Chapter 140: Virtual World

"Let's call it a day here. Everyone, head back early and get some rest."

Inside the Longling Town Aerospace Center Research Institute, Li Fu checked the time. It was already six in the afternoon, and the sky had grown completely dark. It was indeed time to clock out.

"Finally off work! Brothers, let's rendezvous in *Wulin* tonight and group up to raid the bandits!"

"Who's raiding bandits tonight? There's the *Wulin* Hegemony tournament today; surely you aren't all skipping that?"

"I'm going, I'm going, why wouldn't I?"

Hearing Li Fu's words, the people around him began to cheer and chatter. They were all young folks who loved playing video games. Especially now, with the advent of virtual reality consoles, virtual games had emerged alongside them and were immensely popular. A great many young people were avid gamers.

Li Fu smiled and shook his head as he listened. This was precisely why he watched the time and dismissed everyone; had he not spoken up, not a single person present would have dared to leave first.

After changing his clothes, Li Fu's driver was already waiting outside. Li Fu's vehicle was quite low-profile—a very ordinary-looking car on the outside, though its interior had been thoroughly customized by the company's research institute. Bulletproofing, gas filtration, and various other defensive functions were all standard.

The car drove smoothly down the road. The twenty-minute journey from Longling Town back to Li Family Village in Sanjiang Town passed quietly. Li Fu closed his eyes, his mind intently turning over the matter of the company's aerospace planes. Wanting to mass-produce these craft while keeping costs under control as much as possible was by no means an easy task. Even with the guidance of the Civilization Seed, he still encountered numerous difficulties.

"Master, Wang Yun is trying to contact you."

At this moment, Shadow's gentle reminder echoed in his mind.

"Mm."

With a subtle shift of Li Fu's consciousness, the mental landscape instantly transformed, and a brand-new scene appeared in his mind's eye.

Much like playing a video game, a cartoonish avatar appeared on a bustling avenue where people randomly materialized and vanished from time to time.

Among the crowd, some were cartoon characters with oversized eyes and heads, looking remarkably cute; others took the form of various animals, such as tigers, lions, elephants, and turtles, making the place feel almost like a zoo. Still, others appeared as characters from all sorts of films—skeletons, space warriors, ancient emperors, imperial concubines, and the like. In short, it was a chaotic and eclectic mix where if you could imagine it, you could find it.

Avatars like Li Fu's, appearing in the virtual world as a standard cartoon character, were considered quite normal and common. Indeed, Li Fu had now entered the virtual world—a newly born realm that accompanied the creation of the virtual reality console.

When Li Fu's company released the console last year, the giants of the Chinese internet sector plunged headfirst into the virtual realm. After roughly a full year of development and refinement, today's virtual world was tentatively ready to open to the public. Of course, looking at it now, the entire virtual realm still harbored far too many flaws, yet that could not stop the fanatical devotion of console owners worldwide toward the virtual world.

Across China, there were hundreds of thousands of companies dealing in virtual spaces, launching several million distinct virtual worlds. The space Li Fu had just entered was the overarching Central Virtual World—a common hub where everyone landed upon logging in.

Though called a virtual world, it was essentially a long street lined on both sides with what looked like storefronts. Stepping inside those shops actually led to various virtual software applications developed by different companies.

For instance, the most prominent locations belonged to major platforms like the virtual shopping world developed by Taobao and the virtual chat world created by the Penguin Group. Naturally, the most numerous and currently the hottest spots were all kinds of gaming worlds, with war, martial arts, and competitive genres leading the popularity charts.

Chief among them was a virtual game called *Wulin*, developed by the Honor of Kings company. Thanks to its exceptional fairness, rationality, and playability, the game swept the globe in less than two months after its launch. Yes, it swept the globe.

It wasn't just popular in China; it was a worldwide phenomenon with over a hundred million players, most of whom were hardcore enthusiasts. Many foreigners even went out of their way to learn Chinese specifically to play this game.

Aside from the virtual game *Wulin*, war-themed games were also wildly popular, spawning several titles that paled in no comparison. *Children of the Sky*, a game dedicated specifically to aerial combat, attracted nearly a hundred million players globally.

In the gaming sector alone, the virtual world generated over a trillion yuan in economic output throughout the year 2019. It could be described as a dark horse that became one of the most terrifying money-making entities within the virtual sphere. And this was merely the beginning, constrained only by the production limits of the virtual consoles.

