Chapter 24: Blue Mountain Psychiatric Hospital (Part 24)

Chapter 24: Lan Shan Psychiatric Hospital (Twenty-Four)

Liu Hanxi.

Liu Hanyue.

Liu Hanyue - the daughter of Ge Juan, the owner of the unmarked room next to the dining hall.

The similarity between these two names struck a chord, prompting Qi Chanyang to immediately inquire, "What is your relationship with Liu Hanyue?"

Liu Hanxi pouted slightly, "She's my sister."

Gu Shanshan and Qi Chanyang exchanged a meaningful glance.

Gu Shanshan squatted down to be at eye level with Liu Hanxi, asking gently, "Xiao Xi, how did you end up in this hospital?"

Liu Hanxi tilted his head, his left eye fixed on her while the right eyeball seemingly had a will of its own, dropping straight out. With practiced ease, he caught it and popped it back into the socket.

"Mama said I was sick and needed treatment."

"What illness do you have?"

Liu Hanxi shook his head, "I don't know."

Gu Shanshan continued, "Do you know where your sister has gone?"

Liu Hanxi shook his head again.

The normal person had been found, but it seemed like nothing had changed.

Liu Hanxi seemed to know very little, whether due to his young age or reluctance to share, it was unclear.

"Mama said I'm too slow and have bad eyes. She's going to find a way to treat me... I don't know what the treatment is, but Uncle Han said that as long as I take my medicine properly, I'll be okay."

The emphasis on taking the medicine properly again.

Besides transforming the body, what other effects does this medicine have? Why would Ge Juan bring her son here to take such medicine?

Just then, Liu Hanxi seemed to hear something.

He looked anxiously at Qi Chanyang, "Uncle, can I take the medicine now? The director will get angry if I don't."

"Who is the director? Have you seen them?"

A hint of fear appeared on Liu Hanxi's face, "I have, Director Chen is very tall and burly."

Gu Shanshan hurriedly asked, "What happens when the director gets angry?"

Liu Hanxi shivered, his left eye widening, "When he gets angry... he might, might eat people."

Gu Shanshan comforted him, "It's alright, the uncle with the stick is very strong, the director won't get angry. That medicine is not good for you, you can't take it anymore."

Liu Hanxi's eyes rolled, and looking towards Jie Fangcheng, he exhibited a bizarre smile.

"But... those who don't take the medicine are considered naughty, and aren't allowed to see the director."

Before anyone could grasp the meaning of his words, the lights in the corridor flicked off abruptly, with no one at the controls.

The clock on the first floor of the hospital chimed eleven.

Qi Chanyang felt a lightness in his hand. Seizing the moment of distraction, Liu Hanxi, who had behaved like nothing more than a naughty child until now, stealthily snatched the medicine bottle from his hand and shoved a pill into his mouth.

In the darkness, Liu Hanxi wore a smile tinged with both fear and excitement, "You will meet the director very soon! He's incredibly powerful... he ate my sister!"

"What do you mean?"

However, the medicine that usually takes a while to take effect in other patient NPCs, acted almost instantly on Liu Hanxi. Soon after ingesting it, he closed his eyes and fell asleep in the corridor.

Gu Shanshan's mind raced.

"'He ate my sister', but just yesterday, Qi, you clearly met Liu Hanyue, she should still be alive, shouldn't she? ...No! We've encountered all these NPCs, the patients, the doctors, Ge Juan... even the kitchen NPCs during the day. All except for Liu Hanyue! We haven't seen her during the daytime!"

Gu Shanshan felt there was still a missing piece.

Just a little more evidence... and it seemed like the whole case would unravel easily.

Just then, Qi Chanyang's expression drastically changed.

"Something is coming! Everyone, quickly return to your rooms and lock the doors!"

The eight players promptly split into pairs as previously arranged, and retreated to their rooms, turning off the lights and getting into bed.

Qi Chanyang glanced at Jie Fangcheng, who was still standing in the corridor.

Jie Fangcheng nodded at him, signaling, "We can handle it."

Only then did Qi Chanyang breathe a sigh of relief, closing the door to room number one.

A deep silence enveloped the darkness.

