I will be stronger after the remake

"Domestically, the control over Illusion-Breaking Stones and Dao Seeds is very strict, nipping the possibility of a proliferation of unaffiliated spiritualists in the bud. But what about other countries? Their governments don't have that kind of capability. Logically speaking, there should have been a lot of chaos abroad by now, but have you heard any related news?"

Tang Ping thought for a moment and speculated, "Because psychic energy cannot be used in the mortal world?"

"That is indeed an important factor, but some psionicists can become superhumans simply by using their resident psionic abilities. Given the current prevalence of smartphones, why has no one ever posted related videos online?"

"Because of internet censorship?"

Hu Ze said solemnly, "I can tell you very clearly that neither domestically nor internationally, strict control measures have been taken. For example, when we arrested Han Lin at the funeral home last time, although we asked the people present to delete the video and not post it online, it was only a verbal warning. We did not ask them to hand over their phones for investigation and verification. Such carelessness will inevitably lead some people to take chances and secretly keep the video. Have you seen any related videos online?"

"No, why not?"

"Because ordinary people have a resistance to things related to psychic energy. The vast majority of them will instinctively feel afraid, refuse to acknowledge it, and subconsciously choose to escape, pretending to be ostriches burying their heads in the sand. The very few who overcome their fear will unconsciously forget about it."

"Forgotten?"

"If your mother is one of the very few people who can overcome fear, she may have a heated discussion and argument with you on the day you tell her, but by the next day, she will ignore it as if you never mentioned it to her."

Now, Tang Ping is no longer shocked by such a illogical setting, but she is still puzzled: "It sounds no different from the previous type of person who is afraid to run away."

“There is a difference. Note that it is ignored rather than forgotten. The relevant memories have not disappeared from her brain, but have just been moved to a corner. As long as there is an external reminder, she will remember them again and continue to discuss and argue with you. On the other hand, those who choose to run away because of fear will only pretend not to know if you mention psychic powers in front of them—some have really forgotten, and some are pretending to forget.”

Tang Ping remained silent for a long time, fully digesting the information, before finally asking, "Is this a good idea?"

The question seemed a bit abrupt, but Hu Ze understood it. He shrugged and smiled, "There's nothing wrong with it. In my family's eyes, I'm just a civil servant working in a well-paid and easy job. They don't need to worry or be afraid. On the other hand, you'd only be troubled if you knew your father was a superhuman who was constantly fighting against the dark organization, right?"

Tang Ping nodded slightly: "Indeed, not many people in reality are willing to continue talking about work after returning home. But this setting sounds a bit too convenient, so convenient that it seems like someone deliberately set it up this way to maintain the normal operation of society."

Hu Ze disagreed: "Someone has made this claim before, but there is currently no evidence to prove it, so it can only be concluded that it is all a coincidence."

Chapter Fifty-Six Water Spirit Orb

Despite numerous unexpected events along the way, "The Invisible Guardian" was successfully filmed in just 25 days, five days less than expected.

The crew deserves much credit for the early completion of the project, with Director Hu being the biggest contributor. After all, the results of doing the same thing with care and without care are completely different.

Whether they put their heart into it willingly or unwillingly, they did so with sincerity, so Tang Ping gave all the crew members a red envelope as a way of making good connections.

As for Director Hu, he was very satisfied with the discovery of two new recruits who could be hired ahead of time, which could lead to a 50% increase in the number of security personnel. He was all smiles every day, and it was a good thing that the male characters were all in PowerPoint presentation mode, otherwise he really wouldn't have been able to portray Masao Muto well.

For live-action interactive film and game, post-production editing is of paramount importance. Fortunately, no special effects are needed, only image retouching and voice-over, which do not require high technical skills. Tangping reserved 300 million yuan to find a team with a good reputation in the industry.

The other party worked overtime to complete the first batch of materials with high quality and quantity.

Yu Shujiang had already completed the game framework during filming. After obtaining the materials, she simply completed the embedding steps and created a game demo.

After everyone tried it out, they gave it unanimous praise, and Yu Shujiang even gained inspiration from it.

"Brother, if this game succeeds, let's make a bishoujo game in the same way! My gut feeling tells me that it will definitely work!"

Upon being reminded, Tang Ping recalled another highly acclaimed live-action interactive game from her previous life, "Damn it! I'm Surrounded by Beauties." This live-action bishoujo game outsold "Invisible Guardian," selling 190 million copies on Steam and ranking second on the single-player game sales chart that year.

