The Dean's Gift

Thanks to Director Wang's coordination, Luo Di was successfully admitted back to the Fifth Hospital.

Moreover, after returning to the hospital this time, he became much more "well-behaved".

Even if he leaves the ward at irregular times each day, he will not go to chat with any patients, nurses, or doctors, nor will he release critically ill patients, and he will not do anything disruptive.

Instead, they traveled "a long way" from the deepest intensive care unit [0510] ward, went straight downstairs, passed through the corridor between floors, and arrived at the Dean's Office in the outermost comprehensive building.

Throughout the journey, he skillfully avoided everyone. Even the surveillance equipment along the way would malfunction when Luo Di passed by, and occasionally the flickering images would capture some strange pictures, like ashes floating in the air.

The dean also became someone he visited every day.

Luo Di would come to the Dean's Office every day and say a bunch of strange and incomprehensible things.

Occasionally, they will engage in minor self-harm, displaying a rather pained expression.

However, they didn't do anything as extreme as last time, as the old dean's heart could hardly withstand a second such incident.

Later, the dean seemed to get used to it and took the initiative to suggest moving Luo Di's ward to the opposite side of his own. This way, the "escape" process would be eliminated, the hospital's surveillance system would not be disturbed, and Roddy could come directly to his office.

However, Luo Di rejected this friendly offer.

It seems the intensive care unit had to be the starting point, and it seems ward 0510 held special significance for him.

Ten days have passed.

The old dean not only got used to it, but also considered Luo Di's visits as one of his daily entertainment activities.

He would open the door in advance and wait for the other person to arrive. Although he couldn't understand what Luo Di was saying, he would try his best to cooperate based on the other person's tone, expression, or behavior.

Surprisingly, it's quite effective at relieving boredom.

Time flies.

Today marks the fourteenth meeting between Luo Di and the dean.

The dean not only opened the door early, but even timed his arrival perfectly to get up and greet the guests.

However, today seemed a little different. This time, Luo Di did not show any signs of pain, nor did he engage in any form of self-harm.

He brought over a chair and sat down opposite the desk, communicating with the dean for the first time while seated.

The dean cooperated by sitting back down at his desk, pretending to understand and responding.

[Perspective Switch]

The once glamorous office was transformed into a gloomy preaching room after the wallpaper was torn off.

The one-armed Luo Di sat on a futon, staring at the Torture Chamber Master who resembled the dean.

After spending more than ten days together and communicating, we have learned each other's names and identities in Hell.

"Hell Monk, represented by the letter H (hook), is a member of the Prologue."*

Hereafter referred to as Hook.

Luo Di himself also gained three valuable pieces of information through the exchange.

1. The hell here has nothing to do with the "corner," but is a special world that is far away and even different from the conventional concept of a world.

2. Luo Di belongs to a type of being among the "Spine People," a very rare "Outer Connector," who, for some extreme reason, made contact with the True Hell. His projected past consciousness underwent spinal modification, becoming a special member of Hell, or known as Outer-Realm Apostle.

He is allowed to move and develop freely in the outside world, and as he develops and grows, he will establish a deeper connection with the True Hell.

He is now only the lowest-ranking spine practitioner, and his contact with the torture chamber is purely by chance and luck.

3. H cannot disclose further information about the "True Hell".

He was only told that the Spine People belonged to a different faction than Hawke's torture chamber, and that they should not have too much interaction.

Let Luo Di follow his heart and grow in that world. The True Hell does not accept the weak; the stronger you are, the more information you can obtain.

Mr. Hook, his back covered in hooks, smiled as he admired Luo Di's body through his severed lips.

During this time, the two did not just chat; he also gave Luo Di some minor torture chamber training that would not affect the Hell Covenant.

Mr. Hook extended his finger, which had no nail.

Using a small, curved hook inserted between the nail blades, they gently scraped Luo Di's body, leaving only a red mark without even scraping off the skin.

"Your body is indeed quite good. In just over ten days, you have already been able to tolerate some basic pain, and your overall physical tolerance has improved considerably."

What a pity! How did you end up as a spine-wielder? Otherwise, I really wanted to put you in the "torture chamber."

Okay, enough chit-chat, I've already 'restored' the item for you.

Remember our agreement; you must bring me back a more valuable and interesting "pituitary gland" when the time comes. Otherwise, the faithless will find it difficult to walk an inch in hell.

"Um."

Even while sitting on the futon, Luo Di did his best to maintain a peaceful state of mind.

But upon hearing those words, my emotions immediately became agitated, and my breathing quickened.

When Luo Di arrived at the preaching room today, he quickly looked around, but saw nothing except Mr. Hook.

He didn't see the person he wanted to see.

"This is the first time I've ever seen this kind of Pituitary Gland. The whole recovery process is much more complicated than I imagined, and it's even subject to a strange kind of spatial interference."

