ASA Ch30: Tenant

Chapter 30: Can I register as your diving partner for the audit?

Content Warning

Rape

Bi Fan’ ward was located in a separate courtyard next to the inpatient building. This was an independent area dedicated to the use of the psychiatric department. If it weren’t for this incident, Qin Ge might never have known that there were nearly a hundred patients with mental disorders living here.

Among these special individuals, there were not a few who suffered from mental disorders. Unfortunately, except for the 267th Hospital, there are no formal hospitals in the country willing to admit special individuals with mental illnesses. Many patients could not receive regular treatment, and their conditions were worsening with time, resulting in serious consequences.

“We have always been a focus of attention for special individuals. If the police bring them here, regardless of the actual situation, we must admit them,” Yan Hong said as he led Qin Ge into the courtyard. The guides and Bi Fan’s attending physician from the 267th Hospital were already waiting. “This is the guide assigned to accompany Bi Fan on her patrols. This is Dr. Fang, Bi Fan’s attending physician.”

After a few nods of acknowledgment, they wasted no time and immediately took Qin Ge upstairs.

In addition to regular wards, the top floor of the building also had 24-hour locked rooms where the most severely affected patients were kept, especially those with tendencies for self-harm and harming others.

Bi Fan was in one of these rooms.

“She’s already asleep after being sedated.” The attending physician led Qin Ge through the corridor of the ward and into a deeper area. “Even in deep sleep, we can’t enter Bi Fan’s ‘sea area.’ We hope you can. She has been ill for a very short time; her illness has not even been a year. She came to the 267th Hospital voluntarily; her first visit was in October last year, just a few months after graduating. Her medical records show that most of the time, at that time, she was still lucid and in control. To be honest, to deteriorate to this extent in less than a year, we’re all quite surprised.”

As Qin Ge walked through the corridor, he listened to the attending physician’s introduction, and his gaze fell on the sign in front of the ward. Besides sentinels or guides, there were also quite a few semi-zombified humans and underground people living in the top-floor rooms. An elegant black panther was patrolling the corridor, and when it saw a stranger, it stood alert, constantly eyeing Qin Ge.

“This is the spiritual body of the duty nurse,” the attending physician introduced. “The staff in the psychiatric department are usually quite capable sentinels and guides. Their spiritual bodies can enhance our security work.”

He opened a door.

It was a small single-person ward, and Bi Fan lay on a narrow hospital bed. She had restraints on her wrist and was wearing a straitjacket. Under the influence of the sedative, she had fallen into a deep slumber.

“Deep sleep phase.” The attending physician looked at the instruments connected to Bi Fan’s body. “Now you can begin… wait, Qin Ge, where is your diving partner?”

“I haven’t registered a diving partner,” Qin Ge confessed. “Yan Hong is very familiar with my situation, and he will help me if there’s any issue.”

The attending physician immediately refused: “This is not possible. You need a sentinel as a diving partner to enter Bi Fan’s ‘sea area.’ If you don’t mind, I can find a sentinel to assist you.”

Qin Ge looked at Yan Hong.

“No deep dive; we will only probe the shallow layers of Bi Fan’s consciousness,” Yan Hong emphasized. “Qin Ge is a professional adjuster, and he won’t have any problems.”

He looked at Qin Ge, and Qin Ge nodded.

The attending physician refused again: “I won’t agree to that. If something happens to him, won’t I have another patient on my hands?”

Both sides were at an impasse, and in the end, the attending physician called the owner of the black panther to stay in the ward with Qin Ge. The black panther stood quietly at the door, vigilantly watching Qin Ge while also keeping an eye on the outside situation.

Qin Ge released the long-haired rabbit, and the rabbit sensed the presence of a stranger and an unfamiliar mental form in this place. It trembled in Qin Ge’s hands.

“Be good,” Qin Ge said softly. “Let’s begin.”

He placed the rabbit in Bi Fan’s hand, then covered it with his own palm.

