Chapter 9

 Chapter Nine: Who is the Creator of "Zen"?

On Monday morning at 9 o'clock, Lu Zhixing returned to his dormitory.

The dormitory building for first-year students majoring in game design at Jinghai University was Building 7, while Lu Zhixing's dormitory was on the fourth floor, Room 404.

This room number was not particularly auspicious, especially for students in the game design major. However, as a staunch materialist, Lu Zhixing didn't really care about these things and even found it somewhat amusing.

When introducing himself to other students, he could proudly say, "I'm from Room 404!"

It sounded quite cool.

There was only one professional class this morning, from 10 a.m. to 12 p.m., so students didn't need to wake up too early. They could sleep in and go to class at their own pace.

Jinghai University's dormitory environment ranked among the top in Chinese universities. The dorms were four-person rooms with bunk beds, study desks, and all the furniture was relatively new. They even had air conditioning and a television.

Just the accommodation alone attracted many new students every year.

"Hey, Lu Bro, up early, huh? I was just about to call you in case you forgot about class," said a guy with an ordinary face and round glasses.

His name was Liu Bo, the dormitory head of Room 404. He had a good relationship with Lu Zhixing, was reliable, versatile, and played the guitar well.

Lu Zhixing tossed the three pancakes he was holding over to him. "You guys probably haven't had breakfast yet."

He had bought them on his way to school after leaving the internet cafe in the morning.

Liu Bo grinned. "Lu Bro understands us well, thanks a lot!"

The other two roommates had also finished their tasks and, after thanking Lu, took the pancakes and began to eat.

Looking at his three roommates, Lu Zhixing couldn't help but feel:

Room 404 was truly a gathering of talents.

In addition to Lu Zhixing and Liu Bo, the other two roommates were Zhao Haoyan and Lu Yixiao.

Zhao Haoyan was tall and athletic, but unfortunately, he didn't seem to have a very sharp mind.

Lu Yixiao was a natural comedian, with a very cheerful face and excellent speaking skills. He had already been selected for the debate team and hosting events was a piece of cake for him.

"By the way, Lu Bro, what are you busy with this weekend?" Liu Bo asked while munching on his pancake.

Lu Zhixing was organizing the study materials he needed for class on his desk. "I helped out at my brother's internet cafe. What about you guys?"

Liu Bo looked at Zhao Haoyan, who was almost done with his pancake. "Old Zhao spent the weekend playing games in the dorm, except for basketball."

Lu Zhixing: "Oh? Did you get promoted to Silver?"

Liu Bo shook his head: "No, I got demoted."

Lu Zhixing was greatly surprised: "What? Can you even get demoted in Bronze? Isn't that the lowest rank?"

Liu Bo couldn't hide his frustration: "Lu Bro, haven't you read the news? The ranking system was updated this weekend, and they introduced a new rank, 'Iron,' just below Bronze. The official statement is that they adjusted the ranking system to better differentiate skill levels, making it easier for average players to climb. So, Old Zhao played tirelessly for two days, but he didn't expect..."

Zhao Haoyan, with a touch of sorrow: "Stop talking! The official is targeting me!"

Turning his grief into appetite, he devoured the remaining pancake in his hand and then started gulping down water from his bottle.

At this point, Liu Bo suddenly remembered something and looked at his watch: "Oh right, today is the professional class, and it's bound to be crowded. Old Zhao, why don't you go save us some seats, and we'll join you later?"

Zhao Haoyan got up enthusiastically: "Sure thing! I'll secure the perfect seats for our dorm!"

With that, he hurriedly left.

Liu Bo turned to Lu Yixiao: "As for General Lu, he worked as a wedding emcee over the weekend and earned a few hundred bucks. He's treating us!"

Lu Zhixing couldn't help but be impressed: "Wow, General Lu, you're an emcee now? Didn't the bride and groom burst into laughter looking at your face?"

Lu Yixiao was a bit annoyed: "What are you saying? I'm a professional! When the bride and groom look at my face, of course..."

Liu Bo was surprised: "Wait, did they really not burst into laughter?"

Lu Yixiao instantly dropped the act: "Of course they did! But it's okay, at weddings, it's all about joy. It also helps ease the tension for the bride and groom, so it's an advantage for me."

"Let's go out for a meal tonight, my treat!"

The fees for a regular wedding emcee can be quite high, varying by the region's economic status, with the most expensive emcees earning several thousand per event.

However, Lu Yixiao was still a university student, so his fee as a part-time emcee was quite low, usually fluctuating between 500 to 800 yuan.

Nevertheless, for a student, this still counted as a significant amount of money, which could help improve the dormitory's meals for everyone.

Lu Zhixing then turned to Liu Bo and asked, "What about you?"

Liu Bo sighed quietly, "I participated in the talent show auditions for college students."

Lu Zhixing inquired, "And then? Did you make it to the next round?"

Liu Bo shook his head, "How could I make it? I got eliminated!"

Lu Yixiao seemed to have known this all along and protested, "It's not elimination; he clearly ran into some shady business!"

After listening to their back-and-forth, Lu Zhixing pieced together the situation.

"College Talent Show" was a popular variety show hosted by Changteng TV that had gained immense popularity online. It was currently in its third season and still going strong.

This show followed the talent show format, but it targeted a specific group: high school and college students, hence the name "College Talent Show."

Furthermore, the show had three different tracks: singing, dancing, and performing, each with industry experts serving as mentors.

