Starting with dissecting ghost stories

"Lei, what brings you here?"

Wang Xinran rubbed her aching shoulder and regained her balance with Shen Xing's help. But soon, she realized that Shen Xing's posture was almost like he was hugging her.

She felt her face getting hot, but she didn't try to pull away until Shen Xing let go of her hand, at which point she felt she could breathe again.

"Is he your brother?" Shen Xing asked with a smile, slightly tiptoeing.

His smile froze briefly before he regained his composure.

"Ah, yes... I don't know when he followed me here..." Wang Xinran looked in her brother's direction, her feelings somewhat complicated. She glanced around and then noticed the switchblade on the ground.

"Lei, what exactly are you trying to do?" Wang Xinran's tone was already a little angry. She took a step forward and stood between Wang Lei and Shen Xing, seemingly protecting Shen Xing.

Almost at the same time that Wang Xinran revealed her anger, Shen Xing also felt a nameless rage rising in his heart, but this emotion only lasted for a moment before dissipating.

Shen Xing: "..."

The feeling of anger he had just experienced was quite novel to him; he had almost never felt such a strong emotional fluctuation before. He had originally wanted to experience it for a while longer, but now he was forced to calm down.

Not only happiness, but other emotions can also spread through Wang Xinran's current feelings, and she herself... seems unaware that she has this ability.

Shen Xing finally understood why Wang Xinran hadn't realized that her emotions could affect those around her.

When she felt happy at home, her parents were also radiating happiness, creating a harmonious atmosphere, but there was one person who seemed out of place.

That's Wang Lei, Wang Xinran's younger brother, standing right in front of me.

He, seemingly infected by the same abnormality, appeared unaffected by Wang Xinran's emotional influence.

Therefore, in Wang Xinran's view, her parents may have become more accommodating than before, but her younger brother is still rebellious as always, so it is not easy for her to wonder "why are all the people around me so happy".

And what about her brother...?

He's been corrupted by something, and his mind is acting up? But why can't he use his anger to influence others? Like, influence me?

Why did he charge at me with a knife, but then stop when he saw me?

First, we can rule out appearance as the cause, since we are both men.

While Shen Xing was pondering, Wang Lei over there seemed to ignore his sister's lecture.

He looked up at Shen Xing and asked, "What... is your name?"

"Shen Xing, Shui Rong Shen, a pair." Shen Xing's face showed a deliberately questioning expression as he asked, "And you?"

"Wang Lei, the Lei of the three stones." Wang Lei looked at Shen Xing and said seriously, "Can you see them? Those monsters."

"Wang Lei!" Wang Xinran emphasized, calling him by his full name.

At this moment, she was both angry and ashamed, and her eyes even stung with tears.

She had been looking forward to today's meeting since two nights ago, but not long after they met, her younger brother came over and started acting crazy, wanting to tell Shen Xing all the strange things he had said at home.

This made her feel as ashamed as if she were being publicly executed, and she didn't dare to look at Shen Xing's expression.

monster?

Is he talking about her sister?

"What kind of monster?" Shen Xing asked curiously.

"All the monsters! All the other monsters besides the three of us... those shadowy figures on the street!" Wang Lei suppressed his excitement and glanced around warily.

"Uh... sorry, I don't really know much about it." Shen Xing scratched his head and said apologetically, "I've only played Red Alert."

Shen Xing's words caused Wang Lei's expression to show obvious disappointment.

"It's alright now." Wang Lei turned around, bent down, and picked up the switchblade.

"However, if there's anything you need, feel free to tell me," Shen Xing called out to Wang Lei, who was about to leave, with a gentle smile. "If there's anything I can do to help, I will."

Wang Lei turned around, glanced at Shen Xing with some surprise, then said nothing, slung his bag over his shoulder, and left.

Watching Wang Lei's departing figure, Shen Xing fell into deep thought.

What did he mean by that?

Aside from those three, what about all the other monsters?

Does that mean they're good friends? Oh no, he's including me in the good friend category too.

After trying to understand Wang Lei's initial actions and his reaction upon seeing him from Wang Lei's perspective, Shen Xing made a rough deduction.

Wang Lei believed that everyone around him had turned into monsters, and only he and his sister remained "human." He thought his sister was going to meet a monster, so he came with a knife.

But upon seeing himself, he stopped moving, because Shen Xing was also a "person".

Wang Lei can see abnormal creatures... only in a different way.

From Wang Lei's perspective, he, his sister, and Shen Xing, who was fused with the abnormal flesh and blood, were all human.

In Wang Lei's view, other normal, ordinary people are monsters.

That would explain Wang Lei's behavior and words.

Did he not acquire the same abilities as Wang Xinran?

Or is it that... the ability to change one's perspective is itself?

What exactly are these black beehives? Why does the same anomaly exhibit two completely different abilities?

Is it related to the area being eroded?

Both Wang Xinran and Wang Lei were eroded on their heads. Wang Xinran's erosion was most noticeable on her forehead, near the prefrontal cortex, while Wang Lei's erosion started from her eye sockets and progressed into her brain. Based on what Shen Xing had observed so far, Wang Lei's erosion was more severe.

Does the ability manifest differently depending on the area of ​​the brain that is eroded? What abilities do different brain regions correspond to?

If this is indeed the case, then the area of ​​Wang Lei's brain that was eroded should not only be the area behind his eyes, but rather it should extend almost through the middle of his brain, with the parietal lobe, occipital lobe, and temporal lobe all being eroded to varying degrees.

Therefore, his spatial imagination, visual perception, and language comprehension may have all been affected to some extent.

This involves the human brain, and it's the most complex and challenging problem Shen Xing has ever encountered.

Although he had studied systemic anatomy, it only dissects the human body macroscopically according to functional modules. To truly understand the brain mechanism, he needed to study neuroanatomy.

This is another independent branch, a field that Shen Xing is completely unfamiliar with.

"I'm sorry, Shen Xing, my brother..." Wang Xinran looked down at the tip of her shoe, somewhat flustered.