**Digital Spark Game Development Company – Entrance Corridor**
The fiery Nezha swaggered across the screen, waving his Red Armillary Sash as he flew around on golden lotuses.
Chen Jianhai's lips felt dry.
"Uh… what was that?"
"Brother Qin, I didn't quite catch that."
Chen Jianhai stared at Qin Li in utter bewilderment, completely dumbfounded.
At first, he'd thought Qin Li had invited him over just to hang out.
But now, it was clear—this was an interrogation!
Qin Li, noticing Chen Jianhai's nervous expression, smiled faintly.
"Don't worry, Boss Chen. Come with me."
With that, he draped an arm over Chen Jianhai's shoulder and led him deeper into the office building.
---
*Ding—*
The elevator stopped at the 14th floor.
The moment the doors opened, the rapid clatter of keyboards echoed down the hallway.
In the break room,
a group of game developers in their 30s—unkempt, greasy-haired, and dark-eyed—stood around the coffee machine.
One of them yawned so hard while waiting for his coffee that his gaze glazed over, staring blankly at the machine's spout as if it held the secrets of the universe.
Chen Jianhai shuddered.
But Qin Li seemed entirely unfazed, his expression calm as if this were completely normal.
At the very least, these sleep-deprived employees still recognized their boss. They managed weak smiles and nods in his direction, though their inner thoughts were probably far less polite.
*"Do all game developers live like this?"*
Chen Jianhai was horrified.
Since taking over his hotels, he'd always prioritized his employees' well-being.
Aside from the occasional sleepless night caused by horror movies, his staff were always energetic during the day. He'd never seen anyone in such a sorry state.
*...Can they even work like this?*
A deep doubt settled in Chen Jianhai's mind.
These people looked like zombies, their reactions sluggish, their souls halfway out of their bodies. How were they supposed to function?
If they were his employees, he'd have sent every last one of them home to sleep.
But this wasn't his company, and Qin Li was right beside him.
So he kept his mouth shut and obediently followed.
Finally, they pushed open a frosted glass door on the left.
The moment they stepped inside,
a wave of heat and an indescribable odor hit them.
The room was massive—hundreds of square meters—packed with rows of computers, each manned by an employee.
Some were hammering away at code, others had headphones on while scrutinizing game footage, and a few were testing multiplayer features.
Though Chen Jianhai considered himself decent with computers,
the sight of these people instantly filled him with awe, as if every single one of them was a gaming legend.
"Chairman Qin!"
A bespectacled man in his 30s stood up and approached, eyeing Chen Jianhai curiously.
"Pull up last night's footage," Qin Li instructed.
"Right away."
The man bent over, fingers flying across the keyboard as he pulled up a video.
*"For maximum entertainment—and luck—I've chosen the Lion Castle Hotel's wishing pool as tonight's summoning ground!"*
*"First, we'll make a wish. Then, we'll pull."*
*"May everyone in chat avoid pity breaks, land their weapons in one pull, and leave all the hard luck to me!!!"*
*"Tonight, I wish for a 5-star in ten pulls!!!"*
…
The moment the video played, Chen Jianhai's pupils constricted.
He didn't recognize the streamer, but the background was unmistakable—
That was his Lion Castle Hotel's wishing pool!
And the young man who'd briefly appeared in the frame? That was Lin Suyang himself!
He'd recognize that guy anywhere.
At first, Chen Jianhai had thought the whole thing was just a bizarre coincidence.
But seeing Lin Suyang confirmed the truth:
This was absolutely a PR stunt to promote the hotel's wishing pool—gone horribly right.
Somehow, the pool had "blessed" the streamer so thoroughly that he'd emptied the game's entire 5-star roster.
And now, the developers had come knocking.
Chen Jianhai's mouth went bitter.
While everyone else was focused on the screen, he discreetly scanned the room.
There had to be at least 180 people here, maybe even 500.
And every single one looked like they were running on fumes, their souls barely tethered to their bodies.
According to Qin Li, these were the programmers, back-end engineers, and testers who'd been dragged out of bed in the middle of the night to debug this mess.
If things turned ugly, he was severely outnumbered.
*"I really should hire bodyguards…"*
He sighed inwardly, forcing his attention back to the video.
At first, seeing the streamer—Lan Qiuming—pull 5-star heroes and weapons didn't faze him.
He'd played gacha games before.
Sometimes, luck struck hard. He'd once gotten three 5-stars in a single 10-pull, leaving Xiao Lang and Xu Bo seething with envy.
But as the video progressed, Chen Jianhai's expression changed.
By the end, Lan Qiuming seemed divinely blessed, pulling a 5-star every ten attempts—even landing *Jiang Ziya* and the *God-Slaying Whip*, legendary units supposedly removed during beta testing.
Even without playing *God Sealing Summoner*, Chen Jianhai could tell from the chat's frenzy and Lan Qiuming's stunned screams just how broken these pulls were.
Since the video had audio,
the moment "Jiang Ziya" appeared,
Chen Jianhai felt the atmosphere shift.
Qin Li and the bespectacled man's expressions darkened.
Across the room, hundreds of sharp gazes locked onto Chen Jianhai, prickling his back with discomfort.
*Was this a bug in Digital Spark's system?*
*Hell no!!!*
Even if the game were glitched, there was no way someone could empty the entire 5-star roster *and* pull a beta-exclusive legend like Jiang Ziya!
He didn't need to be a genius to know this was his wishing pool's doing.
