Shang Jingyan had spent only one hour to finalize the plot framework, and the next crucial step was—filming.
Had this been in her past life, she would never have been so reckless. With only twenty days, finding actors, renting locations, negotiating contracts... it would have been an impossible task.
But in the virtual star network of the interstellar world, these were not problems.
For instance, when it came to choosing actors, the Interstellar entertainment companies offered a "persona leasing service." Shang Jingyan's funds were limited, so she rented the persona of a relatively unknown local celebrity, leaving her with only 54-star coins, which quickly dwindled to 4-star coins.
Scenes, lighting, and other effects could also be simulated within the star network, and all of these operations required only mental energy.
Since logging into the star network, Shang Jingyan has seen the term "mental energy" countless times. However, the original memories she received were incomplete, and despite searching her mind, there was no information about the original's mental energy—it seemed to have dissipated along with the original's consciousness.
So, what was her mental energy level?
This was a question she had to face if she wanted to become a Dream Builder.
Shang Jingyan found a "Youth Mental Energy Awakening Measurement Manual" and activated the mental energy visualization mode on her light brain, following the steps to close her eyes.
She imagined a room in her mind.
The size and accuracy of the "mental energy visualization" reflected the state of one's mental energy, and the most common test scene was a room. A room is a place where most people feel the safest, allowing the tested person to perform to their best.
The room in Shang Jingyan's mind grew larger and larger, and furniture and items quickly appeared: first a bed, then tables and chairs, a carpet... It was her home from her past life, every inch of it designed by her hand.
The light brain screen on her wrist showed a value that quickly surpassed 80 points.
After finishing the bedroom, Shang Jingyan felt it wasn't enough. She lifted her perspective and zoomed out, replicating the other rooms in her home, using the bedroom as the base.
The value of the light brain reached 90 points.
Shang Jingyan opened the door to the villa, and the view outside transformed into a garden, with fences, horse races, and forests in the distance—her estate from her past life.
Beyond the estate, there could be more—villages and cities...
Shang Jingyan didn't see it, but the light brain value had already reached 100, before changing to A+, and then climbing higher: S, S+...
She was immersed in a mysterious joy, feeling as though she were a god, until a sudden red light flashed before her eyes, and the light brain forcefully logged her out.
A sharp pain hit her mind, accompanied by weakness and hunger. Shang Jingyan sprang up from her chair, only to find that the light brain had gone black, with a red error exclamation mark displayed.
Shang Jingyan: "?"
Did she break the light brain? It looked expensive!
She nervously fiddled with it for a while and was relieved when the light brain rebooted successfully. However, she dared not test it any further. Rubbing her temples, she murmured to herself, "Forget it, I'll just start working. Whatever I can make, I'll make..."
Two days later, Central Star System, Main Star.
"Another sleepless night, sigh..."
A girl lay idly in bed, browsing websites with faint dark circles under her eyes, looking exhausted but unable to sleep.
Her name was Ao Qingxue, a small-time star network streamer. Her online name was [Qingse Xue], and her main activities involved playing games and discovering underrated works.
"Let's search for some interesting entries," Ao Qingxue said lethargically in her live stream. The comments were sparse—her popularity wasn't high, and it was deep into the night on the Main Star, so the audience was naturally small.
The themed activity she was watching, titled "Marriage Before Love" from the Chang Qingqing network, wasn't gaining much traction either. The star network saw many submissions daily, and while Chang Qingqing was a major entertainment site in the Alpha Star system, it was a relatively remote "exile system," so the activity had barely made a splash.
Aside from niche streamers like herself, most would not pay attention to such a site.
The theme event had been running for most of its time, and the voting patterns were already set. There had been almost no new submissions recently.
"I can't sleep either, the hollow syndrome's getting worse. Guess I'll watch something boring to help me sleep," a viewer commented.
"Most of the recent newbie submissions have been awful, I've laughed so much," another said.
The comments were blunt, with most people just passing the time.
Insomnia was a common symptom of hollow syndrome, which most interstellar people had experienced to some extent. Normally, they would watch Dream Builder works for mental therapy, so it wouldn't interfere with their daily life.
