Mental Recovery Tool?
Lin Zhen frowned slightly. To be honest, this time he was having a hard time believing what Dr. Forefinger was saying.
After all, this mask didn’t look like anything good.
Dr. Forefinger naturally saw Lin Zhen’s disbelief, but he only smiled faintly to himself.
He hadn’t lied at all.
Driving the mind to the verge of collapse, then using the mask to repair it—he was merely taking advantage of the moment when the subconscious door was pried open during the repair process to implant something inside Xinglan that shouldn’t have been there.
How could that not be considered a mental recovery tool?
Though the Sacred Hands Society couldn’t bear to destroy Xinglan’s extraordinary talent, they wouldn’t allow her to harbor dangerous thoughts, either.
So during her interrogation, they added various safeguards to her—perfectly reasonable precautions.
For example, the seed of the Mental Steel Seal loyal to the Sacred Hands Society, or a twisted perspective on worldly good and evil…
All these were extremely subtle brainwashing techniques with minimal impact on the subject, but would, imperceptibly, alter Xinglan’s views of the training camp and her understanding of right and wrong.
***
In the end, she would become truly loyal to the Sacred Hands Society.
She herself would hardly even notice it.
She’d just subconsciously feel as if she was becoming corrupted, degenerating under the influence of her surroundings.
But at the same time—
This kind of brainwashing takes an enormous amount of time.
Because the subconscious would continually try to repair such foreign interference.
So it would take at least five or six years to complete the process, and every year, just like this time, Xinglan’s spirit would have to be ravaged again, the subconscious forced open, and the Mental Steel Seal’s seed maintained to ensure its steady growth.
All in all, it was a real hassle—three or four months of maintenance each year would seriously affect the subject’s growth.
If Xinglan wasn’t a perfect Awakened One, and if Dr. Forefinger hadn’t kept persuading them—
The Sacred Hands Society would never use such an inefficient method.
They’d just use the brutal high-tech brainwashing they used on other Star Force users who tried to run and got caught, making their bodies and minds belong to the Sacred Hands Society in no time.
So, Dr. Forefinger felt he had fulfilled his promise perfectly, bringing Xinglan back in one piece.
Even if she had a bit of “extra,” at least nothing was missing.
It seemed the production team wanted to keep things suspenseful this time, so they didn’t reveal Dr. Forefinger’s inner monologue; they just gave a close-up of his upturned lips.
“This smile is the proof of his lies!”
“This guy doesn’t look like a good person at all!”
“Could it really be like before, implanting a Mental Steel Seal in little Xi?”
“That’s bad, now little Xi can’t escape, can she?”
“RIP”
“Lao Lin, hurry up and use Super Assembly on little Xi!”
“Cough, cough, cough!”
As the thick black tube was yanked out, the blue-haired girl lying in Lin Zhen’s arms suddenly began to cough violently.
She gasped desperately for breath, her chest rising and falling rapidly, making sharp, ragged sounds like a broken bellows.
Finally, she arched up with a sudden jerk and vomited out a large puddle of yellow-green stuff right in front of her.
The production team, considering Yun Ruoxi’s status as a young girl, thoughtfully gave the vomit a rainbow mosaic.
But in this kind of atmosphere, in this kind of plot, it really felt a bit much.
“I can’t believe the production team is trolling us.”
“Just as I’m getting into the story, here comes a rainbow puke.”
“Incredible, instant comedy mode, huh?”
After throwing up, Yun Ruoxi’s complexion looked a little better, a faint flush rising beneath her corpse-like pale skin.
At the same time, her eyelashes began to tremble softly, as if she was about to wake from a coma.
Lin Zhen, Aili, and the others stared without blinking.
And finally—
Under everyone’s expectant gaze, the girl slowly opened her eyes.
In those beautiful scarlet eyes flashed a brief, nearly cruel, cold clarity, which quickly softened and reflected the figures of those around her.
She seemed unable to believe what she was seeing and turned her head away, a layer of misty tears rising to cloud her eyes.
“Am I dreaming?” she murmured through her tears.
“It’s not a dream, we’re right here!” Lin Zhen quickly gripped her delicate, soft hand tightly.
Aili nodded as well and choked out, “Sister, Xiao Ai is right here, Xiao Ai found you!”
“You all—”
Feeling the warmth in her palm, the mist finally turned to crystal tears sliding down Yun Ruoxi’s cheeks.
“You all…”
The girl sobbed uncontrollably, unable to say another word, only hugging Aili—who had thrown herself into her arms—tightly.
Lin Zhen opened his arms and held them both.
Seeing this, Zi Jiu gave Yun Che and the others a look, and together they layered their arms around, wrapping the girl in the middle.
“Touching, meow.”
“Sugar after the knife is really the sweetest (crying)”
“This is the bond of the main cast.”
In the distance, Dr. Forefinger watched this scene and nodded with a smile.
He’d known all along that Lin Zhen hadn’t given up on the idea of escape.
Though he didn’t know what the boy was planning, how could you guard against a thief for a thousand days? There’s no such thing as endless defense.
As long as Xinglan was controlled, Lin Zhen, who had deep feelings for her, would naturally be bound as well, making escape impossible.
That was why he fought to avoid forcibly brainwashing Xinglan, using emotions to bind Lin Zhen instead!
“If only you’d cooperate, Ah Zhen—once you both come of age, I’ll arrange things for you two. That way, you’ll forever belong to the Sacred Hands Society, and you’ll obediently help me carry out my grand plan.”
Dr. Forefinger thought with satisfaction, then turned and left, leaving the room to those reunited after a long separation.
After a bout of crying, Yun Ruoxi’s mental state seemed improved. She held Aili tightly, a smile appearing on her face.
Seeing this, Lin Zhen cautiously asked, “Xiao Xi, are you… alright?”
“I…” Yun Ruoxi was silent for a moment. “I don’t know. I can’t remember anything… I just remember it hurt. It hurt so much.”
“I see… If you can’t remember, don’t force it. Just think of it as all in the past now.” Lin Zhen comforted her with concern.
He knew sometimes, when someone endured suffering beyond what they could bear, the mind would automatically block out those memories.
Maybe Yun Ruoxi was the same.
Although he still doubted the mask’s effects and wanted to see if he could get any information from Yun Ruoxi’s own words for the sake of precaution, but if the memories were so painful Yun Ruoxi didn’t even want to recall them, he’d rather look for another way.
“Mm.”
Yun Ruoxi nodded, resting her cheek atop Aili’s head, and soon her eyes gently closed—just like that, she fell asleep.
“Xiao Xi? Xiao Xi?” Lin Zhen called her twice.
Seeing that Yun Ruoxi had fallen into a deep sleep, he gestured for Aili to carefully slip out of her arms, then had Zi Jiu help him carry Yun Ruoxi back to her room.
Yun Ruoxi’s room had not been touched, not sealed off or given to anyone else after she was taken away.
This, too, was part of the reason why some trainees were convinced Xinglan would return.