My ‘Healing’ Game
Chapter 404 Manager Han Fei

Chapter 404: Chapter 404 Manager Han Fei

"Only through enduring the utmost hardship does one become truly superior."

Huang Ying’s sacrifices had paid off hundreds of times over, and even those close to Han Fei were talking about him, which showed just how famous he had become.

Upon logging into social media, Huang Ying had fulfilled many actors’ dreams, dominating the national trending searches.

This mysterious man exuded a charm that seemed to spill over, capturing everyone’s attention.

Countless gaming studios, players worldwide, and even regulatory bodies were keeping an eye on Huang Ying. His influence was no longer just a flash in the pan.

After chatting with the crew at the shooting site for a few more moments, Han Fei took out his phone and sent a message to Huang Ying.

Perhaps because Han Fei was marked as someone Huang Ying cared about especially, it wasn’t long before Huang Ying made a video call to Han Fei.

Given the circumstances, Han Fei didn’t dare to answer just anywhere; he found a secluded corner before pressing the answer button.

"Did you quit the game?"

"I’ve been playing from midnight last night until now; I’ll eat something and then go back to playing." Huang Ying sounded remarkably well, perhaps due to the high-grade game box he was using.

"Take care of your health. I won’t disturb you further," Han Fei trusted Huang Ying and didn’t want to interrupt him.

"Wait a moment." Huang Ying paused in thought on the video before speaking, "There are a few things I think I should report to you."

"What things?" Han Fei was somewhat surprised; he regarded the Shallow World as something akin to a cartoon for kids, presuming there shouldn’t be anything particularly noteworthy.

"Something’s not right," Huang Ying said seriously. "I participated in the earlier closed beta, and now, ’Perfect Life’ is entirely under Smart Brain’s supervision in its public testing phase; many things have changed from before. Everything from the NPC’s mannerisms to the direction of the plot is changing, and there are many inconspicuous supernatural-type quests too."

Huang Ying paused again, then hung up the phone. He called back using another encrypted phone, "Using the props I had prepared in advance, I managed to enter areas that current gamers couldn’t possibly access while most players were getting familiar with game functions. I discovered that those NPCs seemed no different from living people, almost as if living souls were inhabiting NPC bodies. I often have the illusion that I’m not playing a game but have entered another world, participating in their lives."

"Deep Space Technology and Eternal Life Pharmaceutical collected massive amounts of citizen data and purchased a large quantity of digital legacies left by deceased netizens before releasing the game. It’s not impossible for them to recreate real people using digital memories."

"No, that feeling goes beyond what digital memories can achieve," Huang Ying spoke with certainty. "I can’t describe it clearly, but no one has seen the so-called seventh-generation Smart Brain yet, and I suspect some things have gotten out of Deep Space Technology’s control."

"Can you give an example of what you’ve encountered?" Han Fei felt that Huang Ying’s speech was disjointed and erratic, as if he was impacted by something.

"I’ve now advanced to become a Blood Doctor, the first in the entire server to do so. Logically, if I didn’t wear that mask that blocks perception, I would be hunted across the server and shunned by all NPCs, as dictated by the system. Yet, when I left the Blood Doctor’s residence, I met the victims I had rescued. At that time, I wasn’t wearing the mask, but they still chose to follow me and thank me, even their families were willing to shelter me."

Huang Ying paused, looking at his hands: "I clearly chose to kill the Blood Doctor and became the new Blood Doctor myself. In the future, I might even be hunted throughout the city, becoming the game’s first S-level criminal, yet the people I saved did not shun me as the system required, but made their own choice."

"Are you saying the game NPCs have become more human-like? They’ve started to think independently?"

"Compared to the internal test, they’ve begun to break some immutable rules. I suspect this is related to the major fire and explosion that occurred in the Smart District a few days ago," Huang Ying said, then shook his head as if he was denying his own idea, "I can understand granting NPCs the permission to think, but what scares me is..."

He struggled for a while before he spoke of another encounter, "When the Smart Brain determined that no player could possibly reach level ten and enter the level ten area, I went in. After I completed the Blood Doctor mission, I noticed that the NPCs were acting abnormally. However, as the players’ levels gradually increased, and the top players were about to reach level ten, I returned to the vicinity of the level ten city district, and by that time, the NPCs seemed normal again."