But he would never make this game, because it uses a first-person perspective, which means the male protagonist only has a voice and no face. After all, the essence of "The End" is a bishoujo game, and not having a fixed male protagonist's image can enhance the player's sense of immersion.

Tang Ping only wanted to promote himself through games, not to actually become a game producer. No matter how well "The End" sold, it had no appeal to him.

“I personally support you and I’m optimistic about this kind of game format. You can contact me for investment, but I won’t participate.”

"why?"

"Think about it carefully. In visual novels, the male protagonists almost never show their faces. Some are given a generic face with long bangs, while others don't even have a character illustration. If I participate, what role would I play? The male protagonist's best friend?"

“It seems that’s the case,” Yu Shujiang belatedly reflected. “Female-oriented visual novels often have female protagonist illustrations, and I subconsciously got them mixed up. But since you’re willing to invest, it means that this type of game still has a lot of potential.”

Tang Ping corrected, "I'm not optimistic about the market for live-action bishoujo games, but I'm optimistic about the first live-action bishoujo game."

Yu Shujiang tilted her head: "Why?"

Tang Ping snapped his fingers: "AI Pulse requests help."

Feng Maimai said expressionlessly: "China has taken strict control measures against the sex industry. Coupled with the traditional culture's promotion of sexual conservatism, most Chinese men have been in a state of sexual repression for a long time. In addition, the current gender contradictions are becoming more and more prominent. Many women express extreme feminist ideas on the Internet, which arouses the resistance of the male group."

"If a live-action bishoujo game that completely caters to men were released at this time, it would be very popular. Considering that such games are easy to make, they are likely to be copied by others. A large number of works of varying quality would reduce the favorability of male players. In addition, the sexual repression accumulated over a long period of time is released through the first game, and their desire to buy similar works will also decrease sharply."

"The above is a reasoning derived from the premise that the first live-action bishoujo game will be successful."

Yu Shujiang was stunned, staring at the other person in disbelief: "You don't actually have an artificial intelligence installed in your head, do you?"

Feng Maimai crossed her arms in front of her chest: "Wrong, I am human. There is no such thing as artificial intelligence, but you can call me human intelligence!"

But Feng Yingying gave her a chop to the neck, put her hands on her hips and criticized her: "Don't deliberately imitate the tone of a robot. Girls should watch their words and not talk about sex all the time."

Feng, with tears welling in her eyes, covered her head and said, "I oppose violence."

"This is not violence, it is an older sister's love for her younger sister."

“Your love is too heavy,” Feng Maimai turned to Tang Ping and said, “I need off-field assistance.”

Tang Ping laughed and said, "It's just an academic discussion. In fact, the more resistant you are, the more likely you are to suffer losses. Mencius said, 'Food and sex are human nature.' Appetite and sexual desire are natural needs that humans are born with and are part of human nature. It is a violation of human nature to refuse to discuss them as a matter of shame."

At this moment, Director Hu walked in, looking puzzled. "What's going on? Aren't we supposed to be making a spy game set in the Republican era? Why are we suddenly discussing Mencius? The two eras are too far apart."

Tang Ping said, "There's nothing we can do, love existed before the Common Era."

"Hahaha, food and sex are human nature, love existed before the Common Era, hahaha..."

Yuan Ji, who was standing to the side, couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Feng Yingying and Feng Maimai exchanged a glance, and the former asked, somewhat puzzled, "Is this really that funny?"

Director Hu said dismissively, "Ignore her. Her sense of humor is different from normal people, and I suspect that her brain structure is also different from that of ordinary people."

Then he said to Tang Ping, "The prizes we talked about last time have been delivered."

Tang Ping immediately understood and told everyone that she had to leave for a while. Then she went out with Hu Ze and came to an empty room.

Hu Ze first brought out a wooden box that used to sell popsicles. He opened the lid, and a lot of cold air came out. He took out an ice box from it, opened it again, and took out a water balloon from it.

"This treasure is called the Water Spirit Pearl, and it perfectly meets the conditions you set."

Tang Ping took it from the other person's hand. It was a little cold to the touch, and she could feel the water flowing inside the sphere, but it wouldn't disperse, as if it were being restrained by some kind of force.

"It doesn't look like an offensive treasure."

