Chapter 344: Chapter 344: An Unprecedented Game (Part 2)
Translator: 549690339
In the game, Xiang Kunâs voice was still gently narrating the plot. Although there was not yet a place for her to make choices, the background sound, or more appropriately, the commentary style and rhythm gave her a deep immersion. She was seriously listening to the story, without any impatience.
âBefore your consciousness becomes fuzzy, a caravan appears on the distant horizon. You can see itâs a group of merchants. Then, you lose consciousness and faint.â
Fainted just like that? How long will she be out?
Tang Baona looked up upon hearing this at Old Xia, who was also sitting on another sofa, holding his phone and listening attentively to the game audio with his headphones on. She wondered what part of the plot he was currently hearing. Then she looked at Yang Zhenâer, who was sitting in the restaurant with her feet on the table, holding her phone and grinning like an idiot, curious about what she was listening to.
At that moment, a familiar voice came through the headphones: âYour consciousness slowly recovers, and when you open your eyes, you see a face covered with a veil and a turban. Those eyes seem to be able to see through everything. A male voice next to you says:
âMiss, how are you feeling? This is our Master Xia Dong. She was the one who decided to rescue you.ââ
The male voice was still Xiang Kunâs, but due to changes in speech rhythm and pronunciation emphasis, Tang Baona could instantly tell it was an older man. Combining this with the storyâs context, she imagined a shopkeeper in his fifties.
At this moment, the ordinary background sound rang again: âYou set your sights on the veiled woman and begin to speakâŠâ
Tang Baona was taken aback for a moment, then remembered the content she had heard half an hour ago upon entering the game during the phase where the settings and gameplay were explained. She realized that now was her turn to speak.
So, like how she would send voice messages on WeChat, she pressed a button and began to speak: âThank you, Master Xia Dong, for rescuing me.â
After releasing her hand and inputting the audio content, she began to wait curiouslyâthis was her first time taking part in the game process. She wanted to see what Xiang Kunâs âItâs up to you to decide how the story developsâ mechanism was like.
In her earphones, the narrator started: âThe woman with the veil replied to youâŠâ Then, after a pause of two seconds, a familiar voice sounded: âYouâre welcome.â
Before Tang Baona had time to wait for the next prompt from the narrator, she pressed the input button and continued to ask: âOld Xia? Is that you?â
Two seconds later, Old Xiaâs voice came: âStrictly speaking, you shouldnât know me now.â
Tang Baona was stunned. Was it really Old Xia?
There was no surprise in Old Xia being âMaster Xia Dongâ as she knew that the three of them were the only âplayersâ in the game and it was normal to âencounterâ each other.
But the problem was that at the beginning, the narrator had introduced that her character, âTang Ying,â had been injured while escaping after trying to assassinate the leader of the Blood Hand Group, âXia Libing.â
It was clear therefore that this âMaster Xia Dongâ with the caravan and the âXia Libing,â whom she tried to assassinate, were not the same person, otherwise the story wouldnât have proceeded this way.
If this âMaster Xia Dongâ is Old Xia, then who is the leader of the Blood Hand Group, âXia Libingâ?
Tang Baona looked at Yang Zhenâer, who was sitting in the restaurant staring at her phone with a cunning smile, and immediately understood. Yang Zhenâer had used the name âXia Libingâ in the game. She was the leader of the Blood Hand Group.
Tang Baona was speechless. This girl even took the real name of another âplayerâ. Clearly, she was planning on playing dirty.
As she thought, she wanted to ask Old Xia for his current name, but suddenly found the voice input button was stuck. After a few seconds, when she thought the game had a glitch and was about to ask Xiang Kun, the narratorâs background voice came on:
âTang Ying found out that the caravan leader who saved her was an old acquaintance from the martial arts world, âXia Shiwanâ. After talking, she learned that the identity of âXia Shiwanâ as the caravan leader was false. Everyone in the caravan was actually her companion. Their journey, like Tang Yingâs, was aimed at assassinating the monstrous leader of the Blood Hand Group, âXia Libingâ. Therefore, Tang Ying told the other party about her previous attempt to assassinate âXia Libingâ, and the two parties began to discuss how to achieve their common goal.â
âXia Siwanâ? What the hell? Four balls? Old Xiaâs naming process was weird. Wait, not four balls, but âShiwanâ? Because he was trying the game out, so he chose the name âShiwanâ, Xia Shiwan? Alright, if Zhenâerâs naming method was too cunning, then Old Xiaâs naming method was just too unique.
With these revelations, Tang Baona was stunned. So, according to this setting, do the characters she and Old Xia play already know each other? Was this the original setting, or did the setting change based on the two sentences she just said?
Thinking about the descriptive style of the background voice when she first woke up from the âcoma,â and the few seconds of pause earlier, she guessed that the latter was more likely.
However, to judge and modify the subsequent drama in such a short time based on what she said, and to listen to it without feeling much inconsistency, this game was highly intelligent!
