The real world, 7:00 AM.
The alarm rang, and Zhang Wei opened his eyes reflexively.
After getting up, washing up, and simply frying some eggs and bacon for breakfast, he drove to the company.
Zhang Wei had just settled into his leather office chair when three rhythmic knocks sounded on the office door.
"Come in."
The door opened.
His secretary, dressed in a well-fitted suit that accentuated her nice figure, stood at the doorway holding a large package.
"Boss, you have a package."
"A package?" Zhang Wei was somewhat surprised, pointing to a corner. "Put it there for now. I'll open it later when I have time."
The secretary nodded. The boss's word was law.
After all, it was always the boss who could talk back to the secretary, never the other way around.
After placing the package, the secretary closed the door and left.
After reviewing the progress of a few more projects, Zhang Wei felt his eyes getting sore and decided to take a break. As he turned, he caught sight of the package.
"I don't think I've shopped online recently? How could there be a package?"
Moving the package onto the desk, Zhang Wei took a small knife and cut through the tape.
As he tore open the anti-static bag inside the package, a cold, metallic scent instantly hit him.
Embedded in the black shock-absorbent foam inside the box was a silver-grey helmet.
The craftsmanship of the helmet was exquisite.
It even had a circle of golden laurels on it.
"Holy crap, the handiwork on this is unbeatable."
As a Warhammer fan, Zhang Wei was naturally delighted by this find.
He didn't even want to question how the helmet got here.
Even if it was a delivery mistake, he'd find a way to buy it.
After examining it for a bit, Zhang Wei put the helmet on to see how it felt.
His vision plunged into darkness.
Then, golden points of light leaped into his field of view, gathering with a life of their own to form the outline of a burning double-headed eagle.
Below it surged streams of binary data and runic code he couldn't understand.
[Game loading in progress, please wait patiently.]
"Damn, it's a game helmet! That 'Warhammer Corporate Slave' group owner was just messing around, right!! How is this for real!"
"And I didn't register an account or fill in an address, how does he know my company is here!!"
Zhang Wei took off the helmet, his expression one of sheer disbelief.
He quickly opened his messaging app to check the group chat.
The group was already exploding, messages scrolling rapidly.
Kissing Nurgle's Chubby Cheeks: "Wait, group owner, you're for real? I received a game helmet."
Output to Slaanesh Ten Times a Night: "Me too."
Blue Double-Headed Bird! Loyalty: "How does the group owner know who pre-registered??"
Second Empire Warmaster: "Gotta say, this game helmet is really good-looking."
Warhammer's Most Ballsy Bro: "You all got helmets?"
Kissing Nurgle's Chubby Cheeks: "Yes, it was left at the entrance of my villa. I was surprised when my housekeeper brought it to me!!"
Second Empire Warmaster: "Mine was picked up by my roommate at the dorm entrance. The package had my name on it."
"..."
Reading the group messages, Zhang Wei frowned.
What kind of background does the group owner's company have?!
During pre-registration, there was clearly no request for personal info or address.
Yet their helmets were accurately delivered to them.
How was this done?
A mysterious organization on the dark web?
Or does the other party have state-level backing?
The group messages flashed again.
Blue Double-Headed Bird! Loyalty: "The helmet's craftsmanship is excellent. I tested it with lab equipment and found it undetectable; it must use experimental-grade shielding materials."
"Just the material cost for this helmet is probably over 500,000. It likely uses brainwave technology, locked to an individual, unusable by others."
Kissing Nurgle's Chubby Cheeks: "Now that you mention it, it's true. My girlfriend tried it just now and couldn't see the text or the double-headed eagle emblem I mentioned."
Guilliman is the Only Sun: "Holy crap, does such technology really exist? Could it be that the group owner's Warhammer virtual game is real!!"
Second Empire Warmaster: "Good grief, a helmet with a base cost starting at 500,000! What kind of massive investment is this!!"
Warhammer's Most Ballsy Bro: "That's just the material cost. If you factor in the advanced tech inside, one helmet could probably trade for a sports car."
Second Empire Warmaster: "You're not kidding me?!"
Blue Double-Headed Bird! Loyalty: "Brainwave technology is being researched abroad, but it's far from application-ready. The game helmets you have might be the first batch; trading one for a limited edition supercar wouldn't be a problem."
Second Empire Warmaster: "So, I just casually tossed a limited edition supercar onto my bed? Oh my god, I've committed such a terrible crime!!"
Manbun is the Mark of a True Badass: "What are you all talking about? What helmet? What game?"
Second Empire Warmaster: "You didn't pre-register?"
