The next morning, Xie Yunfan saw his older brother, Xie Xinghe, and Lawyer Zou Zhicheng off at the airport.

The contract had already been signed, so there was no need for the lawyer to stay in the Imperial Capital, especially since his law firm still had a lot of work.

Xie Xinghe, on the other hand, had received a message from the designer in Rongcheng: “The holidays are over, and the workers at our renovation company are back. Mr. Xie, do you want to pick an auspicious day to start the work?”

After several revisions, the office building’s interior design had been finalized, and they were just waiting to break ground. Since Xie Xinghe couldn’t help with game design even if he stayed in the Imperial Capital, he decided to go back and act as the site supervisor.

However, before leaving, Xie Xinghe was still a little worried. Looking at his younger brother, he said, “You’re in the Imperial Capital all by yourself. If anyone bullies you, you must tell me.”

Xie Yunfan said helplessly, “Don’t worry, I’m an adult now. I can take care of myself.”

Xie Xinghe smiled and said, “I’m off then. I’ll send you photos whenever there’s progress on the office renovation.”

“Alright, Brother. Thanks for keeping an eye on it. By the time this game is finished, our office building will probably be fully renovated, and we can officially start recruiting people then.”

Xie Xinghe replied briskly, “No problem!”

Xie Yunfan added, “Also, the development of this game will take several months, and I have to stay in the Imperial Capital to coordinate the work. I can only take a half-year leave of absence from school and go back to make up classes next year. The leave of absence application requires a parent’s signature. Brother, when the time comes, please make a trip to the school for me and mail the application form over.”

Xie Xinghe froze for a moment.

A parent’s signature? That’s right—their parents were gone, so he was currently considered Yunfan’s “parent.” It was a pity that he, the older brother, hadn’t amounted to much. Seeing his younger brother fly higher and higher, even managing to collaborate on a massive project with Qihang, made him feel incredibly proud.

With complex emotions, Xie Xinghe reached out and rubbed his younger brother’s head, saying, “Don’t worry, leave all that to me. Your brother will fully support your work.”

The two brothers looked at each other and smiled. They shared a hug and bid their farewells.

Lawyer Zou was also very gratified watching this scene.

It seemed the Xie family truly could make a comeback!

---

That afternoon, Xie Yunfan brought Ning Sha and Chu Yue to the Qihang Games headquarters right on time.

The PR manager personally escorted them to the conference room on the 13th floor.

The massive conference room was packed with people, making the “workplace rookie” Chu Yue so nervous that his hands were trembling. To avoid embarrassing himself in front of the crowd, he hastily shoved his hands into his pockets and silently followed behind his boss, keeping his head down to lower his presence.

Xie Yunfan, however, looked calm. For large game projects, it was very common for a work team to have over a hundred people. Qihang clearly valued this collaboration highly, having transferred their company’s elites over.

Manager Nie pointed to the seats at the very front of the conference table and said, “Mr. Xie, right this way.”

Xie Yunfan walked over with an easy expression and sat down.

No one in the conference room knew him; they all thought he was a new colleague.

People secretly typed in their group chats to gossip: “Who’s this guy? He looks so young.”

“Is he a new intern? I’ve never seen him before!”

“His seat is right next to VP Luo. Could he be an assistant VP Luo hired?”

A moment later, Luo Hang pushed the door open and walked in. The time was exactly 9:00 AM.

Luo Hang swept his gaze across the conference room and said, “Everyone is here. Let’s begin the meeting.”

He walked over, sat in the seat next to Xie Yunfan, and said calmly, “I called everyone here today to hold the launch meeting for the Underworld Maze Holographic Version. Starting right now, Qihang Games and Yangfan Studio have officially collaborated to form the Underworld Maze Holographic Version task force. Everyone sitting here today is a member of this task force. Welcome to this heavyweight project.”

Enthusiastic applause rang out in the conference room.

“I need to emphasize that this project is strictly confidential. Everyone must sign a non-disclosure agreement. Going forward, during the work process, absolutely no information related to the game may be disclosed to outsiders. This includes your family and friends; you cannot mention it to them. I hope everyone cooperates.”

Assistant Little Qi quickly distributed the NDAs onto the desks, having everyone take them back to sign.

