Chapter 82: The Hypnotist

Some people say that death is the most terrifying thing.  Xiao Yu didn’t entirely agree. 

Since gaining the ability of a psychologist from the system, he had discovered that, compared to death, there were many things humans found unbearable. 

For instance, some people, due to certain issues, were willing to commit suicide, fight desperately, and even sacrifice themselves. 

However, they could not endure certain types of pain.  They were even less capable of harming their own bodies.  Let alone consuming their own flesh and blood.

This was the most straightforward form of psychological resistance.  It was more unbearable than death.

On the other hand, there was psychological endurance. 

Everyone had their own limit to psychological endurance, which could not be easily broken. 

For example, some people might feel only a little scared when they see a car accident with blood and flesh everywhere.  But others could not bear it. They would vomit and faint.

This was the limit of psychological endurance.

However, psychological endurance could be altered through acquired experiences.

Clearly, He Yu was still within the normal range.

When Xiao Yu showed her five videos of crimes she had confessed to committing, He Yu saw the cruel, bloody, and disgusting scenes in the videos.  She trembled all over and could only manage to watch until the fourth video before she vomited.

This was the limit of He Yu’s psychological endurance.  It also defined the extent of her psychological tolerance. 

Now came the question. 

If she couldn’t even bear to watch the videos, how could she commit such cruel acts?

Wasn’t it ridiculous?

Earlier, Xiao Yu had let down his psychological defenses and allowed He Yu to hypnotize him. He wanted to test He Yu’s psychological endurance and her potential to commit these crimes. 

The answer was obvious.

***

Outside the interrogation room, Wang Dong, smoking a cigarette, looked very distressed. 

“What is this person trying to do?”

“Throw out some bait and let her take the fall,” Exhaling a puff of smoke, Xiao Yu said calmly, “This bait is too tempting, he knows we will bite. The case is too big, and the superiors will definitely push for a resolution. If we’re negligent, we might actually mistake the bait for the mastermind. Everyone’s happy.”

“Happy, my ass!” Wang Dong cursed and took a deep drag on his cigarette, “Aren’t you angry? We’ve been played.”

‘Boss, aren’t your words a bit strange?’ Xiao Yu chuckled, “It’s not ‘we’, it’s ‘you’.”

Wang Dong, “…”

He wanted to curse again.

Indeed. It was their national security and the police who were being played by the mastermind.

What did it have to do with Xiao Yu?

Without Xiao Yu, they might really have mistaken that woman for the real murderer.

What to do next?

Wang Dong habitually looked at Xiao Yu. The kid was still quite capable. But he didn’t speak. He couldn’t ask any more questions. That would expose the fact that he’s a newbie.

“Haha.” Xiao Yu laughed, “Don’t look at me like that. I can’t do anything right now. This guy’s smoke bombs are very powerful, the bait is really tempting, and he even used that kind of drug. It can only mean that he wants to cut off all the clues and disappear without a trace.”

“Impossible?”  Wang Dong frowned, “I think we can definitely find some clues from He Yu.”

“Stop dreaming.” Xiao Yu shook his head, “Do you know what a true hypnotist is?”

“Uh!” Wang Dong was silent.

The kid’s question hit his blind spot.

“Although hypnotizing someone is difficult and complex, once hypnosis is successful, it’s very frightening,” Xiao Yu explained to Wang Dong, “Hypnosis is about one person controlling another person’s mind. Do you know what the mind is? To put it bluntly, it’s the brain and thoughts. The heart is just an organ and doesn’t have the ability to think. Only the brain and thoughts control people. Thinking is shaped by various aspects such as a person’s spirit, memory, and experience, among others. When the concept of hypnosis was first introduced, it aimed to treat psychological disorders. How does it treat? By using hypnosis to alter a person’s mental state. To put it more bluntly, it changes a person’s thinking.”

Wang Dong, “…”

His brain struggled to absorb such advanced knowledge, and he smiled bitterly, “Can you make it more clear?”

“Yes,” Xiao Yu nodded, “He Yu’s memory was modified by a hypnotist.”

“Fuck!”

Wang Dong gasped.

Could hypnosis change a person’s memory?

Yes. Not only could it change and forge memories, but it could also erase some memories.

Of course, this didn’t mean that the hypnotist changed them directly. Instead, the hypnotist used psychological suggestions to make the hypnotized person change or seal their own memory.

Is it humans who control the brain? Or is it the brain that controls humans?

Some people have proposed this idea in the past.

People who didn’t understand psychology mostly thought that the brain controls humans. This was normal because all human behaviors were commands issued by the brain.

But those who understood psychology would shake their heads.

In fact, it was humans who always control their own brains. They could even change their memories and shut down their memories.

Of course, this extended far, even into the realm of the study of souls.

It seemed Xiao Yu’s words were about to be confirmed.

The national security invited two psychology experts. One of them was a bona fide hypnotist.

The result…

“Her memory was changed. Some memories were also sealed. At the same time, some memories were implanted. The other party is very powerful, a master hypnotist. We can’t break his hypnosis in a short time. This will require a long process.”

Hearing the words of the hypnotist, Xiao Yu remained very calm. It was expected. 

Wang Dong, however, struggled to accept it. 

Was the clue lost? 

No. 

***

Outside the Municipal Bureau Building,

“There is another way. Go to the place where He Yu studied psychology and investigate all the people He Yu had contact with in the past,” Xiao Yu said, looking at Wang Dong, who had a constipated expression on his face. “It takes a process to hypnotize others. This person must be someone He Yu is familiar with, trusts, and is not psychologically defensive around. Isn’t finding people what we’re best at?”

Wang Dong’s eyes lit up.

When it came to solving cases and reasoning, maybe the kid in front of him was awesome.  But when it came to finding and arresting people, Wang Dong wasn’t bragging. 

Compared with national security, any case-handling unit in China was like a younger brother.