I, the screenwriter, have experienced a resurgence of inspiration.

The corridor outside the ward was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone held their breath, not daring to disturb the operation of the monitoring equipment; the atmosphere was so oppressive it was suffocating.

"Asleep?"

Sun Zhao, deputy head of the Jiangcheng Special Investigation Section, also looked unwell. She pinched her brow and took a deep breath.

In order to figure out the patterns of the dungeon and retrieve the bodies of the dead citizens, Chen Xi's combat team sacrificed four special forces members.

Of the six survivors, excluding Ashima who remained unconscious, the remaining five underwent comprehensive physical examinations and in-depth psychological counseling.

Despite numerous expert consultations, repeated tests, and even the use of the most advanced biological neuroscience research technology in the country, Ashima was still unable to wake up.

……

"Academician, there's still nothing unusual."

The young researcher in charge of data monitoring reported in a low voice, his tone filled with a deep sense of powerlessness:

"Full-body scan, deep brainwave analysis, and fundamental mental energy detection... all indicators are normal, there are no organic lesions, no residual trauma, no unknown infections, and the cause of the coma cannot be found at all."

Suppressing his anxiety, Sun Zhao turned to look at Academician Li, his tone filled with confusion and caution:

"Professor Li, we have ruled out all the possibilities. Shouldn't we consider unconventional causes?"

A top-tier special forces soldier, whose physique, willpower, and mental resilience far surpass those of ordinary people, escaped without any external injuries or illnesses, only to fall into an irreversible deep coma.

This is completely beyond the scope of modern medical explanation. What do you think is the cause?

Countless consultations regarding the abnormal states of Lin Hao and Wang Lei all ended in failure.

The official understanding of dungeons is still too one-sided.

Currently known:

An unknown supernatural instance exists, containing bizarre rules for killing.

Ordinary people have the opportunity to awaken special abilities, but the dungeons are fraught with danger and the risk of death is extremely high.

However, the official team is completely unaware of the underlying logic of player skills, energy consumption mechanisms, class level rules, and ability backlash thresholds.

The sample size is still too small; we can only explore little by little, like a blind man crossing a river.

……

……

"All physiological indicators are normal, the body is completely undamaged, with no lesions, infections, or trauma."

Academician Li stared at the smooth, even data stream on the screen for a long time before slowly beginning to speculate:

"Then it's not a physical illness. There's a theory in traditional Chinese medicine called 'essence and qi,' and this comrade is very likely to have exhausted his energy."

Everyone's eyes snapped to attention as they turned to the elderly academician.

Academician Li raised his hand and pointed to an extremely faint fluctuation curve on the monitor, almost imperceptible to the average person:

"Based on the oral testimonies, behavioral feedback, and ability performance of all current copy survivors, we boldly deduce:"

This unknown supernatural dungeon system, in essence, follows a set of survival rules for another world that are completely independent of the real world.

If we consider the instance as a real, running, super-virtual game arena, then all the missing and survivors pulled into the instance are players randomly matched by the system.

"Professional players can unleash skills, which is different from ordinary players. Therefore, professional players should have two life systems."

The first set is the physical body's health bar, corresponding to our real-world bodily functions, physical constitution, and vital signs.

When your health bar reaches zero, your physical body dies, and you are completely annihilated.

This is a normal life system that we can see, detect, and understand.

The second set is the blue spirit bar.

Academician Li's tone grew increasingly solemn, but what he said overturned everyone's preconceived notions:

"The blue bar is a dungeon-specific energy system. You can think of it as mental energy, mana bar, spell bar, psionic energy, spiritual power—basically, get the gist of it."

"Releasing a skill will consume mana. Mana has a maximum limit, a reserve, a recovery rate, and a cooldown limit."

"Ordinary players and low-level players have extremely low mana reserves, recover very slowly, and overdrafting is extremely damaging."

"Once the mana bar is completely depleted and mental energy is completely exhausted, although there will be no external injuries, an ultimate state will occur - forced hibernation, and consciousness will be locked."

This is what we are seeing now: a deep, irreversible coma.

This entirely new line of reasoning perfectly explains Ashima's abnormal state.

"...That's right."

Chen Xi, who had been standing silently with a cool and aloof expression, pursed her lips upon hearing these words:

"It's a shepherd's skill."