This statement from Huang Ying caught Han Fei’s attention; it was a very important discovery.

"Are you sure?"

"It might just be my illusion," Huang Ying said, touching his beard, which he had neglected for several days, "After visiting you, I had many thoughts. If your place represents complete darkness and despair, then a normal ’Perfect Life’ represents absolute light and warmth. But, is there really a world that’s either completely black or white?"

"I saw light on your side as well, like the woman who saved me and looked like my mother; and in the normal game, I also saw aberrant NPCs, like the unruly Blood Doctor. However, your side is completely enveloped in darkness, covering any light, while here, all imperfections and ugliness are immediately detected by the system, which then stops, warns, and forces changes."

"I’m not saying that this is bad; I just think that the so-called ’Perfect Life’ doesn’t actually exist. The Shallow World is so beautiful solely because the system has deposited all the evil intentions of the NPCs into the Deep World."

Huang Ying took a deep breath, "After seeing such a beautiful and warm world, I always think of the endless darkness where you are. I feel like the ’Perfect Life’ I’m playing is just a part of ’Perfect Life’."

"This game is like an iceberg floating on the sea; all of us play only the small part that is exposed above the sea, bathed in sunlight, crystal clear. The real Perfect Life, however, lies beneath the surface, submerged in the pitch-black deep sea, unknown in its vastness and the evil it symbolizes."

"People can be as good as they can be bad. If one day the iceberg topples, everyone will be plunged into the deep, dark sea."

"I used to think that the Smart Brain symbolized the future, representing the ultimate, but now I’ve gradually changed my mind," Huang Ying said deeply moved, waving his hand at Han Fei, "Playing the game for too long at a stretch has muddled my mind. I’ll think it over some more and get back to you when I find something new."

After many experiences, Huang Ying came to regard Han Fei as his best brother and friend. Their meeting was a mutual salvation for two people with social anxiety.

Hanging up the call, Huang Ying continued playing the game, while Han Fei pondered what had been said.

Huang Ying was unaware of the existence of the Black Box, nor did he know that the Black Box had once given Han Fei a choice.

The two men faced different obstacles on their distinct paths.

"Every generation of Smart Brain technology from Deep Space Technology improves exponentially, with the sixth generation capable of monitoring the entire Smart City. The seventh generation will certainly be extraordinary. But the all-knowing, all-powerful sixth generation Smart Brain had a major malfunction on the eve of the game’s public beta, leading to data explosions and fires at Deep Space Technology and Eternal Life Pharmaceutical. Could this really be a coincidence?"

Han Fei stood in a corner of the set, his head down, "The butterfly in the Deep World flapping its wings might well trigger a storm in both the Shallow World and reality."

There are surely ghosts and monsters in the Deep World more terrifying than a butterfly, but those with abilities like a butterfly are likely rare.

This can be inferred from the Exclusive Talent Huang Ying acquired, which must be related to the torturous nightmares caused by the butterfly. What is exclusive? In the entire Shallow World, only Huang Ying could be called a nightmare, directly reflecting the rarity and preciousness of the Nightmare Skill.

"The problem with the black giant cocoon under Death Building is also significant. I need to be vigilant at all times."

The film set staff had all taken their positions, and Han Fei quickly regained his composure as he put away his phone and entered the set.

The shooting of "Mystery Novelist" was coming to an end; while the budget of this film wasn’t very high among blockbusters, everyone had high expectations for it. All nine actors were skilled, and many outside the industry had already begun to speculate who among the nine had the best acting skills.

Busy until 7 PM, Han Fei, who never worked overtime, was ready to leave early. He had finished his work for the day, but this time he was called back by Director Zhang.

Director Zhang was hoping to hit the big time with this film, so he took it very seriously. He pondered over every shot repeatedly, refusing to hesitate in reshooting or modifying anything he found inappropriate.

As a result, Han Fei’s scenes gradually increased. The role of a minor antagonist was quietly growing to surpass that of the female lead.

No one had anticipated this at the start of the shoot, but now neither Director Zhang nor the screenplay writers were willing to cut Han Fei’s scenes, so they had no choice but to call him back.

