As Xu Ze approached, the girl suddenly noticed him moving slowly toward her. Instantly, her grip on the knife tightened, pressing the blade harder against her neck. A thin red line appeared on her skin as she screamed in terror, “Stay away! Don’t come near me! If you take another step, I’ll kill myself… I swear I’ll kill myself!”
Seeing the girl’s escalating frenzy, the pathology professor behind them realized something was seriously wrong—she might genuinely be suffering a mental breakdown. He quickly shouted at Xu Ze, “Hey, you! Get back! She’s unstable—let the police handle this!”
Ignoring the professor’s warning, Xu Ze fixed his gaze on the girl’s desperate, helpless eyes and focused his mental energy, activating the only skill he had mastered—Mental Connection.
Mental Connection was an advanced psychological technique used by elite therapists in the future, specifically designed to treat temporary psychosis caused by psychological trauma. That was why Xu Ze felt confident enough to step forward and help her.
After reaching Level 1, his mental energy had grown significantly stronger compared to when he had dealt with Tao Zhixiong. Now, he was certain his Mental Connection could calm her down.
Everyone around held their breath, staring at Xu Ze in shock. No one understood what he was trying to do, fearing he might provoke the girl further. Even Luo Zi and Gang Zi, Xu Ze’s friends, watched nervously, not daring to make a sound, afraid that any disturbance might push the unstable girl into hurting him.
Under the crowd’s stunned and anxious gazes, Xu Ze performed his first-ever mental induction—hypnotizing the girl.
Normally, hypnosis would have little effect on an agitated patient. But Xu Ze’s enhanced mental energy and his unique Mental Connection skill made it possible.
As he concentrated, a strange wave of mental energy surged toward the girl’s eyes like an invisible force.
For someone in a psychotic state, the first step of Mental Connection was a mental shockwave—a sudden strike to jolt the mind, briefly restoring clarity or reducing agitation. Only then could the hypnotist seize control and stabilize the subject’s emotions.
Xu Ze executed this perfectly.
The moment his mental energy struck, the girl froze, her terrified, despairing eyes flickering with a brief moment of clarity.
Seizing the opportunity, Xu Ze deepened his influence while speaking softly, “Tao Xiao… I’m Xu Ze. Do you recognize me?”
Under the effect of his mental energy and the sound of his voice, the girl’s gaze gradually shifted from fear to confusion. Her panicked expression slowly softened as she stared into Xu Ze’s strangely glowing eyes.
“Xu… Xu Ze? You’re Xu Ze?” Her voice trembled, still laced with fear but now mixed with a sliver of hope. “Why are you here? Please… help me! They… they were trying to hurt me!”
Hearing this, Xu Ze’s eyebrows twitched. He understood now. A flash of anger crossed his eyes, but he quickly suppressed it, maintaining a calm, soothing tone.
“Tao Xiao, that’s not real. You’re in your dorm, safe and asleep. No one is here.” He held her gaze, his voice steady and hypnotic. “This is just a dream… only a dream. Do you understand?”
“A… dream?” Her voice wavered as the panic in her eyes faded, replaced by deepening confusion.
“Yes, a dream. And soon, you’ll wake up… far away from this nightmare.”
As Xu Ze continued, tears welled in her eyes. Her words became fragmented. “I’m… scared… I don’t… want this… I want… to wake up… never have this dream again…”
“You won’t. I promise, you’ll never have this dream again.” His voice was gentle but firm, laced with hypnotic suggestion as he slowly stepped closer.
Under his words and the relentless pull of his mental energy, her eyelids grew heavy, blinking slower and slower—as if she were about to fall asleep.
Seeing his success, Xu Ze smiled slightly. “Good. Soon, you’ll wake from this nightmare… but you’ll still feel very, very tired. So you’ll sleep a little longer.”
“There will be no more nightmares. You’ll be safe. No one will disturb you. Just rest… rest peacefully…”
The students nearby stared in disbelief. A single thought echoed in their minds:
Hypnosis. He’s using hypnosis!
They watched, stunned, as the girl gradually stilled under Xu Ze’s words, her grip loosening.
“Now, listen to my voice. When I count to five… you’ll wake from the nightmare and fall into a deep, peaceful sleep. And when you wake again… you’ll forget this dream. Completely.”
Xu Ze took a quiet breath. The hypnosis was almost complete—she was now under his mental influence, following his suggestions step by step. The final stage was to let her mind fully relax, sinking into a restful slumber.
This deep sleep would ease her strained psyche, preventing another psychotic episode.
“One… two… three… four… five.”
At the count of five, the knife slipped from her fingers. Her eyes fluttered shut, and her body swayed—then collapsed.
Xu Ze lunged forward, covering the last two meters in a flash. He caught her before she hit the ground, his other hand snatching the falling knife mid-air.
Around him, the students gasped, hands flying to their mouths to stifle their shock.
But Xu Ze wasn’t worried. Under his hypnosis, her exhausted mind had surrendered completely, plunging into a dreamless sleep. Ordinary noises wouldn’t wake her now.
After setting the knife aside, he gently laid her on a nearby desk.
His head throbbed—his mental energy was nearly depleted. Fighting off dizziness, he turned to the crowd.
“She’s asleep. She won’t wake for a while, but when she does, she’ll be fine.” His voice was soft but firm. “Who here is her roommate? Take her back to the dorm and notify her family.”
Two tearful girls stepped forward, checking on their friend before nodding in relief. With the help of a tall male student, they carefully carried her away.
Finally, Xu Ze exhaled in relief. Using Mental Connection for hypnosis had drained him severely.
He could have simply blasted her mind with a mental shockwave, knocking her unconscious instantly. But that would have further damaged her already fragile psyche. So he chose the harder, gentler path—even if it left him exhausted.
The downside?
Now, dozens of eyes were fixed on him—filled with awe, excitement, and burning curiosity.
And for Xu Ze, already lightheaded from mental exhaustion, that attention only made his headache worse.
