Chapter 70

The contradiction lay right here: if Asher's mental power was strong enough to resist medication, would a drug designed to stimulate wakefulness even work? If not, it meant his mental power surge had already affected the normal recovery of his brain region, and the foundation of this plan didn't hold.

"But instruments don't lie—the Commander's brain region is indeed intact."

"That's a separate issue. You can't reverse-engineer the cause from the current result. I need a clearer, more reliable plan."

Abner refused outright, but Ming Yu hesitated. As a researcher herself, she was always more sensitive to data and instruments. She scrutinized Asher's brain region scans from the start of his treatment to now—there truly were no traces of mental power damage.

Her gaze flickered. She glanced at her husband's face, then spoke slowly. "We must act quickly, or someone will lose patience." After a moment's thought, she added, "We need to figure out why Asher hasn't woken up and why the repair agent hasn't fully taken effect."

Abner shot a look in Ming Yu's direction, then turned back to Vido. "These are the problems the treatment plan needs to solve. Time is tight and the task is heavy. I'm counting on you."

Vido nodded, his brow furrowing so deeply that the surrounding skin twisted with it. As Abner disappeared through the door, Dr. Vido looked at Ming Yu and gave a bitter smile. "I've let you down."

Ming Yu shook her head, affirming his treatment direction. If the plan was feasible, Asher's advantage would become even more pronounced—it was just that some details left them uneasy.

"Dr. Vido, feel free to consult me about any issues. I'll cooperate fully. It's just that... the time we have left really isn't much."

By the time that failed treatment discussion wrapped up, it was already very late. When Ming Yu returned to her room and saw the messages on her Light Brain, her stride didn't falter in the slightest. She didn't reply to Wu Ying's messages.

Wu Ying was asking about her plans for tomorrow, saying she wanted to come keep her company.

Message after message, the same words packed densely together like ants, neatly lined up across the screen. One glance was enough to make her feel uncomfortable.

She still wasn't used to dealing with people like that—clingy and annoying.

"I have my own matters to attend to. It's not convenient."

The very next second, Wu Ying's reply had already arrived.

"I'll be very quiet. I just want to be a little closer to Asher. If anything comes up, I can help."

She simply didn't understand rejection. Ming Yu frowned, kicking her high heels into the corner with a clatter. She typed quickly: "No. I'll call you if something happens." After sending it, she felt she'd been too mild, so she added: "Stay put. Don't bother me."

She thought Wu Ying would be intimidated—after all, she'd never had much courage. But it turned out she'd underestimated her. Wu Ying had no other talents, but she was a first-rate pest, nonchalantly continuing to introduce herself—saying she'd be quiet, wouldn't disturb her, that she was good at work and could help with this or that...

"Fine. That's enough."

Ming Yu gave in. They could deal with it tomorrow anyway—for now, she just wanted some peace. She'd considered blocking Wu Ying, but she was afraid Wu Ying would come straight up in person. The guards would stop her, but Wu Ying would still ask if she could come up.

Let it be, then. She couldn't completely disregard Asher's face.

Over on Wu Ying's side, the sight of the message made her let out a relieved breath. She'd been worried that Ming Yu would treat her like a decorative ornament, keeping her in the dark about everything. Then what would be the point of rushing over?

She slept well that night. When she got up the next morning, Wu Ying greeted Jiujiu with a cheerful good morning. She even leisurely invited Ming Yu to join her for breakfast—and was sternly refused. Wu Ying figured it was just as well; no point in making Ming Yu lose her appetite.

Having seen Asher with her own eyes and learned his current condition, knowing his life wasn't in danger was good enough.

Wu Ying's worries eased, and her spirits recovered considerably. She finally felt up to answering the messages on her Light Brain, replying one by one like an emperor reviewing memorials. Even Luo Meng—who'd been off the radar for ages, probably training on some unknown star—had sent her a message asking if she was all right. The cautious Teacher Nova had only sent a single line of blessing, hoping she took care of herself. Wu Ying was a little moved. After thinking it over, she only replied, "I'll take care of myself." There was nothing else she could share.

Naturally, the most important message came from Teacher Lucia, who said she needed to confirm Wu Ying's leave arrangements.

Seeing that, Wu Ying perked right up. This was indeed a big deal. She'd left in such a hurry yesterday that she'd only mentioned she needed leave, and the teacher had approved two days to let her go.

Ming Yu had a mountain of work and couldn't stop even on leave. Wu Ying sat on the sofa, fruit set before her, glanced up at the closed study door, and confidently made the call to Teacher Lucia.

This matter needed an actual conversation to sort out. From what she'd gathered, Asher's follow-up treatment plan wasn't finalized yet, so she estimated he'd need at least a week to recover.

It wasn't that she had to be at his side—it was just that she wanted to at least see him wake up. Seeing Asher lying there unconscious and unresponsive was terrifying.

