3. The Devil, the Mad King, the Seer

Fifth floor, a spacious activity room.

A beautiful woman with wavy hair stood before Ma En and Ning Changkong. She was Resident Physician Liu Yujun, the group facilitator and former assistant to Dr. Li.

Four chairs were arranged in a semicircle facing her. Ning Changkong sat at the far left, and next to Ma En was a young woman with her leg crossed.

This tall beauty with striking brown skin was Cao Yan. She wore exotic bracelets around her wrists and ankles and believed herself to be the reincarnation of a male ruler from the ancient Gulama Empire. She was planning to use an old magical ritual to resurrect her lover who had died years ago.

At the last chair sat a shy boy with a youthful appearance and delicate features. His eyes held a hint of fear, as if Ma En and the others were dangerous beasts.

This boy was Lü Yide, rumored to be a multiple personality disorder murder suspect.

Dr. Liu, slightly nervous, took a deep breath. The two women present came from affluent families, and Lü Yide’s father was a true dignitary—she dared not offend any of them.

Only Ma En was an ordinary person of a similar status to her.

“Is there anything you’d like to talk about?” she asked, following her prepared script.

Ma En wanted to ask where the second basement was and who his current attending physician was. Although Dr. Li was dead, the way out hadn’t vanished; he could still repeat what he had already tested as feasible—bribing his attending doctor.

But he held back from asking first, not wanting to reveal the gaps in his memory.

Ning Changkong seemed to have something on her mind, but patiently waited for others to speak. Cao Yan appeared completely oblivious to the doctor’s words, absorbed in examining her own ornaments.

Meanwhile, Lü Yide anxiously observed the others.

After waiting about half a minute and confirming no one else wanted to speak first, the boy cautiously raised his right arm, looking to the doctor with a pleading gaze.

Liu Yujun smiled gently.

“Go ahead, no need to feel burdened.”

Customer first.

Lü Yide’s voice was low and sorrowful.

“Thank you…

“I want to talk about myself. Actually, in my memory, not long ago I was preparing a birthday gift for Xiaoni, and then I found myself here.

“Before that, I had no idea he existed.”

He was referring to his second personality.

The boy closed his eyes painfully and turned his face with difficulty.

“My father told me he killed Xiaoni.”

His voice choked with a mixture of grief and anger.

“I don’t know why he did it, but there really is a demon living inside me. My father abandoned me here with him.

“This is a mistake.

“We have to bring this demon to justice, avenge Xiaoni, and I’m willing to go to the stake with him.”

He looked at Dr. Liu imploringly.

“Please let me be discharged. He deserves the death penalty…”

Dr. Liu shook her head gently, interrupting him softly.

“Legally speaking, she wasn’t killed by you.

“You don’t need to pay the price for that demon. Only through our treatment can you completely kill him.

“Don’t you want to personally avenge her?”

Ma En found it incredible, but it seemed the boy might indeed be mentally ill.

Lü Yide looked around at the others uncertainly.

“You all agree with what I’m saying, right?”

Ning Changkong’s mind was elsewhere; casually, she said,

“Dr. Liu is right. It’s not your fault.”

The brown-skinned woman, Cao Yan, said lightly,

“Your life and death are not in your own hands. Only those in power have the right to decide your fate.”

---

He looked at Ma En despairingly, as if Ma En were his last straw.

“Sir, do you also think I shouldn’t die?”

Ma En shrugged.

“I think the girl lying underground is the one most qualified to decide your fate and his. Maybe you can think about what she would want you to do.

“You know her best among all of us, don’t you?”

Whether it was Ma En’s mention of the girl or not, Lü Yide lowered his head after hearing this, as if deep in thought.

Ning Changkong glanced sideways at Ma En.

Liu Yujun quickly changed the subject to avoid the boy dwelling on whether he should die.

“How about the other three? Is there anything you want to share or confide?”

Cao Yan remained indifferent, while Ning Changkong looked at Ma En with curiosity, seemingly waiting for him to speak.

It was his turn.

Ma En nodded slightly.

“I’ve actually been thinking about discharge recently.”

Ning Changkong stared at Ma En in surprise; Cao Yan showed interest, and even the boy lifted his eyebrows slightly.

But Dr. Liu secretly scoffed. She knew Ma En wasn’t really planning to leave.

He was probably the lowest-status patient in the entire advanced ward. An orphan, with a sister earning only about 150,000 a year—half the average yearly cost of the advanced ward. He was here only thanks to church subsidies.

In fact, there was originally no place for Ma En in this support group; he was forcibly inserted by Dr. Xu, which meant Ma En had paid a considerable fee to Xu Wen.

Dr. Liu also clearly understood why Ma En was doing this—he had a crush on Ning Changkong.

