On the third day of his interior renovation work, Luo Shu finally completed the bedrooms for Jianjia and Aeolus.
Next, he just needed to furnish a living room, kitchen, and gym—enough for short-term needs. After all, the underground facility currently housed only three human residents. As for Anomalous Item-100-1 and its companions, their simple minds hadn't yet learned to crave luxury.
Just as Luo Shu collapsed onto his bed, utterly exhausted, his phone finally rang—or rather, buzzed with a text notification.
Disappointed, he opened the message:
"Forward this to 10+ contacts within 5 minutes. Fail to comply, and death will come. Cherish life—do not ignore!"
"Pathetic prank," he muttered, tossing the phone aside and closing his eyes.
At that moment:
Jianjia was preparing dinner (with questionable culinary skills).
Aeolus was patrolling the perimeter.
While Luo Shu played architect, the two had settled into their roles—housemaid and security guard.
Ten minutes later, a sweaty Jianjia called out, "Luo Shu, wake up! Even if you're tired, eat first!"
No response.
She shook him—still nothing. Then she realized: he wasn't breathing.
"Hey! My cooking isn't that bad! Stop faking!"
Thanks to the Anomalous Ally milestone, Jianjia couldn't stay mad. But after vigorous shaking failed to rouse him, she began CPR.
The Mind Vortex
Luo Shu was trapped in his mental landscape, battling a spiritual whirlpool that had appeared without warning. It was siphoning his consciousness, trying to drag him into oblivion.
To resist, he'd retreated entirely into his mind, abandoning control of his body—hence the stopped breathing.
With each passing second, oxygen deprivation weakened him. Without intervention, he'd die.
Then it hit him: the cursed text caused this.
No prank—it was a lethal meme.
By the time Jianjia found him, five minutes had passed. Any longer, and even if the vortex didn't crush his mind, brain death would.
Her rescue breaths bought him time—but to survive, he needed to destroy the vortex.
The Source
This meme wasn't in Luo Shu's memory. That meant one thing:
"Him" had created it.
After Anomalous Item-196's abduction, "Him" knew only Luo Shu could've used his spatial tunnel to infiltrate the lakeside castle.
Frustrated by repeated failures, "Him" opted for a new approach: mental annihilation.
Thus, the text meme was born—a mass AOE psychic attack.
How it worked:
Initial blast: 300+ million texts sent across the New World.
Exponential spread: Recipients must forward it to 10+ people within 5 minutes—or die.
Current toll:
5 minutes in: 3 billion+ forwarded.
10 minutes: 30 billion.
15 minutes: 300 billion.
Inevitable collapse:
Telecom systems will overload within 30 minutes.
Those who can't forward (due to crashes) will perish.
Projected casualties: 60%+ of humanity.
An AK-Class (Meme-Induced) End-of-World Scenario.
"Him's" Justification
In a Site-17 hallway, Cain confronted "Him":
"You realize the consequences?"
"Yes. Over 60% will die."
"Then why?!"
"The Revealer of Truth must die. Like before. The world can always be reset with Anomalous Item-2000."
Luo Shu's Peril
While Jianjia's CPR staves off physical death, the mental vortex still rages.
To survive, Luo Shu must:
Trace the meme's origin.
Disrupt "Him's" control.
Stop the global spread—before telecoms fail.
But with his consciousness battling annihilation, and his body barely clinging to life, time is running out...
The world's fate hinges on a man who can't even breathe.