Hospital 444

Dai Lin once again attempted to return to Hospital 444 through his thoughts.

As expected, he failed.

This was something Dai Lin had anticipated.

Running all the way, Dai Lin and Lu Yanran arrived at the ninth floor.

Then, Dai Lin looked toward a corner of the stairwell.

There... lay a candle.

Dr. Liang had placed more than one Devil’s Cursed Object in this building.

He had already devised a comprehensive escape plan from the Dusky Skyscraper.

Of course, there was no need to worry about someone or something taking the candle away, as it was an item only visible and tangible to Paranormal Doctors. Originally, it should have been Dr. Liang himself coming here.

Dai Lin quickly walked over, tucked the Devil’s Cursed Object under his arm, grabbed the candle, and then fetched the matches he had prepared in advance. After lighting the candle, he handed it to Lu Yanran.

Once lit, the candle could be seen and touched by ordinary people.

"Mrs. Zhang," Dai Lin reminded Lu Yanran once more, "Remember what I told you before, from now on, ensure that the candle does not go out and do not leave the two-meter radius around the candle."

"Okay."

Afterwards, Dai Lin and Lu Yanran entered the corridor of the ninth floor.

Next... Dai Lin randomly chose a door and began knocking.

Lu Yanran’s hand holding the candle trembled with extreme tension, but Dai Lin was much more composed.

Dai Lin recalled the treatment plan of Dr. Liang Zhigao he found inside Hospital 444: light the candle found in the stairwell on the ninth floor, then knock on any door on the ninth floor and ask for shelter. The "person" inside would open the door and let them in.

The candle would distort their perception... making "them" believe that Dai Lin and Lu Yanran were one of their own!

The door opened.

Lu Yanran had been afraid she would see something terrifying, but there was nobody inside. Dai Lin and Lu Yanran promptly walked in.

Quickly, Dai Lin closed the door behind them.

Then, Lu Yanran saw Dai Lin speaking towards an empty space: "Thank you, we will leave at dawn."

After that, Dai Lin and Lu Yanran still holding onto the dummy, sat on the living room sofa.

Lu Yanran nervously asked, "Dai... Dr. Dai...?"

"Don’t talk."

Dai Lin continued to look forward, saying, "We’ll just sit here, you go back and rest well."

And then...

Dai Lin turned his gaze to the front door.

He clearly remembered the content of Dr. Liang Zhigao’s treatment plan.

Once inside the room, sit down quietly.

No matter what anomalies are seen inside the room, act as if they were unseen.

If someone knocks at the door, never go to open it. The knocking will not continue indefinitely, and the candle’s flame will become unstable during this time; the candle must be kept burning at all times.

Dai Lin was well aware...

The terrifying presence on the rooftop... would not let him and Lu Yanran leave easily.

Dai Lin waited... for the final moment to arrive.

The candle wouldn’t last much longer.

The hope to escape was on the fourth floor!

Success or failure hinged on this!

At that moment, Dai Lin looked at the object in his hand... the Devil’s Cursed Object.

Indeed, this blood-drenched face, just as the rumors said, was identical to Dr. Liang’s own face.

Dai Lin’s hand just touched the hair when suddenly, he had a bold idea.

He had previously entered Zhang Bei and Lu Yanran’s bedroom, attempting to find a few strands of Zhang Bei’s hair, but he discovered... he could only find Lu Yanran’s hair! There was not a single strand of Zhang Bei’s hair to be found!

He grabbed a small lock of hair and, incredibly, managed to absorb it into his right eye, then swallowed it!

Then... Dai Lin was startled to find, he had actually acquired a portion of Dr. Liang Zhigao’s memories!

...

In his memory, Dr. Liang and Zhang Bei arrived on the nineteenth floor.

He pulled out a surgical scalpel from within the hospital and fiercely cut into the other head that had grown on his cheek.

Of course, in Zhang Bei’s eyes, it only seemed like Dr. Liang was gesturing with the scalpel on his cheek.

"All set."

After placing the cursed object, Dr. Liang said, "Everything is ready."

"Thank you, Dr. Liang," Zhang Bei said gratefully, "Really, thank you... "

"You’ve paid with Spiritual Therapy Points, there’s no need to thank me."

