Awakening

The two bodyguards entered quickly. They had no idea why Nick Wells had summoned them, but despite their confusion, they dared not defy his orders.

The moment they pushed open the door, a dazzling, multicolored mushroom abruptly invaded their field of vision. Their eyes instantly lost their luster.

Tu Ran held the hallucinogenic mushroom and silently intoned, "Close the door."

The two bodyguards turned mechanically, shut the door, then slowly pivoted back to face Tu Ran, awaiting her next command.

Tu Ran picked one at random and pointed at him. "You dug out Nick Wells' inner core." She began the brainwashing.

The man nodded blankly.

She then pointed at herself. "When I left, Nick Wells was perfectly fine. Got it?"

Both nodded in unison.

Tu Ran turned to Nick Wells. "He's the killer. Nothing to do with me. Remember that."

After a pause, she sighed with great earnestness. "Nick, you need to be magnanimous. Don't dwell on who the killer is. What's the point in finding the real culprit now? Cherish the few days you have left of clarity, enjoy life while you can, you understand?"

Nick Wells nodded mechanically.

If he were still lucid, he'd be furious enough to die from rage, cursing the absurdity of the world where the victim is told to let it go by the very culprit, such audacity he'd never seen. Unfortunately, his mind was a fog, and only Tu Ran's voice penetrated. Even if she told him the water was poison and to stop drinking, he'd believe it and die of thirst.

Having finished, Tu Ran called the two guards back out and had them resume their post. She waited five minutes before leaving. Before departing, she set a timer: in half an hour, the two bodyguards would re-enter Nick Wells' study, marking that as their "time of the deed."

By then, she'd be gone, and the hallway surveillance would show her leaving. Her suspicion would diminish. With Nick Wells insisting the guards were the killers, and the guards themselves confessing, her innocence was all but sealed.

Besides, Nick Wells wouldn't overthink the killer's identity. His remaining time would be spent enjoying life or desperately seeking a cure, none of which concerned her. She could now leave without a care.

Tu Ran rode the elevator to the first floor, escorted warmly by a robot nurse, and walked out.

Once clear of Xixin Nange Hospital, she headed straight to the Medical Department.

In Xi Chunzhi's room, Xie Xinyu was monitoring her vitals on the equipment. He didn't notice Tu Ran enter. She stood silently, watching him.

Fifteen minutes later, after uploading all the data, he turned and caught Tu Ran staring at him. Startled, he stepped back, his hand clutching his chest in exaggerated fright.

"When did you get here? I didn't hear a sound."

Tu Ran ignored the question. "Any findings?"

"None." Xie Xinyu shook his head, frowning at the glowing screen. "Her vitals are declining rapidly. If she stays like this much longer, she might..." He trailed off, but the implication was clear.

If Xi Chunzhi didn't wake soon, and her body's functions bottomed out, she'd never regain consciousness. This meant that losing one's inner core didn't leave you in a permanent vegetative state. Given that Xi Chunzhi had been down for nearly a month, Tu Ran estimated that a person deprived of their core only survived about a month or so.

"Got it." Tu Ran said, but she didn't move.

"Uh..." Xie Xinyu felt awkward under her gaze, rubbing his nose. "I'll step out then. Call if you need me."

"Mm." Tu Ran replied coolly.

She watched him leave and close the door, then approached Xi Chunzhi's bedside. The woman's face was even thinner, veins visible on her wrist above the blanket. She looked like a withered rose, a far cry from the dazzling motorcycle goddess Tu Ran first met.

Tu Ran sighed softly and retrieved the inner core from her pocket. It was still stained with blood. She wiped it with a tissue, but still feeling squeamish, she went to the bathroom and rinsed it repeatedly under the tap.

Holding the bead, now glistening with clear droplets, Tu Ran felt a sense of satisfaction. She returned to Xi Chunzhi's side, propped up her chin, and pried open her pale lips, popping the inner core into her throat.

In an instant, the core visibly dissolved into a wisp of smoke that flowed down her esophagus. It was the first time Tu Ran had directly witnessed a body absorbing an inner core, and she found it fascinating.

She straightened Xi Chunzhi's head and stood by, watching intently, her hands unconsciously clenching at her sides. This was the only solution she could think of. If it didn't work, she doubted she'd have time to find another.

One minute passed — no change. Three minutes — still nothing. Ten minutes — Tu Ran's heart slowly sank.

She touched Xi Chunzhi's thin wrist, hoping to sense something different. To her surprise, in the depths of Xi Chunzhi's memory, she no longer felt pain.

Tu Ran's eyes lit up as she stared at Xi Chunzhi's unchanged face. She was certain — the inner core was working! Chizhi just hadn't woken up yet, probably needing more time.

So Tu Ran hooked a chair with her foot, pulled it over, and sat down. Leaning forward until her face was less than thirty centimeters from Xi Chunzhi's, she watched with intense focus.

Thirty minutes later, she saw Xi Chunzhi's eyelashes flutter. It was subtle — Tu Ran almost thought she'd imagined it — but the fluttering grew more pronounced. Tu Ran quickly pressed the call button by the bed.

Xie Xinyu, who happened to be nearby treating another patient, burst through the door within a minute. "What's wrong? What's wrong? Is she failing?"

Tu Ran: "..." This man really had a way with words.

"She's moving. She might be waking up." Tu Ran said.

"What?" Xie Xinyu rushed over, shoving Tu Ran aside to take her spot, examining Xi Chunzhi from every angle.

Tu Ran, shoved aside with her chair nearly toppling, thought, "Isn't there the other side of the bed? He had to squeeze in right where I was?!" But she forgave him, seeing how genuinely worried he was.

Xi Chunzhi was indeed moving. Her brow furrowed, her eyelids twitching as if struggling against a nightmare. Her entire body shuddered in small tremors, and the veins on her wrist stood out.