On my second playthrough, they were full of malice towards me.

Aside from appearing once in the Holy Kingdom, Liao Ji rarely saw the brand in the Dragon Kingdom, assuming that most of them had been lost. However, he was pleasantly surprised to find it at Kyle Technology.

Of course.

Although Liao Ji acknowledged Keltech's achievements in branding, he realized they had clearly fallen into some misconceptions.

For example

"Excuse me, can this branding system be applied to living organisms?" A scholar from Shanghai asked Tia. He said "living organisms," but everyone knew he meant humans.

Yes, just imagine if such a powerful ability could be directly applied to people, wouldn't everyone become a superhuman being comparable to a Calamity-Changer?

Tia shook her head firmly at this.

"Unfortunately, our numerous experiments have shown that the possibility of applying branding technology to living organisms is almost zero. If a living organism were to forcibly accept branding, and the branding combination were incorrect, it would cause severe and irreversible mutations and mental pollution, turning it into a monstrous creature. Even with the known branding combinations, we have yet to find any suitable candidate that can withstand the pressure of branding, not even those voluntarily participating in the experiments from solitary confinement."

Tia added a sentence afterward.

Although the world generally holds a negative attitude towards those who have been corrupted, there are still subtle differences in the specific attitudes of different countries. For example, the Holy Kingdom has zero tolerance for those who have been corrupted, considering them to be extremely dangerous elements, while the Dragon Kingdom does not allow them to be corrupted by ordinary people, but turns a blind eye to them in the military, using a new code name such as "Relic Envoy" to ban them.

Because of their advanced development and more humane approach, the Magic City and the Mechanical Alliance tend to treat those found to have been corrupted by confinement in solitary confinement cells or prisons.

In fact, it is because these two countries are the regions most likely to produce those who have been corrupted. After all, corruption comes from mental and emotional states, and the city of Shanghai is known as the city of freedom and desire. As for the Alliance of Machines, it is because of the conflict between cybernetic bodies and humans. The higher the level of cybernetic enhancement, the more likely it is to produce rejection reactions, which means mental disorder and neurosis. Some people go crazy as a result, while others become those who have been corrupted.

Liao Jineng could tell from Tia's words that Kyle Technology had tried to combine the Brand with the Evil Ones more than once. However, judging from Tia's confident tone, Kyle Technology had failed every time before concluding that the Brand could never be used on living beings.

In response, Liao Ji gave Yilin, who was looking over nervously, a reassuring look.

Furthermore, applying branding marks to weapons is something that hasn't been done in the game before, essentially opening up a completely new path. It seems that people 500 years from now aren't all just living off their parents.

But speaking of relying on one's parents...

"Ms. Tia, so all these branded models from Kyle Technology were produced in [Dream Zero]? Could you tell us about Kyle Technology's current progress in [Dream Zero]?" This time, Liao Ji took the initiative to ask Tia for advice without needing anyone else.

Liao Ji had not forgotten his purpose in coming to the Mechanical Alliance: to find a way to enter the illusion of "Zero".

So when Tia introduced the branding technique to them and mentioned the term "Zero Dream," Liao Ji immediately took notice and paid close attention.

"You're right. All the marks were discovered by chance when the company was maintaining [Dream Zero]. As for the progress of [Dream Zero] that you're hoping to know, I'm sorry, that's a company secret and I'm not authorized to answer that for you."

He received a bunch of nonsensical explanations, but it didn't matter. Liao Ji's real purpose was to steer the conversation here, and then...

"So what exactly is [Dream Zero]?" As expected, not all the scholars in Shanghai understood the term. Some of the younger ones were puzzled when the term reappeared.

"Zero Dream is the largest and longest-lasting Dream Network in existence. Due to its enormous size and content, we prefer to call it the Old Dream World, or the Old World."

"The Old World?"

Tia nodded to the group of strange scholars and said, "Yes, the cause of this illusion, as its name suggests, is a dream created by 'Zero,' the founder of the Mechanical Alliance and the most advanced intelligent mechanical life form in history. In this illusion, 'Zero's' past memories are simulated—that apocalyptic old world shrouded in calamity five hundred years ago."

"The old world is filled with filth and pollution, natural disasters, and countless monsters. Even more deadly, as I mentioned earlier, this dream, empowered by 'Zero's' powerful computing capabilities, produces an extremely high level of immersive realism. This means that while other dreams are just dreams, for 'Zero Dream,' dying in the dream means losing one's spirit in reality. Countless bloody cases have proven this fact."

"In order to prevent the tragedy from repeating itself, thanks to the efforts of many companies, including Kyle Technology, the Mechanical Alliance of a hundred years ago finally established a formal law to completely close the access channels to Zero Dream, strictly prohibiting citizens from entering Zero Dream. Any unauthorized access is illegal. We will be fully responsible for the subsequent guarding and maintenance of Zero Dream."

Chapter 188 Poaching

After leaving the R&D corridor, Tia led the Shanghai-based advisory team to the laboratories and equipment factories related to the "Scar Project".

