Dark Sand: My Players Are All Actors
Chapter 46 - 42 Official Explanation of Black Technology

Chapter 46: Chapter 42 Official Explanation of Black Technology

Du Gang looked at Meng Yuan, blinked in confusion, and then silently took a drag on his cigarette.

In the instance of the virtual world of Trial Illusion, this was fine, but if they were anywhere else, like at the police station, he’d have first suggested Meng Yuan take a urine test.

That had been a lot of information to process, and he needed a moment to digest it.

Even before, Du Gang had already entertained many guesses, like some emerging super-genius hacker or a mysterious technology company from abroad.

He’d even considered aliens.

But he never thought of the possibility Meng Yuan had just mentioned.

Was everything about the Restorers true? Could there really be demons in this world that could travel through history and reality, alter history, and harm humanity?

Wasn’t that a bit... too absurd?

It seemed even harder to swallow than some inexplicable dark technology.

Meng Yuan, of course, had expected his reaction.

"I know this is hard to accept, but don’t worry, there will be an opportunity to verify this soon.

"The day after tomorrow, at 1:37 PM, a small historical fragment will begin to briefly overlap with reality, and part of the power from that historical fragment will manifest in the real world.

"Here are the locations where they will appear, 27 in total, all within the country, and 22 of them around Tiandu City.

"Based on the historical period of this fragment, the demons that appear will most likely take the form of the Eastern Barbarian People.

"There might be a few cavalry replicas, and their weapons will primarily consist of Eastern Barbarian sabers and longbows."

As Meng Yuan spoke, a piece of paper appeared in his hand, which he handed to Du Gang.

Du Gang took it and saw that it was a map, with the locations where demons would appear clearly marked.

"There are many places here that are busy downtown areas!

"Even if they only have cold weapons, what if they encounter ordinary people who are defenseless..."

Du Gang’s expression changed; although he was still unclear whether this self-proclaimed game operation manager from Beichen was telling the truth, if it was true, they might face a terrifying toll beyond comprehension.

Meng Yuan continued: "That’s why I need your cooperation."

Du Gang: "How can we help?"

Meng Yuan explained: "It’s simple. Seal off these areas and evacuate the civilians.

"If you’re not sure, you can send undercover officers nearby to be on alert, but don’t draw too much attention. The matters of the Restorers mustn’t be known to the general public.

"As for the demons that manifest, I can arrange for players to deal with them."

Du Gang was surprised: "Players will deal with it? No! We can’t let the public get involved in something so dangerous.

"If there’s danger, it should definitely be us who handle it."

Meng Yuan explained further: "You don’t need to worry about that; the players won’t be in any danger.

"I will grant them the power of the Restorers, allowing them to fight the demons in an imperceptible state, in a special form.

"Even in death, it’s only the power of the Restorers that is consumed; their own bodies will not suffer any harm.

"I understand your concerns, but these matters must be resolved in the Restorers’ way. Although these demons can be dealt with using firearms, gunshots would cause panic, not conducive to keeping secrets; secondly, as the power of the demons grows, firearms will gradually become less effective.

"So, you just need to evacuate people from these locations. I will take care of the rest."

Du Gang fell silent, obviously weighing his options internally.

"Then, what did you mean when you said that knowing this would cause me to miss out on some of the game content?"

Meng Yuan: "It’s simple; demons have a special ability that can affect the minds of ordinary people. Fighting demons for a long period can erode the mind continuously, possibly leading to serious mental issues, and even breakdown.

"As long as players don’t know they are fighting demons and think this is just a game, coupled with the protection of the Restorers’ power, they won’t be affected by the demons’ mental attacks.

"In the future, I will also arrange for players to enter the historical fragments where the demons are, and completely eradicate them."

"So, once you know the truth, you can’t fight the demons yourself, you can only simulate trials in the Trial Illusion," Meng Yuan explained.

Du Gang nodded slightly, "I see..."

Although he still had many doubts about this explanation, the other party had indeed provided a set of justifiable methods.

