Healing in the boudoir?

The scent of cold disinfectant mixed with the low hum of instruments was the first thing Lin Xiao perceived upon regaining consciousness.

His eyelids felt so heavy, as if welded shut. Every attempt to lift them pulled at the profound exhaustion from the [-1.95], a pain that felt like it could tear his very consciousness apart.

Thanks to the potent painkillers, the wounds on his back and right shoulder had dulled into a throbbing ache, like being cut by a blunt knife, a constant reminder of his body's shattered state.

Special Operations Ninth Division safe house.

The realization hit him like ice water, instantly tightening his remaining consciousness.

Fragments of memory flashed back like a stuttering film: Scarface Qiang's ferocious claw marks, the explosion flames shooting skyward, the despair spreading through the gaps in the cold steel, Qin Bing's suddenly enlarged, icy face, and… the distorted, pupil-less eye imprinted on the oil-stained ground!

The Shadow Alliance!

How could they have been there? Was it targeting him? Or a coincidence?

The questions gnawed at his nerves like venomous snakes, intensifying the pain in his soul.

The deep blue light screen in his mind was as silent as a tomb, its surface covered in black cracks that showed no sign of healing. Under the heavy pressure of [-1.95], it felt as though it could shatter into nothingness at any moment.

Every faint flicker of thought felt like walking on cracked glass, bringing sharp, stinging pain.

"You're awake?" A cold, emotionless voice, with a metallic texture, sounded by the bedside.

Lin Xiao struggled to open his eyelids. His blurry vision focused, and the first thing he saw was Qin Bing's sharply defined profile, like an ice sculpture.

She stood by the bed, holding a tablet terminal. Her gaze wasn't on him, but on the scrolling data on the screen.

Her black combat uniform made her seem out of place in this pure white, tech-filled hospital room, like a blade ready to be unsheathed.

"You've got a tough life."

Qin Bing finally shifted her gaze from the screen to Lin Xiao's pale, paper-like face. Her sharp eyes were like a scalpel, dissecting him from the inside out.

"Six elites from the Blood Wolf Gang are either dead or crippled, and there was a suspected Shadow Alliance mark at the scene. Lin Xiao, you always manage to 'surprise' me."

Her tone offered no hint of praise or mockery, only a cold scrutiny.

Lin Xiao tugged at the corner of his mouth, trying to muster his usual roguish grin. But it only pulled at his cracked, bleeding lips, bringing a fresh stab of pain.

"Officer Qin… cough… your life-saving grace… I'll never forget…" His voice was as hoarse as a broken bellows.

"Save it." Qin Bing interrupted him, putting down the tablet. She crossed her arms and looked down at him from her superior height.

"You earned your life back yourself. I was just doing my job, cleaning up city trash and happened to pick up someone who was still breathing."

She paused, her gaze suddenly sharpening like needles. "What I'm more concerned about is why the Shadow Alliance's mark was there? What does it have to do with you?"

Here it comes! Lin Xiao's heart tightened.

He endured the soul-piercing pain and the body's weakness, mustering his last bit of mental strength. His eyes held a carefully crafted mix of post-disaster confusion, the weariness of severe injury, and a touch of wronged indignation at being suspected without cause.

"Shadow Alliance? What's that? The explosion… it was too intense… I just remember… Scarface Qiang was trying to kill me… then the oil barrel exploded… I ran for my life… After that… I don't remember anything…"

He gasped, his voice intermittent, his gaze unfocused, perfectly portraying a severely injured, terrified student on the verge of death.

Qin Bing's gaze lingered on his face for a full ten seconds, her cold scrutiny almost freezing the air.

Lin Xiao felt his heart pounding heavily in his depleted chest. Cold sweat seeped from his back, soaking the hospital gown and sticking uncomfortably to his wounds.

Finally, Qin Bing seemed to find no obvious flaws, or perhaps she believed the severely injured Lin Xiao couldn't yield any more valuable information at this moment.

She let out a cold snort. "Your injuries are severe, but the Special Operations Ninth Division's medical system can keep you alive. However, the subsequent recovery will require time and resources. Until you've fully recovered and cleared your name, your movements are restricted to this area. Don't try anything funny, Lin Xiao. The Shadow Alliance… is not something you can afford to mess with."

With that, she turned towards the door without another glance at Lin Xiao, her steps brisk.

