Little Whip Dipped in Cold Water

Chen Nan had no chance to resist at all. At a time like this, besides lamenting fate's unfairness toward him, what else could he do?

Before long, Tie Dan and Ye Gou each brought their things over. Director Wang ordered Ye Gou to feed Chen Nan a few mouthfuls of gruel, if only to give him a bit of strength and clear his head.

In truth, Chen Nan was perfectly lucid, but at this moment, he could only pretend to be muddleheaded. It seemed that anyone unable to fight reality had to play dumb; otherwise, why would people sigh that it was difficult to be wisely foolish?

Ye Gou really did haul Chen Nan over like a dead dog, flipping him onto his back. Then he pried open Chen Nan's teeth with his fingers, not caring whether he might choke, and forcibly poured that bowl of gruel into his mouth.

Chen Nan had naturally been prepared. After drinking a few mouthfuls of gruel, he pretended to come around. Then, hardening his heart, he did something that could temporarily vent his anger.

He clamped his teeth down viciously, with Ye Gou's finger still between them. At once, a miserable howl rang out—the same sort of cry Ye Gou made when he got beaten.

While yanking at his finger, Ye Gou directly smashed the bowl against Chen Nan's head, splashing gruel all over his face. Choking on the gruel forced Chen Nan to open his mouth, and only then was Ye Gou's finger successfully saved.

Otherwise, Chen Nan had truly intended to bite it off.

Even so, Ye Gou's index finger had been bitten open in a huge gash, the flesh turned inside out as blood gushed forth.

"You bastard, courting death!" Ye Gou cursed, rushing up to kick Chen Nan twice in the stomach. The pain bent Chen Nan over like a shrimp, yet he still felt it had been worth it. He was doomed today anyway.

Sure enough, Director Wang immediately gave the order. "Hang him from the tree. Hurry!"

The orphanage attendants and teachers following Director Wang came over one after another, tied Chen Nan's wrists, and hung him from the forked branches of that great tree.

Chen Nan's feet were only about a meter and a half off the ground. Hanging there, his ribs stood out even more starkly, like a washboard. His thin, tiny body was covered only by a pair of ragged pants. Caked in filth from head to toe, he looked worse than a beggar.

With a long sigh in his heart, Chen Nan said nothing. Yet at this moment, a streak of unyielding defiance slowly began to grow in his blood.

Had he, a transmigrator, suffered any insult to his dignity? Apparently not, because he had not been treated as a human being at all! If so, what dignity was there to insult?

Here, he could only let others manipulate him. Even the right to live or die lay in other people's hands. The feeling was unbearable. Chen Nan refused to accept it. Even if he could not see any future for now, he still refused to accept it.

No matter what, he had to survive, then build himself up. This confusion, helplessness, and utter loss had never been what he wanted.

Then, as his body turned involuntarily, he saw the outside.

Because he had been hung up, he now stood higher than the walls. And since this Orphanage was on a mountain in the outskirts, he could see the distant city.

It was a rather modern city, with towering buildings and endless streams of traffic, like a replica of Earth. This somehow made Chen Nan feel more secure.

He had thought for a long time about his abilities and how to use them, and he had gained a few ideas. If this world was similar to Earth, then he would certainly be able to carve out a career for himself.

With that obese body of his, it was obvious he had no affinity with exercise. But just as he had enjoyed himself in bed, he had clearly practiced quite a few special tricks in that field.

Chen Nan did not want to cooperate either, but Director Wang was clearly an old hand at this. Whether Chen Nan cooperated or not made no difference.

But this was physical labor after all. After roughly several dozen lashes, Director Wang was already panting heavily. His sweat flowed out with an oil-to-water ratio of two to one, truly proving the phrase "rich enough to drip with oil." It also showed that being rich enough to drip with oil sometimes meant one could do whatever one pleased.

"You take turns," Director Wang said as he handed over the whip and caught his breath. "I'm going to take a bath. Don't let him rest!"

It was clear that Director Wang had already gotten "comfortable," and at least much of the fire in his heart had subsided. But he did not intend to let Chen Nan off. This was called lingering might still remaining.

Chen Nan's breaths grew weaker and weaker, and his vision had blurred. Yet whenever someone struck him, his gaze would lock onto that person.

