Chapter 394 - 390: Curiosity

Chapter 394: Chapter 390: Curiosity

Although the items Gu Nuan Nuan gave Luo Hongyi were all Jade Bottles, each one had a unique shape and markings, so they weren’t easy to mix up.

"There’s also a needle and thread in the backpack for stitching wounds, among other things. I assume one of you knows how to use them, right? Suture the wound, then apply this ointment and bandage it. That’s the only way it will have a chance to heal quickly. You guys get started; I’ll be right back. Oh, right. There’s food and water in the bag, too. I packed canned goods. Be discreet when you take things out. Don’t reveal everything in the bag to them, just in case I forget something and it becomes inconvenient to get it later."

"I’ll be careful. But where are you going now?" As Luo Hongyi lifted the backpack from the ground, he noticed it had become much heavier. Hearing the implication in Gu Nuan Nuan’s words that she was heading off somewhere else, he asked instinctively.

’Why does it feel like he gets dumber whenever he’s around me?’

With a hint of resignation, Gu Nuan Nuan sighed. "What am I supposed to watch while a bunch of grown men clean their wounds? I’ll use this time to go secure a place for you all to eat and rest without worry."

"..." Luo Hongyi was about to say that there probably wasn’t any such place nearby. ’But,’ he thought, ’it would be awkward for Gu Nuan Nuan to be here while we’re cleaning wounds, and besides, I don’t want her seeing other men’s bodies.’ So, the words on the tip of his tongue changed. "Come back quickly. It doesn’t matter if you can’t find a place. Just be safe."

"I’m not just looking for a place. There’s a cave not far from here with a small stream at its entrance. I’m going to secure the area. You’ve heard of the Qimen Dunjia Array our ancestors used, right? I’ll use an Array to cordon off the spot. No one will be able to find it, even if they walk right past it."

Gu Nuan Nuan let out a proud "Hmph!" and turned around. Just before leaving, she suddenly remembered the two live captives and quickly spun back. "Those two I pinned to the ground are still alive. I have a medicine that can make them tell the truth. If you need to question them, just leave them be for now; they won’t die anytime soon. Of course, if you don’t need them, do as you please. I’ll come find you in about half an hour. By then, your Old Qi should be able to move."

’A Qimen Dunjia Array?’

’Nuannuan actually knows how to use something that was said to be lost to legend?’

Luo Hongyi watched as Gu Nuan Nuan vanished in a blur, so shocked he almost dropped the backpack. ’Since she even knows Arrays, could what she just used be the equally legendary Qinggong?’ He cast a complicated look in the direction Gu Nuan Nuan had disappeared. ’It seems she’s more capable of protecting herself than I am. Forget it. I’d better not ask about these things. She’ll tell me when she’s ready.’

Thinking no more of it, he picked up the backpack and quickly returned to his teammates.

Seeing Luo Hongyi return alone with a large bag, the others all looked at him curiously. Liang Changsheng, being the impetuous one, craned his neck. "Captain, where’s that person? Why didn’t he come back with you?"

"She knows a bit of the Qimen Dunjia Array. She said there’s a stream up ahead and went to secure a safe place for us to rest. Everything we can use is in here. Enough talk. First, take these medicine pills; they’re for stopping bleeding. Then we’ll quickly bandage Old Qi and clean ourselves up. We need to tidy this place up before we move."

Luo Hongyi quickly distributed the medicine pills Gu Nuan Nuan had given him, telling everyone to take them first. He swallowed one himself and immediately felt a warmth rise from his core, spreading through his body. It was incredibly comfortable, like being wrapped in the water of a hot spring. He glanced around and saw that everyone else, even Qi Guoqing, had similar expressions. He knew then that Nuannuan wasn’t wrong; the medicine would definitely stop the bleeding.

Knowing that everyone’s injuries could wait a little while, Luo Hongyi reached into the bag and pulled out two bottles of water. He opened one and subconsciously started to hand it to Qi Guoqing, but then hesitated and pulled it back. Seeing the longing in the man’s eyes, he finally relented and passed it over with a helpless sigh. "Old Qi, don’t drink it just yet. But you can at least take a sip to wet your mouth, then spit it out. Everyone else, two men to a bottle."

As he spoke, he handed the other bottle of water to Zhang Huai, who was closest to him. Zhang Huai licked his parched lips and pushed it back. "You first, Captain."

An empty stomach wasn’t so bad. The hardest part of the last few days had been the lack of water. They had been fighting their way through, and even if they occasionally came across a water source, it wasn’t easy to stop for a drink. Most of the time, they had to rely on collecting dew or squeezing juice from plants to stay hydrated. That’s why, right now, clean water was far more tempting than food.

"I said drink it, so drink it." After speaking, Luo Hongyi turned his back, rummaged in the bag, and pulled out four cans of meat, along with the necessary gauze, ointment, and other items, which he spread on the ground. He then gave one can of meat each to Zhang Huai, Liang Changsheng, and Jiang Wenhao—everyone except Qi Guoqing. "We’ll talk later. Hurry up and get something in your stomachs. Tending to Old Qi’s wounds is the priority." With that, he got up, broke off a few branches to use as chopsticks, opened a can, and began to eat ravenously.

Once they had eaten and drunk their fill, they sutured Qi Guoqing’s wound, applied the special ointment, and wrapped it with several layers of gauze. Only then did the men begin to apply the Hundred Herbs Rejuvenating Ointment to each other’s wounds. No one took off their clothes while treating their injuries; they just did a quick job of it, so they finished very quickly.

After all this was done, they still had to clean up the scene. Luo Hongyi took Zhang Huai, Liang Changsheng, and Jiang Wenhao, instructing them to leave the two men who were pinned to the ground and still unconscious—it was hard to say if they were the unlucky ones or the lucky ones. Then, they went to finish off the others who had fallen, delivering a final blow before digging a pit and burying them on the spot.

By the time they finished, the half-hour Gu Nuan Nuan had mentioned wasn’t up yet. Luo Hongyi sat back down next to Qi Guoqing and once again turned his back to rummage through the backpack. Seeing some jerky wrapped in oil paper, he took it out, gave a piece to everyone except Qi Guoqing, and tossed one into his own mouth to chew on.

The moment the jerky entered their mouths, Zhang Huai, Liang Changsheng, and Jiang Wenhao all gave Luo Hongyi strange looks. Jiang Wenhao asked, "Captain, why does this taste so familiar?"

Liang Changsheng nodded in agreement, his face full of curiosity. "Yeah, Captain. Is that person someone you know? And why do you turn your back every time you take something out of the backpack? Is there something in there we’re not supposed to see? Who is he, really...?"

"COUGH, COUGH. If you have food, just eat it. Why so many questions?" Before Liang Changsheng could finish, Qi Guoqing, who was lying nearby, interrupted him with a few forceful coughs. In a chiding tone, he said, "Fourth, don’t be so nosy all the time. Just take what you’re given. The Captain will tell you what you need to know when he’s ready."