Zombies in a Dream

Dong Yu NuanyangChuangshi Chinese Network2022

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Word count: 1.1M words

Summary

Lin Xiaoran, an eighteen-year-old genius game designer, goes to school by day and runs his own game company by night. His second title, Zombies in a Dream, draws on dreams for inspiration: players live normally by day and enter a zombie world at night, surviving by setting up defenses and parkouring, dying after three bites, with the dead forgotten by everyone in reality. One day he receives a black letter from a writer who claims to have cleared all the content, and he is then pulled into the game world he designed, becoming a PE student and fighting zombies with security guard Li Laien in places like a pool hall and a business hotel. Using his god's-eye familiarity to find hidden items and shortcuts, he still suffers repeated setbacks and is forced to ask, between reality and the zombie world: who exactly changed my game?

Editor's review

This book combines the premise of a game designer entering his own work with apocalyptic survival. The protagonist generates satisfaction from knowing level layouts, hidden items, and zombie behavior patterns, while rules like dying after three bites and being forgotten in reality maintain the tension. Early set pieces such as the underground pool hall and blocking doors with a car in the parking lot move briskly, suited to readers who like game-based and apocalyptic fiction. The weakness is that the god's-eye view easily weakens suspense, some setting explanations are excessive, and later threads such as the blood pool and spirit bodies spread out rather loosely.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy game transmigration and player-perspective puzzle solving
Male-oriented readers who prefer apocalyptic zombies and parkour survival
Web-fiction readers who want light satisfaction mixed with suspense

Not a good fit for

Readers sensitive to graphic zombie violence
Readers who dislike heavy setting exposition and a slower pace

Reading tips

Remember the core rules first: dying after three bites and being forgotten in the real world; this helps you understand later conflicts
Pay attention to the protagonist's foreknowledge of game items and level positions, which is the book's main source of satisfaction
When blood pool and spirit-body clues appear later, review earlier foreshadowing as needed to avoid confusion

About the publisher

Chuangshi Chinese Network

Chuangshi Chinese Network focuses on publishing online literature, with about 3,710 titles in the collection across quality novels, alternate history, premium web fiction, male-oriented fiction, urban fiction and youth literature. Representative works include Tang Can, Otherworld Development System, The High Official, Rebirth: God-Level Top Student, White Bone Taoist Temple and Domineering Immortal Path, spanning historical, fantasy, urban and youth coming-of-age themes. Authors associated with the site include Mao Pi, Miao Yao Dawang, Sanjie Dashi, Zhiniao Cun, Ye Duzui, Qinwen Zhijian and Wuse Ding, whose works mainly target online readers and genre-fiction audiences. Public information about the site's founding background is limited; this introduction is based on the books and authors in the collection and highlights its genre-oriented web-fiction publishing profile.

FAQ

What is this book about?

Game designer Lin Xiaoran is pulled into the zombie game world he designed, survives using his god's-eye knowledge, and investigates the truth behind the changes to his game.

Does the protagonist have a cheat?

Yes. He knows the game levels, item locations, and zombie behavior patterns, but he is still constrained by the rules and repeatedly lands in danger.

Is it suitable for people who have never played games?

Yes. The game mechanics are explained clearly enough in the text not to hinder understanding the plot.

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About the author

Dong Yu Nuanyang Author

Dong Yu Nuanyang is an author on an online literature platform. Public information about this writer is limited: real name, nationality, and dates of birth and death are not recorded, and only two works are currently available. The writing spans different subjects: the representative work Dream of the Zombies has a post-apocalyptic fantasy flavor, while Infinite Pirate: I Am the King unfolds its adventure within an "infinite flow" framework. The two works fall under categories such as premium fiction, social fiction, male-oriented fiction, and xianxia/wuxia. Judging from the existing works, the author prefers to carry character action and conflict through genre worldviews, with a pace oriented toward the adventure and growth paths familiar to male readers, while attempting to weave social observation into fantasy settings. Because biographical and interview materials are lacking, a full picture of the writing style remains difficult to sketch, and readers come to know this author mainly through the works themselves.