Compared to other single-track variety shows, "College Talent Show" offered a richer variety of content, and participants could choose the track that suited their talents best.

Many universities held audition events, and Jinghai University even had a main audition venue. Many students participated with the hope of giving it a try.

Despite Liu Bo having an average appearance, he was quite talented, especially in playing the guitar. His guitar skills were good enough to audition for the Music College.

As for why he eventually chose the game design major over the music major, in his words: first, because he loved game design, it was his dream; second, because here, he could compete out of position, making it easier to pursue beautiful senior sisters.

After all, in the Music College, there were plenty of experts, and being able to play the guitar wasn't considered particularly outstanding. But in other colleges, it was a different story, a surefire way to charm the ladies.

In the eyes of his dormmates, Liu Bo's singing and playing skills were absolutely top-notch. Not to mention making it to the finals of "College Talent Show," just passing the auditions should have been a piece of cake.

However, they didn't expect that the auditions for this show were quite unreliable. The final slots were determined by online voting, with participants campaigning for votes based on their own capabilities, and even the option to directly purchase votes with money.

Liu Bo lacked the funds and connections to secure a slot.

Afterwards, the show's staff privately hinted that there were two other ways to advance directly to the finals: signing with a talent agency or spending 250,000 yuan to buy a slot and go straight to the finals.

The terms of the talent agency contract were worse than indentured servitude, with a duration of up to ten years and hefty breach-of-contract penalties.

As a result, Liu Bo declined both options and decided never to get involved with such a foul-smelling show again.

……

After listening to all of this, Lu Zhixing couldn't help but feel a bit nostalgic. "I've heard that there are a lot of shady dealings in domestic variety shows, but I didn't expect there to be corruption even in the audition stage."

Lu Yixiao was equally indignant, saying, "Who says it isn't? But thinking about it, it's quite normal. 'College Talent Show' is already in its third season, and it's so popular. The organizers are clearly aiming to maximize profits, so they'll do whatever it takes to milk contestants for all they're worth."

"The organizers undoubtedly have connections with talent agencies, and that ten-year contract they're offering is like casting a wide net, trying to catch as many as possible."

"Unfortunately, these shady dealings rarely make it onto the internet, and if they do, they're immediately deleted or PR-managed. Even if they manage to circulate in a small way, it's impossible to prove their authenticity."

"If there are so many twists and turns during the audition stage, I can't even imagine how corrupt the main competition will be."

Liu Bo quickly changed the topic, saying, "Alright, alright, that's in the past. I didn't have high expectations for it anyway. Instead of participating in this talent show and becoming a pawn for the capital, I'd rather prepare for the college's freshman welcome party and try to charm a few senior sisters!"

Lu Zhixing and Lu Yixiao nodded vigorously, saying, "Absolutely."

It had to be said that Liu Bo had planned for the long term in this regard. When applying for his major, he had already thought about using his guitar skills to woo senior sisters at the freshman welcome party, which made everyone else feel a bit inadequate.

Suddenly, Lu Yixiao remembered something, "By the way, did you guys play a new game over the weekend? It's called 'Zen.'"

Liu Bo looked puzzled, "Zen? You mean like cicadas?"

Lu Yixiao was somewhat exasperated, "No, Zen! As in meditation. This game is quite bizarre. It looks like a joke when you see it, and it feels like a joke when you play it."

Liu Bo was still confused, "It looks like a joke and plays like a joke, so isn't it just a joke?"

Lu Yixiao shook his head, "That's the thing! Although players can only portray trees, mountains, and rocks in the game, the ratings have been continuously rising since its release. It's getting rave reviews now, and it's arguably the hottest indie game lately!"

Liu Bo was surprised, "Is that even possible? Can a garbage game get rave reviews?"

Lu Yixiao sighed, "Yeah, at first, I found it hard to believe too. But after trying it myself, I realized that this game, well, it has something to it."

"There are many online analyses claiming that it contains a lot of philosophy, like 'seeing oneself, seeing heaven and earth, seeing all living beings,' and many people say that playing this game has given them profound life insights."

"Of course, it's hard to say whether these so-called insights are genuine or just for show. But no matter how you look at it, the fact that they've created such a game makes the developer quite a genius..."

Liu Bo opened the official game platform and found the game. "Wow, it's already in the top ten of this week's indie game sales chart. How much does it cost? Several tens of thousands?"

"I'm so jealous! We're in the game design major, after all. How come we couldn't come up with a game like this?"

Lu Yixiao sighed and said, "In cases like this, it really comes down to talent. It's similar to songwriting; so many formally trained individuals can't write a good song in their lifetime, but some music enthusiasts can create classic songs that touch people's hearts."

"I can only say this is pure talent. You can't help but respect it!"

Lu Zhixing listened quietly and felt quite content.

Say more; I love hearing this!

Curious, Liu Bo asked, "So, who is the creator of this game, and has anyone found them?"

Lu Yixiao shook his head, "No one has. All we know is that this person seems to be in Jinghai, using the nickname 'Stranger.' Maybe they're someone from out of town who has settled in Jinghai?"

Lu Zhixing couldn't help but smile. What was the need to guess anymore? It's far away and close by at the same time!

Enough of pretending; I'll come clean. I'm that ordinary little genius game designer!

Lu Zhixing cleared his throat and said, "Actually, about this matter..."

However, just as Lu Zhixing was about to share his joy with his two roommates, he heard Lu Yixiao speaking at the same time.

"But...

"There's a streamer online who managed to capture footage of someone suspected to be the creator in a park."