Entering Bi Fan’s sea area did take some effort. Qin Ge found himself in a vast, boundless white world where he couldn’t see anything, not even his own shadow. This was the most obvious state of rejection: the owner of the sea area resisted any external visitors.

Qin Ge thought about all the information related to Bi Fan and slowly moved forward. Since there were no reference points, he seemed to be standing still, walking in a vast emptiness.

“I am a friend of Tang Cuo,” he silently said. “I know that you are also a friend of Tang Cuo. He was injured and attacked by Bi Xingyi, but fortunately, not too seriously. He asked me to come and help you, to save you. Do you want to see him again?”

The ground beneath his feet slowly began to show color.

Qin Ge looked up, and for a moment, it seemed as if all the colors of the world were pouring toward him from all directions, strange and indescribable. In the blink of an eye, the world in front of him changed.

He stood in a long, narrow corridor with deep water on both sides. The corridor seemed to be hidden inside a mountain, and looking up, he could see a huge opening above, with light pouring in along with the cold rain.

The corridor was damp, with rainwater falling into the water on both sides. Qin Ge could only hear the sound of water but couldn’t see any ripples in the water. He reached out to touch the railing of the corridor and found it to be soft.

—It wasn’t a railing but rather the arms of some kind of soft-bodied creature.

The arms were lifeless, and when he poked them, a hole opened, and dark fluid gushed out. Countless arms of varying thickness intertwined, forming a corridor that had no apparent end or beginning.

Qin Ge walked along the corridor for a long time. He still felt like he was treading in place, with no change in the scenery around him. He knew he was trapped by the mirage inside the “sea area.” This was an illusion that only appeared in the “sea area” of mental disorder patients. It had no practical significance but often consumed a great deal of time to deal with. The only way to break the mirage was to forcefully break through it.

Qin Ge didn’t hesitate for a moment. He placed his hands on the soft arms, then leaped over the railing of the corridor.

A moment later, he landed in the water—but there was no sound of water.

He fell onto a sandy beach and heard the sound of waves crashing. Qin Ge pinched his brow and immediately got up from the ground. There was no longer a corridor and a dark mountainside, but instead, he found himself on a vast ocean. Above the ocean was a deep blue, starry sky, and all the stars in the sky were blinking like eyes. A massive meteor moved between the eyes as it circled in the air, and each pass seemed to stir the airflow in the starry sky, causing the spherical eyes to collide with each other.

As it came closer, Qin Ge could clearly see that it wasn’t a meteor but a huge, bunched-up octopus. He instinctively took a few steps back, which caught the octopus’s attention. The octopus twisted its body and charged towards him.

It descended from the sky, but Qin Ge couldn’t move. He looked down and saw that he was standing in the center of an eye, with the raised crystalline structure supporting his feet. He was standing in the center of a black pupil. Countless black, thin tentacles extended from the pupil, coiling around his feet. A tremendous sound, like a hurricane, passed by him as if it were a low murmur—a sound that sent shivers down his spine.

Next, the giant octopus descended again. It passed through Qin Ge’s body, smashing through the eye he was standing on. Qin Ge fell into an empty void as sand fell, and he dropped into the mouth of the octopus. He was crushed and ground by the organs inside the octopus’s body and then pulled away by countless tentacles that seemed to appear from nowhere, falling into a black mucous.

Soon, the mucous was pierced by the tentacles. The tentacles burrowed into Qin Ge’s chest, stirred his internal organs, and finally hooked onto his spine, pulling him out of the mucous.

Qin Ge didn’t feel any pain, but the sights were too astonishing for him. He couldn’t react to anything. He was immediately thrown down by the giant octopus.

Fear left Qin Ge dazed for a moment. He got up, finding himself on top of a hill. The hill was built by people, and he could feel the soft skin of humans.

Every person was Bi Fan, with eyes wide open, stacked one after another, forming a hill made of flesh.

