Great, now we are dead!

In his daily life, he also uses the "Ghost Brain" to conduct imaginary weight training. His wrists, calves, and torso are all suspended with lead weights and sandbags. Moreover, he does not actually "sit" down; in his mind, he is handling official business in a standing posture.

So while he may appear to be sitting there listlessly, he is actually constantly expending his energy.

A moment later, the office door was pushed open, and a man and a woman who both looked like scholars walked in.

The woman had short, ear-length hair and wore a shirt and jeans, looking quite capable. However, she wasn't very good at hiding her emotions, and there was a hint of anxiety between her brows.

The man was simpler; he was clearly a typical tech geek, the kind of top-tier hacker in Hollywood movies who could break through government networks. He was about the same age as Kayaba and Sugo, but his mental state was much younger.

"Welcome to our family, Dr. Higa, Dr. Kamishiro."

Ye Shou rarely left his seat and shook hands with them warmly, which made the two of them feel flattered. Of course, it was also possible that Ye Shou had a decisive and sharp spirit, which was completely unlike the meticulous and heavy-minded capitalist, which surprised them.

Takeshi Higa and Rinko Kamishiro, along with Akihiko Kayaba and Nobuyuki Sugo, are from the same school. Although not as famous as Kayaba, they are still exceptionally talented. Takeshi Higa, in particular, is second only to Kayaba in talent, far surpassing Sugo.

Although they were scholars who were focused on research, they had heard of the Kyuuse Group and its young leader, Ye Shou, especially after news of the collaboration between Kayaba and the Kyuuse Group spread.

Just like Kayaba, they subconsciously felt that such a young heir to a wealthy family might have an eye for investment, but probably not much understanding of technology, so the project manager directly in contact with them should be someone else.

To everyone's surprise, these exceptionally talented individuals, literally wealthy beyond measure, would actually take the time to receive them. According to the secretary (maid), today's meeting wasn't even about any specific project; it was simply to enhance mutual understanding.

In other words, this important figure seemed to treat them as equals!

Even a cynical tech geek like Takeshi Higa subconsciously adopted a serious attitude and sat obediently on the sofa.

Ye Shou did not return to his seat, but instead sat opposite the two of them, without deliberately creating pressure or an image of superiority.

He has always had great respect for those who work in technology.

At school, he also respected his hardworking and exceptionally talented classmates, such as Miyuki Shirogane.

Because you might become one of his employees!

He treated Liuli the same way; aside from matters of the heart, he never deliberately humiliated her because of her social status.

Because they work very hard!

I've worked so hard to create benefits for you, so what's wrong with providing a little emotional value?

Ye Shou has always been a very pragmatic person; the value of his employees determines the compensation he provides. If Liuli can develop the [Photogenetic Particle Converter], Ye Shou wouldn't even mind offering himself as payment.

The conversation that followed went very smoothly. Both of them were relatively pure scholars who had previously received invitations from government agencies and foreign capital, but because they had not yet presented any tangible projects that could create economic value like Kayaba, most of their offers came from universities and research institutes.

Although the treatment was quite good, they knew that once they entered that kind of place, they would inevitably have to spend energy to get sponsorships and build networks... After all, resources are limited, and seniority is the same all over the world.

The terms offered by the Jiushi Group were different; Ye Shou specifically provided a very large amount, which was even somewhat extravagant for these two people.

In addition, there is the most important point—

"It seems like Kayaba has disappeared."

Takeshi Higa glanced at Rinko Kamishiro and then asked, "His last public appearance was at the NERvGear launch event. Although his social media accounts said he needed to rest for a while, some media outlets said he had an accident."

He was in charge of such a large project, involving the interests of several parties; logically, someone should be keeping a close eye on him... Does Mr. Kuze know where he is?

After saying this, Rinko Shindai bit her lip and waited anxiously for Ye Shou's reply—she was the one who cared most about this issue.

“Mr. Kayaba Akihiko is currently living in seclusion at a resort hotel owned by the Kuze Group, so you two don’t need to worry.”

Liuli served the coffee with an impeccable smile.

