A Failure's hopeful Journey

You Xi Wang entered the R&D lab with a smile on his face. There were only two chief executives who did not attend the meeting, they were Minerva and Matthew Salah, Chief Researcher, and Chief Developer of the company, respectively.

They both turned to see the boy who just entered the lab. Minerva was a woman of grace and elegance. She had long electric blue hair reaching her waist, a narrow chin, and a well-proportioned forehead, almond eyes sharing the same color as her hair. Her slender lips added to her charm. She was a work of art. She was wearing black trousers with black high heels, a turquoise blue blouse, and a white lab coat. 

Beside her in front of a table sat a man who seemed to lament on something, he had blue-black hair in a crew cut style a pair of glasses sat on his sharp nose, his blue eyes were a shade darker than his wife's, wide jaw-line made him look a strong man. He was wearing an olive green shirt and golden brown trousers paired with black leather shoes and a black belt on his waist. He also donned a lab coat. 

Minerva looked towards You Xi Wang and let out a smile and her gaze turned soft as she teased, "Boss Xi Wang is here to inspect our work on the first day?"

You Xi Wang laughed and said, "How dare I inspect my aunt Min?"

They both laughed and Minerva moved on to give him a warm hug. After separating she said, "I heard what you guys went through in the woods. Xiao Wang, thank you for saving my Fenny."

"Oh, please, if big momma got a wind of me accepting thank you from you, this baby Wang will lose his skin." his words triggered another round of laughter among the two while Matthew only smiled. 

Matthew was an introvert, while Minerva was his exact opposite. Now you can understand from where Fenny gained her personality. Minerva and You Xi Wang camp towards the table. You Xi Wang saw some parts were scattered over and a burned-out smell was lingering in the air. 

He asked, "What happened here?"

Matthew replied, "We were experimenting on a new idea we came up for making the Holo-phone more advanced but it didn't work. Anyway, what brings you in the lab, Xiao Wang?"

You Xi Wang spoke, "Two things. First, we stop focusing on the mainstream ideas and products for a bit, leave it for the juniors, because the whole of Metropia is chasing mainstream. Second, I want you to design a piece of equipment that can let humans use a virtual world when they sleep."

Minerva and her husband were dumbstruck by this idea. They exchanged a glance and Minerva nodded towards Matthew as he replied, "Xiao Wang, you might not be aware, but the Council of Metropia said that human brains need time to repair or it might affect them negatively. Even if we develop something like you said, they will never approve of it."

You Xi Wang smiled and said, "These people are so damn focused on cultivation that they forget a simple fact that we are nothing but mortals before we ascend. There is a difference between normal human brain functions and cultivation activities."

He paused and continued, "As you and all the scientists and biologists of the world are aware before humans cultivate. They all use basic energy produced by consuming food. This energy is not very good in healing and repairing the body in a short duration. This is also the reason people use special elixirs to strengthen themselves before they start cultivation."

"Now cultivators use spiritual essence, which is a thousand times more efficient than the usual energy produced by the human body. Now that the difference is clear, let me state the purpose of sleep. The human body needs sleep to heal the neural network of our brain. Just like every circuit, the neural human brain also has a limit of usage. Now if we design a piece of equipment that can be helpful with this matter, wouldn't it be groundbreaking? Also, if people can use a virtual network during the process. I guess you can speculate the impact."

The couple was looking at him with wide eyes. Minerva lifted her hands and held his face in her palms. She said, "You are really the maestro. Xiao Wang, you are a genius." her eyes were filled with glee. She pecked his forehead and left the lab, "I am going to research on this right away." were the words left behind by her.

Matthew shook his head with a smile on his face. He looked toward You Xi Wang and said, "Xiao Wang, this idea of yours is really ingenious. We will leave a mark on civilization if this works. But what about the virtual space? I understand that it can be created by a software developer, but the level of programming needed will be very high. We don't have that high-level technician in the company right."

You Xi Wang said, "We have machines in the world that are used to scan human physique in hospitals. If we can use those machines to upload the data to create a virtual avatar. Then we code our machine to interpret the signals sent by our brain to operate that virtual avatar the same way we use our bodies. It can work. Things such as pain and touch can be programmed and then converted into signals to transmit to our brain, creating a virtual world. This process is attainable if we have allies."

Matthew was listening to his explanation keenly. The more he thought, the more he was fascinated. He smiled and said, "It sounds plausible with the current technology we can use it. But where will we find such skilled people?"

You Xi Wang smiled and said, "Pro-Code private limited."

Matthew felt his body free and said, "Xiao Wang, you mean, that stereo-typical old punk? he will never help us."

You Xi Wang chuckled and replied, "He will have to, according to the word in the market his company is on the verge of closing. Not because of funds, but because 'Code-win' poached half of their people. They now cannot gain new clients, and the old projects are also almost done. So, which employee will stay there to work? That old man might not want to change his ways, but if he wants to save his company, he will have to change. People who love their faces more than their lives will do stuff they never imagined."

Matthew shook his head and said, "That old man is going to regret it this time. You are a natural businessman, Xiao Wang."

After a small talk, You Xi Wang left Matthew to delegate the work on juniors and set-up a group of people for the new project. He headed towards his own cabin on the top floor. On the way he was greeted by every employee he came across, they were all thrilled and expressed their satisfaction when You Xi Wang asked them about the changes he made.

Metropia had a pension system, but the number of credits dispensed by the council was limited. So, when they all found out a source of extra security from the company, they were all thrilled. He came inside his cabin and sat heavily on the chair, and he exhaled deeply. He was waiting for his assistant Stella to come over with the financial report. 

He stood up and came to stand beside the window facing the garden. Gazing outside he thought, 'Despite being so advanced this world has a lot of flaws.'

[Master, nothing in this world is perfect] system replied.

'I know, constant improvement is the only perfection. This world may look very good, but it is very limited. This limit holds this world from growth." You Xi Wang lamented.

[So, what do you aim for master?] system questioned.

'Breaking this limit sounds good for an instance. Don't you agree?' he spoke with indifference.

[*sob* *sob*...] system issued some sobbing voices.

You Xi Wang was shocked, and he asked, 'What happened? Hey, system, are you okay?'

[Master, *sob* you have grown so much in such a short time. You have become so good at pretending to be an elite. I *sob* FEEL *sob* SO ASHAMED. OH GOD ALMIGHTY PLEASE ERASE ME IF YOU EXIST.] the system used his acidic tongue.

You Xi Wang stumbled, and he almost coughed blood from anger. After that, he rained curses on the system, who replied in kind. Stella knocked on the door and the cursing ceased. You Xi Wang took a deep breath and said, "Come in." 

Stella entered and handed You Xi Wang a glass screen, "This is the report on everything we have in savings, Boss."

You Xi Wang busied himself in analyzing the report in his hands. You Zhichi came to call him to head home in the evening, but he told her. He will stay late because he had a lot of work to do. She tried to convince him but left helplessly.