Zhou Qi’an had never even taken care of his own mother like this, let alone a strange woman.
He wasn’t going to do it.
The patient, her weakness for medicine exploited, didn’t immediately agree. Instead, her eyes, staring at Zhou Qi’an, turned even more scarlet.
Going too far is as bad as not going far enough. Zhou Qi’an just stood there calmly, his gaze occasionally sweeping over the wall clock. This invisibly reinforced the psychological suggestion: time is running out.
Pretending to be a patient required a whole makeup process.
One second, two seconds… about ten seconds passed. Amidst the ticking of the second hand, the woman lifted her withered fingers and suddenly began to unbutton her patient gown.
Zhou Qi’an lowered his eyes slightly, with no intention of looking away.
Only someone tired of living would turn their back on an NPC. Facing the woman, he rummaged with one hand in a dilapidated small cabinet and found a change of clothes.
As orderlies, they were also responsible for changing bedsheets. Daily changes of clothes were certainly part of it. Sure enough, he felt patient gowns in the cabinet, and more than one set.
“I can wear the patient gowns from here.”
The woman was halfway through taking off her top.
Her skin had an unnatural color, covered in many fleshy bumps similar to those on her face. Even with a dirty, loose camisole covering her, a hideous scar could still be seen, extending almost from below her chest to her abdomen.
Zhou Qi’an remembered the patient who had jumped from the building at Heshengkang Hospital, who had tried to cut open their stomach and intestines before death.
This patient also had self-harming behaviors.
If he could study the woman’s wounds further, there might be other discoveries.
Zhou Qi’an thought about it and decided to give up this opportunity.
There were clean clothes available, yet the woman was actively undressing, which seemed more like a deliberate attempt to lure him into investigating. It could very well be a death rule.
“Please turn around, I need to change too.”
The woman resumed her cackling smile. She turned around as requested. As Zhou Qi’an deftly changed into a patient gown, her scarlet-black tongue swept across her lips, and she repeated the same words: “You are very fresh.”
Zhou Qi’an let down his long hair and automatically switched his evolved hair to black.
Then, he lay directly on the woman’s hospital bed.
A minute ago, someone had been on this bed, but now there was not a trace of warmth, only an extreme coldness. It was as if what had been lying here before was just a pile of dead flesh from a freezer.
“Come on, tie me up.”
His words showed no fear of the woman killing him. Zhou Qi’an even made a request: “Just make it look convincing, don’t tie it too tight.”
When making a deal with a monster, no matter what you think inside, the worst thing is to show fear on your face.
Zhou Qi’an had a smile on his face, but privately, he was already prepared to activate his pocket watch at any moment.
The woman first picked up the clothes from the floor and put them on directly over her patient gown. She was unfazed by the change in Zhou Qi’an’s hair color. She put on the hood of her sweatshirt, stuffing all her messy hair inside.
Having been tied up countless times, the woman was extremely practiced as she fastened the restraints on the young man.
The moment she tied the dead knot, the blood vessels under his pale skin bulged.
Zhou Qi’an grunted in pain, his gaze turning cold. “It’s too tight. I might cry out in pain when the nurse comes.”
The woman stared at the tongue that could talk black into white. “Oh?”
In the tense and terrifying standoff, Zhou Qi’an unexpectedly felt a wave of drowsiness wash over him.
Tap, tap.
Footsteps sounded from the hallway.
Zhou Qi’an glanced at the wall clock: 9:58.
The footsteps sounded near and far, giving an ethereal feeling. Zhou Qi’an refocused his attention; it sounded like more than one nurse.
Soon, there was a knock on his door.
His nerves tensed instantly. He felt that something was wrong, but he couldn’t put his finger on it.
Before the door was pushed open, Zhou Qi’an violently shook his head, letting his hair cover most of his face. He timely turned his head to the other side, as if gazing at the moonlight in the sky.
The female patient was also very good at acting.
She sat sideways, her head slightly bowed, one hand firmly pressing on Zhou Qi’an’s wrist—on his pulse, to be exact—as if he had just been acting violently moments ago.
The nurse finally came in.
A mask covered most of her face. The small and thin nurse also kept her head down, her steps steady with a hint of haste.
At this moment, the ward was terrifyingly quiet.
Whether it was the patient, the orderly, or the nurse, no one spoke.
