The System Mistook Me for a Cat-Chapter 184

When Zhou Qiang pushed the door open and entered, Chu Tingwu's eyes barely cracked open. Despite her brain not fully waking up, she could sense it was someone familiar, so she just rolled over.

Zhou Qiang, indeed acting like an old friend, roamed around the living room for a while before taking out the breakfast she had brought for Chu Tingwu, heating and keeping it warm. Meanwhile, she also occupied the kitchen to cook a pot of congee for herself.

By the time Chu Tingwu emerged from her room in her pajamas, Zhou Qiang had already finished her congee.

Zhou Qiang: "The congee sold outside isn't as good as what we make at home... Do you want some? There's still some left in the pot."

Zhou Qiang hails from the same province, though her hometown isn't in Sang City. It's only an hour's drive away. Last year during the Lunar New Year, she didn't go back, so this year she decided to return and visit some relatives like her great-aunt.

As soon as Chu Tingwu's live stream had an accident, Zhou Qiang's call came through. After confirming that Chu Tingwu was indeed unharmed as she appeared in the live stream, Zhou Qiang decided that when she returned to the provincial capital a couple of days later, she would stop by Sang City to visit her.

Zhou Qiang: "I thought you'd go back to Fallen Phoenix City or the ranch. Why are you still staying here?"

Chu Tingwu placed her computer on the dining table: "The ranch is developing well; it doesn't need me to manage it. Plus, with many people on holiday now, there are quite a few tourists—"

She might very well be surrounded by onlookers.

As for her hometown, Teacher Zhang and her family of cats and birds had gone to Russia to visit old friends and planned to stay there for a while. When Chu Tingwu returned, there wouldn't even be a cat to greet her, so she decided to stay in Sang City for now.

Perhaps it was because she had been traveling so much before, but the mere thought of taking cars or planes now made her too lazy to move.

After having her fill, Zhou Qiang was just about to take out her work when she saw Chu Tingwu grin and push the computer toward her. "Our company's new game, want to give it a try?"

Zhou Qiang: →_→

Zhou Qiang: "Is there a catch?"

Chu Tingwu: "How could there be! The game's promotion is already in full swing, and the version you're playing won't have major changes when it officially launches—"

So, if there's a catch, it's not a catch; it's just part of the gameplay!

Zhou Qiang: ==

Updat𝓮d from freewēbnoveℓ.com.

Chu Tingwu's "promotion" was something Zhou Qiang had seen too. The momentum was great. Although it was evident that the game's launch was a bit rushed, it had capitalized on the previous news's buzz. To show gratitude for Chu Tingwu's help in the protection and research of the red-rain falcons, several professionals had also endorsed the game.

With such a festive buzz, casual players had no idea that the game had been entirely under wraps before.

The pre-order numbers were looking pretty good, and by tomorrow, nationwide offline promotions, like subway stations, bus stops, and even ads on buses, would be fully rolled out.

Zhou Qiang commented: "You seem pretty confident about the game."

A single-player game, even if it's a AAA title, if it doesn't keep the IP hot with sequels or merchandise, all the current promotional investments could be considered excessive.

But from a less objective perspective: Zhou Qiang actually quite liked this game, even though she rarely played games.

Because the game was published by Chu Tingwu's company. And the game's storyline, just from the introduction, seemed to be based on Chu Tingwu's recent experiences, even if the main character was different and their identity was distinct, playing it would likely give her a unique sense of closeness.

So Zhou Qiang secretly decided that after the game's launch, she could buy three hundred copies to send to her... classmates and teachers.

Most of her college classmates should have computers, right?

She took the computer Chu Tingwu pushed toward her, and Chu Tingwu sat beside her, pulling her chair closer: "There're supposedly Easter eggs related to me in the game... but I haven't found them yet."

And she hadn't asked the system about them either. She wanted to find them herself.

She lives a disciplined life, doesn't stay up late gaming, and hasn't rushed through the main storyline. Now, having enough to do and starting to relax, she plays the game at a leisurely pace. She hasn't even finished her first playthrough, let alone found the hidden Easter eggs.

But she and the system are both happy.

If you can feel happy while playing a game, then maybe that's the meaning of the game.