The giant octopus waved its tentacles and floated in the air again. Tens of thousands of eyes were suspended above Qin Ge, silently watching him. The octopus was like a kite or a lump of trash, carrying a nauseating stench and a bizarre form. Countless tentacles of various thicknesses gestured and swam in the void, and finally, one of them grabbed Qin Ge.

Qin Ge felt dizzy. Everything that appeared in Bi Fan’s “sea area” didn’t make sense. But everything seemed to be related to the octopus—Bi Xingyi. According to the information that Tang Cuo and Lu Qing had separately told Qin Ge, Bi Xingyi had only started working at Second Middle School this year, while Bi Fan had graduated last year as a New Hope student. She fell ill after graduating, and she was also an only child, so there was no older brother. Bi Xingyi’s appearance was very likely a significant factor triggering Bi Fan’s illness.

He needed to get more precise information.

He needed to delve deeper into Bi Fan’s consciousness to uncover her memories.

As for whether this action could pose a danger to himself, Qin Ge no longer had time to consider it. The things that scared Bi Fan had taken over her entire “sea area,” and she could break down at any moment. Since he had entered, he couldn’t simply leave without making an effort.

The octopus carried Qin Ge as they swam through the night sky. Qin Ge struggled to break free, clutching onto the suckers on its tentacles and climbing onto its head.

The giant octopus’s head was covered with a watery protective membrane. Qin Ge tore it open with his bare hands and grabbed the slippery skin, attempting to create an opening in the skin.

He succeeded in tearing a wound that continued to widen until he could crawl through it.

Inside, it was pitch black, and something had completely devoured the light. Qin Ge couldn’t see anything, but he knew that the most fearful place was likely the quickest path to a breakthrough. He tore open the wound and crawled into the octopus’s head—only to fall onto a bed.

This was a square room with a soft bed, and beneath the raised covers was a person.

“Shh…” a voice came from the covers. “Don’t make a sound; he’s coming.”

It was a girl’s voice, timid and filled with fear. Qin Ge lay next to her, stiff and unmoving. The room had a balcony, and it was tightly sealed with a glass door.

As he turned to look, he noticed someone standing on the balcony.

From Bi Xingyi’s sleeve, a slender tentacle emerged, slipped through the gap in the glass door, and quietly unlocked it.

The sound was piercing in the still night.

The glass door swung open silently. Qin Ge saw that Bi Fan on the bed was trembling.

“Don’t be afraid…” he couldn’t help but whisper.

“Shh!” Bi Fan tightly clutched the covers, wrapping herself almost entirely inside, with only her two frightened eyes visible. “He’ll hear… Don’t let him find out I’m here…”

But Bi Xingyi had already come to the bedside. He sat on the edge of the bed, his hand stroking the raised covers, and he spoke softly, “Poor thing… Don’t be afraid… Big brother is here to take care of you…”

Bi Fan continued to tremble, and even the bed was shaking. Qin Ge widened his eyes, watching as Bi Xingyi opened the bedroom door and left the room, dragging the long tentacles of the octopus behind him, leaving a deep trail of water on the floor.

“Bi Fan,” Qin Ge whispered, knowing that this was Bi Fan’s self-awareness in her “sea area,” showing him the most fearful situation she could imagine. “He can’t control you.”

“He can,” Bi Fan suddenly said.

Qin Ge was taken aback, realizing that on the other side of Bi Fan, another person was lying there.

Bi Xingyi lay in bed with Bi Fan, reaching out to touch her hair. Bi Fan’s trembling intensified, and Bi Xingyi’s voice became increasingly gentle. “Having nightmares? Big brother is here.”

The octopus loomed like a massive nightmare, suspended from the bedroom ceiling. Qin Ge, Bi Fan, and Bi Xingyi all lay in bed, and Qin Ge noticed the tentacles of the octopus crawling and dancing on the walls, gradually taking over the entire room. Qin Ge was astonished to discover how deeply Bi Fan’s fear of Bi Xingyi had penetrated, even within the supposed safety of her own self-awareness.