She had noticed before how Ma En often secretly watched the young woman. Clearly, this penniless madman believed he might win over this wealthy young lady, even squandering money his sister had intended for other purposes.

She felt sorry for Ma En’s sister.

Worst of all, Ma En was messing up her arrangements.

Out of nowhere, Cao Yan said,

“We are all kings of our own bodies.”

Dr. Liu looked at Ma En impatiently.

“I told you last month, if you really want to be discharged, you can have your sister Chen Yun come and handle the paperwork anytime.”

Dr. Liu’s tone puzzled Ma En, but even more puzzling was the question in his heart—who exactly was this Chen Yun?

Moreover, he noticed that his “sister” had a different surname from his own.

Dr. Liu’s tone turned displeased.

“But didn’t you say she went to help at a church in another state and can’t come back for a few months?”

Dr. Liu knew Ma En had no intention of discharge. He had told her this last month and refused to call Chen Yun to handle the procedure.

Church?

Ma En recalled the warning about angels in his messages.

While Dr. Liu was speaking, Ning Changkong’s expression showed hesitation. She didn’t want Ma En to be discharged, but finally said,

“Do you remember what I said before I entered the elevator?”

Of course Ma En remembered.

Money could buy anything.

That aligned perfectly with his own thoughts.

He looked at the doctor and asked,

“Except…”

“Wait,” Liu Yujun abruptly interrupted.

She turned her eyes to the boy who was now looking up, her expression solicitous.

“How do you feel?”

---

Liu Yujun’s behavior and attitude surprised the other three present.

The boy’s expression was calm as he said,

“You’re right. I want to kill him myself.”

Ma En was filled with confusion. Though Dr. Liu’s manner was somewhat rude, he couldn’t make sense of what was going on.

Was this the normal way doctors treated patients? Or had he done something to offend her in the past?

He remembered nothing.

Ma En glanced at the other two women; their expressions were normal.

What he didn’t know was that Cao Yan had not been listening to their conversation at all.

Ning Changkong showed no emotion, probably to avoid making Ma En feel more embarrassed. Yet she subtly sensed that…

Ma En’s social standing was likely much lower than she had initially thought.

Dr. Liu would never dare speak to her or other patients in such a tone.

The more Ma En remained silent, the more worried the young lady became about his emotional state. Such unusual repression often foreshadowed a twisted outburst.

Dr. Liu, however, was not surprised by his silence. For ordinary people like them, reading the room was a necessary survival skill. Thus, Ma En’s meekness seemed perfectly normal to her.

“…Yes, your current thoughts are correct,” Dr. Liu comforted, patting the boy’s shoulder. “Shall we end here for today?”

She looked at Lü Yide with a questioning glance.

“Ah…” Lü Yide replied naturally, “Alright, alright.”

Ma En was the first to rise and leave the activity room. Ning Changkong, seeing his figure, thought he was still upset by Dr. Liu and quickly followed. Cao Yan got up leisurely and left.

Only the boy and Dr. Liu remained inside.

“What’s wrong with that Ma En?” Lü Yide shed his childish expression, his gaze coldly fixed on the direction Ma En had left.

“Didn’t your father ask you to arrange a few pretty girls? Why is there a man instead?”

Dr. Liu was startled.

Lü Yide crossed his legs impatiently.

“But your clumsy lie to him worked pretty well. Kill me yourself? How could he kill himself? I didn’t expect he actually believed it.”

Dr. Liu understood then. The boy before her was no longer the kind and innocent youth.

He was the demon living inside him.

Lü Yide gave her a wicked smile as he appraised her.

“Although you have a decent figure, overall you’re far worse than those two. Not even as good-looking as his lover. If you were more attractive, maybe I’d make a move.”

His words made her break out in a cold sweat.

Dr. Liu had seen photos of the crime scene—bruises and scabs covered the girl’s body. Anyone could imagine the cruel torment she had endured in life.

And it came from her most trusted person.

Lü Yide smiled with pleasure.

“Look how scared you are. Don’t worry, if I were interested in you, I wouldn’t say it out loud.

“That pretty girl with the hat is mostly focused on Ma En. He seriously interferes with my pursuit of those two beauties. I don’t want to see him again next week.”

Clearly, the boy’s “pursuit” resembled more the kind of acts he had done to his own lover.

Dr. Liu had anticipated trouble from Ma En’s presence and was full of resentment toward him. But she hadn’t expected Lü Yide to be so furious.

“I never planned to bring him here, but the rules…”

The boy cut her off coldly.

“I don’t care about rules. My father paid a lot of money, and that’s no small sum. Dr. Liu, if he dares to disturb me again next time…

“Believe me, you won’t want to know what a powerful madman can do.”

The boy smiled, revealing his sharp white teeth.