"Hoolay?" Upon hearing the name, Huaiyan adjusted the brim of his hat. "Is the Hoolay mentioned by the Director the same Hoolay I know?"
"Indeed!"
"Where is Hoolay now?"
"According to the report from Jian, Hoolay's destination is none other than the miHoYo Interactive Entertainment City!"
"Hohoho!" Huaiyan chuckled. "So that's how it is! Director, your true intentions lie elsewhere, don't they?"
"Ah, don't even mention it. By the way! There's a boss I'm quite familiar with—he runs some sort of home service business. If you have time, you can check it out and help boost his popularity."
Huaiyan flashed a meaningful look before leaving the room.
———
miHoYo's Herta Space Station, Herta's Office.
Though the short holiday had just ended, the interactive city was still packed with people.
Thanks to the major upgrade of the Simulated Universe gameplay in Herta's Office, the powerful immersive VR experience had attracted a massive player base.
After all, this egg-like device was inspired by Su Chen's take on "Detective Conan: The Phantom of Baker Street."
However, the current number of available devices was far too limited—only four in total. Even top-tier players needed 20-30 minutes to clear a run.
Moreover, miHoYo didn't operate overnight.
At most, the service was available for only 12 hours a day.
Based on rough estimates from miHoYo staff,
even if you queued up now, you'd have to wait a year before getting a chance to experience the Simulated Universe.
A gameplay upgrade was absolutely necessary!
Thus, Su Chen naturally tossed the entire problem to Screwllum, Herta, and the others.
It wasn't exploitation—they all had their own reasons to participate and were thoroughly enjoying themselves.
But at that moment,
outside Herta's office,
a man in floral-patterned shorts, a white shirt, and a smiling mask lay by the entrance, muttering to himself.
After the PV: Myriad Celestia: Fables About the Stars Part 1 was released, the concept of Aeons had begun to spread.
Naturally, Su Chen used the system to create several large posters and hung them at the entrance of Herta's office.
"Hahaha, hahaha!" The man in floral shorts pointed at the Aeon posters and burst into laughter.
The surrounding crowd watched him, murmuring among themselves.
"Who is this guy? Where are miHoYo's security guards? Aren't they going to do something?"
"Is he some kind of street performance artist? Why put on a show inside the interactive city?"
"This guy's blocking the way! How am I supposed to play the Simulated Universe? I heard there's a new mode—Celestial Plague—and I haven't even tried it yet!"
"Yeah, exactly! I still have so much Aeon lore to unlock. I need to grind some points to exchange for new merch!"
"Someone, get help!"
There were indeed two security guards nearby,
but they were powerless against this so-called "Aha," the Master of Comedy.
After all, it was Boss Su Chen's direct order not to interfere with any of Aha's actions.
Suddenly, Aha sprang upright with a bounce, pointing at the Aeon posters above.
"Hahaha, you're still talking about Aeons?"
"The Erudition is a pile of scrap metal!"
"The Preservation is a blockhead!"
"The Hunt has no sense of humor!"
"The Destruction is just a madman."
"Aeons are all single-minded fools!"
"Hahaha, hahaha!"
Aha's tone was dynamic, rising and falling like a mix of weeping and laughter.
The surrounding crowd was left dumbfounded.
"Am I hallucinating? Did I just hear the Aeon of Elation speaking?"
"Wait, is this guy actually the Elation himself?"
"No wonder miHoYo modeled the characters based on their VAs!"
"Aha-sama, you're hilarious!"
"Get lost, you damn con artist!"
"Ha—!" Suddenly, Aha let out a long howl. "Aha has no face left!
Scott, oh Scott, why won't you join me?"
Just then, Awang and Alai finally arrived on the scene. The two of them flanked Aha and hoisted him up.
"Master, I told you to stop this! You keep chasing Scott around—you scared him so badly he ran off to some mountain to learn stick-fighting for self-defense!"
"What?" Aha burst into laughter again. "Scott! I see you've already prepared to face the consequences of rejecting me!"
Then, Aha pulled out two pinwheels from who-knows-where and sprinted off into the distance.
Everyone who witnessed this was left utterly speechless.
It was impossible to tell whether this was real or just an act.
Shortly after,
the door to Herta's office slowly opened, and a girl in a black dress stepped out.
"Who's next? Come in for testing!"
"Me! Me! Me!"
Several young men raised their hands eagerly and approached Herta.
Herta glanced at the four of them. "Hold onto your data cards. If you lose them, there are no backups!"
With that, she led them inside—but not toward the "VR Egg."
Instead, they stopped in front of a new, more compact VR device.
"Uh, Miss Herta! Why aren't we using the egg? What's this thing?" one of the youths asked, puzzled.
"That 'VR Egg' is expensive, inefficient, and takes up too much space in my office. From now on, we'll use this portable VR device instead. Seen Ready Player One? It's similar to that."
The youths nodded, putting on the suits—a type of haptic feedback gaming gear—before finally donning the VR headsets.
In an instant, the four found themselves clad in Trailblazer uniforms, standing inside the Simulated Universe.
Herta soon appeared in their field of vision.
"Can you see me? If you can, type '1.' If you can't, gouge your eyes out."
Seeing the four nod, Herta continued, "The Simulated Universe now has a new mode:
Celestial Plague. I assume you've all heard about it to some extent.
This mode is now available for testing.
From now on, the equipment and Light Cones you exchange with points will be synchronized into your game data,
enhancing your combat power. That's the core of the upgraded gameplay.
Oh, and remember—the physical merch will include lore about these items. Don't forget to check it out."
With that, Herta vanished from sight.
One of the youths turned to his companions. "So, Celestial Plague it is?"
"Obviously, we're here for the new mode!"
"Do you think these new suits will be officially implemented?"
"Probably! Eh, why overthink it? Let's just dive in!"
With that, they selected the Celestial Plague mode.
The moment they pressed confirm,
the sky darkened—
not because night had fallen,
but because swarms of insects blotted out the heavens like thick storm clouds.
"Holy crap! How are we supposed to fight this many? Even if I swing my bat like crazy, I'll never clear them all!"
Soon,
the insect swarm surged toward them at terrifying speed.
But in the next instant,
a wave of flames erupted.
The one who arrived wore a suit of metallic armor.
"Leave now, and no one gets hurt!"
"Trailblazers, fall back! Stay behind me!"
"SAM Armor—Firefly Type IV, activate!"