Chapter 111: I Have Returned

Xianyu Qing was stunned by the sight before her! The warmth in Jiang Mohe’s eyes had long since vanished, leaving him looking like a cold-blooded killing machine.

He drew his silver sword and pointed it at Xianyu Qing, his gaze alien and indifferent.

As blood dripped from the blade, Xianyu Qing’s heart tightened with every drop.

"Mr. Jiang..." she called out softly.

Jiang Mohe’s brows twitched slightly.

Xianyu Qing called to him again: "Mr. Jiang, what is wrong with you?"

Jiang Mohe blinked. The unfocused look in his eyes gradually cleared, and the red glow in his pupils slowly faded.

When he finally recognized the person before him, the silver sword slipped from his hand, and he murmured: "Qingqing, I’m back..."

Then, his tall frame swayed and collapsed.

"Mr. Jiang!"

Xianyu Qing scrambled forward to catch him, but his weight pulled her down to the side along with him.

Seeing his battered form and his faint, ragged breathing, her eyes welled up with tears. Her voice choked: "Mr. Jiang, wake up..."

But this time, Jiang Mohe had exhausted every ounce of his strength and could no longer respond to her.

Xianyu Qing clutched his blood-stained hand, tears streaming down her face. How was she supposed to save him now?

Suddenly, the sound of heavy, labored breathing came from behind her. A creature missing half an arm, dragging a shattered left leg, lunged viciously toward them.

---

The roar of engines shattered the silence of the forest as seven or eight off-road vehicles sped toward the ranger station.

Upon arriving, the rescue team gasped at the carnage—severed limbs and blood splattered across the landscape.

What a brutal battle this must have been! A rough glance revealed at least twenty corpses of "pseudo-variants" scattered across the ground.

In such a fierce confrontation, it seemed impossible for anyone to have survived unscathed.

Even so, the rescue captain quickly ordered his team to begin searching.

Nangong Ao jumped out of one of the vehicles. Seeing the scene, his intense anger was mixed with an uncontrollable sense of panic.

Were they too late?

"Report, target found!"

The rescue captain’s radio crackled, and Nangong Ao rushed over immediately.

When he saw Xianyu Qing sitting there, dazed and hollow, clutching a bloody dagger, his heart constricted. He walked slowly toward her.

"Qingqing..." He called her name and knelt down to look at her.

At the sound of his voice, hope ignited in her eyes.

She dropped the dagger, grabbed Nangong Ao’s hand, and cried out emotionally: "Big Brother, please, save Mr. Jiang! Quickly, save him!"

Nangong Ao looked to the side. Jiang Mohe lay motionless, looking like a corpse drenched in blood.

The rescue team’s paramedics rushed over to conduct a quick examination. "The patient has lost too much blood, I’m afraid..."

Nangong Ao’s face darkened as he commanded: "He must be saved!"

Paramedic: "..."

Very well. When the boss gives an order, even if they have to donate their own blood, they have to save him!

As the paramedics loaded Jiang Mohe onto the vehicle, Xianyu Qing tried to follow, but Nangong Ao pulled her back.

"Qingqing, you need to be checked by a doctor, too."

"I’m not hurt," Xianyu Qing said.

"Even if you have no external wounds, you need psychological counseling," Nangong Ao urged.

After all, she had killed someone. Although the targets were "pseudo-variants" and could not be called human in the true sense, this was her first time taking a life, and it would surely leave a psychological scar.

"I’m fine," Xianyu Qing insisted stubbornly.

Nangong Ao had no choice but to strike a pressure point while she turned away, causing her to fall into a deep sleep.

He then carried her into another vehicle and took her to Angel Hospital.

When Ning Wenyan and Mao Wandou heard that Xianyu Qing had returned safely, they immediately rushed over to visit.

Aside from a scratch on her shoulder from a venomous wolf's claw, Xianyu Qing was uninjured, but Ning Wenyan still wept at the sight of her.

Even the usually carefree Mao Wandou had red-rimmed eyes. "Xianyu, why do you keep getting into trouble? Do you know how worried Auntie has been day and night?"

In truth, she had been just as worried, unable to sleep since the news broke.

Xianyu Qing did not want to worry Ning Wenyan, so she said dismissively: "Those people just kidnapped me by mistake. Once they realized they had the wrong person, they let us go."

This was the cover story Nangong Ao had decided upon: that someone had mistaken Xianyu Qing for the young lady of the Nangong family. Given that Nangong Ao had also been kidnapped years ago, no one doubted the explanation.

Furthermore, the remains of the pseudo-variants had been handled by a special department. They would never expose the existence of these creatures to the public.

Even so, to an ordinary person, kidnapping was a terrifying ordeal!

Seeing Xianyu Qing’s haggard expression, Ning Wenyan dared not say too much. "It’s enough that you’re back safely!"

After the visit, Mao Wandou returned to class, but Ning Wenyan insisted on staying to care for Xianyu Qing.

After everything she had been through, Xianyu Qing’s nerves remained frayed, and once night fell, she was plagued by recurring nightmares.

Nangong Ao felt that having a familiar face would help her settle down, so he allowed Ning Wenyan to stay and arranged for Yuan Man to provide psychological intervention.

As soon as Yuan Man saw Xianyu Qing, she let out an exaggerated gasp: "My dear, how did you end up like this?"

She then chided Nangong Ao, who stood nearby: "Young Master Ao, you really don't know how to look after your 'sister'! How could you leave her with that unreliable Second Young Master?"

Ning Wenyan quickly spoke up for Nangong Ao: "We owe it to the Young Master that Qingqing was able to return safely this time."

Yuan Man smiled at Ning Wenyan: "Auntie, you cannot be too lenient with Young Master Ao, or he will bully Qingqing in the future."

Nangong Ao frowned and said in a low voice: "Stop talking nonsense. Get to work!"

Yuan Man chuckled. "Yes, yes, I obey the orders of Young Master Ao! Please excuse yourself; I need to speak with the patient alone."

Ning Wenyan, being tactful, followed Nangong Ao out of the room.

Yuan Man dropped her playful demeanor, sat on a sofa a short distance away, and asked gently: "How are you feeling?"

"I’m alright," Xianyu Qing replied.

Seeing her low spirits, Yuan Man asked again: "Are you not afraid?"

Cutting straight to the point was usually a taboo in therapy.

But Yuan Man felt that Xianyu Qing didn't need any psychological "intervention"—she was doing fine on her own. At this moment, she just needed someone to listen.

"I’m not afraid of them," Xianyu Qing said softly.

She touched the gauze on her palm, thinking the nurse’s bandaging technique was far inferior to Jiang Mohe’s.

She still remembered the look of care and tenderness on Jiang Mohe’s face when he bandaged her hand, just as he had when he carried her on his back.

"Then what are you worried about?" Yuan Man asked, her eyes glinting with amusement. "Worried about that boy from the Research Department?"