Ch 162: The World’s Number One Resort

“Boss Tang, Magic Workshop is sincerely looking to collaborate,” Reno emphasized again, seeing that Tang Huai hadn’t responded.

Magic Workshop, Universal Pictures, and Star Light Production are the three most famous film companies in the eastern part of North America. However, compared to the other two, Magic Workshop hasn’t been doing well lately.

Magic Workshop owns many superhero franchises that hold considerable influence worldwide. This ambitious company had planned to create an epic film three years ago featuring heroes like Red Lady, Shapeshift Man, and the Super Trio. The movie was to be called The Superheroes Team.

The plan for The Superheroes Team received unanimous approval from the executives at Magic Workshop. The film featured top global stars, filled with spectacular special effects and pacing, and was officially released last Christmas. However, contrary to their expectations of box office success, The Superheroes Team had a strong start but quickly declined.

The film was criticized for its hollow storyline, chaotic timeline, and clichéd ending. With a $1.2 billion investment, the movie ultimately grossed only $300 million, a colossal flop. While the low box office numbers were troubling, the fact that it tarnished the reputation of their superhero franchise was even worse.

Most of these superheroes had gained fame over twenty years ago, but the current primary audience consists mainly of people in their 20s and 30s, creating a generational gap. The failure of The Superheroes Team also led to a decline in the sales of related merchandise.

Magic Workshop’s stock plummeted, falling far behind Universal Pictures and Star Light Production. Given the current state of the film industry, this was a critical blow.

Magic Workshop needed to break out of this slump, which is why they set their sights on VR technology from Sora.

The realistic quality of Sora’s VR technology could potentially breathe new life into these old superhero films, reigniting global enthusiasm for the franchise.

“Boss Tang?” Reno pressed further.

“This is a brand-new technology. Sora will need to consult with FillTech,” Tang Huai replied, not giving a definitive answer. This 2D-to-10D technology is unfamiliar territory for Sora, but with FillTech as support, the technical aspects are covered.

“We’ll await your response,” Reno nodded earnestly. He had previously tried contacting FillTech, but they do not accept third-party collaborations; everything must go through Sora.

The two exchanged a few more words before Tang Huai hung up and immediately called Chris.

“2D films converted to 10D technology? That’s an outdated conversion method. Technically, it’s completely doable,” Chris said while sipping juice and sunbathing at the FillTech base. He looked somewhat disappointed upon hearing Tang Huai’s request.

The conversion from 2D to flat 10D is not very challenging. The project would cost 20 million island credits and take about a month.

“Does Sora have plans to develop VR?” Chris suddenly asked after explaining the general process for 2D to 10D conversion.

“VR?” Tang Huai was surprised.

“Using FillTech’s VR technology, we can fully realize scenes like those in Sealing the Heavens…,” Chris explained patiently.

As the “Tech Boss” of FillTech, Chris had returned to Togo only to find himself with little to do. With no software development tasks to keep him busy, he turned to various forms of entertainment. After some exploration, he discovered modern literary works.

Sealing the Heavens, Urban Bloodline, Sword Saint of Another World…

On the high-tech planet of FillStar, fully immersive movies and games have become the mainstream, rendering traditional text obsolete. However, upon reading these stories, Chris found himself captivated by a magical world that holographic media couldn’t replicate.

The immersive experience of words is something that fully immersive audio-visuals cannot replace.

Chris analyzed the current market and set his sights on VR adaptations. If the strange and fantastical worlds depicted in these stories could be perfectly realized, it would be an immensely fulfilling achievement.

“We can conduct large-scale data analysis of the scenes and have the FillTech team model and group them based on the descriptions, much like how movies are filmed. The same scene can yield different content. Besides the system’s randomization, visitors can also preselect the overall style…” Chris explained in detail.

“How will the characters’ appearances be handled? The beauty of literature lies in its boundless imagination,” Tang Huai asked, feeling a bit overwhelmed. Converting text into a fully immersive holographic experience… it was undeniably a revolutionary idea.

“Character creation can be handled in advance by allowing visitors to customize their appearances. Nothing matches one’s imagination better than creating the character oneself,” Chris replied, having clearly anticipated this concern.

Tang Huai understood. According to Chris’s concept, it was essentially like visitors making their own movies.

The scenes would be pre-optimized, and characters could be customized. For those who found it too troublesome, they could simply use the system’s default settings. With big data generating the virtual characters, there was no need to worry about acting skills.

It would be like movie actors following a standard template.

Turning literature into an audio-visual experience would indeed be groundbreaking. Considering the existence of Sky Island, an audio-visual version didn’t seem too far-fetched.

“What’s the cost estimate?” After some thought, Tang Huai skipped over the technical challenges and went straight to the crucial point.

Given the system’s limitations, FillTech could only operate in disguise; any technical development required an investment in island credits.

“Not precisely calculated. The data involved in converting text to a fully immersive experience is complex. The scene modeling alone would require at least a million units. Adding in the character customization technology, the cost is estimated to exceed three billion island credits,” Chris replied casually.

“How much?” Tang Huai thought he had misheard.

“Three billion…”

“We’ll discuss it later.”

