Chapter 284: Negotiation

Words : 1421 Updated : Oct 15th, 2025

Yi Chen watched the girl who resembled a clown before him, and at the same time had Little Grape activate the global vision to be on guard for a potential nightmare attack. “Who are you?” The girl gently pressed her nose, “Call me Catherine.” “Are you the Root, or just an ordinary derivative?” “Well~ I can’t tell you right now. Of course, when we get to know each other better, I might consider telling you this secret in a whisper, haha!” Because the girl had on exaggerated black smiling makeup, it seemed as if she was smiling all the time. “Did you call me here just to boast about your ‘invasion achievements’? Mixing the stuff of nightmares into the everyday meat products to infect the entire city.” “No… no!” Catherine hurriedly denied it, tapping the ground with her foot clad in black and white stockings, explaining as she walked. “It’s not quite appropriate to describe it as an infection. It would be more accurate to use the term ‘implantation’, because what we have released is quite special, and it’s very different from common pathogens. You see, William! Do you know what the most stubborn thing is within humans or any life forms capable of thought?” “I don’t know.” Yi Chen gave up on thinking and waited for the answer. Catherine slowly approached, reaching out to touch Yi Chen’s forehead but he stepped back, increasing the distance between them. With no other option, she just pointed at her own forehead. “‘Thought’~ Once a thought is implanted in someone’s brain, it’s not only difficult to discover but also, almost impossible to get rid of. This thought will slowly integrate after implantation until it becomes an indispensable part of the individual, affecting their most basic life habits, or even replacing their original personality. It cannot be detected by any quarantine equipment, and common methods are ineffective. This is a truly perfect pathogen, don’t you think? And the nightmares ‘we’ control, are the perfect medium for transmitting thoughts.” Yi Chen did not deny this point. However, in Yi Chen’s view, the girl or the nightmare Root behind her was simply using the idea as an excuse;their real weapon was still the nightmares themselves. “Speak up, what do you want from me? Although I am the first human willing to delve deep into dreams, it’s not necessary to risk exposure just to meet with me.” “You’re right, Mr. William! The reason ‘we’ wanted to see you is not only because you are the first nightmare acceptor, but also because you possess abilities similar to ours. Your Madness Brain can also realize the transmission of ‘thoughts’, am I right? After all, the Madmen of the Old World did just that.” The girl was referring to the educational ability associated with Yi Chen’s profession. “Do you also want to join forces with me to destroy this city that nurtured me and gave me care and attention?” “No… Although we do act recklessly, we wouldn’t do something so foolish. We just simply want to play a game with you. As you saw when you walked into the factory head-on, chunks of meat carrying ‘thoughts’ are continuously flowing into every corner of your city. When the time is ripe, we only need to light a fire to ignite all the thoughts in people’s brains and bestow upon them a permanent ‘smile’. However, Mr. William, you have a chance to save everyone! If you participate in the game and emerge victorious, I will immediately remove all the ‘thoughts’ rooted in people’s brains and leave this place.” “You have been lurking in Zion for so long, step by step infiltrating;now you’re willing to give it up just for a game, you think I would believe that?” Catherine seemed to predict his response, not the least bit anxious, “Haven’t you already come to see me? This indicates that we’ve already started to establish the most basic level of trust between us, doesn’t it? What I am doing now is hoping that you can trust us, For instance, exposing such an important factory directly to you. If you don’t want to join the game or continue communicating with us, you can leave right now and report this factory to the organization, that’s totally okay.” “Why must you play a game with me?” “Didn’t I mention before? It’s because you have a common trait with us, and the game happens to relate to this trait… you’ll find out when the time comes, it’s going to be especially fun.” “Just for this game, you’re willing to withdraw the efforts of your months of hard work?” Catherine rested a finger against her chin, tilting her head as she suddenly thought of something, “Hey, let me tell you a story. Once upon a time, there was an incredibly skilled thief who quietly snuck into a doll machine amusement arcade in the middle of the night. He easily opened up all the doll machines. He took out all the dolls, one by one, feeling and selecting them, while also trying out the claw strength of every machine, In the end, he put all the dolls back into the machines, and placed his favorite one in the position most likely to be grabbed. The next day when the shop opened for business as usual, he came, grabbed his favorite doll from the easiest machine, and was so happy that he didn’t sleep all night. He even wrote this joy into his diary to keep forever. That’s the end of the story~ William, do you understand its meaning?” “Like the thief, we came to this human city just for fun, to see what kind of special performances humans can put on in nightmares. Who knew, in the midst of it all, you, an interesting individual like you would come along, naturally raising our priority. As long as you come to the game scene as required, we will sign an Old World contract with you, and if we lose! We will immediately withdraw from Zion, I could even apologize to you, but only you.” “What if I lose?” “If you lose… you join us in destroying this city, killing your friends, especially the woman who was holding you last night.” “When and where will the game take place?” “Don’t rush, I haven’t set up the game scene yet, and the tools are still being prepared. Just keep the card with you, and we can contact you at any time. When everything is ready, I will let you know.” “Hmm, anything else?” Catherine took a step forward, trying to get close to him, but Yi Chen sidestepped, avoiding her completely. “Can you not stay with that woman during this time? It’s uncomfortable for us to watch.” “That’s none of your business.” “Right, it’s first come, first served, huh? Then don’t mind my peeking tonight, if you do something too excessive, I might do something more excessive than last night’s peeping. Be careful, I might record all your intimate acts and spread them everywhere!” “If there’s nothing else, I’ll be leaving.” Sёarch* The Novelƒire(.)ne*t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. “Okay, take care!” Catherine hopped to the edge of the secret room, squiggle squiggle~ a tentacle grew out of her palm, spraying ink to draw a door leading to the outside world. She also stood neatly aside, on tiptoe. Just as Yi Chen was about to leave, Catherine raised her little hand over her shoulder, waving it back and forth, “Bye-bye.” “Hmm.” Yi Chen responded softly, then walked out of the room, instantly returning to the normal raw materials factory. Looking back, the room that had been invaded by nightmares had returned to normal, and behind the office desk was the black-skinned supervisor with dirty braids, maintaining a smiling face, as if she had just had a nice conversation with Yi Chen. Leaving the workshop, little Grape immediately jumped off his shoulder: “William! You don’t really believe that bad woman, do you? Some stupid game, it’s surely a trap to lure you into the depths of the nightmare, all lies.” “It’s not necessarily lies, more a mix of truth and falsehood. The link with Catherine can’t be broken for now, let’s gather more information before the game starts.”

Chapter 284: Negotiation

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