Chapter 231 Saying he wouldn't buy, but his actions said otherwise!

The controversy surrounding Yunlan University's admissions has yet to subside, but another spark of the "Prairie Fire" plan has already been quietly ignited.

It was a typical Monday morning, a week before the start of university.

The official accounts of the Ministry of Science and Technology and the Ministry of Culture of China released a joint announcement at the same time.

To promote technological innovation and carry forward traditional culture, China's first groundbreaking immersive holographic interactive device, the "Qiankun Yi," will officially go on limited sale this Friday at 8 PM.

[First application featured: Massive multiplayer online holographic game – *Spiritual Aura Resurrection*.]

The announcement was accompanied by a short promotional video.

The video features no real people, only a head-mounted device that floats silently in the air. As the camera zooms in, the device slowly unfolds, revealing a dazzling array of lights inside, as if it contains a starry universe.

Then, the scene changes.

This is a gameplay demo of "Spirit Resurrection".

The snow-capped peaks of Kunlun, the raging waves of the East China Sea, the cloud-shrouded mountains of Shu, the rare and exotic beasts in the wild forests... every frame looks like a top-notch landscape film from National Geographic.

The news caused an immediate uproar online.

"Holographic? Neural access? Am I seeing things? Isn't this something from a science fiction movie?"

"The visuals! The special effects! They blow all the AAA games out of the water! Buy it! I have to buy it!"

"Spiritual Resurrection? This name... why does it smell so familiar?"

"Official involvement in game development? That's absolutely a game-changer!"

"A holographic game? Really? Is this technology real?"

However, once the details of the sale were announced, the heated online discussion instantly became polarized.

[Details of the First Batch of Sales for the "Qiankun Instrument"]

1. Official unified price: 20,000 yuan/unit.

2. Eligibility for purchase: Purchases are only permitted for citizens holding a Huaxia ID card and require real-name authentication through the official platform.

3. Purchase restrictions: Each person is limited to one purchase.

4. Initial quantity: 100,000 units.

Twenty thousand yuan!

This price was like a bucket of cold water poured over the heads of countless netizens who were full of expectations.

"Twenty thousand? That's ridiculous! This is a holographic game! Twenty thousand can't even buy you a top-of-the-line computer!"

"I knew it! Another shoddy product! At this price, only a fool would buy it!"

"Besides, it's the first generation product, so it's bound to have a lot of bugs. Who would be willing to spend 20,000 yuan to be a guinea pig? I'm just waiting for it to fail!"

A tech review blogger with some fame in the digital product circle even posted a video to scare people away: "Brothers, calm down! Neural network access technology sounds high-tech, but it's definitely not mature! The price just proves that. Don't end up with a device that's just like a 5D. Don't pay this 'stupidity tax'! Listen to me, wait! Wait until the technology is mature before you talk about it!"

Below the video, a chorus of agreement filled the air.

"The blogger is right! Let's wait until the technology is more mature before making any moves!"

"No! Absolutely not! Let the capitalists see the power of us consumers!"

"Wait, are you all millionaires? I don't think 20,000 is cheap!"

"20,000 isn't cheap, but for a holographic game, it's incredibly cheap! But I'm not short of money, I'll buy it and see when the time comes."

"What? They're restricting Chinese citizens from buying these? What kind of special treatment is this? Are non-Chinese people not allowed to buy them?"

For a time, online opinions such as "Qiankunyi is an IQ tax", "waiting for it to fail", and "whoever buys it will be damned" dominated the mainstream.

However, beneath these pessimistic voices, an undercurrent is quietly brewing.

In a private group of gamers.

"Brothers, have you seen the official announcement? Don't let those people online stir up trouble! This is something the national team is involved in, just like the previous 'Dragon Abyss' mech, it's absolutely groundbreaking!"

"Is 20,000 yuan expensive? Yes, it is! But think about it, if it were a true holographic game, I'd be willing to pay 200,000, let alone 20,000!"

"I've already set three alarms, so the whole family will be fighting over the phone!"

Similar conversations occur in countless small circles.

They say they won't buy it, but their actions betray their words.

