Chapter 7

Wang Fubu and Xia Ci had almost finished their meal. Xia Ci called the waiter to prepare to pay the bill.

"Thirty-five yuan in total," the waiter reported the bill and then looked at Xia Ci strangely as she counted the coins.

"Thirty-four... thirty-four and a half... thirty-five..."

Xia Ci had saved less than forty yuan in pocket money over two years, and she had almost spent it all on this unsatisfactory lunch.

She didn't feel the pain yet and said contentedly, "Indeed, it lives up to the promise of the recluse's rare delicacy. I feel invincible, and I won't be afraid of any unspeakable evil for three days!"

Wang Fubu couldn't bear to say anything. During their meal, "California Western Restaurant" had no other customers besides them. A restaurant operating so poorly must have a reason.

Back home, Wang Fubu continued his work of translating "Raging Tide" from Chinese to English. In "Raging Tide Beta," there were about 10 NPCs. Even if the player found all 10 NPCs, they could only survive for about 10 hours in the constantly evolving zombie horde before being overwhelmed.

The "Raging Tide 0.5" version that Wang Fubu planned to release the next day would add 40 more NPCs. Although 40 more NPCs were added, the game time could increase by at least several dozen times.

This was because in "Raging Tide," after survivors were found by the player, they would form a small society. These NPCs would be self-reliant, divide labor, and produce food, medicine, and weapons, thereby improving the player's equipment level.

However, with a total of 50 NPCs, they still couldn't keep up with the evolution of the zombies. Only with around 80 NPCs could a balance be maintained.

In the full version of "Raging Tide," there were 100 NPCs in total. This meant that even if the player collected all the NPCs, they would only have a slight advantage over the zombies. This balance was carefully calculated by Wang Fubu. It wouldn't be too easy to bore the players, nor too difficult to frustrate them.

Xia Ci sat opposite Wang Fubu, holding a geometry textbook and trying to decipher the mysterious totems.

Unlike her usual focused demeanor when studying, today she kept getting distracted. Her eyes would often shift from the textbook to Wang Fubu's face. She would stare for a long time before realizing and continuing to decipher the totems.

As a result, she hadn't even finished one totem before getting distracted again.

"I'll memorize the foreign language instead," Xia Ci said, taking out her English textbook and starting to copy down words.

She had always found foreign languages a headache. After all, she was the Crown Princess and would never need to use a foreign language to communicate with foreigners. But she had to learn; if she failed the exam, her mother, who hadn't been home for a long time, would scold her over the phone.

But today, her state not only didn't improve but even declined, and she forgot the words she had previously memorized. Xia Ci stomped her foot in frustration and decided not to study anymore!

After all, with a guardian spirit, she just needed to be a good Crown Princess. Did she really need to study so hard?

But not studying left her with nothing to do. She went into the bathroom, where there was a small mirror. She stared at her reflection in the mirror, feeling a vague sense of unease.

...

On the other side of the Earth, at Valve Corporation.

After receiving Li Ming's call, the two founders of the company were wide awake and immediately drove to the office.

They knew Li Ming's capabilities and trusted his judgment, especially since he had created "Counter-Strike." So when Li Ming informed them that a game on the official forum might surpass "Counter-Strike," they immediately understood the implications.

When the two founders arrived at the office, Li Ming was already waiting. The moment he saw the post, he realized the potential of "Raging Tide," but he had no intention of hindering the game. He had joined Valve and received stock options, so if the company's performance improved, he would benefit as well.

"Li, is this the game you mentioned?" one of the founders asked curiously, looking at the ThinkPad Li Ming had brought, which was already running a dark-toned game.

"I assure you, this is an astonishing work. If the creator hadn't said it was his solo effort, I would have thought it was a major production by EA, Blizzard, or Microsoft!" Li Ming assured them, "I played it for a while, and it's incredibly engaging."

"Let me try it," the founder said, sitting down at the computer. After playing for a while, he silently exited the game and started examining the game files.

"Mike, what's wrong?" the other founder asked, puzzled.

"He's using our 'Half-Life' engine, but why is the graphics quality so much better? I don't understand! 'Half-Life' has already pushed the engine to its limits!" The founder responsible for development was more focused on the technical aspects.

So the other founder had to take out his own computer, download "Raging Tide," and experience it firsthand. After creating a character, choosing a class, and familiarizing himself with the game mechanics, he said to Li Ming, "This is indeed a game like no other. I can consider forgiving you for interrupting my dream."