She also noticed that the tone of the narrator seemed to have shifted to narrating the entire story, instead of solely speaking to her. It seemed that what she and Old Xia heard was the same narration?
She heard the background voice of the narrator again: âXia Shiwan checked Tang Yingâs injuries and confirmed that she was stable and not in critical danger. She then called the two strongest members in the caravan to the carriage to discuss the plan to deal with the leader of the Blood Hand Group, âXia Libingâ.â
Next, the narrator introduced some details regarding Tang Yingâs previous assassination attempt. Truth be told, even as the creator of the character, Tang Baona was just now learning about these details from the narrator.
Finally, when she got a chance to speak and the input key was reactivated, Tang Baona decided to continue with the plot. So, immersing herself in her character, she asked, ââMiss Shiwanâ⊠In your opinion, how should we assassinate âXia Libingâ⊠the leader of the Blood Hand Group?â
She wanted to raise a few suggestions on how to deal with the leader of the Blood Hand Group, but when she mentioned the character names chosen by Old Xia and Zhenâer, she could hardly suppress her laughter; it was too hard to bear.
The voice of Xia Libing came: âAccording to Lady Tangâs story, âXia Libingâ would probably send people to chase you. If our caravan continues as originally planned, weâll likely encounter the Blood Hand Group between tonight and tomorrow morning. I have a suggestion. Lady Tang, would you help us set up a trapâŠâ
Old Xia was very serious in experiencing the game. Based on the initial introduction by the narrator, in addition to some of his own imaginative scenarios, he came up with a delegation that opportunistically exploited the Blood Hand Groupâs motive of chasing âTang Ying.â He had a spectacular and seemingly feasible plan to lure the âleader of the Blood Hand Group, Xia Libing.â
Tang Baona responded, ââMiss Shiwanâ is indeed worthy of being called the Heroine Prodigy. Certainly, itâs a great plan!â
âWe will follow âMiss Shiwanâsâ plan. This time, we must kill Demon Head Xia!â
Two distinct voices resonated one after another. Though they were both underpinned by Xiang Kunâs voice, they were quite different, one being more rough, the other more sharp, reflecting the two experts referred to in the previous narration, who were invited onto the horse carriage by âXia Shiwanâ.
Reluctantly, Tang Baona went along with it and exclaimed, âIn honor of Miss Shiwanâs invitationâŠPuff!â She couldnât help but burst into laughter.
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Unexpectedly, a few seconds later, the rough male voice expressed his concern, âLady Tang, it seems that your internal injuries are quite severe, youâre spitting blood again?â
Tang Baona was a bit flustered. Could her casual reactions indeed have influenced the storyâs development and incited a corresponding reaction from the NPC? This certainly gave the illusion that the NPC was played by a real human.
Xia Libing, however, calmly stated, âItâs nothing, sheâs just coughing up stagnated blood.â
A few seconds ticked by, then the rough voice breathed a sigh of relief, âThatâs good. Lady Tang is highly skilled. If she can recover quickly, weâll have another helping hand, increasing our chances of defeating Demon Head Xia.â
Tang Baona realized that significant deviations in narrative direction caused slight interruptions in the storyâs progression. Obviously, this required reimagining the story and dialogue, as immediate responses werenât possible, but these pauses remained within acceptable timeframes.
With their conversation consistently pushing the plot forward, the âgreat demonâ, the âLeader of the Blood Hand Group, Xia Libingâ, finally met Tang Ying and Xia Shiwan; the background narration was largely similar for the three of them.
As the story unfolded, the âLeader of the Blood Hand Group, Xia Libingâ indeed fell into a trap and was surrounded.
When it was their turn to act, they could command their actions via voice. For instance, Tang Baona followed the guidance to describe her own actions, âI wield my long sword, seize the opportunity when Xia Libing and Xia Shiwan are fighting, and stab her from behind, killing her in one blow!â
However, after the game factored in Tang Yingâs character abilities, settings, environmental variables, and the descriptions of actions provided by Xia Libing and Yang Zhen Er, the narration described her actions as: ââŠTaking advantage of the battle between Xia Shiwan and Xia Libing, Tang Ying leaped with her long sword, pouring her internal energy into the blade. She and the sword became one, aiming for Xia Libingâs heart. However, Xia Libing had been on guard against her. When Tang Ying tried to stab her, Xia Libing used her famous counterforce skill to deflect the attack towards Xia Shiwan, who was unable to react in time, and was badly injured by the stab to her shoulderâŠâ
Having heard the âbattle reportâ, Xia Libing didnât react, while Tang Baona, irritated, nearly threw her phone. At the restaurant, Yang Zhen Er triumphantly laughed out loud, took off her headphones and called out from the sofa, âNana! I knew youâd try to sneak attack! All of this was within my calculations! hia~hia~hia~hia~â
Consequently, their descriptions described the fight as becoming more and more âbrutal.â Whether it was Xia Libingâs Blood Hand Group or those who came disguised as members of the trade caravan to assassinate with Xia Shiwan, they all fell in battle. Only the three of them remained in the continuing, brutal fight, and theyâd all sustained heavy injuries.
