73: Chapter 73 Beyond Seven Steps

While running, Mia drew her two Tokarev TT-33 pistols from the leg holsters.

The contrast between her swift, vibrant red figure and the large-caliber firearms created an aesthetic of extreme violence.

The muzzles spat fire continuously, instantly turning two Genin into bloody messes. The Chunin leading them took one look at Tuaner, who was covered in the Golden Light Spell, and fled toward the north of the river without looking back.

Mia knew better than to chase a desperate foe, so she hurried over to support Tuaner. She unhooked purple, red, and green vials from her chain belt and began pouring them into Tuaner's mouth, terrified that she might drink too slowly.

Without even waiting for her to hiccup, she scooped her up and ran toward a relatively safe area in the rear. Ryan Nephalem and Loran were responsible for guarding the perimeter and defending against the heavy weaponry from the north of the river.

A few minutes after they left, several mortar shells landed exactly where they had been standing...

Hearing the explosion behind her, Mia freed one hand and slapped Tuaner across the face while still carrying her.

Tuaner covered her face, her eyes filled with stubborn tears. She didn't understand why she had been hit.

"Xiaoya wouldn't have died, so why didn't you use the [substitute doll]?" Mia demanded. "If not for Zhang Tianxing's Golden Light Spell, I would have only arrived in time to collect your corpse today."

Tuaner buried her head in Mia's chest, staying silent.

"It was saved for you, obviously. A pair of foolish women." While Ryan Nephalem used his shield to block the stray bullets fired blindly by the yapping Japanese pursuers, he lectured Tuaner, thinking, 'Opportunities like this are rare; he had to seize it.'

Professor Loran, who usually didn't say much, suddenly interjected, "Let's retreat quickly!"

"I need to talk to Director Zhang when we get back. The hospital is too close to the front lines..." Mia thought as she ran while carrying Tuaner.

"Mia, I just had a terrifying thought," Loran said to Mia, sounding hesitant.

"Based on the strength of the two Adventurers Tuaner killed earlier, they were far from being our match. This means it's very likely that the number of people participating in the promotion dungeon isn't just a few teams or a handful of Adventurers. The base number might be very large." After saying this, she turned her head to look inquiringly at Ryan Nephalem, who had experience with failing a promotion.

"Correct, there are also promotion matches with hundreds of participants at the same time." Ryan Nephalem confirmed Loran's theory.

"So, be careful. People might actually die here," Loran warned everyone again.

Back at the field hospital, a blood-covered Mia carried Tuaner and placed her in a ward close to her own. When the wounded soldiers nearby saw the beautiful nurse who brought them medicine and water every day had been wounded by the Japanese, they were so angry they slapped their beds. Mia had to comfort them for a while before everyone calmed down to rest.

"The antidote I made myself is running out." Mia looked distressed.

"The Japanese invaders are using too many gas shells, and we don't have many gas masks." Ryan Nephalem was also at a loss.

"The medicinal herb garden in the backyard managed by the vines will be ready soon." Loran brought some good news. "It will take about two or three days. But if we keep using Mia's blood to accelerate the growth, will she be able to handle it?"

"It's fine. The ambush operation against the Japanese invaders for tonight is temporarily canceled. Furthermore, we must guard against a surprise attack from the other side. You and Sister Loran take the first half of the night, and I'll take the second half. No problem, right, Ryan Nephalem?"

"Alright, you go get some rest. I'll handle the outside." Ryan Nephalem casually picked up his shield and walked out of the hospital...

Fortunately, there are only two or three days of full moon in a month. Today was not one of them.

Outside, Ryan Nephalem was like a human radar. As a natural hunter, it would be a joke if he couldn't guard a place as big as a hospital.

"Hey, I've seen plenty of Huaxia people standing guard for you, but you're the first one I've seen standing guard for our wounded soldiers," came a mocking voice from the distance. No need to guess; Zhang Tianxing had arrived.

"Big guy, did that girl run into danger during the day?" Daoist Zhang asked, punching Ryan Nephalem's breastplate.

"I appreciate your concern, little Daoist! Are you here to see Mia?" Ryan Nephalem laughed.

"Actually, yes. Many of the brothers on the front lines have been poisoned by the Japanese gas. I'm fine, but the brothers really can't hold on. I came to ask Miss Mia for some antidote..." Zhang Tianxing said, feeling a bit embarrassed.

"If anyone else came, she'd probably be out. But you? Go inside and ask her yourself. Right now, no one has more influence than you!" Ryan Nephalem pulled him into the field hospital and gave him a kick on the butt, getting revenge for the punch to his chest.

"I have four bottles of antidote left. Take them back and dilute them for use. One bottle can be mixed with about 20 military water canteens of water, enough for about 20 people. Did you get that, little Daoist?" Mia had just finished changing the dressing for a wounded soldier. To help him pull through, she secretly used [Healing Spell Lv5] on him, and pink light lit up the ward.

It happened to be seen by Zhang Tianxing. "You use supernatural arts on ordinary people? If those old fogeys saw that, they'd arrest you and punish you!"

Zhang Tianxing walked to Tuaner's bed and checked her pulse, then stroked his sparse stubble. "She seems to be fine now. Such a serious injury, young lady, you really have a miraculous touch!"

"You flatter me, little Daoist. With the war on the front lines so tight, and with no good food or sleep, I still have some dry rations here. Take them to the brothers on the front lines." Mia stuffed her compressed biscuits into Zhang Tianxing's hands, along with some beef jerky that the troops had distributed earlier. It left the little Daoist feeling a bit overwhelmed.

"You're a monster, so why are you fighting the Japanese so hard? I saw you the other day, barefoot in just socks, slaughtering dozens of Japanese soldiers, including Japanese ninjas. Whoever rules this land, you guys will still be monsters, right?" Zhang Tianxing asked, puzzled.

Mia smiled and didn't explain. She pushed him toward the exit. "When fighting a war, you must survive first to be able to fight bravely later. Don't just rush in. If you lose your life, you can't get back your capital..." Amidst Mia's nagging, Zhang Tianxing didn't even know how he walked out of the hospital gate.

Just as he was leaving, he seemed to suddenly remember something important. He turned back and shoved a small token, made of a material that was neither metal nor wood, into Mia's hand. "Take this. If you run into any old fogeys coming down from the mountain, show it to them and tell them you are the outer sect disciple of Longhu Mountain chosen by yours truly!" After saying that, he bolted and quickly disappeared into the night...

...In the trench, Zhang Tianxing finished using the antidote on the brothers of the Chang Kaishen army who were stationed with him, and then distributed the food Mia had brought him. The guys hadn't had anything to eat or drink, and suddenly having good, filling things like beef jerky and biscuits made their eyes light up.

They leaned against the dirt wall of the trench listening to Zhang Tianxing brag about how beautiful the nurse surnamed Mi at the hospital was, how kind-hearted she was, and how the socks on her legs would reflect light. "You guys are eating the antidote she mixed for you yourself. If you let the Japanese cross the river and harm her, you'll have no face to face your elders and fellow villagers when you go down to the underworld..."

A group of young men, most of whom hadn't even found wives yet, carried the weight of the nation in their hearts.

In the trench, they said the harshest words they could think of: "Once we drive away the Japanese, we're going to marry a woman just like Nurse Mia!!"