The Jianghu of the Asylum

1,253 words

When the young girl shouted this, not only did Li Huowang's group shift their stools back a few paces, but even the other psychiatric patients in the activity room scrambled away from him.

The atmosphere, which had been relatively normal, gradually turned tense. The patients' murmuring began to escalate into commotion.

Just as Li Huowang felt the situation might spiral out of control, Wu Cheng stepped forward.

"Everyone, there's no need to be alarmed. It's true that this patient, Li Huowang, made some mistakes in the past due to his condition. But now—"

He paused, walked over to Li Huowang, and placed a hand on his shoulder like an old friend, giving him a reassuring shake.

"—now his condition is under effective control! It won't be long before he's discharged!"

"Many of you have seen the news from back then. Look—if a man that crazy can be cured, what are the rest of you afraid of? Could any of your conditions be as severe as his once was?"

"So, everyone! Look forward! As long as you stay in the hospital, cooperate fully with your doctors, and take your medication on time, one day you'll be able to re-enter society just like him!"

Seeing the patients gradually calm down under Wu Cheng's soothing words, Li Huowang couldn't help but feel a grudging respect for this junior of Yi Donglai's. The man really had a way with words.

"Li Huowang, as our success story here, do you want to say a few words? Encourage everyone?"

At Wu Cheng's invitation, Li Huowang quickly shook his head. He had no interest in giving a speech to a room full of psychiatric patients.

Under Wu Cheng's continued reassurance, the commotion slowly settled. Aside from the occasional furtive glance thrown his way from the other circles of chairs, nothing else changed.

Li Huowang rubbed his nose. He was thoroughly famous now. He had a sinking feeling that the "keep your distance" treatment he'd gotten in the White Tower ward was about to follow him here.

But he didn't care. All he had to do was stay here quietly until he was discharged.

"Alright, Li. Since this is your first time meeting everyone, and we're all in the same group now, let's do some introductions first," Wu Cheng said, prompting Li Huowang to look at the others.

"My name is Zhang Shui'e. H-hello," said the older woman with anxiety disorder.

Seeing that no one else was volunteering, the young man with the crew cut and bipolar disorder spoke up. "Wei Shidi."

As they introduced themselves one by one, Li Huowang learned their names. The depressed young girl was Zhao Ting. The one with schizophrenia was Wang Wangshu.

To his surprise, Wu Cheng managed to guide the autistic patient to type out his own name on a phone screen. Zhang Jinzhong.

"Doctor Wu, that's impressive. You can even treat autism?"

Wu Cheng put the phone away with a smile. "This isn't treatment. It's just assisting him in expressing himself. For patients with his type of autism, his thoughts are fragmented. He can't think linearly. For him, one second might be the present, and the next second might be an hour from now. But that doesn't mean he doesn't want to communicate. As long as we use the right tools, he can express himself."

"I see." Li Huowang nodded in understanding, turning to look at the autistic patient beside him. He had to admit, this man's situation was worse than his own. Li Huowang still had a chance to recover, but this man seemed doomed to a lifetime of fragmented thought.

Under Wu Cheng's guidance, the patients began to encourage each other to open up. They even played a few small games to break the ice. Li Huowang found himself feeling somewhat awkward.

The methods were old, but they were effective. By the time the session ended, while the others still seemed a little afraid of Li Huowang, at least they no longer showed it, and they could hold a normal conversation.

The morning passed quickly. Soon it was time for lunch.

Given his steadily improving condition, Li Huowang was allowed to go to the cafeteria himself, rather than having someone bring his meal to him.

He had just stood up when the depressed young girl, Zhao Ting, approached him, her face twisted in pain and tears streaming down her cheeks.

"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have shouted out back then. I made everyone recognize you... I do everything wrong... I'm really useless..."

Seeing her digging her fingernails into her own flesh, Li Huowang immediately knew what was happening. She was starting to spiral, piling guilt and self-blame onto herself over some trivial matter. If this kept up, her condition would only worsen.

"Hey, sis, you did great. You didn't do anything wrong. You have nothing to apologize for. You were right to say who I am. I'm a dangerous guy. By calling me out, you were warning everyone! You did a good thing! Remember that—you don't owe anyone anything. There's no need to blame yourself."

"Really?" The pain on Zhao Ting's face eased slightly.

"Really. Don't overthink it, okay? Go eat your lunch. Have a good nap afterward, and take your medicine. You look like your dosage might be wearing off a bit."

After some effort, Li Huowang managed to persuade Zhao Ting to leave. He turned around and found Wu Cheng standing right behind him, watching with an amused expression.

"Not bad. You've dealt with depression patients before?"

"Sort of. Those kinds of patients are easy to pick on. Sometimes I can't stand to see it, so I help them out." Li Huowang followed the other patients toward the cafeteria.

"Pick on? Which hospital were you at before that didn't even have cameras? Sounds pretty unprofessional."

"It's not the kind of big thing you're thinking of. It's small stuff—someone stealing a bite of your meat at mealtime, or snatching a bag of snacks your family sent you. Are the doctors going to get involved with that kind of thing?"

"Don't look at it that way. Psychiatric hospitals have good people and bad people, just like anywhere else. Some people are just jerks. They think they've scored a big win by getting a free meal. They pick on the depressed patients because they know they won't fight back. Try messing with a manic patient or a severe schizophrenic—see if they'd dare."

Wu Cheng nodded, pulling out a notepad and jotting something down quickly. "Thanks. Some of these details... we doctors really don't understand them as well as you patients do. I'll report what you've said to the higher-ups."

"What's the point of reporting it? Wherever there are people, there's a social order. Psychiatric hospitals are no different. You can't police every little thing."

