Nightmare Apostle

Chapter 124: Chapter 122: Going Back

Just before noon, Beibei was called into an office with Yang Xiao. The doctor, with graying hair, adjusted his presbyopic glasses, holding a report in his hand, and with a somewhat strange expression said, "The test results are out. Your friend’s body indicators are all very normal, just as if she were asleep. However, we’ve tried many methods and still can’t wake her up."

"A vegetative state?" Beibei panicked.

"No, the symptoms you’re talking about are usually caused by severe brain damage that results in the loss of cerebral cortex function, but your friend shows no external injuries at all." After a pause, the doctor cautiously offered his advice, "This is the situation now. Our town hospital is not as well-equipped as those in big cities. I suggest arranging for a transfer to a more advanced facility as soon as possible."

Thanks to arrangements made by Director Nalan, Yu Shu, who remained unconscious, was picked up by a special car in the afternoon. The three of them returned to Rongcheng, and by evening, Yu Shu was admitted to the best hospital in Rongcheng.

Xi Menxiu burst into tears upon seeing Yu Shu lying on the hospital bed. If not for Da Xiong holding her back, Beibei would have beaten her up, "She isn’t dead yet, why are you wailing?"

After nightfall, Director Nalan, Ms.Wen, Huang Qiang, and others came to visit. The hospital’s person in charge detailed the current situation to Director Nalan. The preliminary examination results were the same as those from Xi Mountain Town’s hospital. The patient had lost her active consciousness, and her response to external language and light and sound stimuli had almost disappeared, but basic life functions such as breathing and heartbeat were still present.

"What can we do for her now?" Director Nalan asked bluntly.

The person in charge was silent for a moment, "I’m sorry, but since the cause of the condition is unclear, all we can do for now is conservative treatment, that is, to maintain the patient’s life. Whether she can wake up and when she might wake up can’t be determined."

"Isn’t this just leaving it to fate?" Xi Menxiu became anxious.

"I apologize, but we’ve done what we can. The patient’s condition is very unusual. We’ve consulted with renowned experts and even used specialized diagnostic equipment provided by your technical department. We’ve found that although the patient is in a coma, her brain activity is unusually high. One of the experts from the technical department suggested a hypothesis."

The person in charge, who was obviously aware of the Patrol Defense Bureau’s inner workings, lowered their voice, "Director Nalan, this hypothesis is a bit far-fetched. He suspects that although the patient has returned, her spirit is still trapped in that world, as if... as if she’s stuck in a dream."

"A dream?"

Whether intentional or not, Director Nalan glanced at Yang Xiao, causing him to tense up with just that look.

After leaving the office, Director Nalan took the elevator upstairs without asking Yang Xiao and the others to join him, seemingly going to meet with those experts.

Ms. Wen stayed behind, comforting everyone, "Don’t worry too much. With so many experts and scholars here, they will certainly be able to help Shu."

"This time it’s strange; it was less than 24 hours after receiving the Ghost script that we entered the Nightmare World." Zhuge Zhijie commented, "Logically, it should have been at least tonight."

"Yeah, why is Yu Shu so unlucky this time."

With a backpack on his shoulders, which contained the Drama Robe, Yang Xiao couldn’t help but wonder if it was his presence that caused Yu Shu to enter the mission prematurely, and also that he himself had entered the Nightmare World around the same time as her after receiving the Ghost script for the first time.

"Captain Yang," Ms. Wen interrupted Yang Xiao’s train of thought, "could you please step outside with me for a moment?"

Feeling worried, Yang Xiao was called out of the room. Ms.Wen looked at him and sighed softly, "Yang Xiao, you’re the captain, so there are some things I can only discuss with you. Shu’s condition doesn’t look good for now, but no matter what happens, you must hold on."

"Not to seem insensitive, but it’s not very productive for so many of you to stay at the hospital. I suggest you take turns keeping watch. After all, we can’t neglect the work at the Bureau," Ms. Wen advised. "Captain Yang, we need you to lead the work here."

"Yes, thank you, Ms. Wen. I know what to do." Yang Xiao nodded.

They hadn’t been talking long when Huang Qiang came running down in a hurry, "Captain Yang, the Director is asking for you, now."

Taking the elevator to the seventh floor of the hospital, Yang Xiao arrived at a large room marked "Conference Room." Huang Qiang opened the door for him to enter alone, then closed it behind him.

The spacious conference room only contained Director Nalan; with smoke swirling around, and many cigarette butts in the ashtray on the table, Yang Xiao surmised the Director had just met with those experts.

Walking over and sitting down in front of the Director, Nalan Shuo looked at Yang Xiao with a complicated gaze that couldn’t help but put one on guard, "Yang Xiao, if I’m not mistaken, the ability of your Resentful Eye is related to dreams."

"That’s right, but..." Yang Xiao was nervous.

Nalan Shuo gestured with his hand, indicating for Yang Xiao not to interrupt, "I just had a talk with the head of the technical department. Yu Shu’s situation is much worse than we imagined. Her brain activity is extremely high, beyond the limit of normal humans. If we don’t find a solution, she won’t last three days."

