Doomsday Wonderland

Under the shade of several beach umbrellas, the ordinary people, having snapped out of their daze from the ocean view, rearranged the nearby picnic tables and chairs into a single row and gathered around them. Each person's hotel tote bag sat on the table, stuffed to the brim, while Dr. Chen spread out a few sheets of paper in the center.

"For those who might not fully understand yet, let me first explain why I believe this system will work," Dr. Chen began, holding a pen with the demeanor of a lecturer. As he spoke, the long, narrow dimple in his cheek deepened. "We all know that media and message alone don't turn someone into a mouthpiece, right?"

Lin Sanjiu's gaze swept across the table. A few people nodded in agreement.

"Each of us collected many items in the last scene," Dr. Chen continued, pointing to the bags with his pen. "To stay safe, we must assume someone might have inadvertently picked up someone else's media. Given this, the owner of the hotel scene will likely start approaching people holding their media and attempt to spread their message. This system helps us detect who is delivering the same message to the holders of specific items. Let me demonstrate."

He emptied his tote bag onto the table: stacks of paper, a pen, a calculator, some books, cookies, and bottled water.

"First, we'll list every item in our bags on a sheet of paper. Next to each item, we'll note the scene it came from. For example, everything I collected this time will be labeled with 'hotel.'"

Dr. Chen handed each person a sheet of paper and asked them to write their names. He then meticulously cataloged his items on his list, and the others followed suit.

Lin Sanjiu's bag contained only a few bottles of water and some snacks, so her list was short, and she finished quickly. Glancing around, she noticed that water and snacks appeared on everyone's lists.

"Is everyone done? Don't forget, even the hotel tote bag itself might be media," Dr. Chen said. "Now, from this moment on, whenever someone talks to you, note down anything that could potentially be a message on the back of the sheet. For example, if I tell Ya Rong, 'As you age, you need to take better care of your health,' and she thinks that sounds like a message, she should record it."

Dr. Chen smiled at him. "It seems you've figured it out. Yes, the system is simple, but as long as we stay alert and keep accurate records, the chances of becoming a mouthpiece are greatly reduced."

"What do you mean you understand?" Hina asked, her tone almost as if she were ready to whack someone with a stick. "I don't get it at all."

"Dr. Chen's point is..." Ya Rong hesitated. "By comparing everyone's lists, we can avoid... um... this way, if someone keeps repeating the same thing to different people, it'll show up when we compare the lists..."

"Exactly," Dr. Chen said, nodding. Sensing that more questions were on the verge of spilling out, he quickly elaborated. "For example, let's say I'm the hotel scene owner and ham is my media. Now, the three people holding ham—Hina, Rob, and Muya—become my targets."

Muya, the round-faced man with a smile that revealed a wooden-looking false tooth, grinned. Hina patted the ham in front of her as if to reassure it.

"If I try to spread my message to these three, and they record the general content of our conversations and my identity, my message will appear repeatedly on their lists. Even if someone doesn't notice or forgets during the conversation, comparing lists later will jog their memory. So, this system not only captures my message but also acts as a mutual reminder."

This time, several people responded with an "Oh."

Since everyone needed to find at least four mouthpieces, they had to spread their message to at least four people. If one person detected the message, it was as good as all four noticing it. The system's effectiveness significantly reduced the risk. Lin Sanjiu couldn't help but mentally applaud; Dr. Chen was indeed a solid ally, just as Jiang Tian had suggested.

If she were Jiang Tian, she thought, she would have definitely chosen Dr. Chen over herself.

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"By focusing on shared items in the lists, we can pinpoint the scene owner, media, and message all at once," Jiang Tian murmured. "It's a clever way to expose someone. But how do we ensure everyone records honestly? This system is great for self-defense, but it also makes it impossible for any of us to recruit mouthpieces."

"I was just about to address that." Dr. Chen nodded at her. "Using myself as an example again, say I want to recruit four mouthpieces. For 12 out of 13 scenes, I'd still need to focus on self-preservation. During those times, I'd record conversations accurately to protect myself. But when it's my scene, the others would be in self-preservation mode and record their interactions honestly as well."

