Ch 119: The World’s Number One Resort

“Beep, the number you have dialed is currently busy…”

The entire meeting ended with Liu Ke’s outburst. After it concluded, the assistant immediately dialed the official number for Great Tang Resort, but due to the high volume of inquiries, the call couldn’t get through. Their direct messages were also unread.

The assistant felt a surge of urgency.

“This is Bianjing Ancient City, built last year, modeled after the Chinese painting Along the River During the Qingming Festival…” While the assistant was anxiously making calls, Jon and the others had disembarked and arrived at Bianjing Ancient City.

As they got off the bus, everyone was left in complete awe at the sight before them.

Three hundred meters ahead stood a 200-meter-tall cyan-colored city gate. The entire structure occupied a vast area, resembling a Chinese ancient capital magnified twentyfold. In the center of the gate hung a black and gold plaque. Though the characters were unfamiliar to the tourists, the guide introduced them as “Bianjing City.”

Bianjing was the capital of the Song Dynasty in ancient China.

More than five thousand European tourists had come to visit, and within moments, another twenty buses arrived. The transportation process was expected to take about two hours.

“This is a masterpiece by God,” gasped the later arrivals as they stepped off the bus, their mouths forming an ‘O’ shape.

They had learned about Great Tang Resort through the Phoenix Photography Exhibition.

Green of White, Pacific Warmth, and Serene Island were the top three winning works of the exhibition. The serene and natural scenery in the photos had led the visitors to believe that Great Tang Resort was a simple, natural island. Along the way, they had seen modern developments like Sora Town and the Sora Highway, which more or less matched their expectations.

Some adventurous young tourists had even planned to explore the nearby canyons. However, turning a corner, they suddenly encountered a miraculous city!

“God’s hand,” murmured a few young tourists as they took out their phones, comparing the scene with Great Tang Resort’s Twitter photos. These were the new generation travelers who had done their research before the trip. While Tang Huai had posted many photos of Sora Island on Twitter, it was now dominated by discussions about “Great Tang Fruits.”

Beneath the resort’s Twitter posts, comments like “Great Tang Fruit Research Report” and “Beauty Benefits of Great Tang Fruits” appeared most frequently. The tourists were left puzzled, as fruit enthusiasts had flooded the platform, leaving little room for discussions about the scenery itself. After scrolling through, the European tourists concluded that it was all just part of Tang’s special effects.

They came here with a carefree mindset, but now… they were bewildered.

The nearly twenty-meter-tall Bianjing Giant Statue, the orderly underground transportation system, the precisely engineered Sora roller coaster… In the following half hour, the tourists found their worldview constantly challenged as their phones kept clicking non-stop.

As they wandered around, they finally arrived at an ancient-style inn called “Ruyi Residence,” which was specially opened for this group of tourists.

In addition, the tourists adjusted their Sora Passes according to the guide’s instructions. The official languages of Great Tang Resort were Chinese and English, but many visitors spoke other languages. To address this, Tang Huai had purchased a piece of high-tech software called “Simultaneous Translation.” It worked similarly to domestic translation apps but with 100% accuracy, supporting various dialects to facilitate truly barrier-free communication.

Of course, this “Simultaneous Translation” technology was exclusive to the Sora Pass.

…

“Jon, are we really going to sleep here tonight?” In Ruyi Residence Room C-3, Jon was putting his luggage into the designated “drawer” when Jimmy stared at the tall bed before him, looking completely stunned.

It was the first time he realized that getting into bed might require taking an elevator.

“Yes,” Jon shrugged. Accommodation on Sora Island was tight right now, and being able to stay in a luxury dormitory was already a stroke of luck.

“If you miss the Blue Sea Treehouse, I can call Tang,” Jon suggested as he finished putting away their luggage, thinking that Jimmy might not like the place. After their last trip, Jon had met Tang Huai once more in Luohai, China. Although it was a chance encounter, they had exchanged phone numbers out of courtesy.

“Not necessary, this big house is cool,” Jimmy shook his head. Unlike any hotel he had stayed in before, this was the first time he had seen such a grand and impressive building—it was like an ancient palace.

Jon ruffled Jimmy’s hair.

“Pretty cool.”

“We’re staying here tonight? Although I usually prefer being alone, this feels… quite nice.”

