Chapter 126: The First Dilemma Faced by the Duo

“Where am I? It feels as if I’ve been dreaming for a very long time. What’s happening to me?” Slowly waking from the darkness, Zhuang Xiaoyuan opened her eyes. The first sensation was the aching pain coursing through her body and the soft touch at the back of her head. Above her was a ceiling she didn’t recognize, and beside her lay Wen Hui’s face, eyes closed.

“Xiaoyuan, you’re finally awake. Do you remember who I am?” Wen Hui, who had been dozing lightly, suddenly became alert at Xiaoyuan’s soft murmur. She lowered her head to look at Xiaoyuan’s head resting on her lap and asked gently.

“Wen Hui, what nonsense are you talking about? How could I possibly forget you?” Frowning slightly, Zhuang Xiaoyuan looked at Wen Hui in confusion. She then struggled to sit up despite the soreness.

“Don’t get up. Just stay still like that. You’ve been running a fever, you know? You need to rest more. Lie back down for a while. I’ll prepare some food for you. You must be hungry.” Wen Hui firmly pressed down on Xiaoyuan’s shoulder to prevent her from rising. She then moved her legs away from Xiaoyuan’s head and placed a pillow—one she had found in the clinic’s backyard—under Xiaoyuan’s head. Only then did she stand up and turn to leave.

“Wen Hui, you don’t know how to cook, do you? What if the food you make poisons me?” Seeing the faint exhaustion on Wen Hui’s face, Zhuang Xiaoyuan mustered her strength and called out loudly. If she could joke like this, it meant she was already on the mend, which should ease Wen Hui’s worries a little.

“Don’t worry, it won’t kill you.” Wen Hui smiled softly as she turned and walked into the clinic’s backyard. Minutes later, she returned carrying a small steaming bowl. Although the city was a complete ruin, surprisingly, there was still running water. The clinic’s backyard even had a few induction cookers with their own power sources, which allowed Wen Hui to prepare something warm for Zhuang Xiaoyuan. It wasn’t exactly a gourmet meal, but at least it was hot.

“Can you eat by yourself, or should I feed you?” Wen Hui asked as she helped Xiaoyuan sit up while carrying the bowl.

“I can manage on my own. I’m not a child anymore.” Snatching the bowl from Wen Hui’s hand, Zhuang Xiaoyuan looked down at its contents. “This really won’t kill me, huh?”

Looking at what was in the bowl, Xiaoyuan felt a wave of disbelief. Though Wen Hui meant well, choosing to eat something warm after the fever had subsided was wise, but the taste of this concoction was questionable. Floating on the surface was a layer resembling rice porridge, but Xiaoyuan immediately recognized it wasn’t rice porridge. It appeared to be biscuits soaked and dissolved in hot water.

The once crisp and flavorful biscuits had completely melted into sticky, powdery clumps. The bowl’s contents emitted a faint biscuit aroma. The smell was bearable, but the taste…

Though not entirely inedible, Zhuang Xiaoyuan’s palate—spoiled by her transformation abilities—found this strange texture hard to accept. Still, seeing the hopeful gleam in Wen Hui’s eyes, she steeled herself and swallowed it all in one go.

“Ah, that’s much better. Wen Hui, have you eaten yet?” Swallowing down the oddly textured food, though the flavor left much to be desired, having something in her stomach seemed to ease the aches throughout her body. She looked at Wen Hui and asked.

“I was just about to eat.” Wen Hui replied, rummaging through her bag to pull out a small pack of biscuits, already nibbling on one. “Xiaoyuan, do you want some more?”

“No, no thanks.” Noticing the familiar smell from the previous bowl, Zhuang Xiaoyuan declined after shaking her head and asked, “By the way, where exactly are we now?”

“I don’t know. I was already here when I woke up. Do you have any idea?” Wen Hui answered while chewing, then returned the question.

“Me? I remember facing an imperial-level evil god. After seeing you trapped by it, my memory goes blank. But I did have a very long dream—one where I was incredibly powerful, beating that evil god until he was battered and bruised. Haha.” Talking about her dream, Zhuang Xiaoyuan found it absurd even to herself. How could she suddenly have red magical markings like that evil god? That would make her an evil god too. The dream was truly bizarre.

“Ah, so you don’t remember anything after that either. What now? We have no idea where this place is. It looks like an abandoned city, but we have no clues as to which one. And your vehicle is broken—how are we supposed to leave?” Hearing Xiaoyuan’s response, Wen Hui sighed helplessly, losing her appetite instantly. Xiaoyuan’s recovery brought her joy, but countless difficulties still lay ahead, making it impossible to celebrate lightly.

“An abandoned city? My vehicle is broken? Then… what about our food?” Noticing these revelations, Zhuang Xiaoyuan immediately thought about their greatest looming challenge.

“Here, there’s still some left.” Wen Hui silently handed over the small pack of biscuits she had stashed away.

“…” Staring at the tiny pack barely bigger than her palm, Zhuang Xiaoyuan fell into silence. After barely escaping the clutches of evil gods and demons, they wouldn’t starve to death so easily, would they?

“Oh, by the way, Wen Hui, you said my vehicle is broken. Where is it now? There should still be food inside.” After a moment of silence, Xiaoyuan’s eyes lit up, recalling the supplies she had in her vehicle. Even if the vehicle was damaged, as long as the food was intact, it would be a small blessing for both of them.

“The food in your vehicle? The cargo box on that vehicle is gone. It was taken during the attack by the underground-level demon.” Wen Hui tilted her head in confusion. She was certain she hadn’t seen the cargo box anywhere near the vehicle.

“I’m not talking about the cargo box. Didn’t we also stash a lot of things behind the seats? Did you take those out?” Waving her hand to indicate she meant the space behind the seats, Xiaoyuan’s face showed a faint glimmer of hope.

“Oh right, I forgot about that. There are still some things there. I’ll go check now.” Without hesitation, Wen Hui turned and prepared to rush out. As always, her movements were swift as the wind.

“Wait, I’ll come with you.” Feeling the soreness in her body had lessened and strength returning bit by bit, Zhuang Xiaoyuan flipped off the bench and followed her out. The vehicle she had modified contained hidden compartments with plenty of useful items. They would definitely need them, so they had to retrieve everything. (To be continued…)