Qi Chanyang's ability, "Clay Man's Self-Cultivation," activated, allowing him to sense a particularly terrifying presence slowly approaching.

This aura was more terrifying than Ge Juan's... no, it was even more fearsome than the boss he had faced in a level two instance previously.

If he were to open the door now, Qi Chanyang felt he might be greeted by a monstrous entity, towering and terrifying like a mountain.

It was getting closer...

Despite knowing Jie Fangcheng was guarding the door, Qi Chanyang couldn't shake an instinctive tremor of fear.

While he might have had a chance to escape in the face of Ge Juan, under the oppressive presence of this director NPC, Qi Chanyang doubted he would even dare to move.

Fortunately, there was still Jie Fangcheng...

The monstrous presence drew nearer and nearer, causing Qi Chanyang's brow to furrow involuntarily.

Silence.

Why was it so quiet?

Wouldn't Jie Fangcheng have struck the creature with his staff by now?

Why hasn't there been any response up until now?

The presence at the door grew ever closer, drawing nearer and nearer.

Qi Chanyang could sense it; it had reached the stairwell, just a mere step away from reaching the entrance of room number one.

Why? Jie Fangcheng is standing right at the door!

As Qi Chanyang pondered, the monster's presence arrived at the threshold of room number one.

It stood at the door, in the deathly silent atmosphere, Sun Miao, who was lying in another bed, started trembling as he spoke, "Who... who is knocking? Is it Brother Jie?"

"What??" Qi Chanyang was stunned for a moment, "Is there a knocking sound??"

"Yes! Qi, the sound is getting louder... it's, it's escalating!"

The wall separating rooms one and three had just been broken through by Han Qi, Lu Xiaqin's voice followed, her voice shaky as she said, "I heard it too..."

Gu Shanshan interjected swiftly, "I didn't hear anything. It seems that those of us who didn't take the medicine didn't hear the knocking!"

First, it was words that only the players who had taken the medicine could see, and now it's a knocking sound only they can hear...

Qi Chanyang suddenly realized: "It's not hysteria! It's a side quest instance!"

With his realization, a blood-curdling scream echoed from Sun Miao on the adjacent bed, as he was seized by an unseen entity.

Suspended in mid-air, he struggled fiercely as the unknown creature's claws pierced through his abdomen, blood spraying out violently, splattering onto half of Qi Chanyang's body.

"Sun Miao!!!" Qi Chanyang's heart shattered into pieces, knowing that it was impossible to attack the boss of the side quest instance, but still, he drew "Whale's Offering", thrusting with all his might towards the entity clutching Sun Miao in the empty air.

Like stabbing into a dense fog, "Whale's Offering" passed through the air beneath Sun Miao to no avail, embedding itself forcibly into the wall.

Sun Miao coughed up a substantial amount of blood, "Save me! Save me... Ah!!"

Qi Chanyang's eyes were bloodshot.

It was futile!

The bosses of the side quest instances always appeared in fixed settings. Like Liu Hanyue who Qi Chanyang encountered yesterday, she was confined to her room on the first floor, and once she left that room, she could be interacted with by everyone.

Therefore, Jie Fangcheng was able to see and attack her yesterday.

But bosses like the director... or to put it another way, the director as a boss, also appears in a fixed setting.

His fixed setting is the [Hospital], and since they haven't left the hospital's premises, only those currently in the side quest instance can attack the boss.

Meanwhile, the boss of the side quest instance cannot attack players who are not in the side quest instance.

In other words... apart from the three who hadn't taken the medicine, including Jie Fangcheng, the remaining players are all within the attack range of the director.

Jie Fangcheng and the other two can't attack the director, and the director also can't attack them!

When did Sun Miao and others enter the side quest instance?

Upon entering the side quest instance, there should have been a notification!!

...It was last night! They all took the medicine last night, which caused everyone to fall into a deep slumber, so even though the system issued notifications, none of them heard it.

Perhaps the Director had already visited last night, but since everyone else was asleep due to the medicine, he didn't attack them.

But today, the players who took the medicine did not take it again, triggering the Director's death rule!

...The medicine!!

The medicine is with Liu Hanxi!

We must ensure the players consume the medicine as soon as possible!!

