Chapter 96: Mind Over All Things

Inside the National Stadium in the imperial capital, known as the Bird’s Nest, everyone who had come to attend the launch event was now profoundly stunned by the virtual machine. Just as Fuyun Technology Group had promised in its advertisements, this was a revolutionary piece of technology, a product destined to change the world.

Its overwhelming impact was unmatched, sweeping through everyone present in an instant. By the time the host, Qin Mengyao, had only just lifted the microphone, hands were already shooting up all around the hall. Everyone knew that the next step would most likely be to invite several people onstage to experience the virtual machine for themselves.

“Looks like everyone is already eager to experience the wonder and power of the virtual machine. Just like with Third Eye before, we’ll select ten audience members for each round, and there will be five rounds in total.”

Qin Mengyao had clearly expected this reaction. Looking at the forest of raised hands below, she quickly and casually picked ten people to come up and try the virtual machine.

The staff brought up ten reclining chairs. Then, for each of the ten participants, they fastened a wristwatch-like virtual machine onto one hand and gently pressed the start button.

After a faint current passed through their hands, something astonishing happened: in each person’s mind, a computer-screen-like interface appeared. The ten of them could not help but try controlling it with their thoughts, and everything responded with incredible speed.

With nothing more than a single thought, they logged into the chat app; messages from their friends instantly appeared in their minds. Another thought, and the reply they wanted to send materialized at once and was transmitted immediately.

It was astonishingly novel. The mind controlled everything. Any task could be completed with a single thought, and there was no need to use one’s hands at all. Some people even opened office software and began trying to work, and the speed was just as astonishing.

Others launched game after game and played with unrestrained delight. Using only their thoughts to control the games, every command was nearly instantaneous. There were none of the mistakes caused by clumsy hands failing to keep up with the brain. The experience of gaming improved by who knew how many times over, and they were immediately immersed, playing with great excitement.

On the giant screen behind the ten participants, everything they were doing was displayed in real time. The speed of their chatting was astonishing, the speed of their typing beyond imagination. As for those playing games, flawless combinations were unleashed again and again, with sharp reactions and blazing speed.

In the audience, everyone watched the ten people onstage with full concentration. Some became so engrossed in the games that they were practically flailing about, even shouting out the slogans from the games themselves. There was no doubt that all ten were now completely immersed in the virtual world.

Ten minutes later, under the resentful gazes of the ten participants, Qin Mengyao put on an apologetic expression and instructed the staff to remove their virtual machines.

“When will this virtual machine go on sale? I want to buy one immediately, no matter the price.”

Qin Mengyao had intended to interview the ten participants and ask for their impressions, but to her surprise, the very first person she interviewed, a reporter from Europe, eagerly turned the question back on her.

“Well, the virtual machine will be launched very soon, so you won’t have to wait long. May I ask you to share your current feelings with us?”

Qin Mengyao paused briefly, then quickly recovered and continued the interview.

“My current feeling is that I want to own one right away, immediately, this instant. It is simply too magical, too unbelievable. I think that after using it, all mobile phones, computers, and the like can be completely phased out. Only now do I truly understand what a virtual world is. The name is perfectly fitting.”

The foreigner was like a child at that moment. The way he spoke of wanting a virtual machine was exactly like a child craving a beloved toy, and he appeared extremely excited.

“All right, thank you to this gentleman for sharing his feelings with us. Our virtual machine will be available soon, so you will not have to wait long.”

Qin Mengyao then turned the microphone toward the next participant.

“Incredible! All information is directly imprinted into the mind. It is clearer and more precise than anything we can see with our own eyes. We can operate everything directly with our thoughts, and the speed is extremely fast. With a single thought, we can complete any operation, even very complicated ones.”

“If it is used for office work, we never again have to worry about typing too slowly, and we no longer need to fear that we are unfamiliar with many office applications. As long as we can think of something in our minds, such as sorting data by size, it can be done instantly. There is no need to remember those complicated, numerous formulas and the like.”

