Uncanny Valley

Chapter 3

"Who?" Luo Fei was clearly very interested in Zhang Yu's recommendation.

“Zhou Liwei. Vice Dean of the School of Medicine at Longzhou University, a renowned psychiatrist in China.” Zhang Yu spoke of him with great respect.

Although Luo Fei wasn't in the medical field, he had heard of Zhou Liwei before. A PhD from the US, a renowned scholar at Longzhou University, and the chief expert of the Department of Psychiatry at the Municipal People's Hospital—these titles were enough to earn anyone's respect.

"Are you familiar with him? Could you introduce me to him as soon as possible?" Luo Fei asked impatiently.

“I’ve had a few interactions with him when we were working on cases before.” Zhang Yu said, glancing at his watch. It was almost 10 p.m. “How about this, I’ll try contacting him first, but the chances of us meeting tonight are probably slim.”

"Okay, let's try it first, and try to explain the situation as clearly as possible."

Zhang Yu nodded, took out her phone, dialed Zhou Liwei's number, and pressed the call button.

After ringing four or five times, the call was connected.

"Hello." A deep, tired voice came from the receiver.

"Is this Teacher Zhou?"

"Yes, who are you?"

"Hello, I am Zhang Yu from the Public Security Bureau."

"Oh, Dr. Zhang, hello."

"Excuse me. Well, there were two murders in the city today. The cases are rather strange; both victims seemed to have been frightened before they died..."

"No need to say anything more." Zhou Liwei interrupted Zhang Yu on the other end of the phone. "Bring the autopsy report and the deceased's relevant information, and come to me now. I'm in my office at the Medical School of Longzhou University. You know me, right?"

"Oh, I know him."

"Then hurry up and come over, I'll be waiting for you."

Zhou Liwei seemed very busy; he hung up the phone as soon as they finished talking.

It was late at night, and the office was very quiet. Luo Fei, being a perceptive person, had overheard the general conversation between the two parties on the phone. Before Zhang Yu could relay it, he stood up and said, "Let's set off now."

"Heh." Zhang Yu was a little confused. "What's wrong with Zhou Liwei today? I haven't even finished speaking, and he seems more impatient than you!"

"Clearly, he already knows something." Luo Fei said as he strode towards the door. Zhang Yu didn't say anything more and got up to follow.

Half an hour later, the two drove to the front of the medical school building at Longzhou University. The entire building was almost completely dark, except for one office on the third floor, which stood out conspicuously with its light on. Clearly, Zhou Liwei was in that room.

At the building entrance, there was a young man in his twenties who was about to walk in when he happened to see Luo Fei's police car. So he stopped and stood at the door to wait and see.

Luo Fei and his companion got out of the car and walked closer, soon reaching the steps in front of the building. At that moment, the young man stepped forward and greeted them warmly: "You're from the Public Security Bureau, right? Looking for Teacher Zhou?"

Luo Fei nodded, and seeing that the other person was holding a pen and a notebook, he guessed and asked, "Are you his student?"

"My name is Liu Yun." The young man introduced himself with a smile, and then took the initiative to lead the way. "Perfect timing, let's go upstairs together."

Before long, the three of them arrived outside the office. Liu Yun knocked politely on the door, and a man's voice immediately came from inside: "Come in."

Liu Yun gently pushed open the door, and the three of them entered one after another. It was a room of about twenty square meters, with a row of bookshelves on both sides of the wall, filled with all kinds of professional books. Just inside the window, there was a set of desk and chairs, and opposite them was a sofa and coffee table for receiving guests. Apart from that, there was no other furnishing in the room.

Zhou Liwei was sitting at his desk, engrossed in reading something. Only when the three entered the room did he look up from his desk. He then stood up and took two steps forward to greet them: "Forensic Doctor Zhang, you've arrived."

This was a capable-looking middle-aged man, around forty years old. Although not tall, he appeared very strong and muscular. Perhaps due to working long hours, his eyes were somewhat red and showed signs of fatigue, but his steps were steady and quick, giving him an energetic and vigorous air.

Perhaps because Zhou Liwei's image differed significantly from the traditional image of a scholar, Luo Fei couldn't help but scrutinize him closely.

Zhou Liwei stopped a meter away from the group. He sensed Luo Fei's attention on him and smiled as he asked Zhang Yu, "And who is this?"