Luo Hang paused, opened his laptop, brought up a pre-made PowerPoint presentation, and detailed the market prospect analysis for the game Underworld Maze.

The CEO of Qihang Games was indeed very charismatic. His speech was logically clear, and his data charts were highly persuasive. His subordinates all had their heads raised, listening to him attentively without a single person losing focus.

They had conducted detailed market research abroad this time and believed that “holographic horror games” had massive potential, which was the key reason Qihang was collaborating with Xie Yunfan.

After introducing the market prospects, Luo Hang looked at Xie Yunfan and said, “Next, I’d like to place special emphasis on introducing the Chief Planner for this project—Mr. Xie Yunfan. Please welcome him.”

The crowd: “Huh???”

The staff in the conference room collectively froze.

Just earlier, when they saw this handsome guy in his early 20s walk into the conference room, they thought he was a little assistant hired by the boss, or an intern running errands…

And now, he was actually the Chief Planner of the project?

This young? Could he really command the room?

Luo Hang took the lead in applauding. The employees came back to their senses and hurriedly matched their boss’s rhythm, resulting in a scattering of applause echoing through the conference room.

Xie Yunfan stood up, his expression unruffled: “Hello everyone, I am the Chief Planner of the Underworld Maze mobile version, and the head of Yangfan Studio, Xie Yunfan. Thank you to VP Luo for your trust. I am very honored to continue serving as the Chief Planner for the holographic version of the Underworld. I hope we have a happy collaboration.”

The crowd: “…”

Mobile games and holographic games were completely different beasts. Why would the boss let him parachute in as the planner? In the corners of the conference room, many people lowered their heads and frowned, revealing expressions of incomprehension or even displeasure.

Letting an outsider manage the project—was that reliable?

Seeing that everyone wasn’t very enthusiastic, Luo Hang swept his gaze across the room and said calmly, “The download count for the Underworld Maze game has already surpassed 5 million. The reason this game became so popular is purely because of its excellent core gameplay mechanics, and all of these were single-handedly designed by Xie Yunfan.”

“For a game, the most important thing is the gameplay. This is also the key reason why I invited him to continue acting as the planner for the holographic version. I believe in his talent and capabilities.”

“Of course, there are many differences between mobile and holographic games. As for how to specifically adapt it, I will also personally join the team as the game’s Chief Supervisor to check things over alongside the planner.”

“If anyone has any objections to the work arrangements, you can report them directly to me.”

The crowd: “…”

Luo Hang’s phrase, “if you have objections, come at me,” was clearly strongly backing Xie Yunfan.

It seemed VP Luo highly valued Xie Yunfan’s talent. Xie Yunfan acting as the Chief Planner was already a set-in-stone fact. Even if everyone was inwardly dissatisfied, on the surface, they didn’t dare explicitly object.

The applause grew slightly warmer.

Some people also expressed goodwill toward Xie Yunfan: “Welcome!”

Luo Hang looked at Xie Yunfan, his tone gentle: “Do you have anything you’d like to say?”

Xie Yunfan said, “Everyone doesn’t know me well enough yet, so having doubts is perfectly normal. However, our goals are aligned; we all want to make a good game. If any arguments arise during the process, I hope everyone doesn’t take it personally. I have always focused on the matter at hand, not the person.”

“For this trip, I also brought along two concept artists from Underworld Maze. Our character artist Ning Sha, and scene artist Chu Yue. Everyone, let’s get acquainted first.”

Ning Sha took the initiative to stand up, greeting everyone with natural poise: “Hello everyone, I’m Ning Sha. I’m very happy to be working with all of you.”

Though Chu Yue was a workplace rookie, he reacted quickly, mimicking Ning Sha’s actions to the letter, and thankfully didn’t make a fool of himself.

However, these two parachuted-in concept artists made the expressions of the people in the art department look very grim—bringing in outside art? Was this looking down on their Qihang art team?

Xie Yunfan added, “I really like the art style of Starry Sky Walk, but Underworld Maze is Chinese-style horror. I want to keep the art style of the holographic version consistent with the mobile version, so I’m having them continue drawing so we don’t need to waste time adjusting. I hope everyone understands.”

