Chapter 168: Fear of Absolute Silence

Chapter 168 -167: Fear of Absolute Silence

Around 7:30 PM, Yu Zhiming and Qi Yue drove to the district Public Security Bureau station on the North Bank of the Pujiang River.

They announced their identities and were led by a police officer down an elevator into an underground civil air defense shelter.

Yu Zhiming entered the room at the far end of the long corridor and was surprised to find a large tent that took up almost the entire space.

Qi Yue, who was with him, explained that it was a military field surgical tent.

Only by borrowing military equipment could this place be quickly equipped for surgery without major modifications.

Yu Zhiming thought that made perfect sense.

At the same time, he wondered about Shen Zhe’s identity. ‘Who is he, to be able to procure military-grade medical equipment?’

When Yu Zhiming saw that Teacher Qi had no intention of explaining the man’s background, he was wise enough not to ask.

He entered the tent alone and found it was divided into an inner and outer room by what looked like a transparent plastic sheet.

Yu Zhiming could clearly see the inner room, which was a standard neurosurgery operating room, fully equipped with all sorts of devices.

The patient, Shen Zhe, his head shaved, was sitting calmly in the neurosurgical chair.

Standing beside the chair, dressed in scrubs, was Doctor You Weixian, known as the “top scalpel” of Huashan Hospital’s surgery department.

Besides Doctor You, there was also an anesthesiologist and a surgical nurse inside.

Yu Zhiming first waved a greeting to Doctor You in the inner room, through the transparent plastic barrier, then began his surgical preparations.

He changed into sterile scrubs, put on a surgical cap and mask, and then scrubbed in.

After that, Yu Zhiming entered the inner operating room through an isolation corridor with two sealed plastic doors.

Next, with the help of the surgical nurse, he began to put on his surgical gloves and gown.

As soon as he put the gown on, Yu Zhiming noticed it was unusually heavy and uncomfortable.

It was only then that he realized it wasn’t just a surgical gown, but also a radiation protection suit.

After putting on the heavy and cumbersome surgical gown, Yu Zhiming walked slowly to the side of the surgical chair.

“First time wearing a radiation-proof surgical gown?”

In response to Doctor You’s question, Yu Zhiming nodded, then gestured with his eyes toward the surrounding monitoring equipment, like the ECG monitor, which was currently running.

Doctor You explained softly, “Once he’s successfully anesthetized, all this equipment will be turned off as you requested.”

Anesthesia is the first dangerous hurdle a patient must cross before the surgery officially begins.

Every year across the country, there are cases of adverse reactions, and even deaths, caused by general anesthesia.

Therefore, when administering anesthesia, the anesthesiologist must constantly monitor all the patient’s physiological signs.

After his brief explanation, Doctor You met Yu Zhiming’s gaze and asked, “Are you ready?”

Yu Zhiming nodded again.

Doctor You looked at Shen Zhe in the surgical chair and asked softly, “Mr. Shen, are you ready?”

Shen Zhe didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he looked at Yu Zhiming.

“Dr. Yu, I thought I could be indifferent to life and death, that I could face this calmly, but I have to tell you.”

“It’s true what they say—there is great fear between life and death. I’m scared.”

“I want to live.”

“Dr. Yu, can I trust you?”

Yu Zhiming looked at Shen Zhe and saw a glisten on his forehead. He was sweating. He was truly nervous.

“Mr. Shen, in all the surgeries I’ve participated in, I have never failed in the parts I was responsible for.”

“Mr. Shen, this is a surgical record I don’t intend to have broken on you.”

Shen Zhe stared into Yu Zhiming’s eyes, which shone like obsidian, for a moment before turning his gaze to Doctor You.

“Doctor You, I’m ready. You can begin.”

Doctor You gave the waiting anesthesiologist a nod.

The next moment, the anesthesiologist placed the inhalation anesthetic mask over Shen Zhe’s mouth and nose…

After Shen Zhe lost consciousness, the anesthesiologist administered further deep anesthesia through an IV drip.

Yu Zhiming waited for a good five or six minutes before the anesthesiologist gave the go-ahead for the surgery.

Next, it was time for Yu Zhiming to take control.

“Turn off all the equipment…”

“Anesthesiologist, nurse, you may leave.”