Ao Qingxue pressed her temples, feeling a little dazed and unable to focus. Her hollow syndrome had worsened to the second level, and she hadn't slept for three days.
"What should we watch today..." she scrolled through the page, and suddenly, the viewers were drawn to a new cover.
"Wow, look at that! What is that?"
"I haven't seen it before, new submission!"
"That's such a strange cover!"
"Why submit it halfway through the event?"
Ao Qingxue focused, and among all the romantic warm-toned covers, this one stood out with its dark color. In the center of the image was a deep purple tentacle with suckers, the rest fading into mist.
"Cold colors? Can this be a good work?"
"It doesn't look like a romance at all, I bet it's from a clueless newbie..."
Ao Qingxue stared at it for a few seconds, and a chill ran down her spine. Even the viewers in her livestream were seeing this style for the first time and were intrigued.
The short drama was titled "Married to the Evil God," and had just released its first episode, lasting 30 minutes.
"Evil god? Another mythological theme, I'm already sick of those!"
"Let's see the introduction... Oh, it's a complete newbie, how arrogant, the intro is so sloppy?"
Under the video's cover, a brief line of text read: The male lead and his beautiful girlfriend have been in a relationship for a year. After a car accident, their relationship deepens, and they decide to get married. For their honeymoon, they visit a Gothic castle...
Dream Builder ID: Jingyan All People (Gender: Female; Years in the industry: 0; Past works: None)
What was most bizarre was that the Dream Builder behind the video seemed poor. Aside from the mention of the male and female leads using the face of a small-time celebrity from a certain company, everything else used default models.
The comments exploded with a wave of ridicule:
"Typical trope looks like it's going nowhere."
"Oh my god, default models? Anyone who's seen them knows how bad they are. Can this even be serious?"
"Gothic castle? What's that?"
"I looked it up, it's an architectural style but is already lost. Is the author going to make it up?"
"Host, let's watch this one!"
"I'm ready to laugh my way to bed, hahahaha."
The viewers were excited, and Ao Qingxue perked up slightly: As a streamer, the best kind of program effect was this—this video had that "my friend who studied animation for three years made this" vibe. If it was funny, maybe it could even trend tomorrow.
She clicked on the video and opened it in full-screen mode. The first thing that appeared was darkness, followed by the blood-red title slowly emerging. The words "Evil God" were splashed like blood.
Ao Qingxue furrowed her brow, feeling a slight unease.
The title disappeared, and the sound began to emerge, but it was chaotic. The image was unclear, with lots of shaky, dirty light and shadow. Screams could be heard, followed by the sound of a car crash...
Ao Qingxue realized: Oh, this should be the car accident mentioned in the description. It looked like this scene was either someone's dream or a memory.
Then suddenly, all the sounds and visuals vanished, and the screen fell into complete darkness.
"Eh? Did it freeze?" Ao Qingxue blinked, about to drag the progress bar, but just as she raised her hand, a face suddenly appeared on the screen!
"Ah!!" She screamed in surprise, her heart rate spiking, almost throwing her light brain out of her hands.
—The face at the center of the screen, to be fair, was a beautiful woman's face.
Her pupils were pure black, and she had shoulder-length, jet-black curly hair. Her skin was deathly pale, draped in a white nightgown, with water dripping down from her hair and face, resembling a flower drenched in dew.
However, as she stared directly out of the frame, it was hard to focus on her beauty; instead, it sent a chill down one's spine.
The comments exploded:
[What kind of camera work is this? First time seeing this, scared me to death!]
[I almost threw my cup! What is this, a short drama made just to scare people?]
[This Dream Builder has some skills, I'm interested…]
[Did you notice?? This Dream Builder mimicked last year's filming equipment, and when you get too close, it causes lens distortion. This woman's face is all distorted, ahhh!]
In the scene, the woman tilted her head and moved closer, her beautiful face twisting and enlarging. She had no expression, but in a soft voice, she gently said, "Darling, are you having nightmares again?"