Luo Hang nodded and looked toward the head of Qihang’s art department: “Director Xia, from now on, fully cooperate with the work of these two artists.”

Xia Yixi lowered her eyes, looking displeased: “Understood.”

Xie Yunfan said, “I have a detailed lore and setting document for the Underworld Maze mobile version right here. Everyone can review it first to get familiarized.”

Luo Hang looked at the assistant beside him: “Little Qi, pull everyone into an internal company work group chat. It’ll be easier to distribute and share materials in the group going forward.”

Little Qi immediately added everyone and created the group.

Qihang Games had its own internal office network, so creating the group was fast. Xie Yunfan and the other outsiders had to register new accounts.

A moment later, the work group named “Underworld Maze Holographic Version” was officially established.

There were nearly a hundred people in the group, divided by teams, such as the Art Team, Combat Mathematics Team, Programming Team, Level Design Team, etc. Every team had its own leader. Meanwhile, “Chief Planner – Xie Yunfan” and “Chief Supervisor – Luo Hang” were listed side-by-side at the very top, both acting as group administrators.

Qihang’s staff looked at each other in dismay.

If news of a parachuted-in Chief Planner got out, it would become an industry joke, wouldn’t it? VP Luo was truly bold enough to hand such an important project to an outsider…

Xie Yunfan shared the mobile game’s setting document in the group and said, “After everyone goes back, read over the document first. Tomorrow morning at 9:00 AM, I will give you a detailed breakdown of the first phase’s work plan.”

He looked at Luo Hang and lowered his voice: “VP Luo, if there’s nothing else, we can adjourn the meeting. I have a few questions I’d like to discuss with you.”

Luo Hang said, “Alright, meeting adjourned.”

He closed his laptop, stood up, and took Xie Yunfan to his office. Ning Sha and Chu Yue also consciously followed the boss out the door.

After they left, the conference room exploded like a boiling pot.

“Holy crap, is there a mistake? That kid looks younger than me, and he’s the Chief Planner?”

“Knowing how to make mobile games doesn’t necessarily mean he knows how to make holographic games. What is VP Luo thinking?”

“I don’t know. Qihang is a massive company, and Yangfan Studio has no reputation. No matter how you slice it, someone from our side should be the Chief Planner. Him being the Deputy Team Leader would at least make sense.”

“I don’t understand VP Luo’s thought process, but then again, every decision VP Luo makes turns out to be right.”

“…”

Even if everyone didn’t believe in Xie Yunfan, they believed in Luo Hang.

With Luo Hang holding down the fort, even if they had complaints in their hearts, they were too embarrassed to say them out loud. After privately venting for a bit, everyone returned to their respective offices.

---

Luo Hang’s office was located on the top floor of the Qihang building. The space was expansive, and the glass cabinets in the office held quite a bit of Qihang Games merchandise as well as certificates of honor they had won.

Walking into the office and looking at the decor, Xie Yunfan couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy. Even in his past life, he never had an office this big.

Luo Hang poured a cup of tea for Xie Yunfan, led him to sit on the sofa, and asked, “Do you already have some ideas for the holographic adaptation?”

Xie Yunfan said, “Yeah, the mobile version was made in a bit of a rush back then, and combined with limited funding, there were many gameplay mechanics we didn’t have time to implement. I want to perfect the design of the Underworld in the holographic version.”

Luo Hang asked with great interest, “So, you’re saying the gameplay in the holographic version will be much richer?”

Xie Yunfan replied, “Of course. The Five Ghost Emperors, the Ten Kings of Hell, Ox-Head and Horse-Face—all these NPCs will be fully rendered. Also, the Bridge of Helplessness, the City of Those Who Died in Vain, the Mirror of Retribution, the Six Paths of Reincarnation, the Senluo Hall, and other scenes independent of the 18 layers of hell—I want to build them all perfectly.”

He paused, then said seriously, “What I want to present isn’t just an 18-layer maze, but the entire subterranean world where dead souls reside, also known as the—Ghost Realm.”

Luo Hang: “…”

An entire world of the dead? The Ghost Realm. That sounded very interesting.

Looking at Xie Yunfan speak so eloquently, Luo Hang found the long-lost “passion” within himself again. Back when he first pitched Starry Sky Walk, he had also been like this—bursting with endless ideas, overflowing with creativity, and full of anticipation for the game’s presentation.

