Explosive Popularity (Part 2)
Since the public beta launch of <Voice Genesis>, its popularity online has been steadily increasing.
There are related discussion topics on various platforms, and they are diverse. With the popularity of this game in the live streaming field, although there are not many players who have actually played the game, more and more netizens know about the game and have "virtually experienced" it by following the live streams or videos of the streamers.
Basically, anyone who has watched the related live streams or videos will develop a strong interest in this game.
Among these netizens are people with diverse technical and financial backgrounds. Their focus gradually shifted from games to other related aspects, as they discovered more things that attracted their interest.
Therefore, on platforms like Zhihu, the related questions on the trending list have changed from "How would you rate the game <Voice Genesis>", "How would you rate the AI in <Voice Genesis>", "How would you rate the performance of streamer XX in their <Voice Genesis> livestream on [Date]", and "How would you rate the <Voice Genesis> storyline played by [Player Name]", to:
Questions like, "What is the background of Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment, the company that created 'Voice Genesis,' and why is it able to create such a unique sound game?", "What powerful technologies does 'Voice Genesis' showcase?", "How do the voice inputs of players in 'Voice Genesis' change the storyline?", and "How would you evaluate Zhang Qian, the beautiful CEO of Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment?"
At this moment, Xia Tianhuo, who was half-lying on the sofa scrolling through his phone, was looking at the top-voted answers to those questions.
Thanks for the invitation.
According to Zhihu's rules, we must first ask if it's true, and then ask why.
First of all, the game "Voice Genesis" was not developed by "Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment". "Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment" is only the operator and publisher of the game. The real developer behind the game is "Heaven and Earth Technology Co., Ltd.."
Furthermore, Tianyanmei discovered that both "Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment" and "Universe Technology" were established in 2020, and within the same month.
Clearly, these two companies have a deep connection.
Then, looking at the equity relationship, these two companies... do indeed have a deep connection.
As shown in the diagram above, Zhang Qian is the largest shareholder of Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment, holding 60% of the shares. The second largest shareholder is Universe Technology, holding 15% of the shares. The third largest shareholder is Liu Chuang, holding 10% of the shares. Several other shareholders hold the remaining 15%.
The largest shareholder of 'Universe Technology' is Tang Baona, holding 70% of the shares. The second largest shareholder is Zhang Qian, and the third largest shareholder is Liu Chuang. The rest are other people who have also appeared in the shareholder list of 'Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment'.
Zhang Qian is also the legal representative and shareholder of two other companies, both of which are connected to the Zhang Group. Based on available information, Zhang Qian should be the granddaughter of Zhang Hongpu, the chairman of the Zhang Group, who just returned from studying in the UK last year.
As for Tang Baona of 'Universe Technology', no relevant information could be found, and there is no public information about her holding shares in other companies.
Clearly, these two companies were founded by the same group of connected individuals for the game "Voice Genesis." However, Zhang Qian's "Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment" was in charge of the game's operation and distribution, while Tang Baona's "Universe Technology" was in charge of the game's development.
It's worth noting that both companies are actually controlled by women, and their unique perspectives may be one of the reasons why <The Voice Genesis> is so distinctive.
Another strange point is that 'Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment' is registered in Peng City, which is normal, as it is a city with a high concentration of high-tech enterprises and talents.
However, the company responsible for game development, 'Universe Technology,' is registered in Tongshi Town Jianzhou City, Haixi Province, which is very strange. Why would an internet company and a technology company be located there?
Recently, Tongshi Town in Haixi Province has become known online because of a popular rabbit meat restaurant.
It is said that Tongshi Town is now preparing to transform itself into a tourist city with its distinctive cuisine as its selling point.
Could it be that the people at 'Universe Technology' have a particular fondness for the food there?
..."
Below this answer, there is another highly-rated answer that presents a new perspective.
"The game <Voice Genesis> was developed by 'Universe Technology', as other respondents have already mentioned."
However, I've noticed that everyone considers Ms. Tang to be the core of 'Universe Technology,' but I actually think there's someone else truly leading the development of this product.
I noticed that Liu Chuang is the third largest shareholder of both Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment and Universe Technology, which is the same name as a classmate of mine when I was studying in the United States.
I confirmed with my old classmate that this Liu Chuang was indeed the one I knew.
If that's the case, I'm inclined to believe that 'Universe Technology' is the main technology leader.
While in the United States, he had started his own internet company, but he closed it down due to financial difficulties and returned to China.
