Chapter 139 Crystal Covered by Pericardium

"Please... I beg you..."

Liu Xiaoqian's voice grew weaker and huskier, as if the words were being forced out from the depths of her throat.

The strength with which she slapped the light screen gradually diminished.

Slap... slap... slap...

It was as if her strength was about to run out.

"Where is Lin Yue?"

"Is she still not coming out?"

Shen Qingci swallowed hard and looked around, peering into every corner where someone might be hiding.

But there was only the afternoon sun, quietly shining on the empty gravel road.

Wang Mengmeng also stood on her tiptoes to look outside. "No one? There's really no one..."

Deng Yuxin whispered, "She just let Xiaoqian come back? She didn't come herself?"

Another slapping sound came from outside the door.

Even lighter now.

Liu Xiaoqian's entire body was slumped against the light screen.

"It hurts so much..."

"My body... it hurts so much..."

Her voice grew smaller and more blurred.

Zuo Shi's hands clenched tight.

"Sister Wanyue."

She turned her head and looked at Zhang Wanyue.

"She's really dying."

Zhang Wanyue grabbed Zuo Shi. "Don't be hasty. Although no one is visible nearby, there's always a 'what if'. Everything must wait until Chen Yu returns..."

Shen Qingci also nodded. "Chen Yu should be back soon—"

"Brother Chen Yu!!!"

Wang Mengmeng's voice suddenly exploded.

Everyone turned their heads in unison, following her gaze.

At the entrance of the courtyard, on the distant path, a figure was coming this way.

A black windbreaker.

Black cargo pants.

He was also dragging a girl along; she was stumbling, her legs moving as fast as they could, practically being dragged along as he ran.

"Brother Chen Yu!!!"

Wang Mengmeng shouted again!

Deng Yuxin leaned against the sofa, her eyes red. "That's great, that's great."

Li Mengyao let out a long breath and slid down slightly against the doorframe. "Scared me to death..."

She thought back to that time in the Blizzard Villa when she had been controlled.

Lin Yue's face...

It resurfaced right before her eyes.

She quickly shook her head, not daring to think about it further.

As Chen Yu got closer and saw that everyone was fine, he slowed his pace slightly.

Yes, he had turned back halfway and brought Lu Xiaoyu with him after all.

For no other reason than he thought being by his side was the safest place for her.

Chen Yu pushed open the picket gate of the courtyard and ran in, pulling Lu Xiaoyu with him.

Lu Xiaoyu was panting so hard she couldn't speak.

"Open the door."

Chen Yu stood outside the light screen, his voice very flat.

Zhang Wanyue nodded and turned to walk into the hall.

A few seconds later, that layer of blue ripples flickered and then slowly vanished.

Chen Yu stepped inside.

Wang Mengmeng was the first to rush up. "Brother Chen Yu! Are you okay? Did you run into Lin Yue out there?"

"No, she shouldn't be nearby."

Chen Yu shook his head; there were only a few scattered pedestrians near the Villa Area.

There was no sign of Lin Yue.

Dr. Qiao had already hurried toward the door and crouched down to check Liu Xiaoqian's condition.

Zuo Shi followed behind her, looking at the person on the ground, tears welling up again. "Xiaoqian... Xiaoqian, wake up!"

"Don't move her."

Dr. Qiao pressed down Zuo Shi's hand. "Carry her inside first."

Zhang Wanyue waved her hand. "A few of you, help out."

Wang Mengmeng and Deng Yuxin ran over together and carefully helped Liu Xiaoqian up.

Several people supported her into the Villa and placed her on the sofa in the hall.

Dr. Qiao immediately crouched beside her and began her examination, peeling back her eyelids, checking her pulse, and unbuttoning her collar to inspect the wounds.

Liu Xiaoqian lay there, motionless.

But her chest was still rising and falling.

She was still alive.

Chen Yu stood at the door, frowning.

Zhang Wanyue walked over and lowered her voice. "We had the shelter generator on, so no one dared open the door. She was shouting outside for over ten minutes; the more she shouted, the more wrong she seemed, and then she just lay there without moving."

"Mm."

Chen Yu spoke indifferently, "Not opening the door was the right call."

Wang Mengmeng leaned in and asked softly, "Brother Chen Yu, did you see anyone suspicious on your way back?"