The nurse shook the medicine bottle in her hand. Without turning on the light, her sinister eyes stared at Zhou Qi’an, who was pressing down on the patient’s wrist, seemingly in a standoff.
Something was wrong.
The ‘nurse’ frowned.
In an empty hospital ward, a nurse suddenly appeared. Any player would have glanced over warily, but Zhou Qi’an didn’t.
Shi Yu’s disguise skill could easily fool not just Zhou Qi’an, but even a minor boss.
Zhao Sanxun boldly moved closer to observe.
In his plan, he would first use the fake medicine bottle to attract the patient’s attention. While the patient was struggling violently, he would make a fatal move on Zhou Qi’an. Even if the latter had three heads and six arms, he would be defenseless.
But now, everything was too quiet.
As Zhao Sanxun approached, he wondered if Zhou Qi’an had not yet woken from the illusion.
Poison Dragon’s illusion skill was quite powerful and could also induce hypnosis through a medium. When they went to Zhou Qi’an’s home to install surveillance, they had specifically collected a few strands of his hair from his room, in case of a need for hypnosis, curses, or other emergencies.
He quickly dismissed this idea.
The Whaler Association wouldn’t pay attention to a weakling so easily. He couldn’t be this unresponsive for so long.
Just as Zhao Sanxun became more vigilant, Zhou Qi’an on the bed was also wondering why the nurse hadn’t come over yet.
He deliberately moved a couple of times, feigning a struggle as if he had gone crazy.
The woman by the bed, to cooperate with the performance, also leaned down and pressed him down with all her might.
This posture inadvertently exposed her slightly arched back completely to Zhao Sanxun’s view.
An opportunity!
Zhao Sanxun swiftly stabbed at her back.
He held nothing back. The moment the dagger plunged in decisively, a poisoned sting also shot towards ‘Zhou Qi’an’. At such close range, this move was flawless. The woman turned sideways and dodged the sting, but the dagger sank an inch into her.
The dagger was also poisoned, and healing items couldn’t cure this poison.
Just as Zhao Sanxun was about to take advantage of her injury to finish her off.
Across from him, the woman was still standing with her head bowed, slightly askew.
In the nick of time, Zhao Sanxun, who had attacked first, suddenly stopped. His eyes widened slightly as if he had seen something. The next second, his scalp tingled.
Blood was seeping from the wound on ‘Zhou Qi’an’s’ back, but the flow was abnormally slow.
“How could this be…”
Before he could figure it out, Zhao Sanxun immediately retreated several steps, preparing to withdraw. However, the few drops of the woman’s blood that fell to the floor instantly vaporized in the air.
Zhao Sanxun’s exposed skin began to itch.
Lying on the bed, Zhou Qi’an blinked, trying to shrink his head into the blanket.
Why did they start fighting?
Wasn’t it time for Da Lang to take his medicine!
“Could it be that the nurse can automatically identify the patient’s identity?”
Just as this possibility popped into his mind, a sharp whistle made Zhou Qi’an’s expression turn stern.
Hearing the signal, another figure suddenly emerged from behind the ajar door and rushed in for cover.
Nurses wouldn’t whistle for help.
Zhao Sanxun had used a disguise skill, which blurred others’ judgment of his appearance and figure. But the second person who rushed in, even though wearing a nurse’s uniform, Zhou Qi’an immediately noticed the two moles on his neck.
It was Kerr.
Zhou Qi’an’s gaze turned icy to the extreme. “So it’s them.”
In his original considerations, he had thought that Zhao Sanxun and his group might come tonight, and he had changed his identity specifically to guard against this.
But it was supposed to be time for medicine.
“Could it be…”
Zhou Qi’an immediately looked at the wall clock; it was still exactly ten o’clock.
“Illusion.” He suddenly realized.
It was unlikely that Poison Dragon could have snuck into the ward to release his skill without being noticed.
This guy’s skill was actually strong enough to be cast from a distance. He just didn’t know the skill’s cooldown and range.
He had really underestimated them.
Since they were already here, then—
“White Silk.”
The white silk ribbon, repaired with an experience pack, was back to its lively state. It launched a sneak attack from above, trying to strangle two at once.
Zhao Sanxun ducked to avoid the white silk. The few seconds of delay were fatal. The woman behind him had already pulled out the dagger and thrown it with force. The dagger flew through the air and struck Zhao Sanxun.
“Ugh…” He forcefully swallowed the cry of pain that was about to escape.