Kyle Technologies generously demonstrated the production process of the "branded weapon" to them. It is actually very simple, and can be summarized into three steps.

First, enter the old world through [Zero Dream] and bring the branded pattern of the "master copy" back to reality.

Next, and most importantly, it takes the time for these experts in "ancient studies" to step in, to study the relationships between the brand marks, to arrange and combine these unknown brand marks, and finally to arrive at an "effective" brand mark set.

Finally, factory personnel use ultra-high precision instruments at the nanometer level to engrave and replicate the effective branding marks, ultimately obtaining sub-branding marks that can be mass-produced.

Through these three steps, Liao Ji quickly understood why Kail Technology was so generous and confident.

After all, as the origin of the "brand," Zero Dream, as Tia's previous introduction showed, is a restricted network area, namely the dark web, where only a very few companies with government permission can intervene.

In other words, other companies wanting to research branding technology can't even get close to the basics.

The second hurdle is this middle step: to mass-produce "sub-brands," one must first understand the "master" branding kit and its principles.

Scholars in Shanghai had previously raised questions, since with the computing power of the Mechanical Alliance's computers, shouldn't they be able to find the correct set quickly using brute force when it comes to permutations and combinations?

However, the truth is that every permutation and combination requires the use of a "master" imprint, and once the "master" imprint is used, it will produce a great deal of turbidity and pollution. In order to ensure safety and stability, the cost of each permutation experiment is enormous.

Even with unlimited investment, the "marks" have a limited capacity to withstand pollution. After many attempts, Keltech concluded that each "mark" can only be used for a maximum of seven per month. Once this limit is exceeded, it will not only damage the mark but also trigger a serious pollution crisis.

That's why experts in "ancient studies" are so important.

Given the enormous cost of the experiments and the strict limit on the number of experiments, each permutation experiment is extremely valuable.

If a scholar were to use ancient knowledge to recognize some of the traces, even if it only provides a vague general direction for the combination, it would be equivalent to saving Kyle Technology hundreds of millions of dollars in experimental costs and increasing efficiency many times over.

That's why the following scene happened.

The visit to Keltech started at 5 p.m. and lasted until 9:30 p.m., four and a half hours later. The members of the Shanghai advisory group returned to the VIP room where they started.

William, the manager in charge of the exchange meeting who was introduced earlier, is now standing at the front of the stage. He looks at the consultants from Shanghai in the VIP room, and his gaze is particularly drawn to a few scholars who are attracted by the Mark Project. They have been visiting for several hours, but they seem to be getting more and more energetic and are having a heated discussion.

Steward William coughed lightly a few times, drawing the advisory group's attention to himself, then adopted an extremely sincere expression and said very seriously:

"Gentlemen, I understand that the so-called academic exchanges between Shanghai and the Mechanical Alliance have somehow turned into an activity of mutual showing off and belittling each other. Today, I, William, want to represent Kyle Technology and hope that we can restore academic exchanges to their original form."

"Our purpose in inviting professors, scholars, and PhDs from Shanghai is to sincerely hope that you will accept the offer of employment from Keltech and become a member of our company family to conduct research on branding technology with us. Keltech promises to allocate the greatest resources to you and do its best to meet all your research-related requirements and conditions."

"Of course, we also understand that such a major decision as working abroad cannot be made in a short time. Therefore, we will give you three days to consider it. During these three days, Kyle Technology will treat you as temporary employees, allowing you to experience life as a member of the company. At the same time, we will open up all internal company information about 'branding technology' to you, which you can freely view and browse."

"Three days from now, if any of you here are willing to accept a formal employment contract with Kyle Technology, we will be honored and sincerely invite you to attend the press conference we are preparing to hold on that day. You will be a reviewer, a witness, and the first user of the 'three-piece' branding weapon."

After Chief Steward William finished speaking, it was clear that he had a significant impact on the advisory group. Whispers immediately broke out in the VIP room, and it was evident from their expressions that Kyle Technology was genuinely surprised by this move.

The young man next to Liao Ji also looked very impressed and kept patting Liao Ji on the shoulder.

"My god, is this for real, Brother Liao? Is Kyle Technology really going all in this time? They're playing too big a game. What is this? They're openly trying to steal people from our Shanghai?"

"But didn't we come here initially as consultants?" Liao Ji asked.

"Sigh, wasn't that all just a smokescreen? Everyone thought it was just an excuse from Kyle Technology to send us here to be humiliated, but who would have thought they were serious!"

"But... humph!"

Luo Xiaoji snorted coldly. Liao Ji noticed that the young man didn't seem angry; he was probably just having fun.

because

"Aren't the people at Kyle Technology really underestimating the scholars of Shanghai? It was Shanghai that nurtured us. We owe everything we have today to the dignified and beautiful City Lord. We are born to be Lady Lena's people, and we will die to be Lady Lena's dogs. Do they really think that their tiny, crappy company can make us betray Shanghai? Dream on!"

