Chapter 291 – Let's Just Have a Casual Chat, Shall We?

“————”

A desolate atmosphere permeated the base’s hall, leaving Chi Qian standing there in a daze, unable to regain her composure for a long time.

Every time she returned, Chi Qian would stand here like this for a long while.

It was both because she wasn’t accustomed to this deserted base and because she was repeatedly reminiscing about her past companions.

Even though a year had passed, Chi Qian still hadn’t grown used to the emptiness of this base, nor had she moved on from that tragedy. It felt as if closing her eyes would bring back the cheerful laughter of those companions, and… their heart-wrenching cries.

“Cough, cough…”

Suddenly, Chi Qian began coughing violently, a trace of blood trickling from the corner of her mouth.

Her face rapidly turned pale, causing her immense pain. She quickly pulled out a bottle of alchemical potion from her waist pouch and downed it without hesitation, only then did the pain subside somewhat.

“Huff… huff…”

Chi Qian could only gasp for breath with a pale face, clutching her chest as if she might stop breathing at any moment, revealing an unusual fragility.

This sense of fragility, combined with the capable and decisive image she had maintained all day, seemed utterly incongruous.

Yet Chi Qian appeared completely unconcerned, merely glancing at her waist pouch.

Inside, numerous alchemical potions were packed together. Judging by their color and appearance, they weren’t different types of potions but rather the same kind as the one Chi Qian had just consumed.

After checking these potions for a while, Chi Qian murmured softly.

“With this many left, I should be able to hold on for some time, right?”

Chi Qian’s murmur echoed in the desolate space, where no response should have come.

However, the next second, a voice broke the silence and actually responded to her.

“So that’s how it is. Not only is your appearance ruined and your hand severed, but you also have serious internal injuries that require daily medication to suppress?”

The sudden voice made Chi Qian jolt violently.

“Who…!?”

The paleness and fragility on her face instantly vanished without a trace. Chi Qian returned to her calm and capable demeanor, even carrying a hint of cold anger as she sharply turned around to look at the source of the voice.

At this sight, Chi Qian froze.

“It’s you?” Chi Qian said in astonishment. “How did you follow me here?”

Hearing this, Su Ming, who had silently appeared at the cabin door, leaned against the doorframe and flashed a grin.

“I told you, I’m very curious about you, sister.”

This was completely evading the question.

The astonishment on Chi Qian’s face was quickly replaced by coldness.

“I’ll give you one chance to leave this place on your own.”

Chi Qian coldly issued her warning.

Clearly, Su Ming’s act of following her here had somewhat angered this female legend.

Given Su Ming’s ungrateful behavior, Chi Qian actually had sufficient reason to punish him.

She was an Upper-Rank Professional, and a fairly famous strong one among them at that. She wasn’t someone who could be casually offended by a lower-rank Professional, let alone a young rookie like Su Ming who had just started out.Even in Tianfeng City, the status of an Upper-Rank Professional is extraordinary.

The dignity of an Upper-Rank Professional must not be insulted. If a lower-rank Professional were foolish enough to provoke an Upper-Rank Professional, the consequences would be entirely predictable.

Chi Qian was not a patient person—otherwise, she wouldn’t have confronted the Commander of a large team at the Talent Market over a minor disagreement.

But she wasn’t the type to bully the weak or abuse her power either. Considering Su Ming’s youth, inexperience, and the fact that he had just started out, she had refrained from taking action against him.

However, if Su Ming continued to act recklessly, she wouldn’t hold back.

With that thought, Chi Qian released a faint Aura, enveloping Su Ming.

Though not particularly strong, it was more than enough to intimidate a young newcomer like him and instill fear.

To Chi Qian’s surprise, Su Ming showed no sign of fear. Instead, he seemed completely unaffected by the sharp Aura she had unleashed, remaining perfectly composed.

“I just wanted to have a chat with you, sis. Is that too much to ask?” Su Ming spread his hands casually. “You don’t seem busy anyway. Why don’t we talk for a bit?”

As he spoke, he produced a bottle of wine out of thin air.

“See? I even brought wine. Not too rude, right?”

His words made Chi Qian frown deeply.

Not too rude?