Chatting idly, they arrived at the cafeteria. Li Huowang picked up a metal tray and prepared to get in line for food.

He had just asked for a serving of stir-fried tofu with scallions when he heard Wu Cheng's voice from behind him.

"After you eat, remember to stay in your room. Don't wander off. Your treatment starts this afternoon."

"Treatment? My illness is already cured. What do I need treatment for?" Wu Cheng's words confused Li Huowang.

According to Yi Donglai, all he had to do was stay here long enough, and then he could leave. So where did this "treatment" come from? If he was already cured, what was there to treat?

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Reading Guide Decoding

Quiet Horror in the Cafeteria

Cultural / Xianxia Notes

The Jianghu of the Psychiatric Ward: Li Huowang's comment, "Wherever there are people, there's a jianghu," is a classic piece of Chinese cultural shorthand. Jianghu (江湖), literally "rivers and lakes," is the name for the chaotic underworld of martial artists and adventurers in wuxia novels. It implies a society with its own unwritten rules, hierarchies, and conflicts operating beneath the surface of the law. By applying this term to a psychiatric hospital, Li Huowang acknowledges that human nature—and its petty cruelties—is universal, even in a place meant for healing. It's a small but potent moment of a xianxia protagonist applying his grim, worldly wisdom to the "real world."
Group Therapy Dynamics: The structure of the therapy session seen here—group introductions, facilitated conversation, "icebreaker" games—is a standard part of modern psychiatric treatment. The novel uses this realistic, clinical setting as a stark contrast to the visceral, rule-based horror of the Dao-Twisted World. The horror here is social, psychological, and mundane, making the sudden intrusion of the supernatural (the threat of "treatment") all the more jarring.

jianghu (江湖)

A term meaning "rivers and lakes," it refers to the underground society of martial artists, wanderers, and outlaws in Chinese wuxia culture, defined by its own codes and conflicts.

Kangning Hospital (康宁医院)

The name of a private psychiatric hospital, meaning "Health and Peace." A new, more refined cage for Li Huowang.

Chapter Overview

Alright, buckle in, fellow travelers—this chapter is a palate cleanser of the highest order, and I mean that in the most unsettling way possible. We're back in the modern reality, and Li Huowang is navigating the bizarre social ecosystem of his new group therapy at Kangning Hospital. The chapter's primary tension isn't a monster or a Siming—it's the terrifying prospect of being known. A fellow patient outing him as "that guy from the news" nearly sparks a riot. But before things go off the rails, Dr. Wu Cheng steps in with a masterclass in crowd control, reframing Li Huowang from a menace into a success story. The rest of the chapter is a slow, awkward dance of introductions, small acts of human decency (Li Huowang calming a guilt-ridden depressive girl), and a final, chillingly mundane line from Wu Cheng that drags the metaphysical horror right back through the front door: "Your treatment starts this afternoon." It's quiet, it's clinical, and it's utterly unnerving.

Key Plot Points

The Outing Incident: A female patient in the therapy group recognizes Li Huowang from a past news report about his violent psychotic break. She screams in fear, causing a near-riot among the other patients who all remember the story.
Wu Cheng's Intervention: Dr. Wu Cheng skillfully de-escalates the situation. He uses Li Huowang as a "success story," suggesting that if a man that crazy can be cured, there's hope for everyone. He restores order with practiced, charismatic authority.
Social Navigation: Li Huowang finds himself an outcast again, but he's learned to live with it. He participates in introductions, learning the names and conditions of his new group: Zhang Shui'e (anxiety), Wei Shidi (bipolar), Zhao Ting (depression), Wang Wangshu (schizophrenia), and Zhang Jinzhong (autism).
The Compassionate Act: During a break, the depressive patient Zhao Ting is crushed by guilt for outing him. Li Huowang, recognizing the spiral of self-blame, takes the time to console her, demonstrating a hard-won empathy for the intricacies of mental illness.
The Jianghu of the Asylum: In a conversation with Wu Cheng, Li Huowang explains the petty social dynamics of the ward—the small cruelties and thefts that doctors never see. He frames it with a worldly observation: "Wherever there are people, there's a social order."
The Final Hook: As Li Huowang finishes getting his lunch, Wu Cheng casually informs him that his "treatment" begins that afternoon. This directly contradicts Yi Donglai's earlier promise that he just needed to wait out his time, planting a new seed of dread.

Reading Guide

Read the Subtext: Wu Cheng is a brand-new character, introduced as Yi Donglai's junior. His smooth handling of the riot is impressive, but his final line about "treatment" is a massive red flag. Is he a genuine doctor, or is there something else going on? We're reading a horror novel, so trust that instinct of suspicion.
Character Consistency: Note how Li Huowang handles the depressed patient, Zhao Ting. This is a far cry from the paranoid, violent man who tore his own face off. He's learned compassion, or at least, he's learned what looks like compassion. Is this genuine recovery, or is it just a better mask?
The Quiet Before the Storm: This is a chapter of building tension in a low-key setting. The hospital acts as a cage, but one with soft walls and fluorescent lights. The core question is: is this place safe, or is it just another trap with a kinder face? The final line suggests the latter. Watch for what "treatment" means.

The Art of the Slow Burn

This chapter is a masterclass in the "quiet horror" that makes Dao Guai Yi Xian so unique. The Dao-Twisted World is all blood, pus, and screaming gods, but the modern reality is often where the psychological knife digs in deepest. Here, the horror is social isolation, the weight of a reputation, the guilt of a stranger, and the ominous implication of a doctor's simple sentence. Don't let the lack of monster attacks fool you—this is the part of the story where the real wounds are being prepped.