Chapter 116 The Key, Retelling, Special Features: A letter from Fu Ze to Fu...
To Fu Ze
Since you've read this note embedded in the [special key], it means the situation has most likely become very dire—you've lost some part of your memory.
Here, I will briefly introduce the situation:
You are now in a futuristic, fictional holographic game called "Code: ULTIMATE".
Your real identity is Senior Game Manager.
Your core task here is to find out what malfunction has occurred in the game's computing core—the [Center of Everything]—causing players to be trapped in the game and unable to log out normally, and then repair it.
All the tools you will need are pre-loaded in the [Special Key]. Please use them as needed.
If you have any questions about the above content or would like to know more about the details, you can click to view the [attachment].
Finally, I wish you a successful start and great success.
From Fu Ze
Project Team - Architecture Lead for "Code Name: ULTIMATE"
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It was only two hundred words long, but Fu Ze read it over and over again, afraid that he might miss even a single word.
Although the letter itself was very short, the amount of information it contained almost made Fu Ze's brain burst.
At any other time, he would have thought that Dragon Spine was playing a trick on him.
However, this approach of making an accurate judgment on the situation right from the start and directly showing the most important information regardless of "Fu Ze's" personal wishes and ability to accept it is precisely his own style.
No, no, no, even so, we cannot rule out the possibility that the dragon spine is fake.
Is it really possible for someone to imitate another person's speaking habits so closely?
Moreover, there's no need for Dragonspine to spend a fortune just to play such a not-so-funny "joke" on itself.
“Your situation doesn’t look good.” Dragonspine snapped its fingers.
In an instant, two sofa chairs and a side table decorated with flowers appeared in the most perfect place in the room.
A cup of tea and a bottle of ginger ale were placed on a silver tray in the center of the side table.
It is quite obvious who they are intended for.
After taking his seat, Longji slightly raised his head and said to Fu Ze, "Please."
The familiar-sounding word "please" seemed to have touched a nerve with Fu Ze.
Instead of accepting Longji's invitation to sit down, he slammed his hand, along with the letter, heavily onto the table with a loud "Bang!"
The paper, which was originally very flat with only two creases, now looked as if it had been tanned, and was full of fine wrinkles.
Where is the "[attachment]"?
Fu Ze felt as if his voice was detached from his body.
With a flick of his finger near his temple, Longji calmly replied, "Here."
Seeing the other party's self-righteous attitude, Fu Zezhen wished he could just order Yuan Jianxing to fire a shot and teach them a lesson.
"I heard from Badger Tooth that you're a pretty good card player." Seemingly surprised by Fu Ze's anger, Dragon Spine asked, "When you're the dealer, do you reveal your cards right away?"
Suppressing the turmoil in his heart, Fu Ze asked coldly, "...Conditions?"
Leaning back in his chair, Longji raised his glass to Fu Ze: "Let Yuan Jianxing stop targeting me first."
Before Fu Ze could react, he reassured him, "Don't worry, he's hiding very well. I haven't found him."
"But I suppose that since you two have finally overcome all the hardships to get together, you wouldn't hide anything from him."
“And this ‘no hiding’ will naturally include the content of my invitation to you.”
"Then how could he possibly accept you coming to see me alone?"
As the dragon spine paused its movements, the cup it held in mid-air reflected Fu Ze's entire figure on the cup's surface.
The scene looked as if Fu Ze was being held in the hands of the dragon spine.
After a moment, Fu Ze nodded, "Okay." Then he made a few gestures towards the window.
When Yuan Jianxing, who was a hundred meters away, saw Fu Ze's movements through the scope, he was first taken aback, and then slowly lowered his gun.
Then, the tranquilizer darts in the barrel were ejected and replaced with shotgun shells that were more lethal and could even endanger Fu Ze's safety.
-
"What do you want to know?" Looking at Fu Ze, who had finally settled down on the sofa opposite him, Longji said unhurriedly, "There's quite a lot of content in that [attachment], and I can't possibly repeat it to you word for word from beginning to end."
Fu Ze couldn't help but sneer inwardly.
The claim that "there is too much content to repeat" is just a pretext.
With Dragon Spine's abilities, he could more than memorize such a crucial document in its entirety if he wanted to.
This person was simply plotting to hide what they hadn't asked for, in order to maximize the information gap while maintaining a "cooperative" relationship with them.
So shrewd it's annoying.
Then one would need to devote 1,000 or even 10,000 percent of one's attention to dealing with such a "partner".
“Evidence.” Fu Ze crossed one leg over the other with remarkable elegance and ease, pointing at the letter with his finger. “You say this information was extracted from the [Key], and I’m supposed to believe you?”
“If you don’t believe me, you can verify it yourself after you get your own special key.” Dragon Spine took a sip of water. “I don’t need to spend so much time and energy lying to you.”
Fu Ze moved his finger down to the third paragraph of the letter, "What makes him say this is a holographic game?"
Dragon Spine raised an eyebrow slightly.
In this question, Fu Ze used "he" to refer to "the letter writer, Fu Ze".
This is a very interesting reaction.
This indicates that Fu Ze did not directly equate "recipient Fu Ze" with "writer Fu Ze".
Recalling Fu Ze's answer to the question "Who are you?", Dragon Spine felt even more confident in the success of his plan.
