Ch 127: The World’s Number One Resort

“Please, just give me ten more days. I promise I’ll pay off the bill…”

While the CC advertisement was being filmed at a relaxed pace, inside a four-person cabin on the Great Tang No. 1, a young man in his thirties with freckles on his face was on the phone, adjusting his camera.

New York Entertainment Weekly is a well-known American gossip magazine that mainly covers first-hand celebrity news and has a large audience in North America. The young man, named Abe, was an intern reporter for the magazine. However, compared to other reporters at New York Entertainment Weekly, Abe’s work had not been smooth. He was inexperienced, introverted, and often got caught while trying to snap photos…

Abe had been in the job for half a year, consistently ranking at the bottom in terms of performance among new employees. His team even discussed that if he didn’t capture some worthwhile gossip soon, he might be laid off next month. Abe was extremely anxious; he valued this job, and if he lost it, the burden of his credit card bills would become unbearable.

Under such high pressure, Amanda’s new relationship went public, prompting New York Entertainment Weekly to send their reporters across the sea to cover the story. Abe had pulled many strings to get this opportunity abroad, as it was closely tied to his career prospects.

“First it was the Biological Research buzz, and now Amanda’s love affair. This island sure is something.”

“Maybe so.”

As Abel mulled things over, he overheard a conversation from the lower bunk. There was also the distinct scent of a lit cigarette wafting through the cabin.

“I did some research. Sora Island opened last July. It’s an investment by FillTech Company, managed by a young man from China…” Abe hesitantly tried to join the conversation. This time, New York Entertainment Weekly had dispatched three entertainment reporters, the other two being experienced veterans.

“Haha, we’re only here to cover Amanda’s romance. Why bother investigating an island?”

“Abe, you’ve been at our company for six months. You should know our focus is on Amanda. Don’t waste time on irrelevant things.”

“The scenery of Great Tang Resort is nice, but it will never become another Rose valley.”

…

Abe had just finished speaking when the other two reporters started teasing him one after another. They were often out on the field and needed some amusement. Abe, being new and introverted, was their perfect target for some entertainment.

“I just casually looked up some information…”

Abe felt a bit embarrassed. For this trip, besides Amanda’s acting career, he had also researched the Great Tang Resort online, including both Chinese and Twitter sources.

The more he dug, the more fascinated he became. To him, the legendary story behind Great Tang Resort seemed more intriguing than Amanda herself. He wanted to share what he had found, but…

The other two colleagues were chatting enthusiastically, completely oblivious to Abel’s feelings.

Abe stared out the window, feeling out of place. Maybe he really wasn’t cut out for entertainment journalism.

…

The journey at sea was monotonous.

A day later, the Great Tang No. 1 slowly approached Sora’s port. Alongside Abe and the other two reporters, there were more than two hundred other tourists on board.

Since the Great Tang No. 1 had gained some popularity on Twitter, daily inquiries about Great Tang Resort had surged.

Alang had secured a few large tour group contracts, and now, the Great Tang No. 1 made a round trip to Hawaii every five days, bringing in one to three hundred tourists each time. This provided Great Tang Resort with a continuous influx of new visitors.

Alang was now a mid-level captain with the freedom to navigate the entire Pacific Ocean. When he eventually advanced to a senior captain, his navigable areas would expand further. At this moment, Alang stood on the deck, dropping anchor as usual.

“Is this an island amusement park?” Abe and the other two reporters got off the ship and were slightly taken aback by the scene before them.

The Sora port covered about one square kilometer and served as the gateway to Great Tang Resort. Recently, Tang Huai had made some renovations to it.

Now, the golden coastline had become a natural sea-harvesting area, attracting many tourists in the evening. To the south of the sea-harvesting area stood a giant, colorful hot air balloon. As the number of visitors increased, enjoying the breeze, sipping coffee, and taking in the beauty of Great Tang Resort from a hot air balloon became one of the most popular activities among sophisticated tourists.

Looking further from the hot air balloon’s position, at the ten o’clock direction, stood a large windmill over fifty meters tall. The windmill was vibrant with multiple colors, and behind it lay the equally colorful Sora Town.

Abe and the other two reporters were somewhat dazed. This décor—it’s way too colorful! They felt like they had arrived in a candy city.

“First, let’s drop off our luggage. We must beat Weekly Entertainment to the top gossip headlines.”

The lead reporter steadied himself and instructed Abe and the other. Weekly Entertainment was the number one rival of New York Entertainment Weekly. Amanda’s romance was big news, and not just Weekly Entertainment, but smaller competitors like Entertainment Express and Top Gossip had also shown up.

With global attention on this story, getting the first exclusive on Amanda would guarantee high sales.