In the end, Tang Baona recalled the setting of the âSky-breaking Thunderâ hidden weapon and had âTang Yingâ use the last one to commit a murder-suicide with the âgreat demonâ, âXia Libingâ.
Ultimately, the only survivor, critically injured and on the verge of collapse, was âXia Shiwanâ.
With the BGM of âLonely Shadow, My Wayâ playing in the background, a commentary with a heroic emphasis said, ââXia Shiwanâ picked up the broken sword left behind by Tang Ying, carefully wrapped it in a piece of cloth, and collected various weapons from the other fallen heroes, planning to bring them back to the Central Plains for a proper burial in a feng shui treasure land. She knew that despite having defeated the great demon âXia Libingâ, the world wouldnât find peace, and that chaos and strife were eternal themes in the world of martial arts. She was aware that another demon would rise, and it would be her task to defeat him. That was her destiny, until one day, like Tang Ying and the others, she too would die at the hands of another demonâŠâ
Before the narration could finish, Yang Zhen Er took off her headphones, ran to the living room, put her arms around Tang Baonaâs shoulders, and sobbed, âLady Tang, your death was so tragicâŠâ
âGo, go, go! Your fate as the demon head wonât be any better!â Tang Baona retorted.
âHey, the âDemon Headâ is âXia Libingâ, what does that have to do with me, âYang Zhenâerâ?â Yang Zhen Er squinted, âshamelesslyâ chuckled.
Having said that, she sighed helplessly: âNana, why did you choose to perish together with me at the end? Old Xia undeservedly benefited from it!â
Tang Baona gave her a glance: âThis isnât a survival game where the last one standing wins. We are writing a story here. Both Old Xia and I are righteous masters. We have the same goal, that is, to eliminate demons like you!â
âHey, wait a minute, I donât think the game mentioned me doing any evil. Why do you call me a demon head? Maybe, I was doing good deeds and got falsely accused?â Yang Zhenâer argued.
Seeing Old Xia also taking off his headphones, contemplating deeply, Xiang Kun, who had been observing the state of their game, finally spoke with a smile, âHow do you feel about the game? Is it fun?â
Tang Baona and Yang Zhenâer both eagerly nodded, âItâs fun, very fun.â
It was already past two oâclock in the morning. They had been playing continuously for more than an hour, except for Yang Zhenâer, who took her phone to the bathroom in the middle, they basically hadnât moved their butts, fully immersed in the game.
âWhen you asked me to help with the voice synthesis, were you thinking of this game? It feels like the synthetic sound now is more natural than the previous version you made.â Tang Baona admiringly commented. Anyone who played this game would inevitably marvel at the naturalness and smoothness of the synthesized voice inside.
Xiang Kun nodded, âIndeed, it is related to that voice synthesis engine, you could say itâs the foundation. Thanks to your help back then, otherwise it wouldnât have been so easy to accomplish.â
âDid you make this game all by yourself? Thatâs too amazing, too impressive!â Yang Zhenâer rarely complimented, âBig chef Xiang, no, Boss Xiang, I guarantee that if you release this game, it will be a massive hit! Hmm, if youâre short on cash, be sure to let me know. I can surely help you attract a lot of investors!â
Xiang Kun laughed, âNot all by myself, I had others helping me, and there are still many problems. We will release multiple beta versions later, at which time Iâll need your help with testing, okay?â
Tang Baona responded, âNo problem, this game is really fun. If there are other types of stories in the future, like sci-fi, urban, and fantasy, it will definitely be more interesting. And the more people play, the more fun it will be. The only concern is that if the playerâs actions or dialogue affect the story, the processing time may take too long, which could affect the experience.â
âRest assured, I have a way to slow down the reaction time. During the processing of the storyline, there will be a consistent narration and background sound to keep the âplayersâ immersed in the game narrative. It wonât be interrupted for too long to pull the âplayersâ out of the game.â Xiang Kun assured.
The core of his game was an accurate voice recognition and transformation technology. To date, the technology developed by Alice has been upgraded several times, and its accuracy rate is very high. But this high accuracy rate is based on Xiang Kunâs speaking habits. Besides him, Tang Baona, who provided a large number of voice samples, could also achieve a very high recognition accuracy.
For other players, before the game starts, a process is carried out where the players define their characters through various voice recordings, allowing the program to learn their tone of voice and sentence construction habits and prepare for the subsequent game.
The game begins by arranging the storyline and specific characters according to the playersâ chosen game style and their own definitions of the characters. Whenever a player inputs voice, the game quickly transcribes the voice into text and analyzes the playerâs intention. If their intention aligns with the original storyline, the game continues. Otherwise, the content is uploaded to the server where Alice analyzes it, quickly forming a new storyline that it sends to each playerâs device. The device then reads the story aloud according to the new script.
Anyone who plays this game, even non-professionals and ordinary people, will be amazed by its accuracy in voice recognition, and the natural tone of the AIâs voice reading.