transport you to any planet for five to twenty minutes. When the time is up, the wormhole will close, effectively pronouncing the player who hasn’t returned dead. During this time, what players can obtain there depends entirely on luck.”
Random again?!
But this sounds quite intriguing, to be honest.
“The main thing is that this is too luck-dependent. I suspect that the world on the other side of the wormhole is just like ‘Minecraft,’ with randomly generated coordinates and planet materials. If you’re not well-prepared before going, you might end up dead.”
“Isn’t that a bit extreme?”
I tried to take the keyboard and mouse and walked towards the vortex in front of the “Golden Hall.” “I’ll give it a try, see how lucky I am.”
?About to enter the shuttle wormhole?
?Warning! The destination area of the wormhole is uncontrollable. It can only ensure a certain landing near the planet. Do not carry valuable items with you. Otherwise, if your character dies or the mission fails, the carried items will disappear!?
The sudden appearance of these lines startled me, and reflexively I asked, “This is just for the beta test, right?”
“Yeah, it’s fine to die randomly. It doesn’t matter. Many things can be summoned with just one click.”
Xiongxiong nodded. “Once the public beta starts, this account will be gone.”
That reassured me. I clicked on ?Confirm Departure?.
?Consuming 1000 Aquarian Palace original coins, opening the wormhole. Please select the tools you need to bring.?
“So many?” I looked at the toolbars on the screen, compressed to less than a centimeter in height, feeling puzzled. “What should we bring?”
“It’s just the beta test. These can all be summoned. Bring whatever you want,” Xiongxiong said in a relaxed manner. “Or maybe try bringing some emergency tools?”
“What kind of emergency tools?”
“For example, thermal insulation suits. Some planets are close to stars, and going there is like walking into magma. You’d die.” Xiongxiong chuckled bitterly.
“Or in some places, it’s all ice and snow. If you want to mine minerals, you’ll need specialized mining tools. But if you’re lucky and end up on a planet with lush forests and singing birds, you won’t need any tools at all. Just pick some fruits or catch a few small animals, and you can make a fortune.”
Is this really a thing?
“Well, I’ll try bringing a few random things.” I rummaged through the toolbar and grabbed a net bag and a cardboard box.
Seeing this, Yin Xiamo couldn’t help but tease, “Nuo’er, are you going to catch cats?”
“Who knows, there might really be those extremely rare… pink-haired cats, or maybe pink-haired foxes?” I retorted, refusing to back down.
“Anyway, this is just a beta test account. There’s plenty of money on it. If things don’t work out, I can always come back and try again.”
With that, I moved the mouse and clicked on ?Start Teleportation?.
?Activating wormhole teleportation device. Please wait…?
Perhaps Xiongxiong’s laptop was indeed a bit old, the screen went black for several seconds. When it lit up again, I was instantly stunned by the sight before me.
Birds chirping, flowers blooming, and lush greenery as far as the eye could see.
One towering tree after another sprang up from the ground, surrounded by various vines, green grass, and numerous unidentified giant flowers.
Surely, the appearance of trees and flowers can’t be randomly generated as well, can they?
“Nuo’er, did you really find such a perfect planet on your first try?” Xiongxiong was astonished.
“I’ve tried at least twenty times today,” Xiongxiong exclaimed.
“Every time, it was either a sandstorm or a snowstorm planet. I’d take a few steps and then die. Couldn’t bring back any resources!”
“Huh? So, am I just lucky?” I took a few steps forward. “What should I bring back now?”
“Usually, these small instances don’t have specific objectives. Whatever you bring back is whatever you get. But people from the clan said that apparently, each planet will have something extremely rare.”
Xiongxiong glanced at the time in the bottom right corner. “My goodness, your wormhole disappearance time is 22 minutes, almost the longest. Your luck is maxed out, isn’t it?”
“So, I need to gather enough stuff to bring back within these twenty minutes, right?” I glanced back at the vortex behind me. “Just pack everything near this wormhole?”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s see what we have.”
Taking a few steps into the depths of the forest, I observed the surroundings, picking up everything I could find—like Venus flytraps, walking grass, fruits fallen from trees, crystals exposed on the ground, and so on.
After a few minutes, I actually came across a cat, pink in color, resembling the Eevee from Pokémon.
“What do people usually do with captured animals like this?” I controlled my character to put the ‘Eevee’ into the cardboard box. “It doesn’t look too fierce, does it?”
“There’s also a certain chance of failure when capturing animals. You succeeded this time…” Xiongxiong fell silent for a moment.
“Some pets, when kept at home, can raise the level of the house or increase the goodwill of neighbors. I’m not very clear about it now, but it certainly won’t be useless. Maybe this little guy looks cute, but its actual combat power could be equivalent to two Huskies?”
Do two Huskies even have much combat power?
“Well, I think I understand how to play this game now.” As the experience was almost over, I handed the laptop back to Xiongxiong. “I can feel that its prospects are quite terrifying if it really takes off.”
No daily tasks, everyone’s equal, and it’s somewhat connected to the real world, officially operated, incorporating the concept of the metaverse… No wonder Xiongxiong’s family company is willing to change themselves to cooperate with the people here.
Generally speaking, as long as the operation and promotion don’t mess up, this kind of game is easy to catch fire and definitely can boost the local economy.
“I’ll go downstairs and check on Gabriel and the others.”
After finishing the sticky rice and the small cake Xiongxiong brought, I cleaned the plates in the dishwasher on the first floor and entered the basement from the entrance next to the cat living area.
It was still the cyberpunk-style e-sports zone from my memory, still filled with neon lights. What was different now was that this place was packed with people. These customers were either holding bubble tea and watching professional players compete or sitting in front of computers experiencing the new game “Age of Aquarius.”
“Why do I always end up in places full of lava? Can’t I modify this robot’s body? Its heat resistance is too poor.”
“What if you end up in a place full of ice next time?”
“Then I’ll continue to modify it!”
“But where does the money come from?”
“Do some tasks or go on adventures… Speaking of which, if the closed beta is already this intense, imagine when it goes public. With hundreds of thousands of players together, the demand will skyrocket.”
“Hundreds of thousands? I estimate a conservative three million players.”
The atmosphere on the first floor of the basement e-sports area was distinctly different from the customers upstairs who came to dine. Because they were truly here to play games, neither I nor Xiao Mo passing by them would attract exclamations like “Nuo’er is so cute” or “Do you have any Nuo’er handmade sticky rice?”
“They say this is the only store nationwide fully supporting ‘Age of Aquarius.’ They’re even planning to open a VR section there.”
“Don’t you think this place is a bit small? With seventy to eighty people, it already feels crowded, but the environment is really nice.”
“It seems like ‘Age of Aquarius’ is really going to usher in the era of Aquarius Palace. I’ve seen the plans for Shenzhen City over there, combined with this game… It’s quite terrifying, bro.”
Listening to the various sentiments of the players, I found Su Yunjin, who was debugging something in front of a computer, and handed him a drink.
“How’s it going over here? Need any help?”
“You’ve seen it too, there are too many people.”
Su Yunjin raised his head. “No need for help. Gabriel is doing well. Just focus on your work upstairs.”
“Also, I want to discuss with Miss Sikong Yue. The number of people coming here now is beyond my expectations. We underestimated these players…”
Su Yunjin took out a document from the small bag next to the computer desk and handed it to me.
“Show this to Ouyang Xue. Tell her we’re planning to open a branch of the café on the commercial street. Ouyang Xue will go over, and Nuo’er, you’ll be ready to take over as the manager here.”
“……”
……