But… admitting that was out of the question!
"Boss Chen, Jiang Ziya was a beta-exclusive hero, only available during the first seven days of testing."
"After that, our team removed him from the summoning pool. While traces of his data might remain, the odds of pulling him are *zero*."
"As for the God-Slaying Whip…"
Qin Li actually chuckled.
"When I heard it dropped too, I wondered if the primordial gods had descended upon us."
Though Qin Li seemed amused,
the bespectacled man and Chen Jianhai's smiles looked more like grimaces.
Chen Jianhai shot Qin Li a pained look.
*How could he make it clear that this joke wasn't funny?*
While Chen Jianhai squirmed, the bespectacled man looked even more uncomfortable.
"Chairman Qin, we've combed through all the game data, especially the summoning algorithms, but found no bugs…"
Qin Li nodded.
"Should we take action against the streamer's account? Ban it, perhaps?"
Chen Jianhai's eyes flashed.
*You greedy devs!!!*
*Only you could come up with such a dirty trick!*
The guy paid real money to play fair and square. Just because he got lucky doesn't mean you can punish him!
But voicing that would probably get him beaten up.
"No, leave it be," Qin Li said decisively.
"Keep searching for bugs, but proceed as usual with development."
"From now on, slow down new hero releases and focus on expanding dungeon storylines."
The bespectacled man blinked.
"Chairman Qin, does that mean delaying *Daji the Nine-Tailed Fox*?"
"Correct."
Qin Li's tone was firm.
"Pause all hero and weapon banner updates. The next patch should focus on combat mechanics and dungeon narratives."
"...Understood."
Though conflicted, the man accepted the order.
Chen Jianhai stood awkwardly to the side.
For some reason, he felt like he was eavesdropping on confidential corporate strategy.
And Qin Li's words were clearly meant for *him*!
Once word got out about the wishing pool, there'd be no stopping the flood of players.
Gacha games thrived on whales and mid-tier spenders, most of whom capped their budgets between 2,000 to 10,000 yuan.
Normally,
it took an average of 66 pulls for one 5-star, with a 33% chance of getting an off-banner unit. So hitting pity usually required 100 pulls—roughly 7,800 yuan—to max a character.
Add weapon pulls and upgrades, and you're looking at five figures easily!
But if players realized that a 5,000-yuan hotel stay could net them every 5-star in the game,
*God Sealing Summoner* would be ruined.
Qin Li had clearly foreseen this, hence the shift in development focus.
"Oh, and prepare an S-tier beta account for Boss Chen—with *all* heroes unlocked," Qin Li added.
"Right away."
---
*Clack clack clack!*
Before Chen Jianhai could react, the bespectacled man was already typing furiously.
After verifying Chen Jianhai's phone number and ID, he said,
"Boss Chen, your account is now linked. Just download the game to start playing."
"Thanks." Chen Jianhai couldn't resist asking, "Does it have Nezha?"
Qin Li side-eyed him: *Hmm?*
Chen Jianhai immediately regretted his words, forcing an awkward chuckle.
"Yes, Boss Chen. This is an all-hero S-tier legendary account. Every currently available hero is included…"
"Even Jiang Ziya."
The bespectacled man's face twisted with shame as he said the last part.
Jiang Ziya, a prize reserved for the rarest accounts, had been casually pulled by some random streamer.
For the *God Sealing Summoner* dev team, this was humiliation incarnate!
---
With his new account in hand, Chen Jianhai guiltily followed Qin Li to his office.
Along the way, Qin Li asked casually,
"Boss Chen, is your wishing pool really that effective?"
"Uh… sort of?" Chen Jianhai's smile froze.
*How was he supposed to answer that?!*
If he said yes, would Qin Li hold him responsible?
As Chen Jianhai fretted, Qin Li abruptly changed the subject.
"Boss Chen, I've noticed you handle most of Lion Castle Hotel's affairs personally. Don't you have a good assistant?"
The question struck a nerve.
*"Sigh!"*
"Can't find the right person!"
"I've been looking, but no luck so far."
"If you know anyone suitable, Brother Qin, keep me in mind."
Qin Li smiled.
"I do have some talented people, but they specialize in game development, not hospitality."
Chen Jianhai nodded. "Yeah, I get it."
Then Qin Li added, "Though my wife and I are both in gaming, my daughter takes after neither of us—she's obsessed with hotels."
...*Huh?!*
Chen Jianhai's ears perked up.
*What was this?*
*Was there a hidden meaning here?!*
Qin Li continued, "She's currently studying hotel management abroad and will return in about half a year. After that, she'll need an internship."
"With so many hotels in the country, and my own work being in gaming, I worry about where to place her."
"She's my only daughter… *sigh*! So much to worry about!"
Chen Jianhai understood now.
No wonder Qin Li had summoned him today—showing him videos, touring the office, gifting him an account.
*This was the real agenda!!!*
If he didn't take the hint now, he'd be an absolute idiot.
How familiar this sounded…
The last time he'd heard such words was when Xu Yong had recommended Wen Zifan.
"Brother Qin, if you don't mind my humble hotel, Lion Castle is currently in need of an assistant."
"Once your daughter—my little sister—returns from abroad, she's welcome to join us."
Chen Jianhai's expression was utterly sincere.
"If she finds Zaomen too far from Nanjiang, I have two hotels there as well. She can choose whichever she prefers."
"We can work anything out!!!"