Chu Guang, male, nominal age 26, grew up with his grandfather after his parents divorced when he was young.
In the second year of college, his grandfather passed away, leaving him all alone.
Fortunately, he was born in a peaceful era and managed to balance work and study, eventually graduating and finding a job in sales. Due to his excellent performance, he quickly earned his boss's recognition and was promoted to supervisor not long after joining.
Just when Chu Guang thought the toughest days were behind him and he could finally enjoy a few days of peace, fate had other plans.
This time, the joke fate played on him was rather severe.
About five months ago.
Chu Guang still remembered that he was negotiating a 20-million contract with a client. The boss was in high spirits and drank a bit too much at the dinner table, eventually passing out.
When he came to, he found himself lying in a desolate wilderness.
Moreover, this was no ordinary wilderness.
He walked for about two miles without seeing a single human shadow, and nearly got mauled by a big two-headed dog.
It was thanks to that two-headed beast.
Scared out of his wits, Chu Guang broke out in a cold sweat, instantly sobering up, and ran as fast as he could.
Perhaps because the two heads made it heavy and awkward, the dog chased him for a while but eventually gave up with a howl.
Not seeing that beast anymore, Chu Guang didn't dare go back and didn't know which way to go.
It was then he realized his wallet and mobile phone were gone, and even his clothes had been changed into a set of blue jackets.
Finding a small puddle, he looked down with the help of the moonlight and was surprised to see not only had his clothes changed but his face too!
He couldn't figure out which lunatic knocked him out, changed his face, and dumped him in this godforsaken place.
As Chu Guang wandered aimlessly in the wilderness, he noticed smoke rising in the distance.
Thinking back, Chu Guang still felt a bit scared.
Determined to report this to the police, he ran towards the smoke, realizing later that he was lucky to reach a genuine survivor settlement.
If he had encountered looters, cannibals, or mutant tribes, he would probably have been cooking in a pot.
Maybe even the shoes would have been cooked!
After interacting with the survivors here, Chu Guang pieced together that this was no longer Hua Nation, even this wasn't the Earth he was familiar with!
In this parallel world, a war two hundred years ago destroyed all of civilization's achievements, leaving behind a barren wasteland and survivors struggling to eke out an existence.
It was now the year 2340.
It was also the 211th year since human civilization entered the Wasteland Era in early 2129!
Confusion.
Shock.
Indescribable fear.
Fortunately, Chu Guang's ability to adapt was strong. After surviving the initial days, he gradually began to acclimate to life here.
He struggled to survive for five months on the wasteland, barely having enough to eat and constantly battling mutant creatures and malicious looters.
Just as Chu Guang pessimistically thought this was how the rest of his life would be, a turning point occurred a few hours ago.
In the ruins of an abandoned sanatorium, he discovered the entrance to a shelter numbered 404.
To be precise, it wasn't that Chu Guang found it, but rather this facility named "Shelter No. 404" found him.
A voice in his head guided him here.
When Chu Guang approached the sanatorium, he suddenly realized this was the spot where he had first woken up in this world!
If he hadn't wandered around aimlessly or if the day had been a bit brighter, he might have found it earlier!
Regardless, the "cheat" that had been five months late finally arrived.
At the same time, a brand-new job was presented to him.
This shelter seemed to have been prepared just for him and had been waiting for a long time.
From the moment he stepped through the shelter's door, his identity transformed from a scavenger to this Shelter No. 404's sole resident and manager.
And his job was just one thing.
To use the Internet on Earth to guide—or rather trick—a group of beings called "players" to come to this world and work for him.
Yes, the high technology in this shelter not only connected to the parallel world's Earth Internet, but it also had its own "official website"!
Players who reserve the game would automatically receive a serial number and be registered in the Administrator System's Resident Directory.
As a manager, Chu Guang could select specific serial numbers to grant "game qualification."
The System would deliver the game helmet to the players through some special method. The player just had to put on the helmet and then connect to the cultivation chamber in the shelter, waking up as a clone.
Very user-friendly.
Also very convenient!
Although there would be no punishment for going on strike, the rewards for completing tasks were irresistible to Chu Guang.
For instance, that bulletproof vest.
Struggling to survive on the wasteland for five months, he understood how crucial such life-saving things were.
