96: Meet again!

Inside the special care ward, silence reigned.

Chen Fan and Yao Rao's eyes met.

A strange atmosphere silently spread through the space.

At this moment, Yao Rao, who had just woken up, faced Chen Fan, and her first reaction was gratitude.

If not for Chen Fan's fearless assistance,

even she, one of Hong's three personal guards, would have certainly perished in the No. 9 Ancient Civilization Ruins.

Now, her ability to rest safely in bed was inextricably linked to Chen Fan.

It could be said, without exaggeration, that without Chen Fan, there would be no Yao Rao.

"It's nothing, no need to be so polite. Your body is still very weak."

"Rest well first; we can talk about repayment once you've recovered."

When he said the word "repayment," Chen Fan deliberately emphasized it, as if hinting at something.

Perhaps because she had just woken up, Yao Rao's mind was still a bit slow to react; she didn't seem to grasp the meaning behind Chen Fan's words.

After hearing Chen Fan's words, Yao Rao simply nodded gently and hummed in agreement, not refusing.

After all, Chen Fan was her savior.

For no other reason than this:

At that time, three High-level Lords were eyeing her menacingly, yet Chen Fan still risked his life to save her.

This great kindness had to be repaid.

"Alright!" Chen Fan readily agreed.

Chen Fan was also a smart person and didn't dwell too much on this matter.

There would be plenty of time in the future!

With that, Chen Fan skillfully divided the apple into several pieces, removed the core, and poured them directly into the juicer.

Soon, a glass of freshly squeezed apple juice was brought to Yao Rao's bedside by Chen Fan.

"You've been through a day and a half of surgery; drink some juice to rehydrate!"

Chen Fan glanced at Yao Rao's chapped red lips and spoke gently.

His actions left Yao Rao momentarily speechless.

Yao Rao's beautiful eyes stared intently at Chen Fan, as if wanting to see through him.

She found it truly difficult to reconcile the gentle, considerate young man before her

with the terrifying God of War who descended like a demon god on the battlefield.

These two were complete opposites.

This man seemed to be anything but simple.

Yao Rao's beautiful eyes shifted, fixated on Chen Fan as she pondered.

Without warning, fragments of memory surfaced in Yao Rao's mind.

The scene returned to the No. 9 Relic Battlefield, amidst the beast tides.

Chen Fan, holding her, had cut down Lord-level Monsters all the way... This experience of being protected by a man was something she had never had before.

This feeling made Yao Rao recall the time years ago when she fought monsters alongside Hong.

It was exactly the same.

As soon as she thought of this, Yao Rao couldn't help but feel a sense of daze.

At this moment, she seemed to return to that bloody battlefield, her thoughts complex.

"What's wrong? Don't you want apple juice?"

Chen Fan, seeing Yao Rao still not drinking and instead staring at him, asked in confusion:

"If you don't want it, I can get you something else."

As he spoke, Chen Fan's gaze had already moved to the fruit basket.

His wandering eyes seemed to be picking out some fruit.

"No... it's not like that."

As if suddenly remembering something, a blush appeared on Yao Rao's face.

Then, Yao Rao's slightly pale pink lips parted, and she slowly finished the glass of juice.

Chen Fan seemed to pretend not to notice.

"Oh, I forgot to introduce myself."

"My name is Chen Fan, the 'Fan' as in ordinary, not the 'Fan' in Versailles!"

Chen Fan introduced himself with a polite demeanor.

"You are not an ordinary God of War martial artist!"

Yao Rao teased with a smile, a hint of amusement appearing on her pale face, then continued:

"Chen Fan, I am Yao Rao!"

As if in response to Chen Fan's introduction, Yao Rao also simply introduced herself.

"Cough, cough, cough..."

However, just as she finished introducing herself, Yao Rao began to cough violently.

Chen Fan instinctively patted her back gently, just as he had when he carried her.

For a moment, the two were so close that their breaths could be clearly heard.

"S-sorry!"

As if realizing it belatedly, Chen Fan awkwardly scratched his head, a hint of discomfort on his face.

"N-no, it's fine."

Suddenly, Yao Rao also became a bit flustered.

Immediately after, Chen Fan seemed to want to avoid further awkwardness.

He turned and walked to the large floor-to-ceiling window, looking outside.

At this moment, the weather was perfect.

The morning sun had just risen, casting its warm rays upon the earth.

The entire Hongning Base City was enveloped by the morning sun.

Amidst the ethereal mist, it looked like a fairyland on earth.

"Yao Rao, then, I suppose we've made each other's acquaintance this time."

Chen Fan's voice was like a mountain spring, warm and mellow.

At the same time, Chen Fan's gaze, as deep as midnight, looked at Yao Rao, possessing an indescribable charm.

"No, this counts as our re-acquaintance," Yao Rao replied.

At this moment, bathed in the golden morning light, Chen Fan stood alone, like a God of War descended.

So handsome!

Looking at Chen Fan bathed in the morning light, and recalling his decisive killing in the rainforest battlefield,

more importantly,

she clearly remembered that it was this man who broke into the encirclement of three High-level Lords.

He forcefully snatched her back from the King of Hell's grasp and skillfully killed those three High-level Lord-Level Monsters.

Furthermore, this man was also a Psycher Master, extremely rare among martial artists.

In a daze, Yao Rao recalled Chen Fan's scene of fighting one against three.

Even now, thinking of that intense scene made Yao Rao's heart race.

After that, Chen Fan also carried her through many more battles.

Thinking of this, a warmth involuntarily surged within Yao Rao's heart.

Scenes from the rainforest battlefield flashed through her mind.

Accompanied by the whistling sound like wind, it still echoed in her ears.

This feeling was truly wonderful!

For a moment, Yao Rao's face was tinged with an even deeper blush.

The young girl, in the throes of her first love, seemed to be completely captivated by Chen Fan... but at this moment, Chen Fan appeared utterly oblivious.

He looked up at the rising sun, his eyes shining brightly.

After a long while, Chen Fan turned around.

The divine light in his eyes slowly receded.

He stared at Yao Rao for a good while before slowly speaking:

"You rest well first; I have something to do."

With that, Chen Fan left Yao Rao with a confident smile.

"Mm, you go ahead and be busy!"

Hearing Chen Fan's words, Yao Rao replied very obediently.

"So well-behaved!"

For no apparent reason, Chen Fan said this.

"I'll be back very soon."

Leaving Yao Rao with his back, Chen Fan exited the special care ward.

Outside the ward, Chen Fan took out his communication watch and dialed a number that a beast had given him.

He was contacting a merchant who purchased monster materials.

After all, for Chen Fan now, whether preparing weapons or new protective gear, enormous wealth was required.

And the source of all this wealth came from the materials left behind by the High-level Lord Monsters he had killed...