In the days that followed, Feng Qi chose not to enter the dream realm of the future.
The residual effects of the memory overlap had not yet dissipated, and he needed time to process and assimilate everything. During this period, he focused on studying combat squad configurations and attending lectures on cultivation sciences.
As for the five-star cultivation technique Wu Liang, he didn't plan to reveal it all at once. Instead, he decided to start by teaching its foundational sections, creating the impression that the technique was being gradually refined and improved.
Regarding the development of the virtual game, he had also drawn up a detailed plan.
Before entering Star City Academy, he had learned that Fang Zhiyou had already developed the "Future Virtual" engine. The main hurdle now was perfecting and enhancing this engine, which was also Fang Zhiyou's current focus.
Three days later, at the Crimson Research Institute.
A taxi slowly pulled up outside the metal walls of the Crimson Research Institute. Feng Qi stepped out of the car and smiled as he spotted Wei Wei standing at the entrance to the base.
Having confirmed the complete reliability of the Crimson Research Institute, he decided it was time to collaborate with them in reality, particularly on the development of the super virtual game.
"What's with the smile? Do we know each other that well?" Wei Wei asked, her tone exasperated as she walked up to him.
"Coming here feels like coming home," Feng Qi replied with a grin.
Wei Wei froze for a moment before responding dryly, "Don't tell me you were one of our lab specimens in your past life, and now you're here looking for your previous body?"
"We'll talk inside," Feng Qi said, striding toward the gate. "There are things that are better discussed away from prying ears."
Wei Wei followed him, still processing his cryptic words.
At the base's entrance, Feng Qi underwent an identity verification before proceeding down the corridors into the heart of the institute. Along the way, Wei Wei grew increasingly puzzled. Feng Qi seemed far too familiar with the layout of the base for a supposed first-timer. He even knew exactly which checkpoints required authentication.
After some distance, Wei Wei couldn't contain her curiosity any longer. "Why do you seem so familiar with the layout of our base? Have you been here before?"
"Not just been here—I've even lived here for months," Feng Qi said, a mischievous grin tugging at his lips.
"You're full of secrets," Wei Wei remarked, intrigued.
"That's right. I'm here to reveal some of them to you."
"I thought you wanted to talk about the super virtual game?"
"There's a more important revelation I need to share first."
Their casual conversation continued until Wei Wei led him to a reception room.
Once inside, Feng Qi wasted no time, diving straight into the details of his past. He shared his experiences, holding nothing back.
As he spoke, Wei Wei's initial nonchalance gave way to a grave expression. When she learned that in multiple future timelines, they had fought side by side to save humanity, her earlier skepticism melted away. She finally understood why Feng Qi had said that returning to the Crimson Research Institute felt like coming home.
In those other timelines, this place had treated him as family.
With this revelation, Wei Wei excused herself briefly, leaving the reception room. When she returned, she escorted Feng Qi to the Crimson Institute's highest-level meeting chamber.
The procedure was familiar, just as it had been in his past timeline. Before entering the meeting room, he underwent a series of physical examinations and changed into fresh clothes. Once the checks were complete, he was allowed into the meeting chamber.
Sitting beside Wei Wei, Feng Qi got straight to the point and recounted his experiences, weaving in new details from the most recent timeline. The addition of fresh information made his narrative even more compelling.
When he finished, the senior members of the Crimson Research Institute sat in stunned silence, grappling with the sheer magnitude of what they had heard.
The weight of the information confirmed that Feng Qi wasn't exaggerating or lying—he had truly lived through it. As the implications sank in, their gazes toward him changed.
It was difficult to fathom how this young man had repeatedly faced despair, overcome his fears and doubts, and steadfastly chosen to stand with humanity, shedding blood for the hope of salvation.
"Feng Qi, having you is the greatest fortune of the human race," said the institute's elderly director, his hair white with age. Rising from his seat, he bowed deeply toward Feng Qi, his sincerity palpable.
The other senior members followed suit, standing and bowing in unison.
"Director, it's having companions like you that is humanity's greatest fortune," Feng Qi responded, standing to bow in return.
In every timeline, the Crimson Research Institute had made invaluable contributions. From intelligence gathering to the creation of talent blind boxes, and now to memory implantation technology, every member of the institute had worked tirelessly and unwaveringly toward the goal of saving humanity.
Even when surviving on nutritional paste daily, they were determined to prioritize resources for critical research projects.
Especially Wei Wei, who, despite her love for food, was willing to endure centuries of monotony for the sake of her work. Every contribution they made deserved recognition.
If not for the unwavering support of these comrades at the Crimson Research Institute, clearing many obstacles for him, Feng Qi's progress would have been riddled with setbacks, stumbling and falling at every step.
This camaraderie forged through their shared struggle filled his heart with gratitude.
In the following hours, Feng Qi discussed his vision for creating an all-encompassing research institute and the development of the super virtual game with the senior members of the Crimson Research Institute.
His idea was simple: involve the Crimson Research Institute in the development and launch of the super virtual game and share the profits generated post-launch.
The institute's senior members showed significant interest in the plan, each contributing their suggestions during the discussion.
Some of their ideas even left Feng Qi impressed. For instance, Director Li of the Crimson Field Creature Research Department proposed that the super virtual game could expand to include many creative elements—such as domain-related instance dungeons. However, he cautioned that developing such instances would require extensive effort, necessitating reliance on advanced future technologies.
This meant planting the seeds now and eventually borrowing finished products from the future timeline.
But there were challenges.