“Here’s the travel guide. I heard there’s a racetrack nearby and a sky island. I can’t wait…”

Jon and Jimmy finished unpacking when two other young white men entered the room. The characteristic of the Bianjing Inn was the “big shared bed” concept. It was a bit odd to have twenty people sleeping on one large bed, but the carved wooden bed was around sixty square meters. Aside from not being able to sleep next to their girlfriends, it actually seemed… pretty exciting?

After a bit of tidying up, everyone grabbed their cameras and headed out. They were ready to capture their own “Sora Island warmth.”

…

While Jon and Jimmy embarked on their second exploration of Sora Island, Gu Jiao and Chen Gang were being forcefully escorted by the English knights through the Sky Kingdom within the Sky Forest. They finally arrived at the kingdom’s center.

The entire Sky Kingdom covered an area of five square kilometers, with its outer edges lined with simple tailor shops, music stores, and flower shops, forming the town area of the kingdom.

Perhaps due to the evening hours, there weren’t many townspeople out and about. Most of the sky natives glanced at Gu Jiao and Chen Gang, then lost interest.

The fairy-tale-like castle was extremely realistic, leaving Gu Jiao somewhat bewildered.

In her daze, they were taken into the Sky Castle. The heavy castle gates opened layer by layer, and the two of them walked forward, under the watchful eyes of the castle guards.

It was meant to be a serious scene, but the castle’s colorful and girlish design, along with the soldiers’ attire, gave off no sense of intimidation.

Apart from being slightly nervous, they didn’t feel scared…

“Sir Bright Knight Yaar requests an audience with Her Majesty Queen Kelly.” Five minutes later, they found themselves in a brightly colored central hall. The knight who had escorted them reported in a dignified manner.

The entire hall was sparsely furnished, with only a large crystal chandelier and two maidservants.

After the knight’s words, Gu Jiao and Chen Gang curiously looked towards the main area of the hall.

“Light above, the Sky Kingdom faces a great crisis. Only the chosen outsiders can lead the kingdom to victory… You have been chosen. Will you join the Sky Faction?”

Amidst their curiosity, a woman in a black lace gown emerged. She had a high nose and yellow hair, a typical British appearance. However, contrary to their expectations, she had a few freckles on her face and relatively small eyes… This was an ordinary-looking queen.

She was the ruler of the Sky Kingdom, Queen Kelly.

“Will you join the Sky Faction?” Queen Kelly held a green orb and, seeing that Gu Jiao and Chen Gang hadn’t responded, repeated her question.

“What Sky Faction… Ahem, yes,” Gu Jiao snapped out of it. She didn’t quite understand what faction they were talking about, but in the current situation, it was better to agree.

Queen Kelly smiled and gestured to the red-armored knight.

“Please present your Sora Passes,” the knight stepped forward.

Hesitant, Gu Jiao still couldn’t tell if this was all just a cosplay.

Both Gu Jiao and Chen Gang handed over their Sora Passes. The red-armored knight operated on the passes for a moment and then returned them. Gu Jiao noticed that a new “Faction Mode” had appeared on the main page of the Sky Forest. Their selected faction was “Sky,” while the opposing faction was labeled “Rebels.”

Gu Jiao was thoroughly confused. After speaking, Queen Kelly, like an NPC, returned to her position, leaving Gu Jiao and Chen Gang standing there dumbfounded. The entire “forced escort” scenario concluded anticlimactically.

“Uh… what are we supposed to do now?” Gu Jiao looked at the nearby red-armored soldier, trying to regain her composure. The entire Sora Pass only had the elevator points and a basic terrain description, leaving her utterly confused about what Sky Forest was all about.

“We’re off the clock.” Gu Jiao expected the red-armored soldier to explain the faction situation, but instead, he touched his chest, pulled out a pocket watch, and casually announced his shift was over.

Gu Jiao, Chen Gang: ?

“Eight-hour work shift, today’s task is done. Time to head out for a stroll.” The red-armored soldier took off his coat, revealing a blue short-sleeved shirt underneath. In just a moment, his image transformed from a stern knight to that of a casual British tourist.

“This is somewhat against the rules… Let’s hope the supervisors don’t catch me,” said the red-armored soldier, named Yaar, with a playful grin.

Gu Jiao and Chen Gang exchanged glances, slowly realizing that the soldier had just been on duty and was now officially off work.

“Is this really just cosplay?” Gu Jiao wondered aloud. If it was, these foreign actors had some amazing acting skills.

“What do you think?” The red-armored soldier took out an e-cigarette from his pocket and started puffing away.