If showing up uninvited wasn’t considered rude, then what was?

Chi Qian wanted nothing more than for Su Ming to leave and stop pestering her.

But his ability to summon a bottle of wine from nowhere startled her, and she eyed him with a strange expression.

What was even more peculiar was the wine itself. The bottle was still sealed, and no scent had escaped, yet for some reason, just looking at it made Chi Qian feel a faint sweetness, a slight intoxication, and an inexplicable longing.

This was definitely no ordinary wine.

“Who are you, really?” Chi Qian demanded, her brow still furrowed.

By now, she had begun to notice something unusual.

How could a rookie who had just started out find this place, approach so silently, and appear so close without her noticing until he was right there?

How could a rookie perform feats like materializing objects out of thin air and casually produce a bottle of high-quality wine that was clearly valuable?

Most importantly, how could Su Ming remain so calm and even speak with such ease under the pressure of the Aura she had deliberately released?

If this wasn’t suspicious, then what was?

The person before her was clearly no ordinary individual.

The guard she had let down due to his youth and seemingly weak strength was now fully raised again.

Yet Su Ming acted as if he hadn’t noticed.

“That’s why I said we should talk,” Su Ming replied calmly. “If we have a proper conversation, you’ll get to know me, and I’ll learn more about you. Isn’t that right?”

This time, Chi Qian fell silent.

She stared coldly at Su Ming for a long while, her unblinking gaze imposing considerable pressure.

After what felt like an eternity, she finally averted her eyes and let out a soft sigh.

“What do you want to talk about?”

Chi Qian had conceded.

There was no other choice—Su Ming’s mysterious demeanor left her feeling uncertain and unable to gauge his true capabilities. Acting rashly, she had no confidence in gaining the upper hand.

Besides, she had no desire to start a fight here.The layout, decor, furniture, and even every brick and tile here were all personally arranged by her former companions. For the past year, Chi Qian had been doing her best to maintain the original state of this place, keeping it as close as possible to how it was when they were still here.

If a fight were to break out here, it would inevitably cause some damage, possibly even leading to the complete collapse and disintegration of the place.

This was not something Chi Qian wanted to see.

Chi Qian had no choice but to temporarily compromise.

Meanwhile, Su Ming walked into the small house on his own and sat down at a table.

“We can talk about anything—life, experiences, the past, anything goes.”

As he spoke, Su Ming waved his hand, and plates of steaming appetizers appeared on the table.

This display once again shook Chi Qian to her core, deepening her sense of mystery and wariness toward Su Ming.

However, Chi Qian at least knew Su Ming’s purpose for coming.

“Don’t beat around the bush. You just want me to join your team, don’t you?” Chi Qian sat down across from Su Ming and said, “I’ve already told you, bring me four drops of Dragon Demon Saliva, and my life is yours. If you can’t do that, then there’s nothing more to discuss.”

This was the one point Chi Qian would never compromise on, no matter what.

“Don’t be so absolute,” Su Ming said dismissively. “You want Dragon Demon Saliva because you plan to use it for something, right?”

Su Ming uncorked the wine bottle in his hand and poured a glass for Chi Qian.

Immediately, a rich aroma of wine wafted out, causing Chi Qian’s nose to twitch and a tingling sensation to run through her entire body.

The feeling wasn’t unpleasant; in fact, it was incredibly soothing.

It had been a long time since Chi Qian had experienced such comfort.

Ever since her crushing defeat a year ago, when she barely escaped with her life, Chi Qian had not only been disfigured and lost a hand but had also sustained severe internal injuries that no alchemical potion could fully heal.

The Alchemists she knew had examined her and told her that unless she used a top-grade restorative potion, her injuries would likely never heal completely.

However, top-grade restorative potions were precious even in Tianfeng City and not easy to obtain.

Chi Qian had the means to acquire one, but it would require spending a large number of Contribution Points.

Thus, Chi Qian decided to give up on treatment.

Her Contribution Points had to be used elsewhere and couldn’t be squandered on herself.

For the past year, Chi Qian had relied on cheap alchemical potions that could only suppress her injuries to manage her internal wounds. This not only caused her injuries to flare up from time to time but also subjected her to constant pain throughout the year.