Chen Yu shook his head.

"No."

His voice was very flat.

Wang Mengmeng breathed a sigh of relief. "That's good, that's good..."

Yang Kexin bit her lip. "What exactly does she want to do, turning Xiaoqian into this and then letting her back?"

No one could answer her.

Dr. Qiao's voice came from the sofa. "She's still alive, but in very poor condition. I need to do a detailed examination."

As she spoke,

a pile of items was pulled out of her personal backpack and laid out on the coffee table.

A portable defibrillator, a stethoscope, a pulse oximeter, a small oxygen tank, a full set of surgical instruments, and even a palm-sized portable ultrasound machine.

Wang Mengmeng's eyes went wide. "Holy crap... Dr. Qiao, where did you get all this stuff?"

Dr. Qiao didn't look up, already donning medical gloves. "Chen Yu traded for them. That group of people emptied out a hospital."

As she spoke, she clipped the pulse oximeter onto Liu Xiaoqian's finger and put the stethoscope in her ears.

Zuo Shi stood nearby, her hands clenched so tightly her knuckles were white, not daring to even breathe loudly.

Dr. Qiao listened for over ten seconds, her frown deepening.

Then she put down the stethoscope, picked up the portable ultrasound, and pressed the probe against Liu Xiaoqian's chest.

Everyone was in a state of confusion...

Lu Xiaoyu stood at the door, looking at the women in the Villa, each one more beautiful than the last.

Tall ones, thin ones, ones with long legs, ones with great poise—they looked like models, celebrities, people from the television.

Although they were frowning and many had red eyes, they were still so beautiful.

She looked to the side again.

In the yard, there was another person.

Lying on the ground, something around her neck, her head buried low.

Lu Xiaoyu squinted her eyes and looked carefully.

She looked a bit familiar.

She seemed to have seen her somewhere, perhaps that girl who was speaking at the plaza.

Lu Xiaoyu lowered her head and looked at herself.

Covered in dust.

One sleeve of her clothes was missing, revealing a bruised wrist.

She suddenly felt like finding a place to hide.

"Don't be afraid."

A warm hand suddenly took hold of hers.

Lu Xiaoyu was stunned for a moment; Zhang Wanyue was standing beside her, though she didn't know when she had approached.

"That girl wasn't with us on the bus."

"You don't need to feel burdened."

Zhang Wanyue's voice was very soft. "Sit there for now. We'll come find you once we're done here."

Lu Xiaoyu lifted her head and looked at her.

Her eyes turned red.

Zhang Wanyue smiled. "Alright, go sit down first. Later, I'll take you to wash up and change into clean clothes."

Lu Xiaoyu nodded and allowed Zhang Wanyue to lead her to a sofa in the side hall.

Zhang Wanyue let go of her hand and said as she turned away:

"By the way, my name is Zhang Wanyue."

"You can call me Wanyue, or... Class Monitor is fine."

Lu Xiaoyu was stunned for a moment, then whispered, "O-Okay, Sister Wanyue."

Zhang Wanyue nodded and turned to leave.

In the living room, everyone held their breath.

On the screen, a gray-and-white image slowly manifested.

The outline of a heart, beating pulse by pulse.

"What is it? Sister Qiao Xi?"

Zuo Shi's voice was trembling.

Dr. Qiao didn't speak, moving the probe to Liu Xiaoqian's lungs, scanning both the left and right sides.

Then she put down the probe and looked up.

"There is something inside her body."

Zuo Shi frowned. "What kind of thing?"

Dr. Qiao was silent for two seconds, as if organizing her words.

"Many... tiny, needle-like things, near the heart, pressed against the pericardium—no, not just near the heart, they're in the lungs too, following the direction of the trachea."

Her voice was very heavy.

"I suspect they are... crystals."

Those two words made everyone's hearts sink.

Shen Qingci's expression changed. "Lin Yue did this?"

Dr. Qiao nodded. "They were likely implanted. They are extremely fine, so thin they're almost invisible to the naked eye, which is why they aren't immediately fatal and don't affect her movement."

She paused.

"But she was shouting and screaming just now, slapping and crying..."

"Her heart rate accelerated, her breathing became rapid, and her blood flow quickened."

"Those Crystal Needles have already moved."