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墨書 Inktalez
Cui Ming shook his head. "Jack, we said we are not bad people, and you know that very well. Why do you have to make things difficult for us? We only resort to violence when absolutely necessary. Not to mention us, the Ye Family is still out there."
Jack gently helped the Magic Doll woman sit down, and she quietly complied. Jack said, "I am not making things difficult for you. I used to be a decadent person, an alcoholic. I was just a teenager back then. I was already a thief, a representative of bad behavior. The people in the town hated me, including my parents. They called me crazy and said I killed my own brother."
"Did you kill him?" Cui Ming asked.
"No, I just didn't save him." Jack smiled strangely. "Watching him struggle in the well brought me an indescribable sense of relief. It was he who poured water on my blanket and said I wet the bed..."
Mi Xiaonan interjected, "Hey, can we stay on topic?"
Jack shrugged. "After I was kicked out, I found her in a cave near the town. She wouldn't eat or drink. I realized finally there was someone who didn't dislike me, someone who didn't hate me. I talked to her, and although it took her a long time to respond with even a simple acknowledgment, I was already very grateful. I named her Anna, and she had no objections. I hope you all can call her that too."
This is a story between a soulless Magic Doll and a madman. Although Jack's mind is clear, he is indeed mad in the sense that his actions are hard to predict. One day, a passerby discovered he was an aspiring practitioner and took him away from the town; he brought her along too. They went together to a rainforest in the southern part of the Western Continent.
This is yet another story of madness combined with madness plus a Magic Doll. Jack's teacher is also mad; he claims to be a doctor. Jack witnessed how he made a living person reveal secrets only the dead would know. Jack pleaded with his teacher to help the Magic Doll, and the teacher agreed, telling Jack that helping the Magic Doll would require materials—lots and lots of materials—and that he needed to kill people. Many people, while also documenting their suffering as they died.
Every time Jack killed someone, he would think of his brother struggling in the water. He laughed and cried as he watched people slowly die, relishing the only joy his childhood had ever given him.
After a moment of silence, Li Qing asked, "Is your teacher self-proclaimed as a doctor?"
"Yes."
"He lives in a Toxic Swamp area, and the nearby villagers call him Mundo Doctor."
"Yes."
Li Qing nodded. "The first-class wanted criminal of the Alliance, Mundo Doctor, is a medical genius. At the same time, he is also a madman. He started experimenting on the neighbor's cats and dogs when he was five, and by his teenage years, he was using his parents as subjects. He can illustrate the human brain's reactions under pain and the substances secreted during those times. He is a doctor who never uses anesthetics and prefers to experiment on living people. It is said that he has mastered many techniques, allowing him to transplant organs from the dead into the living, enabling the living to reveal secrets only the dead would know."
A twisted teacher had produced twisted students, along with an innocent, soulless Magic Doll. In this vast world, there were all kinds of wonders.
Cui Ming whispered, "What should we do?"
Li Qing thought for a while before responding, "Jack, you definitely need to go to the Alliance. As for this young lady... to be honest, I don't know either; we can only let the Alliance handle it."
"Handle?" Jack screamed uncontrollably at the word. "She is a person, not trash; she doesn't need to be handled."
Cui Ming reassured him, "We understand. We believe that she will be safer and more comfortable in Hero City than anywhere else. You might not know that there is a powerful energy entity in the desert, right? Anna's body is very suitable for it to inhabit. I think sending Anna to the Alliance is the best solution, Jack. Do you agree? Or will you stubbornly insist on your way and ultimately let a man take Anna's body?"
...
Joker Jack had extinguished Force. Being fitted with a Force Lock was the best outcome for him. Otherwise, they would have had to disperse all his Force and forcibly put on the Force Lock or kill him on the spot. Originally, Cui Ming and Li Qing had planned to take advantage of this situation to eliminate Joker Jack since he had almost killed Mi Xiaonan for no reason—a crime that could not be forgiven. However, after seeing Magic Doll Anna, Li Qing changed his mind and ultimately decided to lock up Joker Jack, sending him under escort from Ye Family to Hero City. He would face a trial, with the verdict determined before the assessment to decide whether Joker Jack was qualified to participate in the Assessment Match. However, with so many lives lost at his hands, Jack's trial would not go smoothly; he might very well face execution.
What about Anna? Cui Ming somewhat agreed with Joker Jack's perspective; Anna seemed to possess a soul. Even though Joker Jack was fitted with a Force Lock and she displayed no emotions, she kept her gaze fixed on him as he walked out of the cabin, watching until he disappeared. Anna seemed like just a robot; she had her own system for judging friend from foe and could sense hostility. When there was no hostility from others, she would not react at all.
