Ch 145: The World’s Number One Resort

“Hello,” Tang Huai replied in English.

Ten minutes later, Tang Huai understood the background. Aoi Animation Studio, commonly known as Aoi Corporation, had produced highly popular anime like Vampire Servant, The Strongest Warlock, and Sakura Campus Boys Chronicles. Vampire Servant was even adapted into a live-action film and became one of Japan’s most beloved anime.

However, despite Japan’s booming anime industry, competition was fierce. As the quality of life improved, Aoi Corporation started to struggle to keep up. Over the past two years, the studio had suffered three consecutive flops, making headlines in various media outlets and signaling that the former “King of Anime” was in decline. The company was under immense pressure, prompting its executives to seek a turnaround. That’s when Great Tang VR glasses became a sensation.

After learning about the construction and functionality of Great Tang’s glasses, the executives got excited. What was Aoi Corporation’s strength? A loyal fanbase and classic anime. What was Great Tang’s strength? Ultra-realistic virtual VR technology! If these two could be combined, Aoi Corporation was confident it could return to its former glory.

Thus, the executives devised a detailed proposal, leading to today’s call.

“Aoi Corporation wants to turn its anime into a VR game?” Tang Huai asked after listening to Tomohisa Fujiwara.

“Yes, it’s a large-scale VR online game featuring Aoi’s classic characters, similar to Hollywood’s superhero franchises…” Fujiwara explained excitedly.

It was a project that stirred one’s enthusiasm.

After Fujiwara finished, Tang Huai fell into deep thought.

“Manager Tang, Aoi Corporation is sincerely seeking cooperation,” Fujiwara added. While Aoi Corporation wasn’t at the end of its rope, a strategic transformation was necessary.

“The VR patent technology does not belong to Great Tang,” Tang Huai replied, declining the offer.

The system’s marketplace offered “VR virtual technology,” but the entire process required VR architects, programmers, storyline integrators… a series of complex steps.

Currently, with so many tasks at hand—Great Tang glasses, Sora dungeon city, and the Hawaii flight restrictions—Tang Huai didn’t have the mental bandwidth to consider side projects.

“Manager Tang, could Great Tang help us get in touch with FillTech Corporation?” Fujiwara wasn’t surprised by Tang Huai’s response. He had researched Great Tang and knew that FillTech Corporation was the company behind it.

“Sorry, FillTech isn’t considering third-party collaborations at this time,” Tang Huai refused again.

Fujiwara was taken aback; he hadn’t expected such a firm rejection.

“I’ll take my leave—”

“Wait a moment. Is the character copyright for Stroke of the Brush available?”

The atmosphere grew silent. Tang Huai glanced at the time, ready to end the call. Just as he began to wrap things up, Fujiwara quickly changed the topic from ocean VR games to Stroke of the Brush.

Tang Huai was surprised. Stroke of the Brush?

Half an hour later, they ended the call.

Currently, Stroke of the Brush was a landmark attraction for Great Tang Resort. Since Tao Ke’s involvement, many well-known artists had purchased the rights to Stroke of the Brush. Although the licensing fees were substantial, they were within a range that celebrities could afford. Over the past few months, “Stroke of XX” had become one of the most common trending topics on China’s Weibo.

Here, “XX” referred to the celebrity who had purchased the rights. It was the most popular marketing strategy, as the term “Great Tang Stroke” naturally attracted attention. Due to the unique nature of Stroke of the Brush, the various “Stroke” storylines fueled the public’s curiosity.

As the popularity of Stroke of the Brush continued to soar, Aoi Corporation turned its focus toward it. With Great Tang Resort drawing a daily visitor count of around 50,000, it presented a vast market. Aoi Corporation wanted to boost the influence of its anime characters.

Compared to the complexity of VR game development, acquiring Stroke of the Brush copyrights was simpler. Aoi Corporation intended to license fifty anime characters. This was a lucrative deal, and Tang Huai gladly accepted.

The two parties agreed on a time, and Aoi Corporation planned to send a representative next week.

“A spinning top,” Tang Huai muttered after hanging up the phone and taking a sip of coffee. He felt like he had been endlessly busy lately.

“Ring ring, ring…”

“Manager Tang, another call,” the secretary said, holding up the phone.

Tang Huai sighed. It really did feel like he was spinning like a top.

“Manager Tang, this is Dai Dongwang from Tianying Films.” As soon as the call connected, a middle-aged male voice came through.

Tang Huai was curious. Unlike Tomohisa Fujiwara, he had heard of Dai Dongwang.

Dai Dongwang was a first-tier director in China, known for directing movies like The Wind is Here, The Fighting Buddha, and The Guardians, which leaned more towards the artistic side. He had directed several films, but none had made a big splash. Most of them aired on late-night slots on Channel 6 in China, only to be quickly changed by viewers.

Tang Huai had seen some of Dai Dongwang’s movies; the cinematography was excellent, but the dialogue was too obscure and lacked relatability. They were not meant for the general audience. Nowadays, with a flourishing film industry in China, directors like Song Chaowei and Zheng Yiwei had become household names, leaving “Dai Dongwang” relatively forgotten.

Tang Huai was quite curious about Dai Dongwang’s intentions.

“Here’s the situation…” Dai Dongwang didn’t beat around the bush. In Beijing’s Tianying Building, a slightly chubby, bald man began to explain.

Dai Dongwang’s goal was also related to Great Tang’s VR technology.

He had graduated from the Beijing Film Academy, which gave him a prestigious background, but his films had been box office flops one after another. With the rise of big-budget, spectacle-driven movies, his films found even less of a market. After his last film, The Guardians, flopped, Dai Dongwang hadn’t made a film in seven years.