At present, the number of console-owning users worldwide was only a little over a hundred million. In other words, virtually everyone who possessed a console was a loyal gamer. Many older individuals had also been deeply captivated by virtual gaming, plunging into the virtual realms to indulge in the joy of play. This had become one of the primary leisure activities for countless people.

The realism of virtual world games was simply extraordinary, especially as game developers poured increasing resources into their creation. Each subsequent game grew more lifelike and alluring than the last; once someone started playing, it was easy to get hooked.

Inside his mind, looking at the bustling street, Li Fu shifted his focus with a single thought, and his avatar was instantly transported into the chat world developed by the Penguin Group. The Penguin realm was divided into countless diverse scenarios and themes.

You could choose a romantic moonlight setting with your sweetheart, strolling side by side along a tranquil path while bathing in the hazy nocturnal glow, quietly whispering your longing for one another.

Alternatively, you could opt for a boundless sea of flowers, soaking in the fragrance of blossoms and the songs of birds while walking hand-in-hand and sharing a gentle embrace.

Every imaginable romantic world and scenario was available for the picking, and you could even choose to chat amidst a starry cosmic backdrop.

Such powerful design exerted an almost irresistible pull on romantic couples. Statistics showed that ever since the launch of the Penguin Group's chat world within the virtual realm, long-distance relationship breakups had plummeted. Previously, roughly seven or eight out of every ten long-distance couples would break up, but with the advent of the virtual world, the affection between long-distance partners actually continued to warm and grow.

Naturally, this chat world was far from free. The price of a chat world space could be quite steep; a basic one cost just over ten yuan, while classic chat worlds sold for hundreds or thousands. A few limited-edition chat worlds even commanded prices exceeding ten thousand yuan.

Some spaces custom-built for wealthy tycoons, such as a chat world named "Purple Gold Mountain," sold for over a million yuan and could only be used a single time. This left countless netizens marveling that poverty truly limited their imagination—spending over a million just for a single conversation in a virtual world.

Yet these ultra-luxurious chat worlds sold like wildfire across the globe. Countless wealthy spenders purchased them without hesitation to impress women, to the point where chatting in a virtual space like "Purple Gold Mountain" became the ultimate status symbol of showing off wealth. Innumerable young women dreamed of receiving such an invitation.

Putting aside its other ventures, the Penguin Group alone raked in over 100 billion yuan in 2019 solely from selling virtual chat worlds, filling its pockets and growing abundantly wealthy. Consequently, numerous major corporations now had their eyes locked on the virtual chat sector, rolling out competing virtual chat spaces and constantly innovating to provide an ever-growing variety of virtual environments.

"An invitation from A Patch of Cloud. Will you enter her chat world?"

No sooner had Li Fu stepped into the Penguin chat world than he received an invitation. "A Patch of Cloud" was naturally Wang Yun's online moniker, and Li Fu chose to enter without the slightest hesitation.

The mental scene shifted instantly. Li Fu's cartoon avatar materialized within a vast sea of flowers. The scenery was astonishingly realistic; the ground was carpeted with countless blossoms, and all around stood cherry and peach trees two stories tall, bursting with brilliantly colored flowers.

Waves of intoxicating floral fragrance drifted by. Amidst the sea of flowers, pairs of birds fluttered freely, chirping melodiously while busy bees gathered nectar. A gentle breeze swept past, showering the area in a flurry of flower petals. The entire world was rendered with breathtaking realism, steeped in an atmosphere of romance.

This was the famed "Gardenia Sea of Flowers," one of the exclusive chat worlds developed by the Penguin Group specifically for couples. Naturally, its price tag was by no means low, requiring over a hundred thousand yuan to purchase—truly the stuff of romantic daydreams for countless young women.

Placing himself in the midst of it all, Li Fu took in the details and couldn't help nodding in approval. Such a romantic setting possessed immense pulling power and charm for female users, which explained why the Penguin Group's various chat worlds sold with such explosive popularity.

Even Wang Yun had practically begged Li Fu to purchase the "Gardenia Sea of Flowers," and every time they chatted, she insisted on choosing this virtual space. The realm was simply too romantic and ethereal, perfectly fulfilling a girl's deepest fantasies.

Right in the center of the vast floral expanse stood another cartoon avatar with oversized eyes and wearing ancient imperial court attire. The moment Wang Yun spotted Li Fu's avatar, she ran over with a joyful expression and leaped straight into his arms.