Just then, within Qi Chanyang's line of sight, the door to room number one abruptly swung open.

It was Jie Fangcheng who entered, drawn by the screams.

As he stepped in, he looked up: "What the...!"

Why is Sun Miao floating in the air like a marionette, as if grasped by something invisible?

Jie Fangcheng raised his stick.

Qi Chanyang stopped him: "It's futile! Let's save the others first! The bottle of medicine..."

Before he could finish, Jie Fangcheng hurled his stick with force.

If Qi Chanyang's earlier attack on the side quest instance boss felt like entering a fog, passing through something yet causing no harm,

Then Jie Fangcheng's strike was akin to hitting a waterfall.

A "pop" echoed, audible even to Qi Chanyang this time.

"What the hell is this??" Jie Fangcheng couldn't hold back.

What on earth was that? It felt as if he had struck a cotton mass through a barrier.

This thing seemed so feeble that Jie Fangcheng could hardly perceive its existence... of course, in reality, Jie Fangcheng couldn't perceive anything at all.

He had stayed too long in the lower levels, suddenly moving to an area with a lower concentration felt like a person accustomed to drinking honey as water, unable to taste the sweetness of juice - everything felt nearly nonexistent to him now.

But striking this entity felt sticky and lacked the satisfying impact he felt when hitting Han Qi and the others.

What on earth was this?

Sun Miao had already fainted. Lu Xiaqin, who had understood the situation from the recent conversation between Qi Chanyang and Gu Shanshan, was now the only person in the room who could still see and hear this creature.

Trembling all over, she could see nothing in the darkness. Gritting her teeth, she straightened up and turned on the room light.

Warm golden light leaked into the first sickbay through a breach between the two rooms. Lu Xiaqin widened her eyes, forcing herself to suppress the nauseating fear threatening to engulf her, as she rapidly relayed instructions to Jie Fangcheng, the only one capable of assaulting the creature.

"Jie, you hit its abdomen! It shrieked... It's going to devour Sun! Its mouth is near Sun's right foot!!"

Unaware of the creature's exact location, Jie Fangcheng acted upon Lu Xiaqin's words. He suddenly propelled himself off the wall, fiercely swinging the stick in his hand down towards the area near Sun Miao's right foot.

Sun Miao fell to the ground like a marionette whose strings had been cut, his fate unknown.

This time, even Qi Chanyang could distinctly feel a vibration emanating from the floor.

He looked at Jie Fangcheng with a mixture of shock, confusion, and fear.

Players who haven't received the side quest cannot attack the boss of the side quest instance.

This wasn't just derived from players' collective experiences!

It was clearly stated in the system's player manual!!

What was happening??

What was going on???

Who was this person???

At that moment, the creature let out a guttural screech.

Lu Xiaqin's voice rang clear and bright: "It has raised its hand! It's about to strike Sun on the head!!"

Reacting instantly to her words, Jie Fangcheng violently yanked his stick upwards from above Sun Miao's head.

Lu Xiaqin shuddered, her eyes widening: "It's... It's looking at me now!"

The monster was indeed tremendously large, a fact explained by it not being a "human".

It was an amalgamation of various human and non-human animal parts. In the darkness, the mountainous, pitch-black creature turned its head, revealing a face with human features amidst its non-human visage.

Lu Xiaqin recognized it instantly.

"It's Chen Xiangyuan! The features are Chen Xiangyuan's!! It's... It's charging at us now!!"

In Lu Xiaqin's pupils, the creature swiftly darted across from the first sickbay, crossing the walls of the two rooms as if it were a mass of shape-shifting mud, squeezing through the hole and bringing with it a pervasive stench of blood.

Gu Shanshan frantically embraced her, as if doing so could prevent her from being suspended in mid-air like Sun Miao.

But the creature's long, sharp fingers were already reaching out, followed by the opening of its massive mouth, seemingly stitched together from countless other mouths.

Lu Xiaqin screamed, "It's in front of me!!"

The next second—

With a resounding "thud"!

The monster in front of Lu Xiaqin resembled a sack being sent flying by a boxer, spiraling and smashing into the wall.

