Chapter 188 – The Same Ailment
Xie Xu walked over to Tu Ran and secured the device onto her head.
“Close your eyes,” he said, his icy blue eyes lowered as he gazed at her, his tone indifferent.
Tu Ran complied.
Xie Xu’s footsteps receded, followed by the sound of a chair being moved. Then, the device on her head activated, emitting a low humming sound.
Tu Ran’s mind was instantly enveloped in a blank, white expanse.
All she could see was white.
Was this the process of reading her memories?
It wasn’t.
She had previously searched for information on the communicator Xie Xu gave her. During memory reading, the subject’s brain would rapidly flash through all the scenes from the designated time period, and these scenes would be transmitted in detail to the connected computer.
But now, all she faced was a blank, white void.
It might have been a method Xie Xu used to confuse Zero.
She didn’t know how much time had passed when she finally heard Xie Xu’s voice.
“It’s done.”
Tu Ran tried to open her eyes but couldn’t; her eyelids felt heavy, and her consciousness was still trapped in that blank void.
She felt Xie Xu removing the device from her head, his gaze lingering on her face.
“Don’t rush to open your eyes. Take three minutes,” Xie Xu said calmly.
Tu Ran relaxed.
Three minutes later, she opened her eyes right on time.
The first thing she saw was Xie Xu’s deep, icy blue eyes.
“Tomorrow night at 8:30, the abandoned Meihua Nutrient Solution Factory in Luqing City,” Xie Xu said.
Tu Ran propped herself up on her arms, “Luqing City? You’re going to…”
“Yes.”
He intended to deal with Zhao Yan.
Zhao Yan’s abilities were a threat to everyone.
“You’ve had three days to think it over.”
Tu Ran remained silent.
“I hope to see you there tomorrow,” Xie Xu added.
…
Leaving the memory reading room, Tu Ran quickly made her way to the medical department to visit Xi Chunzhi.
Xi Chunzhi was lying quietly on the bed, just as she had been for the past few days. Her eyes were tightly shut, dark circles were visible under them, her skin was pale, and her cheeks were gaunt.
The machine by the bedside beeped rhythmically and crisply, signaling that the person on the bed was still alive.
Tu Ran pulled out a chair, sat down, and rested her elbows on the pristine white bed, leaning in to study her.
What exactly was going on?
The Federation’s medical technology was extremely advanced; diseases that were once considered incurable in that other world were nothing more than minor ailments, akin to a common cold in this one.
Even with such advanced technology, why couldn’t they figure out what was wrong with Xi Chunzhi?
Tu Ran couldn’t help but let her thoughts wander, even considering metaphysical possibilities.
Could it be something unclean?
Should she perhaps consult a Taoist priest to perform a ritual?
Tu Ran nodded to herself; yes, she needed to find out where she could find a Taoist priest.
After sitting for about ten minutes, the door to the ward opened.
Tu Ran turned to look and saw a well-wrapped hospital bed being wheeled in from outside.
There was another person lying on the bed.
Tu Ran didn’t pay much attention to the person but instead focused on Xie Xinyu, who walked in behind the bed.
“What’s going on?” she asked.
Xie Xinyu was swiping at the electronic screen. He looked up at her briefly and replied indifferently, “Both of them have the same symptoms. I’m placing them together so I can observe them.”
“The same symptoms?” Tu Ran immediately stood up. “If there are similarities, does that mean you’ll be able to find the cause soon?”
“Don’t get too excited,” Xie Xinyu gestured for her to calm down. “We haven’t found anything yet. Although their physical signs are identical, both of them passed out as soon as they came out of the Threshold. Their holographic recording bracelets were damaged, and the memory readers can’t retrieve any memories. Without seeing what happened to them inside the Threshold, we can’t speculate on the cause.”
Tu Ran’s earlier joy vanished entirely.
So, there’s still no progress.
She sighed inwardly, her gaze sweeping over to the bed placed next to Xi Chunzhi’s.
A curtain separated the two beds, and a nurse was slowly pulling it closed.
Just before it was fully drawn, Tu Ran caught a glimpse of the pale face on the other bed.
Her pupils suddenly dilated.
The [Wheel of Time]!
The person who had unintentionally acquired the [Wheel of Time]!
The one whose inner core she had removed, injected with a restorative agent, and left in the dense forest within the Threshold.
He had actually returned?!
Wait, he has the same symptoms as Xi Chunzhi!?
Tu Ran looked at Xi Chunzhi in disbelief.
Could it be that she…
“Do you have any other questions?” Xie Xinyu asked, his hands clasped behind his back, looking very much the part of a doctor.
Tu Ran stared at him intently. “Did Xi Chunzhi walk out of the Threshold on her own?”
If Xi Chunzhi was showing these symptoms, it was highly likely that her inner core had been removed.
She needed to determine if Xi Chunzhi’s core was taken while she was still inside the Threshold or after she had come out.
“Yes,” Xie Xinyu nodded calmly. “Who else would have carried her out?”
“How long after she came out did she faint?”
“Hmm…” Xie Xinyu rubbed his chin, thinking carefully. “It seems she fainted right after coming out. Anyway, the day the Threshold opened, your Pioneer Team brought in many injured. She was among them.”
Tu Ran looked over at the bed next to Xi Chunzhi’s. “Did he walk out on his own too?”
“That’s right,” Xie Xinyu glanced at the time. “We’ll talk more next time. I have a surgery to perform.”
With that, he turned and left, followed by the two nurses who had come in with him and pushed the bed.
The ward was now quiet, with only Tu Ran and the two unconscious patients remaining.
Tu Ran slowly sat down on the chair, gazing at Xi Chunzhi’s pale face. Pretending to tidy up her hair, she let her fingers brush against the back of Xi Chunzhi’s neck.
On the smooth skin near her shoulders, she felt a rough scar.
Tu Ran’s fingers trembled slightly, a storm of thoughts swirling inside her mind, but her face remained calm. She slowly withdrew her hand and resumed her seat, as if she had only been fixing Xi Chunzhi’s clothes.
So, Xi Chunzhi really did have an inner core.
Her current comatose state was due to the loss of that core.
But who was responsible?
Tu Ran mentally reviewed the many pioneers she had encountered.
Besides Zhao Yan, she hadn’t met any other pioneer with superpowers.
Whoever removed Xi Chunzhi’s inner core would likely consume it themselves. Of course, there was a possibility they might have hidden it instead of consuming it, but that seemed unlikely. After all, the whole point of acquiring an inner core was to harness its power, and hiding it away wouldn’t serve that purpose.
Zhao Yan…
Tu Ran repeatedly mulled over his name.
He was the prime suspect.
If Zhao Yan was indeed responsible, then the inner core was removed within the Threshold.
But if the core was taken outside the Threshold, then he wouldn’t be the main suspect. He wouldn’t have been able to convince the medical department to lie and claim that Xi Chunzhi had fainted the moment she exited the threshold.
Tu Ran’s other suspect was the Federal Government.
The only entity capable of making the medical department cooperate would be someone with immense power within the Federal Government.
Moreover, she typically had no access to those high-ranking officials and couldn’t see if they had any superpowers.
It wasn’t impossible.
She suddenly stood up.
She needed to check the surveillance footage to determine at which point Xi Chunzhi’s inner core had been removed.
No wayy (⑉⊙ȏ⊙)!