Chapter 195: First Experience in the Game

After finalizing his character name, the screen once again plunged into darkness, signaling another waiting phase.

Outside the virtual game pod, a series of indicator lights flickered rapidly, accompanied by a soft hum of high-speed operations. However, Feng Qi, whose neural interface was already fully connected to the system, was oblivious to the external sounds.

Approximately two minutes later, a virtual options panel appeared before him.

Multiplayer Combat Mode (Ranked Matchmaking)

Multiplayer Combat Mode (Custom Rooms)

Domain Dungeon Mode - Solo Mode - Team Mode (Currently Unavailable)

Custom Dungeon Mode - Paid Downloads of Custom Maps: 0 (Currently Unavailable)

Custom Map Editor (Current Map Assets: 23,215, Currently Unavailable)

Simulation Training Room (Skill Training, Skill Combination Training)

Personal Space (Add Friends, View Records, Honor Wall, Replay Matches, Friend Communication, Outfit Customization, etc.)

Beta Test Scene 1 (Currently Unavailable)

Beta Test Scene 2 (Currently Unavailable)

The content available in Dawn was clearly limited due to its ongoing testing phase.

At the same time, Feng Qi noted that the game experienced noticeable lag during loading, most likely due to the current configuration of the virtual game pods. Every transition was accompanied by a lengthy wait and a black screen, issues that would need to be addressed in future iterations.

Without hesitation, he clicked on the "Personal Space" option.

After more than ten seconds of black screen, he found himself standing in a sparse room, clad in coarse gray linen clothing.

The room was roughly 200 square meters, containing only an "honor rack" and no other furnishings.

Walking up to the wall labeled "Add Friends," he tapped on the "+" symbol and selected the option to search for nearby players.

Within moments, the radar displayed the basic avatars and names of Lin Ran and the others:

Lin Ran (Game Name: Divine Technique)

Mu Qing (Game Name: Sizzle)

Lü Yue (Game Name: Sword)

Xia Long (Game Name: Awoo Dragon)

Xia Hu (Game Name: Awoo Tiger)

Xia Bao (Game Name: Meow Leopard)

Yan Yue (Game Name: Mountain Lifter)

Jia Yi (Game Name: Victory Against the Heavens)

Yang Xiaoxin (Game Name: Warlord Xiaoxin)

Cai Guo (Game Name: Savior Medic)

Xu Hongyun (Game Name: Poverty Drives Strength)

Hui Xu (Game Name: Kill Me and Die)

Each player's personal information was linked to the Crimson Research Institute's database, requiring real-name authentication before logging in. As such, their real names were visible on the radar.

Players could, however, choose to hide their real names in the settings, making them visible only to friends or completely invisible. There was also an option to block nearby searches, preventing other players from finding them.

After adding Lin Ran and the others as friends and receiving their approvals, Feng Qi opened the friends list and invited them one by one to his personal space.

Moments later, Lü Yue and the others materialized in his room.

Noticing the stunned expressions on their faces, Feng Qi grinned. "What do you think?"

"Qi-ge, what's going on with this game?" Lin Ran asked, clearly astonished.

"A while back, I brought Fang Zhiyou to Star City Academy to help develop this game. Now, with the support of the Crimson Research Institute, it's finally in its preliminary stages," Feng Qi explained casually.

"This is insane. I thought you were just messing around with this virtual game idea, but you actually made it happen. That's unbelievable," Lin Ran said, his tone full of disbelief.

"Credit goes to the Crimson Research Institute. Without their help, even I wouldn't have been able to create something like this," Feng Qi replied, deftly shifting the focus onto the Institute.

"Qi-ge, how exactly does this game work? Teach us!" Xu Hongyun asked, his excitement evident.

"The gameplay is straightforward. Players need to select and combine skills to face off in battles. Let's start with a test in the simulation training room."

"Wait here," Feng Qi said, leaving the personal space and returning to the main options menu.

He selected the "Simulation Training Room," triggering a new panel with two options:

Combat Training Room

Skill (Spell) Training Room

He chose the skill training room. After another ten seconds of loading, he found himself in an environment resembling a Roman amphitheater.

In front of him stood wooden dummy targets for testing skill damage. To the left was a minefield for evaluating skill coverage, and to the right was a set of ten-ring targets for assessing skill accuracy.