“Go.” Ignoring the wound on his body, Zhao Sanxun released a toxin and forcibly retreated.
The woman surprisingly did not pursue him.
As Zhou Qi’an was preparing to command the white silk for a second chase, tap…
Footsteps echoed in the hallway again.
Tap… tap.
This time, the pace was much slower than before. The footsteps were neat and uniform, giving the feeling of a group of stiff puppets, slowly dragging their feet as they approached.
Zhou Qi’an could only temporarily recall the white silk.
“Strike first to gain the upper hand. I’m still not fast enough.”
He hadn’t reflected on himself for a long time.
After his reflection, Zhou Qi’an’s lips curved slightly. The dagger was first tainted with the woman’s blood, then stabbed into the fake nurse’s body. He wondered what fun things would happen.
This hospital seemed to hide some terrible virus. He just happened to be short of a petri dish for observation.
A chilly, sinister wind drifted in.
Zhou Qi’an’s smile gradually faded.
The light in the hallway was a fleshy red, with poor illumination. The strange, murky light on the nurse’s face was unspeakably creepy. The nurse, her hair tied up meticulously, walked in holding a tray.
The blood on the floor caught her attention.
Zhou Qi’an immediately began to struggle convulsively, drawing the nurse’s gaze.
“Time for your medicine,” the nurse said mechanically.
It seemed that making the patient take medicine was her top priority. She came to the disheveled patient and put down the tray.
There were two small brown pills in total, accompanied by a paper cup of plain water.
The real female patient grabbed the crank under the bed. Soon, Zhou Qi’an’s upper body was raised along with the bed. The woman took the pills from the nurse’s hand and roughly stuffed them into Zhou Qi’an’s mouth.
No matter how rough she was, it couldn’t compare to Zhou Qi’an’s own cooperation. As long as he opened his mouth fast enough, no one could make things difficult for him.
Gulp, gulp.
With the water poured into his mouth, the pills went down.
[Poison Resistance +1 +1 +1…]
[Da Lang, they can’t poison you!]
What the hell.
Zhou Qi’an’s expression changed slightly. A series of poison resistance notifications popped up. How poisonous was this medicine?
“I absolutely can’t take too much of this.”
Cold sweat broke out on his back. He had to squeeze the information value out of the NPC as quickly as possible, then get promoted and a raise to go to the special inpatient department.
The nurse was somewhat surprised by the patient’s cooperation today.
However, she didn’t think much of it. Her every move was very mechanical. At 10:02, the nurse turned around stiffly and left with the tray on time.
Zhou Qi’an breathed a sigh of relief.
However, just one minute later, at 10:03, the nurse unexpectedly returned.
This time, she held a small booklet and at the same time, undid the restraint on one of Zhou Qi’an’s hands.
Due to the angle, Zhou Qi’an strained to lift his eyelids and saw on the white cover of the booklet, the large words “Orderly Opinion Book.”
The nurse handed the booklet over.
Zhou Qi’an flipped it open with his only free hand.
[1. How would you rate the orderly’s service this time?
a. Very satisfied b. Satisfied c. Average d. Dissatisfied e. Very dissatisfied
2. Do you wish for this orderly to continue providing services?
a. Willing b. I’ll think about it c. Very unwilling
3. Other comments and suggestions—]
“…” After forcing the orderly to drug the patient, they turn around and ask the patient to evaluate the orderly.
The agent who brought them here had also emphasized not to get complained about.
Good heavens.
Even the service industry doesn’t get bullied like this!
Zhou Qi’an’s expression remained unchanged. He gently bit off the pen cap and began to calmly write praises in the comment section:
“For your information, this orderly has a heart that shines like gold. His current position really doesn’t allow him to display his talents…”
Soon, a short essay was born. Zhou Qi’an watched the nurse’s expression. Faced with such an abnormal situation, she didn’t show much reaction.
A walking corpse.
This word popped into his mind. He paused his writing and drew a period at the end of the letter of praise.
After re-fastening the restraint, the nurse left with the opinion book, her every movement extremely rigid.
The ward was once again left with just Zhou Qi’an and the female patient staring at each other.
For a good few minutes, Zhou Qi’an found it a bit hard to breathe.
He didn’t want to lose in terms of presence, but after the nurse’s visit, a lingering smell remained in the room. The rotting stench was even more nauseating than the usual smell of a corpse.
In the end, Zhou Qi’an spoke first, not mentioning switching back at all, but instead encouraging the other party: “You should escape.”