Zhang Yu quickly introduced the two. Upon learning Luo Fei's identity, Zhou Liwei also seemed slightly surprised. The late-night visit by the criminal investigation captain clearly foreshadowed the seriousness of the situation.

At Zhou Liwei's invitation, Zhang Yu and Luo Fei sat on the sofa, while Liu Yun moved a stool over and sat down alone on the side.

Zhou Liwei moved his chair off the table and sat down, then got straight to the point: "Okay, tell me about what happened to you."

Zhang Yu first handed the autopsy report, scene photos, and other relevant materials to Zhou Liwei, and then described in detail the relevant circumstances before and after the two deaths, including Luo Fei's speculations and doubts about the "devil's foot," etc.

Zhou Liwei listened intently while flipping through the documents in his hands. He was so focused that Zhang Yu initially doubted whether he could fully absorb what he was saying. But he quickly realized that his worries were unnecessary, because whenever he missed something or his meaning was unclear, Zhou Liwei would look up and ask precise and timely follow-up questions.

Even Luo Fei couldn't help but secretly admire this person's meticulous thinking ability.

Throughout the process, Liu Yun silently took notes in the notebook she had brought.

After Zhang Yu finished speaking, the room fell silent for a moment. Luo Fei waited for Zhou Liwei to think for a moment before elaborating on his thoughts and requests: "Professor Zhou, we've come here to ask for your guidance on these two incidents. Did the deceased experience hallucinations? If so, what caused them? Could it have been malicious?"

"I can only cautiously agree with your first question right now," Zhou Liwei sighed helplessly. "As for the latter two questions, they have been bothering me for a long time before you came."

Luo Fei looked puzzled: "Did you already know about these two deaths? How did you hear about them?"

“No, I don’t know anything about your situation. Similarly, you don’t know anything about mine.” Zhou Liwei turned around, picked up a stack of documents from his desk, and his expression became increasingly serious. “When Forensic Doctor Zhang called me, I had just rushed back from the Municipal People’s Hospital. The situation is probably much more serious than you know.”

Luo Fei's heart sank, and he reached out to take the things Zhou Liwei handed him. He quickly flipped through them, his astonishment growing.

At that time, there was a stack of medical records, totaling more than ten pages, all of which were for patients with newly diagnosed schizophrenia in the past two days. In the column for the cause of the illness, without exception, the four words were filled in: "excessive fright"!

"So, in the past two days, the people who suffered from terror and fright in Longzhou City were not just Yu Ziqiang and Chen Bin. It's just that those two died, so the case was reported to our criminal investigation team, while the majority of cases are actually handled by the psychiatric department of the People's Hospital."

Luo Fei's tone revealed deep worry and unease. This was the first time Zhang Yu had seen Luo Fei display such emotions. In his memory, Luo Fei was always a wise, brave, and confident person, often resolving problems that others couldn't handle with ease. However, this time, the incident was so bizarre and strange that it was beyond anyone's imagination.

Not only Luo Fei, but also Zhou Liwei, a renowned figure in the medical field, was at a loss: "I have analyzed these more than ten case files in detail, and from a pathological perspective, I cannot find any valuable clues. The first case admitted to the People's Hospital was a 32-year-old woman surnamed Wu. Yesterday afternoon around 2 PM, she was shopping at Wansheng Shopping Mall. Shortly after entering the fitting room, she suddenly screamed. The sales clerk rushed into the fitting room to check on her and found that she was already delirious from extreme fear. The second case was a 19-year-old young man. He was a social idler who had been using drugs with a group of friends in a small karaoke bar yesterday evening. While the others were having a good time, he started screaming and yelling like he had seen a ghost, and it took four or five security guards to subdue him. We initially thought he had overdosed on drugs, but when I saw him, he was covered in sweat..." Trembling, with unfocused eyes, clearly afraid of something. A case this morning was even stranger: a man in his seventies, who had been practicing swordplay and martial arts with a group of friends in a park when the attack occurred. In such a peaceful atmosphere, it's hard to imagine what could cause such a strong shock… In short, the cases involved men and women, young and old, from various backgrounds and professions, and the time and place of the events seemed unpredictable. Their only commonality was that they had all suffered immense shock, which caused them mental disorder in a very short time, leading to terrible consequences. However, this commonality is precisely the most perplexing aspect. Most of the cases involved numerous witnesses, yet they showed no abnormalities; no one knows what triggered the patients' panic.