When Xie Yunfan talked about games, he was similarly brimming with confidence.

His mind held so many rich ideas. If all of these could be presented in the holographic version of the Underworld… just how incredible of a surprise would that be for the players?

Luo Hang smiled and said, “You are the Chief Planner; the overall modifications to the game are up to you to decide. Of course, a holographic game must pay close attention to the player’s experience. For example, in your Hell of Ice, the temperature can’t be so low that it literally freezes the players into having psychological trauma.”

When players played a game, they wanted to experience thrills and excitement, not deliberately seek out torture. If you actually constantly cut players with knives, or if the steamer actually made them feel like they were being cooked alive… that wouldn’t be a game, that would be “torture.”

No one would pay money just to suffer.

Building upon thrills and excitement, ensuring the game’s playability was the true key.

Xie Yunfan rubbed his nose and said, “I really don’t understand the combat mathematics of holographic games very well, so I’ll need VP Luo to personally oversee that. You have experience making holographic games, and I trust your judgment in this area.”

Luo Hang breathed a sigh of relief. He had been afraid that Xie Yunfan would be too stubborn and refuse to listen to reason. If the two of them had too many disagreements, the game’s development progress would stagnate.

Fortunately, Xie Yunfan wasn’t arrogant and was willing to listen to advice.

Luo Hang explained, “Our company has a professional medical team. They can design the negative impacts of the environment based on data like players’ neurological thresholds and pain tolerance limits. For example, in the Steamer Hell, mobile players can only see the heat value floating above their avatars. In the holographic version, once a player enters the Steamer Hell, they will feel genuine ‘heat,’ as if they are truly inside a steamer. We will control this temperature so that it makes the player very uncomfortable, but not to the point of causing them to physically faint.”

Hearing Luo Hang speak about these highly technical aspects, Xie Yunfan realized that holographic games were indeed not as simple as he thought.

He nodded, looked at the other man, and said, “VP Luo, I will only handle the game’s mechanics, map designs, and so on. As for how to adjust the numerical values for each environment, I can leave all of that entirely to you.”

Luo Hang smiled and said, “Thank you for your trust. A win-win collaboration.”

Xie Yunfan also smiled and scratched his head.

Actually, he should have been the one saying that line.

Thank you for your trust, letting a “rookie planner” like me continue leading the Underworld Maze project, even publicly backing me during the meeting, telling the employees to bring their complaints to you…

This is your understanding of and respect for creative game design, and I will not let you down.

---

[Double Chapter / Kickoff Meeting]

The next morning at 9:00 AM, Xie Yunfan arrived at the Qihang Games headquarters right on time.

Luo Hang had the logistics department clear out the entire 13th floor, establishing a temporary “Underworld Maze Work Zone.” All team members moved their offices to this floor, making communication much more convenient.

Even Luo Hang himself brought his office supplies downstairs, preparing for a “prolonged battle.” Xie Yunfan’s office was arranged right next to his.

Xie Yunfan grabbed his laptop and headed to the conference room for the meeting.

He had stayed up late the night before outlining the plans for the holographic version of the Underworld, and he had put together a PowerPoint presentation to explain everything to everyone in detail.

Halfway there, he suddenly noticed a blonde guy standing at a corner, sneakily taking photos. Seeing him acting so suspiciously, Xie Yunfan couldn’t help but walk over and say, “What are you doing?”

Chu Yue was so scared he nearly jumped into the air.

Turning back and meeting Xie Yunfan’s eyes, his cheeks flushed red, and he hurriedly whispered, “Boss, my parents don’t believe I’m working at Qihang at all, so I’m taking a picture to prove it to them, hehe.”

As a die-hard fan of Starry Sky Walk, being able to come to Qihang’s headquarters made Chu Yue constantly feel like he was living in a dream. He had insomnia last night and was sporting obvious dark circles under his eyes.

Xie Yunfan asked curiously, “Does coming to work at Qihang make you this excited?”

Chu Yue scratched his hair: “It’s one of the biggest holographic game companies in the country, after all. A lot of my classmates dream of just coming here for a tour. I was just lucky enough to meet you, Boss, and follow you to the place of my dreams, hehe.”