While countless people were cursing the "scam" online, they were also quietly adding the release date to their schedules and setting countdowns.

A silent game is unfolding fiercely in all visible and invisible places.

Time flies by in the blink of an eye.

Release date: 11:30 AM.

Countless people began to put down their work and stare at their computer or mobile phone screens, refreshing them from time to time.

Soon, the official sales platform's page was so simple that it only had a huge countdown timer.

【00:00:59】

【00:00:58】

...

Even the tech blogger who had previously been the most scathing critic of digital products inexplicably opened the page.

He sent a message to his fan group: "Brothers, I'm just going in to take a look and see how many people have paid this 'stupidity tax'. I'll live stream it to you guys in a minute so you can laugh at me!"

【00:00:03】

【00:00:02】

【00:00:01】

"start!"

Countless fingers, at the same instant, slammed into the screen!

The next second.

The "Buy Now" button in front of the blogger only lit up briefly before turning gray before he could even react.

Page refreshed.

Three large red characters jumped out.

Sold out

The whole process took less than three seconds.

One hundred thousand "Qiankun Instruments," each priced at twenty thousand, vanished into thin air.

The blogger was dumbfounded.

He stared blankly at the screen, his mind completely empty.

That's all?

It's gone just like that?

I just clicked in to see what was going on!

What happened to the promised "scam tax"? What happened to the promise to boycott it together?

His fan group has exploded.

"Holy crap! It's gone! I couldn't even get to the payment page!"

"Me too! Gray! Always gray!"

"Who got it? Who got it?! Aaaaaaah!"

After a few seconds of deathly silence, the blogger suddenly came to his senses. With trembling hands, he posted the most humble message of his life on Weibo.

"Brothers...who managed to snag one? I'll add five thousand! No! I'll add ten thousand for one spot! Please!"

However, his post was instantly drowned out by the cries of despair across the internet.

I was wrong! I was so wrong! I shouldn't have hesitated for even a fraction of a second! Why did I believe those bloggers?!

[Everyone said they wouldn't buy, so how come they're faster than anyone else? You bunch of liars! You're so wicked!]

[You say no, but your body says otherwise! Now you're dumbfounded, aren't you?]

Where are the scalpers? Come out and raise the price! I've got my money ready!

In stark contrast to the wailing, those who managed to snag the items were celebrating wildly.

Screenshots with order numbers were being frantically posted on WeChat Moments, Weibo, and Douyin.

"Hahaha! Fast hands are king! See you in the game, brothers!"

"Payment complete! Waiting to unbox it! Envious? Jealous? Hateful?"

"Twenty thousand yuan is a ticket to a new world, it's worth it!"

A game streamer who originally had only a few hundred thousand followers saw his popularity skyrocket after he successfully snatched a "Qiankun Yi" (a powerful magical artifact) in front of everyone during a live stream! His live stream was flooded with comments and gifts.

Meanwhile, the internet abroad was also embroiled in complex discussions.

American media immediately jumped out to mock: "It's really baffling that a state-led collectivist frenzy could trigger such a frenzy over a VR headset priced at three thousand US dollars."

In Japan's gaming forums, however, the atmosphere is distinctly sour and lemony.

"Damn it! Why are they only restricting their own citizens from buying them?!"

"Does anyone have access to this machine? I'm willing to pay a high price to buy one! I want to play 'Spirit Resurrection'!"

Countless foreign tech enthusiasts and gamers, witnessing the frenzy on Chinese online forums, completely lost their composure and began trying every possible means to obtain a mysterious "Qiankun Instrument" through various unofficial channels.

Amidst this global attention and clamor, the official logistics system demonstrated its terrifying efficiency.

Just one day later.

The first batch of "Qiankun Instruments" has begun to be delivered.

The lucky game streamer trembled with excitement as he looked at the black metal box delivered by the courier at the door, which was printed with the profound ink-wash characters "Qiankun".

He took a deep breath and solemnly announced to the live stream camera, which had already gathered tens of millions of viewers.

"Family members! A historic moment has arrived!"

"Let's open the box together and see what this 20,000 yuan 'Qiankun Instrument' and 'Spiritual Qi Restoration' are really like!"