Chapter 6: Bat

[Mission completed]

Chu Cheng admitted that he felt relieved upon seeing the line of words appearing on the screen. The sense of substitution in this game was extraordinary and completely different from any game he had played before. He believed this was not only due to its realistic modeling and rendering, or the high degree of freedom players had in executing tasks, but also because of elements like music, pictures, and special effects.

There were other reasons he couldn't explain, but they somehow made him feel as if he were actually there. Nevertheless, the level was over, and the game screen exited the weird meeting room, switching to the settlement interface. Chu Cheng then conducted a comprehensive settlement of the number of enemies he defeated in this mission, the smoothness of his combos, the efficiency of his mission completion, and the time it took.

Chu Cheng felt his tense nerves finally relaxing. It was only then that he realized that he was more nervous than he had imagined during the game.

However, looking back now, the game was still quite interesting. Batman's moves were obviously more varied than before, and Chu Cheng didn't even see any routines in his movements. There were also more auxiliary props than before, a high degree of freedom to choose the way to complete tasks, and many details that made him feel that this game was particularly fresh and interesting.

Comic book adaptations turned into video games are often very abstract and not well-received by players. The gaming community has even coined the phrase "Ten adaptations, nine bad ones" to describe the common occurrence of poor quality adaptations. This has been the norm for many years in the gaming industry.

The expression "people are made of iron, and rice is made of steel. If you don't eat, you'll be hungry" means that it's important to have sustenance in order to survive. In the gaming industry, some comic book adaptations turned into video games were created because the companies didn't want their valuable intellectual properties to go unused, but they were hesitant to invest in the necessary funds to create high-quality adaptations. This resulted in the creation of "undisguised games," which used simple graphics and animations that seemed to have been created in just three years of animation school. These games often frustrated players and felt like a performance art piece with the word "feeling" being forced upon the player. The developers of these games would arrogantly express, "Whether you love it or not, this is what we have to offer."

With the release of high-quality video game adaptations like DC's Batman and Marvel's Spiderman series, people's prejudices against comic book games are slowly being eliminated. It seems that the adaptation of intellectual properties in the gaming industry is moving in a healthy direction.

Despite this progress, Chu Cheng was still surprised that he had come across such an excellent comic book video game. In fact, he believed that it was a groundbreaking achievement in the gaming industry.

However, the main plot of the game left him feeling a bit confused. After completing the first level, he still couldn't understand where the building was located, why Batman had snuck in, and what was going on that made people go crazy.

But he speculates that this should just be a prologue, an introduction. The follow-up plot should explain the ins and outs of the story. He boldly guesses that there may be a crisis involving the multiverse, which would bring the Avengers and the Justice League, two facade alliances belonging to different worldviews under different companies, together.

Chu Cheng is really looking forward to what the next plot and level would be like. However, "I can't continue playing," I said to myself as I checked the time on my phone. "Tomorrow is Monday and I have to go to class at 8:20 in the morning." It was a shame, I was really looking forward to seeing what the next plot and level would be like.

But then again, I'm a sophomore now, not a newcomer who is honest and cute, nor an old fritter who takes root in the dormitory and stays at home. I'm in a half-baked state, trying to find my place in the university.

From the overall perspective of the four years of undergraduate studies, I'm probably in such a delicate state of getting in a little bit but not completely in. Most of the time, I still go to class honestly, only occasionally skipping a class or two when I have a whim.

"It would be fine if I switched to another class," Chu Cheng thought to himself,

"and it wouldn't be a big problem if I skipped it once in a while. But the problem is that the first class tomorrow morning will be linear algebra, and the linear algebra teacher is a typical 'star person who will die if you don't roll your name,' the kind who will be blue and thin if you don't roll your name in a class."

He sighed and glanced at the game screen, feeling a bit disappointed that the style of the game was different from what he expected. "Oh well," he muttered as he closed the game and shut down his computer. He climbed back into his bed, feeling unexpectedly tired after playing games all day.

As he closed his eyelids and sank his head into the white and soft pillow, he soon fell asleep.

. . . . . .

The other side of the city.

The entire area was under a strict lockdown, with a perimeter cordoned off by barriers and checkpoints around the towering skyscrapers. Uniformed soldiers were strategically positioned throughout the area, maintaining a strong and vigilant presence to ensure no unauthorized entry.