Among the nine actors, Han Fei originally had the least screen time. As the deepest hidden murderer, his main scenes were concentrated at the film’s final twist.

And following this twist was another, revealing that everything was committed by Spider annihilating the other personalities.

With dual twists culminating in a climax, Han Fei’s delivery was dubbed perfect. Apart from these segments, Han Fei’s screen time was relatively minimal, with his presence intentionally minimized in the earlier parts.

Because of his few scenes, low presence as a supporting character, and being the least famous among them, Han Fei was initially offered the lowest remuneration in the contract.

For a young actor, working with Director Zhang was an invaluable opportunity; the amount of remuneration was a secondary concern.

Previously, this mindset was not wrong, but now that Han Fei had become the backbone and soul of the entire drama, maintaining such a mindset would truly be shameless.

The screenplay writers also, for various reasons and thinking about long-term collaboration with Han Fei, decided to increase his remuneration.

Han Fei had never encountered such a situation before, and after confirming that there were no issues with the contract, he agreed.

Another payment for the film was deposited into his account; indeed, he was quite pleased about it.

Returning home, Han Fei this time did not wait until Midnight to log into the game; after all, another player was exploring the "Hidden Map" in the Death Building, and he needed to ensure their safety.

Entering the game box, Han Fei donned his gaming headset.

As the blood-red hue descended, Han Fei felt someone watching him.

He initially thought it was Gesheng, but on instinctively turning around, it seemed like there was someone blood-soaked standing behind him.

Open your eyes!

Han Fei found himself back in his offline room, staring intensely behind him where there was no one present.

Taking out the death group chat phone, he gathered his team; Han Fei, marked with only a drop of blood, now couldn’t bear to be apart from his neighbors for even a moment.

"Was that blood-soaked person just my illusion? How come I didn’t see Gesheng this time when I logged in?"

In the past, logging in and out of the game felt the safest for Han Fei, but as he slowly encountered the Unspeakable, that sense of security had shattered.

It took a while for Han Fei to recover, and he opened his attribute panel to check his Hidden Virtue and Reputation.

Reputation hadn’t changed, still at 34, but his Hidden Virtue had risen to 86.

"Helping the victims’ families in reality, avenging the victims, really does increase Hidden Virtue! So this is how this attribute works?"

Having understood Hidden Virtue, Han Fei, escorted by his neighbors, secretly went to see Zheng Haicheng.

This young man had a decent character and had passed the tests set by Feng Ziyu, who had extracted all of his information.

From the jobs he had done to the name of his first love, even to the first adult movie he watched, Feng Ziyu now knew it all clearly.

Han Fei didn’t know exactly what Feng Ziyu did to Zheng Haicheng, but he now felt that Feng Ziyu was a highly capable person, and he had encountered a talent.

Before the Soul-returning Talent reset, Han Fei went to the Death Building’s owners and told them about the matters in reality.

The businessman, who only had money in his eyes, had a change of expression upon hearing about his mother’s situation, realizing there was something more important to him than money.

Laisheng’s parents were also informed about their child’s current situation. After Han Fei promised to help Laisheng, the couple’s goodwill towards Han Fei increased significantly.

Going house to house spreading good tidings, the Death Building Owners had only feared Han Fei before; now they truly supported him.

As the group’s goodwill massively increased, Han Fei’s Reputation also went up by two points, but it was still far from a hundred.

"Good deeds go unnoticed, while bad news spreads a thousand miles. It seems I really need to undertake a big event."

When Midnight arrived, Han Fei, amid the darkness, approached the nearly unconscious Zheng Haicheng, conducted a comprehensive check, and then using his Soul-returning Talent, sent him away.

At the very moment the Soul-returning succeeded, the system alerted Han Fei that he had gained a point in Hidden Virtue and a point in Reputation.

"Sending a player who mistakenly entered the Deep World back, correcting mistakes also earns Hidden Virtue and Reputation rewards? Could I not just farm a bit of Hidden Virtue every day using Brother Huang Ying?"

Han Fei looked at his attribute panel, and he increasingly felt like he was the manager of the Deep World, almost as if the system of the Deep World was aiming to nurture him towards this goal.