Post-Apocalyptic Survival Modpack

Chapter 80: [Day 1]

"what happened?"

Seeing Wang Ji's strange expression, Ryder couldn't help but ask.

"I'm confirming something."

As Wang Ji spoke, he scanned the list of doomsday modules.

Those things that were more noteworthy were all there, such as parasites, flood demons, flesh and blood, fungi, and insect plagues—those that left a deep impression—all obediently waiting for Wang Ji's review.

But... why do I feel like I'm missing something? It's a bit strange...

Has this list changed?
Still no change?

Wang Ji wasn't quite sure. The last time he opened this, he hadn't paid much attention to it; he had just glanced at it briefly before closing it.

After all, no one likes to stare at dirty things all day long, and he certainly doesn't have that fetish.

so weird.

A strange feeling rose in my heart.

"No, I just can't ignore it."

Wang Ji's intuition told him that something must have changed; everything lately had been very strange.

This time he looked at the list carefully, not missing a single one.

In a short time, I memorized all the tangible apocalyptic modules.

There shouldn't be any mistakes this time.

Wang Ji has already made plans and is keeping a close eye on this knowledge point.

Why should your own things cause trouble?

Let's see if I'll spoil you or not.

Having kept an eye on the apocalyptic knowledge points, Wang Ji returned his attention to the present.

After briefly reviewing the information he had gathered, he concluded, "In other words, everyone experienced something like this last night. While sleeping, they felt as if they were possessed by evil spirits, conscious but paralyzed in bed and unable to move."

"Either I wake up startled and can't fall back asleep, or I force myself to endure this uncomfortable experience until I 'wake up naturally'."

"Moreover, this experience continues now, and it will happen as long as someone tries to fall asleep."

Wang Ji realized the seriousness of the situation.

Sleeping seems to have become impossible.

No, it's not that it's impossible, it's just that the nature of sleeping has changed. It's no longer sweet and intoxicating, but has become a painful thing.

Today is the first day of these symptoms. At most, people will feel a little listless, but their normal life and work will not be greatly affected.

However, if this symptom continues, with the accumulation of fatigue, discomfort, and even painful experiences, the physical and mental state of everyone in the entire ideal community will soon be in serious trouble.

That would be an absolute catastrophe that would endanger world order and even the lives of all people.

"We must address this issue immediately."

Thinking of this, Wang Ji immediately sent a message to Oswald.

Just like last time, Oswald appeared almost instantly after the message was read, emphasizing efficiency and speed.

This startled Ryder, who was standing next to him.

His gaze was involuntarily drawn to the suddenly appearing archmage.

There was no way around it; this was a legendary archmage, and it was the first time Ryder had ever stood so close to him. It was hard not to be drawn to him.

"what happens?"

Upon arriving here, Oswald got straight to the point.

Wang Ji asked, "Did you sleep last night?"

"No."

"You should take a nap."

"I don't need to sleep. At my level, my energy is almost limitless, so I don't need to sleep at all..."

"Just sleep when I tell you to."

"Ok."

Realizing that Wang Ji seemed to have something special to verify, Oswald decisively chose to listen and not argue.

With a thud, he fell straight to the ground, closed his eyes, and immediately fell asleep.

Very decisive.

This startled Wang Ji.

The speed at which he fell was astounding; if the person in front of him weren't a high-ranking mage, he would have suspected that the old man was trying to scam him.

'Being old is great; you can fall asleep as soon as your head hits the pillow.'

He was really asleep.

At this moment, both Wang Ji and Ryder couldn't help but marvel at the archmage's control over his body.

She can fall asleep instantly; that's impressive.

In the brief moment the two were stunned, Oswald suddenly opened his eyes and stood up.

"No, this isn't right."

His eyes trembled as he said, "I can't sleep, no, I'm asleep, no, I'm not really asleep..."

"It's strange. I can't put my senses to sleep. No, not exactly. They are dormant and resting, but I can't let my consciousness and perception gradually dissipate like I would when I'm sleeping normally."

As he spoke, Oswald couldn't help but shake his head: "This is not good at all, it's torture, it's painful."

When did these symptoms begin?

Wang Ji replied, "Just yesterday, the day you came back."

Oswald remained silent.

He understood Wang Ji's meaning. Was this some kind of omen, or was it the approaching end of the world?
no one knows.

But one thing is certain: this matter absolutely cannot be left unattended.

"We need to find a way to make people fall asleep without being tormented by overly clear perception."

Wang Ji offered his opinion.

Both Oswald and Ryder agreed.

So the three of them immediately took action, gathering manpower, pooling ideas and opinions, formulating a plan, and then immediately implementing it, conducting experiments one by one.