Gu Jiao sighed in relief.

So, it really was cosplay.

Though they still didn’t quite understand what the Sky Faction was about, with their new identities, they roamed the Sky Castle freely. They even explored the town, where all goods could be purchased using US dollars.

Thus, the two sat on the street of the Sky Castle, watching the European-style residents pass by, feeling a surreal sense of being out of place. Over the past three hours, they learned that these “residents” were all role-players with shifts ranging from eight to nineteen hours. Possibly due to contracts with Great Tang Resort, the “residents” were unable to give any spoilers.

At 8 PM, they didn’t head back but instead stayed at an inn called “Sky Traveler.”

Yes, stayed!

According to the innkeeper lady, Sky Traveler only accepted guests from the Sky Faction and unaffiliated tourists. The latter had to pay 100 USD per night, while the Sky Faction members paid 80 USD per night.

Even the coffee they drank earlier had a discount.

Although they still didn’t fully grasp the concept of the Sky Faction, they thoroughly enjoyed the afternoon’s experience.

That night, they opened the map of Sky Forest and found they were currently in the island’s center. According to the map, they had explored 21% of the area over the past two days, leaving 79% uncharted.

After their role-playing adventure today, they were eager for the upcoming itinerary. As for the seven-day tour deadline… who cares!

“Haha, it feels like we’re traveling inside a fully immersive MMORPG! The costumes of the Sky Island locals are gorgeous! It’s like stepping into medieval Europe.”

“They really are stunning. Judging by the craftsmanship, each piece must cost several hundred dollars, right? Great Tang Resort must be loaded. I wonder where they found all these actors.”

“I chatted with Uncle Albert, the tavern owner from the Eurasian Village. He used to run a bar in Rome, but business wasn’t doing well. Through a friend’s recommendation, he came to work at Great Tang Resort. Haha, I even joined the Rebel Faction. The name sounds so cool.”

Gu Jiao and Chen Gang were having a blast while, in the Chinese travel WeChat group, tourists were already buzzing about the newly opened Sky Forest.

Leaving aside the 2,000-meter-high elevator and the sky bungee jumping, the storyline of Sky Forest was a complete surprise. It felt like stepping into a real-life holographic online game. To ensure the smoothness of the plot, the Sky Island NPCs were fully dedicated to their roles during work hours.

The tourists felt immensely satisfied, as if their holographic dreams from their teenage years had finally come true.

The entire Sky Forest storyline was vast and complex. After some discussion in the WeChat group, most had pieced together a main plotline. Sky Forest was divided into three factions: “Sky,” “Rebel,” and “Neutral.”

Neutral was the starting identity, while the Sky and Rebel factions could be joined through special interactions. Different factions offered various perks, like shopping discounts and exquisite gifts.

Since all characters were played by real NPCs, the game had no set rules, greatly enhancing the “game’s” fun factor.

The love of playfulness knows no age. After this exchange, everyone looked forward to the upcoming storyline even more.

…

“Director Liu, we’ll first arrive in Hawaii and then transfer to the Great Tang cruise. We expect to reach there by the 10th,” said the assistant.

Meanwhile, at the Luohai Airport in China, Liu Ke sat in the waiting area with a small bag, fuming.

They had been trying to contact Great Tang Resort for two days without success. Left with no other option, Liu Ke decided to go to Sora Island himself.

Liu Ke was the chief director of Treasure Travel, and he shouldn’t have to handle this negotiation in person. However, the incident with Hu Zongyou had been too frustrating. Now that they had finally secured a replacement guest, Liu Ke wanted to ensure that nothing else went wrong. To play it safe, he had to handle this personally.

This time, besides the assistant and a lawyer, Liu Ke also brought Wang Lu and Zhang Min, as well as three location scouts. Wang Lu and Zhang Min were borrowed from Luohai Live Stream; they had visited Great Tang Holiday Resort before and were familiar with the environment.

“I’ve booked five snow houses in Snow Village. Great Tang Resort has too many tourists at the moment, so there are no free treehouses,” the assistant reported seriously as Liu Ke pondered various scenarios.

Liu Ke nodded irritably; it didn’t matter whether it was a snow house or a treehouse. As long as they had a place to stay, it was fine. He just wanted to get the contract signed and settled as soon as possible!

Amid this restless atmosphere, they boarded the plane and set off for Hawaii, on their way to the distant Sora Island.

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️