God of Drama

Chapter 7: Total Lockdown

That afternoon, the screams on Frost Street almost never ceased.

And yet, the mastermind behind it all, Chen Ling, simply rested his head on his hand under a tree, casually spectating alongside the surrounding crowd... while keeping an eye on the fluctuations of the [Audience Expectation Value].

At first, when Uncle Zhao spanked Zhao Yi, the expectation value increased slightly. But after a few strikes, the growth stagnated, eventually settling at 48%.

After observing for a while longer, he noticed something strange—the expectation value actually dropped by 1%, now at 47%...

It seemed even the audience was getting bored.

"The audience in my head... they aren't all just here for entertainment, right?"

Chen Ling couldn't help but wonder.

Through this experiment, he had confirmed that the Audience Expectation Value fluctuated based on his actions. If the event he was experiencing was exciting enough, the value would rise. But if things dragged on without any interesting developments, the value would gradually decline over time…

Which meant that if he wanted to maintain an expectation value above 20%, he had to continuously create exciting moments?

Today, Zhao Yi had provoked him first, and since the guy was a notorious bully on Frost Street, teaching him a lesson wasn’t exactly unreasonable... But he couldn’t pull stunts like this every day, could he?

If things kept going this way, wasn’t he bound to become some great villain who brings chaos to the world??

The thought alone made Chen Ling feel exhausted.

His only hope now lay in that doctor from Aurora City that Dr. Lin had mentioned. Maybe that person could cleanse whatever disaster contamination was inside him and free him from this cursed path of becoming a "passive entertainer."

As Chen Ling was lost in thought, a deep, resonant chime echoed from afar—

Dong——Dong——Dong!!

Three tolls of a disaster bell, reverberating through space, reaching every corner of the district.

The moment the sound rang out, the crowd's expressions changed dramatically—even Uncle Zhao, who had been beating Zhao Yi, froze in shock and turned toward the direction of the bell.

"Three tolls of the Disaster Bell?!" An old man’s face turned pale. "How is that possible?"

"The Disaster Bell is an early warning signal from the law enforcers. It means they’ve detected traces of a Gray Realm convergence within the district… A disaster is invading!"

"Isn't Aurora’s domain supposed to be protected by the Aurora Barrier? Gray Realm convergences are almost impossible here! In the past decade, disasters have appeared less than three times…"

"Where is the disaster now?"

"No idea… Either way, we should hurry home! No one should be outside!"

Panic spread through the crowd. Even Zhao Yi, who had just been howling from his beating, suddenly lost all strength in his legs and collapsed to the ground in terror.

The ground beneath them trembled slightly. Chen Ling turned to see more than ten mounted riders speeding in from the distance.

Each rider was clad in a black and red uniform, with a sidearm holstered at their waist, their expressions as grim as the situation itself.

"A suspected high-risk disaster has appeared! District 3 is now under total lockdown! No one is allowed to enter or exit!"

"Be alert for any suspicious anomalies—such as roads or buildings that suddenly appear out of nowhere, mysterious creatures with unnatural features, or even humans displaying abnormal behavior!"

"If you notice anything unusual, report it to the enforcers immediately!"

"Everyone must cooperate with the investigation!"

Their voices echoed across Frost Street, spreading through every corner of District 3. Coupled with the lingering chime of the Disaster Bell in the air, an invisible pressure descended upon the world.

No one was in the mood to spectate any longer. The crowd hurriedly dispersed, rushing back home. Even Zhao Yi, after receiving a final slap across the face, was dragged inside by his cursing father.

Chen Ling, standing alone under the tree, was about to head home as well.

But at that moment, two glowing lines of text flashed among the fallen leaves—

[Audience Expectation Value +18][Current Expectation Value: 65%]

Chen Ling froze.

A chilling thought surged through his mind.

"Wait… They're not here for me, are they?!"

......................................................

District 3.Enforcer Headquarters.

Dim sunlight streamed through the hemispherical glass dome, refracting into a kaleidoscope of colors that lit up the chamber.

In the center of the hall, a ten-meter-long flag hung high, its black fabric adorned with two overlapping six-pointed cyan stars—like twin celestial bodies shining in the polar night sky.

Beneath the flag, over a dozen black-and-red-clad enforcers stood in formation, their expressions solemn as they faced the headquarters' grand entrance, awaiting something…

The heavy doors swung open.

Five figures, each wearing long black coats, strode in side by side.

At the very center was Han Meng, his coat lined with four silver markings on its hem—more than the three on the coats of the other four.

As they approached, every enforcer in the room snapped to attention in unison.

"What’s the situation?" Han Meng asked in a low voice.

"The Disaster Bell has been sounded. District 3 is on total lockdown… but we’ve yet to locate the disaster itself."

One enforcer hesitated for a moment before voicing his concern.

"Brother Meng… The Disaster Pointer self-destructed… What does that mean?"

Han Meng’s expression remained unreadable.

"There are only two possible explanations," he replied.

"First, a rare, special type of disaster has appeared—one whose abilities interfere with the Disaster Pointer’s function, rendering it useless. However, such a phenomenon has only been theorized… No actual cases have ever been recorded."

"Second… the presence of a Level 9 Disaster—also known as an Extinction-Class Disaster—has caused a catastrophic energy fluctuation, exceeding the Disaster Pointer’s capacity, forcing it to self-destruct."

"E-Extinction-Class?!" The enforcers' faces went pale.

"Relax." A nearby enforcer chuckled. "You don’t seriously think an Extinction-Class Disaster would show up, do you?"

"Those things have the power to wipe out an entire human domain. There are only a handful of them in the entire Gray Realm… If one really descended upon us, District 3 wouldn’t even exist anymore. Neither would Aurora City."

The room let out a collective sigh of relief.

"Then… this must be just a special disaster?"

"It’s the only logical explanation."

"But without the Disaster Pointer, how do we rank its threat level?"

"We can’t," Han Meng said, shaking his head. "Not unless it reveals itself and we engage it directly. For now, our priority is a full-scale search. We need to locate it before it attacks anyone."

"A full-scale search… but we may not have enough manpower."

"Then draft the reserve enforcers. The written exams just ended, right? Gather the qualified recruits—tell them this is their field test."

"Understood!"