Its efficiency is so high that it truly makes serious use of every second, without any formality or procrastination, and is all about concrete action.

The sun had just risen when the sleep disturbance was discovered.

Before the clock had even moved much, the countermeasures team had already been assembled, produced the first drug, and begun experiments.

"First experiment record: Failure."

"Simply using sleep aids is not very effective."

"Second experiment: Failure."

"Even if the whole body is paralyzed, it cannot block perception; it still exists."

The third time, the fourth time...

As the number of experiments increased, the researchers gradually felt a chill run down their spines.

The group reached a conclusion:
All medications targeting the body are ineffective against this abnormality; even directly severing the relevant sensory organs and nerves cannot stop the spread of consciousness.

Even the process of how the drug takes effect is perceived by the test subjects, which not only fails to alleviate the pain but also adds another layer of experience, making it even more unbearable.

When ordinary methods fail, it's Wang Ji's turn to step in.

He tried using milk, potions, or other methods to remove the debuff, or applying a buff to see if that would solve the problem.

The result was that neither worked.

This symptom is simply a change in perception. Although it does make one's condition worse, it is not a real buff effect and cannot be removed.

Just like when someone deliberately closes their eyes, you can only say that they are adjusting their senses, not that they have been hit by a 'blinding' debuff.

If it were truly some kind of persistent negative effect, Wang Ji's own protective amulet would have already taken effect, and it wouldn't have had a chance to attach itself to him.

When milk and potions didn't work, Wang Ji tried some more extreme methods, such as maximizing the distortion value of the Mystic Era and then applying curse waves to make his senses drowsy in an attempt to cover up the anomaly.

But it didn't work.

"Okay, stop torturing yourself."

Even Oswald couldn't stand it anymore. He stopped Wang Ji, and at the same time, he felt inexplicably that the distortion was somewhat familiar.

It's a bit like a little bug I casually crushed outside the world before; the place where that bug was nested was a bit rough to the touch, just like bedrock.

The thought flashed through his mind, and Osvidra opened the King's Pole. After confirming that many methods were not very effective, he finally took matters into his own hands and began the research and development work.

Having learned from the experiences of his previous research group and Wang Ji, he abandoned material methods and instead chose to study things beyond the material world.

soul.

Even Wang Ji had very little knowledge of this thing. His deepest understanding of the soul was the soul identity verification function that worked on the magic network; he really didn't understand anything else.

But that didn't stop him from watching Osvid work and trying to learn from him.

They were busy until noon.

The group's research progress stalled, with only Oswald continuing to tinker.

"Number 40, consciousness-blocking drug."

After lunch, he finally produced a product that seemed to be somewhat effective.

Holding a semi-transparent, somewhat ethereal object, Oswald explained, "This thing works on both the body and soul, temporarily erasing a person's sensory abilities."

Wang Ji couldn't help but exclaim in amazement, "So amazing?"

Osvid nodded slowly, but what he said next made it difficult for Wang Ji to feel happy.

He said, "To put it simply, the principle is to make someone temporarily die, or to put them in a state of suspended animation, and then bring them back to life after a certain period of time."

Wang Ji shook his head repeatedly: "This medicine of yours is a bit scary. It's really not a good idea to temporarily die in order to sleep."

Oswald sighed, knowing full well that this approach was too extreme, and asked, "Do you have a better solution?"

Wang Ji thought for a moment and said, "If there's really no other way, then let's keep everyone awake."

"What do you mean?" Osvid asked, somewhat confused.

"It was Ryder who reminded me of this."

Wang Ji explained: "In the past, the community had very few available managers. Ryder and Ian often worked through the night without rest. When they were tired, they would use drugs to stimulate themselves, which eventually caused irreparable damage to their bodies, which could only be repaired with healing potions."

"What I'm thinking is that if things really get to the extreme, everyone should be able to maintain their lives with medicine and other means to restore their energy and relieve fatigue. This way, at least we can ensure that they can keep living and that their bodies remain healthy."

"However, the cost is sleep deprivation, which may be difficult for many people to get used to."

"Production capacity is not a problem. As long as there is one, I can replicate it infinitely, and there will be enough."

"The distribution of medicines is not a problem. I will build a material network for energy application as soon as possible, and strive to ensure that everyone has a terminal so that they can connect to the central warehouse at any time to retrieve items."

"The only problem now is to come up with a solution first."

After saying that, Wang Ji couldn't help but sigh.

For the first time in my life, I felt that being able to sleep was such a luxury.

...

Current time: Year 6 of the Ideal Community Era.

Event milestones: The empire is completely destroyed, the world is unified, Archmage Oswald returns, and apocalyptic elements appear.

[Day 1]

(End of this chapter)