With a hint of amusement, Longji looked at Fuze: "Do you think he would lie to you about something so important?"
In his speech, Longji readily adopted the personal pronoun Fu Ze used to distinguish between "Fu Ze the recipient" and "Fu Ze the writer".
"Whether he's lying to me or not is another matter, but I think there's a high probability that you're lying to me." Fu Ze tapped his fingers twice to urge me on. "After all, you were the one who gave me the original text of this information, not the one I directly reviewed. What if you changed some details?"
Longji nodded, indicating that he understood Fu Ze's concerns, but then, instead of answering, he asked, "Do you really have no answer to this question?"
...
Fu Ze's eyelashes trembled involuntarily.
Actually... yes, there is.
For example, the drowsiness that inevitably occurs when taking intercity transportation—and the information loading during fast map navigation.
For example, although the cooking habits and commonly used seasonings in L City and V City are vastly different, some handmade dishes taste quite similar—resource reuse in places that would go unnoticed.
For example, when you suddenly turn your head while stationary, your vision may feel a little blurry, and you need to blink to clear it—the scene changes abruptly and requires a certain amount of time for real-time rendering.
Composing himself, and barely accepting this shocking revelation, Fu Ze continued, "What exactly does the [Center of All Things] refer to? Where is it located?"
"According to the [Attachment], the [Center of All Things] is the foundation of this world, undertaking the important functions of [Anchoring Generation] and [Continuous Calculation]," Longji replied fluently. "[Anchoring Generation] involves anchoring a few keywords and then extending the generation, which can enrich the game content as much as possible while conserving resources."
"The things you see, hear, smell, taste, and touch, as well as the people you have worked with, talked to, and passed by, are almost all products of it."
"[Continuous computation] should be easy to understand; it's about making those game contents..." He paused almost imperceptibly, "...born and live on."
By taking a sip of water to conceal his unease, Dragonspine continued to answer the second question: "It doesn't mention its exact location in the [attachment]. Perhaps you, as the GM, will find out automatically after retrieving the [special key]."
The explanation of the dragon spine was very concise and clear, but it still shocked Fu Ze.
He turned his head to look at the table between the two of them.
It was a heavy, vintage-style wooden table, the wood grain flowing with warm, varying shades under the light. There were a few faint scratches along the edge of the table, with almost invisible dust accumulated inside.
The tabletop is inlaid with mother-of-pearl mosaics of varying sizes, the edges of which have turned a hazy pale yellow due to oxidation over the years.
The vase next to it is a milky white pottery piece, with the unique, not-quite-uniform curves on its surface, characteristic of hand-thrown pottery.
Although the bouquet in the vase was still at its freshest, some of the petals had curled slightly at the edges due to dehydration, and it had a very faint, rotten smell that was somewhere between sweet and cloying.
The outside of the glass of chilled ginger ale on the table was covered with fine, cool droplets of water. They slowly gathered and flowed, eventually spreading out into a slightly darker circular patch around the bottom of the glass.
Through the fogged brown glass, Fu Ze could see those tiny bubbles that he was all too familiar with, slowly rising and then bursting.
Everything seemed so real.
So you're telling me, what is this "Center of All Things" that generated all of these?
"Unbelievable, isn't it?" Dragon Spine followed Fu Ze's gaze and gave a silent sneer. "I had the same reaction as you at first."
Feeling the slight height difference between the wooden tabletop and the mother-of-pearl inlay, Fu Ze said in a hoarse voice, "But no matter how real these things are, they are inherently fake to a group of people."
He didn't say much, but Longji immediately understood that the other party was omitting something.
—Player.
“Then you’re underestimating this game that’s codenamed ‘ULTIMATE’.” Dragon Spine tilted its head to look at the Ultima beside the two of them and said calmly, “According to the [attachment], this game uses a special technology that allows players to quickly immerse themselves in their characters after entering the game and not easily ‘wake up’.”
"Is there anything special about that player?" Fu Ze asked abruptly.
Dragon Spine paused for a moment, "...Why are you suddenly asking this?"
“Since they chose to play this game, they must hope to gain something from it—sensory stimulation, an experience beyond reality, or a completely new life,” Fu Ze explained meticulously. “If there’s nothing special about them, then what’s the difference between them and anyone else who has ever walked through the world?”
Although Fu Ze's analysis was entirely true, Long Ji felt as if he had thorns in his back.
Recalling the contents of the [attachment], the rhinoceros horn's cry echoed in his ears once more—
On what grounds?!
The answer is simple, even cruelly so.
Just because those people are players.
Therefore, the [Center of All Things] will indirectly influence and drive the behavior of the characters around them based on their potential needs, weaving coincidences and events to enhance their gaming experience.
Gazing at Fu Ze, a complex light flashed in Longji's eyes as he slowly asked, "How special do you think I have to be to be considered special?"
Is being hardworking and ambitious considered special?
Is being exceptionally gifted considered special?
Could it be that the word "special" can only be interpreted as...
Seemingly inspired, Fu Ze suddenly looked up and said, "[Key], no, it's [Key]."
"Whoever has the [key] is the player."
But Fu Ze immediately broke out in a cold sweat at his conclusion.
But this key can be stolen!
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Author's Note: Surprised? Unexpected, right? [winking emoji]
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