Moreover, whether it was true or not could be verified the day after tomorrow.

In the face of situations that might harm ordinary people, it was better to err on the side of belief than disbelief.

With this in mind, Du Gang nodded, "Understood. I’ll report this situation immediately and evacuate all ordinary people from these areas.

"But there’s a problem.

"What reason can we give for the evacuation? And inevitably there will be the sound of fighting; it’s impossible to completely seal off the news and keep it secret.

"Once the secret is leaked, all the players will naturally know, and won’t your plan have failed?"

Meng Yuan had been prepared for this, "I’ve considered this as well.

"The reason for the evacuation is simple: an offline event for the game."

"An offline event?" Du Gang was stunned, for he had not considered such a possibility before.

Meng Yuan nodded, "Exactly.

"Pretend to be staff from the game ’Dark Sand’ and talk with the shops or residents at these locations, saying that you need to use their space for filming and location shots for an MR game."

"What you call an offline event is actually the demons invading the real world.

"After these spaces are cleared, I will arrange a special experience area around them. When players arrive, they will have to wear a special device. Of course, this is just a ruse to deceive the players. In reality, it is to imbue them with the special powers of the re-orderers.

"Let the players think it’s some kind of special MR game mechanic.

"Even if the fighting with the demons causes some damage to these places, even if passers-by see or hear it from a distance, it’s fine, because all this can be explained as ’game offline events’ and ’location shots’.

"The sites can then be repaired or compensated for afterward."

Du Gang was puzzled, "What do you mean by this special MR mechanism?"

Meng Yuan explained, "MR stands for Mixed Reality, which is a technology that combines reality with game imagery.

"Of course, the MR technology of this world is still very undeveloped, but players already believe that the company behind ’Dark Sand’ has mastered such cutting-edge technology.

"Not only that, but I have also thought of an official explanation for these high-tech features that can be officially endorsed, enough to convince most people."

Du Gang became curious, "What explanation?"

Meng Yuan elaborated, "It’s simple. Publicly claim that ’Dark Sand’ is the result of over a decade of research by a top domestic scientific research studio. It represents a revolutionary breakthrough in virtual reality and mixed reality technologies.

"The 100% realistic virtual reality technology depends on two crucial technical architectures: one is creating virtual worlds using algorithms by tapping into human subconsciousness, like dreams, marking another significant breakthrough in consciousness-linked virtual reality; the other involves tracing elements in human DNA and collective subconscious related to history to generate corresponding historical fragments and revive real history.

"The reason ’Dark Sand’ feels so real is that its foundation is based on human subconsciousness, much like dreams, where unreal elements are automatically ignored, making it hard to realize you’re dreaming. The game uses this principle since it’s constructed by the subconscious minds of countless players, making it extremely authentic.

"Moreover, the information in human DNA and the collective subconscious inherently contain memories of our ancient ancestors, and by utilizing certain techniques, it’s possible to excavate past historical fragments and thus recreate rich, detailed histories.

"The name ’Dark Sand’, in addition to the meanings players have interpreted before, has another layer.

"It’s built upon the collective subconscious; the conscious mind is the visible island, while the subconscious lies beneath the surface of the water, hence the name ’Dark Sand’.

"Although this explanation still seems quite sci-fi, it’s more palatable than the truth about the re-orderers.

"With official certification and endorsement, even those who doubt will struggle to find a more logical explanation."

Du Gang nodded slightly, "Hmm... in this way, we can indeed keep the secret to the greatest extent.

"However, will the demons keep invading the real world? Will the scale get larger and larger? What if there’s a situation the players can’t handle?"

Meng Yuan assured him, "Don’t worry about that.

"I can also organize players to counter-attack these historical fragments. Once the demons are eradicated from them, it will strengthen the powers of the re-orderers. Moreover, these historical fragments can serve as our frontline bases and stepping stones.

"Even if the demons try to invade again, they will enter those historical fragments first. The impact of the demons on reality will always be maintained at a very low level. Eventually, we could even transform reality into a safe zone that will never be affected by demons."

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