Chapter 51: Taken!

“This software seems like it would be a great addition to a game.”

Upon hearing Zhou Shun’s question, Yin Jian replied with this comment, then took a few steps forward to the stall.

The seller of this patent was a university student with messy, unkempt hair. At that moment, he was sitting a bit awkwardly on a small stool. Noticing Yin Jian approaching, a hint of nervousness flickered across his face.

“Could you give me some more details about your software?” Yin Jian asked.

“Of course, no problem.” Yue Ren immediately stood up to answer, though he never quite dared to meet Yin Jian’s eyes. “My… my software… uses…”

Listening to Yue Ren’s stammered explanation, Yin Jian rubbed his brow, pondered for a moment, then suddenly asked, “Can it alter memories? Make someone become whatever you want them to be?”

“Huh?” Yue Ren didn’t react at first, but once the meaning sank in, his eyes widened and he instantly shook his head. “No, that’s impossible. This is just a software program—there’s no way it could do something like that.”

“And besides, modifying memories is illegal. There’s real-time monitoring by the neural network, so no one could ever pull it off.”

“I understand, I was just curious.” Yin Jian smiled as he heard Yue Ren’s speech become steadier. “Go on, tell me more about the Virtual Consciousness Shielding Elf.”

Yue Ren didn’t notice Yin Jian’s little test and continued to explain the principle behind the software. “When consciousness enters a virtual world, the brain produces two types of wavelengths: one for output and one for input.”

“The output is your conscious actions, while the input is for memory storage.”

“In other words, if you slightly influence the input wavelength, you can delay the synchronization of consciousness and memory in virtual space.”

“This creates a state where you have consciousness, but no memory.”

“How long can the shielding last?” Yin Jian nodded after hearing the explanation. He didn’t understand all the details, but got the general idea.

“Depending on the individual’s physical constitution, the time can range from three to six hours at most.”

“Of course, since all our test subjects were university students, there might be some variation.”

Yue Ren answered carefully. Because of his personality, after developing this software, he’d only asked a few of his dormmates to help test it. Although each of them managed to be shielded for at least five hours, science demands rigor, so he reported the results conservatively.

“At least three hours?” Yin Jian raised his eyebrows. That was much longer than he’d expected. “Can I try it now?”

Seeing Yin Jian wanted to test it, Yue Ren nodded, then glanced around and said, “It’s not very convenient here. Please come with me.”

“Alright.”

Watching Yin Jian immediately follow after Yue Ren, Zhou Shun turned the brim of his cap to the back. “Is this really okay?” he muttered, then hurried a few steps to catch up with them.

Soon, under Yue Ren’s guidance, they arrived at a lounge reserved for staff inside the exhibition hall. Yue Ren pulled out his personal computer, fiddled with it for a bit, then turned to Yin Jian. “How long would you like to experience it? The feeling of having your memory temporarily blocked isn’t particularly pleasant.”

Hearing that it was uncomfortable, Yin Jian hesitated for a moment. “Let’s start with ten minutes, then.”

Yue Ren nodded, operated the laptop for a while, and said, “All set. Now, connect your neural link to this computer.”

He pushed the laptop in front of Yin Jian.

Yin Jian glanced at the model.

“Little Overlord V14.”

A machine designed specifically for learning.

Taking a deep breath to steady his nerves, Yin Jian connected himself to the virtual network, feeling a touch of apprehension. If the effect was as he hoped, he would truly have the chance to stand at the pinnacle of the gaming industry.

…

…

“Who am I?”

“Where am I?”

“What am I doing here?”

Yin Jian stood bewildered in a space made of numbers, feeling as if he’d forgotten a great many things. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t recall a thing.

With confusion, he began to carefully explore the data space.

“One hundred terabytes of study materials? What’s this?”

He suddenly stopped in front of a virtual file, frowning as he tried to make sense of the information that had abruptly surfaced in his mind.

Unable to figure it out, he clicked into it directly.

…

…

Ten minutes later

Yin Jian opened his eyes with marked satisfaction, then quickly cleared his throat when he saw Zhou Shun staring intently at him.

“How did it feel?” Zhou Shun asked as soon as he saw Yin Jian’s consciousness had returned.

“It’s a bit like amnesia, but even more thorough. Other than some basic cognition, I couldn’t remember anything.”

“This state makes it much easier to absorb new things, but… because of that, the rebound after the shielding ends is pretty intense.”

This gave Yin Jian pause. If this software was added to a game, players could easily develop cognitive issues after prolonged use.

Although the effect likely wouldn’t last very long, it was still a significant problem.

With this in mind, Yin Jian looked over at Yue Ren, whose face was tinged with anxiety.

“Can you reduce the intensity of the rebound afterward?”

When Yue Ren realized Yin Jian wasn’t about to dismiss his software, he let out a sigh of relief. Several people had viewed his program, but all had simply said, “It’s useless,” and walked away.

He was terrified of hearing those words from Yin Jian again.

After thinking for a moment, he responded quickly, “Yes, I can reduce the strength of the shielding, so that a small portion of the original memory is retained and the virtual world’s memory won’t be so overpowering.”

Upon hearing this, Yin Jian made up his mind, but he had one more question. “Is it possible for someone to save their memories from the virtual space, then have them implanted or selectively recalled the next time they log in?”

“It can be done, but for a finished product, I’ll need about a month…”

Yue Ren thought it over carefully before replying.

Yin Jian was delighted. “How much for the exclusive rights to your software?”

“Two… two hundred thousand?” Yue Ren replied, a bit unsure.

Exclusive rights are usually bought in ten-year increments.

So, after a moment’s thought, Yin Jian said, “I’ll give you two million, but I want exclusive rights for a hundred years.”

He might not qualify as a tycoon yet, but after last month’s game sales were settled, he had nearly ten million in the bank.

“What?” Yue Ren was stunned by Yin Jian’s offer of such a princely sum, finding it hard to believe it was real.

He only came back to his senses after the contracts were signed.

“Thank you,” Yue Ren said solemnly.

What do researchers desire most—fame? Money?

No, neither. What they truly seek is recognition and respect for their work.

“You’re welcome.” Yin Jian wasn’t quite sure why Yue Ren was thanking him, but responded politely anyway.

After, he thought for a moment and sent Yue Ren a friend request. He felt it was worthwhile to connect with innovative research talent like this—who knew when he might be pleasantly surprised again?

After briefly settling the contract’s remaining details, Yin Jian and Zhou Shun left together.

Watching their silhouettes vanish from his sight, Yue Ren finally withdrew his gaze, then looked at the two million that had just arrived in his account with barely contained excitement.

“At last, I have the funds to pursue some of my earlier ideas.”

“Yin Jian really is a good man.”