Myriad Calamities - Chapter 13
Xu Haicheng frowned slightly as he looked at her. "The clue is here?"
Pan Xiaolu smiled but remained silent. She clicked on the words "Human Head Cave" to enter the homepage, opened a novel, and the title was: Tooth Mark.
Xu Haicheng leaned closer and quickly glanced at it.
The story takes place during a famine. There was a family of four: grandfather, father, mother, and daughter. They were constantly hungry, and in the face of agonizing hunger, humanity gradually twisted. The parents decided to starve the grandfather to death so that the other three could survive. The poor old man cried out in agony for days before finally dying. His family hastily buried him. The next morning, they found a vicious bite mark on their daughter's body, and they also discovered that the grandfather's dentures had somehow returned home. The parents quickly threw the dentures away. The following day, they awoke to find another bite mark on their daughter's body. The parents frantically tried to escape with their daughter, but no matter where they ran, a bite mark would always appear on their daughter's body the next day, and the grandfather's dentures would always be with them. Finally, one day, the little girl was covered in teeth and died in agony. But the ordeal didn't end there. The mother also began to develop bite marks…
"Human nature is truly fragile." Xu Haicheng glanced at Pan Xiaolu, his tone unconsciously becoming serious. "But what does this have to do with our case?"
Pan Xiaolu said, "It's not in the main text, it's in the replies."
Xu Haicheng scrolled down and saw a comment from a user named "Family of Witchcraft": "This story reminds me of something from the past. I was only seven or eight years old then, and during summer vacation I went to my grandfather's house in the countryside. The uncle next door to my grandfather's house died suddenly. He had a teeth mark on his neck. The police came to look and said he died because of a heart condition. My grandfather was very dismissive and said they didn't know how to handle cases. I asked my grandfather what happened. My grandfather said that he was killed by witchcraft, a very, very powerful kind of witchcraft."
"Check the IP address and contact this person."
Pan Xiaolu responded loudly, got up and left.
"Wait a minute." Xu Haicheng suddenly remembered something, "What did you do to He Aijun's younger brother?"
"who?"
"That's the guy who beat me up the night before last."
Pan Xiaolu looked ashamed and said, "I was worried something might happen to you, so I let him get away. I'm sorry, Captain Xu."
"It's alright, go ahead."
Watching Pan Xiaolu's light figure disappear behind the door, Xu Haicheng couldn't help but think, "This girl is both intelligent and diligent; no wonder Director Chen is so keen to cultivate her." For some reason, the image of her holding his photo in a daze yesterday suddenly flashed into his mind. He paused, then quickly banished it from his thoughts.
Section 27: Chapter Five, Part Two of the Calamity (4)
After sitting quietly for a while, carefully reviewing the events of the past few days and listing the suspicious points one by one in his notebook, Xu Haicheng decided to start with Ma Junnan's sudden recovery. On the way to the Nanpu Psychological Rehabilitation Center, he saw colorful flags fluttering along the street for the cultural festival. Businesses along the way were offering special deals to celebrate the festival, and companies had hung red banners to add to the festive atmosphere.
When Xu Haicheng saw such a banner hanging in the usually deserted rehabilitation center, he couldn't help but laugh.
Hawke, seeing him enter, exclaimed in surprise, "What brings you here?" Then, a look of sudden realization dawned on him. "You're here to see Professor Ma Junnan, aren't you?"
Xu Haicheng nodded. "How is he now?"
"Professor Ma's obsessive-compulsive amnesia has been cured, but his obsessive-compulsive disorder still requires further treatment. However, you won't be able to see him. He completed the transfer procedures yesterday and went to Nanpu University Affiliated Hospital for treatment." Hawke's voice was always calm and composed, which was indescribably pleasant to hear.
Xu Haicheng was slightly taken aback. "So fast?"
Hawke said, "No normal person would like this place."
"But you like it here."
Hawke smiled faintly and said, "I'm a doctor."