"Rest well. Your troubles are far from over."

Before her words had even faded, the ward door silently closed, leaving Lin Xiao alone with the cold silence and the lingering, gunpowder-tinged, sharp scent of Qin Bing in the air.

Lin Xiao let out a long, silent sigh of relief. His tensed nerves suddenly slackened, bringing an even stronger wave of dizziness and soul-tearing pain.

He closed his eyes. The [-1.95] desolation was like a maggot gnawing at every inch of his wakefulness.

He was under strict surveillance in the Special Operations Ninth Division's safe house for two days.

For those two days, Lin Xiao felt like a trapped beast in a sterile cage.

The efficient nutrient drips and bio-repair gels maintained his vital signs. The wounds on his back and shoulders began to slowly close under advanced medical technology, but the soul-deep exhaustion and weakness remained like a persistent curse, showing no signs of improvement.

The silent, deep blue light screen in his mind was still marred by ferocious cracks.

Source Energy Points: [-1.95].

Every time he perceived this number, it felt like an ice pick piercing the depths of his consciousness. The shadow of core collapse loomed constantly.

On the afternoon of the third day, the ward door was knocked. However, it wasn't Qin Bing or medical staff who entered.

Su Qingxue stood at the doorway.

She was still wearing the perfectly tailored school uniform from Tianhai First High School. Her long, black hair cascaded smoothly over her shoulders, and a few strands were gently blown by the breeze from the window, brushing against her fair, delicate cheek.

Sunlight outlined her cool, peerless profile, like a goddess carved from ice and snow.

But at this moment, the "ice mountain campus belle's" expression was even colder than usual, with a hint of barely perceptible… annoyance?

Her gaze swept over Lin Xiao on the hospital bed, who looked haggard, pale, and wrapped in thick bandages. A fleeting, complex emotion flashed through her clear, cold eyes—

Shock at the severity of his injuries, anger at him for getting involved with the Blood Wolf Gang and the authorities (Special Operations Ninth Division), and a trace of… helplessness and resistance at being forcibly dragged into this.

"Still breathing?" Su Qingxue's voice remained as cold and clear as ice beads falling onto a jade plate, devoid of any warmth.

She walked into the ward, her high heels clicking crisply and distantly on the polished floor.

A fresh, faint scent of cold plum blossoms instantly dispelled the stuffy atmosphere of disinfectant and medicine in the room.

The moment Lin Xiao saw her, a flicker of calculation flashed deep within his eyes, quickly masked by an even heavier facade of weakness and pain.

He laboriously lifted his uninjured left hand, attempting to push himself up, but this only aggravated the wounds on his back. He gasped in pain, a fine sheen of cold sweat breaking out on his forehead, his face turning a terrifying shade of pale.

"Hiss... Su... Classmate Su... Why are you... here?" His voice was weak and hoarse, as if barely clinging to life.

This utterly pathetic state was more impactful than any words.

Su Qingxue stopped a few steps away from Lin Xiao's bed, not daring to approach any closer.

Her delicate brows furrowed even tighter. Seeing Lin Xiao's pained, contorted face and pale lips, her annoyance seemed to deepen.

She pursed her lips, as if engaged in a difficult internal struggle.

"The commotion you caused was too big; it's hard not to know about it."

Su Qingxue's voice was still icy, but her pace was slightly faster than usual. "The Blood Wolf Gang ambushed me on the street, the abandoned factory exploded, and Special Operations Ninth Division got involved... Lin Xiao, do you feel like your life is too long?"

Her words carried undisguised blame.

Lin Xiao managed a weak smile, more like a grimace, "I didn't want to... cough... Who knew that Scarface... held such a grudge... If it wasn't for luck..."

He panted, his eyes dim and lifeless, exuding the helplessness of a cornered, dying beast. "Classmate Su... I almost... kicked the bucket this time... My back hurts terribly... Feels like my bones are shattered..."

As he spoke, he subtly shifted his body, as if by accident, turning his bandaged back, still faintly stained with blood, towards Su Qingxue. Simultaneously, he gritted his teeth, forcing the chaotic and barely controllable True Qi within him to surge towards the injury on his right shoulder!

"Urk!" A suppressed groan escaped Lin Xiao's throat as his body trembled violently. His complexion instantly shifted from pale to a sickly, jaundiced yellow, and large beads of sweat rolled down his temples.

