Chapter 39: Game Development Complete

"It is good that you have confidence, Mr. Gu, but..."

Huan Shou was the first to recover from the mesmerizing brilliance of the second-generation solar technology.

"Say no more. Seeing is believing. Since you are all so worried, it is time I show you the source of my confidence. Follow me—follow me to the basement. I have a real treasure to show you."

"Huh? Mr. Gu, the three of us, together?"

"This doesn't seem quite right." Huan Shou felt a flutter of apprehension, wanting to tell Brother Gu not to do this.

"There is nothing wrong with it."

Gu Meng smiled, grabbing Huan Shou with one hand and Rupa with the other, leading them both down to the basement.

...

"Hiss... this is incredible."

"What is this?"

"Too powerful! Mr. Gu, you are just too powerful!"

"This is simply—this is simply a new world!"

The two continued to gasp in amazement.

"Pretty impressive, right? And your Brother Gu has even better things in store!"

Beyond the dimensional motion-capture room that could easily optimize animations and drastically reduce their workload, Gu Meng also demonstrated how to use the "Skill Tree Code."

This was another piece of zenith-level black technology. Although it was a product from a bronze treasure chest and clearly inferior to what might be found in a silver one, it acted as a semi-disposable tool, and its practical results were equally stunning.

"Let me ask you, what is the most difficult part of this game right now?"

"Following the wuxia world you envisioned, Mr. Gu, we don't need to worry about the plot or the romance; you can handle the script for this installment yourself. The rest of the writing team, aside from Ms. Meng, can also take care of some of the side quests."

The writing department was the backbone of Maodou's staff. They were proficient in their roles, and their work on previous film-based games had never faced any major issues; in fact, it had consistently been a highlight for Maodou Games.

In the last project, *Pure Love*, aside from Meng Juju messing around with the heroine's storyline, the side quests were quite good, which was why Gu Meng had only fired her.

"We can manage the maps. Since it isn't a truly seamless open world, we only need to focus on key locations, and we can reuse certain ancient Chinese architectural designs."

"It isn't a mythological setting, so the standard sects don't need to look like wonders of the world. And since it isn't a 'box garden' design, we can keep it simple. A few traps can act as insurmountable barriers; unless the player has a specific divine skill or a trap-disarming ability to pass the check, they won't get out. That actually makes things simpler..."

"In our previous concepts, the most critical part of a wuxia game was the diverse array of martial arts techniques."

"Combat moves that are both practical and conform to Chinese aesthetics, with each sect having its own unique style. Down to every master, they might have their own signature move—some vicious, some dazzling, some masculine, some feminine, and special techniques like 'hitting fast with slow' or 'striking after the opponent.'"

"The sheer volume of work required to produce these animations is immense; it really shouldn't be within the reach of current Chinese wuxia games."

"The smart approach would be turn-based or semi-turn-based, using a fixed set of moves with different visual effects to represent divine skills, just like current wuxia TV dramas. The actors don't actually move; they skip the high-difficulty choreography and use slow motion and special effects to indicate who is stronger."

"Ah Shou is right. Our team has too many newcomers and lacks experience with action games. I originally thought the same, so why not put our limited technical resources into the special effects?"

"Amplify the effects of internal energy, shorten the animations, and completely abandon the idea of letting advanced players customize their own move sets. Use a template for every sword style, add super-armor to every clash... that would be much easier."

"But by adding this code of yours, Mr. Gu, and combining it with the real-world Shaolin fist techniques, Wudang sword styles, and other martial arts schools, integrated with the extraordinary physical strength and short-range internal energy projection of these character settings..."

"It will naturally derive the thrilling, exciting moves described in wuxia novels from these contemporary 'foundational martial arts.'"

"Players with less dexterity can still overpower others through sheer force, using auto-mode or semi-auto QTE modes, or by learning 'Golden Bell Cover,' 'Iron Shirt,' or 'Diamond Indestructible Body'—hard-style internal and external arts where one force overcomes ten."

"Watching the AI-driven combat, which unfolds automatically based on the 'Martial Arts Proficiency' attribute, is like watching a wuxia action film that never repeats itself, even over hundreds or thousands of battles."

"And when the mood strikes, you can step in and take control at any time, seamlessly joining the fray."

"The price of a game to watch so many action films reminiscent of the golden age of Hong Kong cinema? Even if it killed me, it would be worth the ticket price!"

"And high-level players won't just rely on button-mashing; they can combine different internal and external arts to counter specific bosses for better results."

"If a protagonist doesn't have that many martial arts combinations, we also have the companion and soulmate settings."

"Players can take control of their teammates to fight, allowing them to build a few sets of main offensive internal and external arts, or have a teammate specifically train in techniques that counter a major NPC to win through smart tactics."

"In the late game, once you possess divine skills, imagine the gorgeous scenes in a single frame where various martial arts techniques are unleashed simultaneously..."

As the two spoke, they became captivated by the wonderful results the game could ultimately achieve.

If this game could be completed under the hands of You Xuan, they, as part of the team, would share in the glory.

Do not forget, the first game they lived together and created after graduation was also a wuxia game.

Even with pixel art, they had worked hard to give those little characters cool-looking moves when using their skills.

Wuxia is a romance unique to the Chinese people. To be able to participate in a game that could be called the "master of masters" was, for a developer, "worth the ticket price even if I die!"

Gu Meng smiled, seeing that the two had truly grasped the terrifying potential of the system's reward.

Unfortunately, this was the only time. The code had been selected and integrated into the *Legends of Martial Arts* project. It wouldn't be so simple to cram so many different styles—each conforming to novel settings and mutual restrictions—into a single game next time; it would require slow, incremental design.

By then, the employees participating in this project, or other peers who had heard rumors, would likely be guided by the system's non-disclosure agreement.

They would believe that this *Legends of Martial Arts* skill tree code was the product of Gu Meng’s lifelong research into Chinese wuxia.

Even for a genius like Mr. Gu, it would seem like something that required immense effort to tailor-make.

And since the settings were all from those twenty-some wuxia novels, it would only perfectly fit the works of the two masters, Jin Long and Gu Yong. It wouldn't work as well for other games; even if forced, the effect would be a layer less refined.

Gu Meng's thinking was simple: since it could only be used perfectly in this game, then use it to the extreme. Restore the vast majority of the divine skills and techniques written by the two masters and max out the "cheats"!

When this "System Brother" allows for a free ride, one must stand up and pedal for all one is worth.

...

With the target plan and the cheats all arranged, the game development proceeded smoothly.

Actually, it had already been underway, but now, with everyone united, there was even more motivation.

In theory, even if the most critical animation modules were well-handled by the two cheats, and the plot—the most important part of a traditional wuxia game—had wuxia novels as source material (the system could write fan fiction very cheaply), there was still much to do. For a game of this scale, Gu Meng’s cheats could solve eighty percent of the problems, but the remaining twenty percent was still no small feat.

With the two high-level workers, Huan Shou and Rupa, leading the team, they managed to rush to completion. Bugs were flying everywhere, optimization was a mess, and constant small issues arose, but at a glance, it looked decent.

At that moment, Gu Meng fulfilled his promise: "I am here to assist you!"

"Bring on the cheat!"

"Activate!"

Optimizing the demo through micro-transactions was the system's primary job. *Pure Love* had sold over ten million copies, with sales exceeding 800 million. After taxes and revenue sharing, there were 500 million left. Subtracting the bank loans and keeping half as working capital, it was more than enough.

"Start by pouring in 100 million. If that's not enough, there's more."

...

In December 2020, *Legends of Martial Arts: True* was completed.