This was the difference between Star Bird Fitness and other gym models.

Other gyms had shared equipment, making it difficult to assess the exact capacity. For instance, if there were a hundred people in a gym, how many would need dumbbells, and how many would need lat pulldown machines?

It was impossible to estimate, thus difficult to accurately determine how crowded the gym was or provide guidance to customers.

But at Star Bird Fitness, apart from the cardio area, everything consisted of smart fitness clothing racks. The data on how long each person exercised on a rack and how many racks were available could all be tracked.

This way, they could infer the gym’s current capacity and status, and even roughly calculate waiting times.

Through an app, they could divert some of the peak-hour crowd, enhancing customer experience while optimizing configuration and improving efficiency.

Using big data to guide fitness—wasn’t that the way forward?

While Che Rong was envisioning Star Bird Fitness’s bright future, Li Shi arrived.

“Mr. Li!” Che Rong immediately went to greet him.

For Che Rong, Mr. Pei was the root cause of Star Bird Fitness’s turnaround. Without Mr. Pei’s development of the smart fitness clothing racks and VR headsets, Star Bird Fitness’s current model wouldn’t exist at all.

But when it came to who he was most grateful to, it was definitely Mr. Li.

If it weren’t for Mr. Li proposing this model and acting as a bridge connecting Star Bird Fitness with Tenda Group, their development wouldn’t have been so smooth.

Thus, Che Rong was immensely grateful to Li Shi.

Li Shi looked around the Star Bird Fitness flagship store and smiled, saying, “Business is good! I told you Mr. Pei’s arrangements are absolutely foolproof—there’s no need to worry at all.”

Che Rong nodded: “Indeed!”

“By the way, Mr. Li, Mr. Pei came by yesterday. He just walked in, took a look around, and left.”

“I wanted to go greet him, but Mr. Pei left too quickly, and I didn’t get the chance.”

Li Shi was a bit surprised: “Mr. Pei came?”

“That means Mr. Pei really cares about Star Bird Fitness. Not many businesses get a personal visit from Mr. Pei.”

“You were right not to greet him. Mr. Pei is very busy and doesn’t have time for casual chats. He also doesn’t like small talk—he prefers people who get things done.”

“You should mainly focus on developing Star Bird Fitness well.”

Che Rong nodded and said, “Yes, that’s what I thought too!”

The two of them went to the rest area, chatting over tea.

Li Shi said, “Yesterday I made another trip to the old industrial district. The houses we bought are all being renovated, with plans to rent them out as guesthouses.”

“They can be rented long-term or short-term, providing accommodation benefits for people visiting from out of town.”

“After the subway news came out, the houses in this area inevitably increased in value. Fortunately, we acted early and didn’t give speculators much opportunity.”

“To prevent some people from hoarding these houses and renting them out at high prices to exploit others, we need to quickly provide quality accommodation services. It’s also a small favor we can do for Mr. Pei.”

“Also, you must keep a close eye on Star Bird Fitness. In the coming months, its popularity will only increase.”

Che Rong was surprised: “The popularity can last for several months?”

He was somewhat astonished. After all, although VR was a novelty, its popularity would typically come quickly and go just as fast.

It wasn’t that he underestimated the future development trend of games; the key issue was that Doubt VR headsets only had two Tenda games so far. As for other apps and games, they were just fillers.

Relying on “Animal Island” and “Fitness Battle” to maintain high popularity for several months? It sounded a bit unrealistic.

Che Rong thought this kind of fervor would last a month or two at most before popularity would decline.

But for Star Bird Fitness, one or two months was enough.

During this period, they could use the popularity to attract a large customer flow. After the hype died down, those with genuine fitness needs would have already formed habits, allowing Star Bird Fitness to achieve stable profits.

How could it last for several months as Mr. Li suggested?

Li Shi shook his head slightly: “This is where the limitations of our imagination and vision lie!”

“I initially had the same thought as you, until I saw this video.”

Li Shi handed his phone to Che Rong. On it was a video from the AiLiDao website titled “Animal Island—The Virtual Reality Gaming Era Has Arrived!”

The content creator’s name was “Qiao Laoshi.”

Che Rong said, “Qiao Laoshi? I think I’ve heard of him. He seems to have some reputation in the gaming section.”

Li Shi chuckled: “Just ‘some reputation’? That’s a complete amateur’s perspective. But it’s normal that you don’t know much since you don’t follow this field.”

“He became famous by successfully interpreting Mr. Pei’s intentions. He doesn’t just analyze games released by Tenda Group, but also various game-related products, and even their corresponding marketing strategies.”

“I met him before at Thriller Hotel. Although he doesn’t seem particularly special, he’s definitely one of the people who understands Mr. Pei best in this world!”

