Chapter 367: Are You Jealous, Professor Ye?
Yuan Liang seemed to be at the hospital; his voice echoed when he spoke. He asked Jiang Qingli to head over after she had breakfast.
After hanging up, Jiang Qingli hugged her comforter and rolled over once on the bed.
’Thank goodness, Que Feiling is okay.’
A smile on her face, she finished washing up and walked into the closet. She picked out a practical outfit of a short-sleeved shirt and long pants, then opened the military’s internal network.
’Time to... pick my nutrient solution for breakfast.’
Her finger swiped helplessly across the screen as she debated between grape or lime flavor. Suddenly, her terminal vibrated a few times.
Ye Linyuan: [Done?]
Jiang Qingli: [?]
’This guy even hacked the internal network?’
’It makes the military district look like a sieve. Anyone can just waltz in.’
Ye Linyuan, unaware of the girl’s inner monologue, simply sent a short message: [Front door.]
Jiang Qingli opened the door. In the same spot as yesterday sat a food container, and inside was a small basket of steamed soup dumplings.
Ye Linyuan: [Leave the container at the door when you’re done.]
’How thoughtful of him.’
Jiang Qingli opened the container and took a couple of bites of the dumplings, chatting idly with Ye Linyuan.
She couldn’t shake the feeling that Ye Linyuan knew her movements very well. When she told him that Que Feiling had been found and she was going to the hospital, his reaction was muted. He didn’t even ask who Que Feiling was, as if he already knew...
A strange suspicion formed in Jiang Qingli’s mind.
’Que Feiling’s recovery... could Ye Linyuan have had something to do with it?’
Jiang Qingli was one to ask questions directly.
And Ye Linyuan didn’t hide it from her: [I put out a bit of intel.]
Jiang Qingli was puzzled: [Since when are you so kind-hearted? Do you two know each other?]
Ye Linyuan: [...]
Ye Linyuan: [I know you.]
Jiang Qingli blinked.
’Meaning... he helped Que Feiling because of her?’
Though the snake’s words were often infuriating, a faint warmth still spread through Jiang Qingli’s chest at that moment.
She couldn’t help but smile. She rolled over, snuggling her cheek against the comforter, her eyes crinkling with amusement as she typed: [Thank you~]
Ye Linyuan: [What are you thanking me for?]
Jiang Qingli: [?]
Ye Linyuan: [In what capacity are you thanking me for him?]
Jiang Qingli: "...?"
She was confused for two seconds before a possibility occurred to her: [Are you jealous, Professor Ye?]
The message was marked as "read" the instant she sent it.
But Ye Linyuan only replied after a moment.
A very short and blunt reply of a single word: [No.]
’Yeah, not very convincing.’
After finishing breakfast, Jiang Qingli was looking around for a hair tie when her terminal suddenly started vibrating.
She answered the call. Yuan Liang’s voice, which had been joyful earlier, was now strained. "Miss Jiang, I need you to come over right away. The situation is not good."
The smile on Jiang Qingli’s face froze. Without taking the time to ask for details, she rushed to the hospital.
When she arrived, the area outside the operating room was already crowded with people.
At the center of the crowd, Lü Xin and a doctor in a white coat were in a heated discussion. The expressions on everyone else’s faces were grim.
Jiang Qingli walked closer and asked, "How is he?"
Lü Xin said, "He’s still being treated. I didn’t get a close look at his condition just now, but..." She paused. "It’s likely worse than when he was at the detention center. Miss Jiang, you need to brace yourself."
Jiang Qingli’s heart sank.
The operating room doors were shut tight. The "In Surgery" light flashed, its pulse unsettling.
"Don’t you all go scaring our little president," a casual female voice said from behind her. A hand then ruffled Jiang Qingli’s hair. "Relax. It doesn’t look good, but his life isn’t in immediate danger."
Jiang Qingli turned her head and met Qin Shu’s gray-blue eyes.
She must have just arrived, as she was still in her military uniform. She carried the foul, bloody scent of a Mutant Beast, but somehow, it didn’t inspire any revulsion.