Dr. Liang Zhigao then looked up toward the stairs, where darkness loomed.

"For now, this should contain it for a while. When the full moon comes, I will come here to take you and your wife away. Remember to take the Cursed Flesh regularly, and don’t leave the building for more than twelve hours each day. Haven’t you told your wife yet?"

"She’s very timid, I..."

"I have something to tell you," Dr. Liang suddenly changed his tone, "As a doctor, I hope you don’t hide anything from me."

Zhang Bei’s complexion changed and he quickly said, "Dr. Liang, I swear on my conscience, I have not hidden anything from you..."

"One of my patients who came to me for a follow-up mentioned some strange things to me. About you."

Upon hearing this, Zhang Bei seemed to recall something, and his expression began to turn ugly.

"The first time you came to see me, it happened to be the day he was also here for a follow-up. You both sat in the waiting hall outside, you chatted with him for a bit, didn’t you?"

"Dr. Liang, I..."

"You’re still not cautious enough. You showed him the back of your business card and then asked him what was written on it. He asked if you were illiterate, and you didn’t answer directly. Then, after he read the content on the back of the card for you, your expression turned very ugly, and you confirmed it with him multiple times. He was in line behind you; after you left, when he came in for his appointment, he asked me whether a ghost’s curse could cause cognitive disturbances."

Zhang Bei instinctively took a step back.

"No matter which doctor’s business card it is, the back of it will have an introduction to the various departments. But what you saw was not any department introduction but... the seven rules for patient treatment, right?"

Zhang Bei’s expression turned increasingly bad. "You... know?"

"The average doctor doesn’t know, but I do. On the day this cursed flesh grew on my face, I also saw these contents on the back of my business card."

"Is... is that so?"

"What you saw was this, wasn’t it? The rules for patient treatment—the first rule, no matter what kind of ghostly curse you’re afflicted with, even if you face death, never seek treatment at Hospital 444."

What?

Dai Lin suddenly felt an immense eeriness.

What... what does this mean???

"The second rule, if you truly can’t overcome the fear of death and choose to seek treatment at Hospital 444, then make sure the medical expenses you pay do not exceed ten thousand Spiritual Therapy Points. Am I right?"

Zhang Bei nodded.

"The third rule, never let the hospital place your body in the morgue. Even if you die, try to do so outside the hospital. If it concerns a patient’s family, try everything to take the body back before the doctors can move it into the morgue."

"The fourth rule, not a single doctor or nurse at Hospital 444 will have a black inverted cross on their forehead. If you see a doctor with a black inverted cross, do everything you can to flee to the office of the Associate Dean on the twelfth floor of the hospital and don’t attempt to seek help from any other doctors or nurses, or else you’ll fall into even greater despair."

"The fifth rule, all doctors and nurses in the hospital will only wear white masks. If you hear a doctor, nurse, other patients, or your accompanying relatives say they saw a doctor or nurse wearing a red mask, immediately ignore him or her. No matter what they say or do, pretend they don’t exist, or suffer the consequences. If you yourself see a doctor or nurse with a red mask... well, if that happens, it’s already too late."

"The sixth rule, no matter what the doctors tell you, do not seek treatment in the Demons Department. If you see any department with an English name, do not seek treatment there either; such departments do not exist."

"The seventh rule..."

As he spoke, Dr. Liang glanced up the stairs once more.

Zhang Bei also looked in that direction.

"Do not tell anyone..."

The moment Dr. Liang slowly voiced these words, two hands emerged from the darkness above!

"You are able to see these seven rules on the back of the business card!"

After uttering these words, the hands... withdrew back into the darkness!

Dr. Liang Zhigao, pointing toward the deep dark said, "Mr. Zhang, do you know what that is? Do you know why you can see those seven rules? Do you know why I need to use the Devil’s Cursed Object?"

Zhang Bei’s complexion became worse and he cautiously pointed upwards and asked, "Can I see the patient’s rules on the back of the business card because of... that ’thing’ just now?"

Dr. Liang said in an icy tone, "You should have adhered to the first rule, and should never have come to Hospital 444 for treatment. The curse behind this building and Hospital 444 are..."

"Thud, thud, thud"!

The memory Dai Lin was reading cut off right there!

And at that moment... there came a knock at the door!