Zhou Qiang leaned her chin in her hand and clicked "Start" to commence the game—

["These little fellows in the lens are the red-rain falcons that have been tugging at everyone's hearts lately. They are rare and protected animals, migratory birds that will soon leave this land. Perhaps because of the 'limited-time exclusive' nature, everyone online is very concerned."

"I'm not familiar with these creatures, but to shoot photos of the red-rain falcons, I specially rushed to Qihe City... I think I've taken a lot of good material, but looking at the other tourists around me, I always feel that my footage isn't good enough."

"Until that night, I couldn't sleep and stood by the window to capture the sky's scene..."]

The protagonist's narration unfolded alongside the first-person animation. The sequence started with the red-rain falcons through the camera lens, followed by blurred figures representing other tourists, and ended with the sky above.

The setting sun cast a hazy golden glow, and on the other side of the sky, a meteor could be faintly seen slowly gliding by. As the sun was about to sink, the protagonist's voiceover faded gently, accompanied by the background sound of flapping wings.

The sound grew closer until the camera captured—

["I happened to film the moment the red-rain falcons began their migration. They left the ranch, with the adults carrying their chicks, heading south."]

A group of birds flew across the sky in neat formation, silhouetted against the sunset as they departed the city.

The tourists were left with a sense of loss.

The voiceover concluded.

[You have obtained "VCR: The Beginning of the Migration."]

After the fixed first-person opening animation, the screen switched to a third-person control interface. Zhou Qiang chose the male photographer as her character. She remarked, "The animation and game graphics are quite impressive, and very smooth."

She doesn't play this type of game often, but she knows that for such exploration games, the most important aspects are the graphics, freedom, and smoothness... Of course, the storyline and gameplay are also critical, but perhaps because excellent indie games are so rare in China, if a game has just one outstanding advantage, it's already worthy of enthusiastic recommendations.

As for the storyline and gameplay, as long as there aren't any big flaws, people will typically be quite forgiving and choose to support it.

"The Birds" is split into two parts. The upper part is priced at 199, and will also be part of platform discounts. In domestic games, this price is a fair but so far, the graphics have already been promising.

Zhou Qiang controlled the protagonist to take a few steps and saw a system prompt representing the protagonist's thoughts:

"Shall I upload the footage I just shot to my personal account?"

Shortly after, the corresponding UI lit up. She noticed that players don't have the option to name the protagonist, whose name is simply "Male Photographer," as if he's a passing NPC. What players can decide is the online ID of the protagonist's social media account.

This actually enhances the sense of immersion. Because most players don't name their characters after themselves in games, they can instead use their real online ID for the protagonist's video account, making the experience feel more personal and belonging.

Zhou Qiang calmly input her own name.

["I uploaded the video, and my intuition tells me this video will go viral... indeed, only I, as a tourist, happened to capture the full migration scene from a perfect angle. I browse through the comments and suddenly see a viewer saying they hope I'll continue filming the red-rain falcons' migration, even if just in fragments."]

["An idea forms in my mind."]

[Main Quest Generated:

Chase the red-rain falcons and film segments of their migration. After the falcons reach their destination, edit a documentary short exceeding 20 minutes.]

A new set of interfaces unlocked.

The map interface, ticket-purchasing interface, and editing interface were all available now.

[Map]: You attempt to search for information about the red-rain falcons online, confirming their location and general migration route, then mark them on the provided map.

[Ticket Purchasing]: You can conveniently purchase tickets on this interface, whether they are train tickets, boat tickets, airplane tickets, or even book a ride or rent a car. If you're unsure how to arrange your route, you can also follow the recommendations of the Ticket Purchasing AI Assistant.

[Editing]: On this interface, you can edit your video footage, which might be able to be uploaded to a video account to earn some travel funds.

Zhou Qiang opened the ticket purchasing interface and glanced at it, then checked the protagonist's personal data: "He only has three thousand yuan?"

Chu Tingwu: "This game has a high degree of freedom, and there are quite a few ways to earn money."

The two of them sat shoulder to shoulder, with Chu Tingwu observing Zhou Qiang's operation. Instead of rushing to offer his own strategies, he felt a sense of satisfaction from successfully recommending the game. Zhou Qiang followed the system's guidance:

"Interesting... is this a replication of real-life scenarios?"

Unlike other games where "based on real events" often involve some level of fictionalization, this game adapts Chu Tingwu's real experiences. Therefore, the roads and buildings along the way are largely consistent with reality, with just the shop names and some branded items changed to those of Wu Voice Group, while unchangeable elements are deleted to avoid IP risks.

