Chapter 26

Chapter 26

Meng Li lived in the East District.

Qinchi was not familiar with Southeast Base, so he had to set his navigation according to the address provided by Xu Qiao before setting off immediately.

At one o'clock in the morning, the entire Second Ring was silent, with only rows of dim streetlights standing guard like sentinels at the corners of every street.

It was only now that Xu Qiao had time to ponder Meng Li's phone call.

Her mother was seriously ill.

The East District had both hospitals and various private clinics. Meng Li was not the type to trouble her teammates for a long journey in the middle of the night just to save on treatment fees. Therefore, her decision to seek help from afar must be related to her mother's condition.

On the surface, Xu Qiao was merely a C-level healer, and her medical skills were no better than those of other healers. Meng Li sought her out not for her medical expertise.

Was it because of privacy? Did Meng Li's mother have an illness that shouldn't be known to other healers?

With this direction in mind, the calmer Xu Qiao turned to her neighbor who was driving: "When Meng Li contacted you, did she say anything?"

Qinchi: "She only asked if I could reach you. I said yes, and then she ended the communication."

Xu Qiao: "I heard it was quite chaotic on her end; perhaps she didn't have time to explain. But since she said she needed your help, even if you didn't drive me, I would still need to trouble you tonight."

Qinchi glanced at her and smiled: "We're teammates, no need to be so formal."

Xu Qiao responded: "Alright, Qin teammate."

The road was empty, and the car sped along quickly. Half an hour later, the black sedan almost crossed the entire Second Ring, moving from the West District to the East District.

As they approached their destination, Qinchi began to slow down.

Xu Qiao, who had been observing the surroundings outside, felt a hint of surprise.

The Meng family actually lived in a villa area.

These villas were not as luxurious as those in the Central District; they were densely packed three- or four-story buildings, similar to the slab buildings in Ping'an Community, but each had a small courtyard front and back, and the roads within the community were wider. As the car drove past, a large playground flashed by.

To the north of the villa area was a small hill several dozen meters high, which was a rare public scenic spot in the Second Ring. The plants in the area were tended to by specialized plant caretakers, allowing residents to come and hike or enjoy the scenery when they had free time.

Meng Li hadn't told Xu Qiao the specific building number but instructed them to meet her at the back mountain.

A few minutes later, Qinchi parked the car at the foot of the mountain. As he shut off the engine, he glanced at the darkened streetlight and surveillance camera opposite him and said to Xu Qiao: "There seems to be an issue with the circuit here; it might be intentional."

Xu Qiao understood his meaning and stood next to him, looking up at the heavily shadowed mountain.

Somewhere in the mountain, a cloud-like red flame suddenly appeared on a tree branch, hovering low in the air for about ten seconds, like a sign.

It was Meng Li's signal.

Qinchi: "Shall we walk, or should I carry you?"

Xu Qiao: "Carry me. We don't know what the situation is over there."

Just like an emergency night call, the sooner the healer arrives, the better.

Qinchi nodded and extended his right arm toward her: "Hold on tight."

During their last mission, when an A-level mother lizard suddenly appeared, Xu Qiao had been carried by Qinchi through the wind once. However, due to the urgency of the situation, Qinchi had simply picked her up, and they changed locations almost instantly, leaving Xu Qiao no time to experience the sensation of flying or observe the mother lizard. By the time she realized what was happening, she was already standing on the ground.

Fortunately, Xu Qiao enjoyed browsing forums, watching dramas, and viewing videos related to various abilities, so she had seen how wind ability users carried companions.

Holding hands or embracing was common. Stronger wind ability users, when skilled enough, could even lift their companions without physical contact. Qinchi had done this with Sun Fushan and Meng Li during the mother lizard attack.

Considering Xu Qiao's lack of experience and potential fear, Qinchi considerately offered his arm for support.

Xu Qiao indeed needed time to adapt and gripped her teammate's wrist tightly.

