To my esteemed benefactors, this is the portion I owe you from yesterday. I was completely knocked out by cold medicine that doubled as a sleeping aid yesterday. Damn that brand of cold medicine—it claimed to be a standard Chinese herbal remedy, yet it was clearly laced with sleeping pills! Unbelievable!

To all of you, please take careful note: this chapter alone is nearly four thousand characters long. I will deliver another four-thousand-character chapter today, and then we can consider yesterday and today settled, agreed?

The third matter Chu Xuan brought up was far more shocking than the first two combined. Everyone stared at him in stunned silence, their eyes burning with unspoken fervor. It was understandable; after enduring such mortal terror, no matter how disillusioned one might be with the real world, the overwhelming desire would be to return to it, rather than suffer endlessly in this boundless horror.

Zheng Zha’s eyes were full of doubt. He fixed his gaze on Chu Xuan and asked cautiously, "You are so calculating. I genuinely suspect you have some scheme brewing... Just tell us, how do we get back to the real world?"

Chu Xuan smiled faintly. "I’m not forcing you to do anything. Whether you return to the real world is entirely up to you to choose... Zhang Jie, you clearly didn't examine the details of exchanging for Life Days closely enough. I reviewed it carefully yesterday and discovered that one can redeem Life Days not only for the horror movie worlds we just experienced but also for returning to the real world."

Zhang Jie snorted. "Is that even worth mentioning? Anyone with fifty thousand Reward Points can go back. Do you think we have fifty thousand Reward Points? That’s not how you toy with people, is it?"

Chu Xuan glanced at him. "Did I say 'permanently' return? When redeeming ordinary Life Days, I noticed a recording function. It logged the five horror movies we’ve been through: A Nightmare on Elm Street 1, Scream 2, Final Destination, Resident Evil 1, and Alien 1. Besides these worlds, there’s another entry in the log: the real world!"

Hearing these titles, Zhang Jie’s face instantly paled. He murmured, "Damn it, these are all the horror movies I’ve lived through! How could those be recorded? What about the previous records?"

Chu Xuan shook his head. "There are no older records. The 'Main God' likely deleted them. Since you are the only one among us to have survived five horror movies, that log probably pertains to you. That’s not the key issue, though. The crucial point is that we can activate the recorded horror worlds and the real world. Once activated, we can freely enter any recorded horror world, including the real world. That is the third matter I wanted to discuss!"

"It only costs one D-rank Subplot Token to activate a previously recorded horror world. However, redeeming Life Days within that activated world requires five times the Reward Points—a hefty cost of fifty Reward Points for one day. In other words, to briefly return to the real world requires two conditions: one D-rank Subplot Token and a massive amount of Reward Points. Both are indispensable."

The group fell silent. Zhang Jie had already explained the precious nature of Subplot Tokens to them. If Zheng Zha hadn't acquired Inner Force and the Blood Race mutation, he wouldn't have survived Alien 1. Subplot Tokens were matters of life and death; who would dare use one carelessly? Moreover, requiring a Subplot Token and a large sum of Reward Points made it an extravagant prospect. Paying such a price just to spend a few days back in reality seemed disproportionate.

Seeing their silence, Chu Xuan shook his head. "I have no intention of making you waste Reward Points or Subplot Tokens. In fact, briefly returning to the real world—even if only one of us goes back—is extremely urgent. I wonder if any of you have considered some theories about this space. I have two distinct hypotheses. First, only our mental essence enters this world while our physical bodies remain in front of our computers. Second, our entire selves—mind and body—enter this space. You’ve probably all heard this information from your respective women: no matter how much time passes for us in the horror movies, we return here after one full day and night... or we die. In short, the 'Main God' can control the flow of time across different spatial segments. This is truly..."

"...truly divine!" Chu Xuan searched for the right word for a long time before settling on that description. He murmured, "Perhaps you don't see the significance. The ability to control time and space, to create independent worlds and fully realized living beings... the only word that comes to mind is 'God.' This is the crucial point I wanted to make. If only our minds enter this world, it means all the enhancements are illusory—a world akin to a sophisticated online simulation. This would logically explain the numerous nearly impossible occurrences we witness. Likewise, our physical bodies might be in a vegetative state after entering this space. If we don't return quickly to confirm, our bodies could be destroyed by someone unaware."

"Of course, if our bodies enter this world along with our minds... then this is truly the world of a 'God.' I can imagine anything, no matter how absurd. And if that’s the case, those legendary body enhancements... they represent countless possibilities for human evolution, infinite possibilities! As long as we survive, we too might one day become true gods!"

Zheng Zha rubbed his head. "The topic of becoming gods seems too distant. I think I understand your point. If we enter this world with both body and mind, then before returning to reality, we can safely ignore everything happening over there and just focus on surviving here. But if only our mental essence enters, meaning we can’t bring anything back, and our bodies might be destroyed—is that what you mean?"

Chu Xuan snapped his fingers. "Exactly, that's the gist of it. Therefore, my proposal is that we should select one person to return to the real world, even if only for a single day. The most critical thing is to verify whether only the mind enters this world, or if the body follows the mind. This directly impacts our chances of survival. What do you all think?"

Zheng Zha exchanged glances with the others. Most nodded in agreement with Chu Xuan’s logic. Only Zheng Zha sighed. "Though I have no proof or real reason, I still feel there’s something unsaid in your words, some trap waiting for us to fall into... No, perhaps it’s an open plot. You lay everything out so clearly that we're forced to follow your lead. So, you think I should be the one to go back to the real world?"

