“Why did you leave me alone… why…”

The corpse behind him suddenly jolted upright. Luckily, Dr. Chen was already on guard. The instant he heard the voice, he spun around and hurled the iron ring in his hand.

The device seemed to guide itself. Though Dr. Chen’s throw wasn’t precise, the iron ring eerily curved midair and locked perfectly onto the expressionless man’s head—electrodes pressing firmly against both temples.

“Take your revenge on whoever wronged you! It’s not my fault! Take one more step, and don’t blame me for what happens next!”

Dr. Chen had learned the item’s use from his phone: bind it in the app’s inventory, set a keyword, then speak it aloud.

So much less sleek than mind-controlled artifacts in xianxia novels. Why force a verbal trigger? Ghosts exist—couldn’t this be a *little* more mystical?

Like activating it with a single thought. Way more convenient.

“I’LL KILL YOU ALL!!!!!" Controlled by resentment, the expressionless man ignored him. Snarling wildly, he lunged forward.

“My wife is the most beautiful!”

The moment the words left his lips, his phone vibrated. Blue arcs crackled across the iron ring. After the sharp *zzzt*, the man clutched his head, face twisted in pain, and collapsed to his knees.

“Aaaah—!” He screamed, clawing desperately at the ring—but it clung like welded steel, impossible to remove.

“My wife is the most beautiful! My wife is the most beautiful! My wife is the most beautiful…”

Driven by raw survival instinct, Dr. Chen bellowed the phrase. The words echoed down the shadowy corridor, mingling with the man’s agonized cries.

“Ah… stop… please stop… I’m sorry! I shouldn’t have looked down on you…” Kneeling, the man kowtowed repeatedly. The scene felt strangely familiar.

But Dr. Chen frowned. Why did he seem… lucid?

“You remember me?”

“Yes! Yes!”

“Fine. *My wife is the most, most beautiful!*”

After the shutdown keyword, the device on his forehead fell silent.

“Are you human… or ghost?”

“A wandering soul. This hospital is thick with yin energy. Those who die here can’t reincarnate—they linger, slowly becoming ghosts.”

“But ghosts are supposed to be mindless. Why do you remember?”

“That’s a *Malevolent Ghost*—consumed by hatred, pure frenzy. No reason, no mercy.”

“Uh… where’d you hear *that*?” A chill crept up Dr. Chen’s spine. He glanced sideways, sighing only when no crimson bled into the darkness.

“The *Survival Manual*. Edited by a premium VIP user. All newcomers read it. Ghost types: Malevolent Ghosts—born from unbearable suffering, total madness, instant death on contact. Weaker are Vengeful Ghosts—still resentful, but retain fragments of reason. Then malicious ghosts, wronged spirits… many kinds. Below them? Wandering Spirits. Like me.”

“So the doctors and nurses here?”

“Ordinary ghosts. Light resentment. Trapped, endlessly repeating their duties.”

Now that he thought about it—the ghost doctors, the nurse sisters—they weren’t attacking randomly. They saw living humans as patients. Trying to “treat” them.

“Then why attack *me*?”

“I… also carry hatred. Not your fault. But my mind was foggy. Couldn’t tell right from wrong…”

“Snapped out of it by my shock?”

Dr. Chen realized: electrotherapy *did* work. At least cleared a ghost’s head.

What if he used it on his wife…?

No. *No.* She was a Crimson Robe Malevolent Ghost. This trinket wouldn’t “fix” her. One wrong move—and he’d die *again*.

“Mm… but if I keep drifting here, this chaos will swallow my sanity. Turn me into a Vengeful Ghost. Please… can you take me out of here?”