Rebirth 08: Equipment God

Chapter 389 Telekinesis (Part 2)

At the Chinese Grand Theatre, a unique magic show is about to begin.

At the back of the audience, two special audience members were talking quietly.

"I thought he would ask us to talk, or at least visit Silicon Valley."

Viewers from 400 miles away watched as Apple's current leader, Steve Jobs, stroked his thinning stubble.

"The answer is simple: he knows very well that we will only be competitors, and there is no possibility of cooperation in either software or hardware. This is determined by the business model. As for other decadent companies in Silicon Valley, they may not be of interest to him."

Yes, Silicon Valley isn't far from Los Angeles. Zhai Da and his team have been here for three or four days already. After all, it's their territory, and filming a program isn't kept secret.

Many companies had already learned of Zhai Da's arrival through various channels, but he seemed uninterested in visiting any of them.

Gao, who had accompanied him, said, "You actually consider him a competitor? A kid from China?"

Is it so hard to admit that others are excellent? We must face the gap.

Executive: ?
"It is an indisputable fact that we have drawn much inspiration from Hongtu."

"Well, his hobby is quite peculiar. He takes magic so seriously that he even prepared a TV show for it."

Steve Jobs remarked, "Everyone has hobbies. When I was as young as him, I was crazy about the things I liked. Now that I'm old, I can only listen to music and meditate."

Just then, Zhai Da on the stage did something amazing. The agile young man threw several playing cards into the air.

The playing cards did not land, but floated in mid-air.

Zhai Da swept his hands up and down to prove that the playing cards were not bound by silk threads (his hands used misalignment to avoid the hidden threads), and then used his fingers to guide them in the air, moving them freely to create interesting structures.

Others might think he's just a magic enthusiast, but that's only the first layer of his appeal.

Some people think he likes fame and enjoys hanging out with celebrities and beautiful women.

For example, over the past two weeks, Dilraba's gaze has become increasingly watery, and she has also left an impression on the past guests, but this is still only the second layer.

He was actually in the atmosphere, self-programming to create a magical ability.

Zhai Da plucked a playing card from mid-air and spun it rapidly in his palm, explaining, "I can make it spin at thousands of revolutions per minute, or I can make it spin with a single thought."

With a grasping motion in the air, the playing card slowly wrinkled and then compressed inward, turning into a paper ball!
"This may still not convince you, but my friends, the power of will is beyond imagination."

As he spoke, Zhai Da slowly pushed downwards with both hands.

He floated up, more than an inch off the ground.

Screams echoed throughout the entire theater!
Zhai Da gradually built up the outside world's understanding of "mind control," not only among the hundreds of people in the audience, but also among countless television viewers afterward.

Soon, the magic show moved into its second phase, where he needed to edit the crucial "upper limit of precision."

Then the assistant, with her cat-like steps, pushed in a microscope, while the staff also pushed in several large, spliced ​​screens.

Through a series of demonstrations, Zhai Da proved to the audience that the microscope and the large screen behind it were connected, such as observing some slices under a microscope, items randomly provided by the audience, and a grain of sand on the ground.

It also thoughtfully reminds everyone that this microscope produces micron-level development.

Then, to the accompaniment of tense and exciting music, a performance was given in which the names of "random" audience members were written on a micron-sized plane under a microscope using the power of thought, and even two microorganisms were manipulated in a very abstract way.

If Zhai Da had performed this right from the start, it would have been considered utter nonsense. But after being led and intimidated by a series of events, it actually seemed somewhat real.

Especially the "happy education" approach! Several rednecks are already praying and chanting to God.

The only downside is that Zhai Da himself felt a bit awkward; if it weren't for the [Cloak of Faith], he probably wouldn't have been able to control his expression.

However, the fourth performance was not intended to be entertaining; sacrificing some entertainment value for more commercial gain was part of the plan.

In the third part of the magic show, Zhai Da attempted to establish the "upper limit" of his abilities. Staff pushed up a series of tempered glass barriers to separate the stage from the audience, letting them know they were safe.

Then, a member of the audience was "randomly" invited to the stage. After chatting for a while, the audience was asked their name, age, and place of origin to prove that they were a genuine passerby.

Then they gave him a pistol.

