Chapter Thirty-One: Diary of a Madman

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The completion criteria for Fragmentary Dreams mostly involve collecting all dream fragments, unlocking all key locations, and dispelling all nightmares, much like reassembling a jigsaw puzzle.

Coherent Dreams generally lack fragments; the completion condition is simply to dispel demons by following the route guided by the system. It is currently recognized as the simplest type of dream.

After flipping through a few more volumes, Wu Que found that, aside from the varying strength of the nightmares, they were all largely similar.

Wu Que stretched, walked over to the bookshelf labeled "Special Dreams," and casually opened one.

But after reading only a few pages, he felt a chill run through his body, and cold sweat began to bead on his forehead.

Page 1: (Tonight, the moonlight is excellent.)
Page 2: (Tonight there is no moonlight at all, I know something is wrong.)

"Isn't this 'A Madman's Diary'?"

As he continued to flip through, he discovered that the rules provided by the system were completely different from those of conventional dreams.

(Congratulations to the Dream Mender for successfully entering the dream. The theme of this dream—A Madman's Diary.)
(This dream has no dream fragments, no key locations, and no nightmares.)
(The mission is considered complete if any of the following conditions are met:)
(1. During the first six days, make yourself believe that everyone is eating people.)
(2. During the last seven days, make the villagers believe that no one is eating people.)
(The following are the dream rules for the Dream Mender.)
(1. Madness points will not accumulate during the first six days.)
(2. Madness points can accumulate during the last seven days, with a minimum value of 20.)

Wu Que's heart jolted. To force oneself to believe in cannibalism while perfectly sane, and then to convince villagers that no one is eating people while in a state of madness—what a bizarre dream this was!

He hurriedly flipped further, but could only see a string of garbled code.

It was not until the final page of the book that a single complete sentence appeared.

(Children who have never eaten people, perhaps there are still some...)
(Save the children.)
(April, 1918.)
(A total of 7 people have entered this dream; one survived, and is now mentally broken.)

Putting down this "Madman's Dream," Wu Que quickly browsed the other books on the shelf, each with its own brand of strangeness.

Special Dreams have an extremely low survival rate, and even when a Dream Mender completes the mission, their psyche often suffers a significant shock.

Wu Que was still immersed in this eerie atmosphere when Hong Lei’s voice called out from downstairs.

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"Disciple, come down quickly! Mr. Bai has been waiting for you and hasn't even had dinner yet!"

Wu Que was startled. He looked out through the bamboo window and saw that night had already fallen.

"I didn't realize I was so absorbed in reading!"

Wu Que scratched his head in frustration and hurried downstairs. The three of them had a simple meal together before returning to their respective living quarters.

After dinner, Wu Que lay on his soft bed, his mind wandering.

He thought of his mother and younger sister, the bizarre nightmares, the Dream-Entry Space that functioned like a structured society, and how in just six short days, his life had undergone an earth-shattering transformation.

Finally, he fantasized about entering his mother’s nightmare, holding her hand while dispelling the demons. In his dream, his mother stroked his hair and smiled, telling him he had grown up, before he drifted into a deep sleep.

Because he had slept so comfortably the night he returned from the "Carnal" dream, Wu Que resolved to sleep in the next morning.

"Attention, all Dream Menders. The dream portals will open in the plaza at 14:00 today. Please prepare yourselves. The Dream-Entry Space offers its most sincere respect for your contributions."

Hearing the system’s cold voice, Wu Que sat up as if by reflex, cold sweat instantly soaking his back. He could now deeply empathize with those Dream Menders haunted by "Weepy Ghosts."

He panted as he stepped out of his room, gave the Weepy Ghost's crib a violent shake, and followed the crowd surging toward the plaza.

The plaza was packed. People were huddled together, discussing the dangers of their previous dream entries and speculating about the next.

Wu Que scanned the surroundings and, as expected, spotted Zhang Deshuai’s head, which stood noticeably taller than the rest, and hurried over.

He reached his side and was about to greet him, but saw that Zhang Deshuai looked grave, lost in deep thought.

Seeing him like this, Wu Que couldn't help but sigh.

"He must be carrying a heavy burden, too."

He lowered his hand and stood quietly beside Zhang Deshuai.

Zhang Deshuai noticed him, and after a brief greeting, Wu Que seized the opportunity to ask, "Senior brother, can we choose the dream portal—"

"You can choose, but apart from the participant limit, every portal looks exactly the same, so there is no way to determine whose dream you are entering based on the portal itself."

Wu Que didn't have time to complain and hurriedly asked, "Then, if it's one's own family..."

"You can go to the Stargazing Room for divination."

"Divination?"

"Yes. Although I don't know much about it, it is said that if you provide information related to the 'living dead,' the Stargazing Room can roughly calculate the location of that dream's portal."

As the two were talking, they noticed Hong Lei appearing from some corner, looking at them with a smirk.

"Hey, you two brats, you didn't even call this old man when you woke up."

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"It's lucky that my eldest disciple's forehead is prominent enough, otherwise I really wouldn't have found you."

Zhang Deshuai turned his head away in annoyance, and Wu Que took the opening to ask, "Master, are you entering a dream with us today?"

"No."

Wu Que also turned his head away in annoyance.

"You two rascals, only thinking about taking," Hong Lei scolded with a laugh. "The Stargazing Room predicted a 10-person dream would open today. The Zhai Academy is sending five people, led by Mr. Bai, and I was selected as well."

"When the portals open, you two should find a dream with a low participant limit and enter together. No excuses."

"When new recruits enter a dream, it's best to stick together. You two know each other now; not only will it be safer, but you can also build rapport by entering dreams together."

As soon as he finished speaking, the system's cold voice echoed from above.

"The Dream-Entry Space is now open. The window for entry is one hour. Dream Menders, please choose and enter a portal as soon as possible."

"Dream Menders who fail to enter a dream three times will be forcibly transported in."

The moment the words fell, several figures vanished instantly. Some of them were weeping, while others had already gone mad, laughing foolishly.

Everyone knew that these people would likely never return.

The first gate slowly appeared—a pitch-black hole with a large "0/10" displayed on the frame.

"Lads, remember what I said. When I return, we shall drink together again!"

Hong Lei turned around and was the first to step into the gate.

"Don't jinx yourself like that!" Wu Que thought, speechless, but still gave his master a wave of resignation.

The moment Hong Lei stepped into the gate, the number on the frame changed to 1/10.

Following Hong Lei, more and more people walked into the gate, including Bai Shusheng, whom Wu Que had seen the day before.

When the last person entered, the number on the frame became 10/10, and with a rumbling sound, the gate slowly closed.

As the first gate shut, several more sprouted up like bamboo shoots after rain, with numbers ranging from 1 to 9.

From a distance, they looked like rows of upright tombstones.