Although his startup in the United States failed, he still has his own technology and connections. I don't know the specifics of his startup project in the United States, but judging from the current game, it is very likely that he was working on products related to natural language processing and speech recognition.
After returning to China, Ms. Zhang from the Zhang Group and Ms. Tang, whose background was unknown at the time, took a liking to his project. With funding on one hand and technology on the other, they hit it off immediately, and "Universe Technology" and "Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment" were born.
I suspect the reason for splitting the company into two entities might be related to the capital behind Ms. Zhang and Ms. Tang."
But this answer was immediately followed by another response targeting sniping at the mid-door:
"It is obvious that the person who claims to be Liu Chuang's classmate during his studies in the United States knows very little about Liu Chuang and is also lacking in knowledge about related technologies."
He had no idea what level of speech recognition and language processing technology was demonstrated in "Voice Genesis." If Liu Chuang's company in the United States had this level of technology, he would never have been able to bring the company to its demise.
In fact, the company he runs in the United States has nothing to do with these technologies.
If one knows his background and family history, one should also know that for him, as long as there are mature projects and core technologies, money is definitely not a problem.
However, I agree with that answerer's point of view. Liu Chuang definitely played a significant role in the development of this game, especially since I know why 'Universe Technology' is located in such a remote place as Tongshi Town in Haixi Province —I heard that Liu Chuang fell in love with a girl, and that girl is from Tongshi Town!
A highly upvoted comment under this answer reads, "Maybe the real tech mastermind behind it all is that girl Liu Chuang likes, which is why the company has to be located in Tongshi Town. If that's the case, then this game is basically a 'show' put together by three women!"
Seeing this, Xia Tianhuo felt very strange, because he knew very well that the real developer of that game was Xiang Kun, and that Xiang Kun charge of the development from beginning to end. People like Tang Baona, Liu Chuang, and Zhang Qian only had the opportunity to play the game and did not actually contribute any technical work.
Strangely, the final verifiable shareholding structure showed no trace of Xiang Kun; his name didn't even appear.
It is quite obvious that a large portion of the 70% stake held by Tang Baona in "Universe Technology" should Xiang Kun.
No other evidence is needed; those in the know can tell the relationship between "Universe Technology" and Xiang Kun just from their names.
Why add this extra layer? Does Xiang Kun not want to attract attention?
Is this a common practice within their tech community, or are there other reasons?
However, he did know that the fact that "Universe Technology" was registered in Tongshi Town had nothing to do with Liu Chuang dating a girl from Tongshi Town. Rather, it was because Xiang Kun ran a restaurant there and also had a Research Base project with Lao Xia in Chongyun Village, so they arranged it nearby.
He then looked at the other questions and answers, including many technical ones, all praising the amazing technology of "Voice Genesis" as being a generation ahead of the industry.
One answer bluntly stated, "You guys don't understand the real purpose of this game. It's all about the sheep's head, but what it's really selling is the cow's rear end, the cow's thigh, and the cow's tail!"
The game itself is secondary; the real core lies in the various industry-leading, even generation-defining technologies showcased within it—those are what they truly want to demonstrate to the market!
Therefore, although Soaring Dragon Interactive Entertainment is currently in the spotlight and receiving more attention, the real core still lies with Universe Technology! In the future, this company will definitely launch more related products, and these products may not necessarily be games!
Furthermore, I absolutely do not believe that so many groundbreaking advanced technologies could have been developed by two companies that were only established this year, or by a group of people who had never been heard of in the industry before. That is absolutely impossible!
The fact that none of the major companies have made any move so far speaks volumes!
I'm putting my words here. When more information comes out, I'm sure there will be established tech giants behind 'Universe Technology,' and maybe more than one. I wouldn't be surprised if Tencent, Google, NetEase, Baidu, Shenxing Technology, and the like were all involved!
Xia Tianhuo didn't care much about these comments, or rather, he didn't quite understand how a game with no graphics could have so much amazing technology.
But after seeing more of him, he couldn't help but wonder if that bald guy he'd only met once really had some impressive technical background? Did he actually have several technical teams supporting him?
But what are those teams after? It's not like they're conducting espionage; why are they hiding so deeply?
At this moment, Xia Tianhuo received a new WeChat. He opened it and saw that it was from Lao Xia, who agreed to let him go to Tongshi Town and Chongyun Village the next day and stay there for a few days.
Xia Tianhuo of relief. His main purpose in coming to Haixi Province this time was to find Lao Xia.