Additionally, the task reward points were also valuable because they could be exchanged for "blind boxes" from the Manager Allowance page.
Buying a basic blind box required 1 reward point, an intermediate blind box 10 points, and an advanced blind box 100 points.
According to the explanation of the Manager Allowance function by "Shelter No. 404 Administrator System," the items from the blind boxes were varied and random, but there would always be something, meaning there was no such thing as "Thank you for participating."
The different levels of blind boxes determined the guaranteed rewards.
For example, even a basic blind box would provide food supplies, an intermediate blind box would guarantee medicine, and an advanced blind box could yield weapons.
As for whether a basic blind box could contain intermediate blind box rewards, the system's explanation did not mention it, but even if it did, the probability would probably be very low.
As Chu Guang was contemplating whether to spend his 5 points on basic blind boxes or to save up 100 points for a weapon, the "wastebasket" in the corner of the room spoke up again.
"Master, a new task has been updated in your Administrator's Log. Please check it promptly."
"Got it," Chu Guang replied impatiently.
Damn it.
Who is the master here!
Rolling his eyes at the corner, Chu Guang decided to put the blind box matter aside for now and silently recited the Administrator's System.
Soon, a pale blue holographic screen projected onto his retina.
——Administrator's Log——
[Task: Shelter No. 404 activation conditions met. Confirm initial batch of "stored items" delivery, ensuring at least one player logs into the game.
Type: Mainline.
Reward: Active Substance Extractor.
]
[Task: Prepare a generator with a power output greater than 10kW.
Type: Side quest.
Reward: Reward points +100.
]
What the heck?
100 reward points?!
After reading the updated task in the Administrator's Log, Chu Guang's eyes widened.
What caught his attention even more was the reward for the mainline mission.
"Active Substance Extractor... what the hell is this thing for?"
Xiao Qi answered.
"Active substance is the raw material for making clones. As for how to use it, there should be an instruction manual or something."
As an AI assistant, Xiao Qi didn't know much either.
Currently, Chu Guang's access only reached the B1 level of the shelter; other floor's access needed to be unlocked through mainline tasks.
By the way, forcibly breaking through the shelter's walls in an attempt to infiltrate other floors would cut off the shelter's power and air supply.
The "shelter system," which was loaded into his brain when he first entered, had already informed him of this.
Even without this warning, Chu Guang thought he probably wouldn't be stupid enough to dismantle the place.
Joking aside.
If I dismantle this place, where would I live afterward?
Not to mention, the shelter was designed to withstand strategic nuclear strikes, dismantling it wouldn't be easy.
Not to mention nukes; he didn't even have a gun.
"Alright, I get it."
So, the active substance was similar to "Resurrection Coin," the resource players needed to reassemble clones.
Currently, B1 level housed 100 active cultivation chambers, all in an activable state, each likely containing 1 unit of active substance, sufficient for the initial clone synthesis.
Considering the system's "one chamber per number" setup, Chu Guang could summon up to 100 players to this world as clones.
Of course, Chu Guang was aware that things weren't as simple as they seemed.
Firstly, the Wasteland OL's official website currently had no traffic.
Most people, upon seeing claims of a "100% immersive virtual reality game," would first assume it was a scam.
After all, such technology didn't exist in reality, not even self-media could concoct such stories.
Secondly, even if 11 players were lured into making reservations, he couldn't ensure they would follow his instructions.
Entering and exiting the game was entirely up to the players.
His authority only extended to forcibly kicking out disruptive players, banning their login rights, or revoking their game qualifications; he couldn't force anyone to put on the helmet and log in to work for him.
Therefore, selecting who got the game qualifications—especially the first batch of "closed beta" players—had to be done carefully.
Better to have fewer reliable players than more erratic ones.
Otherwise, it would only complicate things!
And then, the most crucial part.
The conditions on the wasteland dictated that more people weren't always better.
Each additional person meant another mouth to feed.
He was nearly starving, and accommodating another hundred mouths was out of the question.
Even if he had the means to activate all 100 cultivation chambers, it would only provide food for the variants and looters.
Nothing else.
Chu Guang returned to the computer and sat down again.
Calmly contemplating in front of the screen for a while, his thoughts gradually cleared.
He re-logged onto his QQ account, reopened the "Niubi Club" game group, and pulled the group owner and three admins into a discussion group.
