That day, I opened the game “Mingchao” and saw the material list of the new character “Xia Kong”. I felt a faint sadness in my heart. This long list of development materials – from the low-frequency “Tide Erosion Sail Core” to the high-frequency “Phosphorus Burning Bone”, and those strange names: Crystallized Phlogiston, Sighing Ancient Dragon, Golden Fleece, like a string of mysterious symbols, tightly tied the players’ time and energy. It seems virtual, but it reveals a real loneliness, a shadow of modern people lost in the digital world.
I remembered the wandering stories written by Sanmao back then. She said: “People are wandering animals, and so are hearts.” Xia Kong’s development seems to be a wandering, but this time he wanders in the ocean of numbers, looking for a sense of belonging and accomplishment given by the virtual world. The collection of each material is like piecing together an incomplete self, like a desire and exploration for the unknown in the distance.
This list of materials is so complicated that one can’t help but ask: Why do we invest our time and energy in such an endless collection? Perhaps this is the portrayal of modern people – day after day, tired and busy, walking between the boundaries of reality and virtuality, but still longing for freedom and pure joy in their hearts.
“Low frequency, medium frequency, high frequency, full frequency”, these frequency classifications seem to be metaphors for the rhythm of life. The pace of modern life is too fast. We constantly adjust ourselves, running between high frequency and low frequency, but it is difficult to find the “frequency band” that belongs to us. In the virtual world, the frequency of materials is very similar to those unattainable dreams and goals in reality. The higher the frequency, the more precious it is, and the more difficult it is to capture. Each of us, like Xia Kong, strives to climb in this endless list of materials, looking forward to one day being able to “crystallize” into our ideal appearance.
These fantastic material names, like unfinished poems, inject some warmth and mystery into this cold system. They are like treasures from ancient legends, and also like the eternal hope in everyone’s heart. Sanmao once said: “Loneliness is not a person, but a state of mind.” When we repeatedly brush these materials in the game, we can’t help but feel the invasion of loneliness – a spiritual emptiness that cannot be soothed no matter how many people accompany us.
The existence of recharge discounts and discount codes makes people think of the transaction logic in the real world. The exchange of time and money has become an invisible shackle. We paid money in exchange for progress in the game; we paid time, but in exchange for the fatigue of reality. This repetitive cycle is very similar to the wandering souls in Sanmao’s writings, constantly searching, but unable to really anchor.
The “stuffed meat tofu” in the game, such as the boosting props, temporarily increase the material drop rate, seems to give us a short respite. In life, we often need such a small comfort – a cup of coffee, a journey, a favorite song, temporarily dilute the heaviness of life. However, these comforts are only short-lived, and the pressure of reality will still come back and engulf us again.
This reminds me of Sanmao’s classic saying: “The world is so big, why not wander with a free heart.” Unfortunately, freedom in reality seems to be always restricted by various constraints, and the material list in the game is just a microcosm of this constraint. We yearn for freedom and self-realization, but often lose ourselves in the process of pursuit.
In the face of this complicated material list, can we still keep a pure heart? Can we still find our own peace in the virtual hustle and bustle? Sanmao tells us with her gentle and firm brushstrokes that although life is bitter, the freedom and courage in our hearts should not be extinguished. Whether it is real or virtual, the most important thing is the sincerity and persistence in our hearts.
The story of “Xiakong” is still going on. Its growth is not only the accumulation of materials, but also a journey in the hearts of players. May we all be like Sanmao, with a brave and free heart, and find our own sky in the complex world.