He held Bi Fan’s hand, feeling her fingers cold and slightly damp, trembling in his palm. This small act of reliance reassured Qin Ge that he was trusted, perhaps because of the name Tang Cuo, which provided a sense of security.

“Tang Cuo is very worried about you,” he said to Bi Fan. “I can help you. Can you trust me?”

Bi Fan nodded.

The tentacles of the octopus descended, entwining Qin Ge’s hair, and the slippery appendages brushed against his neck.

Qin Ge was about to ask Bi Fan how exactly Bi Xingyi had influenced her when Bi Fan suddenly grabbed him and pulled him closer. In her anxious eyes, she said, “I have another secret.”

Qin Ge was pulled into darkness. Countless memories rushed over him, making his head spin. Rainy night streets, wet pavement, soaked school uniforms, and white canvas shoes smeared with mud. Fear, humiliation, and physical pain instantly flooded Qin Ge’s mind, and he heard himself crying out, pleading, and weeping in Bi Fan’s voice.

The water fell from the dark sky, flowing onto the black ground.

The moment Qin Ge left Bi Fan’s “sea area,” he immediately knelt on the ground, covering his mouth. Someone was supporting him, and the warmth and breath were familiar. He didn’t have time to worry and pushed away the person behind him, rushing into the bathroom of the hospital room.

It felt like an infinite amount of muck was stuck in his throat, and Qin Ge violently vomited until his stomach was empty, and the pain subsided gradually, pressing down the discomfort brought by Bi Fan’s memories.

Someone patted his back and handed him a bottle of water. “Rinse your mouth.”

Qin Ge stared at the mirror with red eyes. Standing behind him was Xie Zijing.

“Why are you here?” Qin Ge’s voice was hoarse, and he had a heavy nasal tone.

Xie Zijing had left home immediately upon receiving a call from Tang Cuo, heading straight to the 267th Hospital. He had been stopped at the entrance of the hospital for a while due to being unable to contact Yan Hong, and when he arrived in the hospital room, Qin Ge’s patrol had already been underway for some time. He introduced himself as Qin Ge’s “companion,” and Yan Hong recognized him, knowing that he and Qin Ge were colleagues, so he allowed him to enter.

This time, Qin Ge’s patrol was more severe than when he patrolled Cai Mingyue. Bi Fan’s chaotic “sea area” had made him physically uncomfortable, and he had to vomit everything from his stomach before finding some relief.

The attending physician examined Bi Fan’s condition and found that everything was stable. “What’s the conclusion?” he asked Qin Ge.

“Bi Fan’s ‘sea area’ is typical of a schizophrenia patient’s, with mixed and irregular information, no logic, no factual basis, and jumbled details. There are almost no real events, just her emotions. Fear is particularly prominent.” Qin Ge took the paper handed to him by the attending physician. “I’ll write it down first. Give me some time.”

Xie Zijing accompanied Qin Ge into the attending physician’s office. Qin Ge didn’t speak to Xie Zijing; he took the pen and stared at the white paper in front of him, forcing himself to recall everything he had seen.

The “secret” that Bi Fan mentioned was likely the true cause of her schizophrenia.

Bi Fan, in her high school uniform, was attacked by several strangers on her way home after evening self-study. They dragged her to an abandoned house by the roadside and assaulted her. The sound of rain and Bi Fan’s cries still echoed in Qin Ge’s mind, making him feel extremely uncomfortable.

It wasn’t his own fear, but something even more shuddering than his own fear: it was an atrocity he could never experience. However, because of the impossibility of facing this, he understood Bi Fan’s pain even more deeply.

The event left Bi Fan afraid of men, but the symptoms of her illness were not very pronounced. It wasn’t until Bi Xingyi appeared in her life and invaded her home that this fear suddenly intensified, and her condition deteriorated rapidly.

