This time, the damage was far worse than before. The direct blow to Big Beard's chin had left his mind reeling, so he didn't get back up right away. Instead, he lay on the ground for quite a while. Zhong Lichun didn't press the attack; she simply stood there with her arms crossed, watching Big Beard coldly, amusement filling her eyes.
It took Big Beard more than ten seconds to recover. He raised his right fist and slammed it hard into the ground before getting back to his feet. By then, his eyes had gone slightly red. As a royal bodyguard, being thrown down twice in a row by a woman had dealt a serious blow to his pride. He had to win back his dignity.
With another low growl, Big Beard charged at Zhong Lichun again. His posture showed that he intended to seize her like before. Seeing that Big Beard had apparently learned nothing from his lesson, Zhong Lichun rolled her eyes. Just as before, she stepped forward and lowered herself, trying to evade his outstretched arms.
However, Zhong Lichun had oversimplified things this time. Big Beard wasn't a fool—how could he make the same mistake twice? Just as Zhong Lichun crouched, Big Beard abruptly halted his forward momentum and then kicked fiercely at her.
Zhong Lichun was crouching now, making it impossible for her to dodge Big Beard's kick. At the critical moment, she raised both arms to shield herself. In the next instant, Big Beard's foot slammed into her arms.
There was no denying that Big Beard was incredibly strong. Although Zhong Lichun blocked his attack, the force of the kick sent her flying backward a full two meters before she crashed to the ground.
Almost the instant Zhong Lichun hit the ground, Big Beard lunged at her and reached out to grab her by the neck. Her arms were still numb from taking his kick. In desperation, Zhong Lichun raised both legs and clamped them around Big Beard's neck. Then, with a powerful squeeze, she used her legs to lift her entire body off the ground.
Zhong Lichun truly had an impressive talent for combat. After trapping Big Beard's neck between her legs, she exerted force through her waist and violently twisted her body. No matter how strong Big Beard was, his neck could never match the strength of her thighs. As a result, the big man was thrown sideways onto the ground, while Zhong Lichun used the momentum to seize his right arm and pin him down in a standard Cross Lock.
Once trapped in a Cross Lock, the person applying it only needed to use both legs and arms at once to easily snap the other person's arm. The person being restrained, meanwhile, couldn't exert any strength because of the twisting of their ligaments and joints.
"Are you admitting defeat?" Zhong Lichun deliberately increased the pressure slightly. Big Beard's arm began to crack, and the pain of having it forcibly twisted nearly to the breaking point made him grimace.
Still, the man was incredibly stubborn and refused to concede. Seeing this, Zhong Lichun could only increase the pressure again. This time, Big Beard couldn't endure it any longer. He slapped the ground with his other hand and shouted, "I admit defeat! I surrender!"
Hearing Big Beard finally admit defeat, Zhong Lichun released him and stood up. Big Beard also rose, rubbing his right shoulder with his left hand. However, he wore a strange expression as he looked at Zhong Lichun, and his face was even slightly red. It was hard to tell whether he was embarrassed at losing to a woman or whether Zhong Lichun's earlier method of attack had been a little too intimate.
"Have you calmed down now?" Zhong Lichun felt nothing unusual about it. After dusting herself off, she crossed her arms and asked Big Beard.
Big Beard didn't even dare meet Zhong Lichun's eyes. He simply lowered his head and nodded. Just then, he suddenly noticed that Wei Dengke was removing the girl's clothes. Big Beard angrily roared, "What are you doing? How can you show such disrespect to the Princess?"
"What are you yelling for? Trying to show off your loud voice? I'm checking her condition. How can I examine her through clothes this thick?" Wei Dengke glared at Big Beard irritably, though his hands never stopped moving.
After removing the girl's outer garment, Wei Dengke had Mo Li help her sit up. Then he examined the girl's back. The blood vessels beneath her skin were especially prominent, forming patterns that looked as though another layer of Spider web had appeared over her body.
Wei Dengke frowned and then said gravely, "As far as I know, once this Spiral worm parasitizes a host, it secretes a special irritating fluid. This fluid dilates the victim's blood vessels and accelerates their blood flow. Under these conditions, the victim's heart rate can reach as high as two hundred beats per minute. Eventually, the heart will rupture because it can no longer withstand the pressure."
"What? Then what do we do?" Mo Li panicked slightly when he heard this.
"Tomboy, lend me your Military knife," Wei Dengke said after a moment's thought, suddenly calling out to Zhong Lichun.
Hearing Wei Dengke, Zhong Lichun nodded. She picked up the Military knife from the ground. She had never let go of it from the beginning, so it had been brought here with her. Perhaps the Yetis didn't know what these things were, which was why nearly all of the items everyone had been carrying were still with them.
After taking the Military knife Zhong Lichun handed him, Wei Dengke said to Mo Li, "Give me your lighter. The blade needs to be disinfected."
"...I'm out of lighter fluid. I used it to start a fire in the Underground Cavity earlier." Mo Li looked slightly embarrassed as he spoke.
"What exactly are you trying to do?" Big Beard had also walked over by then. He looked at Wei Dengke in confusion as he asked the question.
"Her blood pressure is too high. What do you think I'm going to do? Let her blood! We need to save her life first, then think about how to deal with the parasite in her body." Wei Dengke replied irritably.
After hearing Wei Dengke's answer, Big Beard nodded. He rummaged through his pockets and finally pulled a lighter from his coat pocket, handing it to Wei Dengke.
Wei Dengke didn't waste time talking to Big Beard. He took the lighter and used the Huoyan to disinfect the Military knife's tip. Once he deemed it sufficiently sterilized, he had Mo Li and Big Beard grab the girl's hands and instructed them to pry open her clenched fists.
After Mo Li and Big Beard pried open the girl's hands, Wei Dengke used the blade's tip to make ten tiny cuts, one on each fingertip. Surprisingly, although her fingertips had been pierced, not a drop of blood flowed from the wounds.
Seeing this, Wei Dengke frowned again. He then directly squeezed the wounds on the girl's fingers with his hand. This time, under his pressure, blood finally began to flow from her fingertips. However, the blood wasn't bright red. It was a dark brown, and it was extremely viscous, like half-congealed glue.
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