In the glow of the light, Jie Fangcheng stood with his back to her, still holding the pose from the swing of his stick - peculiarly, he seemed unfamiliar with using such a weapon, swinging it more like a sword in a dance.

As one end of the stick touched the ground, he unconsciously twirled it, forming a flourish akin to a sword dance, his brow furrowed.

"What the hell is this?"

"Brother Jie..." Lu Xiaqin said, tears brimming in her eyes.

Jie Fangcheng turned to glance at her: "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine..." she started, her face pale, "Brother Jie..."

"What is it? Where is that thing?" Jie Fangcheng lifted the stick once more.

Lu Xiaqin stared blankly at the room: "It... it..."

Inside the room, the once mountainous creature seemed to melt away, truly resembling mud as it spread across the entire room.

Occasionally, some kind of organ would roll out from the mud, only to be engulfed back into it.

The creature's voices surrounded them from all directions, including men and women, both old and young.

"Kill you! Kill you! Kill you!"

Pairs of eyes began to emerge from the muck.

"What happened? Where is the monster?"

Lu Xiaqin looked at him bewildered, a kind of emptiness only seen in the eyes of those facing death welling up: "Brother Jie... save me..."

Before she could finish, her body suddenly became covered in red dots.

Strands of hair-like threads pierced through her body, gradually pulling her up into the air.

Lu Xiaqin was easily frightened and often screamed at the slightest scare.

But at this moment, her eyes widened, her mouth opened, yet she couldn't muster a single sound.

Jie Fangcheng rebounded off the wall, swinging his stick once again!

It still struck something, but to no avail!

Lu Xiaqin was slowly lifted into the mid-air.

The once united mouth now split into countless others, surrounding her.

Mouth after mouth opened, salivating as they eagerly eyed Lu Xiaqin suspended in mid-air.

Tears streamed down Lu Xiaqin's face, a strand of hair had pierced through her throat, leaving her in too much pain to even muster the strength to scream.

She looked down at the two individuals below.

Jie Fangcheng seemed to have realized something, and was fervently swinging the staff in his hands, smashing it against the wall.

The mud-like creature that was struck emitted a painful roar, yet it didn't deter the other individual entities within the mud from continuing their focus on Lu Xiaqin.

This time, it truly seemed like the end...

Lu Xiaqin turned her gaze between Jie Fangcheng and Gu Shanshan.

Her pupils appeared somewhat fragmented, and at this moment, all she had left was the energy to open her mouth.

— Thank you.

Lu Xiaqin conveyed through lip-reading.

Gu Shanshan cried out in agony, "Xiaoqin!"

But Lu Xiaqin had already closed her eyes.

Beneath her, the monsters' mouths emerged one after another from the sludge, poised to devour her.

Just at this moment, the door suddenly swung open.

Qi Chanyang held tightly onto "The Whale's Gift" in his hand. With a swift lift of his hand, the skill "The Whale's Gift" activated, releasing a water sword that seemed to possess a life of its own. It broke free from the spine, spinning like a dart and reaping above Lu Xiaqin.

The strands of hair were severed in succession.

"Xiaoqin!"

Gu Shanshan rushed forward, catching the falling Lu Xiaqin in her arms and dragged her into the adjacent room 1, where she placed her and Sun Miao in a corner to look after them.

Lu Xiaqin's body was covered in blood, her eyes firmly shut, leaving her fate undetermined - dead or alive.

Jie Fangcheng exclaimed in surprise, "You managed to hit it?"

"Yes!"

There was no time for explanations; Qi Chanyang gripped his weapon tightly, activating the rabbit's kick skill.

When the creature merged into one, he could sense an exceptionally terrifying presence. Now that the creature voluntarily separated, Qi Chanyang dared to fight it one-on-one.

This was different from the kitchen NPC; that entity was fundamentally a monster, capable only of splitting into numerous little bats.

But the entity before him... just how many beings had combined to form it??

Angered and pained, the creature let out a furious roar before consolidating into a massive arm within the sludge, descending violently towards Qi Chanyang.

"Brother Jie! Help me!!"

Qi Chanyang's artifact, "The Broken Shadow Man," activated instantly.

Given the monster's immense size, the shadow it cast was also considerably vast.

