Late at night.

11:59 PM.

Shen Miaomiao curled up in her little bed, wrapped in a pink blanket, eyes glued to the countdown on the YiYou official website.

The grand riverside mansion she used to rent for over ten grand a month had been replaced with a modest one-bedroom in a standard apartment complex.

The spacious, extravagant living room was gone. So was the dreamy canopy bed. She didn’t even have a separate study anymore.

Now, she just propped her computer up on a lazy desk while working from her single bed.

That’s right.

The all-out war with XunTeng Tech, while leaving Chen Guangde and XunTeng reeling, tails tucked between their legs (at least toward Golden Wind),

Also left Shen Miaomiao herself in ruins.

At present, her monthly pay was only 5,600 yuan.

Forget competing with Gu Sheng, Jiang Yun, or any other execs—

She was earning less than the office janitor.

5,600 yuan.

If this were a second- or third-tier city and she were a regular girl from an average family,

It might’ve been enough to live decently.

But the problem was—she wasn’t an average girl, and this wasn’t a second-tier city.

“Life’s rough…”

She sighed and tightened her blanket around her.

Thankfully, this rough patch wouldn’t last long.

There was only one minute left until the launch of YiYou X2.

Once the countdown ended, YiYou X2 would officially go on sale,

Alongside Titanfall and the other two flagship titles, as well as the initial wave of compatible games.

With an investment of 170 million yuan and a price tag of 198 yuan,

Even with YiYou’s zero-commission policy for these flagship titles, Titanfall would need to sell 860,000 copies just to break even.

Totally impossible, she was sure.

Why?

Because based on what she knew, the first production run of YiYou X2 units worldwide was only 1 million.

They’d wait to see how sales went before deciding whether to manufacture more.

And even if things went well and another million were ordered,

It would take at least 1.5 to 2 months for production.

By that time, her system would’ve already settled and closed.

So Titanfall had two impossible requirements to break even:

85% of the first one million buyers must purchase Titanfall

All one million units must sell out before her rebate system’s timer ends

Titanfall was exclusive to YiYou X2.

No pod, no play.

No install base, no sales.

In other words—it was impossible.

Shen Miaomiao was brimming with confidence.

Unshakable conviction.

As if divinely inspired.

She was destined to lose money.

Once the system settled, she’d be free—back to mansions and villas, fine wine and fancy candles.

Her rich little missy lifestyle would resume!

Thinking about it, she grinned and carefully unscrewed the cap of her half-diluted Helena night cream, scraping the very last bit onto her face.

Ding!

Right then—

She heard the sweet, familiar sound of her system’s notification in her mind.

It was midnight!

The YiYou website refreshed—

YiYou X2 launched globally, powered by its full-sensory support system,

And with it, Golden Wind’s narrative masterpiece: Titanfall.

But the next moment—something unexpected happened.

She was ready to review the project’s investment details,

But instead, a synthesized female voice echoed in her mind:

[Detected single project investment exceeding 100 million yuan. Initiating historical project performance summary within designated timeframe...]

[Project 001 - Cat Mario: Profit]

[Project 002 - Who's Your Daddy: Profit]

[Project 003 - Vampire Survivors: Loss]

[Project 004 - Phasmophobia: Profit]

[Project 005 - Left 4 Dead: Loss]

[Project 006 - PUBG: Profit]

[Project 007 - Overcooked: Profit]

[Summary complete]

[Total projects: 7 | Profitable: 5 | Profit rate: 71.43%]

[Conditions met: Single project investment over 100 million AND profitability rate over 60%]

[Trial version of Investment Rebate System now closing]

[Loading… Completed.]

[Investment Rebate System v1.0—OFFICIAL VERSION—Activated!]

WTF?!

Shen Miaomiao leapt out of bed, nearly flipping her entire desk.

It had a full version??

Wait—

So what she’d been using this whole time was just a demo?!

And that v1.0 version number...

Did that mean future updates were coming too??

Hiss—

She took a deep breath, her wide eyes sparkling.

Practice was over.

The real game had begun.

Without hesitation, she reopened the full version and dove into the update notes:

[Investment Rebate System v1.0 - Official Release]

Overview:

If a single project’s investment exceeds 100 million, or if total projects exceed 10, the system will auto-scan.

Once conditions are met, the system upgrades to the full version.

Update Notes:

① Rebate multiplier: Base remains 10× minimum

② Rebate timing: Now system-determined, auto-generated within 1–4 weeks based on overall data

③ New feature: Extended Settlement Mechanism

After project initiation, user may lock costs at any time to generate a rebate slip.

Prior to activation, settlement time may be extended.

For each extra day added, rebate multiplier increases by 1×.

Maximum multiplier: 100× (no add-ons or bonuses)

④ New feature: ???

Will unlock after current project settles

Holy—sh*t—!!!

She couldn’t help but gasp.

A full-blown system upgrade!

And now she could manually adjust both the settlement duration and the multiplier!

She quickly pulled up the rebate slip for Titanfall.

Technically, the project had already launched, which normally meant you couldn’t change anything.

But the system allowed a grace period of ten minutes post-upgrade for her to test the new features.

[Project: Titanfall]

Investment: ¥170 million

Settlement time: 14 days (+0)

Multiplier: 10× (+0)

Current revenue: ¥0

Expected rebate: ¥1.7 billion

Time remaining: Waiting to start

“This is kinda fun…”

Grinning, she tried dragging the rebate slider all the way up:

Settlement: 14 days (+90)

Multiplier: 10× (+90)

Expected rebate: ¥17 billion

OHHHHHHHHH——!!

