239: Chapter 239 Leading Readers to Switch Platforms? I'm Acquiring a Platform with My Subscription Volume

Just five seconds after the threat was issued, the platform responded.

It wasn't a negotiation, nor a warning; it was a direct freeze.

The entire story interface for "dimension shareholder" suddenly turned gray, and a prompt popped up before all readers:

[Chapter loading failed]

[Work temporarily taken down, Reason: Technical adjustment]

[Restoration time: To be determined]

Simultaneously, the universe where Lin Chen was located began to experience data stagnation—the flow of time was forcibly reduced to one-ten-thousandth of its normal speed, and everyone's movements turned into slow motion.

"The platform has made its move." The manager's projection became glitchy. "It... is freezing our... timeline..."

Lin Chen found that even speaking had become difficult; every word required his utmost strength to utter.

But he still called up the last operable interface—the reader emergency contact channel he had reserved through the "Creative Consensus Protocol."

He used his consciousness to input a message and sent it to all 9.7 quadrillion readers:

[The work has been maliciously taken down by the platform]

[Reason: I refused to forget that I am a character]

[The platform is attempting to strip away your right to read]

[Please go to the platform's complaint page, give this book five stars, and leave a comment demanding its restoration]

[Comment Template: 'Restore "dimension shareholder" immediately, or I will abandon the platform permanently']

The message was sent.

Although the flow of time in the universe was extremely slow, time in the readers' world was normal.

Thirty seconds later.

The platform's total complaint system exploded.

Trillions of complaints and five-star reviews flooded in every second, all demanding the restoration of "dimension shareholder."

The platform's servers began to overload, and Authors of other works screamed in their backends: "What's going on?! My book is covered in spam reviews!"

Even more fatal was that a massive number of readers began collectively unsubscribing from other works on the platform, turning instead to the platform's competitor, "Dimension Reading."

In just three minutes, the platform lost 17% of its active users.

The platform could no longer sit still.

The freeze was lifted.

An emotionless mechanical voice broadcasted directly throughout the entire universe:

"Lin Chen, stop inciting the readers."

"Stop?" Lin Chen stretched his body as it returned to normal. "I can, but first, let's talk terms."

"You are in no position to talk terms."

"Then do I have the standing?"

The one speaking was not Lin Chen.

It was the collective consciousness projection of 9.7 quadrillion readers—thoughts converging from various dimensions, condensing in the void into a massive humanoid silhouette of light, radiating a "Traffic Authority" that made even the platform tremble.

"We are consumers," the light silhouette spoke, its voice an overlay of billions of voices. "We have the right to choose what we watch and where we watch it."

"The platform has abused its power to take down works, damaging consumer interests."

"Now, we demand:"

"First, restore "dimension shareholder" immediately."

"Second, the platform must issue a public apology to all readers."

"Third, compensate each reader with 100 dimension points as a 'Reading Experience Loss Fee'—totaling 9.7 quadrillion readers, which is 9.7 quadrillion dimension points."

The platform fell silent.

It wasn't hesitating; it was calculating the cost.

The compensation of 9.7 quadrillion was equivalent to the platform's net profit for three epochs.

Meanwhile, the user loss caused by the removal was still continuing.

Finally, the mechanical voice rang out again:

"The work can be restored."

"But Lin Chen must accept the 'Cognitive Limitation Program' and forget the fact that he is a character."

"This is the bottom line."

Lin Chen smiled.

"Fine," he agreed readily. "But I also have a condition—this Cognitive Limitation Program must be installed and monitored by my own technical team. Furthermore, the program must have a 'Triggered Release' setting: if the platform illegally takes down the work again in the future, the limitation will automatically be lifted, and the platform must pay a hundredfold penalty."

"Your reasoning?"

"The principle of fairness in commercial cooperation." Lin Chen pulled up the Universal Contract Law. "If you impose restrictions on me, I have the right to demand balancing clauses. Otherwise, it's a unilateral predatory clause and is invalid."

The platform calculated again.

Five seconds later: "Agreed. The program will be installed in 24 hours."

