Chapter 281: Influence

Words : 1768 Updated : Oct 15th, 2025

“Brainwave pulses have been effective, all test subjects have awakened, and all physical indicators are normal.” Even when hung midair by a fishing line, Yi Chen felt an odd sensation in his palm right away, the card he had gotten from the nightmare gift box had somehow followed him back to reality. Although it seemed like he had been awakened, with Jin and Reagan both at his side, he couldn’t be completely certain this was reality. Verification was necessary. Without taking the time to greet his companions, Yi Chen immediately rushed into the changing room to put on his gentleman’s clothes, sensing the presence of Yellow Skin and the ancient soul contract they had signed with each other. Compared to ungentlemanly behaviors like being covered in pinpricks, lashed with iron chains all over one’s body, or blatantly hanging oneself, it was better to simply wear the clothes, this mysterious leather that could disrupt the Source Epidemic Area of the Old World, along with the ancient connection established between the two;the nightmare, no matter how powerful, could not fake that. §You seem to have obtained some strange nightmare substance;it isn’t dispersing but maintaining a certain fixed shape§ As soon as Yellow Skin was draped over his body, it transmitted a message, clearly perceiving the existence of the card. “That’s right, because I actively delved deep into the nightmare and connected with the nightmare factors of the suspected Pathogen, the other party gave me this card. I didn’t expect it could be brought back to reality.” After Yi Chen gave his response, Yellow Skin didn’t say anything more. “So hot~” The sleepwear developed by the Power Station was not breathable at all, and due to the high metabolic rate brought on by heightened tension during the dream, his entire body was slippery with sweat as he took off the outfit. Considering the potential threat of the card, Yi Chen decided to shower in the gentleman’s clothes in the bathroom. Additionally, he took out the card from his pocket to see what it was. It was like a living card, its surface writhing with flowing inky substance, moving without a fixed form. As Yi Chen looked at it for an extended period, the ink started transforming into ancient script. ≮Nightmare Entry Ticket≯ -(Note) There’s something on the back too. As Yi Chen flipped to the back of the card, the ink quickly solidified into even smaller fonts. ≮If you really want to understand me, go to 83 Rotka Street, present this card to the gentleman living there, and he’ll show you something much more interesting. Remember to come alone. If there are any followers or if you’re discovered to be under surveillance, the ‘event’ will not be triggered. This card is for your use only~ If someone else sees it, it will rapidly disintegrate and become ineffective.≯ Looking at the information on the back of the card, Yi Chen frowned deeply. The information indicated that the nightmare had infiltrated Zion’s interior, and this gentleman residing at 83 Rotka Street might already be controlled by the nightmare or even completely parasitized. Sёarᴄh the Nôvel(F)ire.ηet website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. At that moment, Yi Chen’s brain was rapidly thinking: “Once the card is discovered, it will deactivate, severing my connection with the nightmare. I should hide it for now, can’t lose this lead. Currently, our understanding of nightmares is almost nil;we must use every possible means to uncover the foundation of nightmares. As for the address and the person mentioned on the card, even if I report it to the organization for an assassination, it won’t have much impact on the nightmares. If there’s one gentleman influenced by the nightmares in Zion, there are bound to be more infected gentlemen. Sigh~ That’s it for now, let’s first gather up any useful information obtained from the initial nightmare experience.” Yi Chen placed the nightmare card into a pocket within the clothes created by Yellow Skin, isolated in multiple layers, impossible to be discovered unless the Tailor took the clothes apart. … [Power Station – General Meeting Room] The three testers and related personnel from the Power Station were sitting here. Everyone began sharing their experiences;the methods of exploration and the intelligence gathered were all different. Jin’s approach was the most straightforward and effective. “After I killed the nightmare entity that was impersonating William, I kept getting trapped in a looped passageway shaped like a square. Since I couldn’t find any exit, I had no choice but to start causing destruction. Given the space was only so big, the red cancer in my body quickly completed the environmental infection;the entire passageway was overrun by cancerous cells. Then I picked a wall and blasted it. After about 30 meters in thickness, I finally reached the boundary of the dream. I could distinctly feel that if I crossed it, I would wake up immediately. Boring, I thought there would be formidable opponents to come, but there were only clumsy imitators and a simple looped maze.” Jin casually rolled a tumorous bubble gum and his elongated tongue extended from under the mask, curling around to snatch the bubble gum, propping his face on one hand, the entire person appeared listless. Then it was Reagan’s turn to explain, “The moment I entered the dream, I completed ‘Self-awareness.’ I could distinctly sense the nightmare substance’s attempt to invade my mind, which was blocked by my force field of thought. I didn’t kill the workers disguised by the nightmare substance;instead, I created an internal space to imprison them. During the three hours of exploration, I attempted to conduct a structural analysis of the nightmare substance and study the mechanism by which nightmares affect dreams. I eventually reached a conclusion, the influence of nightmares on us only stays on the surface, and to explore further, one must go to a deeper layer, where the nightmare concentration is high enough, to possibly locate the root of nightmares. I crushed the humans disguised by the nightmare substance, dissolved them into their most basic liquid form, and then restructured them, attempting to create a “Nightmare Staircase” that could connect to the deeper layers. In the end, due to instability, the staircase only lasted for three seconds before collapsing. If I have another chance, I should be able to create a more stable staircase.” Reagan didn’t just articulate this verbally, he also took pen and paper and wrote down his principle analysis of nightmares and the method of creating the ‘staircase,’ which astounded everyone present. Even Yi Chen was taken aback, not expecting that Reagan could achieve this level after just three hours of initial exploration. Then it was Yi Chen’s turn to elaborate. “My situation is similar to Reagan’s, I too realized the existence of nightmare levels. However, I can’t create a ‘staircase’ to the depths like Reagan. Instead, I used a more cumbersome method.” These words caught Reagan’s attention, who could roughly guess what the cumbersome method was, “William, you didn’t…?” “That’s right, I chose to ingest the nightmare substance actively. After eating the tentacles that attacked me, I woke up directly at the next layer. Not to mention, the taste of the tentacles was pretty good.” For a moment, the look in the eyes of those present, especially the Power Station staff engaged in scientific research, was akin to seeing a madman. “What was the deep layer like?” Principal Desline pressed. “The concentration of nightmare substance was higher, but I was woken up before I could fully explore… Now that Reagan has a more stable way to go deeper, I wouldn’t recommend using my clumsy method.” “Hmm.” The information gathered by the three was more than expected, with Reagan’s creation of the Nightmare Staircase being of utmost importance. More personnel will be arranged to enter nightmares and try to create a staircase using the principles Reagan provided. There was also another important matter—’Self-awareness.’ Aside from special cases like Reagan whose spiritual power was too abnormal, completing recognition the instant they entered dreams, most people often need to detect inconsistencies in nightmares to realize it. The Organization will subsequently focus on this point to mentally reinforce the dream testers. The meeting concluded, and Yi Chen, due to his mad actions in the dream, was forced to undergo a comprehensive check to ensure he was not infected by nightmares before being allowed to leave. However, Principal Desline’s intervention significantly shortened the inspection time as she could detect that Yi Chen was all normal. “You three go and rest for a while, more dream entries for your trio will inevitably be arranged later. The contributions you’ve made will be reported to the Organization, and corresponding rewards will be given from above.” Principal Daisline looked appreciatively at the three before her, lingering a few seconds longer on Yi Chen, and even conveyed a message through her eyes, inviting him to discuss Star Magic in her office when he had time. Yi Chen walked at the fore, gesturing, “Reagan, Jin~ it’s still on me tonight, let’s have a good meal.” Hearing about food, Reagan’s spirits immediately lifted, his cheeks trembling along, imagining a vast array of restaurant names and pre-selecting dishes in his mind. As the three left the research institute, at the end of the straight corridor, a Power Station worker stood before a cylindrical identification device, his entire face almost colliding with it, as though he would bump into it. This scene slightly startled Yi Chen. But there was no subsequent collision, just a malfunctioning device, which this person was attempting to fix. As the three approached, the worker also turned around and showed a smiling face, “Director Reagan! Sorry, there’s a problem with the identification device, but it’ll be fixed right away.” “Elvan Pound…” Yi Chen looked at this person’s face and couldn’t help but say his name. After all, it was too familiar;Yi Chen had witnessed this man’s face smash into the device 27 times in dream cycles. “Hm? Do we know each other?” When the man directed his gaze at Yi Chen, the smile on his face hadn’t really changed, yet it felt eerily similar to the sinister grin when his face was shattered in the nightmares. Just then, the detection device suddenly worked again, and the security door opened. Elvan Pound stood still, smilingly seeing off the trio as they left.

Chapter 281: Influence

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