Chu Xuan nodded faintly, but Zhang Jie protested. "Hey, Chu Xuan, why should Zheng Zha be the one to waste this? If it weren't for him this time, we’d all be dead. By the way, Zheng Zha, how many Reward Points did you spend on healing? We can't let you take all the losses. Whatever you spent, we can pool our resources to exchange for some equipment for you as compensation for healing costs."

Zheng Zha smiled at Zhang Jie. "That’s not necessary. I earned three thousand Reward Points from killing the Queen. After deducting the healing expenses, I still have quite a bit left over... As for why I should go, it’s because I am the only one among you who has enhanced Inner Force and the Blood Race mutation. Going back will also prove whether the abilities gained here can be taken back. Furthermore, compared to you all, I need a Subplot Token less urgently. You need them to strengthen your attributes, whereas I don't have that immediate need. So, if someone must return to the real world, it should be me."

The subsequent events proceeded more smoothly. Once they confirmed that someone absolutely had to return, Zhang Jie suggested everyone pool resources to get Zheng Zha a standard set of gear. Of course, the most expensive items he would have to redeem himself, but they managed to get him a new bulletproof vest, a pair of shoes with impact-dampening soles, a compact new submachine gun, and a high-vibration particle-cutting dagger.

Everyone contributed one item, but the dagger was the most expensive, costing over six hundred Reward Points—a near sci-fi weapon that hadn't even been fully developed in the real world. The fact that Chu Xuan was the one who gifted him this most expensive weapon made Zheng Zha even more suspicious. He became even more convinced that Chu Xuan was orchestrating some elaborate plot, one he hadn't revealed yet.

For dinner, they gathered at Zhang Jie's place. Again, the table was laden with rare ingredients, and with the Classical Beauty’s cooking skills surpassing those of any professional chef, everyone’s eating could only be described as ravenous. Even the reserved Chu Xuan ate ferociously, arguably the most gluttonous among them.

After dinner, everyone agreed to meet in the plaza at ten the following morning to bid Zheng Zha farewell as he returned to the real world... Even a brief return was a near-unattainable dream for those surviving in terror. Compared to horror, normalcy was already paradise.

Another silent night passed, filled only with muffled sounds of exertion throughout the house...

At ten the next day, everyone stood in the plaza, exchanging silent glances. Zheng Zha, however, had his eyes closed, communicating with the Main God about something. A moment later, he raised his left hand to look at the Ring of Holding. Everyone else was confused, but Chu Xuan asked calmly, "Did you redeem something to keep in the ring?"

"Yeah, I redeemed one cubic meter of platinum," Zheng Zha replied with a wry smile. "My family isn’t rich; my parents live modestly on their pensions. I figured I’d try it. If these things can be taken back to the real world, at least it’s some retirement fund for my parents, right? And Loli’s parents spent a fortune treating her illness, so their finances haven’t been great either... Since I’m trying this anyway, if I can bring stability to my parents and family, I can struggle in the horror movies with peace of mind."

Loli stood obediently beside Zheng Zha. Her eyes immediately reddened when she heard about her parents' situation. Zhan Lan, ever attentive, pulled out a handkerchief and gently handed it to Loli, who rewarded her with a grateful smile.

Zheng Zha smiled wryly and took Loli’s hand. He carefully checked the items he needed to carry: the submachine gun and ammunition, the dagger, the body armor, and some leftover hemostatic agents and bandages. These were all placed inside the Ring of Holding, along with the cubic meter of platinum. The ring was almost full. As for the impact-dampening shoes, he wore those. He had packed nearly everything he could possibly take. Now, all he needed to confirm was whether the items here could be brought back to the real world... Loli included.

This was another crucial reason he agreed to return: to confirm whether Loli was truly capable of returning to the real world, or if she was merely an illusion manufactured by the "Main God." A beautiful dream is still a dream that ends. Better to face the painful awakening now than to invest emotion only to be heartbroken later. He needed to know if all of this was just an illusion!

"Then... let's go!"

Zheng Zha redeemed thirty days of Life Days in the real world, costing 1500 Reward Points. He had 4170 points remaining. After spending 1500, he had 270 left. Redeeming the one cubic meter of platinum cost 10 points. He then spent 100 points each to enhance his Neural Reaction Speed and Muscle Tissue Strength, leaving him with exactly 0 Reward Points.

Previously, his attributes were: Intelligence 187, Spiritual Power 232, Cell Vitality 321, Neural Reaction Speed 287, Muscle Tissue Strength 302, and Immunity Strength 331. After the enhancements, his Neural Reaction Speed and Muscle Tissue Strength became 387 and 402, respectively. In simpler terms, in these two areas, he was four times stronger than an average person.

Setting those details aside, Zheng Zha tightly grasped Loli’s small hand, perhaps gripping a little too hard. He closed his eyes and communicated with the "Main God." Thanks to his physical enhancements, he finally found the option to return to the real world for a period of thirty days!

Zheng Zha felt a flash before his eyes, and his consciousness slipped into a semi-conscious state again. He didn't know how long it took—perhaps an instant, perhaps ages. When he regained awareness, he was standing in a modest office. This was his workplace in the real world, and beside him...

Loli’s eyes were teary, yet she managed a bright, charming smile. Their hands were still locked together, not having separated even slightly.