Chapter Sixteen: Aftermath

The nurse cast another adorable glance at Chen Qi and called out, "Don't move. Let me help you up." With that, she tenderly assisted him, helping him to stand and slip on his slippers.

As he basked in the gentle care of the nurse, his heart wandered far and wide, lingering over the delicate hands he found so hard to let go of. "I think I want to find a girlfriend again," Chen Qi mused quietly to himself.

A sharp pain shot through his body as he took a step, the movement aggravating his wounds. "Ha ha ha, serves you right for trying to walk," the nurse beside him laughed, her voice ringing like silver bells.

Chen Qi pushed himself to take another step, determined not to let this young nurse look down on him. He opened the door to his hospital room, only to find two armed soldiers standing guard at the door of the adjacent room.

Leaning half his body on the nurse, Chen Qi carefully managed his movements, using as little muscle as possible, feeling that even an eighty-year-old man could move more easily than he did.

When the guards saw Chen Qi, his body blackened and burned beneath his hospital gown, both looked at him in surprise. Taking advantage of their distraction, Chen Qi pushed open the door with all his strength.

Inside, the general lay on the bed, equally charred, listening to his adjutant’s report. Both turned their heads at the sound of the door.

The nurse helped Chen Qi into the general's room, where he suddenly stopped. Her beautiful eyes filled with confusion as she observed the two patients—one old, one young—both burnt and blackened, staring at each other in silent understanding.

The old general broke the silence first, laughing heartily. "I’ve heard all about it. Don’t you know those KB agents are desperate men? Have you always been so brave?"

Chen Qi deliberately ignored the teasing hidden in the general’s words, shamelessly treating it as praise. He forced a concerned expression onto his face and drawled, "General! Are you alright? I was so worried about you. I’m enduring terrible pain just to visit—I feel like I could drop dead any moment, ugh!"

"Ha ha ha ha ha!" The general coughed violently at Chen Qi's words, while the adjutant, unable to pat the general’s burnt back, sent a reproachful look at Chen Qi.

Feeling he had the upper hand, Chen Qi quickly pressed his advantage.

"General, I have a favor to ask. Please let me move freely around the hospital. Many comrades and classmates want to visit," Chen Qi pleaded.

The general considered for a moment, then feigned annoyance. "Go, go, go! The sooner you die, the fewer people there are to irritate me!"

Hearing the general’s consent, Chen Qi’s true colors showed. He turned to the nurse, saying, "Did you hear the general’s instructions? Hurry and take me to Andre’s intensive care unit."

He turned briskly, without a shred of sentiment. Watching Chen Qi’s pragmatic and decisive manner, the general was so enraged he coughed again.

With the nurse’s support, Chen Qi made his way down the hospital corridor, his face twisted in pain, displaying a variety of expressions. The short journey on the first floor took him more than ten minutes.

Entering the intensive care unit, Chen Qi saw Andre lying on the bed, his body a mangled mess, uttering strange, unintelligible sounds. Sensing Chen Qi’s presence, Andre struggled to open his eyes and squeezed out a sentence with all his strength: "I didn’t lie to you, did I? That kick—two years of training!"

His voice faded as he drifted into unconsciousness.

Chen Qi suppressed the sorrow that threatened to overflow, forcing a calm tone. "Rest well. I’m waiting for you to compete with me in CS again. You’ll be my defeated opponent!"

Unable to bear the oppressive atmosphere of the ward and the sight of Andre’s ravaged body, Chen Qi hurriedly left, leaning on the nurse.

He wondered if he would end up like this someday—and, even more painfully, whether anyone would grieve for him when that day came.

Outside, a doctor addressed Chen Qi, "He’s still in critical condition. Even if he survives, his right leg was blown off!"

The doctor's words thundered in Chen Qi’s mind. He could not imagine the blond young man living as an amputee.

This scene reminded him again of the importance of strength. The strong always have more choices, while the weak are often forced into decisions.

The harrowing scene planted a seed deep within Chen Qi’s heart, drawing nourishment as it grew.

The nurse seemed to sense something and quickly helped Chen Qi out of the oppressive atmosphere.

"Come, let’s visit the bearded soldier’s room—the special forces guy with several gunshot wounds to the abdomen," Chen Qi said, his voice devoid of emotion.

The sound of slippers echoed down the quiet ward.

Before even entering the bearded soldier’s room, Chen Qi could hear the man’s exaggerated voice from afar: "That kid was scared stiff, didn’t dare move a muscle. If I hadn’t shoved him aside, he’d have been riddled with holes!"

Opening the door, Chen Qi saw the bearded man boasting to the wounded soldiers beside him about his bravery. Judging by the special forces’ Nightwalker II nano combat suit, its blue-grade quality was certainly justified—the bearded soldier’s voice was full and strong.

Seeing Chen Qi enter, the bearded soldier greeted him flamboyantly, "Hey, the boss is here! How was my security?"

Chen Qi didn’t argue with his savior. Instead, he took a banana from the fruit basket beside the bed and handed it to him.

The bearded soldier devoured the banana in a few bites, then continued, "Kid, don’t try that on me. Go tell that guy over there—I wasn’t exaggerating!"

Unable to refuse, Chen Qi sat by the bearded soldier’s bed and recounted to the soldier on the next bed how the bearded man had saved him.

As he spoke, a notification chimed, and information appeared on his retina:

"Congratulations, chosen one, main quest completed: Survival. Rewards will be settled upon returning to the space. Return now, yes or no?"

Chen Qi still had unresolved matters and chose "no."

Immediately, another message arrived:

"The chosen one has one day to remain in this space (first stay is free). Further stays require 1,000 universal points."

Checking his task list, Chen Qi decided to use the remaining day to clear up something important.

First, he resolved to eat well and get some sleep.

He slept until nightfall and woke with a start. Thanks to his partially digitized state, his recovery was rapid—he could walk without difficulty.

After the nurse handed him dinner, Chen Qi insisted, against her reluctant protests, that she help him find someone to chat with.

He visited more than a dozen wards, meeting teachers from Stran Middle School, the principal, and the hostage parents, learning what had happened on the auditorium’s second floor.

The special police’s operation was remarkably smooth—perhaps because some KB agents hid among the crowd, the police rescued the hostages with minimal resistance.

Then, Chen Qi sought out the adjutant standing beside the general, requesting a copy of the surveillance footage from the Stran Middle School auditorium.

Seeing the general unresponsive, the adjutant obliged, granting Chen Qi a favor.