Brain Hole

On the streets of Xiangfan City, Bai Ge was walking when he inexplicably fainted.

When he was taken to the hospital, the doctors found that he wasn't unconscious from shock or anything similar, but was merely asleep.

At this moment, Bai Ge felt a massive amount of information flooding into his consciousness, a sensation that made his scalp tingle and his brain cells feel like they were exploding.

His consciousness drifted in a vast, boundless universe, a dark starry sky where countless stars shone brightly, each following its own path.

His vision was unprecedentedly expansive, as if he, in his tiny form, was observing an entire universe.

The feeling was indescribable.

However, Bai Ge simply thought he was dreaming, because it all felt so much like a dream. With a single thought, he could alter the orbits of stars, erase entire galaxies from existence, and even cause new matter to spontaneously appear in empty space.

Like a lucid dream, he was the master of everything. All things bent to his will, to be molded and shaped as he pleased, even to create something from nothing and set arbitrary rules.

Simply put, in a dream, human thought is everything. Fantasy is reality. No matter how unreasonable, how absurd, or how ridiculous, wishful thinking is truth!

Everyone has had absurd dreams, but Bai Ge had never felt a dream so real.

Instead of being alarmed, he was delighted. After all, lucid dreams are rare and precious. Although he knew deep down that it was all fake, the freedom to do anything he wished was, in itself, a wonderful dream.

For a moment, Bai Ge's imagination ran wild, and countless fanciful thoughts surged into his mind.

In this 'dream,' he wasn't just the master of the universe; more accurately, he was the master of its settings.

Bai Ge was definition itself.

The universe was the universe only because he, Bai Ge, thought so...

If he didn't think so, the universe could be anything, or perhaps there would be no universe at all. It could be a stone, an animal – anything was possible, depending only on the depth of one's imagination and the boundless exploration of one's mind.

"This is really interesting. I'd heard about lucid dreams before, but I never knew they could be this real. It's quite exhilarating..."

Bai Ge acted with impunity, creating a rich and colorful multiverse based on his fantasies, combining elements from TV shows, movies, anime, and his own experiences.

Countless bizarre worlds were constructed, and just 'Earth' alone existed in innumerable variations.

There was ancient Earth, future Earth, supernatural Earth, and even inexplicably similar Earths – all sorts of strange and wonderful versions.

He was like a creator, playing a hyper-realistic, full-immersion sandbox creation game.

The functionality and freedom were at MAX. Not only could the visible be altered, but the invisible could be changed as well.

For example, the laws of nature.

The default laws of nature for the entire dream universe originated from Bai Ge's own worldview.

Now, with a slight alteration, such as making the speed of light infinite, the entire universe instantly turned pure white, no longer possessing its previous dark background.

With infinite light speed, darkness was completely dispelled, and vast spatial distances were no longer a hindrance.

"Now there are no stars. The original look was better..." Bai Ge reverted the altered laws, a change that took mere thought.

Being able to do even this, Bai Ge could naturally design fantastical worldviews that were impossible in reality but achievable here. In an instant, all sorts of peculiar worlds were shaped.

Immersed in the strange thrill of this overlap between reality and unreality, Bai Ge never forgot that this was a 'dream.'

Gradually, he felt like he had been 'dreaming' for too long and suddenly reminded himself, "It feels like a long time has passed. Should I wake up now?"

As the thought arose, he faintly heard someone calling him: "Bai Ge, can you hear me?"

The voice was very familiar. Bai Ge smiled, thinking about waking himself up, and his vision quickly changed.

The universe, the stars, the celestial palaces, the rampaging monsters, the fierce battlefields – all of it vanished. He saw himself in a hospital room, with his childhood best friend sitting by his side.

Seeing his friend's grave expression, Bai Ge's smile, which had been filled with carefree enjoyment moments before, immediately faded.

"What's wrong? Am I in the hospital?"

Bai Ge asked, his eyes scanning his surroundings, instantly grasping his situation. He then recalled that he had been going out for something and suddenly fainted while walking.

It was just that the lucid dream had been too stimulating, and he had forgotten about it.

"You fainted on the road and were sent to the hospital by ambulance. You're at Third Hospital now. You just finished your check-up, and then you woke up," his friend said.

After listening, Bai Ge touched his earlobe and asked, "Shao Yuan, you paid the deposit for me, right?"

As he spoke, he took out his phone. The first number in his call history was 'Veterinarian' – that was the nickname his buddies had given Shao Yuan.

Looking at the call time, it was clear that the hospital, in order to notify his family, had called his most recently contacted number to find someone to pay the bill, and had reached Shao Yuan.

"It wasn't much, just some tests, about two thousand yuan. You still need to stay in the hospital for further examination, and there will be more expenses..." Before Shao Yuan could finish speaking, Bai Ge suddenly jumped off the bed.