This artistic youth could be a bit goofy sometimes, but he was incredibly bold when drawing scenes. Xie Yunfan patted him on the shoulder: “Then cherish this opportunity. You won’t have any issues not going back to school, right?”

Chu Yue quickly said, “No issues! I’m a senior already, I just need to turn in my graduation project on time.”

Xie Yunfan asked, “Are you getting used to the work environment?”

Chu Yue replied, “It’s fine. They arranged an office for me and Sister Sha. Sister Sha is really nice and takes good care of me.”

When it came to politeness and respect, Qihang had always been very thoughtful. They didn’t make things difficult for the people Xie Yunfan had brought along.

Xie Yunfan nodded: “Alright, go to the meeting.”

A moment later, inside the 13th-floor office.

The entire project team was present, and Luo Hang had also come personally.

Xie Yunfan opened the PowerPoint he had made and began his presentation: “This holographic game won’t just be an 18-layer underworld maze; it will be the entire subterranean world, meaning the world dead souls go to after human death. We call it the Ghost Realm.”

“To enter the Ghost Realm, one must pass through the Ghost Gate, travel down a long, long road, and reach the Senluo Hall. The Senluo Hall is the administrative office of the Ghost Realm. Behind it is Yin Mountain, and further back are the Eighteen Hells.”

“The Eighteen Hells in the holographic game will be different from the mobile version’s maze. Mobile players can grind the game for over ten hours straight, clearing the first layer before moving to the second—it’s a ‘sequential’ gameplay loop, and there’s Meng Po wiping their progress to torture the players. Holographic game players can’t stay online for too long. If we did it that way, I imagine no one would have the patience to spend half a year traversing a horror maze layer by layer.”

“Holographic games emphasize the experience. Therefore, I’ve made some modifications here. I’ll turn the 18 hells into a massive, flat map scenario, like a map in an MMO. One region represents one hell. Players can choose to enter a specific hell, run that single hell’s maze, challenge that layer’s boss, and then pick another one after clearing it.”

“Behind the 18 hells is the Bridge of Helplessness. Meng Po will be waiting for you on the other side of the bridge. The function of Meng Po’s Soup in the holographic game won’t be wiping your save file, but rather making the dead souls forget all their past-life karma, wiping their memories clean so they can reincarnate.”

“Further back are the City of Those Who Died in Vain, Pingyang Avenue, and the Six Paths of Reincarnation. Passing through the Gates of Reincarnation allows one to be reborn and start a new life.”

Xie Yunfan pointed at the massive map of the entire Ghost Realm in his presentation and said, “This is the complete journey a dead soul must undergo after arriving in the Underworld.”

The crowd: “…………”

So, the holographic version of the Underworld was basically “Adventures of a Dead Soul in the Underworld”?

Xie Yunfan continued, “Besides these mandatory paths, there are also extra easter egg regions. For example, the five mountains guarded by the Five Ghost Emperors, where players can admire the different landscapes of the Underworld.”

He looked at Luo Hang and said, “I considered the fact that holographic players can’t stay online for too long. Therefore, the pacing of each scenario needs to be sped up. Also, we created a large map selection interface, similar to Starry Sky Walk, where players can go to whichever planet they want. Players interested in the game can explore slowly, and those who like a specific region can just replay that one area over and over.”

The biggest difference between holographic and mobile games was the “immersive experience.”

If they really threw players into the Underworld Maze to be tortured for hours, many people would suffer mental breakdowns and need psychological therapy, which was unnecessary. A 3D maze was also extremely unfriendly to people with a poor sense of direction.

Only by giving them a certain degree of freedom of choice would they be willing to pay to experience the “World of the Dead.”

This was a novel world, and as the map slowly unlocked, the Ghost Realm would become even more complete.

Xie Yunfan said, “In the Underworld, apart from civil servants on the payroll like Black and White Impermanence, there are naturally many wandering souls and wild ghosts. For this holographic version, to make the Underworld more realistic, I’ve specially designed a random encounter system.”

“While players explore the Underworld, they will trigger certain encounters, meet unique ghosts and monsters, and learn their stories. These will all be made into side quests.”

