Chapter 106 Crippled

Chapter 106: Chapter 105: Crippled

SWISH, SWISH, SWISH!

Wooden Thorns imbued with strange power exploded one after another. Blossoms of blood bloomed across the bodies of the pursuing Black Snake Monsters.

HISS...

The charging Black Snake Swarm was actually suppressed for a brief moment.

"Go!" Taking advantage of the gap created by the exploding vine spikes, Han Ning pushed off the ground and dashed into the distance with his companion on his back.

Behind them, the hissing of the snake swarm rose and fell, sounding exceptionally terrifying.

An unknown amount of time passed. It wasn’t until the hissing behind him was gradually isolated by the curtain of rain, becoming distant and blurred, that Han Ning finally slowed to a halt.

"Huff... Huff..." He stopped on the second floor of a self-built house, panting heavily. Maintaining his complete transformation and controlling such a massive cluster of vines had depleted his Spiritual Power; out of over a hundred points, only ten remained. His physical stamina was also severely drained.

"We should have shaken them off." Han Ning’s body swayed slightly as his fur receded and his muscles returned to normal. He transformed back into a regular human in tattered clothes.

The companions on his back dropped to the ground one after another. Han Ning reached out and caught Lin Qianqian, who had already fallen into a coma, letting her slip into his arms.

Having released multiple Skills simultaneously, his Spiritual Power was further compressed after returning to human form, leaving him with only five points. Aside from being in a safe environment, it had been a long time since he had this little Energy left while out in the wild.

But before Han Ning even had time to catch his breath, a sudden cry rang out.

"Brother Han! Brother Han! Quick, look at Chairman Wu and the others... they’re not going to make it!" Yu shouted, his voice choked with sobs.

Han Ning turned his head.

Yu and the other conscious companions had laid Chairman Wu and several other unconscious Awakened side by side under the eaves, safely out of the rain.

Chairman Wu’s eyes were squeezed shut. His face was ashen, and his lips were a bruised purple. From the base of his left leg down, sprawling black spots covered his skin, and the section below his knee had already melted into a puddle of bloody water. It was obvious that Chairman Wu’s remaining Energy was struggling to resist the spread of the black spots.

Another Awakened had been hit on the right palm by the black water earlier. The black spots had traveled up his arm and were threatening to spread toward his chest and heart.

Han Ning swept his gaze over the group’s condition. Chairman Wu and the other man were undoubtedly the most severely injured, and their conditions were rapidly deteriorating. The others were also badly hurt, but mostly with ordinary injuries; to put it bluntly, they wouldn’t die anytime soon.

He walked over to them and placed his hands on Chairman Wu and the other Awakened simultaneously.

HUM!

A faint emerald light lit up his palms, no longer as bright as when he was at full strength.

[Rejuvenation Technique (Middle Level) Skill Level +1, Current: 101/200]

[Natural Blessing (Basic Level) Skill Level +1, Current: 126/200]

As the emerald light touched the black spots, a sizzling SIZZLE echoed out like burning flesh, and foul-smelling white smoke billowed up.

The two men’s bodies began to convulse violently.

"Argh..." Chairman Wu let out an unconscious groan of pain as beads of sweat seeped from his ashen face.

SIZZLE...

Gradually, the black spots finally stopped expanding. Under the gentle light of Natural Blessing, they faded and disappeared bit by bit. The painful, twisted expressions on Chairman Wu and the other Awakened’s faces slowly smoothed out, and their breathing steadied.

"The black spots have been purified, but as for the trauma left behind... there’s nothing I can do for now," Han Ning sighed.

The black spots had lingered in their bodies for a bit too long, causing irreversible damage. Chairman Wu’s left leg lay limply on the floor like a wet noodle, the muscles beneath the skin having lost all their natural elasticity. Han Ning tried lifting Chairman Wu’s thigh; the section below the base of the leg drooped lifelessly, as if it had no bones.

The other man was in the same state. His entire right arm dangled softly, as though all its tendons and bones had been extracted. He couldn’t even manage the slightest twitch.

"Ugh..." Having received treatment for his injuries, Chairman Wu slowly woke up. He blinked blankly at first, then immediately realized something was wrong. He instinctively tried to lift his left leg but couldn’t.

Chairman Wu lowered his head and looked at his numb left leg, then glanced at the companion beside him who had similarly lost the use of his arm. The muscles on the usually resolute Chairman’s face twitched violently for a few seconds before he quickly regained his composure.

"Chairman Wu, I did my best." His current Rejuvenation Technique and Natural Blessing were not miraculous enough to regrow flesh and bone. At most, they could heal external wounds and purify some negative effects.

"Mr. Han, don’t say that. Thank you. As long as I kept my life, it’s fine. If this leg is crippled, so be it. Being able to escape from the Snake Swarm is already incredibly lucky," Chairman Wu forced a smile.

"Get some rest," Han Ning replied, leaning against the wall and closing his eyes to recover.

Just as Chairman Wu had said, it was already incredibly lucky that they managed to escape from the jaws of that ferocious Black Snake Monster Leader without losing a single person. As long as they were alive, there was still hope.

***

The group rested in the house for a while, recovering some stamina, before immediately setting off toward their agreed-upon destination without stopping.

SPLASH, SPLASH...

Floodwaters submerged the streets, with all sorts of debris floating on the surface. Han Ning carried the unconscious Lin Qianqian on his back, while the Awakened supported each other as they navigated through the nocturnal ruins of the city.

An unknown amount of time passed. In the waters ahead, a towering, pitch-black silhouette faintly appeared.

"We’ve reached the Yun Valley Business District." Chairman Wu breathed a sigh of relief.

At the west entrance of the business district, a few faint beams of light swayed in the rain like fireflies in the dark. They hurried closer.

"Chairman Wu, and Mr. Han—they’re back!" A pleasantly surprised voice rang out.

The beams of light quickly converged on them. Vice President Zhao had been anxiously waiting at the entrance of the business district with several Awakened. Additionally, Xu Ming was there holding Xu Yinyin, along with Professor Ye, Yu Na, and the others.

Snow Cake wasn’t present; it had been assigned by Han Ning to guard their boat. Through Snow Cake, Han Ning had kept a firm grasp on Xu Ming’s situation the entire time.

Upon hearing the exclamation, everyone immediately turned their gazes over. Seeing the injured Han Ning and his group, expressions of shock appeared on their faces. This was especially true for Chairman Wu. The area below his left knee was completely empty, with his wet pant leg clinging to the stump. His face was ashen, and he could only barely stand by leaning on others for support.

Vice President Zhao and Old Xie sprinted over and caught the teetering Chairman Wu. "Old Wu, your leg...!"

"It’s fine. At least I kept my life." Chairman Wu patted their shoulders, his expression calm. "Let’s talk once we’re inside."

Everyone scrambled to help carry the wounded into an office building.

The first floor of the building was mostly submerged, but the second floor and above were still relatively intact. The interior was completely empty, having clearly been scavenged countless times. Even the emergency lights had been pried off, leaving only bare wire ends exposed. Heavy metal office desks and chairs lay toppled everywhere. There wasn’t a single paper document in sight; they had presumably been taken to burn for warmth.

The group found a relatively spacious office area with a wide field of view to serve as their temporary resting place. Vice President Zhao immediately organized some manpower, bringing out their few remaining first-aid kits and clean clothes to treat the wounded, while Yu Na carefully wiped away the dirt and bloodstains from Lin Qianqian’s body.