The small argument in the background went unnoticed.
Everyone's attention was focused on the deserted island.
On the island, the storm continued.
The wind howled, and the heavy rain roared.
Outside, the gale raged as if it were the end of the world.
Inside the small bamboo hut, however, it was warm and serene.
Jiang Fan quickly brought the two women into the bamboo hut, and the system's voice sounded.
"Congratulations to the host for completing the timed mission."
"Saved stranded personnel 2/2, time remaining 00:21:36. Reward: Survival Points 10."
After that, there were no other prompts.
Jiang Fan specifically paid attention to the system's voice; it sounded the moment he carried the two women into the bamboo hut.
Did it only require him to bring them in, not to keep them from getting wet?
Various questions arose in his mind, but there was no one to answer them.
It was not easy to take people away in the storm.
Jiang Fan's rescue was not gentle, and in the raging wind and rain, Dai Xiaomei choked on several mouthfuls of dusty water.
By the time she was brought into the bamboo hut, she had coughed herself awake.
"Cough, cough..."
"Dai Xiaomei, are you alright?"
Zhou Niannian closed the bamboo hut door, shutting out the storm. Seeing that she was awake, she quickly went to help her.
Jiang Fan didn't hesitate and let go, the weight of Dai Xiaomei pressing down on Zhou Niannian, almost causing her to fall.
"Jiang Fan!"
Zhou Niannian, struggling to support the exhausted Dai Xiaomei, spoke with a hint of annoyance. In her peripheral vision, she saw Jiang Fan carrying Mu Zi inside.
He placed Mu Zi on her back near the campfire and, using the firelight, examined her wounds.
The fabric on her back was stained with a bit of white dust, which he ignored, focusing only on the slight redness beneath the torn cloth and the abnormal depressions.
Abrasions, perhaps bruises, maybe she had bumped into something.
With an idea forming in his mind, he unhesitatingly walked to the place where medicine was kept in the bamboo hut, preparing medicinal herbs for treatment and splints for support.
With Jiang Fan present, Zhou Niannian felt a little relieved, but she still couldn't hold on.
Dai Xiaomei collapsed onto Mu Zi, who was lying on the ground, her expression filled with urgency and anxiety, in great pain.
She seemed to have been greatly stimulated and didn't understand the current situation. Her ears were ringing, and her head ached terribly.
She always kept her teammates' conditions in mind. Seeing Mu Zi lying on the ground, Dai Xiaomei became manic, murmuring incessantly.
"Save her, please, I beg you! Whatever you want me to do to save her, I'll do it!"
"Save her, or she'll die!"
"Wuwuwu... it's all my fault, it was me, I caused her harm..."
Dai Xiaomei's words were choked with sobs, her body trembling. She held Mu Zi's hand, her bowed posture heartbreaking.
Although she didn't know what had happened to them, Zhou Niannian knew that Dai Xiaomei and the others had gone through a lot to get here.
Her heart filled with complex emotions, she opened her mouth, and finally, could only offer comfort.
"It's okay, with Jiang Fan here, everything will be fine."
Her hand on Dai Xiaomei's back, her gentle words seemed to possess a magical power, instantly soothing the other's anxiety.
Jiang Fan returned, handing the general's knife to Zhou Niannian.
"Save her first. Put the knife over the fire to sterilize it."
"Okay!"
After all, it was a matter of life and death, and Mu Zi was a friend she had played with while she was a streamer.
Even though they were now in a competition, they were still rivals.
More importantly, they were friends!
For both emotional and rational reasons, she had to save her!
Zhou Niannian quickly got to work, leaning over and holding the general's knife over the fire to heat it.
Dai Xiaomei looked up as Jiang Fan approached, her red-rimmed eyes fixed on him, filled with hope and pleading.
Even without speaking, she had conveyed her stance.
Save Mu Zi, and she would do anything!
Jiang Fan didn't hesitate, taking the herbs he had been grinding earlier, his face calm.
"Wipe that begging expression off your face and finish preparing the medicine."
In the firelight, Jiang Fan's profile appeared somewhat unapproachable, even a little cold.
But this kind of reaction was precisely what gave Dai Xiaomei a sense of direction.
Having something to do, she wiped away her tears and took the bamboo cup containing the herbs.
With all her might, she crushed the contents with her right hand. As she crushed them, tears began to flow.
Jiang Fan, however, had no intention of comforting her.
Taking the sterilized dagger, he lowered his head and carefully cut open the torn clothing on Mu Zi's back, exposing the skin.
The once fair skin was now bluish-purple, clearly indicating a severe impact.
There were also several unnatural bulges. He gently pressed them, suspecting a fracture.
Fortunately, the fractured bone had not pierced any organs.
There were abrasions in many places. After bleeding, the wounds had clotted, and there were still some white traces around them.
Those white traces caught his attention.
Jiang Fan's expression became solemn as he searched his mind for relevant information.
The talent [Herbal Mastery] was particularly useful when dealing with injuries.
Zhou Niannian, after finishing her task, came over to check out of concern.
Seeing the慘状 (miserable state) of the extensive injuries, she felt a pang of sympathy.
But seeing Jiang Fan silent and not moving, she grew anxious and asked softly.
"Did she hit something? Can't it be healed?"
Zhou Niannian, in her haste, spoke without thinking.
Dai Xiaomei looked up even more, her gaze filled with pain as she looked at Jiang Fan, wishing he would quickly tell them what was wrong.
He did not explain. Instead, he stood up and retrieved the root and leaves of deadly nightshade from where the herbs were stored.
He placed the oval green leaves and the thick roots into the bamboo cup and carefully crushed them, filtering out the juice.
It wasn't much, just enough to thinly coat the bottom of the bamboo cup.
He worked with a solemn expression, silent. After a while, he finally asked.
"Did you hit a tree before?"
"Yes... yes."
"How long ago?"
"I'm not sure, about 30 minutes."
After saying this, Dai Xiaomei felt her heart pounding like thunder, her breathing slowing down, afraid of hearing bad news.
However, after hearing her answer, Jiang Fan pondered for a moment and then accelerated his movements.
He parted the torn fabric and, without touching the juice in the bamboo cup, slowly dripped it onto the wound.
He let the slightly oily juice seep into the wound.
Deadly nightshade is poisonous in all its parts, but the atropine within it can counteract the poison.
Normally, it would require purification.
But in this urgent situation, Jiang Fan couldn't afford to wait, so he proceeded more slowly.
"Is, is it okay?"
The two women stared intently at Jiang Fan, but received no immediate answer.
Fortunately, his luck was high enough, and things were developing in the direction he hoped.
As the thin layer of juice seeped into Mu Zi's back, Jiang Fan finally breathed a sigh of relief.
Even though saving these two women was partly to test his suspicions about the system, it was a matter of life and death, and he couldn't stand by and do nothing.
He hoped that the [Herbal Mastery] the system had given him was reliable.
Jiang Fan casually placed the bamboo cup beside him. The fracture was difficult to treat at the moment, so it would have to wait.
Thinking this, he leaned back and sat on the ground.
In his haste to save Mu Zi, Jiang Fan finally realized that he was covered in sweat, his back soaking wet and sticking uncomfortably to his skin.
Seeing that he was finished, the two women beside him finally regained their composure.
They had been terrified watching him work so seriously just now.
Zhou Niannian finally caught her breath and asked as calmly as she could.
"What exactly happened to Mu Zi?"
"Her wound came into contact with the sap of Manchineel. She's been poisoned."
Jiang Fan sat on the ground, finally having the time to explain to them.