331: Chapter 330 Sleepwalking?

Pang Hu, who had stepped into the spatial rift, reappeared, and Lin Jie, who had originally been slain, had now returned to his original state.

At that instant, Chu Xuan immediately pulled out his phone to check the time.

7:35 AM.

He continued to click on the chat software; [Future Tang Zheng]'s avatar was no longer there.

Forced awakening!

These two words flashed through Chu Xuan's mind instantly.

He was no longer in a dream; he had returned to reality!

A strange light flickered in Chu Xuan's eyes: "So, when I stepped into the spatial rift just now, I was forced awake? Just like when I entered the War Dragon World on the plane back then..."

As he thought of this, a deeper doubt surfaced in his heart: why was the time he woke up in reality different from the time in the dream?

It wasn't 7:30 AM, but 7:35 AM—a full five-minute delay.

Furthermore, why was the location after waking up not on the bed in the guest room, but directly here by the pond in the backyard?

Chu Xuan frowned deeply.

Suddenly, Chu Xuan recalled that the last time he woke up and returned to reality, he should have been in Courtyard No. 9 at headquarters, but he ended up appearing at the bank.

Moreover, it had been delayed by four minutes compared to when he normally should have woken up.

"Last time was a four-minute delay, this time it's five minutes..."

Chu Xuan narrowed his eyes slightly, a possibility occurring to him:

"Could it be because I died four times in the dream last time, and since I delayed once in the dream this time, it added up to a five-minute delay after waking?"

While Chu Xuan's thoughts were churning, he suddenly noticed Tan Ziming and the others looking at him with varied, strange expressions. They looked as if they wanted to say something but were hesitating, causing him to raise an eyebrow:

"What's wrong with you all?"

As Chu Xuan spoke, everyone's slightly tense expressions relaxed a bit. Tan Ziming took a step forward with a smile:

"Boss Chu, we're fine. It's mainly you... are you okay?"

Tan Ziming's voice carried a hint of testing. The others also stared at Chu Xuan without blinking.

Chu Xuan said impassively, "Is there something wrong with me?"

Tan Ziming swallowed. "At 7:30 AM, several of us were waiting for you outside, but we saw you come out of the house and head straight for this place. No matter how we greeted you, you ignored us and just stared straight at your own reflection in the water."

Chu Xuan's heart stirred, and he asked, "After I came here, I just kept staring at the water's surface?"

"Yeah."

Tan Ziming nodded, then added hesitantly, "It was like you were sleepwalking. No matter how we called you, you didn't respond, until just now when you seemed to suddenly wake up and look at us of your own accord."

"Sleepwalking..."

Chu Xuan murmured softly.

Indeed, whether it was suddenly appearing at the bank after waking yesterday, or coming to this pond now, he had no memory of it whatsoever.

Chu Xuan stood by the pond, his gaze falling on his reflection in the water, but he didn't find anything unusual.

"Something's wrong with my body... is it because of the Dream Entry?"

Chu Xuan's gaze was solemn. "Perhaps next time I enter a dream, I can try not to use the delay and see what happens... Also, I can ask for [Future Tang Zheng]'s opinion. With his future perspective, he might be able to provide some valuable insights..."

"Boss Chu, you're really okay, right?" Seeing Chu Xuan silent and staring at the lake again, Tan Ziming couldn't help but feel a bit uncertain.

At the same time, the others also had looks of concern on their faces.

As official Night Watchers, they understood one principle deeply: any abnormal state could not be ignored, as it might be related to a Specter invasion.

Sensing everyone's emotions, Chu Xuan gave a light laugh. "I'm fine. I just have a special premonition regarding this countdown..."

Seeing the surprised expressions on their faces, Chu Xuan pondered for a moment and then said:

"There are currently about 40 hours left of the 48-hour limit. During this time, everyone should try their best to improve their lagging attributes—excluding Charm—and keep the four basic attributes of stamina, strength, agility, and spirit in a balanced state."

Hearing this, everyone's expressions turned strange again.

Pang Hu couldn't help but ask, "Boss Chu, did you sense something? What exactly does this countdown represent?"

"It couldn't really be like what most people on the forums think—that when the countdown ends, our world will be further invaded or even completely turn into a Dark Place, right?"

Chu Xuan didn't answer but instead opened the official forum on his phone.

As expected, there was a flurry of discussion about this new upheaval. Guesses about the countdown were varied and had already become a hot topic.

Chu Xuan didn't reply to any threads but instead started a new post through his account, posting the same content he just spoke.

Considering the large number of newly ascended Transcendents who hadn't all joined official organizations, Chu Xuan then opened the most popular short-video app.

The heat surrounding the countdown here was far beyond what was on the official forum. The views had already surpassed a hundred million. Among the top ten trending topics, the first eight were related to this.

Thus, Chu Xuan directly screenshotted the content he just wrote and posted it once.

Seeing Chu Xuan's series of actions, Pang Hu was a bit baffled and wanted to continue questioning, but Tan Ziming slapped his arm and said dissatisfiedly:

"Why are you asking so much? If Boss Chu doesn't answer, he must have his reasons. We just need to listen and do as he says!"

"Don't you see Boss Chu is posting a video script? Everyone, hurry up and help out, help get it on the trending list!"

Tan Ziming called out to everyone. Each of them opened their social media accounts and began to operate, pouring all their savings into boosting the traffic.

"Why go through all that trouble?"

Xu Shuya rolled her eyes and directly took out her phone to make a call:

"Notify Zhang Wanming immediately. Tell him he must personally oversee this. Give the latest post from an account on his platform the maximum traffic support and push, and launch a splash screen promotion!"

"Also, directly modify the data through the backend—max out the likes, positive comments, and shares! I'll tell you the account ID now, remember it..."

After finishing her instructions, Xu Shuya put down the phone.

"Sister Shuya is still the smartest!" Su Qiaoqiao praised from the side.

Xu Shuya tucked a strand of hair behind her ear and gave Chu Xuan a clever smile:

"If this isn't enough, we can also push it across the entire network through TV stations and major media. That would be even more effective. My family is in charge of the Publicity Department; I can get it done with a single phone call. It's just that the subsequent impact..."

Chu Xuan gave Xu Shuya an appreciative look and said, "Just do as you said. Don't worry about the subsequent impact. Whatever the impact, I'll take responsibility for it."