"Gray Realm convergence?"
Evan Stone did indeed recall the term from his memory; the original owner must have seen it somewhere.
"Don't tell me you've even forgotten the Gray Realm," Dr. Green said, standing up and pouring the fresh blood from the teacup into the drain. He continued slowly,
"Before the great catastrophe, someone proposed a hypothesis: in this universe, there are countless parallel dimensions, all formed from the birth of the earliest universe, like the light released from a lit candle that spreads in all directions. But because the light is infinite, it extends endlessly toward all possibilities and never intersects."
"But after the red meteor passed, everything went haywire."
"Each dimension began to ripple, and an unknown and bizarre gray world began to overlap with our reality."
Dr. Green finished washing the teacup but didn't pour out the remaining water. Instead, he placed it back on the table, and due to the force applied, the water's surface rippled.
Dr. Green tore off a piece of paper and placed it above the water waves. The moving water began to soak into the paper, with uneven small water stains gradually spreading across the whole surface.
"At first, only a small part of the dimensions converged, but as time passed, the converging area grew larger. The material and lifeforms from that world began to appear in ours. In fact, most of the human habitats have already been occupied by that world, leaving only nine 'domains' to shelter humanity and preserve the fire of life."
"Because the sky in that world is gray, we call it the 'Gray Realm.'"
"When the Gray Realm and reality converge, a series of bizarre and unrecognizable events occur, and sometimes monsters from the Gray Realm descend, which we call 'Disasters.'"
"Generally, among the survivors who have encountered the Gray Realm convergence or have been attacked by Disasters, about 80% will suffer from mental disorders, and most of them will never recover..."
"I suspect that your condition is related to the 'Gray Realm.'"
"Think carefully. Have you encountered a Gray Realm convergence and been dragged into it?"
Facing Dr. Green's inquiry, Evan Stone tried hard to search through the original owner's memories but found nothing... No matter how hard he tried to recall, he couldn't remember anything beyond last night.
"I don't know." He said bitterly.
Dr. Green thought for a moment, then pulled out a letter from the drawer and began to write quickly.
"Your situation is no longer a simple mental illness... I'm just an ordinary person and can't cure you.
But I know someone who might be able to help. He specializes in treating the aftereffects of Gray Realm contamination.
After all, he is a real [Doctor]."
Upon hearing this, Evan Stone's eyes lit up. "Where can I find him?"
"He lives in Aurora City, but he likes to travel around offering free medical consultations. It's said that wherever there's a rare illness, he will go there. This is their path to godhood...
Anyway, take this letter to the authorities at the entrance of Aurora City. Leave your name and address, and they will pass it on to him.
At most, in three days, that [Doctor] will come to find you."
"Thank you!"
Evan Stone took the envelope and sincerely thanked him.
In fact, when he saw the salt melt earlier, Evan Stone had already sensed something was wrong. The events happening to him seemed impossible to explain away as an illness. He had come to this small clinic because, one, he had already walked halfway, and two, he really didn't know where else might be able to help him.
From Dr. Green's words, this [Doctor] seemed to be special, and he had mentioned the path to godhood...
Could it be that this world has a unique system of human cultivation? Otherwise, according to Dr. Green, all of humanity should have perished at the time of the great catastrophe and Gray Realm convergence.
Evan Stone even thought that the distorted scientific level of this world might also be related to the great catastrophe.
"Don't mention it. Say hello to your brother for me." Dr. Green smiled slightly.
"He's still in the hospital in Zone 2... I'll bring him when I visit next time."
Evan Stone stood up, bade farewell to Dr. Green, and left the clinic.
As his figure gradually disappeared under the flowing auroras, Dr. Green narrowed his eyes slightly.
"An actor, huh..."
...
"The first time I saw the screen in my dream, the audience expectation was 29%."
"When I tried to escape, it jumped to 30%."
"On the way here, it dropped back to 27%..."
"Just now, when Dr. Green was pranked, it jumped back to 29%."
"Assuming the 'audience' is really in my head, and these numbers aren't a hallucination, what exactly influences the rise and fall of the expectation value?"
The cold wind howled as Evan Stone, wrapped in his thick coat, walked toward home, deep in thought.
The stage, the audience, the expectation value... Every time the expectation value increased, it seemed to coincide with an event. Could these events be considered "plot" on the stage?
The more interesting the events around him, the greater the attraction of the "plot" to the audience, thus increasing the expectation value?
The screen said that when the audience expectation drops below 20%, the safety of the actor cannot be guaranteed...
Evan Stone didn't know exactly what kind of danger that entailed, but given that the "audience" could interfere with reality to some extent, it was possible that he could become their outlet for frustration and be pranked to death!
Evan Stone felt that his thinking wasn't wrong, but to prove whether it was correct, he needed to take action.
"Maybe, I should try to design the 'plot' proactively."
Evan Stone muttered to himself.
"Ev, did you eat breakfast?"
Evan Stone turned to look and saw an uncle, with a towel around his head, fanning the stove in the breakfast shop on the side of the street. The uncle cheerfully called out to him.
As soon as he saw him, an idea suddenly flashed through Evan Stone's mind.
"No, Uncle Vale." Evan Stone smiled slightly, walking toward the shop.
"Come, come, let me make you some soy milk and fried dough sticks. It rained heavily last night, and the humidity is high. You need to eat something to warm up." Uncle Vale scooped up a bowl of steaming soy milk and walked over.
"Thanks, Uncle Vale."
Evan Stone reached into his pocket, took out three copper coins, and handed them to Uncle Vale, but the latter pushed them back.
"No need for that. I'm treating you to breakfast."
"Don't, Uncle Vale. Even though we've been neighbors for over ten years, things that need to be settled should still be settled."
"You're such a kid. I don't need your money. When you have time, help Tom with his homework more. I'll bring you breakfast every day," Uncle Vale grinned, showing his big yellow teeth.
"He already graduated, doesn't he need tutoring?"
"With his grades, he can't even get a job. I'm thinking about having him repeat the year. He can't be doing odd jobs every day, right?"
"Oh..."
"Ev, you're great—smart and filial. If one day Tom could become a law enforcement officer like you, I'd wake up laughing in my dreams."
Uncle Vale sighed deeply, "But unfortunately, this kid is disappointing."
Evan Stone paused with the chopsticks in his hand. After hesitating for a moment, he spoke:
"Uncle Vale... do you know why Tom Vale is doing so badly in school?"
"Huh? Why?"
Evan Stone was about to say something but fell silent for a long time before shaking his head. "Forget it, Uncle Vale. I promised him I'd keep it a secret."
"Don't!"
Uncle Vale's heart raced, and he quickly added a boiled egg to Evan Stone's bowl, scratching his head anxiously.
"Ev, I know you're Tom's good friend, but some things... I, as his father, need to know too, right? I've raised Tom alone, working day and night to earn money for his schooling, just so he can have a better future...
If you know something, you have to tell me! We're all doing this for his good..."
Seeing Uncle Vale so urgently asking, Evan Stone was slightly moved. He hesitated for a moment, as if making up his mind,
"Uncle Vale, you're right. As a friend, I can't bear to see Tom Vale fall further..."
"Fall? What happened to him?"
"He's in a relationship."
"Huh?" Uncle Vale was stunned, "This kid has that charm?"
Evan Stone calmly took a bite of the fried dough stick and nonchalantly said three words:
"With a man."