Currently, the knowledge implantation technology had a capacity limit. Furthermore, the advanced virtual technology of the future would likely have gone through numerous generational updates, leading to compatibility issues. Relying solely on replicating future database content to create virtual dungeons would be time-consuming, resource-intensive, and inefficient.
To address this, Wei Wei proposed a more effective solution.
Instead of pre-creating all the instances, players could be tasked with collecting data and building instance dungeons themselves. After approval from the dungeon review department, these instances could be released in the game, with creators receiving a share of the dungeon revenue.
The team would simply provide players with a "Dungeon World Editor," empowering them to innovate. This approach could potentially yield countless entertaining and skill-enhancing dungeons created by the players themselves.
Through their discussions, six key directions for the super virtual game were established:
1. Core Gameplay: Multiplayer Combat Matches
The heart of the super virtual game, and its primary purpose, would be centered around enhancing combat awareness and skills for cultivators. Everything in the game would revolve around serving this goal.
2. Instance Dungeon Creation
In addition to the simulated domain instances Feng Qi envisioned, players could utilize in-game editors to create their own virtual domain instances. This would resemble the map editor concept from pre-Cataclysm games like Warcraft.
During the discussion, they proposed several restrictions on user-created dungeons to ensure alignment with the game's primary purpose. For example, purely recreational dungeons, like those centered on inappropriate content or farming mechanics, would not be approved.
Such instances would conflict with the game's objective of fostering human growth and would instead waste players' time and energy, detracting from the overall goal of advancing human strength.
This was not an era of mindless entertainment. While fun was encouraged, it needed to integrate with practical objectives. The aim was to create an environment where players could progress while enjoying themselves.
Thus, all purely recreational content would be strictly prohibited. A specialized dungeon review team established by the Crimson Research Institute would oversee these guidelines.
3. Virtual Research and Development
Another direction was using the game for virtual experimentation. Many research projects could be simulated in the virtual environment, reducing resource wastage and unnecessary costs.
While the experiments conducted in-game wouldn't perfectly replicate real-world conditions, they would provide valuable insights and references.
Feng Qi and the Crimson Institute's senior members agreed that this feature would remain internal for now, exclusive to the institute. Future collaborations with trustworthy research institutions could allow them to share these experimental capabilities, but for now, caution was paramount.
4. Financial Model for the Game
Maintaining a super virtual game was an immensely expensive endeavor.
The game required massive servers to support the ultra-large player base and funding for ongoing maintenance, operational teams, and other expenses. Since the Crimson Research Institute also needed funds for other critical research projects, it couldn't afford to allocate all its resources to the game.
Feng Qi had envisioned the game as a way to advance human civilization while generating revenue to sustain future endeavors.
After deliberations, they decided the game would adopt a freemium model. Basic access would be free, while premium features and customization options would be available for purchase.
Players could download and experience the game content for free, while additional features would incur charges.
These charges were designed to ensure fairness and not disrupt the core gameplay experience.
Monetization strategies included:
1. Cosmetic items, such as clothing and accessories, would be available for purchase.
2. User-created entertainment dungeons could be downloaded for a fee after approval. Dungeon creators would receive 1–20% of the revenue depending on the quality of their work.
3. Custom avatars or profile icons would require payment.
4. Player-driven trades, such as the exchange of items like clothing or accessories, would incur a 5% transaction fee.
5. Memorabilia and collectibles related to the game would also be sold.
The development and distribution of virtual game pods was identified as the next critical step.
While the core of the super virtual game was nearing completion and the virtual engine had been developed, further refinement and enhancement were needed.
The Crimson Research Institute would collaborate with Fang Zhiyou to continue development, including recruiting and training talent for visual design.
The distribution of virtual game pods was essential since the brain-neural interface was integral to the virtual experience. Without the game pods, even the best-designed game would be rendered unplayable.
The Crimson Research Institute's director pledged to contact Lin Ran to establish a partnership for game pod production and distribution, ensuring an accelerated timeline.
Promotion was another essential aspect.
The Crimson Research Institute had its own channels for disseminating research outcomes, but these were not ideal for game distribution.
To address this, they planned to engage with high-level officials at major academies to promote the super virtual game. This included facilitating the installation of game pods and encouraging students to use the system.
Thanks to the Institute's unique standing as an independent entity with a focus on serving combat squads, connecting with educational institutions would be a straightforward process.
Promotion to non-cultivators was not a priority, except for younger students preparing for cultivation studies. The game primarily targeted cultivators, with regular players and non-cultivators being secondary audiences.
Revenue generation was not the game's core purpose.
Other logistical aspects, such as identifying target groups for beta testing and determining the number of beta access codes to distribute, were also discussed.
As discussions progressed, time slipped away.
Feng Qi joined the senior members of the Crimson Research Institute for dinner before returning to the highest meeting room to continue their overnight discussions.
It was clear that the Institute's members were deeply invested in the project. Their enthusiasm was not driven by profit but by their belief that the super virtual game could revolutionize human development.
Their vision for the game far surpassed the versions Feng Qi had encountered in previous timelines, which primarily focused on player combat training.
This iteration aimed to be a comprehensive second world, integrating domain knowledge, field exploration, simulated research, and mock confrontations with domain creatures.
If realized, the game could exponentially boost humanity's potential in countless areas.
To the Crimson Research Institute's senior members, the value of this game was akin to a legendary cultivation technique.
Feng Qi fully understood their excitement and shared in their ambition.
Late into the night, the highest meeting room remained illuminated.
Feng Qi and his comrades worked tirelessly, drafting a vision for humanity's future.
Their excitement and determination were palpable as they envisioned the endless possibilities.