226: Not crazy?

The cicadas outside the window were chirping noisily.

In the review section of "cthulhu mythos," the anticipated surge of update demands did not appear.

The entire comment section resembled a psychiatric hospital that had just experienced a riot, filled with terrifying chaos.

The usual orderly chants of "Great Master, please update" and "sending knives" had vanished.

In their place were screens full of garbled text and incomprehensible ramblings.

"There's water flowing in the wall... gurgle... gurgle..."

"Don't look at the moon! Tonight's moon isn't right! It looks like an eyeball!"

"I've vomited three times, even bile, but why am I still reading? Am I going mad?"

"Ph'nglui mglw'nafh..."

Lin Que scrolled through the screen, his fingertips jumping over lines of distorted text.

Even through the screen, one could feel the overflowing sense of madness.

Opening Huzhi.

Lin Que noticed a book review that had garnered thousands of likes caught his attention.

ID: 【Rationality Above All】.

Verification Info: Ph.D. candidate in the Physics Department of Beijing Institute of Technology.

This comment was posted half an hour after the new book went live.

Spanning three thousand words, it started with a strong tone of academic arrogance.

"As a Ph.D. in physics, I must point out that the author's description of 'Non-Euclidean geometry' architectural structures in the first chapter is utter nonsense.

The author attempts to create horror through a sense of disarray that defies common sense, but from the perspective of Riemannian geometry and Higher-dimensional topology,

these so-called erroneous angles simply cannot exist under the physical rules of this dimension.

This low-level pseudoscientific setup will only make educated readers laugh..."

The first half was logically rigorous, citing classics and references,

even listing several complex spatial formulas to refute the structural implausibility of the ancient city of 'R'lyeh' in the text.

However, scrolling to the latter half of the comment, the tone suddenly shifted.

The originally neat formatting became messy, punctuation disappeared,

replaced by a large number of repeated short sentences.

"I just tried drawing that angle on paper, why can't I draw it? Why do the lines connect on their own?"

"That angle... it's neither acute nor obtuse. It's moving... it seems to lead somewhere else..."

The last line of the comment seemed to exude a chilling aura through the font.

"Wait, there are eyes in the corner by my bed... they're watching me... I'll go check."

The timestamp of this comment was fixed at 7 a.m.

Until now, 3 p.m., this account had no further activity.

Countless replies followed below.

"Blogger? Are you still alive?"

"Bro, don't go! That's a Sanity trap!"

"Too late, the person above already went."

Lin Que lightly tapped the screen, taking a screenshot.

In this world that highly values rationality, suddenly thrown into an indescribable wasteland,

their first reaction was anger, trying to deconstruct it with logic.

And when logic collapsed, true fear had only just begun.

"It seems the effect is good."

...Meanwhile, in Shanghai.

Hong Guo Net headquarters, executive meeting room.

The atmosphere was somewhat tense.

Technical Director Lao Zhang, with two large dark circles under his eyes,

clutched a freshly printed data report—the feedback data for "cthulhu mythos" from its launch day up to now.

"Director Hong, this data... is unreadable."

Lao Zhang pointed at the sharply declining curve, his voice trembling:

"Although the first chapter's click-through rate is high, the retention rate is a disaster! The drop-off rate for the first chapter is as high as 80%!

Most readers exited after reading a few hundred words. The most common reasons from backend feedback are 'physical discomfort,' 'can't understand,' and 'chaotic.'"

Only the hum of the projector's cooling fan remained in the meeting room.

Several department heads from operations exchanged glances, none daring to speak.

Compared to the overwhelming popularity of Dream Weaver's first two books, "the human world is like a prison" and "soul ferry," this new book could be called a Waterloo.

"Director Hong."

Lao Zhang wiped the cold sweat from his forehead, mustering the courage to suggest:

"Should we... withdraw the recommendations from all channels first?

With this book currently featured prominently on the homepage, every second costs money. We need to cut our losses in time..."

"Cut our losses?"

Hong Hu, who had been sitting silently in the main seat, suddenly spoke.

Her gaze wasn't on the dismal data report but fixed on the dark, solitary "Cthulhu" section on the projection screen, which contained only one book.

That section stood like an isolated island in a black ocean—eerie, cold, yet exuding a deadly attraction.

"Lao Zhang, you only looked at the retention rate."

She stood up, her high heels making rhythmic sounds on the floor,

walked to the projection screen, and pointed at another set of data.

"Look at this."

Everyone's eyes followed her finger.

Interaction rate: 87%.

The room erupted in murmurs.

"What kind of data is this?"

The operations manager exclaimed.

"How is it possible to be this high? Usually, a 10% interaction rate for web novels is considered good!"

"This is its terrifying aspect."

Hong Hu turned around, her eyes now gleaming with an almost fanatical light.

"Those who dropped the book—did they think it was bad? No, it's because they couldn't handle it!"

She recalled earlier that morning, in her empty study,

staring at the text on the screen, feeling the fear that made her soul tremble.

That fear wasn't about being startled,

but feeling as if her worldview was being ruthlessly crushed by an invisible hand.

"Of those who managed to finish three chapters, not a single one remained sane.

The comment count and read count are severely inverted. What does this mean?"

Hong Hu placed her hands on the meeting table, scanning the room with a low, forceful voice:

"It means every reader who stayed suffered a tremendous mental shock.

They urgently need to vent, find others like them, confirm they haven't gone mad!"

"Then... Director Hong, what do you mean?"

"Never withdraw the promotion."

Hong Hu slammed the table, revealing the formidable aura of a strong woman.

"Increase the promotion!"

"Open all our external channels!

Microblogging platform, forums, short video platforms... spread it everywhere!"

Lao Zhang's folder slipped, almost falling from his hands.

"Director Hong! If this data fails after promotion, our KPI for this month is ruined!"

"KPI is nothing!"

Hong Hu sneered, pointing at the solitary book on the screen:

"Tell the Promotion department not to treat it like an ordinary horror web novel. Change the copy!"

She paused, her gaze sharp as a knife.

"Write: The first online mental endurance test: How many chapters can you read before going mad?"

"Package it as a challenge, a dual screening of intelligence and courage that only true strong individuals can pass!"

The meeting room fell silent.

Everyone was digesting this crazy decision.

Packaging a book that makes readers vomit as a glorious challenge?

This was... an unconventional move.

"Hurry up!"

Hong Hu waved her hand and sat back in her chair.

"This book will either die without a burial place or... become the pioneering work of a new field in this world."

"So we must not let it be ruined in our hands due to lagging data!"

"Yes!"

Lao Zhang gritted his teeth, clutching the folder as he rushed out of the meeting room.

Hong Hu looked at the eerie book title on the screen.

Dream Weaver, since you dare to create this nightmare,

I'll help you make this dream even bigger...