"Just got back, did you find anything? Another family lost a sheep last night," Zhang Yonghe said helplessly, not holding out much hope.
Seeing that only Zhang Yonghe and Liu Yong were in the room, Song Hao said, "We've found the monster."
"What!? Where is it?" Zhang Yonghe and Liu Yong jumped up in surprise.
Traditional Chinese Medicine Under Heaven - Volume Two: The Heavenly Physician's Hall - Chapter Thirty-Seven: Electricity Generated Under the Needle
“This monster is a person, and a patient at that,” Song Hao said.
"A patient? How could this be? Who is he?" Zhang Yonghe asked in surprise.
“Sun Baoli!” Song Hao replied.
"Sun Baoli!" Zhang Yonghe and Liu Yong were taken aback.
“That’s right, it’s him. This person suffers from a special kind of somnambulism, which causes his potential to be unleashed in the pathological state, so he can be incredibly strong and as light as a swallow, committing crimes without anyone noticing,” Song Hao said.
"Can such a strange disease really exist in the world?" Zhang Yonghe asked in astonishment.
“Life is the greatest mystery in the world, and we still know very little about the secrets of the human body. In short, the haunting of Aken Village was caused by the abnormal Yin and Yang imbalance in Sun Baoli’s body due to his illness. I have now controlled it with acupuncture, but the treatment will take some time. The case can be considered solved, but in order not to affect his future life, I request that this be kept secret and that the truth of this incident not be known to anyone,” Song Hao said.
"I never expected it to be a human! That's perfect!" Zhang Yonghe said excitedly. "We'll keep it a secret. We'll tell the villagers that a leopard was found in the mountains and killed, and that the leopard was responsible. By the way, should we send Sun Baoli to a big hospital for treatment?"
Song Hao said, "Not for now. Let me try treating him with traditional Chinese medicine first. Forcing him to take sedatives now would be counterproductive."
Zhang Yonghe nodded and said, "Alright, then I'll trouble you. We'll do our best to assist you with any requests you may have."
Song Hao said, "I'll prescribe a few doses of herbal medicine later, and Director Zhang can just have someone buy them."
“I didn’t expect this case to involve medicine. Without you, this case would have been impossible to solve in a short time. Now, could we go and take a look at that Sun Baoli?” Zhang Yonghe said.
Song Hao said, "It's best not to visit him now. Besides not arousing suspicion, the most important thing is not to make Sun Baoli subconsciously wary of you police officers, which could backfire. I can guarantee that once his illness is under control and doesn't flare up, you can visit him again in a few days when his condition has improved."
"That's good!" Zhang Yonghe said gratefully. "Then we'll leave tonight. After three months of this, we've finally got one thing off our minds. Thank you so much!"
Song Hao said, "It was just a coincidence. This disease is rare, so I'll give it a try."
"Chief, is this case really closed just like that?" Liu Yong seemed incredulous.
Zhang Yonghe said, "At first, I thought the monster was hiding in the village. Then someone accidentally discovered that it was an upright human figure. Now, Dr. Song has confirmed that it was Sun Baoli's doing in his morbid state. It makes perfect sense. If this case isn't solved, do you really want to catch some kind of ghost or monster?"
Tang Yu laughed and said, "It is indeed Sun Baoli. We saw him move the stone mill and jump into a family's yard. When he came out, he had already drunk sheep's blood. He discovered us and wanted to attack, but Song Hao used acupuncture to subdue him."
"I heard from the old folks that somnambulism patients can't stand being startled and don't know anything, so how was he able to find you?" Liu Yong asked.
Song Hao said, "This is an extremely complex and peculiar illness. He has a sense of vigilance and self-defense in his subconscious, which is why you haven't found him in the past three months. Fortunately, you didn't encounter him, otherwise both sides would have suffered losses. When his potential is activated, even a gun might not be able to subdue him. This kind of somnambulism is painless, like a zombie, and extremely aggressive. Fortunately, the onset is still short-lived. If it lasts for more than a year, he will become insane and attack people everywhere, regardless of day or night."
Upon hearing this, Zhang Yonghe and Liu Yong were both terrified and broke out in a cold sweat.