Abe and the other reporter nodded.

They had booked a room in the Snow Village Snow Hut.

A fairy-tale-like Rainbow Town, a transparent crystal bridge suspended in mid-air, and an ice castle built on a mountaintop… The three originally intended to drop off their luggage, but when they saw the stunning scenery along the way, their minds couldn’t keep up.

Abe managed, but the other two reporters were focused entirely on Amanda’s gossip. In fact, except for Amanda’s Twitter posts, this was their first time witnessing such a magical scene.

Not only was the scenery enchanting, but even the air was unexpectedly fresh and invigorating.

“Find Amanda, write up the news report, and send it back to headquarters.”

The lead reporter put his luggage on the ice bed and cleared his throat. Work came first. However, after saying this, he couldn’t resist touching the bedside. The entire interior of the snow hut was made of ice, looking frigid, but the temperature inside was above twenty degrees. This place truly was full of wonders.

After resting for a bit, the three set off on their mission to find Amanda.

Half an hour later, they arrived at the Blue Sea Treehouse and easily found Amanda. It wasn’t really a ‘search’ since Amanda was a celebrity in Great Tang Resort; with just a few inquiries, they found her.

At that moment, Amanda was filming the final part of her commercial. After a few days of shooting, most of the people around were either fans waiting for autographs or curious onlookers. The remaining tourists went off to enjoy themselves, finding the resort’s attractions more entertaining than watching the filming.

“The easiest paparazzi job ever…” Amanda and Nasser were very open about their relationship. During Amanda’s breaks, Nasser would bring her fruit and mineral water.

The three reporters had taken plenty of photos and now stood there with mixed feelings. They had expected a tough chase, but from disembarking to now, their work had wrapped up in half a day. Judging by Amanda and Nasser’s passionate state, it seemed there wouldn’t be any new drama in the coming days.

“Let’s head back to work.” The lead reporter waved them off. With their task done, it was time to send the photos back to headquarters to ensure they had the scoop ready for the morning news.

“Amanda turns into a mermaid princess, shares a jungle kiss with Nasser.”

“Amanda and Nasser clash in the forest, relationship on the rocks…”

At 8 p.m. Great Tang time, Abe sat sipping coffee, scratching his head as he brainstormed potential titles for the paparazzi story. News thrives on timeliness, and they needed to finish writing the article and submit it by 2 a.m. so the editor could review and select the headlines for tomorrow’s issue of New York Entertainment Weekly.

Abe wrote title after title but felt increasingly uneasy. What he came up with seemed no different from what the other two reporters would think of. And the editor would only choose one story from the three…

Abe lacked confidence that his work would stand out.

After some thought, Abe opened Amanda’s Twitter again.

Aside from the “bungee kiss,” Amanda had also posted about swinging at the castle and racing through the ancient city. In the high-definition shots, Amanda smiled sweetly. But it wasn’t Amanda who caught Abe’s attention at first glance—it was the surrounding scenery…

Abel pulled up his notes from the past few days, then gritted his teeth, threw on a jacket, and headed out. He had a bold idea…

…

“Entertainment Weekly has already printed their magazine? Alright, I got it.” At 3 a.m. in New York, a man in his forties with slightly curly hair was holding a cigar as he answered a call.

The man was Billy, the editor-in-chief of New York Entertainment Weekly. The new issue had just finished layout preparations; the only thing left was to insert the latest scoop on Amanda’s romance before sending it to the press for the first edition. The buzz around Amanda’s romance was at an all-time high, making it the go-to headline for every entertainment magazine.

New York Entertainment Weekly was no exception. However, Entertainment Weekly’s insider had just called to inform him that their reporters had arrived two days earlier, already edited their article and photos, and planned to release the magazine two hours earlier than usual…

With an earlier release and thorough preparation, New York Entertainment Weekly was now at a clear disadvantage.

“Damn it.” Billy cursed as he hung up, taking a deep drag from his cigar. He hadn’t expected Entertainment Weekly to move so fast.

Knock, knock, knock—

“Editor-in-chief.”

Billy loosened his tie as his secretary knocked on the door, holding three documents in her hands.

Billy straightened up. These were the articles submitted by Abel and the other two reporters. Whether New York Entertainment Weekly could turn this around would depend on the quality of their work.

“Amanda’s Fairytale Romance.”

“Amanda and Nasser Sharing a Room—”

“My God!”

Billy reviewed each one, feeling more and more disappointed. They were similar to what Entertainment Weekly was already reporting. Now that Entertainment Weekly was releasing their scoop first, any article they published would come across as reheating old news.

