Save Me

Qu Jianlei really did have a problem, and it was more than just something minor like obsessive-compulsive disorder.

His IQ was far above average. Before transmigrating, he had been diagnosed with Asperger's Syndrome at a hospital on Blue Star.

However, Qu Jianlei believed that he had high-functioning autism, with the "high-functioning" part being his mental computational ability.

After transmigrating into the original owner's body, the intellectual disability of this body had not affected his IQ at all.

And he was quite happy to accept the label—or persona—of being intellectually disabled.

Because the outward signs of Asperger's Syndrome also gave people the impression that "there's something wrong with this person's head."

Qu Jianlei considered himself high-functioning autistic, but to outsiders, were those two labels... really that different?

Similar conditions had many manifestations, but they all came down to roughly the same thing: the brain couldn't control the body!

Not the kind where "the eyes said they got it, but the hands said don't even think about it."

Rather, his intelligence knew that doing something like this was inappropriate and needed to be considered carefully in the long term.

But his body's response was: I can't stand this... if I endure it, there'll be a Violent Explosion!

And in many cases, his body made its judgment before his brain did!

So Qu Jianlei stated bluntly, "I don't want to be eaten, whether by the Fallen... or by the people behind you!"

Rogers was stunned for a moment, then burst out laughing, laughing so hard that he rocked back and forth.

"Do you think this was a trap I set? Hahaha, that's absolutely killing me!"

It had to be said that Rogers's intelligence really wasn't bad, even if Qu Jianlei had always looked down on him.

"Is it that funny? Then keep laughing," Qu Jianlei said, lowering his eyelids.

What bound his hands and feet should have been Non-Elastic Alloy Rope... that kind of rope was truly troublesome.

There were many types of rope and many ways to classify them. Whether they were elastic or non-elastic was one major category.

If someone was tied up with non-elastic rope for too long, it could cause tissue necrosis. Amputation and such were perfectly normal outcomes.

Elastic rope, on the other hand, left plenty of room. Any misunderstandings could be talked out.

Since the ones who had captured him were Fallen, using non-elastic alloy rope was only natural. Making sure their captives could not escape was what mattered.

However, non-elastic rope had its advantages too—it was not as difficult to undo.

In the darkness, his hands bent into an extremely bizarre angle as he began feeling around for the rope binding them.

"A dead knot... but that doesn't really matter."

As he felt out the knot, Qu Jianlei carefully kept his hands hidden, afraid that Rogers might see them.

Fortunately, the light was far too dim for the other party to notice his little movements.

But Rogers was not someone who could stay quiet. After resting for a while, he began muttering softly again.

"Brother Qu, if you need me to cooperate, just say the word."

"Brother Qu, you're not just going to wait for rescue, are you? With your personality, I know you definitely won't give up..."

"Silly Qu, if you really escape without taking me along, I'll have a hard time controlling my emotions. I'll definitely do something..."

"Brother Qu, Uncle Qu, Grandpa Qu... You have to pull yourself together!"

Qu Jianlei turned a deaf ear and focused on figuring out how to undo the dead knot.

After a little over twenty minutes, he had already come up with a plan.

If he used all his strength, he should be able to undo the rope around his hands within a minute.

Rogers's muttering finally drew the attention of a Fallen.

It was a guy with two heads, one large and one small. The smaller head had distinct features as well, its mouth opening and closing.

He wore tattered leather armor and carried a club. The moment he entered, he gave them a vicious beating.

As he beat them, he cursed, "If I weren't worried you'd die too soon, I'd chop off one of your arms right now to go with my liquor!"

After beating them, he took two things off the hooks and turned to leave.

Qu Jianlei did not care whether that bastard lived or died. Instead, he noticed one detail... the door was not locked!

There was really no need to lock it. The two of them were tied up tightly, and their weapons had long since been confiscated.

Meanwhile, the Fallen had weapons in their hands—even guns!

But Qu Jianlei would not shrink back. With the door unlocked, his odds of escaping alive rose sharply.

While Rogers was dazed from the beating, an abnormal flush crossed Qu Jianlei's face. "Calculate!"

What he had always taken pride in was his IQ and computational ability. After transmigrating here, he had not lost that ability.

It had even strengthened as he grew older.

He vaguely felt that the artificial intelligence he had once developed had also entered his brainwaves and transmigrated along with him.

Thinking of the artificial intelligence made his emotions stir unusually again. It was the achievement into which he had poured his heart and soul.

Qu Jianlei had not been an orphan on Blue Star. Both of his parents were alive, and even among the elders above them, three were still living.

His father was a doctor and his mother a teacher, so the family was not badly off. His grandfather even had a building in the suburbs that had been demolished for redevelopment.

They could not be called rich and powerful, but they were at least an upper-middle-class family.

If Qu Jianlei wanted to start some kind of venture, raising the initial capital would not have been a problem.