“For example, Nie Xiaoqian. She is a female ghost, dressed in white with hair down to the ground. She was forced to harm people but has a kind heart. After meeting the scholar Ning Caichen, a touching love story happened between the two of them…”

Xie Yunfan decided to integrate the stories from Strange Tales from a Chinese Studio with the Underworld.

Making a standalone Underworld that only focused on horror would get boring after playing for a long time.

But what if they integrated a massive number of legends about ghosts and monsters? That way, it would become a flesh-and-blood, magnificent—Ghost Realm.

Since it was the Ghost Realm, running into “ghosts” was perfectly normal.

Everyone had to come here after they died. Most ghosts “assimilated” by Black and White Impermanence would reincarnate, but there were also many “wild ghosts” wandering the outskirts of the Ghost Realm, refusing to enter the cycle of reincarnation.

When players met Nie Xiaoqian, they could learn why she became a wild ghost.

Triggering Gongsun Jiuniang’s side quest would also allow them to learn her life story…

Qiao Sheng and Liancheng—these interesting legends naturally had to be placed into the Ghost Realm as “side quests.” Players could also help them fulfill their desire to resurrect, which would count as completing the side quest.

Many stories might even move the players emotionally.

—That’s right, our Ghost Realm isn’t all about horror!

There were vicious, brutal, malevolent ghosts, but there were naturally also good ghosts who valued relationships and loyalty.

Some ghosts stubbornly refused to cross the Bridge of Helplessness or drink that bowl of Meng Po’s Soup, because they couldn’t let go of the love, hatred, and vendettas in their hearts. With the players’ help, they could resurrect, be reborn, and lay their earthly ties to rest.

Some ghosts, even in death, still couldn’t shed the “evil” they possessed in life. A portion would be cast into the Eighteen Hells to endure torturous punishment. Others would wander the Ghost Realm, acting as elite field bosses to increase the game’s difficulty for players.

A Ghost Realm constructed from countless dead souls—this was what a fully fleshed-out, rich Ghost Realm truly was.

……

Following his script, Xie Yunfan passionately introduced the game’s design concepts to everyone.

A massive Ghost Realm map, rich side quests.

Scenic viewing areas, maze challenge zones, field bosses, story encounters…

The people in the conference room were almost stunned listening to Xie Yunfan’s presentation.

Luo Hang’s face revealed an expression of surprise and admiration.

This holographic version of the Underworld was more than just a little richer than a simple 18-layer maze!

The mobile game only had players running in circles within the 18 hells. The players could only see a few of the Underworld’s NPCs, which was essentially “completing an 18-layer maze under the supervision of Underworld NPCs.”

But a holographic game was different. Aside from the Eighteen Hells, he had added so much more playable content.

This was directly building a massive world setting?!

If all these frameworks Xie Yunfan proposed could truly be implemented, the “Underworld world setting” he created would not lose out in the slightest to Starry Sky Walk‘s “universe setting”!

It was just that Starry Sky Walk was a romantic, magnificent sci-fi interstellar journey.

While the Underworld was a thrilling, exciting journey through the world of the dead!

What holographic game players loved most was this kind of “novel exploration.”

Let them come explore the Ghost Realm.

If they wanted thrills and excitement, they could go to the hell mazes, experience the terror of hell, fight the Ten Kings of Hell bosses, and die repeatedly for a few days; clearing the level would give them a great sense of accomplishment.

If they liked looking at scenery, they could go check out the five mountains of the Five Ghost Emperors. The different landscapes of the Underworld would definitely be worth taking photos and checking in at.

If they loved following stories, they could play the side quests, trigger the encounter system, learn the tear-jerking stories of various male and female ghosts, and assist these ghosts in fulfilling their final wishes from when they were alive.

Every holographic player would be able to find content they liked playing in the “Ghost Realm.”

A game like this…

Wouldn’t it be far too terrifying once it was actually made?

Only at this moment did everyone realize that they had indeed severely underestimated Xie Yunfan.

This guy looked young—but he truly had great ideas when it came to making games.

No wonder VP Luo wanted Xie Yunfan to be the Chief Planner. If they were the planners themselves, would they have been able to come up with this much game content? They couldn’t have thought of it even if they racked their brains!