In theory, it made sense.

Lin Sanjiu still felt uneasy and cautiously envisioned several scenarios where the system might fail. For example, what if someone, out of spite, deliberately took a risk to harm others, fabricating that a particular person had delivered the same message to them?

No, that wouldn't work. In doing so, they'd essentially help the accused conceal their true message. The accused would probably welcome such sabotage.

What about deliberately omitting a discovered message from the records? That wouldn't benefit the person either.

In this game, only two out of the twelve participants could win. Every person had the pressure of finding four mouthpieces. If someone else gained another mouthpiece, the likelihood of their own failure increased. To win, the basic principle was not only to actively seek mouthpieces but also to disrupt others from acquiring them.

But what if someone simply refused to cooperate or forgot to record interactions?

In that case, the other participants could support each other, leaving the uncooperative person isolated and vulnerable.

Dr. Chen had exploited the mutual distrust and self-preservation instincts of the twelve participants to design this system. While simple, it seemed highly feasible. Unless a significant number of participants refused to participate, the system appeared foolproof.

"I understand your concern that this might make it harder for you to find mouthpieces," Dr. Chen said, sitting down and methodically repacking his bag. "But don't forget, we're not like the posthumans out there who accidentally step into naturally occurring pocket dimensions, forced to fight to the death to escape. As you know, pocket dimensions usually don't react to us ordinary humans."

The phrase "don't react to us ordinary humans" tugged at Lin Sanjiu's nerves.

Dr. Chen's pale, relaxed face grew slightly flushed, and his tone turned somber. "We were abducted by unknown posthumans, taken from Chimeric City, placed in a massive factory, processed like objects on an assembly line, and finally deposited in this pocket dimension.

"Although I can't be sure of their goal, one thing is clear: they didn't go to such lengths just to watch us play a pocket dimension game for fun. If we refuse to cooperate with the pocket dimension—if we neither win nor lose, but instead live comfortably within it indefinitely, keeping it running without progressing—what do you think will happen?"

Dr. Chen slapped the table, his voice firm. "The next group of ordinary people won't be able to enter, right? That would disrupt the captors' plans. Since this is their domain, I believe they must have a way to stop the pocket dimension and eject us if we stall the process. So long as we don't turn on each other, and everyone participates in the record-keeping system, we might not win, but we definitely won't lose. This isn't a guaranteed path to victory; it's a way to ensure we all survive."

"I get it," Tenny Voltz said, his expression lighting up. "By refusing to cooperate with the pocket dimension, we give everyone a shot at survival."

"Exactly." Dr. Chen's chest heaved with emotion. "What do you all think?"

Lin Sanjiu almost wanted to applaud.

This was the fundamental difference between the Twelve Worlds Centrum's ordinary people and the typical posthumans. Posthumans clawed their way out of the wreckage of apocalyptic worlds, where survival was a zero-sum game. Their jungle mentality made self-preservation their default mode of operation.

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Ordinary people, however, thrived in the Twelve Worlds Centrum through cooperation and mutual aid. Their individual strength was negligible; only by banding together could they face challenges.

This cooperative mindset had likely shaped Dr. Chen's approach and resonated with the gathered participants, who soon nodded in agreement. Nobody seemed concerned that Dr. Chen's credibility might grow as a result.

Yet Lin Sanjiu still had one lingering concern. This speech was excellent, but—

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"One more thing I'd like to point out," Dr. Chen said, smiling as he noticed the growing agreement in the group. "Through the demo and your chosen scenes, you've probably realized that a message is typically a principle, belief, or motto, not something trivial like 'the sky is blue' or 'I ate rice this morning,' correct?"

Although not everyone nodded, Lin Sanjiu's observations aligned with his statement.

"So, I hope you'll all note this down." Dr. Chen flipped his paper over. "I, Dr. Chen, included the message 'If we cooperate, we all have a chance to live' while explaining the record-keeping system."

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As several participants gasped in shock, he smiled and added, "Thank you all for joining the record-keeping system."

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