"To protect some trade secrets, we did not tell the police and the media the whole truth, so there may be some misunderstandings. However, both of them are Mr. Kayaba's friends and will soon join us, so naturally they don't have many concerns."

"You two should know Nobuyuki Sugo, right?"

"Xuxiang?"

"That rascal……"

The two looked at each other and nodded.

"Nobuyuki Sugo was an important member of [Rect] and had a cooperative relationship with our group. Because he and Mr. Kayaba were from the same school, he was responsible for many handover tasks, and thus he also gained access to many secrets of NERvGear and SAO... Unfortunately, he was eventually proven to be a corporate spy."

"..."

"..."

Rinko Kamishiro calmly took a sip of her coffee, while Takeshi Higa scoffed, neither of them seeming particularly surprised.

Did he do anything?

"Simply put, they took advantage of our trust and launched a penetration attack on the server firewall that day, which ultimately caused... very serious consequences."

Liuli said regretfully, "He stole a lot of important data and is now wanted globally by the Jiushi Group. But the people who hired him are likely some capital in the Americas. If he goes into hiding, there's nothing we can do."

"That person is always restless, no matter where he goes."

Kamishiro sighed, but quickly forgot about Sugo: "What about Kayaba? How is he?"

"Mr. Kayaba has suffered a certain blow."

Liuli glanced at Ye Shou quickly, her words flowing smoothly and naturally, polite and restrained while concealing regret and resentment, leaving no room for doubt.

“He was not sad because he was betrayed. In fact, according to him, he had never trusted Sugo Nobuyuki. Since he had no expectations, he was not disappointed.”

Upon hearing this, Rinko Kamishiro and Ken Higa exchanged a helpless glance and laughed in unison.

That kind of ruthless talk is definitely from Kayaba!

"The reason he was so devastated was that SAO, which he had poured so much energy into in the hope of fulfilling his childhood dream, died suddenly on the same day, causing the other world he created to lose its luster."

"That's true..."

Rinko Kamishiro muttered to herself, confirming the truth of Ruri's words.

The outside world generally believes that NERvGear is Kayaba's masterpiece, and SAO is just an accompanying game software used to highlight its superior performance, like a "virtual reality introductory advertisement".

But those who truly understand Kayaba will know that he has always valued SAO more, or rather, all his research is to fulfill his wish to create a real otherworld.

This not only proves that Ye Shou and Liu Li did not lie to the two, but also proves that Kayaba must have a pleasant cooperation with the Kuze Group, otherwise he would never have mentioned such a thing to others!

"However, Lord Ye Shou highly values ​​Mr. Kayaba. Even though this incident has caused great losses to the group, Lord Ye Shou believes that his value far exceeds these intangible figures."

Liuli changed the subject and said eagerly, "What we need to do now is not only to promote virtual games like ALO, but also to fully explore the application prospects of the fully immersive device."

Therefore, Mr. Kayaba recommended the two of you to us, saying that he doesn't have many people he agrees with, and you two are among the best.

Higa and Kamishiro were slightly surprised, but then their faces flushed with excitement—Kayaba wouldn't say something like that so easily. It turns out they were so outstanding in Kayaba's eyes!

“I think that if we want Kayaba to recover quickly, we need to put pressure on him. And I believe that once you two join the company, you will soon be able to achieve something that will make Kayaba Akihiko take notice.”

Ye Shou extended his hand again: "Welcome to the Jiushi Group."

"Thank you!"

Higa Ken abandoned his last bit of hesitation, completely forgetting the olive branch offered to him by the National Research Institute. Full of anticipation and joy, he shook hands with Ye Shou, even excitedly covering him with his other hand as well.

"Technology is the future of humanity, so let's join hands and move forward for the development of science and technology!"

……

Let's work together to advance technology!

Beep!

The screen paused, and Ye Shou casually swiped to the side, observing Kayaba Akihiko's expression with amusement.

He now truly resembles a "mad scientist," not only in his white lab coat but also with a stubble on his chin. His tall, thin appearance makes him look malnourished, like a nerdy graduate student who substitutes Dr. Pepper for his regular meals.

His slightly sickly pale skin, coupled with his somewhat nervous eyes... made Ye Shou a little worried.

