The virtual empire starts from the game

Chapter 697 The Wild Dream Weaver, The Dark Dream Deal (Seeking guaranteed monthly votes!)
"Remove the hardware limitations of the dream-making machine? You guys???"

"You're not spies, are you? Which country are you from? The United States?"

Wu Chengyu simply couldn't believe that such a grassroots organization could accomplish something as incredible as "cracking the dream-making machine".

The Dream Machine has been around for so long, and countless countries, organizations, and research institutions around the world have tried to crack it, but has anyone succeeded?
Absolutely not!

What so many top scientists around the world couldn't do, a bunch of "lousy gamers" have now accomplished?
How can it be? !
This is even more absurd than "Netizens shared controlled nuclear fusion technology with you"!

At least the theories and progress of nuclear fusion can be found online, so even fabricated stories have a basis.

A dream machine...

The technology related to this thing is practically a black box.

Xu Meng has never published any related articles.

This also resulted in the fact that despite his numerous groundbreaking achievements, the global academic community did not receive a single paper submission.

Top journals are extremely anxious.

Xu Meng received many emails from academic fields in his collaboration email inbox, but he didn't respond much to any of them, whether they were suggestions for publishing papers, offers of awards, or requests for academic exchanges.

Only those who are truly sincere in wanting to give him an award will have his assistant, Chen Mengling, go abroad to collect it on his behalf.

Therefore, the technical principle of the dream machine is still not definitively explained by outsiders; there are only various speculations.

Now a group of self-proclaimed "folk masters" suddenly claim that they have broken through Xu Meng's limitations...

Wu Chengyu found it hard to believe.

He preferred to believe that it was the result of a world-class laboratory, and that they were using espionage to secretly cause trouble here!

The hand on his shoulder tightened suddenly, and the next second, a hand covered Wu Chengyu's mouth.

The other person suddenly moved closer and said urgently but in a low voice, "Keep your voice down!!"

"What spy? You've been watching too many spy movies!"

Wu Chengyu twisted his neck and broke free from his restraints: "Not a spy? Then where did you get the technology? The hardware limitations of the Dream Machine, are they so easy to crack!?"

"Nonsense! It's of course Boss Xu's own technology!!"

Wu Chengyu's overreaction made the man opposite him a little exasperated.

"?" Wu Chengyu was stunned for a moment, and stopped struggling. "Boss Xu's technology?? What do you mean?"

"Sigh." The man sighed. "Do you remember what happened during the first offline test of the Dream Machine?"

"The first offline test?" Wu Chengyu blinked subconsciously, lost in thought.

The first offline test of the Dream Machine was held in Ningzhou, at the Dream Machine Experience Center, which is very close to the Dream Machine headquarters.

Xu Meng invited many players to experience Lingzhou Studio's "Demon!" DLC "The Coffin of the Evil Spirit" on-site.

Xu Meng herself also arrived at the scene.

"What do you mean? Explain yourself clearly." Wu Chengyu frowned.

"Do you remember what those streamers said: after they quit the game, they didn't immediately return to reality, but were pulled into the same dream by Xu Meng, making them mistakenly believe that the monsters in the game had invaded reality, and they were all quite frightened."

"Is that so?" Wu Chengyu asked in surprise.

He hasn't been a fan for very long, and he was busy when Dream Machine first had its offline test. He only watched some popular clips later.

However, there were no video recordings of what happened in the dream, so he didn't see any related footage.

Hearing this for the first time now, I was quite surprised: "I thought the time when I was eternally asleep in the four-leaf clover was the first time."

"No, it's just that the first time, everyone thought it was a very high-end technology, and only Boss Xu had the ability to create dreams and pull a group of people into the same dream, so no one thought much of it."

"Isn't that right?" Wu Chengyu asked instinctively.

"Of course not! The collective dreaming event caused by the eternally sleeping four-leaf clover illustrates two things."

"What two things?"

"First: The mass-produced version of the dream machine has not removed the 'dream interconnection' function. Mr. Xu is selling a fully-featured device! Second: There is no high barrier to entry for creating dreams, at least not so high that only Mr. Xu can create dreams."

Wu Chengyu recalled the previous news about the eternally sleeping four-leaf clover and nodded silently.

Indeed, according to later online discussions among those who experienced it firsthand, many people participated in the creation of that public dream.

Although their abilities vary.

Some people can create huge and magnificent landscapes, while others can only make small things like cars, furniture, and food.

But they always manage to create something.

"So, you started your research around that time?"

“Yes.” The man readily admitted, “To be precise, the concept of ‘we’ didn’t exist back then. It was many people who started researching out of curiosity.”

