The New Ally

Given the gravity of the incident, the orderlies arrived quickly. They hurriedly pulled the unconscious Wang Wei away, and several supervisors stepped forward to offer immediate apologies.

A patient within the hospital had attempted a surprise murder, nearly succeeding. If word of this got out, it would severely tarnish the reputation of any psychiatric institution.

Their expressions grew especially tense once they learned the identity of the victim—Li Huowang.

Despite nearly dying, Li Huowang didn't ask for compensation. He made only one request: he wanted to see Wang Wei. This man was the key.

They had lain low for so long, and now they’d finally sent someone again. Having caught this lead, it would be remiss of him not to extract every scrap of useful information from Wang Wei.

For such a small request, the Sixth People’s Hospital naturally agreed. Compared to the negative fallout if this incident were to spread, it was nothing.

Soon, Li Huowang was brought face to face with Wang Wei again. Now, however, Wang Wei was wrapped in a restraint vest, his mouth secured with a bite-prevention guard.

“It’s fine. You can leave. I want to talk to this man alone,” Li Huowang said to the hospital staff nearby.

The man hesitated. This patient had just tried to kill someone.

But they quickly thought of a compromise: Wang Wei was locked inside an Intensive Suppression Room, and Li Huowang would speak to him through the iron bars.

That way, even with everyone gone, there would be no risk of further accidents.

Once they had all left, Li Huowang turned his attention back to Wang Wei. Compared to before, Wang Wei seemed even more deranged now. His eyes were wide, his saliva-soaked lips twitching slightly. In his pupils, besides the bloodshot veins, there was only madness.

“You’re one of them?” Li Huowang asked, staring at him.

Wang Wei glared at Li Huowang, but didn’t say a single word.

“What do you want? I want to talk to you all,” Li Huowang said.

It was a test. Regardless of what those people’s real intentions were, Li Huowang first needed to know their identity.

Whether it was the Leo aliens from Qian Fu’s story or Chen Hongyu’s “organization that steals special abilities,” he found neither convincing.

He wanted to meet them in person and see for himself who they truly were.

And of course, Li Huowang’s cell phone recorder was already on. If he could capture any critical evidence, he could call the police directly and get others to help him eliminate them. That would be the ideal outcome.

In response to Li Huowang’s questioning, Wang Wei merely stared at him, still saying nothing.

“It’s useless. He is just a low-ranking pawn. You won’t get anything out of him,” Qian Fu spoke up from the side. His voice was completely devoid of its usual madness. “The Leo aliens are masters of temptation. Some of us have also been tempted by them, becoming puppets in their hands, manipulated at their whim.”

“Trying to get any clues out of him is a dead end.”

Despite this, Li Huowang refused to give up. “Wang Wei, do you remember me? You used to treat me. What happened to you after we went our separate ways? Tell me about it. Maybe I can help you.”

“What you said before, I didn’t catch it clearly. Could you repeat it?”

“You tried to kill me, but I don’t hate you for it. Right now, I just need to know why.”

Li Huowang asked several more questions, even bringing up his own past with Wang Wei, trying to provoke a response.

But no matter what he said, Wang Wei remained silent, as if he had truly become the puppet Qian Fu described.

Compared to a few years ago, their roles had completely reversed. The irony was not lost on Li Huowang.

After asking many questions and seeing that Wang Wei really wasn't reacting, Li Huowang had to leave for now.

But just as Li Huowang had taken two steps, Wang Wei finally spoke. “Li Huowang, you’re running away.”

Li Huowang stopped, slowly turning to face Wang Wei. “What did you say?”

“I said you’ve been running away all along. You know it, you’ve always known. You can connect to that world. Your potential is limitless!”

Li Huowang’s pupils contracted slightly. “So that’s their goal? They think I can bring things back from the hallucinations, so they want to kidnap me?”

He immediately thought of something else. “That means… my experiences on that ship weren’t hallucinations? There really is a group of people like that?”

Chen Hongyu chimed in from the side. “See? What did I tell you? They’re after our special abilities. You’ve definitely got some too, or they wouldn’t have come for you.”

“Elder Chen, let me get this straight first,” Li Huowang said, before turning his gaze back to Wang Wei. “Answer me. Is everything I just said true or not?”

Wang Wei didn’t answer; instead, he fired back with a question. “You answer my question first. I want to ask you, when did you stop believing these possibilities? Is this your true thought? Or is it something someone else made you think?”

His voice rose again. “Yi Donglai! Don’t trust Yi Donglai! He’s actually hurting you!”

“Think about it! What has Yi Donglai really done? If he really had your best interests at heart, why wasn’t he by your side when you were in trouble, helping you?”

“That world is real! Yi Donglai has wronged you! He’s sealed your abilities away!! You have to remember! You have to become the complete you!”

“You’re not sick! You’re gifted! You don’t need treatment! You don’t need medication!”

“Stop him!” Qian Fu quickly clamped his hands over Li Huowang’s ears. “Don’t listen to him! The Leo aliens are trying to corrupt you! Don’t listen! Don’t look! Don’t think!”

And just like that, Li Huowang was dragged out. Though, even if Qian Fu hadn’t pulled him away, Li Huowang was about to leave on his own. There was no valuable information to be had from Wang Wei.

“Alright, you can stop covering my ears now. My will isn’t that fragile. I’m not going to be shaken just because someone said a few things,” Li Huowang said inside the hospital lobby, shaking off Qian Fu’s hands.

He glanced at Chen Hongyu. “What are your plans now?”

“You’re asking me? Didn’t you all invite me out? Why are you asking me something like that?” Chen Hongyu asked, sticking a finger into her nostril and beginning to pick her nose.

“Surely it’s not just her? We’ll need more people, right?” Li Huowang asked Qian Fu.

Regardless, judging by how Chen Hongyu had just saved his life, it was better to make more friends like her.

So what if they were mentally ill? They were mentally ill people who could help him.

“There are others. We’ll go find Qing Wanglai next.”

“Qing Wanglai?” Li Huowang frowned. “Sounds like a man’s name. Is he mentally ill too?”

“No, he’s not a mental patient. He’s a student.”

“A student?” Li Huowang couldn’t believe his ears for a second. Qian Fu’s helpers actually included a normal person.

“No, Qing Wanglai is a graduate student,” Chen Hongyu added from the side.