Chapter 33 | Embers of the Past

The doctor conducting the re-examination was by no means old—in his early thirties at most. Word had it that he was a researcher seconded from the Dream Exploration and Development Research Institute to learn.

The research institute collaborated across various fields, making temporary secondments a common occurrence. The Post-Disaster Investigation Team had also participated in such exchanges in the past, so this was nothing new.

Yu Jin glanced at the time and gave a quiet nod.

Hopefully we can wrap this up quickly, and I can squeeze through.

The first step of the re-examination was a consciousness frequency verification.

Nowadays, with the ability to detect consciousness disturbances on a broad scale, new methods had emerged for verifying an individual's consciousness frequency.

In the past, confirming and treating split personalities relied heavily on thorough communication between the doctor and the patient. Now, however, doctors could guide patients into manifesting their different personalities and verify the frequency of each to confirm if the patient truly suffered from schizophrenia.

At the moment, the doctor's task was to first check whether Yu Jin's consciousness frequency was similar to the consciousness imprint left during his previous checkups.

In truth, consciousness was not set in stone; even the same person's consciousness imprint could differ at different times.

This test could only look for the greatest similarity through comparison. It was a relatively crude method of detecting whether the consciousness of the red-haired Yu Jin still lingered within the mind of Yu Jin, who had recently returned from a Nightmare Disaster.

The equipment started up, emitting a low-frequency hum. The sound felt like an invisible, giant hand reaching through Yu Jin's chest to grab his heart, squeezing it uncomfortably.

He half-reclined on the bed while the doctor sat beside him, holding a notebook, taking notes as he asked questions.

“Tell me about that dream.

“I know this will plunge you back into grief, but I'm sorry, it is a necessary step.”

Yu Jin did not fear recalling his grief. Each recollection was like a reminder, carving his hatred deep into his bones. Especially now that he had materialized the red-haired Yu Jin and possessed the means for revenge, he was even less likely to remain trapped in the past. Still, he had to act grieved.

He nodded and began to recall everything from that dream, starting with the dream-within-a-dream that had been resolved so easily with no casualties.

After listening to Yu Jin's description, the doctor pondered for a brief moment and analyzed logically:

“The academic community generally believes that dreams, to some extent, are still projections and extensions of consciousness.

“Therefore, any development in a dream can find its reference points in real-world experiences. This is also one of the areas that Dream Profilers specialize in.

“Your condition fits this standard perfectly.

“When a person faces traumatic stimulation exceeding their safety threshold, the brain initiates a self-protective mechanism to shield them from the extreme pain.

“In academia, this is called dissociation. The principle is that the brain peels away and seals off the entire memory of the event causing pain—similar to a cognitive circuit breaker—cutting off the perception of pain at its source.

“Yet, once the true memory is sealed, the subconscious engages in compensatory fantasies, filling the blank space of memory with a flawless illusion to numb oneself.

“The initial dream-within-a-dream was exactly this illusion.

“Your subconscious knew you had a split personality, but he was not the power of your awakening.

“In this compensatory fantasy, this personality gained power. He was strong enough to handle everything you couldn't, remedying all the losses you suffered in reality.

“But such a development is too idealized.

“Pain is only sealed, not resolved.

“If even a shred of memory leaks out, it deals a fatal blow to this happily-ever-after illusion.

“I imagine your ‘sweet dream’ was shattered very quickly, wasn't it?”

Yu Jin's eyes dimmed as he nodded.

“Yes.”

It had to be said that his mood had indeed been affected by the doctor. Becoming somewhat downcast, he thought that if the red-haired Yu Jin had been real back then, perhaps such a tragedy would not have occurred in reality.

But reality had no “what-ifs.”

Yu Jin continued to recount the subsequent events in the dream. The doctor listened, questioned, and took notes, every single piece of analysis or inquiry piercing straight to the depths of Yu Jin's heart.

Although Yu Jin tried his best to remain calm, some emotions simply could not be suppressed.

At the end, when speaking of parting with the red-haired Yu Jin, Yu Jin's emotions grew somewhat complicated. He didn't dare to imagine what would have happened to him now had he actually failed back then.

Pursing his lips, he spoke in a complex tone:

“Doctor, can you feel his decisiveness?

“To avoid causing trouble for everyone, he resolutely chose to leave.

“Yet, he never showed even a single trace of malice toward me, toward reality, or toward anyone else.

“Is a personality like his truly not allowed to exist?”

The doctor looked at Yu Jin, stopping his pen. He pondered for a moment before asking a question that shook Yu Jin to his very core:

“Yu Jin, I can sense your grief and sense of loss at losing your own companion.

“But out of a doctor's duty, I must ask:

“Are you asking this because you feel indignant about the departure of the other you, or are you laying the groundwork for his return?”

