Chapter 234: Incurable (Part 1)
Meanwhile, in the northern desert.
Wen Weilan walked out of the tent, holding a basin of extremely dark blood with a solemn expression. Facing everyone's expectant gazes, she gently shook her head.
Chen Shanyuan, so thin a gust of wind could blow him away, trembled and almost collapsed. It was Kuang Bowen, with only one leg, who firmly supported him, preventing him from falling to the ground.
Yu Jinling had finally died.
She was their tenth companion to die.
After three days of persistent high fever and the terrifying scarlet rash that covered her body, she was already festering and delirious. Maggots had even grown from the wound on her broken skull, and no matter how Wen Weilan tried to clean them, she couldn't get rid of them.
On this day, Yu Jinling, who had been completely without memory, suddenly began clearly calling out "Daddy" and "Mommy," and Wen Weilan already had a bad feeling.
Soon, her premonition came true.
Ultimately, Yu Jinling lost her human body and sanity, forever buried in this unfamiliar land.
This was a huge blow to Wen Weilan, Chen Shanyuan, and Kuang Bowen, who had once been her teammates.
Especially Chen Shanyuan.
He always felt that everything they were suffering today was inextricably linked to him.
It was he who dragged everyone into the Star Chasing Journey.
And it was he who invited everyone to the Xiao Xiang House and Autumn Moon Tower, resulting in the terrible misfortune.
Because of this disaster, the young Lu Junan lost his life, and they were forced to come to the distant northern desert, embarking on an endless journey home.
However, the journey was not peaceful; they encountered many weird objects.
Although everyone said it had nothing to do with him and that they had come voluntarily, he just couldn't get over it in his heart.
Facing Yu Jinling's death, the others also felt a pang of sorrow, especially after spending these past few days together. The people on the pleasure boat had already come to regard each other as partners. Another girl, Yan Hongye, who was similar in age and temperament to Yu Jinling, even burst into tears.
Within these short seven days, their numbers had dwindled to eight.
Watching their companions fall one after another, all with the same manner of death, everyone felt pity and, at the same time, fear.
Even the Xiaoxiang House Master, who was already in the Dongxuan Realm, was helpless.
Some even believed that this might be their punishment for rashly stepping onto someone else's land.
"You've worked hard, Miss Wen," the House Master said, walking up to Wen Weilan. "These past few days, you've been taking care of the patients without any rest. It's truly been hard."
Wen Weilan shook her head: "It's fine. Only I can do this."
The House Master sighed deeply: "Indeed, your ability to control weird objects is quite special; you're not affected by this illness. It's fortunate to have you, otherwise, everyone would have had an even harder time departing."
Wen Weilan remained silent. Her ability stemmed from Liu Sheng's gift of "You are always you."
This illness seemed to be caused by an epidemic, but after these few days, they gradually discovered that their previous assumption of airborne or contact transmission was incorrect.
Because they would immediately isolate patients upon discovery, yet even so, merely seeing someone from a distance would lead to new infections.
Thus, they realized this should be a spiritual pollution type of weird object.
Due to Wen Weilan's ability, she would not suffer spiritual pollution and lose herself, so the heavy burden of caring for the sick fell on her shoulders.
"But I don't know if this is truly a good thing?" A rare ripple appeared on Wen Weilan's face, her long eyelashes trembling as they lowered. "Since this is an incurable illness, perhaps letting them leave early is a release, better than suffering for days in the human world."
Every day, Wen Weilan watched these patients, completely losing their human form and humanity as they tossed and turned on their sickbeds, and the pain in her heart was indescribable.
"What you said... also makes sense, but one should always have hope," the House Master sighed. "What if we really find a cure?"
As he spoke, the sound of several people walking on the grass came from behind. Everyone turned to look and saw the Fisherman brother returning with two others. In addition, the fishing line on his fishing rod was still connected to Ariel.
Ariel, the child, was full of humiliation, his hands clenched into fists at his sides, stumbling along, dragged by the fishing line.
"You dragging this child like this..." The House Master's voice held a hint of disapproval, but his face was covered with Xuan paper, making his expression unclear.
"Don't pity him too much; this kid is not well-behaved," the Fisherman sneered.
Since Ariel's grandfather was killed by them, the child naturally regarded them as enemies. Even though they kept explaining that his grandfather had become a weird object and was no longer his grandfather, he refused to accept it, only looking at them with hatred.
But they couldn't bring themselves to slaughter a child, nor could they let him go, fearing he would report them. So, Ariel, whom he hated the most, had to be constantly held by the Fisherman.
"Never mind that, I followed their tribal folk remedies and picked some medicinal herbs from the mountain. You guys can try them."
He said, taking out a small bag from his Storage Pouch, which emitted a faint herbal fragrance.
Yan Hongye, beside Wen Weilan, wiped away her tears and stepped forward to take it. She was mainly responsible for decocting the medicine.
Only then did the Fisherman notice their sorrowful expressions and asked, "That girl who was the most ill..."
Wen Weilan nodded with a heavy expression.
The Fisherman let out a long sigh, and the man and woman who had returned with him also trembled.
"There are two more who are ill. You can decoct this medicine and let them try it," the Fisherman said.
Afterward, everyone discussed cremating Yu Jinling's body.
Only Ariel, in an unnoticed corner, hung his head low, a dark smile on his lips, his right hand clenched tightly.
...
At night, Ariel, feigning the need to relieve himself outside the tent, tiptoed out.
They didn't prevent him, because he was always entangled by that translucent thin line, which was incredibly tough and could extend very far, but as long as the Fisherman willed it, he could be reeled back no matter how far away he was.
So, in everyone's eyes, Ariel couldn't escape.
The myriad stars in the sky converged into a brilliant galaxy, hanging upside down in the night sky after the god's face of the Supreme God.
Ariel looked up and silently prayed.
Then he took out a hard object that he had been clenching in his hand, now sweaty and damp.
It was a small, piece of stone, black as night and smooth as a mirror, reflecting a mesmerizing dark luster under the divine glow of the starlight, as if countless tiny star points shimmered within it.
Ariel watched, a deep fascination flashing in his eyes, almost sinking into it.
This was a fragment of a star!
He had accidentally found it in the grass while following those bad guys to search for herbs in the mountains.
He thought this must be the Supreme God's blessing upon him!
There was a very clear fracture surface on the star fragment, with a shell-like texture, and each edge was like a sharp blade, making it an ideal cutting tool.
It was perfect for cutting some tough, unbreakable restraint.
He came back to his senses and forcefully cut back and forth with the fragment on the transparent fishing line wrapped around his body.
The star fragment was indeed a god-given object that could cut through anything. The fishing line that had tormented him for so many days broke silently, strand by strand.
He was finally free!
Ariel's excitement was indescribable. He wished he could recite a few lines like the bards of his tribe, but unfortunately, he had no such literary talent, let alone barely knowing how to read.
He could only cover his mouth, wave his fists a few times, and repeatedly chant in his heart: "Thank you, Supreme God! Supreme God is above!"
However, Ariel, deeply immersed in the joy of regaining his freedom, did not know that a pair of eyes, neither human nor inhuman, were watching him from behind.