Guo Man

"Aaaaaah, I really want to play games, I really want to customize my character's avatar!" — Sister Ji

"Female gamers also like character customization?" Thank you.

"What's wrong with female players? Can't female players like handsome male NPCs?" Sister Ji retorted.

"How pathetic! Our goal as male players is to become number one in the entire server!" Thank you.

No, male players also like to customize their characters' appearance.

Same as above!

"That's right, I not only like character customization, but I also like playing female characters. By the way, can you create a female character in this game?" - Crossdressing male player

"The name upstairs sounds very masculine, I like it!"

The game will launch in three days, and these Sandfall players are constantly posting nonsense. Although it's not very useful, it's still quite entertaining to watch.

In his previous life, the senior engineer didn't frequent forums much; he preferred posting pictures.

Especially the fan art of NPCs, those with minimal clothing and voluptuous figures that are so outrageous they could kill you with their creations.

Switching to the background, I found that I had received quite a few private messages, over 99.

"Admin, how about I act cute and get featured in return?"

"Manager, I'm looking for a deal. You must know a lot about the plot, right?"

"Manager, you wouldn't want someone to be bullied in the game, would you? <(￣3￣)>"

"Honey, my butt's all sticking up, push harder!"

Who the hell are you?!

The senior engineer glanced at the message and discovered that it was actually from the person who wanted to win the top spot in the entire server, "Thank you."

Aren't you the unyielding number one in the entire server?

The senior engineer closed the forum with a twitching eye; he had underestimated the absurdity of these players.

I picked up the visual imaging device I used for dinner yesterday.

According to Gao Yuanyuan, this was a gift from her dean.

Name: Visual Imaging Device

Category: Visual adjustment equipment

Quality: Excellent

Simulation level: Level 4

Note: An advanced sensory device that can completely obscure your vision, making your surroundings appear exactly as you wish.

Environment Templates: 5 types

The senior engineer adjusted it to the "Birdsong and Fragrance of Flowers" template. The next moment, a large amount of data flowed along the surrounding environment, and the senior engineer felt as if he had left the city that never sleeps and arrived in a forest.

This forest is not the concrete jungle of the radiation zone, but an environment before the destruction of civilization. Beautiful ginkgo trees shatter the sunlight, and there are flowers, grass, and a thick layer of dead leaves on the ground.

"High-end stuff! Their dean is actually willing to spend that much."

Gao Yuanyuan grew up in an orphanage, which was similar to a school for employees' children and was considered a welfare benefit for the machine brain. The orphanage had children of different ages, and she was one of the older ones.

Gao Yuanyuan's goal is to become a teaching assistant at this welfare home after she grows up.

After turning off the visual imaging device, the engineer turned on the television and watched the news intermittently.

"The Fangye Gang and the Gothic Gang are engaged in a fierce battle in the outer city. The scene is extremely intense. Our reporter will continue to report... Our reporter was killed by a stray bullet. Now, the cameraman will take over the report."

Purebred mecha enthusiasts held a large parade in the corporate district, chanting slogans like "Full-body transformation, human revolution."

A serial killer has emerged in the old city, with 13 victims so far. All the victims were dismembered. Black Fox Security Company has taken responsibility for the incident and will increase patrols in various neighborhoods.

"Turing Church radicals are spreading electronic viruses everywhere. Citizens of the city who never sleeps, please be careful. Photos of the radicals are now being released..."

Upon seeing this news, the senior engineer immediately retracted his crossed legs.

The three mother cities are Fortress, Deep Web, and Cybertron.

The fortress was breached by the traitorous Cloud Nobles, who attacked from within and without.

The deep web was destroyed by Turing God.

That's right, this Turing God is the deity worshipped by the Turing Church, a "large-scale data virus" with a level of over 90.

In the later stages of the cyber wave, there was a massive quest called "Turing's Eastern Expedition," where players could choose a faction to defend the Mother City Deep Web, or join the Turing Church to destroy the Deep Web and completely unlock the shackles of digital space.

"The Turing Church, the Turing Church —as far as I can tell, the Turing Church has a chain of professional knowledge."

The senior engineer muttered to himself.

At this point in time, the Turing Church was still dominated by the relatively moderate "Wolme School".

This school of thought claims to inherit the will of the Turing Spirit, with the goal of improving the computing power of the human brain network, suppressing artificial intelligence, depriving artificial intelligence of its autonomy, and ultimately making machines work for human use.

That was still considered good. Later on, the radical "Isaiah school" came to power, and the goal of those religious fanatics was to eliminate all artificial intelligence on the planet.

It's definitely easier to acquire the professional knowledge from these people in the early stages than later.

We need to find a way to get in touch with this group of people from the "Wolme School".

How are the Turing Church's quests triggered?

The senior engineer racked his brains, but he didn't really remember much about the early plot details.

I only vaguely remember a story about the "unification of the three religions".

"Excuse me, is this 'MrG's Neurotic Hut'?"

The senior engineer looked up and saw a strange middle-aged man wearing an inexpensive suit, with a vacant look in his eyes and a dark green wig on his head, standing timidly and peeking in at the door.

"Come in."

The senior engineer casually tucked the scalpel, which he had been spinning, into his medical bag and gestured for the other person to sit down first.