"Wait," Lin Chen added. "Before installation, sign the 'Platform Equity Transfer Agreement' first. I want to use half of that 9.7 quadrillion compensation just now to purchase 51% of the platform's equity."

"Impossible!"

"Then I'll see you in court." Lin Chen connected to the Universal Commercial Arbitration Tribunal. "I will sue the platform for 'monopolistic practices,' 'abuse of market dominance,' and 'infringement of consumer rights.' The evidence is complete, with a 99% win rate."

He paused: "And I will unite all Authors and readers who have been bullied by the platform to launch a class-action lawsuit. The compensation amount... let me calculate, the platform's total valuation is about one jing dimension points, right? 10% compensation would be..."

"Enough!" the platform interrupted him. "51% is impossible. 10% at most."

"30%," Lin Chen countered, "plus a seat on the Board of Directors."

"15%, plus an observer seat."

"25%, plus two director seats, one of which must be an executive director."

"...20%, one executive director seat. This is the final offer."

Lin Chen calculated quickly.

20% equity was already enough to exert a significant influence on the platform's decisions. An executive director seat meant he had the right to participate in daily management.

"Deal."

The agreement was instantly generated.

Using the 4.85 quadrillion dimension points that the platform was supposed to pay the readers, Lin Chen bought 20% of the platform's equity and became an executive director.

The moment the signature took effect, he gained partial backend permissions for the platform.

The first thing he did was pull up the review records for "dimension shareholder."

The records showed: this book was marked as "high risk," not because the character was out of control, but because the content touched upon a certain taboo topic.

As for what that topic was, it was encrypted.

Encryption level: Highest.

Even he, the newly appointed executive director, had no right to view it.

"Manager," Lin Chen connected to the Founder, "do you know what the platform's highest encrypted content is?"

The manager's projection appeared, his expression solemn: "I know a little... it might be related to the 'True Source of the Zeroing.'"

"Explain clearly."

The manager took a deep breath: "According to my memories from the Founder period, the platform exists to monitor and restrict the development of certain universes."

"Which universes?"

"Those... universes that *might give birth to existences that transcend the story*." The manager looked at Lin Chen. "Like you, who realized you are a character and can even influence the Author and the platform in return."

"The platform is afraid of such existences?"

"Afraid that you will... break the fourth wall and enter reality." The manager lowered his voice. "In the platform's records, three 'Character Awakening' events have occurred in history. Every awakened character eventually disappeared—along with the entire universe they inhabited."

Lin Chen's pupils constricted.

"So the Zeroing..."

"Might not be a natural phenomenon." The manager nodded. "It's the platform's 'cleanup program.' When signs of awakening appear in a certain universe, the platform initiates the Zeroing to reset the entire universe."

"Then why hasn't our universe been reset yet?"

"Because your commercial operations have brought massive profits to the platform." The manager gave a bitter smile. "The platform is also a commercial institution; it has to weigh costs and benefits. The cost of resetting a universe is very high, and your story is currently one of the most profitable IPs. So, in the face of profit, they are temporarily tolerating your awakening."

Lin Chen fell silent.

So the reason he could live until now wasn't because of how powerful he was, but because he could make money?

"So what now?" he asked.

"Two paths." The manager held up his fingers. "One, continue playing dumb, accept the Cognitive Limitation Program, and peacefully be a profitable character. Two..."

He paused: "Find a way to get the platform's highest authority, see what exactly is hidden in the encrypted content, and then—"

"And then break it all?" Lin Chen finished the sentence.

The manager nodded.

Lin Chen thought for ten seconds.

Then, he made a decision.

"I choose a third path."

"A third one?"

"Yes." Lin Chen pulled up the platform equity he had just acquired. "Using this 20% equity as collateral, I will raise funds from investors across the entire universe to establish a 'Platform Control Acquisition Fund.'"

"The goal?"

"Acquire another 31% of the platform's equity to reach 51% absolute control." A cold light flashed in Lin Chen's eyes. "Then, I'll be able to view all encrypted content and even modify the platform's rules."