Could it be that leaving him here for too long has affected his mental state?

But then again, in cyberspace, personal avatars are "manually adjusted." The fact that Kayaba still has the time and inclination to change his clothes and skins proves he's in good spirits and even enjoys cosplay.

"...Phoenix Institute?"

"what?"

"No."

Ye Shou shook his head; it seemed that this image was just a pure coincidence.

After all, this guy doesn't seem like the type to be interested in women at all, while Brooch is the pure, secretly flirtatious Chu Nan.

Kayaba Akihiko gave Ye Shou a strange look: "It seems you've successfully won them over. With their help, you probably won't need me anymore, right?"

Kayaba knew he had been closely monitored from the very beginning. He had no doubt that all his research had fallen into Ye Shou's hands. With the foundation he had laid, Kamishiro and Higa could continue to delve deeper into the same line of thought and eventually put it into practical use.

"Edison was important, but Tesla's failure to fully realize his talents was a loss for all mankind."

"You know that kind of talk won't move me."

Mao remained unfazed.

Unlike most scientists, he felt nothing about the so-called "loss of all mankind".

He embarked on this path to satisfy his own selfish desires and to build a city in the sky, not for those noble and glorious titles.

"What about the thing I gave you last time?"

"I'm not interested in."

"This man is lying," Ye Shou smiled slightly.

"It's not that I can't understand you. Everyone has their own fantasy world where they enjoy freedom on a spiritual level."

The difference is that ordinary children can only build simple secret bases, and when they grow up, they forget everything and become adults who are domesticated by society and companies.

A very small number of people, however, do not change until adulthood, and try to realize their dreams in various ways.

They were not chosen children, but rather they actively chose a different destiny.

However, there's only one thing that bothers me.

Kayaba Akihiko frowned, staring rudely at Ye Shou, but made no move to say anything.

Ye Shou didn't take it to heart and said indifferently, "Your ideal is too easy to achieve."

"……what?"

Mao Bai was moved, "What do you mean?"

"It's just making an online game, bringing in ten thousand players, and then calling it a complete alternate world—isn't that a bit too rigorous for a scientist?"

Ye Shou laughed: "If it were me, I would at least have to pull a country or even the whole world into my dream before I would feel comfortable telling my childhood self that I had completed the mission."

"..."

"Moreover, even if we take a step back and say that the SAO you created is just a data world made up of 1s and 0s, and everything about it is designed, making you the undisputed savior—is that really meaningful?"

Fate is invincible because it is unpredictable, and time is terrifying because it is irreversible. The real world is full of surprises, which some call miracles and others call disasters, but without exception, they are all unpredictable phenomena.

When you can control everything, you should realize that this is just a bigger sandbox!

"...Are you saying I'm playing house?"

"There were a lot of participants, but the essence is the same: a crazy scientist with a girlish heart kidnapped 10,000 friends to play dead with him."

Ye Shou paused, his sharp gaze fixed on Mao Chang.

"The saddest thing is that you only see the world in the data, but you don't realize the distortion of reality. You are clearly a smart person, but you make the most inefficient choice."

"A distortion of reality?"

Kayaba was taken aback. He had originally thought Ye Shou was going to use "future technology" to lure him, but he hadn't expected it to involve something else.

"Even if you do nothing, this Earth is slowly starting to resemble another world."

Ye Shou snapped his fingers, and a large projection appeared in mid-air, which was a 3D scan of Mount Su Na.

Kayaba Akihiko glanced at it casually, then his gaze was drawn to something, first puzzled and then stunned.

"this is……"

"Whatever comes to mind, you guessed right."

Ye Shou said solemnly, "This is a humanoid creature with a total height of forty or fifty meters. Although it has been divided into several pieces, you can still feel its extremely strong vitality!"

It's not some fictional monster, nor is it a boss in your game; it's a real ancient deity from a Pacific island nation in the 21st century!

"It's not CGI from a movie, is it...?"

"My family's mineral exploration company just discovered it, and things are relatively stable for now."

"Impossible... This humanoid creature's size... This isn't scientific!"

It's certainly not scientific, but who in the realm of idealism and fantasy would tell you this?