Chapter 63: First Experience in the Holographic Zone

On August 31st, Jiang Hui didn't sleep at all the night before, only dozing in her spiritual space for a few hours. The rest of the time was spent either packing her things or pondering what else she needed to buy, giving her a strong illusion of returning to her student days. Well... she was indeed living a second life as a student.

It wasn't exactly nervousness, but tomorrow was clearly a new beginning for her—a fresh start to life in this world—so she naturally cared about it to some extent.

Therefore, breaking with her usual routine, she didn't study the holographic capsule yesterday and headed back to her room early to make preparations.

Speaking of the holographic capsule, it was actually one of Jiang Hui's miscalculations.

She had originally bought the thing to better understand the interstellar era—well, to get in touch with the kind of high-tech products unique to this society.

As a result, once she got her hands on it, things got completely out of hand. Jiang Hui became utterly immersed in the highly developed virtual world unique to the interstellar civilization.

This interstellar society had basically realized all the holographic technologies that Earthlings had once fantasized about, and could even accomplish things Earthlings had never even imagined.

Moreover, the user's experiences and sensory inputs inside the holographic zone could essentially match real life, allowing one to travel a thousand miles without stepping out of the door. Consequently, interstellar people had developed an entire suite of occupations in the virtual world, eliminating the absolute necessity of going out for physical work. One could make a living from home—provided one had the skills.

Because holographic technology was, after all, a virtual world, many things impossible in the physical reality of the interstellar world could be easily achieved within the holographic zones. Thus, people found it much easier to attain a sense of fulfillment and self-realization in the virtual realm.

This sounded quite simply like a paradise for internet-addicted introverts and homebodies.

Jiang Hui suddenly began to understand why the interstellar authorities managed accounts for unfully awakened individuals so strictly, limiting both time and regions. They were worried that minors, whose worldviews and values had not yet fully formed, would be excessively influenced by the holographic world.

After all, whether in the interstellar era or on Earth, the youth were always the nation's foundational pillars. If these unformed youngsters entrusted their time to virtual illusions and immersed themselves in an unreal world, that nation would not be far from ruin.

In her previous life, Jiang Hui was considered a relatively mature member of society, having long since passed the stage of being easily tempted and absorbed by pure entertainment.

Unprepared, she was still captivated by the interstellar society's diverse forms of entertainment and programs, finding herself somewhat unable to pull away.

It wasn't until she received the enrollment notice from the Besca Intermediate Academy last week that Jiang Hui snapped back to reality, realizing she had been immersed in the holographic zone for several days straight. Every time she logged in, she completely lost track of time, and lately, she hadn't been studying properly at all.

Looking back, aside from the momentary joy brought by exploring brand-new technology, she had accomplished practically nothing. Those ten-odd days had been even less meaningful than her first few days upon arriving in the interstellar world.

What on earth was she doing?! Jiang Hui deeply reflected on her recent decadent lifestyle.

Actually, things weren't as severe as she imagined. The interstellar holographic zones certainly weren't limited to games. Being a virtual social zone open to the entire public, it naturally encompassed comprehensive programs: work, study, fine cuisine, music, entertainment, literature, alongside interstellar-characteristic projects like mechas, starships, simulated military games, and hyper-thrilling simulated interstellar wars.

Interstellar citizens could enter the holographic zone via holographic capsules to freely customize their appearance, visage, and even gender, and then choose to roam freely among the nine basic domains of the holographic zone.

They could shop, taste gourmet food, customize gorgeous outfits to wear online, engage in remote work through smart platforms built within the holographic zone, and access a variety of large-scale gaming projects to unwind.

Among them, the most popular area among awakened individuals was the simulated mecha combat zone. Many awakened individuals actively initiated battles there, and the war zone regularly hosted mecha wars of various scales, featuring both individual and team matches. Winners had the opportunity to secure bonuses and prizes provided by the organizers, and even educational opportunities at higher institutions.

The former was naturally Jiang Hui's main activity area. She had spent a lot of time trying out projects across all functions of the holographic zone, experiencing everything related to clothing, food, housing, and transportation, and then dabbled in several of the most popular interstellar holographic games.

As for the simulated mecha combat zone, she had only visited it once. It wasn't that Jiang Hui lacked interest; it was simply that the place wasn't meant for ordinary people. On her very first day, she couldn't suppress her curiosity and went for a look.

The moment she stepped inside, everyone she saw was big and brawny. Moreover, perhaps to psych themselves up, almost everyone active there had set their avatars to look extremely fierce and intimidating. By contrast, Jiang Hui—who hadn't adjusted her appearance at all—looked like a malnourished little cabbage, entirely out of place and feeling quite pressured.

Of course, Jiang Hui also knew that due to technological limitations, apart from the simulated combat arenas that allowed spiritual power conversion, ordinary individuals could not attack one another at will.

Furthermore, mutual attacks within the simulated battlefields were strictly restricted. Once an opponent conceded defeat, attacks had to cease immediately, and lethal actions were strictly prohibited because such incidents could trigger mental disorders or even brain death in the awakened individuals' physical lives. Anyone defiant enough to violate these rules would likely receive a ticket from the holographic patrol police, potentially escalating to physical detention in severe cases.

Therefore, she didn't actually need to be afraid. In real life, she might occasionally encounter criminals, but the holographic zone was thoroughly monitored, and the actions of all interstellar citizens who uploaded their consciousness were practically transparent to the main brain system.

Yet the moment she entered—whether because she was targeted or due to some other reason—before she could even admire the scenery of this region, she was hit by a dozen battle challenges in a row.

Jiang Hui: ?!

Before she could click "reject," another massive wave of battle challenges flooded in, piling up a huge stack on her backend interface. Had she poked a hornet's nest, or was her ID too provocative? Neither was true; her ID was simply "Contentment Brings Happiness," styled like a typical middle-aged social group, and even her profile picture was a standard scenery photograph. Her physical avatar was set to a plain-looking average passerby... Could even that provoke other people's malice?

Jiang Hui didn't quite understand and was deeply shocked.

Were newcomers really treated this enthusiastically here? The problem was that she knew nothing about mecha combat; accepting those challenges would purely be asking for abuse.

So, looking at the rapidly accumulating pile of battle challenges, she was scared into a nervous twitch and hurriedly logged out of the zone.

This world was truly too terrifying; she was much better off staying safely in the regular zone, admiring the scenery and enjoying delicious food.

And so, Jiang Hui spent the last week or so before the start of term alternating between the holographic capsule and browsing youth forums.

Waking up fully refreshed from her spiritual space, Jiang Hui neatly organized the items needed for the start of school, classified them, and stuffed them into her spatial bracelet, ready to welcome the first day of school tomorrow.