A black car pulled up outside the perimeter and a woman emerged from the vehicle. She strode confidently through the cordon, prompting the soldiers on guard to salute her as she passed.

She possessed a strikingly beautiful face, with fair skin and a fierce temperament. If she were dressed in an elegant suit and skirt, she would have easily passed for a female executive at a high-end shopping mall.

However, she was clad in a large black windbreaker that obscured her slender legs, which were encased in black silk. The long skirt resembled a dark cloak, while the black combat uniform beneath the windbreaker accentuated her curves, particularly her ample chest area.

To be honest, she felt a little slighted by her good looks. If it were someone else with such a stunning face, they would have made a lasting impression on others. But despite her attractive facial features, her figure was what truly stood out - it was truly unforgettable.

The long-legged woman made her way through the cordon, eliciting salutes from the soldiers. She proceeded to the lobby, where she boarded the elevator and ascended to the conference room located on the top floor of the building.

She entered the conference room with a frown on her face, feeling like she had just walked into the worst place in the world. The room was in disarray, with corpses scattered all over the floor, their blood mixed with dirt and debris. Some of the blood had dried and congealed into dark, crusty patches.

As she walked down the corridor to the room, she noticed a puddle of vomit on the floor, likely left by the cleaner who had discovered the scene.

"All the board members were in the meeting room when the incident occurred, and none of them survived," a bald man with a cigarette in his mouth approached her, exhaling a cloud of smoke.

"But they were all infected," he continued.

"Killed?" she asked.

"No, they were attacked, but the attacker didn't kill them," the man replied. "Their infection levels must have exceeded the limit, and they blew themselves up."

The woman fell silent, taking in the gruesome scene before her. Her eyes scanned the room, and eventually, she noticed the open secret door and the broken stones beside it.

"The people in the identification department said that it should be a statue, and they speculated that it might be the source of infection," the man said. "The assailant probably also blew up the statue."

The woman pondered for a moment, then said, "So, someone has done our job, and they did it thoroughly."

"It seems so."

"Do we have any clues about this mysterious friend?" the woman asked.

The bald man exhaled a smoke ring again, looking helpless.

"The surveillance video was disabled, and we couldn't capture the suspect's whereabouts. We questioned the company's employees, and there was only one witness. However, the clues he provided were also very vague."

"I want to see him," the woman said.

A few minutes later, the woman arrived at the security guard's location.

The security guard seemed to have been knocked out before, and he still had an ice pack on his head. Before anyone could finish asking a question, he impatiently spoke, as if he couldn't hold back his desire to tell about his experience tonight.

"I was on a routine patrol when suddenly that thing jumped out with a bang. I was so startled that I fainted on the spot. Later, Xiao Li found me lying in the corridor... Oh, by the way, Xiao Li is from our security team."

"I woke up and heard that something big happened..."

"You just said 'that thing'," the woman interrupted his statement, "what was it? Was it human?"

The security guard shook his head resolutely, his face showing fear.

"It happened so fast that I couldn't see it very clearly, but I'm sure it was not human. It had really pointed ears, huge black wings, sharp claws... and it seemed to have fangs like a vampire in the movies, you know, the ones that can really penetrate."

"It was also massive, definitely over two meters tall. And when it jumped over, it looked like... like a bat!"

"To be honest, I was scared out of my wits. I've never seen such a creepy monster in my life..."

When the woman finished her questioning, she looked worried. The bald man was still smoking a cigarette, having replaced the one he had finished smoking.

"What do you think?" he asked.

The woman pondered for a moment.

"....I have no clue,"

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Hello everyone! I hope you're doing well. I wanted to apologize for being absent lately. The past five days have been quite hectic with school stuff, and it's been tiring. But, I'm glad to be back now and have some time to chat with you all.

Speaking of school, things are only getting started. We're currently finishing up chapter 1 of our research, and soon we'll be entering chapter 2. It's going to be a busy time, but I'm excited to learn more and see what I can accomplish in this with you guys accompanying me. How have you all been? Anything exciting things happening in your lives?

Well, that's all from me, everyone. I'm looking forward to hearing your responses and feedback. Enjoy the chapter!