"The characteristics of the Water Spirit Orb are very simple. First, it has unlimited plasticity, so you can transform it into any shape you want. Second, by inputting water-based spiritual power into it, you can increase its volume, so you can transform it into swords, spears, halberds, or shields and armor."

"Water's defensive capabilities are not very good."

"Therefore, it is classified as an offensive weapon. One method recommended by experts is to imagine it as a high-frequency rotating saw, thereby producing a cutting effect similar to a water jet."

Tang Ping exclaimed in surprise, "This is actually possible?"

Hu Ze said, "Whether you can do it depends on your imagination and self-control."

Tang Ping tried to input water-based spiritual power, and the water sphere indeed grew larger. However, when he imagined the water sphere turning into a magic light stick, there was no reaction.

Hu Ze explained in time: "Magic treasures are also subject to the constraints of the mortal world. The transformation of spiritual energy into water is a permanent type of spiritual energy, which is not restricted. However, the change of form is a type of actively released spiritual energy, which can only be used in the Illusionary Realm."

Chapter Fifty-Seven: Testing Magical Treasures

The Realm of Illusion and Reality.

Tang Ping was practicing his skills with the Water Spirit Orb in his hand. Swords, spears, halberds, axes, hooks, and forks—all eighteen kinds of weapons appeared in his imagination one by one, and finally, they turned into a suit of armor covered with dense spikes, which he wore close to his body.

However, he was not satisfied. All of the above were the most basic variations, requiring no precise operation. The difficulty was similar to beating Contra on the NES in one life. As long as one was familiar with the operation and remembered a few difficult points, it could be done easily.

"Next up is the chainsaw."

Tang Ping took a deep breath, focused her mind, and continued to channel a small amount of spiritual energy into the Water Spirit Orb. This was not to increase the water content, but to maintain control.

The next moment, the Water Spirit Orb transformed into a chainsaw without electricity, or rather, a water saw, which then slowly began to rotate, gradually accelerating and becoming faster and faster.

At first, everything went smoothly, but when the rotation speed reached a certain level, the raised spikes on the saw blade gradually disappeared, and the shape became round and irregular. In the end, even the oval saw blade could not be maintained.

"No, this is my limit. If I focus on maintaining the shape, I can't increase the speed. If I focus on high-speed rotation, I can't maintain the shape."

Tang Ping stopped channeling his spiritual energy, and the water forming the water saw splashed onto the ground, wetting his trousers. But he didn't care; he simply closed his eyes to rest, his face showing obvious fatigue.

Although using the Water Spirit Orb doesn't consume much mental energy—similar to doing a test paper with high concentration—it can still be exhausting over time.

Yuan Ji, who was observing the training from the side, said: "After the Spirit Rank is promoted, the soul will be strengthened, and the mental strength and imagination will be greatly improved. Judging from your situation, you need to be promoted to at least the second level to use this bead at will. As for the high-frequency oscillation cutting water blade you mentioned, I guess you need to reach the third level."

"you try."

Tang Ping threw the Water Spirit Orb to the other party.

Yuan Ji caught it and awkwardly poured water-based spiritual energy into it.

Her main attributes are earth and fire. She can use water, but it's just like a normal person using their left hand to hold chopsticks—very awkward. However, after injecting enough spiritual power, it easily transforms into her most familiar halberd form.

She unleashed a powerful halberd technique, casually severing a tree, splitting open a wall, and finally embedding it into a rock.

"It's quite sharp. Despite being made of water, it's as sharp as steel and has the flexibility of water. But it's also quite heavy, about the same weight as my halberd."

Yuan Ji's Green Dragon Halberd was mainly made of wood, with only the blade made of iron.

It wasn't that she couldn't wield a pure steel halberd, but rather that in actual combat, a pure steel halberd was not as effective as a wooden-handled halberd.

Weapons are never better the stronger they are. Strength means a lack of flexibility. A wooden-handled halberd can be used to perform the "Phoenix Nodding" technique in spear fighting, using the flexibility of wood to change the trajectory of the attack, making it difficult for the opponent to defend against. However, a pure steel halberd cannot do this, as it can only go straight.

After resting for a while and regaining some of his energy, Tang Ping analyzed, "Currently, it seems that the Water Spirit Orb has four drawbacks."