This reaction was incredibly genuine, not a pretense at all!

Su Qingxue's body visibly stiffened.

She looked at Lin Xiao's body spasming slightly from the intense pain, at the sweat dripping from his temples and his eyes tightly shut in agony. Within her ice-cold gaze, a subtle ripple of emotion finally, uncontrollably, surfaced.

Friends?

She scoffed internally.

What kind of friends could she possibly be with this rascal, this lecher, this walking disaster?

It was merely a cold transaction, a mutual exploitation.

But... what about the grace of his breakthrough?

Without him forcefully clearing her Jade Balance Hidden Meridian, she might still be struggling at the Martial Disciple peak, enduring scorn during internal family assessments, and being bullied at will by people like Su Hao.

This opportunity that allowed her to step into the realm of a martial artist was real.

The cold rules of their transaction clashed fiercely with that heavy debt of gratitude in her heart, tearing at her.

It left her agitated, causing a subtle crack in her perfect, icy facade.

While the official medical care from Special Operations Ninth Division could save a life, when it came to nurturing and repairing bone and muscle damage, especially internal injuries involving a martial artist's True Qi, the secret medicines passed down through the Su family's hundreds of years of heritage were undoubtedly superior.

Silence spread through the cold ward, broken only by Lin Xiao's suppressed, intermittent gasps.

Finally, Su Qingxue seemed to have made up her mind.

The last trace of struggle vanished from her eyes, which returned to a cold, detached state, as if the momentary wavering had never occurred.

Expressionless, she took out a small, exquisite silver metal clutch from her person and retrieved a small jade bottle, pure white and warm to the touch.

The bottle was no larger than a thumb, with no markings on its surface, yet it emanated a subtle, contained spiritual energy.

Without even glancing at Lin Xiao, she raised her arm. The valuable jade bottle traced a cool arc through the air, accompanied by a faint whistling sound, and with a thud, landed precisely on the metal bedside cabinet next to Lin Xiao's bed.

Her movements were crisp and decisive, carrying an undeniable air of drawing a line.

"Take it," Su Qingxue's voice was devoid of any warmth, as if she were assigning a trivial task. "This is the Su family's secret 'Jade Marrow Muscle Growth Powder.' Apply it externally once a day to your wounds. It can accelerate flesh and blood growth, cleanse and regenerate tissue, and also has a nurturing effect on bone and muscle injuries."

She didn't say "for you" or "a gift for you," only "take it." It was as if this precious medicine was merely a stone she had casually tossed aside.

Lin Xiao laboriously turned his head, looking at the small, pure white jade bottle on the bedside cabinet.

The moment his skin touched the bottle, deep within his depleted soul, the dormant, stagnant, faint blue light screen flickered, almost imperceptibly!

[Detected high-purity life energy aggregate (weakly diffused state)... Energy attribute: gentle, nourishing, contains faint wood spirit energy... Can be converted into Source Energy Points in small quantities... Absorb?]

The prompt was as faint as a mosquito's buzz, carrying a sense of imminent collapse, but its content made Lin Xiao's heart leap!

High-purity life energy! Faint wood spirit energy!

This Su family secret medicine was indeed extraordinary!

Just the faint aura naturally dissipating from the powder within the bottle was enough for the nearly collapsed Modifier to barely sense it and identify it as energy convertible into Source Energy Points!

Though weak, this was his only hope!

His only lifeline to repair his core and alleviate his depletion!

He forcefully suppressed the excitement and greed in his heart, maintaining his facade of weak suffering and overwhelming gratitude. His voice trembled, "Su... Classmate Su... This... this is too precious... I..."

He reached out, his movements slow and clumsy, reaching for the jade bottle, his fingers trembling slightly from his "weakness."

Su Qingxue watched his clumsy movements coldly. Seeing the "sincere" gratitude in his eyes, the slight discomfort she felt from giving away the secret medicine faded a little.

A transaction is a transaction, and a favor is a favor.

Once given, they were even.

"Less nonsense," Su Qingxue interrupted him, her tone carrying a hint of barely noticeable irritation. "Use it sparingly, don't waste it. Once you're healed, don't forget what you need to do."

She was referring to their "friend" status and the "help" she might need in the future.

After speaking, she didn't linger, as if staying another second would contaminate her with the air here.