Next, he typed in the group chat.
[Send me the serial numbers that appeared on the website when you reserved the game.]
[There are only four closed beta slots. I'll apply to the company and see if they can send the closed beta qualifications and game helmets directly to you guys.]
These were players he frequently played cooperative games with, so considering them didn't seem out of place.
More importantly, Chu Guang couldn't think of any other familiar person to rely on, except for these online friends he had never met in real life but had some connection with.
Relatives?
After his grandfather's passing, they hadn't contacted each other for years. If the police didn't notify them, they might not even know he was gone.
Landlord?
Probably searching all over for him, asking for the rent.
Classmates?
Hadn't been in contact since graduation.
Colleagues?
Hah.
They probably deleted him, thinking it was bad luck.
Even if they hadn't, Chu Guang would never message them since he collapsed at the dining table.
Getting messages from the dead was creepy enough to imagine.
By comparison, these sand sculpture netizens were undoubtedly the best choice.
Though they had never met in real life, they wouldn't overthink about him being offline for five months.
White Horse Passing a Gap: [Niubi, awesome!]
Level Eight Great Gale: [Impressive, impressive!]
Long Days Ahead: [666!]
Getting Up Over Ten Times a Night: [Sure! Strong invincible bro! Waiting for your game helmet! (funny)]
Chu Guang continued typing reminders.
[But remember, the equipment is only lent for you to use, don't lose it, and definitely don't dismantle it. Otherwise, I can't explain to the company.]
[Also, the equipment will be bound to the user's identity information. In principle, each equipment can only register one account and be used by one person.]
Actually, he wasn't worried about the players not following the rules.
According to the system, the helmet would verify the player's identity, rendering it unusable by anyone else.
As for the equipment…
He didn't care about that.
If the system could deliver the helmets, it surely had ways to handle "after-sales service," which wasn't his concern.
Long Days Ahead: [Is this free?]
Chu Guang: [No fees during the closed beta stage, but due to budget constraints, there won't be any wages either.]
Long Days Ahead: [6666, privately sending my serial number, ship me one.]
White Horse Passing a Gap: [Niubi, niubi, hahaha, give me one too. If it's truly a fully immersive virtual reality, I'll live stream standing on my head and have diarrhea!]
Level Eight Great Gale: [Hahaha, I support this as well.]
Getting Up Over Ten Times a Night: [(funny.jpg)]
Although these four buddies clearly didn't believe what he said, they still sent their serial numbers "to play along" with his "prank."
It's just a serial number from the official website.
Not like it's a bank card number and password.
Besides, they were curious about what trick this guy was playing...
Upon receiving the serial numbers, Chu Guang didn't hesitate, immediately calling up the Administrator System. locating the Resident Directory, and checking "grant game qualification" next to the four numbers.
The cultivation chamber took Three days to synthesize clones.
In these three days, the system would use special means to deliver the game helmets to the players... without needing a shipping address.
As for the specific means, whether it would attract modern society's attention, or involve illegal operations, Chu Guang couldn't care less.
He hoped more people would notice their official website, creating a sensation was even better.
This way, he had more options to choose from.
"Master, don't we already have 11 players registered on our official website? Why did you only grant four slots?"
Possibly noticing the activated cultivation chambers in the neighboring room, Xiao Qi expressed confusion.
"Because there isn't a need for that many at the moment."
Shutting down the Resident Directory,
Chu Guang then opened the Manager's Allowance page in the system and spent all five reward points on "basic blind boxes."
Saving up for an advanced blind box was pointless.
The second task's reward was directly 100 points, making these 5 points insignificant.
The pale blue holographic screen flickered, the alloy door of the "output port" on one side of the room shook gently, and with a soft click, it opened.
Seeing the items on the platform, Chu Guang blinked in surprise.
"This… is the blind box?"
Xiao Qi answered.
"It should be."
Chu Guang calmed himself and said.
"I thought the prize would at least come in a box."
Xiao Qi tried to explain.
"Maybe the blind box is just a concept?"
But what's the point of a blind box with no packaging to open?
Why not just call it a lottery?
Staring at the rewards on the conveyor, Chu Guang was silent for a while.
"I get it."
"But why did I exchange for five, and only four came out???"