Moreover, this thing is not complete in essence; its body parts seem to have been completely stripped away.

So the final restoration is somewhat flawed, but it's the limit of what I could do. It was really tiring.

As he spoke,

Mr. Hook raised his right ring finger and pulled it downwards.

A hook hanging from the ceiling of the preaching room immediately descended, and something was now hanging from that hook.

Watching that thing descend felt like stepping back into a certain memory.

In the stairwell,

Luo Di watched the female classmate rushing down the stairs ahead, her black hair swaying slightly as she descended.

only,

Currently, there is only one head hanging on the hook.

Moreover, due to the angle of the hook, the head is facing away from Luo Di, so the face cannot be seen.

Once the hook had descended to the appropriate position, Mr. Hook gestured for Luo Di to sit on the cushion and not rush, as it seemed he was the one who needed to complete this final handover.

Cup your head in both hands, following the angle of the hook.

Pull it out!

Silky smooth and stable.

The small hole where the hook was left on the back of the head was clearly visible, but no liquid was flowing out.

When Mr. Hook held the head in his hands, his expression was not good either; it seemed that this reconstruction was the most difficult and worst he had ever done.

As Hawke turned around,

A familiar face came into Luo Di's view, but the entire face was covered with obvious stitches, showing no signs of waking up and devoid of life.

Luo Di didn't say much; it was already quite remarkable that he could achieve this level of accomplishment using only one Pituitary Gland.

Even if this head never wakes up, he will keep it with him forever, after all, it is one of his few "friends".

"I will fulfill the agreement as soon as possible."

"Okay, see you next time..."

[Back to the previous scene, one minute ago]

Below the hook-shaped crystal pendant,

The dean saw Luo Di, sitting opposite him, extend his right hand, as if he wanted something.

After spending this time together, the dean seemed to have developed some "tacit understanding".

By observing the size and angle of Luo Di's outstretched right hand, the dean immediately looked around his office, trying to find something he could give Luo Di.

Discoveries were made very quickly.

A paper ball, handmade by a former discharged patient, was placed in the corner of the room. It had a warm and lovely smiling face drawn on it, and a series of words of gratitude to the hospital director written on the back.

The patient has been discharged from the hospital for more than ten years, but this thing has been kept in the office ever since.

Although it is very memorable, it seems that only this item can meet Luo Di's needs, or rather, the dean has already chosen this item in his heart and will not change it.

Bring me a paper ball.

Gently place it in Luo Di's hand.

It seemed they had found the right thing; the other person's eyes gradually brightened, and their thoughts slowly returned to reality.

Unlike before, today Luo Di did not chat with the dean after returning to normal, nor did he politely apologize, and he didn't even make the most basic eye contact.

He just stared at the paper ball in his hand.

His face was expressionless, but you could see red veins gradually creeping up his eyeballs.

"Dean."

When Luo Di suddenly shouted this, he also stared at the dean with his bloodshot eyes, startling the dean so much that his whole body twitched.

"Wha... what is it?"

Do you have a backpack here? A backpack big enough to hold this.

For Luo Di, who was in the intensive care unit, even a backpack was a contraband, and the hospital director knew very well that it was something that could not be given to him.

But the question before him had a commanding feel to it, and the dean's brain seemed to completely shut down. He didn't care about the hospital's rules at all and instead tried his best to find his backpack.

They quickly found a high-end black hiking backpack that had been purchased at a high price last year and kept in the closet. The dean always carried it when the team went hiking.

He immediately emptied the clutter from his backpack, forced a smile, and handed it to Luo Di.

"Thanks."

The other person placed the backpack on the desk, leaving the opening as open as possible to ensure the interior was spacious enough.

After making sure everything was correct, Luo Di carefully picked up the paper ball, being extremely cautious throughout the process since he only had one hand.

Even as she passed the zipper, she was fiddling with something with her fingers, as if worried that something might get caught on it.

The dean watched the process silently, vaguely sensing that Luo Di's mental state had not only not improved, but had even worsened.

Just as the paper ball was about to be put into the backpack,

Perhaps it was the dean's sudden distraction.

Perhaps the perspective has changed.

Perhaps it's a problem with the lighting.

The dean suddenly saw black hair that shouldn't exist, and cold, pale skin held in Luo Di's hands.

"Um!?"

The dean quickly rubbed his eyes, stepped forward, and looked inside the backpack.

Inside were still just paper balls given to him by former patients, with a thank-you note for the hospital director on them.

As Luo Di left, the dean slumped into his chair, lost in self-doubt.

"I got a good rest last night, so I shouldn't have misread it because I was tired, right? Could it be that my recent contact with others has also..."

That shouldn't be the case. It's probably due to the influence of Luo Di as a connector. It doesn't really matter, as long as he's normal and can do things for the country and resist the invasion from the corner.

He'll be going to the Investigation Bureau tomorrow as an assistant; we'll see how it goes then.