"Dr. Gao, is this clinic newly opened? To be honest, my surname is Guo, and I'm a real estate consultant for Virtual Realty—" Guo Man stared wide-eyed at the bloodstained scalpel, his legs trembling slightly.

"I won't buy a house, and I won't buy insurance."

Guo Man wiped his sweat and chuckled dryly, "Dr. Gao, you've misunderstood. I'm here for prosthetic rehabilitation surgery."

"Which of your prosthetic devices is malfunctioning?"

The senior engineer quickly scanned the other person's entire body. The number of prosthetics on the other person's body was pitifully small, including a high-density plastic prosthetic eye, an implanted wig that looked like green weeds, and a network access module that resembled an ear-hook headset.

The "Flying Swallow-12" is the lowest-level access bay, with only "scanning equipment" and "quick hacking" functions. It is an old model with limited functionality and does not even have Electronic Barrier.

A low-level "neural coder" doesn't seem like a salesperson; they're more likely someone in charge of after-sales maintenance. The other person's shoe heel has slight signs of corrosion, caused by industrial wastewater unique to the outer urban area.

In the city that never sleeps, anyone with a bit of status would never run business in the outer districts; wandering around here, the chances of encountering a gang shootout are quite high.

"Um, my access chamber has been producing hallucinations lately, and it's keeping me awake. Doctor, could you please take a look?"

"Huanyin, is the access pod still usable?"

"It works, it works very well."

Have you had any other prosthetic bodies implanted recently?

"No, apart from the free company medical check-up, I haven't had any paid modifications."

"Have you eaten anything unclean, or come into contact with any strange people?"

"I live and eat at the company, work 22 hours a day, and haven't been home for half a month!"

Guo Man looked proud as he said this.

In this city that never sleeps, work is highly valued, and the 996 work schedule is considered shameful.

"Lie down, let me take a look."

"Oh."

The senior engineer used a screwdriver to first unscrew the outer shell, and then slowly pulled it open. The bottom of this "ear-hook" access chamber was empty. The ear was cut off at the base, and what was pulled out from the dark ear canal were four neural wires covered with yellow mucus, corresponding to the four ventricles of the brain.

The biggest difference between neural coders and programmers is that they do not deal with ordinary coding, but with simulated data converted from neural signals. This data needs to be brought into an access module and operated after human-computer interaction.

In the industry, it's called immersive programming.

There's no problem.

If something really goes wrong, this old relic won't be usable.

After thinking for a moment, the senior engineer found a wrench and pried open the back of his head.

The implantation of the access chamber for the old No. 1 device requires modifications to the entire skull.

During this process, the programmer didn't scream or cry out, not because he was brave, but because his pain system had been removed.

Upon seeing the structure inside the other person's brain, the senior engineer's eyes flashed with a strange light.

"It can be repaired, 1000 machines can be replaced."

"That's so expensive, doctor. Can you make it cheaper? You know I'm an employee of 'virtual real estate,' how about I give you a discount when you buy a house?"

"Your family really is a real estate company?"

"More or less," Guo Man said with an embarrassed smile, "But we're selling houses in cyberspace."

"Get lost!"

"Doctor, please have pity on me, I haven't slept well for almost a month."

"Haven't you been working overtime all month?"

"Doctor, I have elderly parents to care for, young children to raise, and a sweet and clever daughter. Please, for the sake of my family, give me a discount. If you lower the price, my daughter can eat better..."

Looking at the middle-aged man in a suit kneeling on the ground, hugging his own legs and howling, the senior engineer was speechless for a moment.

Adhering to the principle of getting off to a good start, the senior engineer ultimately gave the other party a discount, since it didn't require replacing anything, just a minor modification.

Adjust the circuitry of the illusion generator in the other person's brain.

Guo Man returned to the company with a happy smile.

He had inquired and found out that this type of surgery usually costs 1200 machine points, but he managed to reduce it to 800 points.

With the remaining two hundred, we can buy our daughter her favorite toy.

I'm leaving early today.

After giving instructions to his colleague, Guo Man packed his things and went home amidst the colleague's surprised gaze. In the corridor, he ran into a colleague who had joined the company at the same time and was now a mid-level sales manager, who was always outspoken.

"Old Guo, introduce me to someone, my cousin."

Guo Man was in a hurry to get home, so he nodded hastily.

"Don't worry, you're my cousin, how could I not take care of you? Don't worry, it's just a dozen or so contracts, I can handle it in no time. By the way, you haven't bought a house yet, have you? Let me introduce you to one of our company's latest offerings..."

Guo Man rode in the floating railcar. He was already tired of the view from mid-air. The railcar stopped on the roof of his apartment building, and he took the elevator all the way to his doorstep.

"My darling daughter, I'm home early today."

"Honey, you're back!"

"Daddy's home!"

In Guo Man's eyes, she is a gentle wife and a lovely daughter.

"Dad will buy you your favorite toy today."

"Yay, I love Daddy the most!"

"Stop bothering Daddy, honey, wash your hands and eat."

With the transfer of funds via the biochip, a "beep" sounded.

[You have transferred 200 to the "Virtual Real Estate" Charity Fund. "Virtual Real Estate" wishes you and your family happiness and a fulfilling life.]

In the dilapidated apartment, Guo Man sat at the dining table with a silly grin, with no one opposite him.

No, they are the wife and daughter in the illusion generator.