This entry is suspicious.

"How much for funeral expenses...? How many people have died?"

Zhou Ran asked questions while signing the document.

"Five of them, all claiming to be experts in dealing with the supernatural. They watched that black-clad dream video, and then fell asleep and never woke up again. But some of them are genuinely capable; they've withstood it and are trying to figure out a solution," a bodyguard replied.

Zhou Ran's writing was fluent, and his thoughts flowed like lightning.

Hmm... As long as I don't recklessly contact that black magic dream, there won't be any danger. But if I don't take a look at the supernatural, I can't use the Book of Fate to see the fate. So if I want to act safely, I have to analyze the supernatural's abilities based on the existing information. I'm afraid I can't compare to those truly experienced supernatural experts in this regard. I'll just do my best.

After he signed the contract, he handed it to the bodyguard, who took it, checked it, and then walked towards the elevator. The bodyguard swiped the card for the two of them to start the elevator and then swiped the card again to press the floor button.

Mr. Wang booked the sixth floor.

As soon as the elevator doors opened, a cacophony of noise flooded into my ears.

The luxuriously decorated lounge was bustling with people, most of which were seated. A rough count revealed more than twenty people, men and women, a diverse mix.

An elite man in a tailored suit with his hair neatly combed; a gangster with a gold chain around his neck and tattoos covering every inch of his skin; a woman wearing a mask and sunglasses, completely covered up...

When the elevator doors opened, everyone in the lobby immediately turned to look, their eyes full of scrutiny.

Upon seeing that one of the newcomers was a harmless-looking young man, most people turned their attention away, while only a few remained curiously observing him, thinking that this young man might be extraordinary.

Zhou Ran followed Fang Beichen and quietly found a place to sit down. His gaze swept over the people, and densely packed fate entries popped up in his field of vision. After careful observation, he was slightly shocked.

There are actually real ones.

Among these people, there is a master of deception!

[Yuan Lei], [Eighth Level of Qi Refining], [Bachelor's Degree], [Loves Fried Chicken], [Regular at Bathhouses], [Self-Media Blogger], [Expert in the Uncanny], [Master of the Uncanny], [Ink-Blood Uncanny Patterns]...

The Ghost Keeper was the tattooed gangster. Every inch of his skin was covered in tattoos. His hands, face, neck, and even his eyeballs were covered in intricate patterns. He no longer looked like a flesh-and-blood body, but rather like a living tattoo scroll.

Counterintuitively, in most people's minds, only members of underground gangs have such heavy tattoos. But Yuan Lei actually has a bachelor's degree and is at the eighth level of Qi Refining, making him one of the most skilled people present.

Zhou Ran could only sigh inwardly, "You really can't judge a book by its cover."

Upon closer inspection, he noticed that Yuan Lei's tattoos were of various kinds, including animals such as tigers, cows, snakes, eagles, and whales, as well as objects such as knives, swords, chains, guns, and bandages.

Therefore, the strange ability he wields should be to gain power boosts through tattoo patterns, or even to activate tattoo patterns for combat.

This ability is very powerful; the more tattoos one has, the stronger the power becomes. However, there is definitely an upper limit. Strange powers are not limitless, and one's own tolerance for them also has its limits.

"Here is more detailed information. Take a look. It has all been tested and there is no danger."

Fang Beichen's voice pulled Zhou Ran back to reality, and he handed her a document.

Zhou Ran took it, turned to the first page, and immediately a chill ran down his spine.

It was an ultra-high-definition image, showing the bizarre scene that appeared in Blackie's dream: a corner of a magnificent villa's living room, where a richly dressed but faceless noblewoman was holding a baby in her arms, creating a very warm scene.

But this is undeniably eerie, and the thought of it immediately evokes a sense of unease tinged with a chilling dread.

"Don't worry, the picture doesn't have any eerie power. The real eerie power is that lullaby," Fang Beichen explained.

Zhou Ran composed himself. That was indeed the case. If the photograph was a medium of some strange power, then the Book of Fate would definitely have popped up an entry, and the previous test subjects should have all died long ago.

He observed the photo for a while. The lady and baby in the picture were frozen quietly in a corner of the villa's living room. The scene was rather blurry, and he couldn't see any details or anything unusual. So he turned to the next page of the document.