Now, however, merely smelling the aroma of the wine seemed to suppress the pain from her internal injuries, bringing her a long-lost sense of relief and comfort. This left Chi Qian utterly astonished.

“What kind of wine is this?”

Unable to hold back, Chi Qian couldn’t help but ask.

“Just a bit of Medicinal Wine,” Su Ming replied with a smirk. “Can you tell me what you plan to do with the Dragon Demon Saliva?”

Without giving Chi Qian a chance to refuse, Su Ming pushed the glass of wine in front of her.

“Consider this Medicinal Wine as payment for answering my question.”

Hearing this, Chi Qian, who had indeed intended to refuse, hesitated.Regarding the matter of Dragon Demon Saliva, although it wasn’t some untold secret, it was her private affair—her inner wound. If possible, Chi Qian didn’t want to mention it to others.

But Su Ming’s bottle of Medicinal Wine was clearly no ordinary item; it seemed to have a remarkable effect on the injuries within her body.

Chi Qian was certain that just one cup of this Medicinal Wine could restore at least thirty percent of her internal injuries.

If she could drink a bit more, recovering over half wouldn’t be a problem at all.

This left Chi Qian somewhat conflicted.

“…You didn’t put any tricks in this wine, did you?”

Chi Qian still maintained some vigilance.

“Are you afraid I’ll get you drunk and make you sign a contract while you’re dazed?Su Ming rolled his eyes and said irritably, “That kind of irregular contract method—forget whether the contract itself would recognize it—the Professional Center definitely wouldn’t approve. If it really came to that, you could just report me directly to the Professional Center.When forming a team, among the regulations the Professional Center had Su Ming read, there was a prohibition against “using the team’s name to coerce others or employing coercive means to increase team members.””

If Su Ming used irregular methods to recruit Chi Qian, the Professional Center would certainly not turn a blind eye.

“That’s true.”

After thinking it over, Chi Qian found it reasonable.

Immediately, Chi Qian reached out, picked up the wine cup, hesitated for a moment, and ultimately drank the Medicinal Wine.

As soon as she drank it, it felt like swallowing a clear spring, sending a shiver through her body and involuntarily bringing a contented expression to her face.

Under the influence of the Medicinal Wine, the injuries within her body began to show signs of recovery, just as Chi Qian had anticipated.

The physical burden and pain she had long endured vanished in that moment.

While marveling inwardly at the miraculous effects of this Medicinal Wine, Chi Qian looked at Su Ming.

“I want to use Dragon Demon Saliva to save someone.”

Chi Qian was a decisive person; once she made a decision, she would carry it out straightforwardly.

Thus, after drinking the Medicinal Wine, Chi Qian finally brought up this unknown secret.

“Save someone?”

Su Ming’s heart stirred.

“That’s right.” Chi Qian lowered her eyelids and murmured, “To save my former companions, my former team members.”

“Them?” Su Ming was somewhat surprised.

Hadn’t all of Chi Qian’s team members sacrificed themselves?

“No.”As if able to read Su Ming’s thoughts, Chi Qian said self-mockingly, ‘If a culprit like me could barely cling to life, how could fate be so cruel as to let them—so innocent and lovely—all suffer?”Through Chi Qian’s explanation, Su Ming learned that, a year ago, not only had Chi Qian narrowly escaped with her life, but a few girls from her team had also narrowly survived.

This was the reason Chi Qian could persevere in living on.

Otherwise, with the entire team destroyed due to her decisions, only she survived—disfigured, with a severed hand, and severe internal injuries—such a heavy blow might have been too much even for Chi Qian to bear.

The motivation keeping her alive was actually those survivors, those partners who, like her, had narrowly escaped death.

However, although those few had narrowly escaped with their lives, in reality, they were no different from being dead.Chi Qian had sustained such severe injuries, so how could her companions, who were even weaker than her, have escaped unscathed?

At that time, they were already on the verge of death, with only half a breath of Qi left in them.

Their injuries were far more critical than Chi Qian’s—the kind of completely fatal wounds that could not be treated hastily.

To save them, Chi Qian, who was also gravely injured at the time, had no choice but to make a decision.

That was to freeze them all in ice.

(End of Chapter)