Their eyes met, and Qin Shu gave her a wink. "Morning."
Jiang Qingli’s tension eased slightly. "Sister Shu, it’s been a while. Good morning."
"Have you lost weight?" Qin Shu narrowed her eyes. "Is the Twelfth City working you to the bone? Xie Youchen took off so fast and didn’t even bring you along. Why not come with me to the Eleventh City for a while?"
"Marshal Qin, poaching our talent right in front of us, are we?" Sun Ruida said with feigned nervousness. "You already poached two people from us last year. Please, show some mercy this time."
Qin Shu casually pinched Jiang Qingli’s cheek. "Just a joke. Don’t be so tense."
The tension in the air eased slightly with the light banter. Qin Shu, intending to help Jiang Qingli relax, started chatting idly with her about academy matters.
About ten or so minutes later, the green light above the operating room door lit up.
The doors opened, and the attending physician walked out. He took off his mask and pulled Lü Xin and another researcher from the Twelfth City into an office to report on the situation.
Nurses began wheeling Que Feiling toward his room, and Jiang Qingli peered through the crowd to get a look.
Que Feiling’s entire body was entangled in a web of medical tubes, bandages, and gauze.
But in stark contrast to his severe injuries, the young man’s face was flushed and rosy, beaming with a blissful smile as if he were lost in some beautiful dream. Against the sterile white environment, it created an indescribably eerie sight.
Qin Shu frowned and let out a soft "tsk." "This is a bit tricky."
Yuan Liang and Sun Ruida exchanged a look, their brows deeply furrowed. One shook his head and sighed while the other pinched the bridge of his nose.
Just as Jiang Qingli was about to ask, the office door opened. The attending physician said, "Could you all please step inside?"
After they were seated, Lü Xin, figuring Jiang Qingli was the only one not up to speed, asked, "Miss Jiang, I don’t suppose you’ve heard of a type of Mutant Beast called the Weaving Nightmare Beast?"
Jiang Qingli nodded. "I know a little about them... Was Que Feiling attacked by a Weaving Nightmare Beast?"
Lü Xin explained, "The Weaving Nightmare Beast is an avian, Spiritual Mutant Beast. It isn’t very powerful on its own, but it excels at using spiritual hypnosis to create dreams within the Spiritual Domain, killing its enemies while they’re immersed in the illusion."
"But Mr. Que is quite lucky," the attending physician added. "Normally, a Weaving Nightmare Beast makes its move within five hours of creating the dream. But judging by the circumstances of his attack, this dream has lasted for over eight hours, and the beast still hasn’t struck. Until it does, Mr. Que is safe."
Yuan Liang asked, "But he can’t stay like this forever. Won’t he end up in a vegetative state? Is there anything we can do? Would Spiritual Healing be effective?"
"Not right now." Lü Xin shook her head, her expression serious. "Que Feiling has already experienced a loss of control over his contamination levels. He won’t be able to recover to his peak condition anytime soon. He’s more susceptible to Spiritual Attacks than the average male and more prone to losing control, especially since the attack has now lasted for over twelve hours..."
Jiang Qingli’s brow furrowed. "Then what can we do to save him?"
Lü Xin thought for a moment. "If we can find a Weaving Nightmare Beast and get its serum, I might be able to research a drug to mitigate the effects... Then you could enter his Spiritual Domain and try again."
Weaving Nightmare Beasts are rare and seldom initiate an attack, but when they do, they are always successful.
Typically, by the time their victims are found, they’re already dead. Que Feiling is the first one to be recovered alive.
Therefore, when it came to treatment, the attending physician and the two researchers were all inclined toward a conservative approach.
With the course of treatment decided, the next matter was just as tricky.
Weaving Nightmare Beasts are not only rare but also solitary, making them incredibly difficult to capture. The question was who to send...
Lü Xin considered this. "The Weaving Nightmare Beast is avian, so the sky will be the main battlefield. Someone with Wood Element or Gravity System abilities would have an advantage. They’d have to be at least S-rank."
As soon as the words were out, Sun Ruida looked at Jiang Qingli. "I recall... Yi Nuo is Gravity System, right?"