Still passionate about filmmaking, he hadn’t given up. During those seven years, he studied both the Chinese and international film markets. After gaining an understanding of audience preferences, he wrote the script for The Six-Eared Macaque.

The Six-Eared Macaque was set in the world of Journey to the West and centered on the six-eared macaque stone spirit, who was imprisoned by the Buddha in a golden alms bowl. Three hundred years later, during the Heavenly Court’s turmoil, the spirit escaped the bowl, transformed into a wanderer, and descended into the human world. There, he encountered demon hunter Zhao Huo’er and joined a group of demon hunters to slay demons.

While it had the guise of a fantasy romance involving demon-slaying, the story’s protagonist, the stone spirit, was fundamentally a villain. The plot, aside from its background setting, had little to do with Journey to the West. Essentially, it was Dai Dongwang’s attempt to ride on Journey to the West‘s popularity. The classic novel had always been a major IP in both the Chinese and international markets. After understanding what the audience wanted, Dai Dongwang knew he couldn’t afford to work in isolation.

He was optimistic about The Six-Eared Macaque and had managed to scrape together an investment of fifty million yuan. In his plan, the movie would be filmed using cutting-edge 3D technology.

It was meant to be an audiovisual feast.

That was Dai Dongwang’s view three days ago. After the Great Tang VR glasses became a hit, he tried the VR experience and felt like his entire perspective had been reshaped.

If the technology used in the Great Tang glasses could be applied to The Six-Eared Macaque, it would be a groundbreaking innovation. Dai Dongwang had researched Great Tang Resort and knew about the Sora Cinema… A 10D version of The Six-Eared Macaque was feasible.

Having spent seven years perfecting the script for The Six-Eared Macaque, Dai Dongwang was confident. Now that 10D technology had emerged, 3D films seemed outdated to him. After some careful consideration, he decided to make this call today.

Dai Dongwang wanted to collaborate with Great Tang.

“Director Dai, what’s the budget for The Six-Eared Macaque?”

Dai Dongwang started by discussing the current film market, then moved on to VR technology and the future of VR movies. Tang Huai listened patiently, and after Dai Dongwang finished, he cut straight to the key point.

As soon as Tang Huai asked the question, the other end of the line fell silent.

“For the technical aspects… will thirty million be enough?” Five seconds later, a faint voice came through from the other end.

Tang Huai remained silent.

Dai Dongwang felt embarrassed. The Great Tang’s VR technology was cutting-edge. Not to mention thirty million; even three hundred million might not be enough. He realized he was indulging in wishful thinking…

“Um, Manager Tang, The Six-Eared Macaque could offer future box office revenue. Is Great Tang interested in investing?” Dai Dongwang continued after calming down. Using box office shares as a form of repayment was a common practice in the Chinese film industry.

“Director Dai, Great Tang is a resort and has no plans to invest in Chinese films at the moment.” Tang Huai was amused by Dai Dongwang’s suggestion. Was he trying to get Great Tang to invest in his movie?

Games and movies—was Great Tang supposed to get involved in everything?

Tang Huai wasn’t interested in either at the moment.

“Manager Tang, The Six-Eared Macaque is truly outstanding! You could at least take a look at the script…” Dai Dongwang made one last attempt.

“No need, thank you.” Tang Huai politely refused again.

After a brief conversation, Tang Huai hung up the phone.

“VR technology, huh…” Tang Huai sat in his massage chair, contemplating the two phone calls. As Great Tang continued to gain popularity and its VR technology became widely known, more people would start scrutinizing its advanced tech. Previously, with a smaller number of tourists, attributing everything to the “FillTech Corporation” theory made sense. But in the future… it might not be that simple.

“FD730, is the FillTech Corporation strategy still feasible?” Tang Huai asked after some thought. He didn’t like things slipping out of his control.

“The FillTech Corporation can automatically adapt its background to Great Tang’s environment and the global situation. The host need not worry,” FD730 replied, understanding Tang Huai’s concern.

Tang Huai nodded. “We’ll handle challenges as they come. For now, the priority is developing Great Tang.”

The unequal policies in Hawaii, Sora’s transportation issues… Just thinking about the obstacles facing Great Tang gave Tang Huai a headache. While the Sora Airport was ready, Great Tang needed to strengthen its capabilities to avoid being at the mercy of others.

“You have to be strong to forge iron.”

With that thought in mind, Tang Huai finished his coffee and started outlining Great Tang Resort’s development plan.

…

“Director Dai, what now?” At the Tianying Building in China, a young assistant cautiously looked at Dai Dongwang, who had been in a daze for half an hour since Tang Huai hung up the phone.

“Xiao Zheng, do you think we can secure a five hundred million investment?” Dai Dongwang asked absentmindedly as he lit a cigarette.

“That’s going to be tough.” The assistant hesitated to deliver the harsh truth. He had been working with Dai Dongwang for three years, and currently, even getting five million was challenging, let alone five hundred million.

“Director, maybe we should stick to our original plan and make a 3D movie?” the assistant suggested seriously.

“Fifty million would barely cover two major scenes,” Dai Dongwang sighed, exhaling a ring of smoke. Most well-known 3D blockbusters had a starting investment of three hundred million. With just fifty million, they would only manage to scrape by, hoping to lure a few young cinema-goers with flashy promotions.

After he spoke, silence filled the room.

Two paths lay before him: one, make a low-budget “3D” movie and hope for some box office revenue; or two, convince Great Tang to invest in a 10D movie.

The chances of success with the second option were nearly zero.

“Book me a flight to Great Tang.”

Just as the assistant was considering how to console him, Dai Dongwang stubbed out his cigarette, his voice firm.

The Six-Eared Macaque was his labor of love. Despite the slim odds, he wanted to give it one more shot.

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️