Chapter Thirty: Slurp, Slurp

Game Metaphysics, CEO Office.

"Wait for me to tear apart this dawn and dusk, this heaven and earth, with three feet of azure light spinning to wash away the dust, drinking the strongest—"

At seven o'clock in the morning, Gu Meng, who had spent the night in his office, stopped his alarm.

A bit disgruntled.

Despite owning a massive villa, Gu Meng—a man of iron will—had never actually lived in it since he transmigrated. Before, he used to set alarms to catch the subway for work. Now that he no longer had to commute, he simply lived at the office and worked every single day!

Wasn’t this a wasted transmigration?

When would he finally be able to say, "I’ve fought wars my whole life, so what’s wrong with enjoying myself? Keep the music playing and the dancing going..."

Forget it. Better fight the wars first.

Gu Meng went to the CEO’s private bathroom for a quick wash.

Tsk.

Even more disgruntled.

Gu Meng really wanted to complain about the aesthetic taste of his predecessor, Gu Ritian! The "nouveau riche" gold-plated sink was one thing, but what was up with the gold-plated toilet? It was so tacky, and every time he sat on it, he felt like he couldn't even push properly, terrified that gold dust might rub off on his backside.

Gold-dusted butt!

The mere thought was absurd. He couldn't grasp the old man’s thought process. Gu Meng opted for the employees' public restroom instead, feeling much lighter and more refreshed.

Afterward, he took a sip of the cappuccino Secretary Wu had prepared—three pumps of sugar, the temperature just right.

*Slurp, slurp...*

The morning grumpiness faded slightly.

Gu Meng hadn't slept deeply; he could tell she had woken up right on time, before six. She was also a person of iron will. As a woman, she still had to put on makeup and groom herself; after all, she maintained the persona of a "city chic woman." She was much more refined than Gu Meng, who carried the "gaming master" persona. Even if Gu Meng was disheveled, appearing in the company with messy hair and sleep in his eyes, it fit the stereotypical image of a genius perfectly.

*Slurp, slurp...*

Still sleepy. Gu Meng hadn't gone to bed until two o'clock last night. The content he had written was already solid and detailed; by feeding it into the System, he could churn out a polished version for a low cost.

Since that was the case, he would make a demo.

System, activate!

*Ding!*

Generating the demo version of *Legends of Heroes Across Time*.

The computer in front of Gu Meng began to operate automatically. In a while, a new mini-game would be ready. Gu Meng had tested using the System to create other, simpler games; if Secretary Wu were to walk in, she would see Gu Meng coding at lightning speed. His hands moved so fast they became a blur, his body seemingly enveloped in a heavy, dark aura that made it difficult for ordinary people to approach.

That was the "Gaming Master's" charismatic moment. After witnessing it, Wu Mengyou admired Gu Meng even more. The boss was truly a "Born Worker"!

Cool! Dragon King! Cool!

Honestly, Gu Meng didn't even know what this ability really was or its limits. Was it on the level of the author of *Lord of the Mysteries*? Even if it wasn't, in this peaceful urban world, the System's power should be invincible. With such supernatural ability, wouldn't it be easy to hack into the systems of various nations and seize all human wealth?

If it had such power but required "money" to activate, was there some energy the System needed within the currencies of these nations? Was it something more abstract—fortune, social order, public trust, or human desire? Did he have to use legitimate means to make games for himself to extract it from the players?

Whatever.

Gu Meng wouldn't proactively think of the System in terms of conspiracy theories; he wasn't one to worry about the sky falling. By the way, the System had a new task.

[New task issued: Create a game optimized using System treasure chest items and collect enough positive feedback from players.]

[The 'Skill Tree Insertion Code: Supernatural Combat' from the Bronze Chest or the 'Dimensional Game Motion Capture Studio' from the Silver Chest in the main quest chain will both satisfy the conditions.]

[Success will increase host’s fortune.]

[Failure will decrease host’s fortune.]

[Side quest issued: Win any of the annual Chinese game industry awards for the year (must be a reputable, non-shady organization; indirect influence is allowed, but direct bribery is forbidden).]

[Bribery includes, but is not limited to, money transfers, excessive reimbursement, or gifting expensive luxury goods.]