At that moment, Feng Qi summoned the friend list and began clicking "Invite" for each name.

After a brief wait, Lin Ran and the others appeared within the training scenario.

"Where is this now?" Hui Xu asked curiously.

"Look toward the top-right corner of your vision. There should be an icon of your avatar. Focus your attention there, and you'll bring up a menu. Try it out," Feng Qi instructed.

Following his guidance, everyone began experimenting. Soon, a grid-like menu appeared before each of them. At the top was a search bar, and at the bottom were six empty slots marked with "+."

"Now, stretch out your hand and touch the icons," Feng Qi continued.

As the group complied, Feng Qi selected an icon from the skill library, depicting three fireballs. Immediately, a skill description panel appeared in front of him:

[Chain Fireball Technique]: Concentrates spiritual energy to quickly inscribe the trajectory of three interlinked fireballs. Once formed, the fireballs strike the target consecutively, causing additional burn effects.

Skill Strength: ★★

Casting Speed: ★★★★

Area of Effect: ★

Energy Consumption: 15 (spiritual energy)

Casting Difficulty: ★★

Closing the skill description panel, Feng Qi looked at the astonished expressions on the others' faces and explained:

"These skills were all derived from real-world spell trajectories. You can use the search bar to find techniques you're familiar with. The six empty slots at the bottom are for equipping skills—just drag the icons into them."

When they heard the skills were based on actual spell trajectories, everyone was stunned.

Initially, they thought this was just a highly realistic game. But after Feng Qi's explanation, they quickly realized the deeper implications.

"Simulating real-world spells and introducing competitive modes… Qi-ge, are you trying to solve the shortcomings of practical training through a virtual game?" Lin Ran asked, his voice tinged with awe.

Feng Qi nodded approvingly. "Exactly. You hit the core concept of this game on your first try."

"Damn, Qi-ge, how did you manage this? Gathering and digitizing so many spell trajectories must have been an enormous task. Even though I don't know much about coding, I can tell this is monumental," Lin Ran exclaimed.

"As I said, the Crimson Research Institute is backing this project. They took care of the heavy lifting," Feng Qi replied, deftly diverting the credit.

Having addressed Lin Ran's questions, Feng Qi turned to the group and continued, "Now, try familiarizing yourselves with skill combinations. While the game doesn't restrict you to six skills per match, the six slots are designed for beginners."

"To clarify, any skills you equip in the slots will have trajectory-guiding aids during casting. This also serves as a way to train your control over the skills. However, for projectile-based techniques, you'll still need to aim manually."

"In competitive matches, players can only have six assisted-casting skills equipped. However, for any other techniques you've fully mastered, you're free to use them without restriction. This is why the game incorporates a ranking system—to ensure players of similar skill levels compete against each other."

As they listened to Feng Qi's explanation, the group quickly grasped the game's core mechanics. They began browsing through the skill library, equipping techniques they hadn't yet mastered in reality, and testing them in the "Skill Equipment Bar."

Feng Qi also equipped a skill represented by an icy mountain icon.

The process of casting a skill was simple—he only needed to silently chant the skill's name in his mind.

"Ice Freeze Technique."

The moment he chanted the name, he felt his spiritual energy drain. At the same time, the spell's trajectory was automatically inscribed within his body, channeling the surrounding spiritual energy.

It felt as though an invisible hand was guiding him to write the spell's trajectory stroke by stroke—a novel and fascinating sensation.

All Feng Qi had to do was focus and follow along.

In moments, the trajectory was complete. The ambient spiritual energy coalesced into a pale blue mist and shot toward a straw dummy, which Feng Qi had locked onto with his gaze.

As soon as the mist made contact, the dummy was enveloped in a thin layer of frost.

The frost lingered for about ten seconds before dissipating.

Above the dummy's head, a virtual display popped up, showing detailed feedback:

[Dummy Feedback Results]

Tested Skill: Ice Freeze Technique

Skill Strength: 49 points (Rating: Low)

Skill Completion Rate: 3% (Rating: Extremely Low)

Skill Control Effect: Weak

Skill Flight Speed: Slow

Seeing the test results, Feng Qi's anticipation for the Dawn game rose even further.

In the simulation training space, players practicing skills could directly enhance their real-world proficiency. This was because the skill trajectories used in the game perfectly mimicked those of reality.