This man claimed to be a retired Marine Corps veteran who ran a BBQ shop. He had extensive combat experience, and his appearance fit the stereotype: strong and fat, dressed in light green, and giving off a menacing vibe.

The veteran immediately began inspecting the gun after taking it, displaying a stubbornness that disobeyed Zhai Da's orders, but soon exclaimed in surprise: This is actually a real gun!
The audience now realized what Zhai Da was about to do.

The staff provided him with a bullet, and the camera zoomed in to show its authenticity. The veteran then repeatedly confirmed with Zhai Da whether he had really asked him to do so.

After declining three times, the veteran assumed a standard shooting posture, with background music and lighting effectively evoking the emotion.

As the drumbeats reached their climax, the veteran suddenly pulled the trigger.

A truly realistic gunshot, something most Americans are familiar with.

Zhai Da, who was a dozen meters in front of him, leaned slightly forward, his eyes as hard as iron, as if he had mobilized all his "intentions".

Almost simultaneously with the gunshot, a buzzing sound came from the air, but the magician who tried to block the bullet did not fall to the ground.

A bullet was stopped two meters in front of Zhai Da, spinning rapidly.
The camera provided a close-up shot at the opportune moment.

Zhai Da seemed to breathe a sigh of relief, slowly walked forward, tentatively touched the temperature of the bullet, and then picked it up with two fingers to show it to all the audience.

The theater erupted in thunderous applause and cheers!

The only difference was that tourists from various Asian countries, especially Chinese, clapped with a hint of awkwardness, because intellectually they simply couldn't believe it was real. They treated it purely as a performance effect.

But joyful education is truly joyful! It was so exciting that several people stood up and shouted "Jesus Christ!"

Just then, a sudden change occurred, and in a place where no one was paying attention, the old soldier suddenly blushed.

He quickly pulled a few bullets from his pocket, loaded them rapidly, pointed them at Zhai Da, and shouted, "Impossible! Only God can stop bullets! This is blasphemy!"

Two shots were fired at the unprepared Zhai Da, who was receiving applause but seemed completely unaware of what was happening behind him.

The cheers turned into screams.

However, a strange thing happened: Zhai Da didn't even look behind him.
The two warheads remained suspended in mid-air.

------

The entire magic show lasted for nearly an hour, and after dealing with a special situation that seemed like a "sudden outburst of madness" but was actually an "explosion of acting skills," it finally came to a successful conclusion.

Compared to the previous three episodes, the process is longer and more complicated, but the entertainment value and impact are slightly less. After all, doing things is like being a person: it's easy to make someone enjoy a moment, but it's difficult to make someone enjoy an hour.

But with the help of post-production editing, it was still a perfect finale performance.

Of course, the audience present also thoroughly enjoyed the show.

That's how performances are; some people worship them like gods, while others despise them and are indifferent, unless it's "749".

Zhai Da never expected to gain everyone's approval, let alone hope that all viewers would become "miracle believers".

Only a few people will believe he can pull off a miracle. After the curtain call, Zhai Da entered the backstage actors' passage. The busy staff still had a lot to do, and Zhai Da greeted everyone one by one, thanking them for their hard work tonight.

As they passed by, he patted the "veteran" on the shoulder and said, "You were really good. Your performance was perfect. I'll have the production team give you extra compensation."

The veteran gratefully cupped his hands in a gesture of thanks, which was his understanding of how Chinese people express gratitude.

Zhai Da continued to walk through the busy crowd.

She passed by the staff moving tempered glass, by Dilraba taking selfies, and by a blonde beauty changing clothes without any attempt to conceal her identity, before finally returning to her private dressing room.

Closing the door temporarily isolates one from the bizarre and fantastical behind-the-scenes space.

Zhai Da tugged at his collar and threw his jacket aside. The long performance was not easy, and his back was covered in sweat.

Looking at the square mirror surrounded by a ring of light bulbs, Zhai Da sighed slightly.

it's over.
The trip, which lasted for more than ten days, has finally come to an end.

But this was the end of "The Magic Talent Show," only the beginning of the "miracle believers."

Zhai Da leaned back in the makeup chair, tilted slightly back, and opened the system.

The corresponding interface was found on the "Outfit" page.

"Set Effect 6: Miracle Follower (Permanent) (Ultimate Effect) → The host can set one close-up magic trick, one stage magic trick, and one large-scale magic trick. Through repeated magic performances, the audience will believe that you really have this ability. When a certain number of followers are accumulated, you will be granted the corresponding ability."

