Chapter 476: Conversation

“Student, since you are lucid now, your thinking and logic should be normal. You must understand what I mean; we are doing this to cure you. Do you want to lie in bed your entire life, with your mother taking care of you forever?”

“She’s already so old; can she really take care of you your entire life? Can you bear to see her with white hair, while you’re in your fifties or sixties, still needing her to turn you over and change your diapers?”

“No, not at all, not as long as I achieve enlightenment in cultivation.” Li Huowang, with a determined expression, slowly closed his mouth.

The two doctors exchanged a glance, pulled out notebooks from their white coats, and quickly jotted something down.

They walked a bit further away, discussed for a while, then returned.

“Li, we don’t have to push you into rehabilitation training. Could you just talk with me?”

“Don’t be nervous; it’s just a casual chat, like between friends.” As the younger doctor said this, the other attendants and the other doctor stepped out, and even the prison guard standing at the door left.

The doctor took off his white coat, setting it aside, revealing his casual clothes underneath. “Let me introduce myself. My name is Yi Donglai.” He extended his hand and shook Li Huowang’s emaciated right hand, which resembled a chicken’s claw.

Compared to the previous doctor, this younger one was clearly different.

“You’re quite famous online now. The story of you rushing into the school and rescuing your girlfriend from several robbers has spread widely online. Many people admire you, including quite a few pretty young girls.”

Li Huowang’s lips trembled, but he said nothing, calculating the time to return in his mind.

“Do you play League of Legends? I do too. The game company recently made a limited-edition Tryndamere skin based on you back then. Lots of people bought it; I spent 99 yuan and got one too.”

“Huh?” Li Huowang looked up, his expression complicated, staring at the doctor. “Are you treating me like an idiot?”

“Hahahaha, just kidding, don’t take it too seriously. But I’ve seen the surveillance footage from back then, wow, you were so cool, just like Tryndamere when he activates his ultimate! If they could make a Tryndamere skin out of that, it would definitely sell like hotcakes!”

“What heroes do you like to play? I like Shaco, but that greedy Riot Games actually nerfed him recently! Shaco, nerfed?! Are they crazy?! Do you think this is something a normal person would do?”

Li Huowang watched the endlessly talkative Yi Donglai, completely ignoring his chatter, and quickly determined his purpose: this person most likely wanted to use game topics to build rapport, and then treat him once his psychological defenses were completely lowered.

“Perhaps I don’t need to resist so directly. Maybe I can use this person to get out of this constant surveillance.” Li Huowang thought to himself.

“Have any new heroes come out recently?” Li Huowang’s words made Yi Donglai’s heart leap with joy; finally, there was a response from patient number 13.

A response is good; as long as there’s a response, psychological intervention and treatment can proceed. “Yes! Yes, yes, yes! Two new heroes have been released during your time in the hospital!”

“Are there any junglers? I like playing junglers.”

Continuing with the game topic, the two chatted for twenty minutes, both satisfied with each other’s responses.

“I need to go now. Let’s chat again sometime,” Li Huowang said.

Yi Donglai had a host of questions about Li Huowang’s ability to control the timing of his 'episodes,' but he understood that he couldn't rush things.

“Okay! You name the time.”

“How about dinner five days from now? Brother Donglai, I’m leaving.” Li Huowang’s lips curved upward as he tilted his chin towards Yi Donglai.

“Hey, wait a moment before you leave. You haven’t eaten yet.” As Sun Xiaoqin’s voice filled the air, the entire environment around him began to collapse.

When Li Huowang came back to his senses, he saw Bai Lingmiao, Li Sui, and Er Shen standing in front of him, staring at him.

“Senior Brother Li, dinner is ready,” Bai Lingmiao said softly.

“Oh, I see.” Li Huowang turned and walked towards the carriage. He picked up a bowl and scooped out a portion of stewed rice from the pot. “Mom, I’m going to eat. Please feed me the rest of the rice from the container.”

Li Huowang’s mouth hung open. After waiting for a moment, he shoveled another mouthful of rice from his bowl and chewed vigorously. Once he swallowed, he again opened his mouth wide and waited.

When the three emerged, they saw Li Huowang performing this strange act.

“Eat, why are you just standing there? We still have to travel,” Li Huowang said to them. Hearing this, the three walked over.

Bai Lingmiao held her bowl of stewed rice, looking at Li Huowang with a complicated expression, as if wanting to say something.

However, when she saw Li Huowang looking her way, Bai Lingmiao smiled and began eating heartily.

The meal concluded in a strange atmosphere. After washing the bowls, chopsticks, and iron pot by the river, the carriage was back on the road.

Li Huowang pondered for a moment, then finally explained to Bai Lingmiao, “You don’t need to worry about me. I can differentiate now, and everything will get better after a while.”

“Mm-hmm, Senior Brother Li, I believe you,” Bai Lingmiao nodded gently beside him.

“I really— Oh, never mind. You’ll understand later.” Li Huowang pulled out a piece of turmeric paper, bit his fingertip, quickly drew a talisman, and stuck it directly onto the horse’s back. The carriage horse immediately galloped away.

The carriage sped quickly, and by dusk, they had arrived beside a peach blossom forest.

The red glow of the evening clouds cast over the pink peach blossoms, making them appear exceptionally enchanting within the green forest.

The exquisite map from the Ministry of Heavenly Investigations was spread out by Li Huowang, who compared it against their surroundings. “This should be the place, but I wonder if we’ll be luckier this time.”

His previous two unsuccessful attempts left Li Huowang feeling a bit less confident about this third location.

“I’ll go in and scout first. You wait outside. If you hear anything unusual, remember to take the carriage back to where we had lunch and wait for me there.”

“Okay, Senior Brother Li, you go ahead.”

Looking at Bai Lingmiao’s unfocused eyes, Li Huowang felt a pang in his heart. He turned and walked towards the peach blossom forest.

He hunched his body slightly, shifting his body color to blend with the ground, and slowly approached invisibly.

The peach blossom forest was dense, and the blossoms were fragrant, but the tree trunks were covered in sticky amber-colored peach gum, which added an unsettling strangeness to the entire grove.

After walking for about ten *zhang*, Li Huowang realized that this lush peach forest was exceptionally quiet. Not only were there no bird calls, but there wasn't even the sound of insects.

Li Huowang's heart brightened. Could this time be a success? "Brother Zhuge, you're very knowledgeable. Have you ever encountered a spiritual evil before?"

“Yes, I have. A close friend of mine was afflicted by such a spiritual evil. He lived a life worse than death; every moment was torture. In the end, he pleaded with me to free him.”