“Doctor You, you’re the only one who needs to stay…”

“Doctor You, please turn off the lights and regulate your breathing and heartbeat. Try to keep them regular and steady…”

The moment the room plunged into absolute, pitch-black darkness, Yu Zhiming’s right hand was already resting on the back of Shen Zhe’s head, over the spot that needed to be punctured…

As he adjusted his own physical and mental state, he began to gather the sounds of blood flowing inside Shen Zhe’s cranium…

Previously, Yu Zhiming was accustomed to following the sound of blood flow, surging forward with the blood inside a single vessel.

Now, as if he were drilling a tunnel, Yu Zhiming began to mark out the blood vessels that appeared ahead, one by one.

As time passed, more and more red blood vessels of varying thickness appeared before Yu Zhiming’s ‘mind’s eye,’ crisscrossing haphazardly like a tangled mess of old tree roots.

They gradually became clearer…

This image suddenly stirred something in Yu Zhiming’s mind, reminding him of a movie scene.

A highly skilled thief had to navigate a hallway filled with infrared beams.

This association filled Yu Zhiming with excitement…

Brimming with motivation, Yu Zhiming pushed his detection deeper, searching hard for the optimal puncture path through the dense forest of blood vessels…

What he didn’t know was that Doctor You was in agony.

The absolute darkness, devoid of any light, was something You Weixian felt he could handle; it was like closing his eyes in the dead of night.

But the absolute silence, a quiet so profound there wasn’t the slightest sound, was something he found unbearable.

For the first time, You Weixian learned that silence—a dead silence—could instill such immense fear.

He felt as if he had been abandoned by the entire world.

Although You Weixian knew Dr. Yu was just three or four meters to his front right, he was still so panicked that he wanted to scream.

He used the composure and fortitude honed over two decades of practice to suppress his inner turmoil.

But the endless darkness seemed to transform into a ferocious beast, opening its gaping maw to devour him.

‘You Weixian desperately wanted to scream, wanted to run away…’

Suddenly, a loud CRACK, like a bolt from the blue, jolted You Weixian from his boundless terror.

At the same time, You Weixian’s vision was flooded with blinding light.

He reflexively shut his eyes and, bent over like a fish returned to water, gasped for air.

“Doctor You, what’s wrong?”

Drenched in sweat, You Weixian opened his eyes and straightened up.

He looked at Yu Zhiming by the surgical chair and said shamefully, “Dr. Yu, I had a phobic attack.”

“I didn’t know I was afraid of absolute silence and darkness.”

“I’m very sorry for disrupting your work, Dr. Yu. I’ll leave now…”

Yu Zhiming interrupted, “No need to leave. I’ve already found two puncture paths.”

“So quickly?” You Weixian exclaimed in surprise.

The recent agony had made him feel as though a year had passed, yet it also felt like only an instant.

Just then, he noticed a pair of surgical forceps on the floor not far from his feet.

‘It dawned on You Weixian that the light switch must have been hit by these forceps.’

‘To have such aim in complete darkness?’

You Weixian shook off his stray thoughts, walked over to Yu Zhiming’s side in a few steps, and got to work.

Following Yu Zhiming’s directions, he drilled two small holes in Shen Zhe’s skull.

Immediately after, You Weixian watched as Yu Zhiming took two long puncture needles and plunged them in, one after the other, with clean, decisive movements.

He moved so fast that You Weixian didn’t even have time to feel nervous.

‘So fierce!’

‘Or maybe ‘boldness from great skill’ is more fitting?’

Seeing the puncture was complete, You Weixian reached for a small, heavy box made of lead.

“Dr. Yu…”

You Weixian, who had intended to give a word of caution, had just opened his mouth when he saw that Yu Zhiming had already scrambled to the exit as if fleeing for his life.

‘He’s a little too precious with his life,’ You Weixian thought, momentarily speechless.

“Dr. You, the Yu Family is counting on me to carry on the family line! I can’t take any risks.”

“Dr. You, you can handle it alone, right?”

You Weixian grunted in affirmation and opened the lead box.

Six special metallic radioactive rods, each about two millimeters in diameter and eight millimeters long, came into view.

Without any delay, You Weixian, moving as quickly as possible, pushed the six radioactive rods one by one through the hollow channel of the puncture needles and into the center of the brain tumor…