Chapter 151: Instructor Gu's Illness

At the free shooting range.

Bai Li, wearing anti-blast goggles and ear muffs, raised his handgun, squinting slightly. His usually unserious chubby face was rare to see with such seriousness as he repeatedly pulled the trigger.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Three gunshots rang out in succession, the bullets almost simultaneously hitting the bullseye two hundred meters away. A faint smile appeared at the corners of Bai Li's mouth.

"Ten-ring, ten-ring, ten-ring!"

The electronic target system's voice echoed through the range. Bai Li smugly blew on the muzzle of his gun before removing the ear muffs and stretching lazily.

"Shooting training? It's nothing much~"

He walked over to a nearby chair, gulped down a few mouthfuls of water, and casually propped up one leg.

After two months of adaptation, he had begun to get used to the mental currents brought by the wristwatch. At least he no longer involuntarily performed backflips, though the first few days had been tough, and he had lost a significant amount of weight.

Who could tolerate suddenly doing a backflip right before falling asleep, with no control over their own body?

The worst part was, his backflip not only affected him but also startled Lin QiYe, who was peacefully napping nearby.

That had been the second time Lin QiYe had harbored murderous thoughts toward Bai Li…

Now it was free shooting time. There was no instructor overseeing the practice; it was simply meant to help the new recruits familiarize themselves with the firearms. The basics had already been taught, and now they needed practice as a form of free activity after the theory lessons.

And as shooting was Bai Li's strong suit, this was naturally the most leisurely and comfortable training for him.

"By the way, I haven't seen Instructor Gu in two months… Where did he go?" Bai Li suddenly seemed to remember something, asking in confusion.

Cao Yuan, who was focused on the target in the distance, didn't answer but kept firing.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Ten-ring, nine-ring, nine-ring!"

He sighed, putting down the pistol, shaking his head.

"I don't know."

Bai Li tilted his head, seemingly coming to an understanding. "Did he go back home to get married?!"

"…I remember he was already married."

"Second marriage."

"…"

Cao Yuan couldn't be bothered to entertain Bai Li's wild guesses and rolled his eyes.

At that moment, another three gunshots rang out.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

"Missed the target, missed the target, missed the target!"

Lin QiYe: ...

He calmly put down his gun, turned, and walked back to his seat, his gaze toward the target filled with resentment…

"Hehehe, QiYe, you really need to work on your shooting. Out of over two hundred recruits, you're one of the few who missed the target three times in a row," Bai Li teased with a grin, then patted his chest confidently. "If you ask me, you might as well just call me your teacher. I can teach you my legendary shooting skills!"

"Just you?" Lin QiYe gave him a glance and replied coolly, "During the close combat training later, why don't you be my opponent…"

"Bro, I was wrong, I really was wrong." Bai Li's body trembled.

Lin QiYe leisurely took a sip of water, his brow furrowing slightly. "But the fact that Instructor Gu has been missing for two months is really strange…"

Ever since Lin QiYe had posed that tricky question to Instructor Gu two months ago, the instructor had disappeared, and even his lessons had been temporarily taken over by other instructors. Lin QiYe had been hoping for an answer from him, but two months had passed with no word.

"Lin QiYe!"

At that moment, a familiar voice called out from the distance. Lin QiYe turned to see Instructor Hong waving at him.

After a brief hesitation, he quickly walked over.

"Instructor Hong, did you need something?" Lin QiYe asked, puzzled.

Instructor Hong studied him for a long moment before sighing deeply. "Do you even know what you've done…?"

Lin QiYe was taken aback. "Me? What did I do?"

Instructor Hong sighed again, his expression bitter. "The problem is the question you gave to Instructor Gu. You've driven him to mental breakdown… Now he's in a psychiatric hospital for treatment!"

Lin QiYe's mouth opened in shock, his eyes wide in disbelief.

What?

Instructor Gu… went insane?

Because of the question he asked?

"He… What kind of symptoms does he have?"

"He's gone completely mad," Instructor Hong said with a touch of bitterness. "He just stared at the wall all day, muttering things like 'what's real, what's fake, what are we, what can be proven,' and at times he would suddenly start flailing around, saying he needed to find the 'real world'..."

"But after two months of treatment, his condition has improved, and he can now live a relatively normal life."

Lin QiYe was stunned.

This was exactly like Merlin's situation!

Wait a minute…

Now that he thought about it, it wasn't that surprising. Both Instructor Gu and Merlin were people with a strong curiosity about the world, and they both seemed to get obsessed with problems, which could drive them to madness after prolonged mental strain.

Wait!

Does this mean the treatment plan being used on Instructor Gu could work for Merlin too?

Lin QiYe's eyes slowly lit up.

"I'm not here to blame you," Instructor Hong continued. "After all, this is really more about Instructor Gu getting stuck on an issue. It wasn't entirely your fault."

"So, what are you here for…?"

"You know, we Night Watchmen have a lot of secrets that need to stay confidential. We can't let someone stay in a public psychiatric hospital for too long. So we're going to apply for his leave and let him recuperate at home. In a few days, he might be returning to the training camp to pack up and head back home. If you run into him, absolutely, absolutely, absolutely…

Just don't mention anything about the 'real world,' alright? If you see him, just avoid him!"

Lin QiYe blinked and nodded obediently, "Understood."

"Good. Now, go back to training," Instructor Hong said, visibly relieved. He waved and walked away.

Lin QiYe stood still for a moment, then, as soon as Instructor Hong was out of sight, his lips curled into a smile…

"I need to ask you both a favor."

Back at the shooting range, Lin QiYe turned to Bai Li and Cao Yuan, speaking seriously.

The two exchanged confused looks. "What is it?"

"If you see Instructor Gu around the camp these next few days, make sure you let me know immediately!"

"Why?" Cao Yuan asked, puzzled.

"I need to ask him something."

Bai Li thought for a moment, then nodded. "Is it really that important?"

"Very important."

"Alright, I'll take care of it." Bai Li patted his chest, then pulled out three Rolex watches from his pocket. He held them up high, took a deep breath, and shouted loudly to the recruits training in the range:

"Brothers! I need to ask you all for a favor…"