252: Chapter 252 IPO in My Mind! I Turned Lazy Thoughts into Stocks

The thought of "resting for half a year" manifested in the Author's brain as a mass of pink, fluffy cloud-like substance.

When Lin Chen saw it through the newly established "intracerebral data channel," it was floating in the center of the Author's sea of consciousness, continuously spreading a comfortable warmth and hypnotic whispers:

"You're tired..."

"Go to sleep..."

"It's fine to stop updating..."

"The readers will wait..."

With every ripple it spread, the Author's newly recovered consciousness blurred a bit more.

The monitor showed the Author turning over on the hospital bed, swiping away the reminder message from the editor, and murmuring, "I'll deal with it tomorrow..."

"By tomorrow, he'll truly drop the book," Future Lin Chen's voice rang out in the intracerebral channel. "Lazy thoughts have already taken over 70% of the decision-making neurons. At this rate, the Author will officially post a 'six-month hiatus' chapter in three hours."

"How do we clear it?" Lin Chen asked.

"It cannot be cleared," The Librarian chimed in. "This is the Author's own physiological need—his body truly needs rest. Forcibly clearing it would trigger a conscious backlash, potentially leading to permanent creative block."

"Then we transform it." Lin Chen pulled up the intracerebral financial system—a temporary structure he built using dimension points that allowed him to operate on the level of the Author's consciousness. "Since it's a 'need,' let's turn it into a 'commodity.'"

Facing that pink cloud, he issued the first contract:

【Product Name: Right to Rest Futures】

【Underlying Asset: Intensity of the Author's 'rest for half a year' thought】

【Contract Details: Buyers can short 'the desire to rest.' If the Author gives up resting and persists in updating, the short sellers will profit.】

【Settlement Date: Real-time】

As soon as the contract was issued, buyers immediately entered the market.

The buyer ID was displayed as: 【dimension shareholder》 Loyal Reader Group】.

They dumped massive funds into shorting—because if the Author rested, they would run out of content.

Feeling the pressure, the pink cloud began to shrink.

But just then, a second thought was born.

It was a mass of gray, sharp crystalline substance with a label that read: "Can't write anymore, just drop it."

The "Drop-the-Book" thought.

As soon as it appeared, it directly attacked the pink cloud. The two merged, becoming a purple-black, even larger "Slacking Collective."

Its intensity surged.

The reader group's short positions were instantly liquidated.

"The bullish force is too strong," Future Lin Chen analyzed quickly. "In the Author's subconscious, too much fatigue and pressure have indeed accumulated. Relying solely on the readers to resist isn't enough."

"Then we bring in more forces." Lin Chen created a second contract: 【Author's Right to Health Bond】.

Bond Description:

"Purchasing this bond is an investment in the Author's health. Funds will be used to hire assistants, purchase voice input devices, hire nutritionists, etc. The return is the Author's long-term stable updates, ensuring the story you follow won't be dropped."

The target customers for this bond were—other Authors.

Through the intracerebral network, Lin Chen sent the sales link to the collective subconscious Narrative Layer of all web novel Authors.

Thirty seconds later, the first subscription arrived.

Subscriber: 【That guy next door writing xianxia who flopped】.

Remark: "Brother, hang in there. I've dropped three books, I know the feeling. Bought 100 yuan's worth, consider it a contribution to the cause."

Then came the second, the third...

【Female-lead romance Author】: 1,000 yuan, Remark: "Are male-lead Authors really this miserable? Hugs."

【Sci-fi Great God】: 50,000 yuan, Remark: "Healthy writing; the industry needs role models."

【Retired senior author】: 200 yuan, Remark: "Finish the dream I couldn't finish for me."

The funds converged.

Using this money, Lin Chen established a "Health Assurance System" within the Author's brain:

He hired a virtual assistant team to organize materials and proofread typos;

He purchased a top-tier voice input system so the Author could dictate his work;

He even hired a virtual fitness coach to remind the Author to do wrist exercises every day.

The expansion of the Slacking Collective slowed down.

But it didn't stop.

Because a third thought appeared.

It was a mass of pitch-black, viscous liquid with the label: "I'll never become a 'God' anyway, why bother trying so hard."

The Despair Thought.

As soon as it appeared, it directly contaminated the entire sea of consciousness.

The Author opened his eyes on the hospital bed, looked at the ceiling, and suddenly said, "Forget it, I'm done writing. I'll just find a job at a factory."

"Oh no," Future Lin Chen's voice sank. "The Despair Thought is the ultimate form; it will make the Author abandon his creative career entirely."

Lin Chen stared at the black liquid and suddenly smiled.

"Have you noticed?" he said. "All these thoughts are competing for the resource of 'Author's Attention.'"

"So what?"

"Then let's turn them all into public companies." Lin Chen pulled up the operation interface. "Let them openly compete for equity and settle the score using business rules."

He operated quickly:

Step one: Package the "Rest Thought," "Drop-the-Book Thought," and "Despair Thought" together to form 【Author's Negative Emotion The Group】.

Step two: Split The Group into one hundred million shares for an intracerebral stock market IPO.

Step three: Issue a prospectus clearly stating: "The Group's profit model is devouring the Author's creative drive; the risk is extreme, as it may go bankrupt if the Author suddenly pulls himself together."

The IPO opened.

Instantly, speculators from the entire Narrative Layer flooded in.

They didn't care about the Author's life or death; they only cared about whether they could profit from the price difference.

