Her name is Bokona, a new agent who has a cold physical attribute in the world of “Zero Zone”. She has no legendary origin, and the information on her skill page is more detailed than her background. But you still like her, like a woman falling in love with a cheongsam that is exquisitely cut but expensive. It was a test at first, but later it was willing.
You deposit money for her, like spending money for a matter of concern, afraid that when she goes online, someone else will have her first. You don’t want to lose.
But you soon find that owning Bokona is just the beginning.
Raising her is more cumbersome than raising a marriage.
Her breakthrough requires materials. Primary Breaking Cognition, Advanced Breaking Cognition, Breaker Certification Seal, these sound like the names of perfumes in the old Shanghai dance hall, but they are actually extremely cold data identifiers. Each one requires you to brush it repeatedly in the simulated combat, like a housewife getting up early every day to go to the vegetable market to pick the freshest tofu, and dare not be careless.
To upgrade her skills, she needs physical chips – from basic, advanced to specialized. Just like a person from first love to passionate love to marriage, from fresh to heavy, from passion to responsibility.
25 basic chips are the tenderness when you just start to like her; 75 advanced chips are when you decide to invest more time and resources; 250 specialized chips are when you have become accustomed to her existence – no matter how strong she is, you are unwilling to give up.
Her skill level upgrade, from A to F, is not a romantic journey, but a persistence after constant compromise. She needs the “Scarlet Engine” – you have to challenge “Pompeii”, an enemy whose name reminds people of the villain in old movies. Every battle is like going to a dinner party, knowing that the other party has bad intentions, but you have to entertain to the end.
She also needs 60 copies of “High Dimensional Data: Shallow Phantom”, which is a dream she left in another virtual time, and it is information that you cannot really understand but must obtain. Like those yellowed words in love letters, it seems romantic, but it is actually very practical.
Pokona’s sound engine is not simple either. She needs to break components – various levels, from basic to specialized. More importantly, the sound engine energy modules – 200. You have to repeat the actions in the simulated battlefield arranged by the system, like a married woman repeating the gestures of cooking in the kitchen, without much passion, but you can’t stop.
The most secretive thing is the five “hamster cage” access devices. The name sounds childish, but it is a must in the cultivation system. You either have to participate in activities or unlock a city fund, just like a rich lady must apply for a VIP card and be in the top ten of the socialite rankings in order to buy a limited edition dress.
What you spend for Pokona is time, energy, emotions, and complete surrender to the rules of the system. You say you are a player, but you know that you are actually like those women in the old Shanghai Beach – knowing how expensive this relationship is, you still can’t help but consume yourself inch by inch.
You may ask: “Is she worth it?”
This is not a question of whether it is worth it or not. Falling in love with something is like falling in love with a person. When you love, you will not ask “is it worth it”, but only ask “is there anything more to be asked?”.
When you see Pokona wielding her weapon in battle with a firm look in her eyes, you will feel that these days have not been wasted.
She is not the strongest character, but she has a kind of “endearing” that is just right. Her moves are not as stunning as fireworks, but like a pair of old cloth shoes, she walks silently, but is the most down-to-earth.
Maybe she will not accompany you to clear all the difficult dungeons, but she will accompany you to make your days less empty, one move at a time, when you are the most tired, the busiest, and the most bored.
When her skills are full and her sound is upgraded to 60, she will stand quietly in your team, without applause, without fireworks, just like the end of a wedding. You have changed your identity and become her “owner”, and she has become a part of you.
But you know, what really moved you is not the full quota of numbers, nor the gorgeous final skill animation – but the fact that you repeatedly asked yourself in the process: “Do I still want to continue?” And the answer is always: “Yes.”
Pokona, coming out of the data, like an old photo, a handwritten letter, a melody heard inadvertently.
You are broken for her and also complete for her. You spend money, stay up late, and think about the game mechanism that you have never cared about, just because you prefer her for no reason.
Just like what Zhang Ailing wrote, “Because I understand, I am compassionate.” Here, it is because I have loved, so I am willing.