"Two thousand yuan? Hiss! Don't say another word, I'm checking out." Bai Ge's face showed pain as he started to get dressed.

He wasn't a wealthy person and rarely got sick. Even when he was sick, he would usually just take some medicine and get better. He was truly reluctant to spend money on hospitalization.

Shao Yuan quickly grabbed him and said, "I know you're stingy, but this money really needs to be spent! You don't have to rush to pay me back, I still have some savings..."

Listening to Shao Yuan speak earnestly, Bai Ge, not being foolish, realized that something was not simple.

"Hold on! What exactly is wrong with me? Why did I suddenly faint?"

Seeing that Shao Yuan's eyes were red, Bai Ge guessed that he might have a very troublesome illness. But he had always been in good health, and he felt fine right now. What serious illness could it be?

Shao Yuan gave a wry smile. "It's likely an intracranial tumor."

Bai Ge froze and touched his head. "A tumor?"

"Yes... I won't hide anything from you, my brother. It's likely brain cancer... and it's already spread very severely."

Shao Yuan brought over several documents from the side. These were MRI scans showing the condition inside Bai Ge's skull.

On the scans, a 'skull' was visible. A very large shadow could clearly be seen in the area of his brain.

It was like a dark hole, located within the skull, superimposed on the brain tissue.

"This big? I have a terminal illness?" Bai Ge stared blankly at the images.

"It's not confirmed yet... After all, doctors have never seen a tumor like yours. Even the MRI can't get a clear picture... We'll need to run a full set of tumor tests to check the indicators and confirm," Shao Yuan said in a low voice. "However, I also studied medicine, hehe... To be honest, even any random passerby could see the severity revealed in these scans. The shadow in your skull is so large it's compressing eighty percent of your brain tissue. Even if it's not a tumor, you..."

"How long do I have to live?" Bai Ge's face turned pale.

Shao Yuan knew Bai Ge was a very opinionated person with strong observational skills, so he naturally wouldn't lie. Instead, he honestly replied, "Optimistically, a few months."

Bai Ge's expression stiffened. "And if it's not optimistic?"

"A day..."

Bai Ge found it extremely strange. Even with his strong psychological fortitude, he couldn't remain calm at this moment.

"A day? This... Are you saying I'm going to die today? I felt fine when I woke up this morning! How can I be dying without any warning signs?"

Shao Yuan also found it very odd. He said, "It's also possible it's not brain cancer. You don't have any prior symptoms, and it's already this severe. I'm also very confused. It's best to continue with the examinations and stay in the hospital for a while to observe the clinical response for a diagnosis."

Upon hearing that he needed to be hospitalized for more tests, Bai Ge instinctively rejected the idea.

"How long would I have to stay? How would you confirm it? And how would you treat it?" Bai Ge asked.

Shao Yuan, a graduate of a medical university himself, thought for a moment and said, "It's hard to say. Brain cancer itself is very difficult to diagnose. Yours is likely atypical. We can only do some tests and see the results... As for the treatment plan, we'll have to wait until it's confirmed..."

Bai Ge let out a wry laugh and waved his hand. "Forget it, no need for further tests. Just consider it a terminal illness."

It wasn't that he cared more about money than his life. It was just that the MRI results were too terrifying. He didn't understand medicine, but even he was startled by the scan.

Where would a normal person have such a large 'black hole' in their brain? An MRI isn't like a CT scan; it doesn't produce shadows due to obstructions. The condition inside the skull is always captured clearly.

With such a massive black sphere, his brain was barely visible... It was a miracle he was still alive.

Even if it wasn't a tumor, it was probably some strange disease. Further tests might not even lead to a diagnosis, and even if diagnosed, it likely couldn't be treated. He feared endless trouble ahead.

Since it was a terminal illness anyway, and he expected his time to be short, he didn't want to waste his time and money in the hospital.

"Shao Yuan, I want to be discharged," Bai Ge said calmly.

Shao Yuan frowned. He knew that once Bai Ge made up his mind, he couldn't stop him, but he still wanted to try and persuade him. "Don't worry about the money for now. Don't you have insurance? And I can..."

"A million! Do you have it?" Bai Ge interrupted directly.

Shao Yuan was stunned. Of course, he didn't.

"Where do you need a million?"

Bai Ge said, "My sister is studying in America. She needs over 300,000 a year, and she still has at least three years to go... If I weren't sick, I could still work hard to earn money. But if I'm really going to die, I need to prepare at least a million for her before I can die..."

"You... I..." Shao Yuan was taken aback, unable to speak.

He understood Bai Ge's situation. After coming to his senses, he forced a bitter smile and said, "Old Bai, why do you have to push yourself so hard?"

"Don't say any more. My body is very good. Never mind..." Bai Ge shook his head.

"I need to go to work..."