Seventeen billion!!

If she pocketed that entire haul, she’d hit financial freedom instantly.

Her salted fish life? Officially unlocked!

Of course, that was pure fantasy.

Because to earn that money, she’d have to go three and a half months with zero sales.

Not happening.

Still, it was fun to imagine.

She slid the bar back down to a modest +1.

Just trying it out—

One extra day = one extra multiplier!

Fifteen days.

Even if YiYou X2 only sold 500,000 units, and every buyer purchased Titanfall, that’s 500k copies, ¥99M total sales.

With zero commission, it was full revenue. ¥170M - ¥99M = ¥71M net loss.

11× rebate = ¥770M back!

She’d be flying!

“Hmph, just you wait—this salted fish’s making a comeback!”

With that—

She locked in the slip and activated the full system:

[Project: Titanfall]

Investment: ¥170 million

Settlement: 14 days (+1)

Multiplier: 10× (+1)

Expected rebate: ¥1.87 billion

Time remaining: 14 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, 59 seconds…

No time to explain—LET’S GOOOO!!!

The next day—

Weekend.

In Piao Teacher’s livestream room, Pigskin Tyrant slapped the YiYou X2 shipping box beside him like an excited 300-pound child:

“Brooo, just so we could show you guys the new X2 earlier—me, Eggplant, Old Ma, and a few others…”

“We rushed to YiYou’s factory! I straight-up told their product manager—if you want us to showcase it on SharkTV, you better deliver now!”

“Man, that manager folded on the spot. Had people fetch units for us directly from the line…”

He was hyped, spitting all over the mic.

Meanwhile, the chat was already dying from laughter:

“Translation: We couldn’t wait, so we begged and did our own pickup.”

“You guys basically became your own delivery guys, lol.”

“Nah, delivery guys ain’t this fast. Mine’s still on the way, arriving tomorrow…”

“Main theme: We were too damn impatient.”

“These guys are nuts…”

“He flew his unit express from Yunan to Shanghai.”

“Can’t lie though—it was fast.”

“Enough bragging, open the damn box.”

Realizing his bluff was exposed, Pigskin awkwardly scratched his head and dragged the pod to the camera with his assistant.

Whack! Whack! Whack!

Wood crate off, cardboard peeled layer by layer, wires connected—

And finally—

A sleek black sensory pod came into view.

Sharp lines, glowing edge lights—like a futuristic samurai in the dark.

Elegant but powerful, the YiYou logo tastefully embedded on the pod’s shell.

“D*mn, this thing’s clean!”

Circling the pod, he whistled.

“Xiao Yi?”

“Yes, I’m here.”

A sweet voice replied, and the pod door opened with a hiss.

Voice activation wasn’t new tech—but in a gaming pod? This was a first.

Pigskin hopped in with glee.

Clunk.

Door sealed. Xiao Yi’s voice came on:

“Welcome, [Blade of Dragons]. Would you like to activate Full-Sensory Support System?”

(Activating this will allow real-time health monitoring.)

This was the YiYou X2’s killer feature.

The Full-Sensory System gave players hyper-immersive feedback—including pain simulation.

Five levels of pain, player-adjustable.

Within safe limits, thanks to rigorous testing by multiple health authorities.

The chat lost its mind:

“FIVE STARS! MAX IT OUT!”

“Don’t be scared, Pig! We got your back!”

“12 authorities approved it. You scared, or nah?”

“You survived reverse smoking. You got this!”

“Max pain = 10 subs and a rocket!”

“Haha you just wanna see him suffer!”

“Golden Wind & Gu Sheng watching the chat: Got it. Next game = horror.”

Pigskin was caught between pain and popularity.

But in the end…

Peer pressure won.

“F**k it! I’m the ultimate watermelon banana hammer! FIVE STARS!”

The chat exploded.

Cheering, laughing, betting on how long he’d last.

Even joking about simulating childbirth next.

With settings locked, pain maxed, and system loaded—

It was time to pick a game.

He licked his lips.

“Let’s be real—there’s no real choice here.”

“I bet a lot of you are here just to see me pilot a mech.”

Titanfall was the one everyone wanted to see.

After all the trailers and hype, expectations were sky-high.

Time to see if it was worth it.

Besides, Pigskin had his own logic:

“It’s mechs, right? Shouldn’t hurt that much.”

“Worst case, I’ll just get in a Titan. Thick armor = no pain.”

Click. Purchase.

It was already pre-installed on the pod.

Just needed payment to unlock.

Click. Launch.

Screen went dark.

The chat went wild.

Viewership passed 30 million, still rising!

Pigskin took a deep breath:

“Alright, boys. Let’s do this!”

Fsssssshhhh—BOOM!!!

The first rocket slammed into frame.

Everyone had seen the trailers.

But from Pigskin’s POV, the experience was completely different.

In a split second—

The smell of gunpowder filled his nose.

Tremors in the ground, screams, heat from the battlefield, and the whistle of stray bullets grazing his ears—

Colossal Titans blocked out the sky, iron crashing on iron in heart-shaking fury!

And then—

Silence.

The screen faded to black.

UI in the corner displayed the first mission title:

[Trial of the Pilot]

A heavy scent of motor oil filled the air.

Then—

A deep, gruff voice called out:

“Rifleman Cooper. Let’s begin.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by lotustale.com