Xu Haicheng scrutinized him closely. His brows were relaxed, his expression perpetually serene and composed; he seemed instantly understandable, yet impossible to decipher. Having known him for a month and a half, Xu Haicheng knew no more than from their first meeting. "I'm a little curious, what kind of person are you?"
"I don't think you came here today out of curiosity about what kind of person I am."
Xu Haicheng smiled and said, "That's right. I wanted to ask you, around the time Professor Ma suddenly recovered, did any nurses or patients in your center suddenly develop similar symptoms?"
Hawke paused for a moment, then said, "No, your question is strange."
Xu Haicheng naturally wouldn't tell him that he was suspecting a connection between Ma Junnan's and Lu Minghua's recovery, and instead asked, "Isn't it rare for Professor Ma to recover so suddenly?"
"It's not uncommon," Hawke said casually. "Professor Ma suffers from obsessive-compulsive disorder and obsessive-compulsive amnesia. Obsessive-compulsive amnesia is caused by sudden stimulation of the brain, so it's possible to recover suddenly one day. I've thought about it carefully, and I even think this matter is related to you."
"With me?" Xu Haicheng was very surprised.
"Yes, that night you visited Professor Ma, he recognized you and fell ill, but he regained his memory the next day."
Xu Haicheng thought about it carefully and realized it was indeed true. Could it be that he had provoked Ma Junnan? Recalling the bright white light in Professor Ma Junnan's hospital room and his sleepless nights, he asked, "What caused his obsessive-compulsive disorder?"
"Fear," Hawke paused, "just like you."
Xu Haicheng said somewhat displeasedly, "I am not afraid."
Hawke chuckled. "Captain Xu, if you're not afraid, why do you have nightmares every night? When a person is asleep, the subconscious mind takes over, and nightmares are your subconscious's true feelings. Besides, fear is one of the most primal human emotions; it's perfectly natural for people to have fear. The problem lies in your efforts to suppress it and your refusal to confront it."
Xu Haicheng remained silent, feeling that what he said made sense.
"Professor Ma fears the darkness, and the root of that fear is likely related to his experiences in the Witch Domain. Captain Xu, what exactly is the Witch Domain?"
Xu Haicheng looked up at Hawke in surprise, his face showing longing for the Witch Domain.
Hawke seemed to know why he was surprised and said, "I've always been interested in mysterious places."
"That's not just a mysterious place," Xu Haicheng said in a low voice, "it's a place that can kill."
Hawke scoffed, "Aren't you still alive?"
Xu Haicheng said bitterly, "I am alive, but I have lost two of my closest relatives. If I had a choice, I would rather be the one who dies."
Hawke stared at him silently for a moment, then said, "One of them is Fang Li, right?" Ignoring Xu Haicheng's suddenly darkened face, he continued, "I'm very curious about the person you like. For the past month and a half, every time I've brought up her, you've become unhappy, as if I've offended you."
"Because there's nothing to talk about."
"I see things the exact opposite of you. Because she's so precious to you, you're unwilling to even share memories of her with others."
These words stirred something within Xu Haicheng. He recalled years ago when his parents died and he was sent to an orphanage. The sudden loss of his loved ones and the uncertainty about the future left him feeling lost and disoriented. Then he saw Fang Li, surrounded by a group of people, loudly mocking her. She sat on the dusty ground, her head slightly raised, her dark eyes expressionless, silently enduring the insults. For some reason, those eyes were etched into his heart, and a thought flashed through his mind: he must protect her. Suddenly, his life seemed to find new meaning; he was no longer lost and knew why he lived.
Section 28: Chapter Five, Part Two of the Calamity (5)
After a moment, Xu Haicheng came to his senses and saw that Hawke across from him, besides looking inquisitive, clearly had something else on his mind. He couldn't quite put his finger on it. "She's very precious to me, irreplaceable." Having said this, Xu Haicheng didn't linger, stood up, and said, "I'm leaving. If your rehabilitation center experiences a sudden outbreak of the same illness as Professor Ma, remember to notify me."