Chapter 1 Life Role-Playing Game_2
He didn't hesitate; Lu Zhixing laid down on the bunk bed and pressed the start button on his VR headset.
After that, he felt a tingling sensation where the headset connected with his brain, enveloping the area from his forehead to the back of his head. His consciousness grew dull, and he gradually entered a state between sleep and wakefulness.
When Lu Zhixing became alert again, he looked around and discovered that he was in a vast expanse of pure white virtual space.
In front of him appeared the logo of the VR headset's developer, Changteng Corporation, which resembled a virtual hollow sphere wrapped in countless vines.
To Lu Zhixing's surprise, the original owner had not changed the default nickname, which was still a string of gibberish in the nickname field.
So he reached out to touch the modify button.
"Please enter a new nickname:"
Lu Zhixing thought for a moment, then typed in the words "Stranger."
The reason for choosing this nickname mainly stemmed from two considerations.
On one hand, as a transmigrator, Lu Zhixing felt like a "lone stranger in a foreign land"; on the other hand, as a gamer, he was quite fond of the joke "despicable outsider."
"Nickname change successful! Stranger, welcome to the virtual world of 'Taiqing'!"
The scenery around him changed rapidly, and Lu Zhixing found himself in a magnificent and spacious hall.
This was the default login space, but Lu Zhixing was not in the mood to admire it. He looked around and soon found the entrance to the VR headset's built-in editor.
It was a special white door with no patterns or designs, strikingly different from the surrounding style.
Lu Zhixing pushed the door and entered the editor.
The area was an endless expanse of white, save for the insignificant dark grid lines used for reference, the entire space was utterly empty.
"Now comes the problem, how to use this editor...
"Eh, the original owner seems to have instructions in his memory?"
Lu Zhixing made a few simple gestures and immediately brought up the resource and editing panels.
The original owner was a student majoring in game design and had tried to create a game using the editor after purchasing the VR headset, so he had learned the relevant operations. That made sense, but the question was...
Why then did he decide to sell the VR headset?
With curiosity, Lu Zhixing turned to the editor's resource interface and immediately understood everything.
"Because there are...
"No! Materials! In! The! Editor!"
The editor contained only very rough, crude, and outdated materials that were also outrageously expensive. Hardly anyone except the very rich suckers would buy them.
Those advanced materials necessary for serious game development, be it original artwork, actions, or large scenes, all required a lot of money to produce. You had to either form a team or outsource, either way, it wasn't something an average person could afford!
A good chef can't cook without rice, and without materials, it's impossible to make a game that could be listed and make money, so naturally, it wasn't a solution to the internet café's current predicament.
Lu Zhixing was speechless. He silently exited the virtual space and took off the gaming headset.
It seemed that whether he sold the VR gaming headset or not, it wouldn't change the internet café's inevitable closure.
All was lost, so he decided to just give up!
However, just at that moment, several lines of text unexpectedly appeared in Lu Zhixing's field of view.
[Life Role-Playing Game activated!]
[You are the only player in this game.]
[Game Function 1 - Role-Playing: The game will randomly assign you role-playing tasks and provide the essential skills required for role-playing. Upon completing the tasks, you will earn Role-Playing Points and random rewards.]
[Game Function 2 - Material Collection: You may spend a certain number of points to collect materials from reality, which will automatically generate the materials needed to create the game.]
[This game is currently in its trial version. Once the player achieves the first stage goal (earning one hundred thousand) through their own efforts, the full version's features will be activated!]
[The full version will unlock the Points Mall, where you can use points to purchase generous rewards including but not limited to Memory Capsules, various Skill Books!]
Lu Zhixing was momentarily stunned, then a surge of excitement filled his heart.
"Indeed, following the usual tropes of online fiction, one must have a golden finger after transmigration, has mine arrived?"
"Although it's not the crude and simple kind that just gives you money, like a Godlike system, it seems to be able to automatically generate usable game materials? Does that mean I now have the resources needed to make games?"
As long as I can obtain materials, this VR headset's game editor can come into play!
Of course, there were still many questions about the specifics of this golden finger, but Lu Zhixing saw no big problem; he could figure it out slowly.
[Would you like to claim your first main role-playing quest?]
Lu Zhixing nodded decisively, "Claim!"
[Main Role-Playing Quest: Please role-play a tree that strives to grow strong regardless of wind or rain.]
[You have gained the Role-Playing Skill - I Am A Tree: Empty your mind, clear all thoughts; remain still, stop all movements.]
Lu Zhixing was stunned for a moment, then a question mark slowly floated above his head.
"Huh?"
"So, your role-playing target isn't to role-play as a person?"
[Humans are relatively complex role-playing targets, with higher difficulty, exceeding the player's current level, thus only activated in the formal version.]
[The difficulty of the trial version is lower, with relatively simple role-playing targets, hence the possibility of non-human role-playing targets.]
So the non-human role-playing target is of lower difficulty, you're considering for me, aren't you?
Lu Zhixing felt dizzy; this first quest almost threw his back out.
"Then the name of this game shouldn't be 'Life Role-Playing Game', it should be 'Tree Life Role-Playing Game'!"
"Can I change the role-playing target?"
[Main role-playing quests cannot be changed or abandoned, please have a proper attitude and complete the role-playing earnestly.]
"Your grandpa..."
Lu Zhixing's mind was a mix of emotions, but after much thought, he had no choice but to accept.
"Alright, this role-play isn't really hard, let's try it."
Lu Zhixing looked around to see that no one was there, sneakily closed the doors and windows of the internet cafe's junk room to prevent his foolish role-play from causing too much shock to unsuspecting passersby.
Then, he spread his arms wide like branches, stood straight, closed his eyes, and tried to imagine himself as a tree.
It was a relief that no one saw him, or Lu Zhixing would have to awkwardly dig out a three-room apartment with his toes.
Whether the skill was effective or not, Lu Zhixing's mind indeed quickly became blank, standing straight, motionless.
However, after a long while, the completion percentage behind the main role-playing target in his field of vision showed no change, still at 0%.
"What's going on? Am I role-playing the wrong way?"
[Role-playing Principles:]
[1. Please immerse yourself thoroughly in the role-play; every action should closely resemble the target. (Achieved)]
[2. Please role-play in the appropriate real-world setting; role-play cannot be separated from the specific scene. (Not achieved)]
Lu Zhixing's mouth opened slightly.
Why was his role-play ineffective? Because he was currently on the second floor of an internet cafe.
Have you ever seen a tree growing on the second floor of an internet cafe?
At the very least, the ground he stood on had to be soil where one could take root, right?
This game's judgment that his role-play was unachieved was indeed without fault.
Lu Zhixing was silent for a long time, "Fine, you win!"
After a struggle with his thoughts, he left the internet cafe, scanned a shared bicycle, and rode to the nearest Longtan Park.