Chapter 977: Persuasion

Inside Yi Donglai's room, Li Huowang explained to him that what he had seen in the past wasn't delusions; it was all real.

"Look, they're not hallucinations I imagined; they're real. If you don't believe me, touch them."

Yi Donglai picked up his water glass, looked at the people around him, and after a moment of thought, asked Li Huowang, "Where did you meet all these people?"

"Dr. Yi, I've told you before, they're all Sīmìng from the White Jade Capital. Have you forgotten? I explained my condition to you previously. They're real; there really is another world."

Hearing this, Yi Donglai looked around the room and then spoke again, "Who's in charge here?"

"I am," replied Zhao Shuangdian.

"Do you find it amusing to deceive a mentally ill person? Do you think that because a mentally ill person won't be held responsible for murder, you can exploit Li Huowang to do whatever you want?" Yi Donglai's expression grew angry. "I'm telling you! No matter what happens, under criminal law, you are the principal offenders! All crimes committed by Li Huowang will be attributed to you!"

"No, they didn't deceive me!" Li Huowang tried to argue, but Yi Donglai seemed to have his own firm beliefs.

"Li Huowang! My thesis is public; anyone can look it up! They could easily use what's written in it to fake your hallucinations and ultimately exploit you! You think he's Qingwanglai? You're wrong! He's not! He's just a deceiver who claims to be Qingwanglai! Qingwanglai is just a name; anyone can call themselves Qingwanglai in front of you!"

"No, it's not like that! He really is Qingwanglai!" Li Huowang looked distressed, unsure how to persuade him.

"What are you wasting time for? Why do you need him to believe you? Just make him start the treatment! Does it matter whether he believes you or not?"

As Ba Nanxu spoke, she pulled a dagger from her waist, stepped forward, and plunged it into the table in front of Yi Donglai. With her tattooed hand, she pointed at Li Huowang's head and said, "Cure him, or I'll skin you alive!"

Yi Donglai adjusted the glasses on his nose, shaking his head speechlessly. Before he could finish speaking, Ba Nanxu flipped the dagger in her hand and used its hilt to brutally smash Yi Donglai's little fingernail.

"What are you doing!" Li Huowang shot up, angrily pushing her away. When he turned to look at Yi Donglai's injury, he saw that the fingernail of Yi Donglai's little finger had been knocked off, the entire finger was bruised purple, and blood was continuously seeping from where the nail had been.

Ba Nanxu, who had stumbled back a few steps after being pushed by Li Huowang, sneered at Yi Donglai and threatened, "Cure him, or I'll smash every finger and toe."

Yi Donglai gasped, clutching his injured finger, and looked at the scene in disbelief. "Make me cure him? You're using his delusions to exploit him, and at the same time, you're telling me to cure him! Don't you think that's contradictory?"

"No, you don't need to cure him completely. Just cure him partially, like you did last time. As long as you can do that, the clinical fee won't be an issue."

A "ding-dong" sound rang out from Yi Donglai's phone. When he picked it up and saw a string of zeros on the screen, he was speechless with shock.

Yi Donglai frowned, scrutinizing the people before him again. Their attire suggested they wouldn't normally associate with each other. Everything felt bizarre.

"Dr. Yi, please help me this time. This is really important. I swear to you, everything I'm saying now is true!" Li Huowang continued to explain his perspective to Yi Donglai, but it was clear Yi Donglai didn't accept it.

"Li Huowang, you are my patient. I understand your condition best, and I know everything you've experienced in the past. There's no need to repeat it."

"It's different now. Before, I hadn't become a Sīmìng! And back then, Fushēngtian hadn't launched an attack! Everything has changed drastically compared to before!"

"Is that so? Alright! You want me to believe you? No problem!" Yi Donglai said, raising his phone. "Just tell your parents everything these people have said, and I'll believe you."

Li Huowang's expression grew agitated. "Why drag them into this? This has nothing to do with them!" At this, Li Huowang suddenly thought of something and pulled Yang Na closer. "Ask her! She knows I'm telling the truth too!"

Seeing Yang Na nod repeatedly, Yi Donglai sighed softly, looking at the people around him. "You're all too young. There are many bad people in society; don't let them take advantage of you."

Seeing that Yi Donglai still didn't believe them, Zhao Shuangdian finally stepped forward and spoke. "Dr. Yi, let's discuss this rationally. If you think we're exploiting Li Huowang's mental illness for illicit gains, then why would we ask you to cure him? Wouldn't it be easier to exploit him if he were crazier? Furthermore, what kind of criminal organization would directly give you such a large clinical fee? Doesn't that contradict your reasoning?"

Yi Donglai said nothing in response to Zhao Shuangdian's words; it was clear he had no answer. Although he still harbored doubts, he remained unwilling to believe easily.

Witnessing this, Zhao Shuangdian took two steps back and touched her earlobe. Immediately after, Ba Nanxu's voice drew everyone's attention. "Dr. Yi, this little girl is very important to you, isn't she?"

With a cold smile on her face, Ba Nanxu extended her forked tongue and slowly licked the picture frame in her hand. The picture showed a smiling Yi Donglai holding an eight- or nine-year-old girl with a balloon.

"What do you want?!" Seeing the picture frame in her hand, Yi Donglai's expression showed panic for the first time. Just then, Ba Shengqing, who had been silent all along, walked over, snatched Yi Donglai's phone, and threw it to his sister.

"Since she's so important to you, I imagine it wouldn't be hard to find her information through your phone, would it?"

"Alright! You win! You've won! I surrender! What exactly do you want?!"

Yi Donglai's face turned pale, and sweat began to bead on his forehead. Regardless of who these people were, he couldn't take the gamble.

Ba Nanxu casually tossed the picture frame in her hand to the ground, where it shattered into pieces. "Cure this lunatic for me."

"Fine! I'll do it!"

With the matter settled, Ba Nanxu looked at Li Huowang and the others with contempt. "Couldn't this have been done straightforwardly? Why waste so much time with unnecessary talk? What a bore."

Li Huowang naturally felt very apologetic for the way Yi Donglai had been threatened, but the current situation was urgent, and there was indeed no time to waste; he had to escape the influence.

"I'm sorry, Dr. Yi. After this is over, I'll personally apologize to you."

With that, Li Huowang walked over to Yi Donglai and began to receive his treatment.