You said you were going to make games, how did you become the richest man without doing anything?

In a high-rise apartment in Shanghai, Wang Laoju sat in front of the computer with a glass of ice cola, skillfully adjusting the parameters of the OBS live broadcast software, and the familiar cheers of the audience in the live broadcast room came from the headphones.

"Okay, dear audience friends, good evening, I am your old friend, Wang-Lao-Ju!"

A deep and magnetic voice sounded, and the barrage of comments in the live broadcast room instantly started to flood.

【I'm coming! 】

【Laoju live broadcast, must be the best! 】

【What new game are you playing today? 】

【It's time to stir things up again, right? 】

Wang Laoju smiled, reached out to pick up the snacks on the table, and while unpacking them, she said slowly, "Today, let's play a new game from Taoyuanxiang Studio, called 'Don't Play This Game'."

As he spoke, he cut out the game's startup interface. On the black background, a few options were floating alone.

There are no games here.

[Useless options]

【Click here, don’t play this game】

The corners of Wang Laoju's mouth twitched slightly, and he gently supported his forehead.

"...Wow, you're already messing around right after entering the main menu?"

The barrage suddenly exploded:

[I like the way you are not surprised by anything]

[Taoyuan Township: Even the menu in our game is discouraging people from playing it]

【Do you dare to click the first one to try? 】

【Click the last one, hurry up! 】

Wang Laoju let out a soft "tsk" sound, a playful smile on her lips: "Okay, since you all said so, then I'll click on the last option! Let's see if it works or not!"

Just click the mouse and the screen goes black instantly——

Then, the game just quit.

"???"

Wang Laoju was stunned, and the barrage in the live broadcast room instantly filled with "Hahahahahahahaha".

[Taoyuan Township: I told you not to play, and you really want to?]

[Congratulations on clearing the game! That's all there is to it!]

[Lao Ju, have you been fooled by the game? ]

[Is the designer of this game sick? ]

Wang Laoju took a deep breath and his expression gradually became serious.

"good, very good, excellent."

"Taoyuan Township, you guys really know how to have fun, right?"

He reopened the game and this time clicked on the first option without hesitation - [No game here].

Mirror in the Mirror

The screen flickered slightly, and then a new interface slowly emerged.

【Please select a level】

——[Mirror in Mirror]

--【(locking)】

--【(locking)】

Currently, only the first level is available.

Wang Laoju clicked on it, and a prompt immediately popped up on the screen:
[When the save icon appears, please exit the program immediately to minimize the possibility of destroying the auto-save function. Thank you.]

[This non-game does not contain any hints. Clicking the icons below to find clues is useless. Otherwise, it would be too easy, right?]

Wang Laoju: "..."

The barrage exploded again——

[Game: Please don't play me the usual way]

[Officials suggest players destroy their own save files???]

【What the hell is this thing! 】

[Taoyuan Township's planning is definitely the most outrageous in the industry]

Wang Laoju rubbed his brows and sighed: "Alright, since you won't let me save the game, then I won't save it. Let's just go into the game and see."

With a light click of the mouse, the screen slowly darkened, and then a crimson curtain slowly opened, revealing a dim and eerie stage.

The picture gradually became clear, and a wide stage appeared before our eyes.

In the center of the stage, a deep mirror stood there, the mirror surface trembling slightly like water waves, as if it was not a physical entity, but some unknown spatial passage.

The entire stage was surrounded by a heavy red curtain, which swayed gently in the breeze, making a low rustling sound. There were no lights on the stage, only a few dim candles swaying in the corners, emitting a faint glow.

There was an old, dusty smell in the air, as if this place had been forgotten for a long time.

Wang Laoju controlled the character to walk forward slowly. With every step, the wooden floor under his feet would creak, as if reminding him that no one should come here.

The comments in the live broadcast room suddenly became tense.

[This atmosphere is so weird...]

[Why does it suddenly feel like a horror game? ]

【It seems like something is shaking in the mirror? 】

[Lao Ju, do you dare to rush over and take a look? ]

Wang Laoju licked her lips and smiled: "Okay, let's see what secrets this mirror has."