And he had lived up to expectations. Relying on his formidable computing ability, he stirred up the international financial markets and harvested wave after wave of suckers.

In just three years, he multiplied his initial capital tens of thousands of times over, drawing the pursuit of international financial tycoons.

Naturally, Shenzhou protected him. He was not someone who only threw his weight around at home—he was worth protecting!

However, it became difficult for him to remain in the financial markets. Shenzhou asked him, "So what do you want to do?"

Artificial intelligence, of course! Qu Jianlei knew he was not good at socializing; dealing with machines was far easier for him.

Thus, although his AI project had been started privately, its scale was enormous.

Shenzhou also gave him tremendous support in manpower and material resources.

Unfortunately, he encountered an anomalous Electromagnetic Storm and was directly transported to another world.

Qu Jianlei felt that his current computing ability had already far surpassed what it had been on Blue Star, and it could continue improving.

Unfortunately, high-intensity mental computation consumed far too many calories.

Over these six-odd years, he had gone hungry one meal and full the next. It had been hard enough just to stay alive, and he truly had not had many calories to spare for improvement.

But now, he had to use it even if it consumed calories!

Under his focused control, the pair of hands bound behind his back moved as nimbly as butterflies among flowers.

In only half a minute, he undid the knot, then spent another fifteen seconds tying a new one.

At first glance, this knot looked even more intricate than the previous one, even more despairing.

But in truth, all he needed to do was lightly tug the loose end in the middle, and his hands would be free in an instant.

As for his bound feet, he had reached down to feel them as well and had already devised a way to free them.

But he did not untie the knots around his feet, because that would consume too many calories.

That mere forty-odd seconds of work had already covered his forehead in beads of sweat.

It was not only the computational process that consumed calories. Freely stretching his joints also expended an enormous amount of energy.

This technique was not a Wasteland method; it was still an inheritance from Shenzhou.

Qu Jianlei had not been good at socializing back on Blue Star, but he had been very interested in Taoist Sect scriptures.

He had not received any systematic inheritance, but he had spent quite some time studying all kinds of pieced-together material.

He had not achieved any results back then, yet after arriving in the Wasteland, he had unexpectedly gained a little.

But the same thing still held true: this kind of method... consumed an exceptional amount of calories!

There were truly many things Qu Jianlei could do, and his prospects were bright. The problem was... he had no strength!

Being able to undo his bindings after being tied up was a powerful skill, but could it help him carve out a vast territory?

People had to be realistic to survive.

As for what Rogers had said, that attaching himself to an organization would let him live a hundred times better than he did now?

Qu Jianlei had only one word for him: "Moron!"

So he was in no rush to undo the restraints on his feet. If he wanted to, it would only take half a minute.

The calories in his body were plummeting rapidly. It seemed he had already begun consuming what little fat he had left.

Therefore, he had to accumulate enough reserves so that, when the opportunity came, he would have the strength to escape.

After a while, Rogers seemed to recover a little. "Brother Qu?"

Qu Jianlei did not respond to him at all. They were not the same kind of people, so what was there to say?

About a dozen more hours later, the Two-Headed Man entered again and took away half a side of meat.

He glanced at Qu Jianlei and coldly asked, "Want some meat?"

Qu Jianlei lowered his head without speaking, clearly looking like he was angry but dared not voice it.

"Idiot!" The Two-Headed Man had obviously seen this situation far too often and could not be bothered to say more.

He turned to Rogers. "What about you?"

"I'll eat, I'll eat!" Rogers nodded frantically. "I want to live a few more days."

"Not completely stupid," the Two-Headed Man said casually, then walked out. "I'll give you meat at the next meal!"

After he left, Qu Jianlei calmly turned his gaze toward Rogers.

"Don't look at me like that," Rogers snapped, raising his brows. "I just want to live. Is that wrong?"

"Besides, if I don't eat, I'll die!"

Qu Jianlei lowered his eyelids again and said nothing more.

Another seven or eight hours later, the Two-Headed Man entered once more, his eyes fixed directly on Qu Jianlei.

"Kid, I was going to fatten you up first!" He drew the dagger at his waist.

No more waiting! Qu Jianlei tensed the muscles around his waist, ready to spring up.

But at that moment, a muffled burst of "Tuk-tuk" sounded from outside.

"Gauss Automatic Rifle?" All three turned to look outside.

"This is... someone's here!" Rogers's face lit up with surprise. "Rescue has really arrived!"

"I was even planning to give you meat to eat!" the Two-Headed Man shouted furiously, flinging the dagger in his hand at Rogers.

Without even looking at where the dagger went, he shot toward the outside like an arrow.

To him, these "meat people" were not worth fussing over. Something major was happening outside, and that was what he had to get involved in.

Rogers struggled desperately. The dagger grazed his neck and plunged into the ground.

Even so, the major artery in his neck was pierced. Blood sprayed out with a "hiss, hiss."

"Brother... Brother Qu, save me."

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