"It's safer to send her to a mental hospital," Liu Yong said.
Song Hao said, "This is not a good time. You have all witnessed his abilities when he is in a morbid state. Is there any mental hospital in the world that can hold him? Furthermore, we do not yet know how many potentials he has unleashed in his morbid state. If we anger him, it will be disastrous. There is no way to resolve this except to use force to destroy his body."
"So, although Dr. Song can control him for the time being, he is also an extremely dangerous factor," Zhang Yonghe said worriedly.
Song Hao said, "That's true, but as long as I don't provoke him, I can completely control him within a few days."
“To be on the safe side, Liu Yong, you should continue to guard Aken Village. However, there’s no need to set up ambushes at night anymore. Instead, assist Dr. Song in treating Sun Baoli. If anything unexpected happens, you have the right to resolve the matter with force. This is just in case, so Dr. Song and Miss Tang shouldn’t mind. After all, this case is too special, and we can’t afford any more accidents,” Zhang Yonghe said.
Song Hao said, "Alright, I will do my best to cure him."
"That's settled then. I'll come back in a few days to announce that the monster was a leopard from the mountains and has been killed by personnel from another county. I'm heading back to town now. Have Xiao Liu contact me if anything happens." After saying this, Zhang Yonghe took the prescription Song Hao had written and drove off in his police car.
Liu Yong said admiringly, "I never thought Dr. Song could use medical knowledge to solve cases. If I encountered him, I would have to treat him as a monster."
Song Hao said, "He is a patient who committed the crime under a special pathological condition, which is within the scope of our work as doctors. You should also be careful these days, because you are a police officer, so try not to get close to Sun Baoli, lest he become suspicious subconsciously."
Liu Yong said, "As long as we know who the monster is, that's fine. If he behaves himself, that's good. Otherwise, if he starts acting up again and hurts people, we'll have to deal with it by force on the spot."
Song Hao said, "I hope this situation doesn't happen." He also felt worried. Because Song Hao wasn't entirely confident in treating Sun Baoli's illness.
In the afternoon, Song Hao and Tang Yu went to Sun Baoli's house again. When they took his pulse, Sun Baoli's pulse showed a strange and disordered pattern.
"How are you feeling today?" Song Hao asked.
"My mind is a bit clearer now, and I'm remembering some of the dreams I had last night," Sun Baoli replied.
"What kind of dream did you have?" Tang Yu asked.
Sun Baoli said, "Herding sheep!"
Upon hearing this, Song Hao and Tang Yu exchanged a smile.
“Sometimes I dream of someone, whose face I can’t see very clearly, who leads me to the mountains to the east,” Sun Baoli added.
"That was truly a dream," Song Hao said with a smile.
"By the way, Brother Sun, for the convenience of our treatment, if you'd like, my friend and I can stay at your place tonight. I see there are spare rooms available," Song Hao added.
Tang Yu was taken aback upon hearing this, but then understood Song Hao's meaning. It turned out that Song Hao intended to use acupuncture to subdue Sun Baoli at night when his symptoms were about to flare up after he fell asleep. Also, after Zhang Yonghe and Liu Yong learned that Sun Baoli was a clear target, if they committed another crime, it would startle him, or he would startle others, potentially leading to an accident and his death.
Sun Baoli didn't seem to mind at the moment and casually replied, "Sure! If you don't mind that my home is simple, feel free to stay. I'll thank you in return once my headache is cured."
Song Hao then instructed Sun Baoli to lie down and began selecting acupuncture points. Feeling the needles still causing stagnation, he subtly applied a vibratory needling technique to circulate the Qi and blood. Sun Baoli felt a tingling sensation throughout his body, as if he had been electrocuted. He was greatly surprised and realized that Song Hao's needling skills were extraordinary.
Just after Song Hao applied the five needles, his finger accidentally touched Sun Baoli's skin and suddenly jerked back. Sun Baoli's entire body was filled with electric current, and his finger had been electrocuted. Song Hao was greatly alarmed.
Song Hao knew that static electricity could occasionally be generated when acupuncture was applied to a person, but such a strong electric shock was still far beyond his expectations.