Everyone immediately turned to look at her.

"A player who had died disguised himself as a living person and begged us for help. In order to save him, Ashima used the skill [Felt Tent] twice in three days."

Chen Xi's face was pale, and her eyes held a deep sorrow.

"She wasn't injured; she just... used up all the mental energy she could use to unleash her skills."

The entire room fell silent.

Those present were all intelligent people, and they immediately connected the two things: "players need mana to cast skills" and "Ashima cast skills twice in a row".

To use a game as an example, a level 2 novice player like Ashima used her skills in a row, causing her mana bar to run out.

People are really resilient.

If a leg is broken, it can be reattached and the person can live.

The head was severed, and surgery was performed to stitch it up.

Even if you have surgery, your abdomen is cut open, the damaged parts are removed, two pieces of fat are cut off, and your belly is stitched up, you won't die.

But just two skill activations are enough to put a special forces soldier into a deep sleep.

How fragile human beings are.

The rules of the dungeon are incredibly cruel.

……

"...These are the implicit rules governing the operation of the entire instance and player system."

Academician Li sighed deeply, his tone extremely heavy:

"Player skills may have level locks, cooldown locks, mana bar locks, and usage locks..."

"For novice players, skills are a luxury, a trump card for survival, and you need to know how to use them well."

The members of the Special Investigations Division all wore solemn expressions, a heavy sense of despair settling over them.

As the first group of people to confront this catastrophe, they were more aware than anyone of the terrifying dangers behind it.

A new set of operating rules and systems.

Currently, there are fewer than thirty known survivors of the copy nationwide.

Is this really the first time a dungeon has appeared on Earth?

How terrifying are the unknown dungeons and monsters lurking in the shadows?

Are there any high-level players? Are there any skills with no cooldown? Are there any abilities with zero resource cost?

Are there any items, medicines, or skills that can replenish mana?

They knew nothing about it.

The entire paranormal system remains shrouded in mystery for everyone, even the authorities.

Officials only know a tiny bit more than ordinary people.

The fact that four soldiers sacrificed their lives is the best proof of this.

In the face of dungeons, everyone is equal. Even the strong can die for various reasons, while the weak may survive due to unforeseen circumstances.

When the great waves of the times come crashing down, no one can escape them.

……

"First, focus on Jiangcheng and investigate the paranormal events that have occurred in the surrounding provinces and cities."

Sun Zhao quickly made a decision:

"The Ontario government has already asked us for help; thirty people in the province have collectively made a wish to disappear."

Our people speculate that these people have most likely all entered a newly created instance, and once the instance ends, a new batch of low-level players will inevitably emerge.

"We must figure out the rules, accumulate data, and find ways to check and balance things before a bigger disaster breaks out."

The researcher immediately responded, "Received! Execute immediately!"

Chen Xi stood outside the glass wall, reaching out to cover the glass.

The next second, her eyes widened in surprise, and she turned her head wildly with joy: "She's awake! Ashima's awake! Doctor!"

Inside the ward, the short-haired woman opened her eyes and slowly yawned.

It was like taking a nap.

……

……

Thirty people have mysteriously disappeared across Ontario, and a bizarre livestream featuring people making wishes has been banned across the internet.

[A nationwide campaign to clean up the internet has been launched, with all paranormal content being removed.]

[Multiple departments are taking top-level supervision in this major case of a mysterious disappearance.]

When an ordinary person simply opens a mobile app, they are immediately bombarded with a dense array of trending red keywords:

#30 People Missing in Ontario#

#Mysterious Wish-Making Livestream Rooms Under Investigation Across the Internet#

#Families of Missing Persons Speak Out Demanding the Truth#

#Is the Jiangcheng disappearance case related to Ontario?#

#Official response: Investigation in full swing#

#Debunking Rumors of Human Longevity Experiments#

#Warning: Unknown Livestream Rooms at Night#

……

Of the top 20 trending search terms, 17 are related to the Ontario missing persons case.

Its popularity surged, even overshadowing all entertainment and social news.

—The official announcements of top-tier celebrities that usually dominate the trending searches are now pushed hundreds of places down the list.

The top-ranked entry has garnered over 12 billion views and over 8 million discussions.

And this readership is still increasing at an alarming rate.