The female bodyguard bought her a white dress to wear. Before putting it on, she showed no resistance or cooperation; however, when she stood before the mirror wearing it, Cui Ming sensed that she appeared somewhat lost. Jayce said to Cui Ming and Li Qing, "She seems to truly have a soul; she has just been closed off for too long and may even have hypnotized herself into believing she is merely a Magic Doll without a soul."
"Is there a solution?"
Yellen replied, "There are no specialized Force doctors in the Alliance; there is only one Force doctor on Eternal Star—Mundo."
Mi Xiaonan interjected, "My senior brother has some research in Force medicine as well."
A few days later, Ashen arrived at the Ye Family estate to examine Anna. The examination lasted half a day, and when Ashen emerged, he addressed everyone, saying, "She has a soul, but it is lost... For the atheists among you, let me put it this way: her consciousness has been infused into this shell by a powerful magic. However, for various reasons, she is medically classified as an Idiot."
Idiots and lunatics share a commonality; both have lost their clear consciousness. However, there is a fundamental difference: lunatics act impulsively, while Idiots are generally characterized by low intelligence.
Ashen continued, "Her IQ is around that of a three-year-old."
"But..."
"Let me finish. Although her IQ is at the level of a three-year-old and has the potential for growth, in professional terms, she suffers from severe depression. I personally suspect that either she or her creator has hypnotized her; she lives in her own world and cannot escape it. From my perspective, she is harmless. Unfortunately, I lack the ability to cure her. Perhaps through play and other means, she could gradually emerge from this state, but the effectiveness would likely be limited and would require significant time and effort. If you are serious about helping her, the first step is to spark her interest in people or things—curiosity is human nature. Only when she becomes curious about something will she begin to explore and think. As long as she can show some curiosity, there is still a chance for her recovery."
They were meeting on the lawn in front of the Ye Family estate. The Ye Family was set to hold an inauguration ceremony in two days—very low-key—and Cui Ming and his companions had been invited as guests... This was not the Ye Family's wish but rather a matter of convenience since they were staying there. Cui Ming glanced over at Anna, who was quietly sitting on a large rock at the edge of the slope; he seemed to see Zhir in her. Suddenly struck by an idea, he wondered how it would be to take Anna to the desert. Zhir would have a companion and would not be a bother; with Zhir around, no one would bully Anna. Two melancholic souls could spend each day together in the desert. Coincidentally, it appeared that neither of them had any foreseeable end to their lifespans.
As he pondered this casually, today's meeting was presided over by Yellen. In attendance were Li Qing, Cui Ming, Mi Xiaonan, Jayce, and also a vampire named Vlad. Jayce informed Vlad that if he couldn't pass the League's scrutiny, even if he and his sister were deeply in love and everyone in Twilight City supported them, it wouldn't matter. The League needed to assess Vlad's potential danger; there would be a series of tests that wouldn't be very pleasant.
Yellen gathered everyone to explain the key points regarding the tests.
"Vlad," Yellen said, "the Ye Family guarantees your freedom of movement and assures you will not be attacked by League members while you are here. You are currently here voluntarily... Let me finish first. At this moment, you are not a wanted criminal by the League but are considered a dangerous individual within its jurisdiction. For such individuals, the League must capture them alive; killing you is not an option. This is also a sign of respect for practitioners. Once captured alive, whether you like it or not, you must undergo testing to confirm the dangers posed by your practice of Blood Magic. I will now inform you of the test details; you can choose to leave Ye Family or accept the tests. If you accept the tests, we will send someone with you to Hero City."
Yellen opened the documents before him and stated, "The first test requires you to live alone with a beautiful woman for seven days without any additional blood intake; we will test whether you lose your sanity under the craving for Blood Magic. This is akin to quitting smoking—very uncomfortable—and most troublesome is that right before you lies a cigarette."
"The second test assesses whether your anger and sorrow will lead you to lose your sanity." Yellen added, "I must share some unfortunate news: Jayce's father has already refused his daughter from associating with you; she will enlist as an ordinary soldier in two days. This isn't part of the test; if you're holding on because of love, I advise you to give up. To be honest, even if the royal family agrees, we at Ye Family will not consent and will work hard to persuade them against her relationship with you. What you're striving for now is merely a Freeman status; however, that won't earn you fair treatment from others. Of course, you are also under protection; even if others discriminate against or despise you, the League supports you. After passing these tests, you can return to Ding Family."
Vlad wore a tailcoat and had golden hair—handsome and elegant—he nodded and said, "Blood Magic is just a means; I also want to prove that techniques are neither good nor bad. Your example about smoking is quite apt; I can find alternatives that won't affect others' health—I firmly believe this." (To be continued.)
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