To Bi Fan, Bi Xingyi was the embodiment of the man who had violated her in the past. She couldn’t resist, question, talk back, or even call for help. With Bi Xingyi’s intrusion into her home, he effectively took control of her entirely.

In her eyes, Bi Xingyi was the very person who had previously violated her. She dared not resist, question, speak, or call for help because the moment Bi Xingyi entered her home, he was in complete control of her.

Originally teetering on the brink of collapse, Bi Fan had struggled to maintain her life through four years of college and medication. But then, this life was completely shattered by an intruder. He broke the earth beneath Bi Fan’s feet, and she no longer had any ground to stand on. Even her own home could not provide her with a sense of security. She started to withdraw deep into her consciousness, with questions and compliance constantly clashing in her mind. She was forced to obey Bi Xingyi’s words—she could do anything as long as it helped her avoid the threat.

Because “safety” was the most powerful desire for all patients with paranoid delusions.

Qin Ge took a sip of water and began to write down his experiences during the patrol.

Yan Hong and the doctor were waiting for him, and he couldn’t afford to delay. Recording the patrol’s details was a basic skill for an adjuster, and as time passed, he might forget critical details.

However, he was sweating profusely. His hands were shaking, and cold sweat continued to trickle down from his temples to his neck.

His furry rabbit couldn’t take a solid form to offer comfort.

Xie Zijing handed him a tissue to wipe away the sweat, and the Barbary lion emerged, trailing mist, and settled down by his feet, resting its large head on his leg. This brought him a small, comforting warmth.

“Can I register as your diving partner for the audit?” Xie Zijing asked.

Qin Ge replied, “No.”

Qin Ge shook his water cup and found it empty. He got up to fetch more water, with Xie Zijing following him, persisting, “Why not?”

“Because you’ll leave,” Qin Ge said. “You agreed to come here because I can help you find the issues in the ‘sea area’ and solve them. Once resolved, you’ll leave. You might be transferred to another region or return to the Western Division. With your abilities, staying at the headquarters won’t allow you to make the most impact.”

His head was clearly spinning, but he managed to say these words even though it was difficult. Xie Zijing didn’t argue or say, “I won’t leave.” On serious matters, both were cautious.

“In that case, I’d like to temporarily serve as your diving partner before I leave,” Xie Zijing said. “I’m quite good at it.”

Qin Ge: “…’

Of course, he knew Xie Zijing was very capable, but that alone didn’t imply anything. His hands were still trembling as he took the cup, and Xie Zijing supported his elbow and the base of the cup to keep it steady. Qin Ge appreciated the way Xie Zijing showed his care without getting too involved, providing support when needed.

Xie Zijing also refrained from asking what he had seen in Bi Fan’s sea area. That was her privacy, and he couldn’t share such details with an outsider. He brushed aside Qin Ge’s sweaty hair and said softly, “Just trust me a little more.”

Qin Ge leaned against the cabinet, and the cold sweat on his back had dried, making him feel very uncomfortable. In a daze, he thought for a while and realized that the reason he couldn’t find information smoothly in Xie Zijing’s “sea area” might be due to the thin trust between them.

If Qin Ge had been more lucid, he would not have made the decision that followed. However, at that moment, he blurted out without thinking, “Do you know Luquan?”

Xie Zijing’s eyes flickered. “I do, it’s near Jiwu Temple.”

Qin Ge nodded. “You know. You’re from the Western Division, so you must know about the Jiwu Temple and the place like Luquan. Do you know the Falcon Unit?”

Xie Zijing remained silent, looking at him quietly.

Qin Ge had never told anyone this secret before, but now he couldn’t suppress his desire to confide in someone.

“The Crisis Investigation and Criminal Investigation Division’s Field Operations Team has a squad called the Falcon Unit. They’re the most outstanding team in the Field Operations Division. My parents were both members of the Falcon Unit. Over ten years ago, when they were on a mission near Luquan and the Jiwu Temple, they encountered an accident, and none of them returned alive.”

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