Chapter 220 - 89: The Michelin Man’s Revenge

Chapter 220: Chapter 89: The Michelin Man’s Revenge

It seemed that merely parroting her words like a broken record wasn’t sincere enough. Next time, he should build upon her points and offer his own unique perspective.

The rest of the walk passed in silence. Yu Xian escorted Wen Xiao back to the turnstiles at Building 3, North Campus, before heading back to the South District.

Returning to the South District Dormitory, he pushed open his room door to find the main lights off. Yu Xian instinctively glanced at Zhang Yang and Li Boxue’s beds. Neither of them was back; they were probably out partying for the weekend.

Shi Zuozhou was sitting at his desk, wearing a massive pair of noise-canceling headphones. He stared intently at his computer screen, seemingly watching an anime. With one hand propping up his chin, he held a pen in the other, rapidly scribbling and sketching on a piece of blank paper in front of him. He looked completely engrossed.

"Taking notes while watching anime?" Yu Xian greeted him. Since he had decided to treat his friends with genuine sincerity rather than brushing them off, he would start with Shi Zuozhou.

"Yo, Old Yu, you’re back?" Shi Zuozhou turned around, pulling off his headphones with a grin.

Yu Xian hung his umbrella behind the door, took off his jacket, and walked up behind him. He glanced down at the paper on the desk. "What are you writing? Taking notes on an anime? You’re being so serious about it."

Drawn on the blank paper was an inverted cone. Though the artwork was crude, its layered ring structures were clearly visible, accompanied by some crookedly written annotations. It looked like a design sketch.

"What is this? A spinning top?" Yu Xian asked after some serious thought.

"What spinning top? This is Aincrad! The main world of Sword Art Online, Aincrad!" Shi Zuozhou pointed at the anime playing on his screen. In the scene, a swordsman in a black trench coat was drawing dual swords from his back to face off against a monster.

He turned around, a fanatical gleam in his eyes. "Old Yu, that ’thing’ we talked about last night? It’s been on my mind all day. Sword Art Online is also an immersive virtual world, though players enter the game by wearing VR headsets. I was thinking, even though the mechanics are different, this could definitely serve as a huge reference for designing ’that game’ of ours!"

Looking at the complex sketch, Yu Xian instantly realized what Shi Zuozhou was doing. "So, you’re studying how their game world map is designed?"

"Exactly! I’m thoroughly studying the architecture of this Floating City!" He excitedly slapped the manuscript on his desk. "A hundred floors, with each floor having different sceneries, villages, monsters, and bosses..."

Shi Zuozhou stood up and grabbed Yu Xian firmly, his voice trembling with excitement. "Old Yu, if that thing actually works out..."

He took a deep breath. His usual frivolous demeanor vanished completely, replaced by an almost paranoid fervor, longing, and resolve. "Then I’m going to dedicate the remaining sixty years of my life... No, wait, the remaining ninety years! I’ll pour all of it into this!"

Yu Xian froze for a moment. Looking at Shi Zuozhou’s flushed face and agitated eyes, he didn’t know how to react.

On one hand, he could feel that his friend genuinely saw this as a lifelong cause worth fighting for. On the other hand, reason told him this was just a pipe dream for now. They hadn’t even figured out the underlying mechanics, let alone how to construct a massive virtual world. For instance, the inability to "hot-update" was very likely one of the biggest obstacles they would face in building this world.

But then, the image of the little Michelin Man turning her back in a huff under the streetlight flashed through his mind. He had just reminded himself to be sincere with his friends, to respond earnestly, and never to be dismissive again.

Taking a deep breath, Yu Xian looked seriously into Shi Zuozhou’s eyes and nodded. "I believe you can do it."

Shi Zuozhou seemed not to have expected such a formal response to his cringy, dramatic speech. He was momentarily stunned, a hint of emotion welling up in his eyes.

After some thought, Yu Xian added another sentence. "Though you might not necessarily live to be a hundred and ten."

"Cough... Old Yu, you really didn’t need to add that last part." Shi Zuozhou choked out a couple of coughs.

Sitting back down at his computer, Shi Zuozhou put his headphones on and re-immersed himself in the world of Sword Art Online. He occasionally scribbled on his paper—perhaps revising his grand "ninety-year plan."

Yu Xian checked the time on his phone. It was almost eight in the evening. This was the time they had agreed upon in their WeChat group that afternoon to conduct the maximum distance test. Wasting no more time, he grabbed his washbasin and towel and quickly went to the washroom to freshen up.

Upon returning to the dorm, he saw Shi Zuozhou "studying hard" and went over to let him know, "Old Shi, I’m too tired today, so I’m going to bed first. Don’t stay up too late either."

"Alright, go to sleep. Will I be too loud for you?"

"It’s fine." Yu Xian climbed into bed and pulled the blackout curtains shut.

Lying against his pillow, he took out his phone, put on his earphones, and sent a message in the "Dream Net Testing Team" chat. Then, he tapped on the pixel-art kitten avatar and initiated a voice call.

The line connected after only two rings. He was just about to type a message telling Wen Xiao that it wasn’t convenient for him to speak in the dorm. Unexpectedly, it was completely quiet on the other end as well. Wen Xiao didn’t speak; only her soft, shallow breathing could be heard through the earphones.

Though they couldn’t see each other, they could clearly sense the other’s presence. Yu Xian felt an indescribable unspoken understanding with the little Michelin Man on the other side of the screen. Even the bond between Spike and the Cybertronians couldn’t compare.