If a player became proficient with a skill in the game, they could replicate the technique in the real world by following the same trajectory.

Moreover, the assisted casting function in the game was like a protagonist's cheat ability in a novel. Every casting attempt became an opportunity to learn. Over time, repeated practice could even lead to instinctual, reflexive execution of certain skills.

Calling this a game might be misleading—it was more of a spellcasting learning tool.

Additionally, Dawn featured a competitive ranking system designed to increase players' motivation to learn. To climb the ranks, effort and dedication were essential; paying to win was impossible.

As for boosting or rank manipulation? Also impossible.

All players were required to register with their real identities. Their data was then recorded in the Crimson Research Institute's database, making it impossible for someone else to log in and play on their behalf.

Potential loopholes—like boosting, fake participants in matches, or other exploits—had already been considered when Feng Qi discussed the game's development with the Crimson Research Institute's leadership.

In the future, Dawn would establish a dedicated department to address player reports and punish any behavior that violated the game's fair play rules. This would form the cornerstone of efforts to maintain a clean gaming environment.

Each player was only allowed one verified account. Any mistakes would result in penalties, with severe cases leading to permanent bans. Given the uniqueness of each account, players would clearly understand the stakes; losing an account meant there was no way to get another.

The design philosophy behind Dawn revolved entirely around advancing human civilization and enhancing humanity's collective strength. Historically, once the game became widely popular, it attracted a large number of people to the path of cultivation.

After testing several techniques and experiencing the benefits of the assisted casting function, Feng Qi turned to the others, who were still enthusiastically experimenting with different skills.

At that moment, Lin Ran approached him, her face full of amazement. "Qi-ge, I just tried using hand seals to cast a spell, and it actually worked. How… how is this even possible?"

Feng Qi chuckled and explained, "The game environment is a perfect simulation of reality. Anything you can do in the real world, you can do in Dawn."

"Does that mean that techniques not in the skill library—if I already know them—can still be cast by inscribing the trajectories manually?"

"Exactly," Feng Qi confirmed.

Lin Ran's eyes sparkled with astonishment. She could already imagine the massive sensation this game would cause upon release. The value behind it was immeasurable.

"Qi-ge, I bet your Outstanding Contribution to Humanity Gold Medal will arrive soon. In this era, you'll be the brightest star—maybe even regarded as a historical great by future generations."

"Perhaps," Feng Qi replied with a grin.

[A historical great or a historical villain—it all depends on the choices you make in each timeline. After all, you've been both. In one timeline where you joined Mu Qing to form the Dawn Rebel Army, you were just a nameless minion under the so-called World-Ending Overlord.]

Feng Qi: …

Ignoring the narrator's snark, Feng Qi turned back to Lin Ran. "You tested several skills earlier. Did you notice any areas needing improvement?"

Lin Ran nodded immediately. "Since the environment is simulated, there are subtle differences from real-world spellcasting. But overall, there's nothing major. Practicing here definitely helps enhance one's skill in the real world."

"Any suggestions for improvement?"

"Not really. This game is already near perfect in my eyes. The only issue is the noticeable lag when loading new environments—it disrupts the gaming experience. I'm also really looking forward to the upcoming domain dungeon and custom dungeon modes."

"Oh, and Qi-ge, you have insider information, don't you? Spill the details on what's planned for the dungeons."

Feng Qi didn't hold back and briefly outlined the development plans for future dungeon content.

Hearing his ideas, Lin Ran's jaw dropped. "That's insane… If you pull this off, domain combat squads will be able to simulate real-world domain battles in the game. They could even predict whether their team is capable of completing their objectives."

Feng Qi shook his head decisively. "Don't set your expectations too high. There's still a difference between reality and the game. The simulated domain dungeons will only give squads a general idea of their chances of success and potential casualties. The results of a simulation won't perfectly reflect real-world outcomes."

"If someone relies solely on simulation results to plan a real-world domain raid, there will be consequences. This point will be heavily emphasized when the domain dungeon feature is released."

"Even so, it's a huge step forward. At the very least, it'll help minimize unnecessary losses."

After chatting with Lin Ran about Dawn's future potential, Feng Qi turned his attention back to the others, who were still enthusiastically testing different skills.

He decided it was time to lead his students in a practical competitive match. With only five days left until the freshman championship, it was time to push their training into high gear.