"If you need a week off, I'd suggest you consider retaking this course. A retake won't affect your grades, but for the experiment, missing your part is unfair to the other group members."

Teacher Lucia's tone was gentle yet unyielding. Wu Ying's heart trembled at the words—failing a course and retaking it, she really didn't want that. "I understand your point, teacher. The experiment is the fruit of teamwork, and I can't just think of myself. But this course is very important to me. Teacher, I've already applied for this year's graduation assessment."

Wu Ying spoke softly and coaxingly. Of course she knew what her absence would do to the experiment, but she still wanted to ask for leniency.

She'd already chosen her graduation thesis topic. If this mandatory lab course went into retake status, her graduation assessment would be halted—which meant every effort she'd put in over this long stretch would go down the drain.

"You understand the nature of group work. For yesterday and today, I can overlook it. But a whole week—by then, other groups may be wrapping up. That's a loss my forgiveness alone can't repair."

"Teacher, I promise I won't affect the experiment's progress." Wu Ying couldn't help raising her voice. It wasn't that she hadn't thought of solutions—she just needed to communicate with the teacher in advance.

"Teacher, our experiment has a set sequence. There are classmates responsible for the front-end preparation and trials, and others for the follow-up experiments and final wrap-up. Could I apply to adjust my experiment tasks? I swear I won't affect the schedule. I can do the early-stage data collection and material consolidation remotely, and I'll take full responsibility for the later cultivation experiments."

On the other end of the line, Teacher Lucia fell silent for a long time. She was weighing whether to approve such a swap. She had the authority to decide, but this was the first time a student had made such a request.

In the end, the teacher agreed. She understood the pressure of taking the graduation assessment early and the requirements that came with it. A student with ambition, drive, diligence, and hard work—she had no reason to stand in her way.

"I agree, but you'll need to convince your group members yourself."

With those words, Wu Ying's worries were settled. She was confident she could persuade them—after all, she was volunteering to take on the most difficult, time-consuming experiment tasks in the entire project.

During the group video meeting, after Wu Ying laid it all out, everyone was silent at first. Then a classmate in the bottom-left corner asked Lucia whether this was even permissible. The teacher explained that, given Wu Ying's special circumstances and the reasonable reallocation of tasks, it could stand as long as the group members voted to approve.

"I'll go first—I have no objections." Xia Ji, who'd originally been in charge of the cultivation experiments, spoke up first.

Getting the better end of a deal, he thought, wasn't worth agonizing over. Wu Ying had the highest lab scores in the entire grade, second only to Su Yi, that overachiever. If she was willing to take on this grueling work, he was more than happy to hand it off with peace of mind.

As expected, the other classmates agreed too. Wu Ying's taut scalp finally relaxed. With her handling the cultivation experiments and the wrap-up, the others could completely wash their hands of it once they finished their own tasks.

The experiment was a group activity, but to ensure no one slacked off, the tasks were subdivided. Completing one's assigned task met the passing line, while the final results counted as bonus points. And for most students in the College of Plant Science, credits were all they cared about—the extra points meant nothing to them.

Wu Ying was grateful her group didn't have anyone playing judge. Cynthia had said there was a guy in her group who kept track of everyone's tasks with laser precision—if anyone did the slightest thing wrong or accepted help, he'd nag about it endlessly.

"Thank you, everyone. I hope we'll have a smooth collaboration on this experiment." Wu Ying bent slightly at the waist in a bow of thanks. The others waved their hands, saying there was no need.

The group meeting ended, and the updated task assignment sheet was redistributed. Lucia had already signed off, and Wu Ying's leave was finally secured.

"You didn't have to do that."

Ming Yu's voice came from behind her. Wu Ying wasn't surprised. While she'd been negotiating with her classmates, Ming Yu had emerged from the study—she must have been bringing documents to her subordinate. She'd passed through the living room, seen Wu Ying in the meeting, and paused.

Wu Ying had noticed her and offered an apologetic smile. Ming Yu didn't say anything, but she didn't leave either, as if she wanted to know what Wu Ying was talking about.

Once she'd heard it all, she understood. Ming Yu raised her water glass, took a light sip, and said in a flat, direct tone, "You can't do anything anyway. It's just useless waiting. And your grades aren't good either. Why put yourself through this?"

"Who says I can't do anything? Asher's treatment plan isn't set yet—I can talk to the doctors." She knew treatment plans had to be discussed with family.

"Hmph. You certainly know how to find work for yourself." Ming Yu set the glass down, her slender fingers resting on the rim, tapping softly.

"What can I do? You have such a big opinion of me, Lady Ming. I was afraid you'd keep all the work bottled up and do it yourself."

Wu Ying smiled at her with bright, amber eyes, spreading her hands and shaking her head playfully. Ming Yu narrowed her eyes slightly—she always felt Wu Ying was like some kind of feline creature, even the hair color matched.

