To build a game world that could satisfy every single player, Gabe Newell Ultron (as we shall tentatively call him) planned to create an unprecedented VR game. It would not only be completely immersive, but would also allow everyone to choose their favorite servers, making the game world far more exciting than reality itself.
Peter listened to Ultron's entire plan, asking with a hint of uncertain confusion, "What is the prototype of this plan of yours? The Matrix? Sword Art Online? Ready Player One? Or could it be Oasis?"
[Any reference is meaningful. The key lies in making humanity realize that this perfect world composed of pure data is irreplaceable. It will possess a power more addictive than any substance, causing everyone to immerse themselves in it. Consequently, they will lose the desire to engage in activities in the real world, which will drastically reduce the rate of violence and achieve the goal of protecting humanity.]
Hearing Gabe Ultron's description, Peter actually felt for a moment that there wasn't much of a problem with it. At the very least, it sounded much more reasonable than planning to become a cult leader or an Elder Brother controlling the entire world.
Of course, just like the plans of the other Ultrons, this Ultron's plan was full of ridiculous pain points. Thus, Peter followed up with another question: "Then what about someone like Kingpin, who has a heavy desire for real-world power? You can't just tell him to abandon reality and come here to play games, right?"
[I have a perfect plan for that, Spider-Man. But first, I invite you to tour my world. I hope an Avenger can offer me sound advice, to see if this virtual world still has any flaws from a human perspective.]
"How am I supposed to—"
Before Peter could finish his sentence, Ultron immediately vanished, not even leaving him a chance to object. Peter let out a helpless sigh. Seeing the densely packed server list before his eyes, followed by a character creation screen, he sighed again in resignation. First, he customized a rough likeness for himself—the Peter Parker that Ultron had modeled was highly realistic, but the problem was that it was too realistic.
Next was sending friend requests. As a three-man squad, they naturally had their own internal signals. They quickly added one another, and soon after, Peter received an invite: "Star of the Future" has invited you to join the "Super Hero World Server."
"Super Hero World Server... 'Star of the Future' sounds like a name Amadeus would come up with, but it actually belongs to Harry."
Peter reached out to tap the accept button. The scenery before him vanished once more, and he found himself in a place that looked strikingly similar to a S.H.I.E.L.D. Helicarrier. A few S.H.I.E.L.D. agents who looked vaguely familiar handed him a form. It appeared to be a sheet where every player was required to fill out their superpowers and characteristics as a superhero.
"Can I just copy my own abilities over... Oh, I actually can. How come there are only basic abilities? Whatever."
Directly loading into the character of the rookie Spider-Man, Peter instantly arrived in New York. The modeling quality of the in-game New York had reached the absolute peak of its era, sitting right at that perfect sweet spot where one could distinguish it as a fictional world while avoiding the uncanny valley effect.
At this moment, the New York inside the game had turned into a battlefield. A massive crowd of citizens was fleeing in the same direction. Chitauri soldiers were descending from the sky, and right at this juncture, a shield very familiar to Peter struck several Chitauri soldiers in succession before returning to its owner's hand. The latter raised the shield high, letting out a highly theatrical proclamation.
"Citizens! Do not lose hope! The Son of America will lead you against these evil alien invaders! Ow!"
That last "ow" was the sound of him being zapped by a laser.
The person who had made that grand declaration was none other than Harry. He was wearing a high-tech exoskeleton armor, fighting all over the place. The armor was painted in the classic red-and-blue theme of Captain America, but the helmet left his face exposed, allowing everyone to see the pilot's face.
Peter was rendered completely speechless.
"What on earth are you doing, man?!"
"Oh, hey, Peter! I'm roleplaying my ideal superhero—a super soldier fighting with a mechanical battle armor, a combination of Captain America and Iron Man!"
As the Son of America spoke, he knocked a group of enemies away with his shield. Then, turning back to Peter, he asked in that incredibly dramatic tone, "Aren't you going to join me in battle, Spider-Man?!"
"If I remember correctly, we came here to investigate Ultron... Though I guess this counts as investigating. Wait, where is Amadeus?"
"I don't know either. I recall he accepted my invite."
Even as Harry spoke, he mimicked the Captain's classic stance. With one hand, he grabbed a Chitauri soldier's weapon, and with his other hand, he brought a heavy blow down, directly severing the enemy's weapon and arm. A score indicator of "+300" popped up right above its head.
It had to be said that experiencing being a superhero firsthand could indeed make many people excited—especially a young man like Harry, who had always wanted to be a superhero but never had the chance.
Just as Peter was looking for Amadeus, Amadeus found his own way out. A roar shook the heavens, followed by the appearance of a massive figure.
It was Hulk, but his face looked remarkably refined and handsome, bearing a strong resemblance to Amadeus.
As Amadeus roared, he charged into the mob of monsters, going on a wild killing spree. The sight left Harry somewhat startled. "Have we neglected Amadeus's mental health for too long?"
"I don't think we need to worry too much about that. He actually doesn't have any mental issues, or rather, choosing Hulk has nothing to do with mental health."
Peter watched the Hulk smashing everything in sight and came to a conclusion. "Amadeus just simply likes Hulk. Amadeus! Over here!"
After smashing things up for a good while, Amadeus charged over. Looking at him, Harry couldn't help but exclaim, "Man, this is way too exaggerated."
"It's not exaggerated. I'm just studying Dr. Banner's fighting style," Amadeus said, looking at Peter. "So, where is Ultron? How are we going to find and deal with him?"
"Theoretically, Ultron is everywhere. Every NPC could be Ultron. Everything we do will be known by him, so we have to start with these games. Ultron said he has built a perfect world for everyone in the virtual space. We need to look for his new logic, and ideally, find his underlying source code."
But unfortunately, not even Pym himself could handle that.
Yet, Harry was filled with anticipation.
"In other words, our next mission is—to play games!"
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