Run as far as you can.
This hospital, from the inside out, seemed ‘dead’. There were no signs of treating or curing patients at all. He was quite curious to see what would happen to an escaped patient.
Maybe one day he would have to escape too.
“Sister, you should run. If you don’t run now…”
The woman looked down at him coldly. “Shut up.”
“…”
·
The night always seemed exceptionally long.
Zhou Qi’an lay on the bed. He had the woman help him undo the restraints, giving a very reasonable excuse. The orderlies gathered for a briefing every morning. If the marks were too deep, they would be discovered by others, and it would be difficult for him to be the substitute medicine-taker in the future.
“Hiss.”
Moving his wrist, Zhou Qi’an sighed. Lying on a bed was much better than sitting on a cold bench, and there was even a blanket.
He closed his eyes and his breathing became even. Only he knew if he was asleep or not. At least, from this scene, anyone would think he was sleeping soundly.
Around three in the morning.
A loud noise suddenly came from one of the wards. The sound of an iron door was much louder than a wooden one. Something was violently ramming the door, while the player was struggling to block it.
Zhou Qi’an opened his eyes, the movement of turning his head a bit sluggish.
A few hours had passed, but the bedding was still as cold as an ice cellar. It was only his body’s resistance to extreme temperatures that allowed him to continue lying there nonchalantly.
The moment he turned his head, Zhou Qi’an’s breath hitched slightly.
Most of the light from the crack under the door was gone.
No, it wasn’t gone.
It was more like something was standing at the door, blocking the light source.
It was too late to lock the door now.
NPCs were best at kicking someone when they were down. The female patient’s mood changed from one moment to the next. At this moment, she seemed to have forgotten Zhou Qi’an’s ‘medicinal value’. “Get down.”
As she said “get down,” the woman stared at Zhou Qi’an as if looking at fresh meat on a chopping board.
At such a close distance, the growling of her stomach was clearly audible to Zhou Qi’an. As midnight approached, the patients seemed to become particularly hungry.
Misfortunes never come singly. The door was slowly being pushed open.
Zhou Qi’an frowned and checked his mission panel. The instance difficulty had risen to two and a half stars at some point.
From the trap of feeding medicine earlier, the simpler the step, the more likely there would be a trap later. Other players must have considered this, preferring to struggle to block the door rather than end it once and for all.
Zhou Qi’an suddenly smiled. A two-and-a-half-star difficulty, it would be a waste not to hurry up and kill some ghosts.
Diligence leads to wealth.
“Beautiful sister, do you have a target you want to kill?”
Using the same trick as the newspaper ghost, Zhou Qi’an was now learning and applying on the spot. “Ever heard of exchanging murders?”
The patient’s danger level was currently manageable, and the nurses were like walking corpses. At the current difficulty, the things coming in were just small fry.
So, what was the danger hidden in the dark?
For these terrifying patients to not dare to escape the hospital, there must be something even more dangerous.
The smile on Zhou Qi’an’s lips widened.
Understanding the patient’s most desired target would be a big step forward in his understanding of the instance.
…Exchanging murders.
The signature move of the newspaper zombie.
But it was dead now, so there was no copyright fee to talk about. Fortunately, as the “successor” of the newspaper zombie, Zhou Qi’an was still persisting in promoting this virtue.
Before he got the female ghost’s answer, the iron door opened first.
The smell in the ward once again climbed to a level that was unbearable for ordinary people. Under the scarlet light, the thing that came in could not be described with ‘one’ or ‘a’. Its body was abnormally large, its surface densely covered with fist-sized fleshy bumps.
It was practically a walking mound of flesh.
After just one glance, Zhou Qi’an retracted his gaze. Ignoring the approaching monster, he lay steadily on the bed.
“Will you kill it, or shall I?”
As he finished speaking, a cane suddenly appeared in his slender hand. Zhou Qi’an leaped up without any warning, about to strike the flesh mound with the cane.
In mid-motion, his raised arm was caught by a withered wrist.
It was a feint. Zhou Qi’an’s real speed was not fast.
Now, in close contact with the female patient, his hair stood on end. He had felt something was off just now. The woman’s skin felt strange to the touch, with a slight grainy texture.
It was as if her whole body was covered in tumors.
The woman didn’t make a killing move. She kicked the flesh mound away for the time being.
She seemed to be still hesitating, a perfect case of indecisiveness.
