"Can't you use your brain for once?" Wen Wen couldn't help grinding her teeth, wanting to hit him on the back of his head again, "The total amount of Dragon Blood is fixed, and since Lawrence evaporated it all, there's no need to care about any leftovers at the scene, which means it must be in you!
The main function of Ancient's Mouth is healing and recovery; it's not specialized in dealing with Mutated things that rewrite the soul and genes directly. You just have to be careful. If anything changes or happens, call me anytime, got it?"
"Oh, sure!"
Ji Jue nodded, feeling it over carefully. To be honest, he still trusted his cousin-brother who was always hard-working. If he said it was all drawn out, then surely there was no problem.
Moreover, he had been eating and sleeping like a log lately, with no issues at all.
"..."
After a brief silence, Wen Wen hesitated for a moment and finally sighed, "To be honest, I wasn't too fair in this matter.
If I had reported the situation then, the Security Bureau would have definitely given you a part of the reward. But with the way things are in Cliff City right now, where even a fart leaks, your Chosen Summon would probably become impossible to conceal.
When the time comes, who knows how many demons and monsters would come knocking on your door. Encountering them too early isn't good for you. The last unlucky guy was..."
She paused, not continuing, "I decided to conceal your situation. If you feel that's not right, I can report it now."
"No way."
Ji Jue was amused. He knew all too well what the Federation was like; it was not to be trusted.
According to Wen Wen, during his Chosen One Ritual, he had beckoned nine Superiors at once, which seemed to be an exaggerated incident. If he had been a high-born and decorated citizen of high standing, maybe he could have considered making a grand appearance and showing off in front of everyone. But as a student with no support and so many issues that couldn't stand close scrutiny, it was better not to jump into such deep waters, right?
These days, the hot-blooded male protagonist trope was out of fashion; it was all about surviving. The longer you could survive, the better. Wen Wen managed to cover for him, which actually relieved him.
True to her role as an older sister, she was so righteous!
He didn't say much, just gave a thumbs up, making Wen Wen smile too, seemingly much happier.
"Alright, let's leave it at that for today. You take good care of yourself."
She patted Ji Jue on the shoulder and ended with a mysterious smile, "When you've recovered a bit more, I'll introduce a good opportunity to you!"
"Really, foster father?"
Ji Jue was overjoyed. He hesitated for a moment, feeling too embarrassed to continue eating and drinking so freely, so he steeled his heart, bit the bullet, and squeezed out a standard professional smile:
"Wen Sister, you see I still have my charm..."
"Get lost!!!"
Wen Wen didn't turn back her head as she gestured with her hand and stormed out the door.
So casually.
Like some scumbag who wouldn't acknowledge you after pulling up his pants.
.
.
And so, Ji Jue basically rested in the hospital for more than half a month. Actually, if it hadn't been for that bastard Lawrence, he might have gone home with just a plaster.
First, there was the Erosion from the Vortex Planting Technique, then the infusion of a large amount of Mutated Spirit, then performing a desperate Life Support Protocol by slashing his own neck, and finally, he was Mutated by the Dragon Blood.
And to top it all off, he got punched by Minerva.
After this full service package, even the sturdiest would have been shattered.
The only reason he was alive and kicking was that his cousin-brother drew fast, held strong, and was stable. As for Ji Jue, he was responsible for all the splurging.
Even the Chosen One didn't deserve such treatment.
With the help of Ancient's Mouth, he started his binge eating spree, with seven unshakeable nutrition meals each day that brought the rats in the hospital's cafeteria to tears, until finally his completely depleted health bar was halfway restored.
After being checked by the doctor, the whole department clapped enthusiastically to send the unfortunate creature off to leave the hospital.
Just like that, he was kicked out the door.
Ji Jue, not yet fully satisfied with his feeding frenzy, swaggered over to the Lu family and seriously pigged out, performing the classic "three bites one pig", eating so much that Lu Ma cooked and cried at the same time, cursing the hospital for not being human for what they had done to a good child.
Finally, after leaving behind a box full of homework with the shocked and frightened expressions of the third and youngest, he swaggered off with half a roast chicken to-go.
Life felt complete.
"This is what life is all about."
Ji Jue lay in his own doghouse, legs propped up, savoring the familiar comfort.
He spent most of the day cleaning up the house, installing a new fridge, humming tunes, taking a bath, and lying in bed reading for a while; there was nothing to worry about, and the years passed peacefully.
How wonderfully fucking nice, huh? Wasn't this much better than the life-or-death fight with that bastard Lawrence?
There was no comparison!
The thought that his current good life was all built on that bastard's corpse moved Ji Jue to tears of gratitude, his hands clasped in prayer, marveling at such a fortunate demise!
He hoped that if Lawrence was aware beneath the ground, he would continue to contribute his residual heat to the building of his wonderful life...
Boom!!!
A sudden loud noise exploded from the dead of night, and Ji Jue was jolted awake, rolling off the bed in fright. Instinctively looking around, he realized the noise actually came from below his own house?
You've got to be kidding?!
He carefully stuck out his head, looking down the stairs, and saw... his newly repaired door was once again busted open?!
Instantly, his recently eased heart was on edge again, and he couldn't help wanting to curse.
But where had he seen this scene before?