“I watch all of his videos. Even though I don’t understand many of the gaming concepts, I still learn a lot about Mr. Pei’s business mindset, which is very helpful for understanding Mr. Pei as a person!”

Che Rong was shocked: “Really? Then I’ve been blind to greatness.”

“What does this video talk about?”

Li Shi: “It explains how this headset and these two games will usher in the VR era!”

Che Rong nodded slightly, but instinctively felt this was an exaggeration.

Although the headset and the two games were well-made, saying they would “usher in the VR era” seemed premature, didn’t it?

Even the arrival of the mobile gaming era took several years to complete.

First, the hardware had to meet standards, and then over several years, mobile games continuously expanded, developed, and evolved. One hit game after another expanded the player base, ultimately giving mobile games their current scale.

And now, in terms of market share, VR devices were essentially a niche within a niche, far from comparable to platforms like consoles, computers, and mobile phones.

This claim really seemed like clickbait.

However, since Mr. Li valued it so highly, the video must have some merit.

Che Rong didn’t say much more and started watching the video.

…

“Hello to all my dear audience daddies, I am still your ‘Game Father’ Qiao Laoshi. Welcome to the second part of the video, where we’ll witness together how Doubt VR and ‘Animal Island’ will usher in the VR era!”

It was still that signature voice, though it sounded slightly hoarse, probably from excessive work recently.

This video was also the result of Qiao Liang’s late-night efforts. Fortunately, with an abundance of inspiration, the script flowed naturally, so production was relatively quick.

The previous video was released on Thursday night, and the new one on Sunday morning. For some daily content creators, this might not seem like much, but for Qiao Laoshi, known for his unreliability, this was as productive as a mother pig.

“Seeing this title, some might say, ‘Ah, Qiao Laoshi, you clickbaiter! Just two games, and you’re already yelling about ushering in the VR gaming era—isn’t that boasting a bit too much?'”

“Not at all, my dear audience lords. Let me explain in detail.”

“When I say Doubt VR will usher in the VR gaming era, this isn’t some prophecy or judgment about the future, but merely an objective evaluation of this product.”

“We all know that whether the VR era will come and when it will arrive isn’t determined by any single person, company, or game. If hardware levels aren’t sufficient, it might not arrive for the next five, ten, or even more years.”

“And whether hardware levels can reach that point is a completely unknown factor.”

“So why do I still say Doubt VR will usher in the VR gaming era?”

“The reason is simple: Doubt VR and ‘Animal Island’ haven’t just launched a fun, practical, comprehensive VR product; more importantly, they’ve established standards for all future VR games!”

“Just as early FPS games established the rule of ‘left-click to shoot, right-click to aim, WASD to move’ for all future FPS games; just as early RTS games established rules like ‘left-click to select, right-click to move, fog of war’ for all future RTS games; just as early MMORPG games established basic rules like ‘massive quests, multiplayer team dungeons, vast and rich lore’ for all future MMORPG games, Doubt VR headsets and ‘Animal Island’ have established rules for basic operations and popularized fundamental concepts for future VR games.”

“If VR technology advances rapidly in the future, the standards established by Doubt VR and ‘Animal Island’ for VR games will certainly continue and further develop.”

“And if VR technology stagnates in the future, Doubt VR will likely be the best VR product you can buy for a long time, and ‘Animal Island’ will be the most interesting VR game you can play for a long time.”

“So, regardless of which scenario plays out, Doubt VR will be an era-defining product that cannot be missed in the VR gaming era!”

“As for how it single-handedly brought niche VR games into everyone’s view, and how it established basic standards for future VR games?”

“Listen as I explain in detail, my esteemed audience daddies.”

…

After hearing this opening statement, Che Rong was shocked.

He hadn’t expected Qiao Laoshi to start like this!

And it sounded so reasonable!

Whether the VR era would arrive or not, nobody could say for sure.

If we were to infer based on general logic, as long as VR technology continued to advance in the future, with resolution gradually reaching 4K, 8K, or even higher, and frame rates increasing to 144Hz or more, while prices dropped below three thousand yuan, the VR market would definitely expand further, and the so-called VR era would inevitably arrive.

If there were major technological breakthroughs, such as mature, usable omnidirectional treadmills or even more fantastical neural connection technologies, VR games might completely revolutionize all existing game types.

But what if VR technology stagnated?

If VR resolution couldn’t improve, prices remained high, and the gaming experience didn’t significantly enhance, it would forever remain a niche product, growing increasingly marginalized. What VR era would there be to speak of then?

The clever part of Qiao Laoshi’s approach was that he hypothesized both scenarios and then concluded: regardless of which scenario played out, Doubt VR and “Animal Island” would leave an indelible mark in VR gaming history!