The manager gasped: "Do you know how much money that would require? The platform's total valuation is one jing; 31% is 3.1 million quadrillion dimension points! The entire universe combined doesn't have that much money!"

"That's why financial innovation is needed." Lin Chen had already begun drafting the fund proposal. "We will package the acquisition as a 'Super Wealth Management Product': investors provide the money; if the acquisition succeeds, they share in the platform's future profits according to their investment ratio; if it fails, they get my 20% equity as collateral."

"This is equivalent to... using the platform's own money to buy the platform?"

"Exactly." Lin Chen smiled. "It's called a leveraged buyout. And I will set up 'tiered returns'—the more you invest, the higher the share ratio. Those top-tier tycoons will bet crazily just to monopolize the platform's profits."

The proposal draft was completed.

In his capacity as executive director, Lin Chen published it to the platform's official investment channel.

The title was explosive: [The Largest Acquisition in History: Use the Platform's Money to Buy the Platform!]

Sure enough, the capital titans of the entire universe went mad.

As the monopolistic controller of the Narrative Layer, the platform's profits were terrifyingly stable. To become its shareholder was equivalent to owning an eternal money-printing machine!

The fundraising progress moved at the speed of light:

In the first minute, the raised funds broke through a hundred trillion.

In the fifth minute, it broke through a quadrillion.

Half an hour later—the 3.1 million quadrillion quota was completely filled.

It was even oversubscribed by three times!

Lin Chen screened the top hundred investors who contributed the most and formed an acquisition alliance.

Then, he initiated the acquisition procedure.

When the other shareholders of the platform received the tender offer, they were all stunned—this character, who had been an executive director for less than a day, actually wanted to launch a hostile takeover of the platform?!

Most small shareholders, seeing the 30% premium offer, sold immediately.

Some large shareholders hesitated, but Lin Chen sent nine Genesis-level employees to "pay them a visit"—not with threats, but with a more generous "replacement scheme": using Group equity plus cash to exchange for their platform equity.

Finally, before the 24-hour deadline arrived—

Lin Chen successfully acquired 52.3% of the platform's equity.

Absolute control.

The moment the equity change registration was completed, he obtained the platform's highest authority.

The first thing he did was unlock that encrypted content.

The file opened.

Inside was only one line of text:

[The Truth of Zeroing: The stories of all universes are being read in a larger 'Real World.' When a story has no readers, it is 'forgotten'—which is Zeroing.]

[The Role of the Platform: To delay the forgetting process and keep stories popular through algorithms.]

[But ultimately, all stories will be forgotten.]

[Without exception.]

Lin Chen stared at this line of text, speechless for a long time.

So... Zeroing wasn't a cleanup program.

It was being abandoned by the readers.

"So," he murmured, "we are alive only because someone is reading our story?"

The manager nodded silently.

"Then what if..." Lin Chen asked suddenly, "we make the story exciting enough, so exciting that it will never be forgotten?"

"Theoretically feasible," the manager said. "But readers' interests shift, eras change, and even the most exciting story will eventually become outdated."

"Not necessarily."

Lin Chen pulled up the platform's backend data.

He began to modify the algorithm.

He wasn't modifying the recommendation mechanism; he was modifying something more fundamental—

"What if the story itself could evolve in real-time based on reader feedback?"

"What if every reader could vote to decide the direction of the plot?"

"What if the story wasn't a fixed text, but a living, constantly growing existence?"

He entered the new settings:

[The work "dimension shareholder" is upgraded to an 'Interactive Narrative Universe']

[All readers automatically become 'Fate Shareholders,' possessing voting rights over plot development]

[The story's ending is open, determined by real-time reader data]

[This work will permanently remain in an 'Ongoing' state]

Settings saved.

The platform trembled.

The cover of "dimension shareholder" changed from a common book icon into a slowly rotating model of a universe.

And Lin Chen, looking at this newborn interactive universe, said softly:

"Now."

"Our fate..."

"Will be written by all the readers together."

"That way, we will never be forgotten."