Tang Huai was stunned by the figure. The construction of the vast Underwater Ancient City had cost only two billion. To spend three billion now was simply too frightening.

Tang Huai instantly turned into a penny-pincher.

“That’s a bit of a pity,” Chris said regretfully. Beside him lay a copy of Sealing the Heavens, a novel with 3,600 chapters. Chris had read over 700 chapters so far, and the rest would keep him occupied for about a week.

Tang Huai was a businessman. While VR development was possible, it would have to wait until the coffers were fuller.

As for now…

Tang Huai glanced at his account balance.

Island credits: 450 million, still far from the three billion needed. This could only be pursued once the grand island master task was completed. With that in mind, Tang Huai opened the task panel.

Grand Island Master Completion: 77%

After nearly two years of development, the task was 77% complete, leaving just 23% to go for the final goal. At the current pace, it was estimated to be completed by next Christmas. Of course, that was assuming everything continued to progress smoothly…

Tang Huai checked the calendar.

It was now January 10th, just a month away from the Chinese New Year. The global convention would span two months, and time was passing steadily.

Over the next three days, Tang Huai stayed in touch with Magic Workshop. The VR mobile cinema technology was cost-effective, with each device costing around 20 US dollars, making it a lucrative venture.

Tang Huai decided to collaborate with Magic Workshop, though with some changes to the agreement.

1. Magic Workshop would provide its resource library free of charge for five years.
2. The exclusive partnership duration was reduced from the originally planned three months to two months.

Whether Magic Workshop could make a comeback depended on its performance during these two months.

With the contract signed, the construction of both the Underwater Ancient City and Baby Kingdom proceeded as scheduled, and Sora Resort continued its steady development.

After resuming direct flights between Sora and Hawaii, visitor numbers to Sora increased by around 5%. Many tourists would visit Sora and then make a side trip to Hawaii. However, many found Hawaii somewhat lacking in entertainment compared to Sora, despite its beautiful scenery and clear waters.

Hawaii now felt more like a quick stopover.

Sora was way cooler.

In the Hawaiian government office, Jonathan stared at the report in front of him, feeling overwhelmed. He no longer had the luxury of worrying about Sora. In the ongoing race for the new governor, the political mistake of limiting flights to Sora had led to a barrage of attacks from his opponents.

Jonathan’s public support had plummeted, while, in contrast, the lieutenant governor, Dell, was gaining significant popularity. It was a troubling situation.

Suddenly, Jonathan deeply regretted his decision from six months ago, but now it was too late.

…

After handling matters in Sora, diving, and the entry of the Magic Workshop’ movies, Tang Huai returned to his usual routine.

“Chirp chirp, chirp—” On the night of January 15th, as Tang Huai prepared to sleep in his island master’s courtyard, he heard a familiar call coming from outside.

The courtyard was near the southern sea of Sora Island, and about 30 meters in front of it was a large area of rocks extending into the Pacific Ocean.

Following the sound, Tang Huai walked toward the rocks. Standing on them and looking down, he spotted a five-meter-long shadow swimming back and forth underwater. The shadow was so large that it struggled to move comfortably in the shallow water.

“Da Zhuang?” Tang Huai was surprised when he saw the shadow. It was pitch black, with a slimy surface. It was the whale shark, Da Zhuang.

“Chirp chirp—” The shadow, hearing Tang Huai’s voice, called out more urgently.

Tang Huai looked around. The Pacific Ocean’s surface was calm. Aside from Da Zhuang, there was no one else.

Yu You was nowhere in sight.

“Chirp chirp—” Da Zhuang called out twice more, then started swimming toward the northeast, occasionally glancing back at Tang Huai.

Understanding its message, Tang Huai hesitated briefly, then removed his jacket and dived into the sea.

Waves splashed up and then quickly settled.

Underwater, Da Zhuang swam ahead while Tang Huai followed. With the transparent shark’s ability, Tang Huai moved effortlessly. However, as they swam further, his mood gradually darkened.

They had been neighbors for a year, and this was the first time Tang Huai had seen Da Zhuang with such an expression. More importantly, where was Yu You?

Tang Huai used the transparent shark’s skill to scan the area. He could explore up to 300 nautical miles around Sora Island. However, he found only seaweed and black fish, with no sign of Yu You.

“Chirp chirp, chirp—” After thirty minutes, Da Zhuang stopped and began circling anxiously. Tang Huai looked up; they had arrived at the island where he and Yu You often met.

Tang Huai swam ashore. The small island was damp and eerily quiet.

He looked around. The backpack he had left for Yu You was carelessly thrown on the ground. The canned eel inside remained unopened; he had given it to Yu You just yesterday.

Judging by the state of the island, there seemed to have been a struggle here not too long ago.

“Pfft—” As Tang Huai pondered the situation, Da Zhuang returned, holding a black object in its mouth.

It was a 50-centimeter-long piece of a ship’s hull made of aluminum alloy, marked with a “QA” emblem.

The sea breeze blew as Tang Huai picked up the fragment.

“I finally found you.”

Meanwhile, a thousand nautical miles away in the Pacific Ocean, Yu You sat on a deck. In front of him stood a bearded man who looked at Yu You seriously before speaking slowly.

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️