Zhou Qiang wasn't in a hurry to leave Qihe City. She keenly realized that the game's biggest limitation was money—without it, you couldn't pursue the romantic experience of chasing birds.

Of course, if you had other strengths, you might still manage to travel on a shoestring.

She soon discovered the hidden issue of [Mood]:

"Doing repetitive or physically demanding jobs to earn money lowers the protagonist's mood. When mood drops, the quality of the footage they capture also decreases, leading to a vicious cycle, making it hard to earn enough travel funds."

During the game's development, the "game designers" seemed to have gone to great lengths to ensure authenticity and interactivity. By leveraging physical exertion and mood, they easily created constraints for players—constraints that would inspire players' desire for challenge, prompting them to strive for exploration and even replay the game multiple times. It's like giving you three thousand yuan and limited materials to build a bridge, then adding a ranking system to lure most players into endless retries.

Zhou Qiang fell into deep thought.

Chu Tingwu reached over but didn't offer help. Instead, he opened a screen recording software: "I'm part of a test group where we have to submit our testing results and suggestions every day, either through videos or written reports."

Zhou Qiang first opened the in-game social software, then controlled the character to walk the streets, fiddling around for half an hour before commenting:

"This game is really freeform."

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As a character who acts like an intermediary and also plays games, Qiao Lulu usually collects everyone's suggestions and sends them to the client. He also checks the group chat and discussions, but when he opened the group, he noticed: 355-1 posted a video, and why was the group chat unusually quiet for half a day?

The video was only a few tens of seconds long, seemingly a clip from the game. Qiao Lulu clicked it open and immediately noticed: Was this a victory screen?

This should be the settlement screen before the final victory, showing the protagonist's video account backend interface.

But...

But.

The interface displayed numerous private messages from people thanking the protagonist, with the chat records hidden unless you clicked in. Then, the player switched the interface to show that the video had already been published.

The upper part of the video only covered as far as Yu City, the location of the Yu City Wetland Park. Even without following the news, Qiao Lulu remembered that the Red-Rain Falcon had stayed there, as numerous bird-watchers had released a flood of photos and videos that dominated the headlines.

According to the plot development, after arriving in Yu City, the protagonist would meet with fellow travelers, all hoping for the Red-Rain Falcon's well-being. They would agree to jointly post educational content about the Red-Rain Falcon, with others handling the text and images while the protagonist provided the video.

Such videos were different from the usual ones edited by players, as they had thematic requirements and couldn't be too short, making them a challenge for players. The final score would be determined by both online followers and peers.

If the combined score reached 60, it was considered passing; 80 was excellent, and 90 was what everyone considered a perfect victory.

But...

But 355-1...

Qiao Lulu: "Isn't she still in Qihe City?"

A bug? How did the protagonist not even leave the starting point, yet the plot reached its conclusion?

The protagonist didn't go bird-watching at all but was just sitting in the starting point playing with their phone—no wait! Why does the personal panel show "999999 [amount too large to display]" for money? How long did you stay in the starting point grinding tasks to earn that much money?

The operator then switched the interface again, and Qiao Lulu was dumbfounded to find that the protagonist named Zhou Qiang wasn't encountering a bug. The video score had come out, with most netizens giving high scores, only a few low "peer composite scores" pulling down the total, resulting in a final score of 94!

Peers:

[You guys, you've all been duped! This person is a disgrace among us!]

[He didn't even show up; he just bought the video—]

[He had people along the way fake the live broadcast scenes, creating such a big online hype. Does someone like this really love the Red-Rain Falcon?]

Chu Tingwu: Hmm, doesn't love it, this person only loves game victory ==

But no one believed it, because Zhou Qiang offered too much money, buying too many fake certifications.

And because she had so much money, the video quality was excellent, with netizens all on her side.

Qiao Lulu: "..."

Qiao Lulu: "…………"

He saw the peers' voices drowned out by the flood of praises, even attacked by ordinary netizens who demanded proof from the accusers. The protagonist gained fame and fortune, achieving a perfect victory score.

Qiao Lulu: ...Is this even possible?!

Everyone is playing the game normally; how does someone play completely out of bounds? A normal, passionate, educational exploration game... how did you turn it into a story of big-time villainy?