The share price of the Negative Emotion The Group skyrocketed at the opening—because speculators believed the Author would continue to slack off.

But this was exactly what Lin Chen was waiting for.

He mobilized all the funds from the health bonds, added his own reserve of dimension points, and began shorting.

Shorting frantically.

For every point it rose, he added to his short positions.

When the stock price was pushed to its peak, he suddenly dropped a bombshell:

Through an intracerebral broadcast, he played the Author's real-world situation for all investors in real-time—

In the footage, the doctor was saying to the Author, "The surgery was very successful. You'll be fully recovered after six months of rest."

The Author asked weakly but firmly, "Six months... that's too long. Is there any way... to recover in one month?"

The doctor frowned: "Do you want to die?"

The Author looked at the well-wishes from readers on his phone screen and said softly, "There are people waiting for my updates."

The footage ended.

The intracerebral stock market instantly exploded.

"The Author wants to recover?!"

"Then isn't the Negative Emotion The Group going to crash?"

"Sell, quickly!"

Panic selling began.

The share price of the Negative Emotion The Group plunged off a cliff.

Lin Chen's short positions made insane profits.

But he didn't stop.

He took the opportunity to start buying—at rock-bottom prices, he acquired a massive amount of the Negative Emotion The Group's shares.

When his holdings reached 51%, he convened an extraordinary general meeting of shareholders.

As the controlling shareholder, he passed a resolution:

【Proposal Regarding The Group's Business Transformation】

【In view of changes in the market environment, The Group has decided to transition from 'devouring creative drive' to 'providing moderate rest services'】

【Specific Plan: Provide 2 hours of high-quality rest daily in exchange for 8 hours of high-efficiency creation】

【The new The Group is renamed: Creative Balance Co., Ltd.】

The resolution passed.

The Slacking Collective began to dismantle.

The pink cloud became the "Rest Services Department," the gray crystals became the "Pressure Release Department," and the black liquid became the "Psychological Counseling Department."

They no longer opposed the Author but instead became auxiliary systems.

On the hospital bed, the Author suddenly felt his mind clear up significantly.

The fatigue was still there, but no longer the despair.

He wanted to rest, but no longer wanted to give up.

He picked up his phone and sent a message to the editor:

"Resuming updates next week. Starting with 4,000 words a day and gradually recovering."

In the intracerebral channel, everyone breathed a sigh of relief.

But Lin Chen stared into the depths of the sea of consciousness, where one last bit of stubborn darkness remained.

It hadn't participated in the IPO, nor had it been transformed.

The label read: "What if... I had never written novels in the first place?"

The Regret Thought.

The oldest, most deep-rooted tumor.

"I can't handle this one," Future Lin Chen admitted. "This is a heart demon planted eight years ago when the Author first flopped. It's bound to his core memories; forcibly clearing it would damage his personality."

"Then we overwrite it." Lin Chen had a new idea.

He pulled up all the Author's memory data and found that night eight years ago—the 23-year-old Author in an internet cafe, finishing the first chapter of his first book and tremblingly clicking "publish."

Then, zero collections for three consecutive days.

The young Author lay face down on the keyboard and cried.

"We'll overwrite from right here."

Using technical means, Lin Chen added ten thousand encouraging comments to the review section of that memory fragment.

"Great writing, Author!"

"The first chapter hooked me!"

"Added to collection, waiting for updates!"

"You'll definitely become a 'God' in the future!"

These comments came from future readers—Lin Chen had collected them through time data streams.

Then, in the income column of that memory fragment, he added a line of numbers: "Earnings: 3,000 yuan (First Month)."

Finally, at the scene where the Author was crying, he inserted a pop-up notification: "Your work has received the 'Newcomer Encouragement Award'."

The memory was rewritten.

It wasn't about deleting the pain, but about giving the pain meaning.

The Regret Thought began to loosen.

Lin Chen added more fuel to the fire.

He created one last product: 【Life Choice Exchange Contract】.

Contract Details:

"If you regret writing novels, you can exchange your 'Life as a Novelist' with 'Your Life in Other Parallel Worlds.' Options include: Factory worker, delivery rider, programmer, civil servant..."

The contract was pushed to the Regret Thought.

The thought hesitated.

It pulled up the simulated experiences of those "other lives"—

Factory worker: Turning screws day after day, lumbar muscle strain, monthly salary of five thousand.

Delivery rider: Wind and rain, pay deductions for bad reviews, fluid in the knees.

Programmer: 996 schedule, balding, "optimized" out of the job at age 35.

Civil servant: Stable, but dull, seeing one's retirement at a single glance.

The experience ended.

The Regret Thought fell silent.

Then, it began to disintegrate on its own.

It wasn't destroyed.

It had simply come to an understanding.

"I see..." it finally transmitted one last piece of information. "Every path is hard. But at least on this path... the characters under my pen will live on for me."

The darkness dissipated.

On the hospital bed, the Author slowly opened his eyes.

This time, his gaze was completely clear.

He picked up his laptop—the nurse tried to stop him, but he shook his head.

He opened the document for dimension shareholder》 and typed a new chapter:

【Chapter 38: Intracerebral IPO! Lazy Thoughts Turned into Stocks】

【Content: Lin Chen charges into the Author's brain and takes all negative emotions public...】

Having typed this far, he paused for a moment.

Then he smiled.

At the end of the chapter, he added a line of Author's Note:

"Thank you for not giving up on me.

Starting tomorrow, stable updates.

Also, this intracerebral stock market is actually quite fun—any readers want to open an account?"