It was Qu Shui who entered the room.

The girl rubbed her eyes and asked carefully, “Dr. Gu, were you sleeping too?”

The room was dimly lit, with only the desk lamp on. In addition, Gu Shen was hunched over on the table, making him look like he had just taken a nap.

His legs were still a little sore and weren’t listening to him. Gu Shen tried to stand up but gave up immediately. He continued to maintain his current posture and smiled. “I was sorting out some documents and lost track of time. Could you please turn on the lights for me? Where’s Sister Xin?”

“She’s still resting.”

Qu Shui turned on the lights, and the room brightened, revealing that some color had returned to her pale skin. She sat on a chair timidly and praised softly, “This is the best sleep I’ve had in the past few days. Dr. Gu, you’re even more amazing than Sister Xin!”

Gu Shen smiled. “It’s a psychological effect. Don’t take it too seriously.”

“Um…” The girl lowered her head and fidgeted with her fingers, seemingly mulling over something. After a few seconds, she finally gathered her courage. “Dr. Gu, are you free tonight?”

Gu Shen was startled.

“Last time… actually…” Qu Shui’s voice became softer and softer, and her face became redder and redder.

Gu Shen then recalled.

Last time, Qu Shui had said it was getting late and that she was afraid to walk alone at night.

Sister Xin had mentioned that Qu Shui lived near Lipu Street. Being afraid to walk alone at night had probably just been an excuse.

She wanted to be alone with him.

Gu Shen wasn’t a fool. At this point, he could guess what Qu Shui meant.

Sure enough.

“I wonder if you… have time tonight?” Qu Shui intertwined her fingers, and her cheeks flushed with a rosy hue. “I want to treat you to dinner to express my gratitude.”

Gu Shen thought for a moment before politely declining, “I’m sorry. I might be busy.”

In fact, he was about to get off work, and he didn’t have any special appointment today.

But too many things had happened, and Gu Shen wanted some time alone to sort out his thoughts.

“It’s okay. I can wait for you.” Qu Shui looked up and said earnestly, “I’ll wait as long as it takes.”

Gu Shen had a headache.

“By the way, where’s that strangely dressed man from the afternoon?” Qu Shui suddenly asked.

Gu Shen thought to himself, Actually, that man… is right in front of you. He’s just invisible to the naked eye.

Qu Shui rubbed her head. “I just remembered that I’ve seen that strange man more than once. I saw him once at River Shoal.”

“Oh?” Gu Shen’s eyes lit up, and he became serious. “Do you remember when you last saw him?”

This might be an important clue in investigating the Eternal Foundation.

Qu Shui tried her best to recall. A moment later, she looked at Gu Shen’s serious eyes and said apologetically, “I can’t remember. Is this very important to you, Dr. Gu?”

Gu Shen felt a bit disappointed. He thought for a moment and asked, “Then, where did you see him?”

If he could determine the general area, he might be able to capture some clues by using Profile.

“Uhh…” Qu Shui tilted her head and smiled mischievously. “I might need to think hard about it. If you come with me to River Shoal, I might be able to remember.”

So, was this her plan all along? Gu Shen found it a bit amusing and exasperating.

This girl had some scheming in her and wasn’t as simple as he thought.

Gu Shen looked at his watch. “Okay, I’ll accompany you to River Shoal. But I still have something to do tonight, so I’m afraid you’ll have to wait a while. If you mind, we can postpone it until tomorrow.”

“Of course not!”

Hearing his response, Qu Shui seemed to become a different person. Her face lit up with joy as she immediately agreed.

Immediately after, her voice became softer again. “I-I-I’ll go home and change… Dr. Gu, I’ll wait for you downstairs!”

…

When Zhou Yexin woke up, the clock hanging on the wall was chiming.

She sat up, held her forehead, and looked at her pocket watch. Her head hurt. Five o’clock… Damn it… The day is almost over…

What’s wrong with me today? I slept until noon, came to the clinic, and continued sleeping until five in the afternoon.

Even now, she was still sleepy and felt she could sleep through the night when she returned home.

Am I being haunted by a ghost?

However, what was unbelievable was that after the afternoon nap, she felt much more relaxed and mentally refreshed.

Last night’s sleep had been terrible, and she had woken up utterly exhausted.

Zhou Yexin rubbed her temples. Now, her body was comfortable, and the sensation of being hollowed out had disappeared. She just felt a little tired.

She turned to look next door. The light in the next room was still on.

Gu Shen had yet to leave.

…

When Zhou Yexin pushed the door open, Gu Shen was in the midst of listing the common features between the mass insomnia case on Lipu Street and the fire case in Azure River on a piece of paper. He was trying to identify some characteristics of the Eternal Foundation in these two cases… There was a large circle in the corner of the paper around the words ‘River Shoal Serial Murder Case’.

Gu Shen raised an eyebrow.

After doing this, he looked up and smiled. “Sister Xin, you’re finally awake.”

Gu Shen had been waiting for her to wake up.

Due to him just awakening as a transcendent, his hypnosis skills were not proficient enough.

It was more than adequate to deal with ordinary people.

But for special existences like Sister Xin, who possessed the pocket watch, it might not be possible to completely erase her memories. If Zhou Yexin still had memories of the Blazing Fire after waking up, according to the rules of the Adjudication Bureau, he should apply hypnosis again to ensure that she would forget the relevant details and not cause any subsequent trouble.

He had figured out how to handle the situation.

If she still retained any relevant memories, he would use the Blazing Fire again and turn today into an ordinary day in her memories.

He could use this opportunity to figure out the details of the pocket watch. After all, it was a transcendental item.

But what happened next caught Gu Shen off guard.

Zhou Yexin sat directly in the seat for patients and took out the pocket watch exuding a transcendental aura from her bosom. “Little Gu… there are some things I really want to tell you, but I’m afraid you’ll think I’m crazy.”

She thought for a long time before saying, “Do you know? In this world, there are some things… that can’t be explained by science.”

Gu Shen could only remain silent.

In his silence, he stopped pretending to be surprised. He only stared at  Zhou Yexin silently because he felt that it was necessary to hypnotize her a second time after today’s conversation and erase all the relevant memories.

Seeing Gu Shen’s serious and attentive reaction, Zhou Yexin smiled self-deprecatingly. “I’m glad you don’t think I’m crazy. Perhaps that’s why Mr. Tang sent you to help me. You’re as enigmatic as him.

“After seeing the scene on the second floor today, I suddenly realized that I had underestimated you. You’ve been sorting out the experimental reports for the past few days. If anyone else saw what I’ve been experimenting with… they would probably find it absurd and ridiculous. But you’re too calm. This isn’t the calmness someone your age should have.

“Little Gu.” Zhou Yexin lowered her head. “I saw… the fire on your forehead at noon today.”

Her gaze lingered on the dial of the pocket watch, where a pointer was repeatedly jumping back and forth between two marks. “Can you tell me… what that is?”