Several more high-resolution photos, all close-ups of faces, of all those who died while listening to lullabies. The expressions on the corpses were identical: peacefully asleep, yet with an eerie, serene smile playing on their lips.

Continuing to the next page, you'll find various attempts made by the strange experts hired by Boss Wang:

Modify the Hyperdream device, add a battle system, and attempt to fight the bizarre in the Hyperdream space to directly destroy the source;

Use supernatural powers to enter dreams and confront the bizarre in the infected person's dream;

Starting with the source of the mysterious power, we deconstruct the audio of a lullaby;

They lit protective candles while the infected were asleep, attempting to ward off the eerie force...

Unfortunately, all attempts have failed, and several experts on the supernatural have lost their lives as a result, with only a few surviving so far.

But these attempts were not entirely fruitless.

The strange expert who worked on the lullaby itself used various methods, such as disassembly, noise reduction, frequency division, slow motion, and reversal, to finally discover that it was actually a lullaby played in reverse from the technological era of 225 years ago. More than 400 years ago, it had long been forgotten and unknown to anyone. It was only through offline big data retrieval that it was found.

The original song is warm and peaceful, but when played in reverse, the melody is distorted and the lyrics are reversed, which is why it sounds distorted and eerie.

So he played the Blackie Dream backwards, restoring the audio to forwards, in an attempt to crack the bizarre killing mechanism, but to no avail.

Zhou Ran flipped through the pages, closed the document, and sighed helplessly. The attempts these people made were all quite reasonable, but none of them worked. Without the Book of Fate, he probably wouldn't be able to come up with a solution.

But since we're already here, let's have a brainstorming session.

Before he could even begin to think, a series of hurried footsteps suddenly echoed down the corridor.

A man who appeared to be a close confidant of Boss Wang rushed into the lounge, cleared his throat, and called out:

"Everyone, this strange incident has been resolved! Thank you all for making this trip; we will fully reimburse your travel expenses and give each of you a 10,000 yuan bonus!"

"What?"

The hall erupted in chaos.

"Resolved? Who resolved it?"

"Where's Boss Wang? Let him come out and say something!"

"Really? They can handle such a tricky and bizarre case? I'd like to see who this extraordinary person is."

...No way?

Zhou Ran was taken aback and subconsciously glanced at Fang Beichen. The other party was also startled, his brows furrowing slightly, clearly not expecting this either.

They hadn't even settled in yet, and the matter was already resolved?

The confidant remained calm, a professional smile on his face: "Please be patient, everyone. Boss Wang will be out shortly, and the expert who solved the strange incident will also appear. You can ask him any questions then."

The commotion in the hall subsided somewhat.

Everyone waited quietly, curious about who had resolved this strange incident and how.

Half an hour later, footsteps echoed from the depths of the corridor.

Boss Wang emerged surrounded by a group of trusted confidants, accompanied by a young man wearing a white hooded sweatshirt with his hands in his pockets.

The young man had delicate features, a faint smile playing on his lips. His gaze swept over the people in the hall with indifference, concealing an imperceptible air of superiority.

With a radiant smile, Boss Wang clasped his hands in a fist and bowed to the crowd, saying, "Thank you all for coming from afar. You've all worked hard. However, the strange incident has been perfectly resolved by this expert."

He turned to the white-clad youth and said, "Shao Yichen, Mr. Shao. He's the one who resolved it."

Shao Yichen nodded slightly as a greeting to everyone, his hands still in his hoodie pockets.

There was a two-second silence in the hall, followed by a buzzing of whispers.

And at this very moment.

Zhou Ran stared intently at Boss Wang and "Shao Yichen" with a solemn expression.

[Wang Che], [Eighth Level of Qi Refining], [Pharmaceutical Company Boss], [Black Market Tycoon]... [Chess in the Game (Red)], [Secret Mind Control (Red)]

[Zuo Changsheng], [39 years old], [Early Foundation Establishment Stage], [Pseudo-Seventh Level of Awakening], [Secret Technique Suppressing Realm], [First-Year High School Student at Qinghe City Immortal Path No. 3 Middle School], [False Identity], [Demonic Path Cultivator], [Infiltrator]...

[Self-directed and self-acted (Gold)], [Positioning in Qinghe (Red)]