The taxi's door closed, and the sound of the engine starting reverberated as the driver expertly drove back the same way they came.
Under the night sky, amidst the neon-lit streets, in front of the hotel address written on the invitation...
Luorou, dressed as a detective, stood with her hands on her hips, humming to herself.
Her detective cap and coat with brown-yellow check patterns added to her adorable and energetic appearance.
Her light blue braided hair, hanging down like a fox's tail, swayed with every step she took.
"Hey, we're here." She struck a thoughtful pose, "Alister, what do you think?"
Alister walked in front of her, using his phone to record the trip. "The place looks good. I'm going in."
"Hey, wait for me!" Luorou remembered not to walk alone in the dark.
The parking area of the luxury hotel was already full of vehicles.
People arrived intermittently, seemingly all selected wishers, from various professions.
Alister and Luorou approached the counter on the first floor of the hotel.
A sophisticated and charming lady asked with a smile, "What can I do for you?" Luorou then showed the invitation.
Without much confirmation, the lady at the counter maintained her professional smile and clapped her hands. She said, "The event is being held in the Hall No. 2 on the eighth floor. I wish you a pleasant wish."
After a brief thank you, Alister and Luorou went to the elevator.
After waiting for five minutes, they finally took the elevator and reached the eighth floor of the hotel.
A wide, clean corridor with lush green potted plants and beautiful portraits on both sides led to a red carpet entrance with vermilion wooden relief doors, resembling a dragon with its mouth open, revealing its long tongue.
At the entrance, a man dressed in a suit and sunglasses was inspecting the invitations.
After nodding in acknowledgment, the previous wishers were allowed to enter the event hall.
So far, everything seemed fine, exuding the formality of a large gathering.
"Here."
Luorou leaned over, presenting the invitation interface on her tablet, waiting for a response.
The reflection of the glowing screen on the man's sunglasses flickered for a moment, and after a breath, he nodded and said in a deep tone, "You may go in and find a seat to wait for the event to begin."
"Thank you." Alister led Luorou inside.
After a moment, he glanced back at the two participants, and the man in the suit and sunglasses appeared expressionless, with a glimmer of strangeness in his eyes.
...
...
An extremely spacious hall, seemingly a ballroom for large weddings, had now become a gathering place for wishers.
The wallpaper had an urban legend style, adorned with balloons bearing various wishes. Clean white cloth-covered round tables were set up with a feast of cakes and snacks, where more than a hundred wishers from different professions and age groups chatted happily...
Alister calmly observed. Everyone present seemed to be ordinary people, without the aura of players from the serial game.
It seemed to be just an ordinary gathering of people, a mixture of mystery and anticipation.
In front of the stage, which had already been set up, Alister and Luorou found a table with fewer people and sat down, waiting quietly for the organizer's appearance.
After about four minutes, a wisher at a table nearby mysteriously invited Alister to discuss something.
Observing Luorou playing on her tablet for a second, Alister said, "I'll be back in a moment," and went to the table crowded with wishers.
A white cloth-covered round table brought together people of different professions and ages, including students, office workers, and corporate executives.
As soon as he took his seat, everyone enthusiastically struck up a conversation with Alister, talking about this and that.
Finally, the corporate executive consolidated their opinions and said, "Can you reveal what your wish is?"
Since it was just an ordinary gathering, and there was no need to lie, Alister replied, "To have a monthly income of millions."
Just four simple words, but they represented a desire that most people wouldn't dare to think of—almost... no, absolutely impossible to achieve.
However, in response to this absolutely impossible wish, everyone at the table exchanged glances.
The expressions they revealed weren't a joking "You really dare to dream!" but rather a sense of regret and disbelief.
Seeing the crowd suddenly lose their dreams, Alister furrowed his brows and asked indifferently, "What's wrong?"
The corporate executive gathered his emotions and, in a tone of concern like an old parent asking a child, calmly inquired, "Did you really make this wish and then receive the invitation from the mysterious webpage?"
At that, Alister looked to Luorou, sighed, and explained, "To be precise, my friend made this wish and received the invitation."
"How did they do it?" A university student sitting diagonally across humbly asked.
"As far as I know, there haven't been any examples of wishes like this being selected among the wishers."
"It was just completing those three steps." Alister looked at the corporate executive, waiting for his explanation.
"...In general, wishes that are too far-fetched won't receive invitations."
The corporate executive crossed his ten fingers on the table.
After taking a breath, he continued, "Only wishes that are not too far-fetched and have good luck may receive invitations from the organizers..."
The other wishers at the table accepted the corporate executive's words as fact.
Their wishes were not too difficult to achieve, so they admired the fact that Alister's extravagant wish could still receive an invitation. "After receiving the invitation and attending the wish party to welcome the arrival of the gods, the wish will undoubtedly come true."
The corporate executive firmly declared with conviction.
"So you mean my wish to have a monthly income of millions will come true immediately?" Alister scrutinized him, "Are you sure it's not an urban legend that spreads through word of mouth?"
The corporate executive's every detail was captured by "Extreme Five Senses." He sighed, "The urban legend is true. I envy you... If only I had made a wish for a monthly income of millions."
Pulse, heartbeat, breathing, and everything else showed no signs of lying, just like everyone else. This unusual consensus made Alister raise his guard and began thinking about countermeasures.
Either this was truly the work of players with the power to make wishes come true, or it was the collective brainwashing power of players...
Or perhaps it was just an extremely unlikely coincidence...
While Alister was contemplating, there was a commotion on the stage in the front of the hall.
Following the gazes of the crowd, they saw a man in a suit and leather shoes stepping out from behind the curtains.
"Good evening, ladies and gentlemen!"
He spread his arms wide, speaking with a thrilled tone, "Welcome to the evening gathering to welcome the descent of the gods. Cheer as your wishes come true!"
With this statement, no matter if it was the corporate executive or the others, they all cheered loudly.
The applause thundered, and the atmosphere of the entire hall instantly boiled like a tsunami!
Returning to their original table, Alister shifted his gaze away from Luorou's faint smile and instead fixed it on the suit-clad host on the stage.
He, too, did not emit the aura of a player.
However, "Extreme Five Senses" also told Alister that the host firmly believed in the realization of wishes.
Was the urban legend of wishes coming true true or false?
In his suspicion, Alister prepared for the worst possible outcome.