Those with a conscience saw that look and immediately felt a chill run down their backs. After putting on a show by shouting a few threats, they withdrew.

In the end, Chen Nan could no longer hold on and completely passed out. What happened afterward, he knew nothing of.

When Chen Nan woke again, everything around him was deathly silent. The lights of the distant city illuminated the sky, but above the Orphanage, the stars were still thick and brilliant.

Chen Nan felt parched, and he could not muster even a thread of strength throughout his body. Looking at his miserable state, the heroic spirit from before seemed to have become nothing but a joke.

It seemed he no longer had any hope of living. There was not a single part of his body that was uninjured. Even now, he could occasionally hear the drip-drip of his blood falling to the ground.

Clearly, only when the blood on the ground had already pooled enough would it sound like this.

If he wanted to live, he first had to heal these injuries, right? Otherwise, what hope of survival was there? The evening breeze brushed past, and several leaves swept over his cheek. Chen Nan gave a bitter smile and thought, You old tree have really ruined me. You're such an ancient tree—don't you have any divine powers? Since you harmed me, can't you save me too?

Perhaps it was the wind, or perhaps Chen Nan was merely imagining things.

The tree creaked, "Creak, creak." Several somewhat thick branches actually twisted their way beneath Chen Nan's feet.

With support beneath his feet, Chen Nan felt much better. Then other branches gathered around him as though embracing him, making him even more comfortable.

Even more miraculously, Chen Nan discovered that many leaves pressed against his body, and then a faint pale-green radiance lit up.

After that, a magical sensation flowed through Chen Nan's entire body.

It was a kind of power—the power of life. It was impossible to describe, yet Chen Nan simply knew.

That power surged through his blood vessels. The scorching pain in his wounds immediately vanished, replaced by a cool, soothing sensation.

Chen Nan could feel his injuries recovering rapidly. He was no longer shocked, only filled with overwhelming joy.

It seemed he really did possess extraordinary power. There was no doubt about it. Right, this had to be his golden finger—his transmigration benefit! Of course! As a transmigrator, this was standard equipment. How could he possibly not have it?

If he did not have this and had simply come over empty-handed, then what was the point of transmigrating?

Chen Nan let out a long breath. He knew his ideas should have a chance of becoming reality.

"Ah, I'm so thirsty. I lost too much blood. I need to replenish myself," Chen Nan thought.

And just as he thought of it, it came to him. Three leaves moved to Chen Nan's mouth. Through the leaves' vascular channels, pale-green liquid condensed and flowed into his mouth.

The burning sensation in his throat disappeared, and he felt as though his entire body had been nourished.

"I need something to eat too," Chen Nan thought, then began giving orders to those little Rats.

Several Rats carried dried meat up the tree and delivered the food into Chen Nan's mouth. He ate happily.

However, having learned the lesson of nearly choking to death last time, Chen Nan knew he could not get carried away. After all, the danger he faced in this Orphanage was far from over.

Thus, he communicated with the old tree and told it not to heal his injuries completely. It was to leave all the external wounds that looked severe intact, while thoroughly healing every internal injury. The old tree followed his instructions.

After a while, all treatment was complete. Other than the branches supporting Chen Nan, all the old tree's branches returned to their original places.

Only one Rat remained in the tree.

Chen Nan looked at the distant city. He knew he had to find a way to escape this place.

But things like climbing over the wall were impossible.

Not only were the walls extremely high, impossible for a child to climb, but from Chen Nan's judgment, there should also be an electric fence on top.

Without exaggeration, this place looked less like an Orphanage than a prison for serious criminals.

Therefore, if he wanted to escape, he had to find another path. Either locate some hidden passage, or make one himself.

The first thing Chen Nan could think of was the sewers.

Of course, the sewers were not his only idea. There were naturally other routes as well. But those would have to come slowly.

First, he had to understand the layout of this place. He also needed to gather some strength.

And all of that could only be entrusted to these Rats.

After thinking for a moment longer, Chen Nan issued a string of commands to this Rat. They said Rats forgot the moment their paws touched the ground; he hoped this one would be a little smarter.

His future fate could only depend on these little creatures.