"The required number of believers are: 10,000, 1 million, and 100 million respectively."

"The effects, strength, and limitations of the granted abilities are perfectly aligned with the average psychological cognition of miracle believers (dynamic monitoring). If cognition decreases or increases, it will be reflected in the strength of the abilities. If the number of believers falls below the minimum threshold, the ability will be lost."

"Lost abilities can be regained through performance, but the three preset magic spells cannot be changed. Please choose carefully."

"Note: A magic trick that cannot be cracked is a miracle! A miracle that can be cracked is just a hoax."

The ultimate abilities of the set all seem to be overpowered, and the greatest value of these abilities lies in the fact that they affect the user.

As long as he doesn't lose any set components and his number of followers doesn't drop below a certain threshold, he can use it anywhere and under any circumstances.

The fill-in-the-blank question, which only allowed one chance, made him very cautious. He made so many preparations and developed many contingency plans, and even now that all four stops of the journey have been completed, the question is still blank.

Zhai Da closed his eyes and pondered for a moment, recalling everything that had happened along the way.

Even the still rain in the first episode, the horizontal stomping on the water in the second episode, and the high-altitude jumps in the third episode...
In fact, they are all supplementing the fourth phase of "mind control of matter".

Yes, that's his real plan!

This is the true story behind this overseas trip, a story intricately woven together.

Now, it's time to fill in the blank.

Zhai Da took a deep breath and made his decision using his mind on the interface.

Close-up magic: Telekinesis!
The next moment, a system message popped up:
"The host has made a choice. Determining whether it can be classified as close-up magic. Determination successful. Choice in effect!"

"The number of 'miracle believers' is being confirmed."

"All believers who believe the host possesses special abilities will be counted, but only the perception of believers corresponding to 'Close-up Magic: Telekinesis' will affect the strength, mechanism, and effect of that ability."

"Counting... Counting complete. Unfortunately, your number of followers has not reached the target. The current number is 9527. Please continue to perform miracles to gain more followers."

Zhai Da frowned slightly, not out of disappointment, but rather out of surprise.

There are already over nine thousand people? And those affected along the way?

That's true. Tokyo's Night Parade of One Hundred Demons and Seoul's Leap of Faith both have many witnesses, and these people often upload what they see to the internet.

These blurry and shaky images are naturally not as good as the edited version of the official broadcast, but every little bit counts.

As for the press conference, it's hard to believe in a miracle, but it might be brought up as evidence by others later.

But the good news is yet to come.

After pondering for a while, the number of believers had already reached 9612.

The previous content is still circulating, and the audience in Los Angeles is still enjoying the afterglow of the event, which is the peak period for converting people to believe.

9689.

Zhai Da smiled slightly. Since he had nothing else to do for the time being, he simply watched the numbers jump by and took a break.

9776.

It felt as pleasant as when you've just been reborn and watching your savings gradually increase.

The numbers are constantly changing. It may still be a long way from the second tier of "millions", but it is very close to "ten thousand".

Suddenly, there was a knock on the door of the lounge: "Teacher Zhai, is this a convenient time?"

They were speaking Chinese, so they were undoubtedly one of their own. Zhai Da reached out and opened the door a crack; standing outside was the program director.

"what's up?"

9823.

The director is only in his thirties. Although variety show directors are not highly paid, he is still proud of this job and will remember it for the rest of his life.

"Everyone wants to invite you to take a group photo, since it's finally over and done with, before the venue is dismantled."

Zhai Da was taken aback: "So urgent?"

The director said with a wry smile, "The people at the theater are urging us. After all, we were delayed by two days before, and they have a stage play to rehearse tonight. The actors are all waiting."

Oh. No wonder there were so many blondes changing clothes backstage.
Zhai Da hesitated slightly, but readily agreed, "Okay, I'll be right there. You go and wait for me."

9987.

Zhai Da stood up and straightened his disheveled collar and slightly out-of-shape hairstyle.

Off to take photos.

A few seconds later, the person returned.

He beckoned to the coat on the sofa from several meters away.

The coat floated towards him and landed precisely in his palm.

There was a "click".

The door is closed.

(End of this chapter)