Zhong Renhe, freed from the influence of Phantom Silver Eyes and regaining consciousness, found Qin Shilei standing before him, alive and well, with Zhang Xiaoli held in his left arm.
"You..."
He managed to utter a single word with difficulty, then gasped, unable to draw another breath before collapsing to the ground. His eyes remained filled with confusion and fear.
"Qin Ge, am I going to die?"
Zhang Xiaoli's weak voice echoed from within Qin Shilei's embrace.
"You'll be alright,"
Qin Shilei whispered, lowering his head to comfort her.
Holding her close, he took a difficult step forward and reached out to lock the door. He crouched down carefully and slowly, then removed the spatial ring from Zhong Renhe's finger. From it, he retrieved a treasure chest with a bronze hue.
"Please, let it be healing medicine,"
Qin Shilei prayed silently in his heart. He touched the chest, and it opened. Two items, one blue and one green, appeared before his eyes. Qin Shilei's heart leaped with joy as he quickly pulled out a pill emitting a medicinal fragrance.
Superior Wound-Healing Pill (Blue): Effectively treats internal and external injuries, a must-have for any journey.
"You will be alright,"
Qin Shilei placed the pill into Zhang Xiaoli's mouth. After she swallowed it, he brought a bottle of mineral water to her lips. With the pill administered, Qin Shilei felt a little more at ease. He then took out several bottles of Yunhai Baiyao and bandages from the spatial ring. Zhang Xiaoli had already fainted.
After a moment's hesitation, Qin Shilei tore off her clothes. A jagged scar, running from her right shoulder down to her left waist, was revealed. White bone was visible beneath the raw, red flesh. Blood still flowed from the wound, though it was beginning to slow, indicating the wound-healing pill was taking effect. In this doctor-less apocalypse, such a deep, long gash, exposing bone, could easily prove fatal. Fortunately, the treasure chest had yielded a wound-healing pill.
Qin Shilei carefully applied Yunhai Baiyao to Zhang Xiaoli's wound, avoiding the dazzling white powder, and then bandaged it. Finally, he put her clothes back on. After finishing, Qin Shilei, no longer able to hold on, collapsed against the wall, holding Zhang Xiaoli, and fell asleep.
"Qin Ge, wake up."
To Zhang Xiaoli's soft call, Qin Shilei forced his eyelids open. Outside, it was pitch black, with a lit flashlight placed on the ground.
"Xiaoli, are you alright?"
Qin Shilei asked in a low voice.
"I'm fine. Qin Ge, your back is still bleeding. Do you have any more medicine? I'll bandage it for you."
Zhang Xiaoli struggled to stand but then slumped back into Qin Shilei's arms.
"Don't move, or your wound might reopen,"
Qin Shilei said, placing a hand on her shoulder. "Why don't you check the trading system to see if there are any healing pills for sale?"
Holding a bottle of Yunhai Baiyao in his right hand, he tilted his head back and estimated where to pour it onto his back.
"Hiss."
The powder landing on the wound made Qin Shilei involuntarily gasp.
"Let me help you."
Zhang Xiaoli pushed herself up, using the wall for support. "Wuwu, you shouldn't have given me that pill. Look, your wound is still bleeding, what are we going to do?"
Zhang Xiaoli sobbed as she poured Yunhai Baiyao onto Qin Shilei's back. She then removed his clothes and bandaged him. After she finished, her own clothes on her back were stained red again, clearly from her wound reopening and bleeding through.
"Are we sharing adversities now, even with the same back wound?" Qin Shilei said with a smile.
"Yes, we just lack sharing blessings," Zhang Xiaoli replied, playing along.
"We will share blessings,"
Qin Shilei paused, then said firmly, "As long as I'm alive, I will ensure you are safely reunited with your family."
"You will be alright, and I will also strive to become stronger, hoping to help you reunite with your family,"
Zhang Xiaoli now had another reason to become stronger. The two searched the trading system for a long time but found no pills like the wound-healing pill.
"Let's absorb these crystal cores and see if they can help with our injuries."
Qin Shilei thought for a moment, took out a large pile of crystal cores, and leaned against the wall to absorb them. Hearing this, Zhang Xiaoli also held a crystal core in each hand and began to absorb them slowly. After more than an hour.
The 198 crystal cores were absorbed by both of them.
Name: Qin Shilei
Level: Plastic Seven Stars
Experience: 56/300
Cultivation Method: None
Zhang Xiaoli also rose from Plastic Two Stars to Plastic Four Stars. Not only had their strength increased by several percent, but their injuries had also improved somewhat. As long as they didn't engage in strenuous activity, their normal movements were no longer affected. Crystal cores could promote bodily evolution and thus accelerate wound healing. Of course, this was also because they had enough crystal cores to level up, which resulted in such a significant effect, rather than an immediate recovery.
"Let's move to another laboratory. Seeing this treacherous fellow makes me feel disgusted,"
Qin Shilei kicked Zhong Renhe's corpse and said.
"It's all my fault. If I hadn't known him, you wouldn't have ended up like this,"
Zhang Xiaoli blamed herself.
"It's not your fault, he was just too treacherous. Take his saber and go,"
Qin Shilei picked up the long saber from the ground and handed it to Zhang Xiaoli. The two moved to the biological laboratory opposite and lit candles.
"What do you want to eat? I'll cook for you."
Zhang Xiaoli took out the cooking utensils from her spatial ring, ready to prepare a late dinner for Qin Shilei.
"Tonight, we'll eat this," Qin Shilei said, pulling out the dead goshawk from his ring.
"Then I'll stew it in a pressure cooker, or I'm afraid it will be too tough to chew," Zhang Xiaoli said as she began preparing the goshawk after putting the rice on to stew. An hour later.
On the lab table sat a plate of stir-fried potatoes with preserved meat, a plate of goshawk meat, two large bowls of soup, and two bowls of rice. The potatoes were the last two from the convenience store, and the preserved meat was the last small piece. They even indulged in lighting four candles for illumination.
"Haha, this is my first candlelight dinner," Qin Shilei said with a smile.
"It's my first too. It's a shame we can't have wine," Zhang Xiaoli said with some regret.
"When you're better, I'll find you some premium red wine," Qin Shilei said solemnly.
"No, don't. Don't you have beer? We can just have beer then," Zhang Xiaoli didn't want him to take risks for her. Qin Shilei didn't dwell on the topic, served her some food, and they began to eat.
After the meal.
Zhang Xiaoli exclaimed, "I thought goshawk would have a strong gamey taste, but it's surprisingly delicious."
Qin Shilei replied, "Goshawks are mutated animals, so their taste is bound to be good, and it's very beneficial for our bodies." He felt a warm current spreading from his stomach throughout his body, making him feel more energetic. This meal of meat should significantly enhance their physical fitness.
By candlelight, Qin Shilei took out the treasure chest dropped by the mutated zombie. Inside was a book.
Saber Mastery (Green): Seals the experience of a saber master, allowing you to quickly grasp the techniques of wielding sabers.
Qin Shilei handed the skill book to Zhang Xiaoli. Zhang Xiaoli initially wanted to refuse but met Qin Shilei's gaze and simply said thank you. As the skill book transformed into a green light and surged into Zhang Xiaoli's body, she became a master of the saber. Combined with Zhong Renhe's Tang saber, her combat power had at least quadrupled.