"Yes," Li Ming, who didn't like jokes, said seriously, "If you play more, you'll have even more amazing discoveries. I created two characters: one is a 'Salesman,' who appears in a scattered community and quickly gains help by rescuing survivors. The other is a 'Retired Soldier,' who appears in a bar and starts with a gun... The choices before the game starts are not just for show but determine the gameplay."

"Is that so?" The founder, half-believing, exited the game and reselected a character. Indeed, with the changes in the character's strength and the number of zombies, the entire game's rhythm was completely different.

"Indeed, if a disaster occurs, soldiers should act faster than civilians. This change in rhythm is a genius design," the founder nodded and looked at his co-founder, "Mike, I want to buy this game. What do you think?"

"Whatever you want. But we should also buy the improved engine. This will allow us to start working on the long-delayed 'Half-Life 2,'" Mike said without turning his head.

...

Wang Fubu lost track of time as he worked. He ate dinner haphazardly and continued working until 9 PM, finally finishing "Raging Tide" V0.5.

He stretched his slightly sore neck and looked outside; it was already dark. The room was empty, and no one was in the kitchen. He called out loudly, "Xia Ci?"

"Princess?"

"Porcelain?"

After calling three times, Xia Ci, with wet hair, walked out of the bathroom, clearly having just washed her hair. "What are you shouting for? I'm the Crown Princess, not a little princess!"

"Your Highness, the Crown Princess," Wang Fubu smiled.

"Sounds bad!" Xia Ci frowned, though it was the title she wanted, she now found it annoying, "Call me the one you just used!"

"Princess?"

"Not that one!" Xia Ci stomped her foot, and several drops of water fell from her hair.

"Porcelain?"

"Call me that from now on!" Xia Ci said and went back into the bathroom, closing the door tightly.

Wang Fubu looked at the closed door, slapped his thigh, and remembered that he wasn't calling her for a kiss but because he was sleepy and wanted to ask where he could sleep.

Xia Ci's home was a one-bedroom, one-living room, one-kitchen, one-bathroom layout. It wasn't noticeable during the day, but it was inconvenient for sleeping at night.

He would wait for Xia Ci to come out and ask.

Xia Ci took a full half-hour to wash. By the time she came out, Wang Fubu was already dozing on her small bed.

Xia Ci, with wet hair, tiptoed to Wang Fubu's side, bent down, and carefully examined the guardian spirit she had summoned the day before.

She had summoned for two whole years before finally summoning Wang Fubu, her guardian spirit.

After almost ten minutes, Xia Ci was satisfied and took off Wang Fubu's socks, then pulled him to lie down flat.

The commotion woke Wang Fubu, and he opened his eyes to see a small figure with long black hair, like a smaller version of Sadako from "The Ring," but wearing a Chinese school uniform.

Wang Fubu was startled and quickly sat up. The small "Sadako" turned to look at him, which was, of course, Xia Ci. He smiled, "You scared me to death. Don't do that again."

"Where?" Xia Ci, feeling wronged, insisted, "I was just covering you with a blanket, and you're accusing me!"

"Okay, okay, I was wrong. I shouldn't have accused you," Wang Fubu immediately surrendered and asked, "Porcelain, where should I sleep tonight?"

"Right here," Xia Ci, still maintaining the "Sadako" image with her black hair covering her face, said, "We don't have any other beds. So you'll sleep with me, and you can protect me from unspeakable evils."

"Is that appropriate?" Wang Fubu hesitated. The girl's mother hadn't been around for over two years, and she might not understand the implications.

"What's inappropriate? This way, I won't be afraid of any loud demons or swamp demons," Xia Ci nodded repeatedly.

Wang Fubu looked at the table, considering whether to sleep there or on the bed. He steeled himself, thinking that as long as he was upright, there was nothing to worry about. He quickly covered himself with the blanket, turned over, and was about to close his eyes when he remembered something and warned, "Porcelain, you can't let other boys sleep next to you."

Even if Xia Ci didn't fully understand, she had some vague awareness. She kicked Wang Fubu's knee and covered her head with the blanket without a word.

Wang Fubu didn't feel the pain. He looked at the bulging blanket beside him and thought, "Her hair is wet; sleeping like this will make it smell bad." But he didn't mind even if it did smell bad. He was extremely sleepy, so he turned off the light and lay on the edge of the bed, feeling like he might fall off at any moment.

The night passed this way.

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