“I am a gaming enthusiast. Before, whenever I played games, I always felt that my hand speed could not keep up. But now it is completely different. I can control games with my thoughts. It is perfect. My God, I can’t wait to have a virtual machine right now.”

One participant after another shared their impressions. There was no need to ask all ten, because more than half of them had already said they wanted to own a virtual machine immediately, right away, unable to resist its miraculous allure.

Round after round, participants kept coming onstage to try it, and the virtual machine’s power conquered everyone in an instant. Those in the audience who had not been able to participate felt as though a cat’s paw were scratching at their hearts. And after each participant came down, they would excitedly describe that wondrous, magical sensation to the people around them, making everyone else itch to try it for themselves.

“Thank you for sharing your impressions with everyone. Thank you!”

“Because of time constraints, our hands-on experience session can only stop here for the moment. Starting this afternoon, everyone may visit the experience booths around the stadium to try products from Fuyun Technology Group.”

“Next, we move on to the next segment of Fuyun Technology Group’s new product launch conference: the Q and A session. Please welcome Fuyun Technology Group CEO Mr. Fang Zheng and Mr. Yan Zhang, head of the virtual machine research team. Both of them will answer your questions.”

At Qin Mengyao’s words, Fang Zheng and Yan Zhang stepped onto the stage in suits, both wearing smiles as they bowed slightly to the audience. Meanwhile, upon hearing that the crucial Q and A segment was beginning, the people below once again raised their hands high.

“All right, the lady in white will have the first question.”

Qin Mengyao cleverly gave the first question to a beautiful woman, whose work badge revealed that she was a reporter from China Television.

“Hello, Mr. Fang. I’m Li Yao, a reporter from China Television. I’d like to ask you a question. As far as I know, your company is a biotechnology company. Why has it undergone such a dramatic transformation and suddenly crossed into the electronics industry? And what will your company’s future direction be?”

The woman in white, Li Yao, looked a little excited. She had not expected to be the first to ask a question, and after composing herself, she spoke.

“I think the first question would be better answered by Yan Zhang, since it concerns technology, and I know nothing about that. As for the second question, the future of Fuyun Technology Group should remain true to its company philosophy: using technology to change the world, and using technology to serve humanity. Everything we do will revolve around that central point.”

Fang Zheng nodded and answered the second question, while the first was passed to Yan Zhang, who was in charge of technology.

“In fact, when it comes to technology, whether it is Third Eye or the virtual machine, although these two products can be called electronic products, at their core the most critical element is still bio-sensing technology. Bio-sensing technology is a genuine biotechnology field. So it is not that we suddenly jumped industries and entered electronics. It is more that technologies naturally fuse with one another and continually complement each other.”

Yan Zhang smiled and nodded as he spoke. He thought carefully for a moment before answering. After all, he had only recently left school, and at this moment he still seemed a little nervous, unlike Fang Zheng, who was already thoroughly seasoned.

“Mr. Fang, I just want to ask: when will the virtual machine go on sale? And roughly how much will it cost?”

The second person to ask a question was a foreigner, and one who had just been lucky enough to experience it. He looked at Fang Zheng with eager eyes, full of anticipation.

“We expect the virtual machine to begin limited sales worldwide after December 15. By early 2019, it should be available in large quantities on the market.”

“As for the price, because Fuyun Technology Group uses a distributor system worldwide, the final retail price may differ somewhat from region to region. Our factory price is roughly around ten thousand U.S. dollars. As for friends in China, you may place advance orders through our official website. In China, we are adopting an online sales strategy.”

When Fang Zheng announced the price of ten thousand U.S. dollars, and that only a limited number would be sold in mid-December, with mass availability not arriving until after the new year, those asking questions could not help but groan in complaint.

“My God, so I still have to wait half a month before I might get one? How am I supposed to survive these ten-odd days?”

More people, however, were quietly doing the math. At a price of ten thousand dollars, the final cost to consumers might well end up even higher after leaving the factory. The foreigners in attendance all felt their heads ache. The price was truly not cheap. As for the domestic attendees, they were secretly delighted and could not help but give Fuyun Technology Group a thumbs-up.

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