"Firstly, it is said that the shape can be changed at will, but the main body of the bead cannot be changed. Only the derived parts can be changed, and it must be in contact with the main body of the bead when used, and cannot be separated from it."

"Secondly, once the water that is produced leaves the main body, it loses its fixed shape and becomes ordinary water droplets, which means that I cannot imagine it as a bow and arrow or a hidden weapon to use."

"Thirdly, there's the weight you just mentioned. Water is really heavy. Once it becomes too heavy, I can't even lift it myself."

"Fourth, as a magic weapon, it has no binding function. Not to mention blood recognition, it can't even be imprinted with a spirit. This means that others can also snatch it from me and use it against me on the spot."

Yuan Ji said, "I have to defend the Water Spirit Orb. It's not that it doesn't have a binding function, but that none of the magical treasures have a binding function. The spiritual energy world doesn't have such a convenient setting as 'not afraid of being stolen after blood recognition.' You have to protect your own magical treasures."

Tang Ping shook her head and said nothing more.

Now he understood why the organization didn't have a booklet introducing the treasure. Hiding the treasure's information served two purposes: first, it made it difficult for opponents to defend against it, and second, it prevented the treasure from being stolen and used against him on the spot.

For example, with the Water Spirit Orb, if people don't know that they must input water-type spiritual power to use it, many will subconsciously input non-attribute spiritual power. Such a delay on the battlefield may cause them to miss the opportunity to win.

Yuan Ji said seriously, "If you want to fully utilize the power of this magic weapon, you still need to advance to the second stage as soon as possible."

"Yes, all my hopes are pinned on the upcoming games."

Although there is no specific data panel to show the progress of cultivation, Tang Ping felt that he had reached about 60% of the first transformation of his spiritual rank, which was considered very fast among newcomers. On average, it would take three years for those spiritual energy users who had cultivated to the most suitable spiritual rank to advance to the second transformation.

Tang Ping's rapid progress is not so much due to hard work in cultivation, but mainly due to the supermoon, absorbing Dao seeds, and consuming elixirs.

Just as Feng Maimai taught him, spiritual cultivation doesn't rely on perseverance; taking shortcuts is the right way.

Yuan Ji did the math: "Three weeks have passed since filming ended, and the game still isn't finished?"

Tang Ping said, "It was almost finished. I paid enough money, and the post-production team worked overtime to finish editing all the materials in advance. But Shu Jiang felt that young people nowadays are more used to using mobile phones than computers. Anyway, the game system is simple and the porting difficulty is not high. We might as well make the mobile version as well. When it is released on multiple platforms, the sales will only be higher."

Yuan Ji chimed in, "Your sister makes a good point. Young people may not have computers, but they definitely have cell phones. Many young people don't even know some basic computer knowledge. You can't expect them to go to internet cafes just to play your games."

"It was precisely because I understood that she was right that I didn't stop her. I've staked my entire cultivation future on 'Invisible Guardian,' and I'm more eager for the game to succeed than anyone else."

"Speaking of your sister, her spiritual factors, like Ma Yiming's sister, should be almost stable by now."

"Judging by the time, it should be in the next day or two. I was planning to ask Feng Yingying to come over and help them calculate the most suitable spirit level, and then send them to the psychic training base to prevent an accident like mine from happening again."

Only through personal experience can one understand how distressing it is to advance to a spiritual level that is not suitable for oneself. Without the help of the super moon, absorbing the Dao seed, and taking elixirs, could one's current progress be 4% with only four months of spiritual power cultivation?

Tang Ping expressed doubt about this.

"Things are unpredictable."

Yuan Ji didn't know how to comfort her, after all, she was also an unlucky person who made the wrong decision, so she could only change the subject and say, "I hope that when you tell your sister about being a psionicist, she won't think you're having a chuunibyou (middle school syndrome) episode."

"It's alright, I'll just reveal my spiritual power and give her a fright."

"...A real man doesn't hold grudges."

Chapter Fifty-Eight: Spiritual Divination

"Dude, how old are you? Still acting like a teenager?"

Unfortunately, Yuan Ji guessed correctly. When Tang Ping told Yu Shujiang about the psionicists, Yu Shujiang looked at him like he was a rebellious teenager.

Tang Ping said helplessly, "Is it too late for me to act like a teenager at my age?"

Yu Shujiang nodded and said, "It's not too late. I still fantasize about being the female lead in a reverse harem novel."

"Don't project your situation onto me."