She turned around sharply, her black hair tracing a cool arc through the air. The sound of her high heels hitting the ground echoed again as she walked towards the door without hesitation.

"Classmate Su..." Lin Xiao called out, using all his strength, his voice weak, just as she was about to exit.

Su Qingxue's steps paused at the doorway. She didn't look back, only turned her face, revealing her perfectly sculpted jawline, which appeared somewhat cold and hard in the interplay of light and shadow.

"Thank you..." Lin Xiao's voice was filled with the weakness and sincerity of someone severely injured. "You didn't let me die out there."

This sentence, like a tiny needle, pricked Su Qingxue slightly.

Her cold back seemed to stiffen for a moment, and then, a very faint, cold snort filled with complex emotions came through.

"Hmph."

The hospital room door closed gently, shutting out her aloof figure and the light from the outside world.

Lin Xiao was left alone in the room, along with the faintly glowing white jade bottle resting on the nightstand.

Confirming Su Qingxue's departure and that there were no longer any surveillance devices around, the near-death weakness on Lin Xiao's face receded significantly. In its place was the focus of a hunter spotting precious prey, and a hint of unconcealed greed.

He struggled to move his body, reached out his left hand, and carefully picked up the warm jade bottle.

The bottle felt cool to the touch, its smooth texture like the finest silk. He pulled out the stopper, also carved from mutton-fat jade.

An incredibly fresh, soul-refreshing medicinal fragrance immediately filled the air, ten times more potent than before!

Just taking a single whiff, Lin Xiao felt the burning pain in his lungs lessen slightly, and his spirit was invigorated!

[Detected: High-purity life energy aggregate (continuously dissipating)... Energy attributes: Gentle, nourishing, contains plant spiritual energy... Can be converted into Source Energy Points in small amounts... Absorb dissipated energy?]

The prompt in his mind, though still weak, was slightly clearer than before!

"Absorb!" Lin Xiao issued the command deep within his consciousness without hesitation!

[Command received... Absorbing... (The light screen flickered extremely faintly, the black cracks seemed to... minutely... mend a tiny bit?) ... Absorption complete. Gained Source Energy Points: +0.01.]

[Source Energy Points: -1.95 + 0.01 = -1.94.]

Only 0.01 points!

A drop in the bucket!

But Lin Xiao's eyes shone with astonishing brilliance!

Like a traveler trekking through a boundless desert finally spotting a tiny trace!

This 0.01 point was more than just a numerical increase!

It proved that the energy contained within the Su family's secret medicine could indeed be absorbed and converted by the Modifier!

It proved that the hope of repairing his core and escaping depletion was not an illusion!

More importantly, this faint surge of energy made the dead, crack-filled, dark blue light screen in his mind "come alive" ever so slightly!

Though it was only for an instant, though it remained dim and near death, that momentary "vitality" made him truly feel that his core had not completely collapsed!

It was still there! It was just depleted to the extreme!

Hope!

Lin Xiao tightly clenched the jade bottle in his hand, his knuckles turning slightly white from the force. He carefully poured a tiny bit of the powder onto his fingertip.

It was a powder as fine as snow, shimmering with an extremely faint jade-colored luster. He mobilized his meager mental power and cautiously probed into the powder.

As expected!

Under the Modifier's perception, which was on the verge of collapse but now barely maintained a trace of "vitality" due to the 0.01 point of Source Energy injected, he "saw" it!

Inside the powder, it contained life energy ten, even a hundred times purer and more concentrated than the dissipated aura!

That gentle yet powerful plant spiritual energy was firmly locked within the powder's core by an incredibly intricate energy structure, like a miniature formation!

This structure was incredibly stable, and ordinary martial artists could not directly absorb the essence of its energy, only passively receive the medicinal effects that slowly permeated and nourished their bodies.

But for Lin Xiao, who possessed the Modifier... this lock was not unbreakable!

If he could decipher the structure of this energy lock, even just pry open a tiny gap... could he directly absorb the pure energy at the core of the powder?

The number [Source Energy Points: -1.94] flickered faintly in his mind.

His depleted core let out a silent lament.

Lin Xiao licked his dry lips, looking at the tiny bit of jade-colored powder on his fingertip, his eyes flashing with almost frantic light.

Su Qingxue... your medicine is probably going to have an effect... beyond your imagination.

Current Source Energy Points: -1.94.