He controlled the character to walk in front of the mirror. The mirror surface was still shaking slightly, vaguely reflecting the scene on the stage.

But strangely, the "self" in the mirror did not move completely in sync.

In reality, he just lowered his head slightly to look at the mirror, but the "self" in the mirror suddenly raised his head and stared at him.

"What the hell?!"

Wang Laoju suddenly shrank back, and the barrage of comments in the live broadcast room exploded instantly.

【The image in the mirror moved? ?】

What's going on in this game? Do NPCs have their own consciousness?

【Lao Ju, back off! 】

【Something is wrong, this is definitely not right! 】

However, before Wang Laoju could react, the screen suddenly flickered.

The "self" in the mirror suddenly revealed a strange smile, then slowly raised his hand and reached out to the world outside the mirror!
"What the hell?!"

Wang Laoju's voice suddenly rose, and he quickly pressed the keyboard to make the character retreat, but the character could not move.

The hand in the mirror stretched closer and closer, until—

Snapped!
The screen goes black.

Exit the game directly.

[The live broadcast room completely exploded]

【? ? ? 】

[The game crashed?]

What is this setting?

[This is outrageous. The person in the mirror wants to crawl out? ? ]

[Lao Ju, stop playing, there's something wrong with this game! ]

Wang Laoju wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, took a deep breath, and an excited smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"interesting……"

"This game might be even crazier than I thought."

He slowly reached out and restarted the game.

"Okay, since the mirror has cut off my power, let's do it again."

Wang Laoju took a deep breath, rubbed his wrist, and restarted the game.

The game's logo didn't appear. In the darkness, only a small line of white text appeared:

[Version number: 1.0.0_Are you sure you want to continue playing? ]

[It is detected that the user has repeatedly started the game. It is recommended to shut down the computer and take a rest. ]

[Really, don't play it, this game is not fun. ]

The live broadcast room's barrage instantly filled the screen——

【??? What’s going on with this game?】

[It can actually detect the player restart?! ]

What exactly was the plan behind Taoyuan Township?

[Laoju, this game is really poisonous! ]

Wang Laoju chuckled and clicked the "Continue" option without hesitation.

The screen gradually lit up, and it was still the stage covered with red curtains.

but--

There is an extra steel plate in the center of the stage.

【Strange Steel Plate】

The steel plate was embedded in the ground, with a screw in each of the four corners, making it look like a secret door that was sealed.

Wang Laoju controlled the character to walk forward and habitually knocked on one of the screws.

"Dong-dong-dong." The knocking sounds echoed on the stage. However, just as he was about to try the next operation, a low voice suddenly sounded from the screen.

"Hey, there's someone here."

"Please wait a moment."

Wang Laoju: “???”

Barrage exploded——

【What the hell? ! 】

[Is there someone under the steel plate?!]

[Is this game a horror game? ]

[Oh my god, I'm already scared! ]

Wang Laoju touched his chin and smiled meaningfully: "Hey, what's hidden underneath? Let's keep knocking and see."

He tapped the screws on the steel plate a few more times.

Then, the red curtain on the stage suddenly closed, covering the entire picture.

After a moment, the curtain slowly opened——

There was a line of huge white text on the steel plate.

Don't play this game

[Game program nonsense]

Immediately afterwards, a strange dialog box popped up on the screen, as if it was some kind of system prompt.

"Hello, user, I'm a game programmer."

"I have bad news for you—there aren't any games here."

Wang Laoju: “???”

The barrage instantly burst into laughter:

[The game program is out and people are quitting?! ]

[Goodness, even the system is telling you to stop playing! ]

What is the purpose of this game?!

However, the game program clearly had no intention of stopping and continued to frantically output text on the screen:
"It's all because of the financial crisis, the indie game crisis, and this and that. I hope you won't be too disappointed."

“There are indeed no games.”

"I'm going to tell you something in secret. Why don't you just not ask for a refund, okay?"

"Let me tell you, my creators also have to eat and raise 12 children."

Wang Laoju: "..."

He couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Good boy, the authorities have directly started moral kidnapping."

The live broadcast room's barrage scrolled wildly:

[Planner: Please, don’t refund the money! ]

This game is outrageous!