“But this isn’t right, is it?” Wu Chengyu noticed a blind spot.

"Since those people were directly sent into the deep dream by the vulnerability, it means that the dream machine's limitation on secondary dream entry should be in the software. Why did you just say that the hardware limitation was cracked?"

"Because the 'safety latch' that restricts re-entry into the dream is a separate switch," the man explained. "Only Boss Xu in the whole world can turn this switch on."

"That you?"

"So we removed the safety bolt."

The mysterious man's voice remained calm, but Wu Chengyu's eyelids twitched uncontrollably: "Is this... safe?"

"Anyway, the biggest problem so far is that it's not covered by warranty."

"Huh?" Wu Chengyu was stunned again. Was this a matter of warranty or not?

Shouldn't we be worried about safety?
This is something right next to your brain! You guys just took it apart because you weren't allowed to open it?

This kind of thought process...

The electrical wiring in your house is short-circuited and you can't turn on the circuit breaker, so you removed the fuse, right?
Is it so fierce?

"I mean... is this safe? Won't it cause brain damage or other problems?"

The other side fell silent.

This reaction left Wu Chengyu speechless.

So it really is dangerous?

Just as he was having second thoughts, the man opposite him finally spoke again: "To be honest, I don't know."

"You do not know???"

"Yes, it's still early. Although we don't feel any discomfort and our medical reports are normal, no one knows if it will have any long-term effects."

Wu Chengyu was a little at a loss for words.

"So, have you thought it through? Once you decide to join, you will also bear the same risks, and you will have to bear the consequences yourself. Don't think that Boss Xu will bail you out if something goes wrong, and even insurance may not cover it."

— Buying hardware and getting insurance for free is practically part of the corporate culture of Zhuzhu.

Under normal circumstances, insurance can cover any unexpected events.

However, these people disassembled the dream-making machine parts without authorization, which clearly violated the insurance agreement and means they cannot receive compensation.

Wu Chengyu was indeed somewhat hesitant.

He was very interested in the second dream.

—That's a world without any rules or restrictions; players can create whatever they want.

Who doesn't yearn for unlimited freedom?
However, if one must bear extremely high personal risks, then one must carefully consider whether it is worthwhile.

"Don't worry too much," the man reassured him.

“Several months have passed since someone discovered this. Even if problems arise, they will be the ones to cause problems first. We will receive the news immediately and it will be time to stop.” “In our club, there is someone who was the first to try this. He is also the strongest dream weaver in our club.”

"Even if it's just for the dream he created, taking this risk is totally worth it!"

These words convinced Wu Chengyu: "Okay! I'll join!"

"Okay!" The man patted him on the shoulder.

Just as he was about to say something, Wu Chengyu asked anxiously again, "Wait! I forgot something! Won't Boss Xu find out what we're doing?"

"That's why it needs to be kept secret!" the other person said matter-of-factly.

Wu Chengyu was speechless.

"Don't worry too much," the man reassured him. "Boss Xu kept this feature and the lock isn't very tight, which means he has made arrangements for this."

"Think about it, if Boss Xu really wants to completely block this function, do you think we can crack it?"

"The reason we didn't disclose it before was for some reason—mostly considerations such as user safety, content moderation, or ethics—that we kept delaying it."

"Our actions that break the rules may not necessarily anger him."

'That seems... to make sense?' Wu Chengyu was somewhat convinced.

"However, if this information is leaked and causes widespread discussion around the world, then Mr. Xu will not be able to turn a blind eye even if he wants to. He must deal with this matter in accordance with the law and regulations."

"At that time, all offline dream communication and sharing—whether it's a paid service or free sharing—will be completely eradicated!"

“I… understand.” Wu Chengyu completely understood.

"What do you understand?" the man asked him to confirm.

“I will absolutely not discuss Dream Club in any public setting,” Wu Chengyu replied.

"Great, you passed!" The man took his hand and said, "Welcome to the Dream Club! New friend."

"Can I lift the restrictions and enter the second layer of the dream?" Wu Chengyu asked excitedly.

Unfortunately, the other party immediately shook their head and refused: "No, no, no, not so fast."

"This is just an online interview. Next, you will need to register your personal information and have an in-person meeting."

"Only after the offline meeting is approved will we help you remove the restrictions on the Dream Machine."

"Don't feel like you're wasting your time. Breaking the limits of the Dream Machine and sharing dreams can only be done offline anyway."

Wu Chengyu asked in confusion: "I understand that disassembling the dream-making machine requires an offline process, but does dream sharing also need to be an offline event?"

