Game Completed

Yancheng.

Tianji Barbecue Restaurant.

Tang Song patted his hot face and exhaled a breath with a hint of alcohol.

He turned on the tap, cupped his hands under the cool tap water, and splashed it on his face.

He took out his phone to check the time.

[22:02]

The department team-building event that had lasted the whole day was finally coming to an end.

He returned to the private room.

He pretended to quickly blend in with the colleagues' conversations.

Tang Song had a harmless smile on his face, occasionally nodding in agreement.

The atmosphere was lively and harmonious.

Director Chen Yunteng raised his glass, his face flushed, and said a few formal words, casually drew a big pie, and marked a perfect end to today's team building.

As they walked out of the barbecue restaurant, a slight cool evening breeze greeted them, and colleagues bid farewell to each other.

"See you on Monday, bye~"

"When you get home, remember to say something in the group."

"Take care on the way, Director Chen, bye."

"Let's go together, Tang Song, we're going in the same direction!"

...

In the black Nissan Tianyi.

Two female colleagues were having a lively chat in the back seat.

Tang Song leaned back in the passenger seat, half-closing his eyes, expressionless.

After working at Jinxiu Business and Trade for over four months, he had put all his energy into developing the company's new SCM (Supply Chain Management) system.

He multitasked, handling everything from requirement analysis, system architecture, to feature development, and code deployment, all done independently.

After the system went live, it significantly improved work efficiency and effectively reduced procurement costs, earning high praise from the company's top leaders.

This gave Tang Song, as a new employee, a sense of achievement, dreaming of the promotion and salary raise promised by the leadership.

However, reality hit him hard.

The success of the SCM system ultimately became Director Chen's credit, announced with rewards, promotion, and reportedly stock options incentives.

The maintenance work of the project was also handed over to his colleague Du Shaokai, who had a background in backend operations.

Tang Song was then assigned to the development of a new project, continuing to contribute to the company.

A series of unfair treatments made him feel extremely uncomfortable, contemplating resignation.

Perhaps sensing his thoughts, during today's team-building event, Director Chen privately mentioned that he would apply for a 10% salary raise for him next month.

This assurance made Tang Song accept the situation reluctantly.

Having just converted to a regular employee for over a month, renting a place near the company, buying an electric car, and getting acquainted with colleagues, leaving now would incur significant costs.

Moreover, the overall economic environment wasn't good, and Jinxiu Business and Trade was his ideal choice.

A few days ago, his mother called, mentioning a new property development back in their hometown, suggesting him to take a look when he had the time.

Lost in thought, Zhao Yue suddenly patted his shoulder from the back seat, "Song Ge! You seem a bit down today, could it be a breakup?"

Tang Song restrained his emotions and joked, "Firstly, I'd need to have a partner for that."

Zhao Yue covered her mouth and giggled, "Song Ge, you're actually quite outstanding, talented, good-looking, and tall. Just need to lose some weight. Hurry up and work out, all the girls in our company will be chasing after you!"

Tang Song touched his thick belly and sighed, "I'll work on that."

"Go for it!" Zhao Yue made a cute fist-pumping gesture.

Beside her, Hu Mingli blinked and joked, "Xiao Yue, Tang Song has so much potential, why don't you make a move?"

"Mingli Jie, I suspect you're testing me. Do you have a crush on Song Ge?"

"Haha, how about we compete fairly?"

"Then I'll have to admit defeat, after all, you're the big bear!"

The slightly tipsy colleagues playfully pushed each other, but no one took it seriously.

Tang Song was indeed a good person, passionate, sincere, and proactive at work. He was recognized as the department's best backend technician, having worked at a major internet company in the capital city.

However, his family background was a bit humble, coming from a rural area, and buying a house in Yancheng was a distant dream.

He didn't have any outstanding features in appearance either, dressing casually, with messy hair, and a bit overweight.

As colleagues or friends, there were no issues, but taking things further? Better not.

...

Qingxin Homestead.

Tang Song tossed his backpack aside and collapsed onto the bed.

The alcohol's effects were rising, engulfing him with fatigue, disappointment, and helplessness.

After a while, he turned to the side, picked up his phone, and sent a message in the department group, "Home now."

Then he opened the red envelope from Director Chen in WeChat, received three yuan and twenty cents, and sent a "Thank you, boss" emoji.

He opened his friend circle, aimlessly scrolling through the screen.

He felt like an outsider, silently browsing through the familiar and unfamiliar posts of "friends."

Some were sharing their daily lives, some were showing off their partners, some were enjoying peaceful moments, and some were striving for success.

It seemed like everyone except him was happy.

Unconsciously, a familiar photo caught his eye.