[I'm super curious now, what other cool tricks can be done? ]

【Explore the hidden content of the game】

Wang Laoju ignored the nagging of the game program and instead paid attention to the large headlines on the screen.

——【Don’t play this game】

——【There is no game here】

——[Useless option]

He hesitated for a second, raised his hand and clicked "Don't play this game".

The screen flickered, and then the text of the game program began to scroll wildly.

"Hey, why are you still ordering?"

"There really isn't a game. If you don't believe me, how about I show you something else?"

The interface on the screen suddenly changed, turning into a beautiful photo of food——

It was a bowl of steaming hot beef ramen with rich broth, tender beef, and a layer of chopped green onions sprinkled on top.

Wang Laoju: “……?”

The barrage in the live broadcast room was also full of question marks.

【? ? ? 】

[Wait, why are you suddenly showing me food? ]

[Is this game trying to use food to discourage players? ]

[This beef noodle looks quite fragrant...]

However, Wang Laoju ignored it and continued to click on the title text frantically.

The game program seemed to panic, and the text scrolled even faster:
"Why are you so persistent?"

"Well, if you insist on playing, then... at least don't save the game, okay?"
A new prompt suddenly popped up at the bottom of the screen——

【Are you sure you want to save? 】

--【yes】

--【no】

Wang Laoju narrowed her eyes and smiled: "Oh, provoking me, huh?"

Without hesitation, he nodded **yes**.

Then, the game just crashed.

[The live broadcast room completely exploded]

【? ? ? 】

[Save = Game crash?]

Is this game mocking players, or is it playing with them?

[The planning of Taoyuan Township is really crazy! ]

Wang Laoju rubbed his forehead and sighed: "Okay, it seems that the core gameplay of this game is to compete with other players in wits and courage."

He restarted the game, and a new prompt immediately popped up on the screen -

[The last save failed. It is recommended that you do not try to save again. ]

【The system has automatically deleted the archive file for you. 】

Wang Laoju: "..."

The audience in the live broadcast room were laughing like crazy.

[This game doesn't allow saving at all?! ]

What on earth were the planners thinking?!

[Lao Ju, have you been fooled by the game? ]

[I've begun to suspect that the true gameplay is a battle of wits and courage against the system.]

Wang Laoju took a deep breath, straightened his posture, and a hint of fighting spirit in his eyes: "Alright, since you won't let me save the game, then I'm going to give it a try and see what secrets this game holds."

He took control of the character again, ready to challenge this anti-human gaming world once again.

——All this has just begun.

"Okay, I just don't believe this game can do anything weird."

Wang Laoju narrowed his eyes, manipulated the mouse, and once again cast his gaze at the strange steel plate in the center of the stage.

This steel plate seems to be randomly embedded in the ground, with a screw in each of the four corners, which seems to suggest that some kind of interaction is possible.

"I knocked just now, and there seemed to be something underneath, but there was no response..."

He licked his lips, his eyes lit up slightly, and a dangerous smile appeared at the corner of his mouth.

"How about giving it a good click this time?"

He moved the mouse and clicked a few times on a corner of the steel plate without hesitation.

"boom--!"

A sudden loud noise exploded across the entire screen, and the steel plate suddenly fell down, as if there was a bottomless abyss underneath, swallowing it up in an instant!

The live broadcast room's barrage instantly swiped wildly——

【? ? ? 】

【what's the situation? ! 】

[Lao Ju, one-hit kill?!]

【Did you break the game? 】

However, before Wang Laoju could react, a familiar line of text suddenly popped up on the screen.

——"Be careful, can that thing withstand it?"

The entire game screen shook slightly, as if something was churning underground.

Wang Laoju's pupils shrank slightly, and she leaned back suddenly. "Wait a minute, what do you mean by 'that thing'? What exactly is hidden in this game?"

The barrage exploded instantly.

[It's over, is there some monster sealed underground?!]

Did you open something you shouldn't have?

[The planning of Taoyuan Township is really sick! ]

However, before he could take the next step, the title text on the screen suddenly shook slightly.

——【Don’t play this game!】(End of this chapter)