100,000 Followers!

Song Yunyan's support arrived quickly.

Or rather, it arrived so fast that Lu Ban could barely believe it.

When he returned home in his long, unidentifiable black luxury sedan, a piece of news popped up on his phone.

"Historic Jiangcheng Grand Theater to be Demolished Today, Area Currently Sealed Off"

He clicked on it and read the standard report.

"Oh, so they're releasing the news of the demolition to generate buzz and boost my video's views?"

Lu Ban mused about Song Yunyan's methods, realizing this was the kind of thing only the wealthy could pull off.

After resting for a while, the disciplined Lu Ban opened his folklore books to continue studying, preparing to analyze a horror movie later that night for its filming techniques.

An hour into his studies, his phone pinged with another news alert.

"Report: Jiangcheng Grand Theater Demolition Due to Discovery of Han Dynasty Battlefield Underground; Frequent Anomalous Phenomena Reported Recently"

Lu Ban clicked into the news, which was typical clickbait from a marketing account, filled with baseless speculation. However, it cited a screenshot from Lu Ban's video as evidence, though it omitted the source.

"Did they forget to credit me?"

Lu Ban was puzzled.

At noon, Lu Ban took a short nap and then resumed his diligent studies, preparing to tackle the issue of Mayan civilization's faith that day.

He glanced at his phone, and another push notification appeared.

"The Last to See the Jiangcheng Grand Theater Was an Old Days Video Network Uploader!?"

This notification began with a dramatic retelling of the Jiangcheng Grand Theater's history, reminiscing about its past glory, mournfully describing its current state, and lamenting the poverty of modern material and cultural life.

Finally, it mentioned Lu Ban's video and called on everyone to take one last look at the Jiangcheng Grand Theater.

"The Old Days Video Network Uploader known as [Unmoving], through a combination of secret realm exploration and special effects, has shown us the dilapidated state of the once glorious Jiangcheng Grand Theater. With terrifying and thrilling visual effects, he has composed a lament for the theater. What he explored was not a dangerous forbidden zone, but the lost sincerity in our memories. We are grateful to him for his personal efforts in protecting intangible cultural heritage."

Lu Ban was so moved he almost cried.

"So my exploration had such a profound meaning, and I didn't even realize it."

He put down his phone, deciding to continue his studies for the sake of his newfound purpose.

In the evening, Lu Ban finished his day of studying. As he felt a deep melancholy about the disappearance of the Mayan civilization, his phone rang with another notification.

"Jiangcheng Grand Theater Trends on Social Media; Horror Short Film Becomes Final Memento"

This was a Weibo push. A quick glance showed that the news of the building's impending demolition had become a trending topic, and Lu Ban's video was riding the wave of popularity.

Initially, Lu Ban's video might have been dismissed as extreme clickbait, but people noticed that Lu Ban's video had been posted a week before the demolition announcement.

Furthermore, other streamers had watched Lu Ban's video even before the demolition announcement was made.

It was unlikely that the owners of the Jiangcheng Grand Theater had seen Lu Ban's video and then remembered to demolish the old building, right?

After ordering takeout and watching a horror movie with his meal, Lu Ban saw another push notification.

"Jiangcheng Grand Theater Paranormal Incident Compilation! This Place Is Not as Simple as You Think!"

While eating, Lu Ban clicked it open and found a collection of seemingly serious but actually hollow and groundless deductions. The most interesting theory proposed that the Jiangcheng Grand Theater was used to suppress certain unclean entities, and those evil things were what Lu Ban had captured in his video.

Then, someone suggested that these unclean entities were the work of an otherworldly lord from Aldebaran, and that a mere distant glance from those majestic anomalies could drive people insane.

"Wait, isn't that what I replied with?"

Lu Ban raised an eyebrow.

Following the paranormal incident reports, many people began to jump on the bandwagon and join the discussion.

There were explanations of the theater's architectural style.

There were "Science Walks In" segments explaining the strange phenomena.

Some took the opportunity to promote their own deities.

And some were just trying to pick up female fans.

By the time Lu Ban went to sleep that night, the Jiangcheng Grand Theater had generated considerable buzz, and Lu Ban's video was being tagged daily, with a significant increase in views and followers.

Qin Tiantian, who Lu Ban had expected to sneak in at midnight, did not disturb him. Perhaps she was afraid of his roommate.

Lu Ban felt he had accumulated some good karma by enabling a girl who was afraid to sleep alone to successfully turn off the lights and sleep by herself.

Qin Tiantian would surely thank him for it.

Five days later.

Waking up to the pleasant melody of the Spring Festival Gala playlist, the first thing Lu Ban saw was the chandelier above his head twisting and transforming into the system's indifferent text.

"Congratulations on completing your professional development task."

"Commencing settlement."

"Task Exploration: 75%"

"Task Completion: Stunning"

"Standing at the forefront of the times allows your name to be known by more people. You have proven yourself. One hundred thousand people are shouting your name; they crave new fear."

[Obtained Silence Points: 2800]

[Settlement Complete]

[Silence Department Store has been upgraded]

[Custom Mode Enabled]

[As a highly anticipated creator, your stage should not be limited to this. Explore a wider world and find more memorable shots!]

[Please complete the mission to receive your reward]

The ordinary patterns on the chandelier had transformed into bizarre designs, like three small holes that made one want to peek through, to see the scene on the other side.

Lu Ban cleared his head slightly. He knew his follower count had reached one hundred thousand.

Five days was too slow for a sudden explosion in popularity, but it was still a speed that no ordinary person could achieve.

Most of these followers were drawn in by the gossip, wanting to see what Jiangcheng Grand Theater was like. The reason they followed Lu Ban, besides it being convenient, was probably to see where he would explore next.

The comments were all demanding updates, which left Lu Ban feeling helpless.

I'm just an ordinary, promising young man of twenty-three. Where am I supposed to find so many forbidden places for you to explore? In modern society, places that should have problems have long been sealed off.

Some fans would ask, "Why don't you just go explore an abandoned factory?"

Regarding this, Lu Ban wanted to clarify.

He didn't explore for the sake of exploring, but to showcase the unknown aspects of this world, to remind people to cherish their current lives, and more importantly, for his own curiosity and to complete missions.

Videos of ordinary abandoned factories where he just went in and came out wouldn't be high quality or interesting.

He preferred quality over quantity.

Lu Ban's demand for quality was as rigorous as his self-discipline.

"I need to renew my captain's subscription, it's a bit painful."

Lu Ban mumbled as he brushed his teeth and washed his face. While eating the breakfast he bought downstairs, he looked at the computer screen.

Small holes formed by dim text appeared abruptly on the computer screen, as if punched through by bullets.

Lu Ban saw pale text appearing next to the small holes.

"Strange?"

He noticed that the descriptions of the text seemed different from before.

*

Seeking votes!

Thanks to "Today's Name is Hard to Pick" for the 500 coin tip, and thanks to "Book Friend 20200218075000016" for the 100 coin tip!