His family was extremely worried about his mental state after his narrow escape from the kidnapping. Later investigations revealed that he was in a very dangerous situation; the kidnappers had no intention of releasing him for ransom and had decided long ago to kill him regardless. The subsequent accident on the ship, where he witnessed so many dead bodies, naturally caused him psychological trauma.
So his family gave him a temporary break to clear his head, but they stipulated that he couldn't leave his residential compound...
Later, after much persuasion, he told his family that he wanted to visit Lao Xia and his third uncle and aunt, which finally convinced his parents to let him come to Haixi Province.
In fact, Xia Tianhuo was not psychologically affected by his family's worries. Although he saw dead people on the ship, to be honest, he had been traveling all over Africa and Southeast Asia for the company's business over the years, and this was not the first time he had seen dead people. He just had never told his family about it before. Although this situation was special, he was only thinking about sailing the ship and contacting people in the company at the time, and did not have any other feelings.
But after returning from Myanmar, he had one unresolved question: what the surviving kidnappers had told him—that they had seen a "sea monster" with many arms and many eyes.
It was only after the "sea monster" appeared that chaos broke out on the ship. The "sea monster" seemed to possess a special "magic" that could make them succumb to their deepest fears and act accordingly.
Although they later realized that the "sea monster" might have been an illusion, the effects were real and tangible.
In fact, not only the kidnappers, but even Xia Tianhuo, who was locked in the cabin at the time, had some feelings about it.
The feeling was subtle and hard to describe, but when he heard the kidnapper describe how he felt when he saw the "sea monster," he immediately knew that they were experiencing the same thing.
He clearly felt that the ship suddenly came to a standstill during that time, as if it had reached flat ground, without any undulation. He also heard very clear sounds of the ship being gnawed at, various creaking and crunching noises. He recalled some terrifying things he had experienced in the past, and felt a tremor from the depths of his soul. This made him even more convinced of what the kidnappers had said.
Whether or not there was a "sea monster," the influence was real, and he felt it.
Later, he learned about the "Eight-Armed Eight-Eyed Giant" that appeared before many people during the riots in Montamira on the night of March 8th—its "eight arms and eight eyes" were exactly the same as the "sea monster" described by the kidnappers.
He had a vague feeling that there might be some connection between the two events.
But neither the Myanmar police, the embassy staff, nor the domestic officials he later met could explain the specifics of the situation to him.
While in Myanmar, two people claiming to be media workers from China wanted to interview him. However, he immediately realized they weren't reporters, but rather people who had worked for the government. He didn't point this out, but instead told them what he had sensed, hoping they could give him an answer, but unfortunately, they didn't.
After returning to China, these questions lingered in his mind. He knew he probably couldn't figure them out, and the only person he could think of who might be able to answer them was Lao Xia.
Although she was his younger sister, he always knew very well that Lao Xia was not only smart, but also always had a way of seeing through the essence of things. No matter how strange the matter was, Lao Xia could help him figure it out. He had inexplicable confidence in Lao Xia, much greater than his own confidence.
So even after being kidnapped, without prior collusion or warning, he dared to let the kidnappers call Lao Xia directly to demand ransom, trusting that Lao Xia wouldn't expose him and would help him.
This wasn't just his opinion; everyone in the Xia family thought the same way. So when Lao Xia suddenly decided this year to quit being a doctor and follow a then-unknown bald guy to some remote mountain village to set up a breeding Research Base and some kind of laboratory, the Xia family's reaction was just, "Huh? Oh, okay then." They were only a little surprised, but there was no resistance.
If it were someone else, like him, who wanted to do something outrageous, they would definitely be criticized first, which is incomparable to the treatment Lao Xia receives—even the elders trust Lao Xia's judgment of people and things.
Moreover, he had always had a vague feeling:
Although it seems that Lao Xia didn't actually contribute much to his narrow escape from death, in reality... Lao Xia might have done something that he, his third uncle, and his third aunt didn't know.
His purpose in meeting with Lao Xia was twofold: first, to discuss the strange events he had encountered in Myanmar, and second, to find out if Lao Xia had helped him through any special means.
These things are definitely difficult to explain over the phone or on WeChat; it's best to talk about them in person.
The next day, Xia Tianhuo called a car early in the morning to head to Tongshi Town, but on the way he received WeChat from Lao Xia saying that they were going to Jianzhou City to pick someone up and that he should take his car directly from the Jianzhou highway exit to the airport to meet them.