"Of course! We're just removing the restrictions and utilizing the original functions of the dream machine. The server is the brain of the dream maker. Trying to manipulate the software or use the virtual world... only Xu Meng in the whole world can do that. And even if she could, we wouldn't do it."

"why?"

The man opposite him said speechlessly, "You're causing trouble in the virtual world, aren't you? Going to provoke Boss Xu right under his nose? Are you tired of living?!"

Wu Chengyu was speechless.

After taking the piece of paper from the other person, the other person quietly left the corner.

Wu Chengyu also groped his way out of the black box.

Upon closer inspection, the piece of paper contained another person's numerical UID.

He requested to be a friend, received the form, and filled in his address and contact information.

Ten minutes later, he received a virtual phone call, arranging a time and place to meet.

The next day, Wu Chengyu nervously wore a hat, sunglasses, a mask, and a scarf, covering himself up completely, before heading to a watch repair shop three kilometers away.

After a full half-hour conversation and signing an agreement stipulating that no compensation could be claimed for any problems that arose after the dream-making machine was "repaired," the man finally took the dream-making machine, greeted the watch repairman, and entered the repair room.

Half an hour later, he walked out of the repair room and returned the dream machine to Wu Chengyu.

After that, the two went their separate ways.

From beginning to end, Wu Chengyu didn't even know his name.

But that doesn't matter anymore.

That afternoon, there was a gathering of members of the local Dream Club.

Wu Chengyu was already a member, so he went there excitedly.

To his surprise, he actually met the Electro Edison himself here!

The reason why the electronic music Edison attended this gathering was partly because he was suffering from the torment of games and wanted to experience a beautiful dream to heal his emotional wounds.

He ultimately failed to complete "Overcoming Difficulties with Boss Meng," so he streamed until midnight that night, holding out until the end of the day before ending the stream with the excuse, "I won't stop streaming until I finish the game today, but today is over."

On the other hand, it was also to apologize to everyone for accidentally letting something slip.

Many people are quite dissatisfied with his mistake.

But seeing his sincere bow and apology, I had no choice but to accept it.

Only after Edison apologized did the exchange get down to business.

Wu Chengyu only found out at this point:
[Dream Club] is a very loosely organized, but global, organization!

Although the exact number of people is unknown, the scale far exceeds Wu Chengyu's initial guess of "several hundred people"!

What he found even more unbelievable was:

Besides the dream architect clubs that set rules and limit the content of dreams, there are also other crazy dream architects with different ideas who create dreams without any bottom line!
Wu Chengyu came into contact with this dream club, where the dream architects created comfortable, beautiful, and enjoyable dreams.

Even the most explicit ones are just multiple people having sex.

But those crazy dream weavers create bloody, terrifying, murderous, and grotesque dark dreams, and their group dynamics are much more severe than theirs!
The dreams created by these people are called "black dreams" by them.

It was also agreed that all members must not enter "Dark Dream" or participate in "Dark Dream" transactions.

Because of this serious ideological conflict, the relationship between the two sides was very bad, and they only maintained the most basic information exchange.

Wu Chengyu was so shocked he could barely speak.

It's one thing to have this underwater world that the outside world knows nothing about, but you've even split into two factions and are waging a war between light and darkness here! ? ? ?
This world is getting more and more magical!
But the other members who came to the scene were used to it.

After confirming that nothing major had happened on the other side, they calmly began to exchange the latest dream-making results and quickly moved into the dream experience stage.

This stage can also be divided into two types:

Some dream architects share their created dreams for free, inviting everyone to participate.

Some dream architects charge a fee in hopes of earning some income so they can create dreams full-time.

Wu Chengyu put aside his chaotic thoughts and joined in with great anticipation, beginning his first offline dream experience.

Almost as soon as he entered the dream, he felt the allure of this "wild, private dream" and quickly became unable to extricate himself.

After that, I would try my best to attend every offline gathering.
-
While Wu Chengyu—and other players who came into contact with the "Offline Dream Club" were immersed in the new world, the advance trial of the creative competition continued.

Players can freely enjoy themselves in the sea of ​​creativity.

The game developers were also busy. Some were testing out their competitors' work in the sea of ​​ideas, while others were intensively browsing player reviews and frantically fixing bugs.

Player activities outside the giant black hole are also in full swing.

……

Half a month has passed in the blink of an eye.

The time has come quickly to February.

The Global Developer Creative Competition is officially open!
The [Sea of ​​Creativity], with its expanded global bubble count, is finally open to all users worldwide.

After watching the live stream for half a month, the players, who were already impatient, immediately flocked to this sea!
Developers around the world are also on high alert, preparing to face their fate.

(End of this chapter)