This artifact wasn't particularly potent, and Qi Chanyang had no plans to employ the Shadow Man against the creature, yet manipulating it to mimic movements was within its capabilities.

Jie Fangcheng's eyes lit up: "Here we go!"

Although unable to visually perceive the creature, Jie Fangcheng followed the movements of the shadow, landing a precise blow on the creature's amalgamated arm with his staff.

After a few attempts, the creature let out a roar, echoing both lion and tiger. It resentfully fixated its numerous eyes on Qi Chanyang, exuding an unmistakable sense of reluctance before it quickly slithered out through the door gap, resembling flowing sludge.

Qi Chanyang collapsed onto the ground.

Jie Fangcheng glanced at him, then looked at him once more.

Qi Chanyang let out a wry smile tinged with helplessness: "I took two pills."

To expedite the onset of the medicinal effects, Qi Chanyang had no choice but to consume two at once.

Unlike the newcomers, after taking two pills, he could distinctly feel changes occurring in his body.

His hair had grown, his arms had extended, even his legs had elongated slightly.

It appeared he was evolving in the direction of a patient NPC.

The only saving grace was that he managed to hear the chime signaling the opening of a sub-quest in the nick of time.

Ding—Player Qi Chanyang has initiated a multiplayer sub-quest: O Great Warden!

Ah! Our great Warden! Despite the daily toils, despite the heavy responsibilities, he still conducts ward rounds every evening! Such a noble spirit, praise the Warden!

Hint: The Warden detests patients who disregard medical advice the most! Are you one of those individuals?

A sigh escaped from within Qi Chanyang.

Previously, yes, but now he had consumed two pills. Did this count as double obedience?

Observing him, Jie Fangcheng couldn't help but be slightly moved.

This man... he constantly emphasized to everyone that medicine shouldn't be taken, that an overdose could be lethal, yet at this moment, he willingly ingested two.

The effects of the medication were already manifesting in Qi Chanyang, a self-inflicted wound visible on his leg.

"I gave the other players one pill each just now. At least this way, we can safely get through the night. Remember to give Xiaqin and Sun Miao one each later."

Qi Chanyang felt his clarity diminishing.

He cast a glance at Lu Xiaqin and Sun Miao, who lay side by side on the ground.

Both of their faces were ashen, and Gu Shanshan was tending to their wounds with somber dedication.

However, the outlook was hardly optimistic.

Sun Miao appeared to have sustained a serious injury; a long puncture wound adorned his abdomen, oozing blood ceaselessly.

But in reality, it was Lu Xiaqin who was in grave danger.

Her body was covered in innumerable wounds, resembling a hydrangea pierced endlessly by needles and threads, even her internal organs had been pierced through, although on the surface, she seemed to maintain her original appearance.

Qi Chanyang retrieved a roll of bandages from his system backpack, stating with a heavy heart, "This is all we have left."

He had exhausted his accumulated points.

With trembling fingers, Gu Shanshan accepted the bandages, meticulously and carefully wrapping Lu Xiaqin's wounds. As she faced away from Qi Chanyang and the others, she quickly raised her shoulder to wipe her eyes surreptitiously.

Qi Chanyang's eyelids were battling gravity.

He knew he had reached his limit.

“Please, bring the NPCs in the corridor inside as well. Tonight... I'm relying on you all... We need to find clues... time is running short. Also...” Struggling to keep his eyes open, he turned towards Jie Fangcheng, “If in the end, you are the only one to clear the level... go to the forum... post a message... warn the others... to be wary of this sub...quest...”

Qi Chanyang's head tilted, succumbing to sleep's embrace.

Gu Shanshan wiped her eyes once more.

At that moment, she heard what seemed to be a murmur from Jie Fangcheng behind her.

“Humans really are...”

Taking a deep breath, Gu Shanshan turned around, her expression reverting to its usual calm demeanor.

“Pardon?”

Jie Fangcheng couldn't help but let out a suppressed chuckle.

He shook his head dismissively.

“It's nothing.”

Gu Shanshan lowered her gaze towards Lu Xiaqin, before closing her eyes momentarily, reaching a resolution.

“Brother Jie, they won't make it much longer. I have an idea, perhaps... we can make a gamble.”