In the silence, a subtle crunching sound reached him. Ji Jue's hair stood on end as he fumbled for a steel rod, moving step by step downward until he saw two lines of muddy prints extending from the door into his kitchen.
In the faint light from the fridge, half of the loosely hanging door creaked on the fridge, hiding the intruder behind it, with the sound of chewing continuing.
Just like that, Ji Jue's hanging heart finally fell to the floor!
"My new fridge!!!"
He screamed in agony, fury nearly splitting his eyes. He had reluctantly spent over six hundred to buy a second-hand, almost brand-new, Noble Purple that very afternoon, and now it was broken again.
"I'm going to fight you damn dogs to the death!"
He roared as he swung an iron rod, rushing toward the kitchen.
It was only then that he finally saw the full figure of the intruder, lying on the edge of the fridge, writhing, greedily devouring... involuntarily, he gasped in cold air.
This pink shell covered in mud and dust, the fourth-hand handlebar salvaged from the junkyard, and the mismatched wheels from front and back, as well as the exhaust pipe Ji Jue had personally modified from abandoned sports car parts...
It was their little cotton sheep that had completely disappeared from the Jici Hospital!!!
Only now, after being separated for so long, he could hardly recognize it—at least not the little cotton sheep he knew, which wouldn't be lying on his fridge like a living creature, with its shell open, revealing a mechanical structure similar to a giant mouth, gnawing...
"My boiled chicken!!!"
Tears were finally on the verge of falling from Ji Jue's eyes.
Hearing Ji Jue's roar, the little cotton sheep paused for a moment before speeding up its movements. After tossing a chicken bone into its 'mouth,' it quickly left the fridge and reversed into a corner.
The headlights flickered as if probing his mood.
Cautiously.
In the dead silence, it moved forward a little, then back, then forward again. Finally, it raised its handle to Ji Jue, flicking the headlight switch on and off while incessantly beeping its horn.
It began to wildly wag its mudguards.
Like a dog wagging its tail.
"You... you..."
Ji Jue remembered the solemn warning Wen Wen had given him half a month ago, and suddenly everything went dark before him. He felt as if fate, like a returning boomerang, had just smashed into his face after half a month.
Now, he finally understood where the residual dragon blood had gone...
"Beep—!!!"
The little cotton sheep seemed to have misunderstood something, its front wheel abruptly rising, pouncing on Ji Jue, excitedly writhing, the large mouth underneath the plastic shell opened, its oil-stained, rubber-like tongue licked his face.
Ji Jue's face was expressionless as he fell backward to the ground.
Tired, just let it all be destroyed.
.
.
"Most commendable."
From the same sky above, in a wilderness camp, an aged woman sat on a stone, gazing at the distant ruins: "Though it's not far off, after we get through this period, we can at least delay it for another decade or so."
The voice on the phone briefly paused before continuing to report.
"Okay, I'm aware."
The old woman nodded, "Currently, I can't leave Spring City, so I'll have to trouble everyone with Cliff City's affairs. Hai Province Town's guard won't waste manpower for much longer, so there should be a resolution soon."
After the final words of farewell, the call was disconnected.
In the silence, only the chilling night wind howled.
From the ruins of the distant city, cries like those from hell echoed, black mist rose into the sky, vanishing into the darkness.
She seemed indifferent, lost in contemplation.
Blood Thirst, the Spring City Cave, the Western Advance Plan, the guys from the Holy Land, the Chief of Spirits, the Reconstruction Unity Association, and a never-ending bunch of Solomons stirring trouble in the background... and even Nirvana, lurking in the shadows!
Transforming Worm Lawrence, confirmed dead.
The Dragon Sacrifice Ceremony had not taken any solid actions yet, but they would unlikely let the matter rest.
As for the youngster Wen Wen, her rise to prominence was unexpectedly swift. But given her character, it was unlikely that she would 'turn over a new leaf' and become a well-behaved child once she secured her footing, right?
She could almost predict the ensuing chaos.
A smile formed at the corner of her mouth.
It seemed like anticipation.
However, when she looked up at the night sky, the smile slowly disappeared, leaving only solemnity.
"What are you guys thinking?"
She stared into the vacant night sky and whispered, "Isn't this world chaotic enough already?"
No one responded.
The night sky remained silent, the stars twinkling as if they were the eyes of the gods, lofty and indifferent, never stirred by the wails or turmoil on the earth below.
She withdrew her gaze.
A plethora of unprocessed official business awaited her in the mailbox, and Central City had sent new inquiries. It wasn't just Central City; big cities across the Federation and even individuals from the Empire... almost everyone she knew was beating around the bush to gather information, asking about the events that had happened a while ago.
After so much time, there was still no sign of settling down.
Compared to the immense Chosen Summon, the perils of the Spring City Cave seemed to have turned into mere trifles.
A self-awakened Chosen One had always been sought after, especially one of a scale unprecedented across Cliff City, or arguably across Hai Province and most of the Federation...
The Twelve Superior, reigning nine of them!
Even one of them was enough to establish the foundation for Heavenly People, with nine reigning, how astounding would the injected variables be?
"Seventeen years since, a genuine Heavenly Destiny Summon."
She sighed softly, turning to walk back to the camp.
The summer night breeze blew, growing progressively cooler. After a while, after two or three storms, a chill would likely rise, the leaves would turn yellow, and fall with the wind.
Another tumultuous autumn loomed.