Qinchi didn't exert any force, but Xu Qiao held on tightly, feeling the muscles and hard bones beneath her grip.

Without paying much attention to the sensation under her palm, Xu Qiao tensely waited.

Suddenly, a gust of wind rose from her feet, like a spacecraft taking off, gathering momentum. In the next second, the wind lifted Xu Qiao's feet.

The unfamiliar sensation of being airborne made Xu Qiao instinctively grab onto the person beside her with both hands.

Qinchi supported her with his right hand and grabbed her other wrist with his left, sensing her trembling arms and the instinctive urge to cling to him. He whispered: "Do you want some time to adjust now, or should we go find Meng Li first and practice later?"

In the dim night, Xu Qiao, unable to control her trembling, felt her face heating up. She lowered her lashes and said: "Let's do it later."

Qinchi: "Then I'll carry you over?"

Xu Qiao could only nod.

Qinchi placed her trembling hand on his waist and, as she leaned into him, wrapped his arm around her waist, flying toward the mountain without delay.

They moved swiftly, and Xu Qiao had no time to think. It took less than a minute for them to arrive above where the flame had appeared.

Without the moon, a dark red glow floated below, resembling the light projected from a screen in a dark cinema.

Seeing the scene clearly, Xu Qiao involuntarily shivered.

Below them, in a depression on the mountainside, a three-meter-long deep red fire scorpion spirit body was pressing down on another equally sized black giant scorpion. The fire scorpion's pincers clamped onto the black scorpion's claws, while its tail stinger pressed heavily against the black scorpion's tail.

The black scorpion struggled to break free, its massive abdomen and remaining claws scraping and digging deep into the ground, forming a scorpion-shaped pit.

Xu Qiao's attention was completely drawn to the two scorpions, not noticing the sudden change in Qinchi's expression.

Meng Li, weakly leaning against a nearby tree, watched as Qinchi landed with Xu Qiao.

Xu Qiao hurried to Meng Li's side and first asked about her condition: "How are you? Are you injured?"

Meng Li shook her head and looked at Qinchi: "My mental strength is almost depleted. That black scorpion isn't a beast; it's my mother. I hope you can control her without hurting her."

Qinchi: "I will do my best."

Meng Li then looked at the shocked Xu Qiao: "I don't know why she turned out this way. I didn't dare to find another healer, nor did I know if a healer could cure her. I could only call you over to try."

Xu Qiao turned around and looked at the physical black scorpion beneath the fire scorpion's mental entity. The large amber eyes of the scorpion were filled with cold malice. No matter how she tried, she couldn't discern any human emotion in them. If there was any, it was only a bloodthirsty desire that made her scalp tingle.

Xu Qiao was only twenty years old. Neither her studies at the military academy nor her work experience at the clinic had ever exposed her to such a situation.

A mental entity should exist within an esper's mind, able to be released according to the esper's will or on its own. Regardless of whether it is released, the esper's body remains unaffected and always present. Meng Li's mother—this was...

From above came Qinchi's calm voice: "I heard a professor say that a very few espers can be controlled by their mental entities, exhibiting beast-like traits. If we can restore the esper's sanity, perhaps they can regain their human form."

In a short time, it is difficult for someone to accept something entirely unfamiliar and incomprehensible. However, if someone provides scientific evidence and precedents, the brain will recognize this new thing as "normal" and focus on solving the problem.

Qinchi's timely explanation quickly calmed Xu Qiao down. She held Meng Li's hand and said solemnly: "I will do my best."

Meng Li wanted to say thank you, but suddenly felt a sharp pain in her head. The fire scorpion's mental entity, already at its limit, finally could not maintain its form and vanished.

This was why Meng Li had revealed her secret to another teammate. Xu Qiao was just a healer; coming alone, she might have died at the hands of her deranged mother.

Without the fire scorpion's mental entity restraining it, the black scorpion crawled out of the pit, raising its pincers to attack the three humans blocking its path.