[Gifting milk to a judge's home is tacitly permitted.]

[Reward for success: Bronze Chest x1.]

[No penalty for failure of side quest.]

*Slurp, slurp...*

Already half gone. Gu Meng took a box of Mingguang whole milk from the cabinet under his desk, poured half into his cup, and stirred. He drank the rest straight. This case of milk was almost finished, and now that the company had money—Gu Meng had never seen so much money before—he’d buy a case of Telunsu next time!

*Slurp, slurp...*

A bit bland; too much milk. He added some sugar.

This side quest wasn't easy. Let’s be real—everyone knows how to do public relations, right? In the past, Gu Ritian wanted to win some face-saving minor awards for his games, and that always involved escorting people to brothels, gifting cars, and giving watches. Otherwise, they wouldn't even let you play. If you didn't have a certain scale, you weren't even qualified to offer bribes.

Gu Meng, on the other hand, could only offer milk...

*Heh*, testing the cadres with this? Which cadre couldn't withstand such a test?

*Tsk*, *Pure Love Fighter Simulator* was a bit edgy, after all; even if it went viral, it would be hard to win an award.

If this martial arts game released in the second half of this year turned out to be undeniably good, and he won the championship in the "Chinese Martial Arts: Great Hero" competition, there might be a glimmer of hope. Looking at the competition right now, the opponents were all small studios; winning the title seemed plausible. With an official endorsement, he should be able to snag some awards; otherwise, the judging committee would really be showing him no respect.

But for "Game of the Year," without PR, was it really possible? *Black Myth* had the Golden Joystick; the TGA results weren't out when Gu Meng transmigrated, so it likely had high hopes too.

Maybe he should send a few more boxes of milk! Perhaps these game awards really were fair and just.

Gu Meng looked at the description of the main quest again. What did "fortune" mean? Was his own fortune high or low?

*Slurp, slurp... Gulp, gulp, gulp...*

Finished. Like a thirsty dragon.

The coffee beans were left behind by the old man and were likely quite expensive, but Gu Meng couldn't tell the difference. Secretary Wu must have ground them by hand, but Gu Meng didn't care. Coffee was just caffeine to keep him alert. Instant coffee or the 11.9 yuan Luckin Coffee downstairs was just as good.

*Slurp...* The dragon finished the water and hit empty.

He put down the enamel mug. No laughing. He tugged at his still-thick hair.

*Argh*, suddenly annoyed again. Split personality.

He hadn't expected that becoming a boss would actually require him to work "007" (9 AM to 9 PM, 7 days a week) at the company. Thank goodness Secretary Wu was there to keep him company during the late nights. The company just had too few capable hands, and he didn't trust anyone else.

It was hard to be a wise monarch; no wonder there were so many incompetent ones. To be a hands-off boss, you need capable ministers.

"Where are my Wolong and Fengchu (legendary strategists)?"

"I am clearly the second generation; I don't want to be Liu Bei and fight wars for a lifetime. I want to be Liu Shan—I cannot live without my Prime Minister!"

Perhaps among the new recruits, there was a hidden talent. He just feared that if he delegated tasks to them, he’d end up with a demo featuring internal bugs. Gu Meng was self-aware; the last time he didn't have much foresight, and triggering a bug to turn things around was just sheer dumb luck. This time, he had to do it himself to ensure there were no fundamental issues like the "cuckold" tropes for players, and absolutely no more subversive bugs!

Gu Meng wanted to become the God of Games, to make his name immortal in this world and praised for generations. He had to be good to the players and leave no stains. If another bug appeared, he’d change his name!

Once the employees were trained, he could slightly loosen his grip on game design, controlling only the big picture and giving tasks, then using the System for final optimization.

Today was the day to announce the new project.

Youxuan advocated for a 9 AM start, but clocking in at 10 AM was fine as long as you stayed an hour later—a flexible system. Everyone knew a new project was being announced today, so as expected, they were all there before 9 AM.

"Listen up, the company is making a new game. You can play the demo I've been working on for a while first, then look at the proposal. The new game is tentatively titled, *Legends of Heroes Across Time*."