death of hope

Chapter 968 "Psionic Storm" (44) Suddenly Awakening

"Where am I!? Why am I..."

The blonde girl struggled to sit up, her dazzling long hair cascading down like a waterfall, her hands gripping the railing.

He was panting heavily, his forehead and nose covered in fine beads of sweat, his mind a jumbled mess:
"What day is it today? Is there an exam?"

I...had a...very long...dream...

That voice, as melodious as a silver bell, was the most gentle, heavenly sound Leon Vilnius had ever heard in his life.
Beneath golden eyelashes, a pair of innocent, blinking silver-gray eyes held the most beautiful carbon-based life miracle he had ever witnessed:

"Hello, Zero, you're awake!"

"Number Zero? Who's that? I don't know him... Wait, who are you?!"

The blonde girl turned her head warily towards the direction from which the sound came. She could only see blurry figures, and a sense of unknown fear gripped her. Her voice became trembling.

"My eyes..."

Zero has been imprisoned in this psionic research institute for a long time, subjected to countless dissections and studies, with parts of his brain tissue removed and smart chips implanted.
The brain nerves are slowly recovering under the nourishment of methylcobalamin (a vitamin B12 derivative). The lens and cornea attached to the eyeball are still unable to focus, but vision will gradually recover over time.

Unfortunately, Li Ang was not a professional and could not explain these things to her.

"I've gone blind!"

Zero screamed and struggled to get out of bed, only to realize that her hands and feet were firmly bound by canvas restraints.

This fear made her struggle even harder, causing the cables, fiber optic cables, and IV drip bottles to sway. A strand of her blonde hair, caught in the cable organizer, was torn off, making her wince in pain.
"Ouch!"

Li Ang strode forward, grabbed the fair wrist with a pair of iron-like hands, and pressed it hard onto the mattress.

She felt Li Ang's hot breath on her face, and her fear intensified; two streams of tears welled up in her silver-gray eyes.

"There's a bad guy!...Brother! Help me!"

(What's going on... this strength...)
Unexpectedly, this delicate girl with slender arms and legs possessed incredible strength. Li Ang had to use all his strength to barely subdue her, leaving him no time to do anything else.

"Don't move around, you'll hurt yourself!" Li Ang shouted towards the outside of the curtain wall, "Hey! Someone come and lend a hand!"

He didn't need to remind him; it was all seen on the surveillance footage: project leader Ryan Elsson stormed in with several researchers.

They grabbed her with all their might, showing no mercy whatsoever, like a butcher binding livestock, roughly tightening the restraints to their shortest length and binding her tightly, leaving her fair wrists and ankles bruised and purple.
Ryan opened the freezer and took out a powerful sedative with hallucinogenic effects, but Li Ang quickly stopped him:

"Team leader... don't hit her, it'll hurt her..."

Ryan snorted: "Little Lee, you're not a psionicist. As an assistant, your job is to handle safety. Leave the rest to us professionals, okay?"

A female researcher covered her mouth and laughed, "Young Li is a nobleman from Vilnius, he knows how to cherish women, unlike you small-town test-takers, you're all like wild boars who don't know how to care for women!"

After a burst of laughter, Li Ang's opinion was ignored again, and a strong sedative was injected directly into the IV drip.
Zero stopped struggling, his eyes glazed over, and he mumbled a sentence over and over again:

"Brother... Tetsuya-kun... save me..."

"Gag her, she's so noisy!" Dr. Ryan showed no pity, only impatience, completely treating the psionicist as a guinea pig.

Zero's pitiful appearance rekindled Li Ang's long-suppressed chivalrous spirit:
(She was born of a mother and raised by a father... someone cares... how can you do this...)
But this time, Li Ang used the director's words to numb himself:
(This is a necessary sacrifice...for psionics...for humanity...technological progress always means sacrifice...)
Anyway, he wasn't the main culprit; at most he was just an accomplice, so he didn't have to bear too much guilt.
It's unclear when it started, but the once righteous and awe-inspiring youth has become increasingly hypocritical, a hypocrisy they call "maturity" and "rationality."
Before long, Joseph arrived, looking travel-worn, his wrinkled face beaming with joy.
Zero's prolonged coma had greatly worried the old man, but now that he's awake, the research can proceed:

"Have the vital signs stabilized?"

Heart rate 49, blood pressure 73-110, blood oxygen 98%.

The old man stepped on the trash can pedal, saw the needle in the plastic bag, grabbed the tablet computer, and smashed it against Li Ang's shoulder.

"Your heart rate is too slow! How many times have I told you not to abuse tranquilizers!"

Li Ang felt so wronged, but in order to maintain harmony with his colleagues, he remained silent and took the blame in silence.

Dr. Lane was very satisfied with his performance, thinking to himself that this young man had high emotional intelligence and knew how to get along with people. He grinned foolishly and said to the director:

"I was the one who gave her the sedative. Xiao Li tried to stop me, but I didn't listen. This crazy woman is too much of a troublemaker. I wanted to calm her down, so I gave her an injection."

Joseph glared at his students: "You think you're all grown up now, huh? You don't take your teacher's advice seriously anymore!"
If Zero dies, I'll make you all pay with your lives!

After venting his anger, the old man patted Li Ang on the shoulder: "Thanks to your good care, you suppressed the surge of spiritual energy, which allowed her to wake up smoothly."

"Keep an eye on my students, don't let them cause trouble. This month's special bonus will be arranged for you first."

"Thank you, Director... Number Zero keeps talking about her brother, and Tetsuya-kun... those two are..."

"stop!"

Joseph interrupted him: "Our institute studies psionic abilities, not mundane family matters."

You only need to focus on one thing: how to do your job as a lab assistant well!

"Uh... I think... this might actually be useful for work..."

"Then tell me."

“When I was a child, I volunteered at a shelter in my hometown of Ikes. Many psionicists were arrested as mentally ill and no amount of medication could calm them down. The treatment methods became increasingly extreme and violent, and accidents kept happening. The people in charge were all killed by psionic bursts.”

The new head of the shelter, a PhD in psychology, banned electric shocks and frontal lobe removal, replacing them with psychotherapy, and since then, there have been very few incidents.

I was thinking, if we could apply this method to Zero, her emotions would stabilize, and her psionic energy would also stabilize, which would benefit our research..."

Joseph stroked his beard after hearing this: "Indeed, the previous psionic bursts were all due to Zero's mental breakdown. Any nightmares she has or any sudden recollections she experiences can trigger a catastrophe..."

Li Ang puffed out his chest and said confidently, "Although I am not formally trained, I have taken related courses. If I can access more information and learn more about Zero's life, I can try to alleviate her depression and mania."

Joseph nodded: "To be honest, I'm not a big fan of psychotherapy, but trying is better than doing nothing. I'm focused on my psionic research, I don't have time to look into Zero's life story, and I'm not interested..."

In this way, I will grant you further access, allowing you to view all information about Zero, including the initial documents from headquarters.

Once the sedative wears off, you can begin psychological guidance. I'll give you... um, a month. If it's not effective, stop, understand? And most importantly, keep it a secret.

"Don't let that venomous woman, Dongshan Liulizi, know. Don't let headquarters know that Zero has awakened; many executives are eyeing this precious gem."

"Don't worry, Director." Following the customs of the New Sapporo Colony, Li Ang bowed deeply to the old man.
"I am absolutely loyal to you!"