Zhou Qi’an was much more decisive. “If you can’t, then let’s not exchange. I’ll kill mine, you kill yours.”
Saying that, he was about to rush towards the flesh mound again.
The figure in blue and white stripes finally made a move. With a sound like a small explosion, Zhou Qi’an quickly retreated, pulling the blanket in front of him to block the splattering flesh.
“Damn! This is too disgusting.”
The flesh mound had exploded.
For a good few seconds, there were no other figures in the ward.
Zhou Qi’an carefully lowered the blanket and looked over.
About one or two meters away, the female patient was standing in a muddy pile of flesh. She was constantly scratching her right arm with her left hand. Pustules had formed there, looking like a toad’s skin at first glance.
As if her nails weren’t satisfying enough, the woman quickly walked to the drawer, took out a comb, and began to comb it bit by bit.
The flesh was smoothly scraped off. The whole scene was horrifying to watch.
Zhou Qi’an quickly scanned and understood something.
There was some splattered liquid on the woman’s sleeve, and also on the wall behind her. It seemed that the flesh mound would turn into a projectile monster before it died. Once its fluid touched the skin, it would cause infection.
Just as he was quickly summarizing the information before him, a faint voice drifted over.
“Kill… Dr. Z.”
The first two words were gritted out, but the last two were spoken very lightly, as if afraid of being heard.
Dr. Z?
Before Zhou Qi’an had a chance to ask in detail, the system prompt suddenly arrived. This time, the sound quality had a strange feel to it compared to before:
[You have successfully triggered a deal with the female ghost.]
[Deal content: Kill Dr. Z.]
Zhou Qi’an narrowed his eyes.
This wasn’t the first time he had made such a deal with a ghost. In the Jinxiang Building instance, he had also sided with Jin Zhi to kill the building’s owner. That had directly triggered a side quest to destroy the amulet, laying a solid foundation for killing the building’s owner.
But this time, no quest was generated.
Why?
Was the plot not allowing it, or had he accidentally taken too big a step?
For example, without clear clues, he might have accidentally peeked at the final main quest or something.
Goosebumps rose on Zhou Qi’an’s skin. He quickly waved his hand to himself.
“It’s definitely not that.”
Don’t scare yourself.
The female patient was unpredictable. While she was performing her ‘combing’ punishment, directly asking who Dr. Z was, where he was, and how to kill him would easily make him seem useless.
Zhou Qi’an took out the holy artifact.
The woman’s movements paused.
Under the cold and dazzling light, Zhou Qi’an’s expression was sincere. “The weapon is already prepared. You see, if I go to the special inpatient department like this, will the chances of killing Dr. Z be higher?”
The player’s current mission was to get transferred to the special inpatient department. He added this prerequisite as a probe.
The coldness on the woman’s face eased slightly. She coldly spat out a single word: “Yes.”
Zhou Qi’an’s expression became more and more interesting.
He had the person and the place. The more he looked at it, the more it resembled an important late-stage main quest.
“No matter.”
Zhou Qi’an quickly calmed down. Anyway, he was still an ordinary orderly and had relatively ample time to gather more clues.
The woman still had some monster flesh stuck to the corner of her mouth. She wiped it away with her finger and looked at the monster. “It was also a patient, from the special inpatient department.”
Saying that, she took the initiative to walk towards the dead monster.
After stopping, the woman plunged her arm directly into the flesh mound and fumbled for a bracelet.
She pulled it out directly, wiped off the dirt, and the information on the inpatient bracelet was exposed.
[Name: Li Sanmu
Blood Type: Type A
Inpatient No.: 30260314
Bed No.: **
Diagnosis: **
Department: Clinical Nutrition Department]
“Take it.”
Zhou Qi’an hesitated for a moment, then took a pair of gloves from the drawer, put them on, and took it.
“Congratulations on obtaining Patient Bracelet *1.”
“Friendly reminder, the Clinical Nutrition Department and the special inpatient department are in the same building.”
“With this bracelet, you can enjoy patient treatment. One bracelet per person. No replacement if lost.”
“A special inpatient department patient bracelet.” The woman grinned, her face full of crazed laughter. “You wear it and go in, and kill them all for me!”
“…”
__
Author’s Note:
Zhou Qi’an: …Met someone even crazier than me.
PS: Normally, hospitalization doesn’t involve the nutrition department, this is just for the plot~
