This is a bizarre rule, isn't it? It's supposed to grant me many children and good fortune

Chapter 538 Are there penguins in the Arctic?

Su Wan withdrew her gaze and turned to Dr. Wang: "Dr. Wang, where are you going so early in the morning?"

Dr. Wang was still reeling from the aftershocks of his cognitive collapse when he heard Su Wan's question. He was jolted awake—no, he was like a fish.

"Huh? Oh, oh oh—"

He shook his catfish head, trying to distract himself from the spiral steel bar.

"I'm going to soak in the pool for a while. My skin needs to stay moist, otherwise it will crack."

Su Wan nodded: "Go quickly, your skin is starting to crack."

"Really?" Dr. Wang was startled. He looked down at the back of his hand, and his tendrils trembled violently.

The next second, he turned around and ran downstairs, his footsteps hurried and frantic, and even his words "I'm leaving first" were lost in the wind.

Su Wan glanced at Lin Feng, her gaze lingering on his arm for a moment: "You're quite strong."

Lin Feng thought to himself, "This all comes from our child, Xiao Cheche."

Of course, these words could not be said aloud.

He raised his hand and rubbed the tip of his nose: "Oh, it's the reward for clearing the previous rounds of the ghost stories. Of course, I also like to train in my spare time."

"Training is a good thing." Su Wan looked away, her tone somewhat casual. "It looks better for guys to have some muscles."

The two went down to the first floor and exited the medical facility.

Lin Feng bowed slightly to Su Wan: "Thank you, Section Chief Su. Please go back now."

Su Wan didn't move, but raised her eyebrows slightly: "I'll go with you to the basement."

Lin Feng was taken aback: "?"

"Your roommate Derek needs to be dealt with immediately." Su Wan's tone remained calm. "There's still some time before breakfast, and he's a potential problem in the meantime."

Lin Feng almost couldn't suppress his smile; Wanwan was clearly going to give him special treatment.

He quickly pursed his lips, suppressing the barely concealed joy:

"Then I'll have to trouble Section Chief Su."

The two moved to the side corridor and slowly descended the stairs, soon arriving at the entrance of dormitory number 17.

The tightly closed door shut out all sounds from inside.

Su Wan lightly lifted her fingertip, and with a crisp snap, the door lock silently disengaged, and the door slowly opened a crack.

Inside the dormitory, on the lower bunk on the right, Vassim sat cross-legged with his back ramrod straight, his eyes tightly closed, and his lips moving slightly incessantly, his expression one of utmost devotion.

Nikolai stood quietly by the window.

A silver necklace hung on the half-window, with a small image of Jesus as the pendant.

He bowed his head slightly, his fingers interlaced tightly in front of his chest, and was praying silently.

His aura was calm and detached, echoing that of Vassim, as the two were each immersed in their own faith and prayer.

Their intentions were all too clear: to deliberately shut themselves off and refuse to respond, in order to completely avoid talking to Derek.

In the open space in the center of the dormitory, Derek stood alone, wearing a black tight-fitting T-shirt, loose gray sweatpants, and clean basketball shoes.

He was in extremely poor condition, with two dark, heavy bluish-black patches under his eyes, as if he had stayed up for several nights without closing them.

The whites of his eyes, which should have been clear and clean, were tinged with a sickly yellowish-brown, as if something was corroding and seeping out from the depths of his eyes.

His hands remained suspended at his sides, repeatedly clenching and unclenching, over and over again.

What's most chilling is the look in his eyes right now.

It was an extremely unfocused, hazy, and empty gaze, with a scattered focus and a wandering gaze that seemed to be fixed on something in front of you, but in reality, it didn't lock onto any particular scene.

But he himself was completely unaware of it.

He is speaking.

He spoke at an abnormally fast pace, as if his mouth had opened a floodgate before his brain could.

"Nikola, aren't you from Grizzly Bear Country? Is it particularly cold where you are?"

"I heard it gets down to minus fifty degrees Celsius where you live in winter. Is it still safe to go out?"

"Won't people freeze solid if they go outside?"

"Did you ever see a polar bear when you were working at the Arctic research station?"

"By the way, are there penguins in the Arctic?"

"..."

Nikolai did not respond.

Derek licked his lips and then turned his gaze to Wasim:

"Wahim, what about you?"

"Is your area mostly desert?"

"Want to ride a camel?"

How many people are in your family?

Do you have any siblings?

What do your parents do?

"You used to be a police officer?"

"So, are you particularly good at fighting?"

"By the way, have you ever killed anyone?"

"..."

Wasim's lips continued to move at their usual frequency, and his eyelids did not even tremble slightly.

Derek's voice suddenly rose a pitch, and the effort he had been maintaining of ease shattered completely, revealing the restlessness churning beneath.

"No, at least say something!"

Nobody was watching him.

"Are you all mute? I'm fucking talking to you!"

"Squeak—"

Su Wan pushed the door open.

Derek turned his head, saw Su Wan, and paused for a moment: "Su... Section Chief Su?"

Hearing the noise, Vassim and Nikolai opened their eyes and looked towards the door.

Seeing Lin Feng following behind Su Wan, both of them breathed a long sigh of relief, their shoulders visibly relaxing.

Derek, however, acted like a wronged child finally seeing his parents, taking two steps forward:

"Section Chief Su, you be the judge—these two are ignoring me! No matter what I say, they just won't listen!"

Su Wan raised her index finger and gently placed it to her lips: "Shh."

Derek's voice was stuck in his throat.

"It's not that they're ignoring you," Su Wan looked at him, "it's that they're afraid to talk to you. You've been corrupted!"

Derek's lips parted slightly, then closed again.

Su Wan: "You now have two options in front of you."

"First, I'll take one of your lives. One of the five skull patterns on your wrist will immediately turn red."

Derek subconsciously looked down at his left forearm, where five dark gray skulls stood quietly in a row.

"Two," Su Wan held up two fingers, "Go to the psychiatric ward and receive electroconvulsive therapy."

Derek's eyes widened suddenly.

"You have five seconds."

Derek's Adam's apple bobbed violently, and he swallowed hard, the sound seeming to be squeezed from the deepest part of his throat:

I choose 2.

Su Wan nodded.

She raised her right hand, pinching her thumb and middle finger together—

Snapped.

A crisp snap of the fingers.

The watch on Derek's right wrist lit up.

A notification sounded:

[Destination: Psychiatry Department]

[Route navigation has been generated]

[Estimated walking time: 5 minutes]

[Countdown: 10:00]

If the timeout period expires and the procedure is not completed, Option 1 will be executed automatically.

The countdown numbers have started ticking.

9:59…

9:58…

9:57…

Derek opened his mouth, then turned and strode toward the door, his shoulder scraping against the doorframe with a dull thud.

The dormitory fell silent.

Lin Feng turned around to face Su Wan.

"Section Chief Su, thank you!"

Su Wan looked down at her hands and suddenly said something very softly:

My hands are a little cold.