Topknot is the Mark of a True Badass: "No, it looked like a scam, so I didn't click, afraid of getting a virus."
Kissing Nurgle's Chubby Cheeks: "Probably only those who clicked pre-registration got the helmets."
Guilliman is the Only Sun: "Why can't I pre-register now? Only fifteen slots? I hesitated for a moment and missed out on a limited edition sports car."
Kissing Nurgle's Chubby Cheeks: "You live up to your username, alright, always missing the hot stuff."
Guilliman is the Only Sun: "Boo-hoo, I want a game helmet too, I want to trade it for a limited edition supercar."
I Don't Wanna Be a Stinky Can: "@Corporate Drone Enslaved by the Emperor, group owner, do you have a forum, an official website, or something? Let me see what the game is like. Just the helmet is this valuable, what kind of person is your boss to be spending like this!"
Guilliman is the Only Sun: "Group owner, release a few more pre-registration slots quickly, the great Imperial Regent needs to return to his loyal Macragge."
Seeing someone @ him, Qin Yun, who had been lurking, sat down at the control console to reply.
He needed to get as many players into the game as possible to earn more Faith Points and enhance his own strength.
Even if a Living Saint could resurrect, getting killed all the time wasn't exactly pleasant.
"@Guilliman is the Only Sun, Sorry, the number of slots I managed to get is limited, only fifteen. Wait for the next time."
"@I Don't Wanna Be a Stinky Can, The game is still in closed beta. There's no forum or official website. Everything about the game is confidential. Even if you want to take screenshots to post, they need review before being put online."
Qin Yun added a confidentiality disclaimer.
The Warhammer 40k universe had so many powerful and strange entities.
Just spreading information about some things could cause corruption.
If he accidentally corrupted the real world too, that would be a great sin.
Kissing Nurgle's Chubby Cheeks: "Wow, group owner, it's the live group owner."
Second Empire Warmaster: "Group owner, when will the game finish loading? Is it really a full holographic simulation game?"
Corporate Drone Enslaved by the Emperor: "Just wait patiently. Once it's loaded, you can log into the game."
"100% authentic immersive game, absolutely worth it."
Second Empire Warmaster: "Group owner, can I sell the helmet? We can split the profit 50/50."
Corporate Drone Enslaved by the Emperor: "No. Your helmets are bound to you individually; others can't use them."
"When you pre-registered, the game terms stated clearly that the helmets are only loaned to you for testing."
"If you lend them to others or attempt to steal company secrets, not only will the helmet be reclaimed, but you will also permanently lose testing privileges."
"My boss can deliver these helmets to you; naturally, he can also take them back. Excessive greed won't lead to a good outcome."
After sending the last message, Qin Yun stopped talking.
The more you say, the more flaws might appear.
He couldn't explain everything clearly.
He needed to leave some mystery for the players to use their imagination.
Isn't that what brains are for, filling in the gaps! Otherwise, what are they for!!
The group quieted down for a moment, then quickly became lively again.
After Qin Yun's warning, everyone tacitly avoided the topic of trading the helmets for money.
During pre-registration, they didn't fill in personal info or addresses, yet the other party could still deliver.
This meant their information was transparent to the other party.
The game developers dared to send such valuable items to them, meaning they were fully confident they could get them back.
The group heatedly discussed what this closed beta game might be like!!
And speculated about what kind of person the group owner's boss was!!
In just a few minutes, the group messages hit 99+, showing how high everyone's enthusiasm was.
The game loaded very slowly.
But as time passed, the lit area of the double-headed eagle grew larger and larger.
By the time Zhang Wei got off work, he had driven back to his residential complex and entered the underground parking lot.
He put the helmet on again and found that the double-headed eagle emblem was almost completely lit up.
It seemed the game was about to finish loading.
Just then, his WeChat ringtone sounded.
The screen showed '(No Cilantro)' and a sexy female avatar.
Answering the call, a pleasant female voice came through.
"Zhang Wei, let's go for dinner tonight. I bought a new dress and a set of Balenciaga. I'll wear it out for you."
"Busy, not going."
Zhang Wei hung up without hesitation, took the game helmet, and went straight home.
After waiting another hour or so.
The double-headed eagle emblem was completely lit.
[Game loading complete. Recording personal information. Preparing to log in.]
[Welcome to the Warhammer Universe. We hope you have a wonderful gaming journey.]
The fully lit golden double-headed eagle suddenly burst into intense radiance, making Zhang Wei instinctively close his eyes.
When the light faded, Zhang Wei's eyes widened at what he saw.
"Holy shit, it's real??"