Zhou Liwei's account matches the details of the death case that Luo Fei had previously learned. Now, the question focuses on one key point: what exactly caused those poor people to suffer such immense fear?

A moment of silence fell over the room, and everyone was deep in thought with their heads down.

"A demon! A sacrifice chosen by the demon!" Liu Yun, who had been silent since entering the room, suddenly said softly.

"Absurd!" Luo Fei immediately looked up and glared at him with disgust. These words really shouldn't have come out in such a serious and solemn atmosphere. However, considering that the other party was Zhou Liwei's student, he couldn't very well reprimand him.

Zhou Liwei was also looking at Liu Yun, a look of surprise in his eyes. Liu Yun, however, was only focused on excitedly picking up a pen and writing rapidly in his notebook, looking quite pleased with his earlier guess.

Luo Fei shook his head and turned to Zhou Liwei, saying, "Teacher Zhou, may I make copies of these medical records and take them with me? I'd like to send someone to investigate some related matters in detail."

“That would be best,” Zhou Liwei readily replied. “I also hope to obtain detailed information about the two deceased. This matter requires everyone’s cooperation, because it does seem to be more than just a simple matter.”

His original purpose was to obtain helpful guidance or inspiration for the case, but the outcome was that the situation became increasingly serious and complicated, a situation that was undoubtedly beyond Luo Fei's expectations. Of course, he had no idea that a terrifying and perilous journey was only just beginning.

Part Four: Mysterious Prophecies

The morning sun was shining brightly, streaming through the window. Luo Fei's face, however, was gloomy, a stark contrast to the clear weather.

He was sitting upright at his desk, frowning as he looked at the computer screen not far away.

This morning, a striking headline appeared on the homepage of a well-known domestic portal website: "Invisible Demon Appears in Longzhou, Multiple People Go Mad with Fear, Situation Unknown." Within just two or three hours, the news article had garnered tens of thousands of clicks and nearly a thousand comments. Upon receiving the news, Luo Fei immediately turned on his computer and browsed this article that was going viral online.

It must be admitted that the article is excellent in both writing style and structure. The author uses highly evocative language to describe in detail the many terrifying events that have occurred in Longzhou City in the past two days. Among them, what surprised Luo Fei the most was undoubtedly the following passage:

"...On the night of the 13th, Captain Luo Fei of the Longzhou City Criminal Police Team rushed to the Longzhou University School of Medicine to seek help from the renowned psychiatric expert Zhou Liwei. The two carefully analyzed the information they had gathered. What could possibly cause such terror in the victim of the case? And why were the others at the scene unaffected? Currently, there are still no clues to answer these questions. Could it be that a terrifying, invisible demon has truly appeared in Longzhou City, and these people are its chosen sacrifices...?"

Clearly, someone who was present last night must have leaked the information to the outside world. Luo Fei quickly identified the prime suspect in his mind and then dialed Zhou Liwei's number.

Upon hearing Luo Fei mention the online news, Zhou Liwei's anger flared: "Yes, I know. Several reporters have already called to interview me. It's really chaotic. How did the people who wrote the articles know all that inside information?"

“There were only a few people there at the time. I suspect it was one of your students who spread the news.” Luo Fei didn’t mince words and spoke directly.

"My student?" Zhou Liwei's voice sounded bewildered.

"Yeah, it's that guy named Liu Yun. 'Demon' and 'sacrifice,' aren't those his words?"

"You mean that young man from last night? He's not my student," Zhou Liwei retorted solemnly. "Didn't he come with you? I thought he was also from the criminal investigation team!"

Upon hearing this, Luo Fei was taken aback for a moment, then understood: "I see. I had a preconceived notion that he was your student. Neither of us knew each other, and this person took advantage of that."

"So who exactly is he?"

"Is that even a question?" Luo Fei replied with a wry smile. "He's most likely a reporter. He knows something about the medical case, so he came to interview you. He happened to run into us, so he followed us in and overheard the whole story. Of course, he's the one who wrote this news article."

“This is a bit troublesome,” Zhou Liwei said worriedly. “Not to mention that it will affect my work, once these things spread, they will inevitably cause panic in society.”

Luo Fei pondered for a moment, then said, "The best thing to do now is to keep quiet. Don't give any interviews. These days, reporters are something else; whatever you say, they can embellish and sensationalize it."

“Yes.” Zhou Liwei completely agreed with Luo Fei’s statement. “That’s what I think too!”

However, panic inevitably spread. Longzhou wasn't a large city, and residents inquired among themselves, quickly discovering that the terrifying incidents mentioned in the news were not unfounded. More and more calls poured in to the Municipal People's Hospital and the Criminal Investigation Team of the Public Security Bureau, inquiring about the cause and development of the situation.

Luo Fei felt immense pressure. He mobilized the maximum number of officers from the criminal investigation team to investigate the incident. Nearly twenty officers were dispersed to various corners of the city to conduct detailed interviews and investigations of each case that had occurred.

On the other side, Zhou Liwei was equally busy. His work of examining patients and analyzing their pathology never stopped. Fortunately, the People's Hospital's Department of Psychiatry possesses top-notch research and treatment facilities, allowing him to fully utilize his knowledge and talent in this process.

As evening fell, the officers who had gone out returned to the station one after another. Luo Fei gathered everyone together for a briefing on the case.

Everyone's work was both diligent and meticulous, and the compiled interview records piled up into a thick stack in front of Luo Fei. However, when they spoke, everyone spoke very briefly because they hadn't found any valuable clues.

The situation appears to be worsening. By 4 p.m., four new cases of similar illness had been reported. Additionally, some residents reported experiencing unexplained feelings of dread, though these feelings were not particularly intense and did not last long.

This naturally reminded Luo Fei of the girl named Xu Ting, whose description matched the feelings of these people. It was a vague and abstract feeling; no one could say exactly what frightened them at the time, yet they undeniably felt that oppression and fear.

Luo Fei leaned slightly forward, his right elbow resting on the armrest of the chair, his index finger and thumb lightly pinching his chin. He wasn't in a hurry to review the transcripts; sifting out valuable information from so much data would undoubtedly be a time-consuming and patient task. In this current state of confusion, as the head of the criminal investigation team, the most important thing was to provide a clear direction for the next steps.

The police officers were all looking at Luo Fei with expectant eyes, and the venue was silent for a moment.

In this atmosphere, the conference room door was gently pushed open, and Zhang Chenglin, Luo Fei's secretary, walked in.

"Captain Luo, I have a phone call for you."

"Who is it? What's the matter? I'm in a meeting." Luo Fei frowned slightly as his train of thought was interrupted.

"It was a long-distance call from Yunnan. They said they saw the news online and had some leads to provide."

"Yunnan?" That's a place thousands of miles away from Longzhou. How could someone provide a clue? Although he was completely baffled, this unusual phone call still aroused Luo Fei's great interest. He immediately stood up, left the meeting room, and walked quickly towards his office.

The telephone receiver lay idle on the desk, and the caller ID showed an area code from Yunnan.

Luo Fei picked up the receiver: "Hello. This is Luo Fei."

"Hello. My name is Xu Xiaowen." To Luo Fei's surprise, the soft and pleasant voice indicated that the person on the other end of the phone was a young woman.

"Are you in Yunnan?" Luo Fei was the first to voice his doubts.

"Yes, I saw what happened in Longzhou online. These... these are all true?" the woman who called herself Xu Xiaowen asked Luo Fei.

Unable to fathom the other party's intentions, Luo Fei pondered for a moment and did not answer immediately.

Xu Xiaowen immediately caught Luo Fei's mood: "You don't need to worry, I have no curiosity and I'm not a bored reporter."

Luo Fei was impressed by the other party's keen insight and frankness. He smiled slightly and then admitted, "The article certainly embellished the story, but the basic facts do exist."

"It actually happened! It's unbelievable, I just can't believe it," Xu Xiaowen said urgently. Although they were thousands of miles apart, Luo Fei could still imagine the excited expression on her face as she spoke.

The subtext in the other person's words caught Luo Fei's attention, and he immediately pressed, "What? Did you know it would happen beforehand?"

Seemingly unsure how to begin, Xu Xiaowen hesitated and remained silent on the other end of the receiver. After a moment, she slowly spoke in a deliberately calm tone, "What I'm about to tell you is something that happened to me six months ago. It might sound absurd, especially given the current situation. However, I can guarantee with my integrity that every word I say is true—will you believe me?"

Although they had never met, Luo Fei had a strange intuition: this woman was sincere and trustworthy. Without almost any hesitation, he immediately replied, "Go ahead, I believe you."