A pang of anxiety hit Yang Xiao’s heart; he knew that Yu Shu’s condition was not good, but he hadn’t realized it was this critical. freēwēbnovel.com

"I’ve discussed it with the experts, and with current medical capabilities, we can’t wake up Yu Shu. They have proposed a solution, but it requires your help," said Nalan Shuo, looking at Yang Xiao.

"It’s my duty!" Yang Xiao agreed without hesitation.

"Don’t be so quick to agree. Listen to me first." Nalan Shuo’s expression became stern, which was rare, "The expert suggested that you stay alone with Yu Shu at night, and then use the power of the Resentful Eye to try to disrupt her dreams, or perhaps even enter them directly."

"Of course, this is very risky, both for you and for Yu Shu. We can’t predict what the consequences will be, and if you encounter danger in the dream, I can tell you now that we have no way to save you; there is no Plan B."

Director Nalan sighed, "The only thing we can do is to use the technical department’s equipment to assist you, try to stabilize the dream as much as possible, and clear the scene to ensure that no one will disturb you during this time."

"I’m willing to give it a try," Yang Xiao made his decision.

"Think it over again, this isn’t an order. I’m just soliciting your opinion. Everyone’s life is precious, and there’s nothing wrong if you refuse. I will not leak today’s conversation to anyone, including your teammates," Director Nalan said sincerely.

After a moment of silence, Yang Xiao’s expression firmed up, "Director, I am the captain. If my teammate is in trouble, I must help her."

"Hoo—" Director Nalan slowly exhaled and stood up abruptly, unexpectedly giving Yang Xiao a bow.

Yang Xiao was taken aback by this, leaping up from the chair, "Director, please don’t do this, you are... "

"Thank you. Whether this is successful or not, I, Nalan Shuo, owe you a favor," Director Nalan straightened up. "Alright, now you go rest, we start tonight."

"Understood!"

Yang Xiao was arranged in a separate room, wearing a helmet-like device on his head, as several members from the technical department continued adjusting the equipment.

"Do you feel dizzy?"

"Are you experiencing any hallucinations?"

"Am I male or female, how many fingers is this?"

Accompanied by a series of questions, the technical department finally adjusted the equipment. They also covered the room’s floor and walls with a layer of silver paper.

Yang Xiao had seen something similar before—in the last ghost smashing case, those from the technical department wore similar material in their silver protective suits.

For dinner, Yang Xiao ate four chicken legs and two big bowls of rice. He wanted to add another chicken leg, but the technician delivering the meal refused, saying there were no more chicken legs in the hospital cafeteria.

It was an unthoughtful excuse, but Yang Xiao didn’t argue with them.

With signals blocked in the room, Yang Xiao couldn’t play with his phone and could only hug his backpack, staring blankly at the clock on the wall.

At 8 p.m., the door to the ward opened, and Yu Shu was pushed in on a stretcher, her eyes firmly closed, only her chest rising and falling slightly.

After one last test of the equipment, the technical personnel evacuated, leaving only the unconscious Yu Shu and Yang Xiao in the room.

"Yang Xiao, a five-minute countdown is starting. After the countdown, you can begin at any time. Don’t worry, the entire floor you’re on, as well as the two floors above and below, have been evacuated," Director Nalan’s voice came from a loudspeaker connected by a wire above. "I wish you all the best."

After five minutes passed, Yang Xiao opened his backpack, took out the Drama Robe, and hesitated for a moment. On one side was the Drama Robe, on the other was the Nether Garment. Which should he wear?

He had seen Yu Shu wearing the Drama Robe previously, but the Drama Robe lacked offensive abilities, or at least Yang Xiao didn’t yet know how to use it. He worried it might act like a save point, sending him directly back to the room in the guesthouse; after all, he was still holding the Headless Green Ghost’s hand.

If he were to be transported back immediately, wearing the Drama Robe would mean being torn apart alive.

After pondering for a moment, he decided to first try on the Nether Garment, so that if he did go back, he could take off a "ghost money" and contend with the Headless Green Ghost for a while.

There was also a very important factor: the wedding procession had frightened him. For some reason, he felt from the bottom of his heart that the wedding procession was far more terrifying than the funeral procession, and he had also been riding a white horse in the wedding procession, playing the role of a bridegroom.

Deciding not to hesitate anymore, Yang Xiao took a deep breath, put on the Nether Garment, then lay down honestly on the bed, hands on his chest. As soon as he closed his eyes, a strange feeling instantly came over him, quickly drifting into dreamland.

The next second, he jolted awake— the lights in the room had gone out, and the surroundings were shrouded in a dim light, with Yu Shu no longer lying nearby.

"I really made it!"

Yang Xiao didn’t know whether to feel relieved or afraid; the garment was really useful, if somewhat scary.

He got out of bed, gently pushed open the door of the ward, and an ancient-styled wooden corridor appeared outside.

Yang Xiao took a deep breath—he recognized it; this was last night’s guesthouse!

"Back again..."