Clearly, Luo Xiaoji belonged to the group of people who were extremely loyal to Shanghai, especially to their city lord, and had a strong sense of belonging. Therefore, Luo Xiaoji naturally assumed that the other scholars would be just as unwavering in their acceptance of Kyle Technology's invitation as he was.

However, setting aside the youth's description of Lena as "dignified and beautiful," Liao Ji glanced at the current performance of the advisory group scholars and shook his head.

"Brother Luo, I feel that the situation is not as optimistic as you think."

What do you mean?

Upon hearing Liao Ji's words, Luo Xiaoji was initially puzzled, but when he followed Liao Ji's gaze, his eyes widened in disbelief.

Because all that was seen was William, the general manager of Kyle Technology, now standing before the elderly professor with graying temples who had been quite prominent during the previous visit and was considered the leader of the advisory group.

Because of the distance, Luo Xiaoji couldn't hear what they were talking about, but just from their expressions, he could tell that they were having a very pleasant conversation.

Chapter 189 Onboarding

"Is that old professor very famous?" Liao Ji had actually been paying attention to that old professor for a long time. It was this old professor who first gave his analysis and speculation on the "branding technique".

"Very famous? Brother Liao, you're not one of those PhDs who're completely oblivious to the world, are you? You don't even know Professor Einstein?" Luo Xiaoji's eyes widened.

"Einstein?"

"Yes, he's on par with Professor Niu Li, the most prestigious figure in the 'Ancient Studies' academic world of our Demon City. He has published many papers on ancient studies, especially in the direction of researching that 'Great Emperor,' such as 'The Long Night Will Dawn - The Legend of the Ash Emperor,' 'The Great Emperor's Affairs,' 'The Origin of the Ash Empire,' and the most famous one, 'Shaking Gods with a Mortal Body.'"

"Professor Einstein's famous battle was believed by many ancient scholars, and even the mainstream of the academic community, to be that the emperor was born with invincible bloodline, was at least a Calamity-level Calamity Being, had unparalleled talent, and crushed everything with absolute violence."

"But only Professor Einstein insisted on the Emperor's 'ordinariness theory,' that the Emperor's birth and bloodline were not noble, and he was just an ordinary person like you and me. The Emperor's true extraordinary quality was that he had the spirit of a savior who knew the suffering of the people, wanted to help the world, and wanted to sweep away the evil and purify the world for all those who were suffering!"

"Professor Einstein proved to the world through various historical books and records that the Emperor never embezzled a single penny in his entire life! What does that mean? It's as if he used every single resource to fight against the turbid calamity. Even when he gained more power, the Emperor's pure heart never wavered. He didn't even touch the five personal guards around him once, and he didn't leave behind a single child until the very end!"

"Brother Liao, do you know what this means? It wouldn't be an exaggeration to call us saints, would it? With our personalities, let alone the supreme power of an emperor who unifies the world, we'd probably be content with the status quo after conquering a little territory in the old world, and all we'd think about is having children."

Liao Ji: "."

Liao Ji remained silent. To his left was Luo Xiaoji, also a "professor of ancient studies," whose face showed worship and reverence for the emperor. To his right was Yilin, who was looking at him with a strange expression.

The girl's eyes seemed to say...

Could things really change this much in five hundred years?

indeed.

Looking back now, these players, who are considered "serious gamers," seem to be like saints to the people in the game world. They never indulge in debauchery, never abuse their power, and only think about leveling up, conquering territory, and figuring out how to make their empire stronger with the least amount of resources. They rack their brains to figure out how to overcome each level and boss.

That's incredibly dedicated!

"So, it's all because of Professor Einstein, and his timeless classic quote—'Do you understand the Emperor or do I understand the Emperor?!'"

"Those scholars who thought the emperor was extremely lustful and liked to play with women dared not speak out. Otherwise, if it weren't for Professor Einstein, and ancient studies had continued down the wrong path, the consequences would have been unimaginable."

"The most classic, and also the most outrageous, example is that there were actually rumors circulating before, which ultimately led the guards to lose their temper and murder the Emperor. It was all due to their utter ignorance! Ridiculous! Absurd!"

Amidst Luo Xiaoji's furious, red-necked rebuke, Yilin, standing next to Liao Ji, shrank back, after all, she had once been one of those who believed in this fallacy.

Although she still believes this in her heart now, and is increasingly convinced of it.

Perhaps realizing that he had gotten a little too excited and gone off-topic after talking about Professor Einstein, Luo Xiaoji quickly brought his attention back to the present.

"It shouldn't be possible. Professor Einstein is so highly respected, a leading figure in the field of 'Ancient Studies' in Shanghai. How could a small company like Kyle Technology possibly poach such a person!"

Unless...unless

While Luo Xiaoji was muttering to himself, it seemed that Steward William and the gray-haired professor had reached some kind of consensus. Both of them smiled and even shook hands.

This made Luo Xiaoji's face look quite uncomfortable again, and he quickly thought of a possibility.

Only this possibility could have led Professor Einstein to leave the Demon City, betray their city lord, and switch sides to Kyle Technology.

which is

"Brother Liao, could this branding technique be related to that great emperor?"