Chapter 105: The Entire Internet Mocks Relentlessly

The "Fengshen Ranking System" launched by OO caused an unprecedented sensation, igniting the entire internet in an instant.

"Damn, OO’s Fengshen Ranking System is insanely cool!"

"Right? You can actually level up just by chatting—this is just like playing a game!"

"Count me in! I’m going to be the first Taoist in China to reach the Nascent Soul stage. Consider this my pledge!"

"Screw the Nascent Soul stage, I’m only interested in the Golden Core stage. I desperately want that invisible login feature—I’m about to be driven crazy by my dozen or so female fans."

"Bro above, I’m worse off. Hundreds of female fans message me every day. Ignoring them isn’t an option; I spend all my time replying."

"You two are legends. Down here, selling Huaren Shenbao, anyone interested?"

In the blink of an eye, major forums across the country were flooded with discussions about OO’s newly released Fengshen Ranking System. Most users praised the update as spectacular and incredibly engaging, earning unanimous acclaim online.

Of course, the internet never lacks its skeptics. The more popular something is, the more critics emerge. Soon enough, voices appeared on forums accusing OO of forcing users to stay online. Some claimed this was a conspiracy between OO and telecom companies to drain users’ data plans. Others criticized the cultivation system as a bizarre hybrid, saying that according to authentic Taoist practice, cultivation should follow a strict progression: refining essence into qi, qi into spirit, spirit into emptiness, emptiness merging with the Dao, culminating in transcendence. They argued that OO misunderstood Chinese traditional culture and was trampling on the nation’s heritage.

Meanwhile, some accused OO of promoting feudal superstition and spreading cultural rubbish. Whatever the case, it was impossible to silence the naysayers!

Regardless of forum chatter, OO’s backend data told a solid story. Within six hours of the Fengshen Ranking System’s official launch, the number of simultaneous online users skyrocketed from 890,000 to 2.2 million—and the figure kept climbing, nearly matching the peak concurrent users during OO Voice’s release.

The most remarkable aspect was that once users logged in, many refused to log off, remaining online in idle mode. This meant the concurrent user count could keep rising until well past midnight, with 2.5 million users online soon becoming a mere formality. Breaking QQ’s record of 3 million simultaneous users now seemed inevitable.

Meanwhile, discussions about OO’s Fengshen Ranking System grew even more intense. Most posts boasted about how quickly they were leveling up, with some even sharing screenshots of having reached the Golden Core stage—only to be ruthlessly mocked by others.

"You think this is some MMORPG where killing monsters speeds up leveling? This system relies on time spent online to level up. Everyone’s level is basically the same if they stay logged in. Post your OO account number if you’ve got the guts, and let’s all check it out!"

Once an OO account was posted, others could search and view the user’s basic info along with their cultivation level. The authenticity of their rank was immediately clear.

Besides the usual bragging, some threads debated the cultivation system itself, while others discussed the newly released OO emoji packs. In just one day, OO had taken the entire internet by storm.

All this made Tengda and Brother Pony’s blood boil as they urged Zhang Zhidong to hurry. Fortunately, Zhang Zhidong didn’t falter—he completed the update three hours ahead of schedule. Proudly, QQ announced its own new leveling system.

After finishing the final tasks, Zhang Zhidong smiled but was utterly drained. He collapsed onto the couch in the break room and fell asleep immediately.

He had no idea how long he slept. When he woke, everyone was still at work. He learned that he had actually slept for sixteen hours straight—from the afternoon until the next morning.

"So, how’s it looking? What’s the user feedback? Any major bugs?" Zhang Zhidong asked, already suspecting there were no critical issues; otherwise, he wouldn’t have slept so soundly. Inner calm and satisfaction filled him.

But his team’s tone was far from cheerful. One responded despondently, "No major bugs, but that’s about it."

"What do you mean by that?" Zhang Zhidong felt a chill. Was something wrong?

"Boss, the whole internet is accusing us of plagiarizing OO. Our ancestors are getting cursed left and right. How is that fair? This was developed entirely by us!" The programmer’s frustration exploded into tears, overwhelmed by injustice.

Zhang Zhidong fell silent and began browsing mainstream forums like Tianya, Sohu, and Mop. The more he read, the grimmer his expression grew—but at least he understood the situation.

In short, QQ was being vilified across the entire web.

"What the hell? Is QQ’s plagiarism this blatant?"

"Damn, OO launched the Fengshen Ranking System just yesterday, and today QQ rolls out a leveling system. That’s shameless!"

"Exactly! And it’s a mess to boot. OO’s system, though a bit cheesy, draws on traditional Chinese culture. What are these stars and moons supposed to be? Totally lame."

"Not lame at all—they’re based on astrology and tarot cards. Do you even get it?"

"Typical of a company sold to foreigners—ignoring Chinese tradition to copy foreign stuff. QQ, get out of China!"

"Guys, I just came here. What’s going on? Weren’t we all trashing OO for copying before? Now we’re trashing QQ for copying. What’s up with that?"

"No big deal. QQ doesn’t even know how to copy properly. OO started by mimicking QQ but did it better—simple registration, sleek pages, plus new features like farming, message-in-a-bottle, and voice chat. And guess what? QQ ended up copying OO! But QQ can’t even copy well. It’s pathetic."

"Exactly. If you’re going to copy, copy everything—including invisible login and OO emojis. I’m a five-digit QQ user, and I think those features rock. If you don’t give me that, I’m switching for sure!"

"Hey, where’d you get a five-digit QQ number? Spill!"

…

Comments and posts like these went on endlessly. Zhang Zhidong couldn’t even bear to read further and closed the browser. He finally understood his team’s mood.

They had created an original feature, yet it was being called a ripoff. That alone felt like a stab to the heart. Now the entire internet was mocking QQ for not even being able to plagiarize properly—a second, deeper wound, salted and rubbed in. It was excruciating.