[Deng Yazhi: "Stumbled upon our high school graduation photo by accident. Old classmates, how are you all doing?"]

His scrolling finger paused as he quickly found his own figure in the photo, his gaze slightly unfocused.

Back then, he was about to enter university, full of youth, optimism, and with his sweetheart by his side, feeling hopeful about life.

And now, at 25? Single, gaining weight, no car, no house, life in chaos.

He clicked 'like' on the post, reminiscing about the past.

Tang Song put down his phone, sat at the computer desk, put on his headphones, and prepared to play a game to relax.

In every stage of life, there are things only that stage can make you understand.

In the past few years since graduation, he had come to realize reality and had been polished by life's challenges.

In a nicer way of saying it, he had matured.

He still liked the things he liked, but no longer forced them. That's why he left the capital city and bid farewell to his sweetheart.

He still disliked things, but could endure them. That's why he integrated into the group and accepted unfairness.

...

The game "Growth of the Male God" appeared on Tang Song's computer during his final year of college.

Perhaps he accidentally downloaded it while browsing study materials.

With a critical attitude, Tang Song clicked into the game, wanting to see what it was about.

Little did he know, he would play it for three years, which also contributed significantly to his weight gain.

It was a male god development game centered around simulation management.

With beautiful graphics, top-notch sound effects, comprehensive settings, unique gameplay, and no need for in-game purchases.

The game's storyline was based on the real world, including maps, events, financial markets, enterprises, policies, and the environment, all matching reality.

What was crucial was that the game's timeline started in 2016.

Being in 2020 and having access to search engines, Tang Song had a prophetic "god hand" in the game.

He knew the trends of stocks and futures, knew the upcoming industry trends, knew which companies would become unicorns, knew which movies, songs, and artists would become popular in the future...

Moreover, each character in the game had their own storyline, allowing players to witness their growth, life, joys, and sorrows.

The immersion level was through the roof!

In the game, Tang Song fulfilled his male god dreams, experiencing the joy of being a multi-millionaire surrounded by beautiful women and wielding immense power.

But the game was still a game.

In reality, he was just a struggling worker, without a house, car, or girlfriend, living a messy life, and having to swallow his pride at work.

Tang Song shook his head, stopping his random thoughts.

He entered the game, checked unread notifications, collected mission rewards, and bought new items...

After some skilled operations, he returned to the main interface.

Tang Song's mouse stopped, his gaze shifting to the game's timeline.

[April 1, 2023]

And now, the network time was 2023, April 1, 23:50.

Due to the different time speeds, the game's timeline was about to overlap with reality's timeline.

Curious about how the plot would develop next in a game based on the real world, Tang Song looked forward to it.

Licking his dry lips, he casually grabbed a bottle of "Happy Water" and called his beloved virtual secretary to report on work.

Sipping the "Happy Water," he enjoyed the screen's display of silky legs and slender waists.

All worries dissipated, replaced by instant brightness in his mood.

Although everything in the game was fake, the happiness it brought him was real.

...

As the clock struck midnight, the rhythmic BGM in his headphones suddenly stopped.

The game's date changed automatically.

[April 2, 2023]

Soon, the screen began to play a beautiful game animation automatically.

Starting from 2016, each game character appeared, and exciting storylines unfolded, displaying achievements, titles, badges, and items sliding by.

After reviewing the game's journey.

The screen gradually quieted down, focusing on Tang Song's character walking slowly into view.

Suited up, elegant, and confident, he stood by the top floor's floor-to-ceiling window, overlooking the sparkling city night, exuding an indescribable charm.

The camera rotated from top to bottom, finally freezing on his back.

A prominent text appeared in the middle of the screen.

[The story seems to have ended here, you wake up from a long dream, embracing the real world again, congratulations player!]

"Damn! Did I just finish the game? Is that it!?"

Tang Song was shocked and pale, leaning forward, furiously clicking the mouse a few times and tapping the keyboard hard.

The game screen didn't change at all.

A chill ran down Tang Song's spine.

He had invested deep emotions into this game.

Its real-world background and immersive experience made him feel like he was really nurturing elites, developing businesses, amassing wealth, and improving himself.

And now, the game's roller-coaster story abruptly ended, disconnecting him from vibrant characters.

A strong sense of loss and detachment surged within him.

Tang Song's breath became heavy.

"Ding—" A crisp notification sound suddenly rang out.

The game screen disappeared from his computer, the interface turning into the Windows desktop.

Tang Song's vision blurred for a moment.

Whoosh! A sci-fi-colored light screen unfolded in front of him.

[Player confirmed]

[System resource loading... 1%... 50%... 100%]

[Completed]