“!!!”

The more you say, the more mistakes you make!

Yu Jin shuddered as those words violently crashed into his mind.

One should never try to test others in their professional field unless they are more professional than they are.

Yu Jin panicked slightly, but he quickly composed himself. Lowering his head, he murmured, “Neither. I just hate that I was powerless.”

The doctor stood up, patted Yu Jin on the shoulder, and said with a somewhat meaningful tone:

“You shouldn't harbor such emotions. Their deaths were not caused by you.

“Don't be nervous either, I was just asking casually.

“Alright, let us continue.”

Next, the doctor asked a few more questions and even conducted a shallow consciousness hypnosis.

Yu Jin deliberately maintained his self-awareness throughout, sluggishly responding to various questions based on his prior impression of hypnosis, unsure if he had successfully fooled the doctor.

After a long while, the doctor woke Yu Jin.

“The re-examination ends here. For now, there don't seem to be any issues. The surgery was highly successful.

“That other personality has accompanied you for quite some time, so it's only natural to feel some discomfort upon suddenly losing that companionship.

“But everything will get better.

“Life never stops moving forward.”

The doctor offered a few comforting words, turned off the machine, sorted the documents at hand, and leaned over his desk to get busy.

Yu Jin opened his mouth, feeling that the examination had gone much smoother than expected.

“No issues” probably meant there were really no issues, right?

But was it truly fine?

He wanted to ask further, but right at that moment, the red-haired Yu Jin had just confirmed from Brother Scar that the woman's target was the hospital. Thus, his gaze focused as he directly bid the doctor farewell and walked out of the psychiatry department.

Before leaving, the doctor reminded him:

“I will send the re-examination results to you. I'll also synchronize a copy for Director Mei of the Post-Disaster Investigation Team.

“If you ever need anything, feel free to return at any time.”

Yu Jin thanked him repeatedly and left in a hurry.

After Yu Jin departed, the pen in the doctor's hand stopped. He looked up toward the doorway, frowning, then picked up the newly completed test results. After contemplating for a moment, he dialed a number.

A strong, resonant voice answered from the other end.

“This is Mei Yu.”

The doctor flipped through the various tests and sighed.

“We have a bit of a situation.”

The other end fell silent. Only after a long pause did she say, “Speak.”

“Comparing the current results with the sub-personality consciousness imprint Yu Jin left before, the trace of the identical consciousness frequency is actually stronger.

“This means the sub-personality has not disappeared from Yu Jin at all. On the contrary, it has been strengthened.

“Yet, the strange thing is, various frequency logs show that when the sub-personality is active, the primary personality isn't affected in the slightest. On the contrary, it is far more stable than during previous tracking examinations. I didn't even observe any behavioral characteristics of the sub-personality from him.

“This situation is completely unheard of. At one point, I even suspected there was an issue with the equipment.

“Following up with observations under emotional guidance, I found that while he doesn't seem to harbor a deep obsession with the sub-personality, he repeatedly brought him up. Thus, I suspect some sort of change might have occurred within him, allowing his sub-personality to be preserved in a manner I cannot comprehend.

“And this change, in all probability, stems from...”

“The Nightmare Disaster,” Director Mei spit out the words in a resolute voice.

“Yes, the Nightmare Disaster.” The doctor tapped the desk, an unusual light flashing in his eyes. “The Nightmare Disaster is a subject of eternal mysteries.

“If you could agree to let me list Yu Jin as a new research subject, I believe it would be a major boost to both the analysis of Nightmare Disasters and the development of psychiatric treatment.

“What do you think? Will you consider it?”

The line remained quiet for a brief moment before her voice grew cold.

“Say that again.”

“...Uh,” the doctor's smile instantly vanished. He stiffly began gathering the materials on the desk as he said, “I said I will immediately seal all test results and draft a flawless re-examination report for you to submit to the Bureau.

“Everything that happened today will rot in my mind. Even if Junior Brother Zhou asks me himself, I won't say a word.

“Don't you know how tight-lipped I am? I'm famous for it in the entire Research Institute.

“However, I must remind you. If Junior Brother Zhou's worries come true and the sub-personality really exerts a reverse influence on the primary personality, leading him to do things none of us wish to see... at that time...

“Will you still be willing to cover for Yu Jin?”

Director Mei answered from the other end of the line without the slightest hesitation:

“I take responsibility for my own people. Just do your job.”

“Then there is no issue. I will handle everything as quickly as possible. Have a great day.”

The doctor quickly hung up the phone. He stood in a daze for a short while, lost in thought. Soon, he pulled out a document labeled “Mei Yu” from the very bottom of the files, flipped through it for a moment, and murmured softly: