Chapter 54
Chapter 54
From Qin Ying’s perspective, she could clearly see those ill-tempered Crimson Vines rampaging like a mass of writhing earthworms.
The hills, the waters, and the moss that had covered the ground were all gone.
Rocks flew through the air in every direction. Even standing outside the box, Qin Ying felt her heart leap into her throat at the sight.
In the middle of this soul-shaking scene, a tiny grey-green speck was moving rapidly, narrowly evading the lashing vines several times.
Was that Han Lie?
The box was in such chaos that Qin Ying couldn’t see clearly. She pulled out her phone and aimed the camera at the moving grey speck.
After focusing several times, she finally confirmed it was indeed Han Lie!
He was covered in wet mud, draped in a large piece of moss for camouflage, and wore a thick, homemade mask over his face.
His feet moved with agile steps to dodge danger, while his hands never stopped working, frantically wrapping mud around something.
Several times, Qin Ying saw vines thicker than his waist slam down right behind him, but he managed to evade them by the narrowest of margins.
He sprinted across the wasteland as if he were performing parkour.
Qin Ying’s eyelids twitched as she watched.
If he got hit by one of those, he’d be turned into a pulp instantly.
She desperately wanted to save him, but she picked up the Barbecue Tongs resting nearby only to hesitate.
The box was a mess of carnage. Han Lie was like a single peppercorn in a boiling hot pot; trying to pinch him out accurately without accidentally crushing him to death was too much of a challenge.
Qin Ying didn’t dare take the risk.
Her skin felt tight with tension as her mind raced.
These red vines were likely Ghost-Shadow Vines, so perhaps they were also afraid of fire.
Qin Ying turned to go to the kitchen to grab an Igniter.
Just then, a sudden calm returned to the box.
As if he had moved beyond the Ghost-Shadow Vine’s habitat, the mass of earthworm-like vines abruptly retracted.
Slit-like openings appeared on the scaly skin of the vines, spitting out grey powder like spores.
Han Lie stopped running as well, ducking behind a mountain rock to hide.
The grey powder hovered in the distance like a living thing, shrouding the leveled hills like a toxic mist.
A strange figure emerged from the Crimson Vines. At first, its skin was red and its expression stiff.
In a matter of moments, however, the mimicry was complete. It had transformed into a human figure, even simulating its clothing down to the last detail.
This adult Ghost-Shadow Vine, which occupied an entire hill, had likely been there for countless years; the style of the clothing on the Mother Body was ancient.
This mimicked Mother Body stood in the grey mist with its hands tucked into its sleeves. Its appearance and demeanor were just like a living person’s; even the way it looked left and right as it searched for something was full of life.
An uninformed observer would certainly have been deceived.
Outside the box, Qin Ying felt a wave of revulsion at the thought that she still had something like this inside her own body.
Fortunately, Han Lie seemed to be out of danger.
He cradled the strange mud ball in one arm as he moved across the wasteland like a grey wolf.
Before confirming he was truly safe, Qin Ying didn’t speak, fearing she might startle him and cause a distraction.
Unexpectedly, after passing a certain rock, Han Lie suddenly looked up. “Supreme Deity, is that you?”
Before Qin Ying could respond, he spoke in an elated tone. “I’ve obtained the Dream-Embracing Grass.”
Though he said “obtained,” it was actually a mix of theft and robbery.
As a member of the Jade Balance Army who specialized in hunting Monstrous Beasts, Han Lie didn’t see anything wrong with that. He gave a simple, honest smile and raised both hands, lifting the mud ball he was holding so Qin Ying could see it clearly.
Inside this mud ball were the freshly cut leaves of the Dream-Embracing Grass.
By cutting them and running immediately, then wrapping them in mud, he could evade the detection and pursuit of the gargantuan Ghost-Shadow Vine.
“Your friend will be fine once they take this,” Han Lie said, still slightly out of breath.
Qin Ying looked at his filthy state and asked, “Was that red flower also something you offered as a sacrifice?”
Ghost-Shadow Vines only remained active near Dream-Embracing Grass; once he was out of that range, he was safe.
Han Lie relaxed considerably. He wiped his forehead, leaving three distinct finger streaks across his face. Hearing Qin Ying’s question, he replied, “Yes.”
“That is Jiarong Grass. Eating it prevents sleep for three days.”
“I happened upon it on my way here and picked it.”
He glossed over the fierce battle he had fought against a Lun Fish School while gathering the Jiarong Grass, nor did he explain why he had harvested an exotic herb that forced a person to stay awake for three days.
But Qin Ying understood in her heart; he simply wanted to use the Jiarong Grass to help her delay the time she would fall into a dream.
Qin Ying slowly lowered her eyelashes and said solemnly, “Thank you.”
She would repay him.
Before she could say more, Han Lie was already panicking, claiming he was unworthy of her thanks.
Seeing his reaction, Qin Ying didn’t say anything further.
She would simply give him a generous reward later.
Qin Ying originally wanted to use a pair of tweezers to pull the Dream-Embracing Grass out, but after comparing the sizes, she was ultimately afraid of damaging it.
Han Lie still needed to find prey to set up a ritual and sacrifice the Dream-Embracing Grass to her.
However, Qin Ying felt that was too much trouble. She told him directly, “Just draw a circle on the ground wherever you like. There’s no need for formalities.”
In a few days, during the Zhongyuan Festival, Qin Ying planned to burn spirit money in the same casual manner.
Setting aside how sloppy and unlucky her method of sacrifice seemed, Han Lie gave it a nervous try and found that it actually worked.
Watching the Dream-Embracing Grass vanish, Han Lie felt a bit conflicted.
The Supreme Deity was becoming less and less concerned with pomp and circumstance.
The clump of mud Han Lie had been holding was only the size of a small red bean once it left the Box World.
Qin Ying carefully held it on her index finger, holding her breath as she looked at it.
She was starting to doubt if this tiny bit was enough.
But Han Lie had said it was enough for even two people, so she chose to believe him for now.
Han Lie would be fine on his own for the return journey, so Qin Ying gave him a quick word and closed the box.
She carefully washed the mud off the tiny speck of a thing.
A small piece of deep-red Dream-Embracing Grass lay wet on a paper towel.
Qin Ying used an eyebrow razor to carefully divide it in two-half for herself, and half for Zhang Tao, depending on the situation.
After being split, the thing looked even smaller.
Not knowing if eating it would cause her to fall into a deep sleep like the Danghu meat did, Qin Ying did not consume it on the spot.
Instead, she planned to take it at the hospital. That way, she could claim her sudden recovery was a mysterious turn of events; otherwise, she wouldn’t be able to make her lies sound plausible.
This small leaf was difficult to preserve, so Qin Ying broke two vitamin tablets, sandwiched the leaf between the pills, and then placed them securely in a pillbox.
Once she had finished putting away the Dream-Embracing Grass, Yin Minmin’s voice sounded from outside: “Sister Ying, are you okay?”
Yin Minmin was worried she had fallen into a deep sleep, but it wasn’t appropriate to push the door open and enter, so she stood at the door and asked anxiously.
“I’m fine!”
Qin Ying called back, “Sorry, just wait a moment longer.”
She finished her cold shower very quickly.
When she came out with her hair draped over her shoulders and her pillbox in hand, Yin Minmin breathed a sigh of relief.
Qin Ying was about to suggest she go wash up as well when Yin Minmin’s phone suddenly rang.
It was Old Miao calling.
Yin Minmin’s expression changed after she answered. “Sister Ying, we need to get back to the hospital immediately.”
She said with a hint of joy, “The higher-ups are here!”
“There might still be a chance for things to turn around.”
People from the top?
The superiors of the Cultural Preservation Institute?
Yin Minmin didn’t have time to explain and pulled Qin Ying toward the exit.
Seeing them come out, Qin Zhiguo, who was covered in the smell of smoke, hurriedly opened the car windows to let the scent dissipate.
Upon hearing Yin Minmin’s words, his expression changed as well.
The car sped toward the hospital.
They made it all the way back to the ward, but before they could even push the door open, they heard someone shouting angrily inside: “Look at the mess you’ve caused!”
“You two are old enough-just retire and go home to look after your grandkids!”