Chapter 1: Isn’t it common sense to look for Easter eggs at the beginning?

“Another million dead…”

Ye Lian’s pupils contracted sharply as he read the sudden breaking news that popped up on his phone.

His trembling voice echoed through the nearly 20-square-meter sterile room.

Two years ago, a terrifying disease called Dream Invasion emerged in human society.

Even at the time of its discovery, the disease was already deeply disturbing.

The first outbreak occurred in a small town with a population of five thousand—every resident died overnight.

After ruling out all possible causes of homicide, investigators came to a shocking conclusion.

They all died in their sleep!

This conclusion was drawn because many of the victims had reported terrifying nightmares before their deaths.

They had been relentlessly plagued by horrifying dreams.

And in the end, they all mysteriously passed away in unison.

When the news broke, the world was stunned.

And then, the world fell into panic.

People across the entire planet of Aquamarine feared the spread of this nightmare disease.

But what must come, will come.

Dream Invasion soon began appearing across the globe.

With it came a shadow of death and the breakdown of societal order in many regions.

In just one year, the number of unnatural human deaths surpassed 100 million, and countless others were left unrecorded.

Several nations collapsed into chaos, and the world descended into turmoil.

Fortunately, three remaining superpowers managed to stay afloat, barely maintaining global stability and preserving a flicker of hope for humanity.

***

The following year, a mysterious organization called Saviors revealed itself to the world.

They redefined this strange disease as Dream Invasion.

According to them, humanity had to resist the dream world in order to survive.

And the method of resistance? A game!

A miraculous game that allowed humans to enter the dream world and eliminate the threats within it.

At this moment, Ye Lian held that game in his hands.

More precisely, the black watch strapped to his right wrist was the beta testing device.

Only 999 of these internal test terminals existed in the entire world.

Its sleek, luxurious design exuded a quiet opulence, with a face crafted from an unknown gemstone.

Inside were three hands:

The hour hand—blood red.

The minute hand—emerald green.

The second hand—deep ocean blue.

There were no numbers on the dial—only a star-filled sky.

“Fifteen minutes until midnight… Come on, let me in already!”

Sitting on his bed, Ye Lian stared intently at the wall clock, his voice filled with urgency.

He hadn’t slept in two full days.

His eyes were bloodshot, and his pale, handsome face bore heavy dark circles.

Since its emergence, Dream Invasion had shown no clear pattern.

Lucky people could go a whole year without a single nightmare.

The unlucky ones, however, were tormented night after night.

Ye Lian once believed he was one of the fortunate few.

In nearly two years since the dream invasion began, he had never experienced a nightmare.

Life had gone on as usual.

In fact, about a year and a half after the first outbreak, the number of deaths had steadily declined.

Order was gradually being restored.

The Saviors and their so-called salvation game began to sound more like a joke.

It seemed like everything was slowly getting better.

Until one month ago, when Dream Invasion exploded once again, claiming tens of millions of lives.

Ye Lian’s luck had finally run out—nightmares descended upon him.

At the same time, the Saviors officially announced the release of internal testing slots for the game.

Clinging to a shred of hope, Ye Lian submitted an application.

While waiting, he could only delay sleep to hold off the nightmares.

After a long period of anticipation and resistance…

A mysterious package finally arrived, containing the test device.

Ye Lian had miraculously been selected from billions of applicants by the Saviors.

“The beta test only lasts 24 hours… I have to find a way to fight back against the dream invasion!”

“Otherwise… there’s only one path left—death!”

Ye Lian clutched his black hair, his body trembling slightly.

After nearly a month of torment from nightmares, his nerves were already pushed to the brink.

With his sleep drastically shortened, his health had declined rapidly.

It would be a miracle if his mental state wasn’t a mess.

Time ticked by, second by second.

There were less than ten seconds left before the Savior Game—Nightmare Space—began.

Ye Lian lay on his bed, eyes closed, silently counting down in his heart.

Five.

Four.

Three.

Two.

One.

“Enter the dream!” As the countdown ended, he shouted the short activation phrase.

In the next instant, the closed beta terminal lit up with black light, quickly enveloping his entire body and forming a cocoon of darkness.

As the sensation of his consciousness sinking spread through his mind, his vision gradually returned.

A vast white space stretched endlessly before his eyes.

Then, a white panel suddenly popped up in front of him.

“This is inside the game… no, wait—this is the initial space mentioned in the game description.”

He looked around the white void, astonished.

“It’s real. That mysterious organization wasn’t lying. This kind of experience is truly something else.”

There was no response.

It seemed he was completely alone here.

Turning his gaze back to the panel, Ye Lian frowned slightly.

The game interface was extremely basic—clearly, very little effort had gone into its design.

But that wasn’t the important part.

Just entering this initial space was enough to prove that the so-called “Savior” organization possessed extraordinary technology.

***

Suppressing his rising excitement, Ye Lian examined the white panel.

[Name: (Can only be changed once.)]

[Gender: Male]

[Age: 18]

[Height: 180 cm]

[Weight: 65 kg]

[Strength: 15]

[Speed: 20]

[Endurance: 15]

[Mental Strength: 15]

[Health: 10]

[Contamination Level: 35 (Max 100)]

[Overall Evaluation: Excellent]

***

“Simple, sure… but the stats are surprisingly accurate.”

“The only editable field is the name. A nickname should be fine, right?”

After thinking it over, Ye Lian typed in the name Black Knight.

He liked the color black, so naturally his game name had to include it.

After clicking confirm, Black Knight was successfully registered.

“Strange… ever since I entered this space, my mental state feels significantly better.”

He clenched his fist slightly and felt power coursing through his body.

This wasn’t just an illusion.

All the anxiety, hesitation, unease, and fear from before had completely vanished.

His mindset was now eerily calm.

“Could it be that my physical state in the real world doesn’t carry over into the game?”

He paused to consider, but quickly dismissed the thought.

With only 24 hours of beta access, every second counted.

But just as he was about to choose “Enter Game,” something at the bottom left corner of the panel caught his eye.

Tiny specks, so faint they could be easily overlooked.

Unable to resist his curiosity, he leaned in to inspect the marks more closely.

“A timer?”

It turned out these nearly invisible specks formed a hidden countdown embedded into the panel.

It currently displayed:

[4 minutes, 15 seconds.]

The numbers were steadily decreasing.

“What does this mean…? Could it be the time limit for staying in this initial space? If so, maybe I can explore a bit before leaving?”

Ye Lian suddenly recalled an online game he used to play back when the world was still normal.

It was filled with Easter eggs and secrets waiting for players to discover—very entertaining.

Maybe this game had hidden surprises too.

He acted on impulse.

Ye Lian quickly stepped forward and began exploring the vast white space.