“New York Entertainment Weekly Takes You Inside Amanda and Nasser’s Love Haven—” Billy was about to scrap the Amanda feature in favor of Hollywood film news when he noticed the final article. His expression changed.

Author of the article: Abe.

Billy paused, trying to recall who Abe was. After a moment, he continued reading the document.

Sky Forest, Fruit Kingdom… Unlike the other two, Abe didn’t focus on Amanda’s romance but instead delved into the background of Amanda’s Twitter photos.

“This is a paradise of love.”

Abe concluded the article with a special focus on Sora Island. The writing was concise, and the photos were beautifully atmospheric. It didn’t feel like a gossip piece about Amanda’s romance; it was more like an introduction to a picturesque island.

Billy’s expression grew more peculiar. Was this a promotional piece for Sora Island? Shaking his head, he was about to close the document when he paused for a second.

Abe’s article didn’t align with New York Entertainment Weekly‘s typical style, but as he read through it, Billy found himself feeling unexpectedly refreshed. The article seamlessly blended Amanda’s romance with the scenic beauty of Sora Island, offering a sense of tranquility and allure without any dullness.

It was as if he had just taken a relaxing trip to Sora Island—a serene escape from the bustle of city life.

The office atmosphere felt oddly soothing as Billy continued to ponder.

“Publish the article.” After five minutes, Billy picked up the phone. Perhaps the new issue of New York Entertainment Weekly could offer something a little different this time.

…

“Hello, everyone, I’m your host, Tu Shi. Right now, we’re on the Great Tang No. 2, a luxurious cruise ship weighing 150,000 tons. This is our second day at sea, and we’re expected to arrive at Sora Island by 5 p.m. this afternoon.”

On the second morning, Billy was inspecting the printing process of the New York Entertainment Weekly. Meanwhile, on a luxurious cruise ship in the Pacific Ocean, a cheerful host greeted the camera.

The host, Tu Shi, was the star anchor of Luo Hai TV. They were recording a simple introduction for the show. Treasure Travel prides itself on 24-hour, around-the-clock filming, but that’s only once the actual show starts. Since they hadn’t yet arrived on the island, they were only shooting occasional segments.

“We’ll record more later.”

After finishing the opening, Liu Ke signaled the crew to take a break. This season of Treasure Travel involved over 200 people. The other staff members had arrived on the island a week earlier for preparation, while Liu Ke and the celebrity guests were traveling together on the cruise.

“How are the guests feeling?”

Liu Ke sipped his mineral water and asked the assistant beside him. For the sake of the show, Treasure Travel enforced ‘separate routines.’ The five pairs of celebrity fathers and children had only met once when boarding the ship; the rest of the time, they followed their own routines. The real interaction would only start when the filming officially began.

“They’re all in good spirits,” the assistant quickly replied. Aside from a few minor mood swings among the young guests, everything was going smoothly.

“Good.”

Liu Ke nodded and turned his gaze to the horizon. They were only a day away from their destination. Great Tang Resort was the primary sponsor of this season of Treasure Travel. Unlike typical advertisers, the resort had yet to release any promotional material for the Ancient Town or VRKT boards…

Liu Ke was skeptical.

Could Great Tang Resort actually produce a finished product? Otherwise, this might end up being quite the blunder.

…

The resort would eventually produce a finished product, just not right now.

Currently, the VR glasses factory had only completed its foundation. To avoid delaying VR research, Tang Huai had specially set up a temporary research base. While they couldn’t produce the final product just yet, the VR researchers could at least prepare the groundwork.

Last week, Tang Huai had asked the VR researchers if they could first create five concept models. These wouldn’t be the final products, just a direction for development. The purpose of these models was to showcase the concept, functions, and design to visitors.

After paying a service fee of half a million, the VR researchers confidently said it was possible.

Tang Huai had been eagerly waiting for a week. Now, the Horror Ancient Town concept model was finally ready.

But…

“Is this… really the Ancient Town VR concept glasses?” Tang Huai asked the VR researcher, feeling a bit skeptical as he looked at the model.

Before him stood a small, 50-centimeter-high stand with a silver sphere about 50 centimeters wide hanging from it. The sphere’s sleek, streamlined appearance made it look like a vertical globe. On the stand, there was a silver button.

Tang Huai pressed the button, and the outer silver coating peeled away smoothly, giving it a high-tech feel.

Inside the sphere, dozens of interwoven red lights appeared, converging in the center to form a virtual blue pair of glasses. With the silver coating retracted, the red lights and the virtual glasses looked like a holographic projection suspended in the air. Along with the sturdy, high-tech stand, the whole setup seemed quite futuristic.

Tang Huai thought to himself: Is this some kind of mysterious key box from a sci-fi movie?

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