I created the myth of the Great Old Ones.

Lu Ban feels he has a lot of inspiration right now.

"...There is one, but she is quite emotional."

The nurse thought of a patient who had been admitted to the hospital some time ago.

"It's okay. You see, I had a good chat with the guy from earlier. There won't be any problems."

Lu Ban was full of confidence.

He and the nurse arrived at another ward, which was quite different from others. It was separated by a glass wall in the middle, just like the visiting rooms in prisons.

On the other side of the glass wall was a normal ward, where a woman who looked to be around thirty years old sat by the bed, like a parent picking up their child from kindergarten.

"She was a normal person at first, but she became mentally unstable after an accident. She has severe delusions and mania, and is very aggressive."

The nurse explained it once.

"ACCIDENT?"

Lu Ban was curious; the woman seemed perfectly normal.

"It's that cruise ship accident, right? The one in the Pacific Ocean. She was one of the survivors. She just came back this Chinese New Year. I heard she had already fallen ill while at sea."

The nurse reminisced as she spoke.

"The Starship?"

Lu Ban thought of the cruise ship that had sank in the Pacific Ocean. He only saw the news about the cruise ship fire, and didn't pay attention to the rest. Now it seems that the tourists who suffered the disaster are waiting for the storm to subside before returning home by other ships.

Thinking of the video of the eerie city at sea that someone had filmed, Lu Ban suddenly became interested.

He walked up to the glass wall and greeted the other person.

"Hello, I'm Lu Ban, and I'm here to help you."

"You can't help me."

The woman's voice was cold. She glanced at Lu Ban and continued speaking before Lu Ban could speak.

"Unless you can play Pictionary with me."

"?"

Lu Ban was a little confused.

What does this have to do with Pictionary?

Lu Ban didn't understand.

"That's just how she is. She's always looking for people to play all sorts of games. Sometimes it's rock-paper-scissors, sometimes it's word chain, sometimes it's charades. It seems like only these games can interest her. Apart from that, she doesn't say a word at all."

The nurse explained to Lu Ban.

"That's interesting."

He looked at the woman.

"Okay, let's play a game. Who wants to draw first?"

The woman didn't respond; instead, she picked up a pen from the table and began drawing on the paper.

A few minutes later, the woman drew a picture and put it on the glass for Lu Ban to see.

Lu Ban saw that it was a distorted city, including angles and structures that would not appear in normal spaces. It was hard to imagine that this was drawn by a mental patient in just a few minutes.

If Lu Ban hadn't been told, he might have thought it was the work of an abstract painter.

"No, isn't this charades a bit too difficult?"

Lu Ban made a sarcastic remark.

Shouldn't you normally draw cats, dogs, elephants, and airplanes?

This sketch-like drawing is very detailed, but you can't guess what it is at all!

"...Is this the city you saw from the ship?"

Lu Ban asked tentatively.

He didn't know the name of the city, nor did he know why this woman could draw it in such detail.

No, Lu Ban thought, it was as if the image was engraved into the woman's mind... It wasn't that she was depicting the city, but that the city was chasing after her.

"It's right there."

The woman spoke, her voice tinged with suppressed emotion.

"It's right there!!!"

Lu Ban noticed that her hands were clenched into fists, and her nails were digging deep into her flesh.

"Yes, you are safe now."

Lu Ban comforted her.

"No, you don't know, it's right there!"

The woman's voice became panicked, her eyes filled with fear, and her gaze had already shifted from Lu Ban, as if... she was staring at what was behind Lu Ban.

"It's right there!"

The woman screamed, looking hysterically at something behind Lu Ban in fear.

Lu Ban felt a chill and looked back.

There was nothing behind him except the nurse.

"what happened?"

The nurse looked innocent as Lu Ban turned around. She also looked around herself and found nothing there.

"No, it's nothing."

When Lu Ban turned his head, he saw that the woman's face was pressed against the glass, displaying a frenzied and distorted appearance.

"It's here!"

"It's here!!"

"It's here!!!"

The woman made indistinct sounds as she pressed herself against the glass, almost climbing up it. The sight was terrifying, and the nurse was startled, frantically calling for a caregiver.

After watching the woman being gently pushed back by the caregiver, given a sedative injection, and slowly fall asleep, Lu Ban and the nurse left the ward.

"Was this woman always like this?"

Lu Ban asked.

"She was actually fine before, except that she would become very manic when she had an episode, but this is the first time it's been this severe..."

The young nurse was still shaken. She looked at Lu Ban, hesitant to speak.

You can't say that she went crazy because you came, can you?

After this incident, Lu Ban and she had no choice but to leave the intensive care unit.

Lu Ban planned to wander around the mental hospital again, have a meal, and experience life there.

He arrived at the cafeteria, where the dishes were relatively light, without any spiciness or greasiness. Lu Ban ordered a stir-fried winter melon, a plate of potato and pork slices, a bowl of pork rib soup, and three ounces of rice. He then sat down with his tray.

The young nurse ate very little; she sat opposite Lu Ban.

The canteen for patients with mild symptoms sometimes also hosts medical staff, creating the impression that patients are also normal.

While they were eating, a patient suddenly sat down next to Lu Ban.

He took two bites and then looked at Lu Ban.

Are you Lu Ban?

The patient suddenly spoke up and asked.

Lu Ban was stunned for a moment, then looked at the other person, who was not an acquaintance.

"I've seen your movies, they're very good."

The man continued speaking.

"I didn't expect to have any fans here. Thank you for your support."

Lu Ban didn't know whether to be happy or sad.

"I heard you're making another movie. Can you tell me what it's about? You see, I can't go to the cinema to see it anyway."

The patient asked curiously.

"It's a story about searching for a missing family member. If you'd like to see it, I can contact the dean and arrange for an open-air cinema in our institute to screen it."

Lu Ban gave a simple answer.

"Oh, that's great! I really love your movies, especially the actors. Their acting is so professional. Where did you find them?"

The patient continued to press for answers.

"It wasn't me who looked for them, it was them who found me."

Lu Ban explained.

The patient asked a few more questions, and Lu Ban didn't hide anything and answered them.

After finishing his meal, he noticed that the other person was about to follow him again. Feeling a bit strange, he made up an excuse and pulled the nurse to a corner.

"Nurse Tao, was that patient in critical condition?"

Lu Ban asked.

"Him? He seems to have been transferred here a couple of days ago; he has mild symptoms."

The young nurse was confused.

There's a problem.

Lu Ban pondered for a moment, then spoke again.

"Could you arrange for us to meet in the meeting room?"