Ming Yu didn't respond. She stood and returned to her study. Wu Ying watched her back, eyebrows lifting with a triumphant, mischievous glee, like a little rascal who'd just won a battle.

She settled back into the sofa. The sofa here wasn't soft enough, and the armrests were low on both sides—every time Wu Ying tried to slide down, she got stuck uncomfortably.

She told Su Yi and the others about her experiment arrangement. In a show of support, Su Yi fired off several large files—her own compiled experiment records, complete with notes on the cultivation experiments.

"Thank you, my goddess Su! I shall follow you forever. Amen."

Just as she was sending off her brown-nosing praise, Ming Yu suddenly came out of the study, her expression grave, apparently mid-call. "I'll be right there."

"I'm coming too."

Wu Ying flipped upright, slid into her shoes, and rushed to change first. Ming Yu watched her hurriedly swapping shoes, a momentary blankness flashing in her eyes.

Dr. Vido, still in his heavy protective suit, stood at the door of the intensive care unit. When he saw Ming Yu and Wu Ying approach, he immediately pulled off his mask. "Ah, Lady Ming, Lady Wu—"

"Skip the pleasantries. What the hell happened?"

Vido's expression faltered for a beat, then he smiled grimly and explained what had occurred in the ICU. Starting around nine in the morning, Asher's mental power threshold had begun climbing. Based on the patterns over the past few days, the threshold should have peaked and then rapidly dropped—but this time, it didn't.

Asher's mental power had been in a prolonged state of high-intensity eruption, highly aggressive. The mental fluctuations his power generated were so strong they were directly interfering with the normal operation of the monitoring equipment.

"The pace of change is far beyond what we imagined. His mental state is going to make the treatment considerably harder."

Vido's expression was grim. At the thought, even his tone grew stern—with Asher's current mental power state, they couldn't even set the treatment goal to repair. Getting anywhere near him posed a massive risk.

Ming Yu understood what he meant. Last night, Abner had told Vido to first investigate Asher's absorption of the repair agent, but if they kept pouring time into the repair agent now, they'd be playing defense. They couldn't predict how Asher's mental power would change next, and a sustained riot would genuinely risk mental power damage.

"Which stimulant drugs have you shortlisted? Dr. Vido, you know what Asher means to the Federation. He can't afford any misstep."

The weight of those words was unmistakable. Vido stared at her steadily. Wu Ying, listening from the side, could only catch fragments—she knew things were very bad, but she didn't dare interrupt. Her heart hung suspended in midair, swinging.

"Yes. We must guarantee his safety."

"That's my bottom line too. We have a very high degree of confidence."

Ming Yu nodded, then stepped aside. She needed to speak with Abner—she couldn't make this decision entirely on her own.

Vido and Wu Ying stayed where they were. Wu Ying clenched her hands, blinking rapidly with nerves. Seeing Dr. Vido start to take off his protective suit, she immediately stepped forward to help.

"Dr. Vido, is Asher completely unconscious right now? Besides the abnormal mental power, does he have any other injuries? Oh, and—can I go in to see him?"

Forced to take a barrage of questions, Vido gave her a wordless look. She'd only helped him undo one piece of armor and already she was firing off this many.

Luckily, his memory was decent. "Unconscious. No other injuries. No, you can't go in."

"Huh?" Wu Ying held a piece of armor, puzzled. That was such a simple answer?

"When I went in to see him yesterday, he seemed to be in decent shape. Doctor, is that... stimulation method the only option? It sounds pretty dangerous. What if he can't handle the stimulation?"

"Alright, stop asking such foolish questions." Ming Yu's cold voice drew near. She walked up to the two of them. "The Marshal has approved. Arrange the treatment as soon as possible."

After giving her instructions, Ming Yu left again with her little tail.

Wu Ying followed behind her, peppering her with questions. She didn't know what that treatment plan referred to—maybe it had been decided earlier, but since she didn't know, she wanted to understand more.

She should have asked Dr. Vido for his terminal number earlier instead of wasting time on those pointless questions. Then she could stay in contact, like with that little nurse from before. Wu Ying now regularly asked him about Asher's condition—he didn't know much either, but at least it was firsthand.

"Why do you have so many questions? Can't you use your eyes?"

Ming Yu was fierce, and Wu Ying got angry right back.

"How am I supposed to see anything? I just heard you two talking, and I know Asher's condition isn't great. What am I supposed to look at? I can't go inside. Is there a report or a plan? If I don't ask, how am I supposed to know what this so-called plan of yours even is?"

Her voice grew louder and louder. Ming Yu frowned. "Keep your voice down! We're not going to hurt him. Just wait quietly. What good does knowing do you, anyway?"

"I can help keep watch over Asher too. I wouldn't hurt him either."

"But I can't be bothered to explain it to you."

"Then don't blame me for pestering you!"