……

[I'm in Huaicheng, Ontario, and my childhood friend is on the missing persons list! Last week he was complaining to me about his low salary and his desire to get rich quick, saying his boss was being unreasonable. Yesterday his parents called the police.]

The home security camera captured him sitting on the sofa playing on his phone late at night. Suddenly the screen went black, and he was gone! Without a trace! The police were stunned when they arrived!

[Stop saying they ran away from home, okay? Thirty people, ranging from sixteen-year-old students to a fifty-eight-year-old street vendor—spanning thirteen cities across the province, all running away from home at the same time? Use your brain!]

[I work in cybersecurity, and this is inside information: that wishing livestream room's IP address is completely untraceable; it seems to have appeared out of thin air. The tech department is practically working themselves to the bone trying to find the source.]

[Could this really be a new tactic used by scam groups in northern Myanmar? Are they specifically targeting people looking for shortcuts, then kidnapping them remotely and smuggling them out?]

[But it's outrageous that thirty people were transported away at the same time; there's not a single checkpoint record.]

No matter how ruthless they are, they can't simply disappear from the face of the earth in northern Myanmar. That's clearly beyond human capability. Can't we face reality?

There are things in this world that science cannot explain.

[It feels like the haunting of Jiangcheng University—it's all so inexplicable.]

My mom just called me and told me not to use my phone tonight. She said that an old lady in her square dance group has also lost her grandson, and she's crying her eyes out, saying she'll hang herself in front of the police station if she can't find him.

[Rumors circulate online that this is a secret research project involving the extraction of longevity hormones from the brains of ordinary people to extend the lives of top-level officials... It sounds far-fetched, but what if it's true... It's a chilling thought.]

[Please, officials, stop just saying "under investigation"! Can you give us some concrete progress?]

Yes, thirty perfectly healthy people vanished into thin air. The common people really don't feel safe!

[I was working on a project late that night, and around 3 AM I actually saw that livestream. I thought it was some trashy guy and swiped away, but now thinking about it sends chills down my spine!]

[Is there anyone knowledgeable in metaphysics who can share their insights?]

[I asked my master, and he said there's a problem with the earth's veins in Ontario; a rat demon has appeared, sucking people's souls, probably trying to become an immortal.]

……

[Stop with the feudal superstition, okay? I think it's most likely a new type of cybercrime, using some kind of hypnosis or drugging technique to remotely control the victim to leave on their own; it's just that the method is covert and hasn't been detected yet.]

[I'm a community grid worker. This morning I received an urgent notice to go door-to-door checking for recently missing persons and to collect information on whether anyone has seen strange live streams. It's being handled very formally; it feels like the situation is more serious than the news reports.]

[Can we please stop talking about organ trafficking? Matching, surgery, and transportation of organs from thirty people—it's impossible to do it without leaving any trace. Use your brain!]

I'm a senior in high school, and our class specifically discussed this issue in class meeting today. Our homeroom teacher made us uninstall all niche short video apps, and we have to hand in our phones after 10 PM tonight. I'm a little reluctant to hand them in.

Is it possible that a portal to a parallel world has opened? Have these people been sucked into another world? Maybe they're still alive, but can't come back.

Don't those who say it's a publicity stunt have any conscience? Thirty families—relatives are all waiting outside the police station. Who would risk their loved ones' lives for attention?

I think the authorities should release the details as soon as possible. The more they try to cover it up, the easier it is for rumors to spread, and the more frightening the rumors become, which is actually detrimental to stability.

I just received a security alert from my mobile carrier; this is the first time I've received this kind of security warning.

It seems this is quite serious. Everyone should be careful lately.

Song Mo put down his phone, the threads of the three instances connecting in his mind, and a new plan slowly unfolded.

She had long known that expanding the scale of the game would inevitably lead to unrest.

She just didn't expect that the disappearance of thirty people could cause such a huge uproar.

According to the plan at the end of the Song Dynasty, the public would only be aware of the existence of the dungeon after she created at least the tenth dungeon.

Ultimately, it's because the world has been peaceful for too long.

People have long been accustomed to science and order, and once something beyond their comprehension appears, panic grows like wildfire.

She rubbed her fingertips and looked at the "Huang Laotai's Birthday Celebration" instance again.

There seem to be new changes in the three mirror images.

……

……