Qinchi stood in front of his two young teammates, invisible wind orbs wrapping around the black scorpion's pincers and tail, trapping it firmly in place.

For a healer to treat a patient, they either need to touch the patient's body or release their mental entity.

The black scorpion could break free from the wind orbs at any moment, and its attacks were venomous. Xu Qiao cautiously stood behind Qinchi, and eleven lotus petals appeared out of thin air, attaching themselves sequentially to the scorpion's head, spine, and tail, forming a line.

Xu Qiao could feel her mental strength draining as the petals exerted their Wood Element healing abilities. However, after three minutes, there was no change in the scorpion, which continued to thrash violently against the wind orbs.

Xu Qiao urged the petals to give their all, knowing her teammates could only see the effects of her healing, not its level. If she succeeded, she could pretend she had given everything.

The eleven petals worked hard, each surrounded by a faint white glow, yet still to no avail.

Meng Li saw the beads of sweat on Xu Qiao's forehead and looked at her mother, now a terrifying black scorpion, tears rolling down her face.

Was there really no way?

Qinchi could easily control or even kill the black scorpion, but he was powerless when it came to "healing." He could only observe rationally.

Xu Qiao paid no attention to them. As both a healer and Meng Li's friend, she wanted to heal the patient before her.

She knew that a complete mental entity would achieve the best healing effect.

At that moment, the lotus in her mind conveyed its desire to try.

There was no surveillance here, only Meng Li and Qinchi.

Xu Qiao trusted Meng Li to keep her secret, just as she wouldn't reveal Meng Li's mother's "beastification" to outsiders.

And Qinchi...

Xu Qiao believed in his character and team spirit. Besides, Qinchi had never seen her mental entity in its original form. The elderly neighbors who chatted with him would only mention that her mental entity was a lotus, not how many petals it had, right?

Xu Qiao was certain she had never displayed her lotus to her neighbors. Lu Yang had seen it, but he would never mention such details to Qinchi.

Before taking action, Xu Qiao turned and looked at Meng Li.

Meng Li misunderstood and forced a smile: "It's okay..."

Before she finished speaking, her pupils dilated as a patch of emerald green appeared behind Xu Qiao. Round lotus leaves spread out, transforming the area where the black scorpion lay into a pond covered with lotus leaves.

Delicate lotus stems emerged from the mist, layers of leaves rising and falling with Qinchi's wind orbs.

Amidst the lush greenery, Meng Li searched for a long time before finding the snow-white lotus, only a corner visible amidst the clustered leaves.

Meng Li was captivated by the overly elaborate scene created by her teammate's mental power and the serene lotus pond.

Standing in front of Xu Qiao, Qinchi was submerged in the damp mist and waist-high lotus leaves.

As a Fire Element esper, Qinchi instinctively resisted the water mist, but he remained rational, standing still, searching for the lotus.

The fire dragon in his mind was more excited than ever, its golden-red scales nearly climbing up his wrist, but he instantly suppressed it.

The lotus that landed on the black scorpion's head felt a slight heat, assuming Meng Li was trying to release the fire scorpion and did not investigate further.

Thirty-three white and slightly pink petals bloomed in front of the black scorpion, enveloping its three-meter-long body in a dense healing light.

The black scorpion smelled the fresh fragrance of the flowers, the mist slowly seeping through its hard exoskeleton.

Its amber eyes gradually closed, as if seeking a more comfortable spot. The black scorpion tried to climb onto one of the nearby lotus leaves.

But it was too big.

The black scorpion slowly shrank in size. Soon, a fist-sized black scorpion curled up in the center of a round lotus leaf, asleep.

Xu Qiao walked alone into the lotus pond. When she pushed through the layers of leaves and reached the side of the lotus, she parted the round leaves and saw a woman lying on the ground, with long curly hair, pale skin, and a gaunt but beautiful face.