Chapter 260: Caught Between Laughter and Tears

Hidden Dragon Technology General Manager's Office.

Bruce was stunned after hearing the report, their face full of disbelief.

The development of this matter truly… leaves people unable to defend themselves.

"The current situation on the internet is just like this."

"Because of this, Penguin's download numbers have risen considerably, in terms of popularity and activity…"

"Even we Mutual don't even have a fifth of Penguin's now."

The General Manager wore a grim face, reporting the data just obtained from the data department.

Bruce's mouth corner trembled wildly a few times; they… were very angry at this moment.

How could one not be angry?

We put in so much, prepared for such a long time, but in the end…

"Where are our water armies? They haven't produced any effect?" Bruce finally thought of a point they could question.

The General Manager's complexion grew even worse, stammering, "Our water armies… or rather, they're no longer ours…"

"What's going on?" Bruce was full of questions.

"We previously hired two studios, but now… both have cut off contact with us."

"Why? Didn't we give them sufficient compensation?" Bruce couldn't understand.

"Because… because their subordinates have all quit," the General Manager replied.

"Why?" Bruce, like a curious baby, kept asking questions.

It's not his fault, because the development was far beyond his expectations.

After a moment of silence, the General Manager said, "The hottest post online right now is a large group of girls expressing their love for 'Adventure Island.'"

"Among those girls are the water armies' girlfriends or crushes."

"So…"

Bruce was stunned again; this is… how can one accept it!

Bruce spent a fortune to hire a group of water armies; they even provided the copy and the direction for a negative 'Adventure Island' campaign.

It can be said they contributed both money and effort.

But the result?

Lu Yu did nothing on his side, and the matter was resolved?

And the water armies Bruce paid for, the effort he put into this, was all to boost Penguin and 'Adventure Island' popularity?

He, Bruce, a successful entrepreneur, a prodigy of the investment world, an elite of management, a genius of operations, now…

Actually spending money, effort, and thought to help his own enemy develop in a better direction?

Bruce fell silent, unable to utter a sound for a long, long time.

…

Grand, Lu Yu's Office.

Lu Yu was also stunned; he never expected things to develop this way.

"Xiao Yu, did you foresee all this?"

"When you were designing this game, were you already targeting the female market?"

"You are truly amazing, Xiao Yu."

"Everyone knows the female market is actually the biggest, but… in the gaming world, how many can create a game that both boys and girls like?"

"Netizens were right after all; you are the god of the gaming world."

Chen Qiao, his face excited, kept praising Lu Yu.

Until today, Chen Qiao was filled with worry and anxiety.

Because Lu Yu had taken no action.

But now he realized how ridiculous his worry had been.

Lu Yu is still the same Lu Yu; regardless of how great the difficulty ahead, he can always anticipate it and has long thought of a solution.

Lu Yu: I didn't!

Lu Yu merely transplanted a game he had played before the time‑travel.

His inner method for dealing with the current situation was simply… to bring out a better game.

But now…

Lu Yu also found himself both laughing and crying; he hadn't expected 'Adventure Island' to be so popular with girls.

But after all, it's a good thing.

At least Penguin's business situation improved, and he doesn't need to do much.

…

In the blink of an eye, the 'Adventure Island' controversy had passed for several days.

But that post, spontaneously posted by girls with photos, remained the hottest post at the moment.

Because the girls in that post were truly high‑quality, and their numbers… astonishing!

Most importantly, these girls aren't internet images!

Looking at photos in this post isn't any better than browsing those weird websites?

Moreover… if you're lucky enough, you might even meet the girls from the post!

Even… many boys took this post as a chance to find a partner.

Therefore, the post's popularity stays high.

And for a long time ahead, this post will remain the most popular post.

This also became a miracle in the Internet, an irreplicable miracle, and furthermore an indispensable part of Internet development history.

But these actually have nothing to do with Hidden Dragon Technology anymore.

Or rather, Bruce can only pretend not to see this post, unaware of its existence; otherwise… it would be too frustrating!

If the post's popularity doesn't increase even a bit, isn't that just giving Penguin an ad?

And right now, Bruce is focusing his mind on doing something.

When Hidden Dragon Technology announced its establishment, it had launched an event.

The content of the event was realized through check-ins.

Now… the agreed-upon time is drawing near.

Hidden Dragon Technology will fulfill its promise, connect with the Game Alliance, and freely provide Game Alliance games to users who have completed check-ins.

Originally, according to the plan, Bruce wouldn't need to worry about this matter.

But now he must make this event bigger, drawing back the attention of all netizens.

This event is crucial for Mutual, even to the point of being a life-or-death battle.

Of course, this life-or-death refers to Mutual.

After all, Penguin's popularity is too high, its user base too large, and user stickiness also very high.

Put another way, if Penguin isn't self-destructing, no one can shake its position.

Bruce is merely trying to gain as much market share as possible.

If successful, he can claim the title of Huaxia Second Social Software; if he fails…

He might then lose the chance to compete with Penguin.

So this time Bruce has truly gone all out.

……

Online, Hidden Dragon Technology's ads began to appear everywhere.

In major malls of big cities, at bus stops and similar places, Hidden Dragon Technology's posters also appeared.

"Are you ready to welcome the hottest game worldwide?"

This is Hidden Dragon Technology's slogan.

This slogan also indeed has great appeal for players.

Moreover, because Hidden Dragon Technology has invested so much, the response is still quite large.

At the very least, after the ad release, Hidden Dragon Technology's popularity is still not far behind Penguin's…