LIGHTNOVELSTORY Chapter 221: 209 Tianhui Gift
"It was just pure fear, an irrational terror."
"My limbs cold, my body shaking."
"My heart felt like it was being carried, any slightly louder noise could make my nerves jump suddenly..."
The feelings were very similar to those his comrades had shared with him before, but Bai E was not looking for this; he merely asked again softly, "So, during my fight with that demon, what did you all see?"
That was the question he cared most about. He wanted to know exactly how much these people had witnessed.
The situation was urgent at the time, and some things had to be done, but now that it was over, he had to consider the aftermath.
If he really had to explain, Exorcism Essential Oil wasn't impossible to explain—
For instance, he taught someone something random outside, and that person, out of gratitude, gave it to him and explained how to use it.
But why hide it? Was he harboring some thoughts? Was it a breach of discipline to indiscriminately teach what one learned in the military to the public?... The situation could get very muddled.
If possible, Bai E didn't want to deal with such trouble, especially since he didn't know where the players got that stuff from...
Upon hearing Bai E's question, the reconnaissance soldiers visibly flinched.
They looked at each other before whispering in reply, "We... we didn't see anything."
"Nothing at all."
They had been under the demon's mental control until the very end when the demon was completely expelled. Before that, they were in a state of "fear" the whole time, providing power to the demon, and didn't notice what was actually happening.
"I understand," Bai nodded, "Then you should rest for now."
According to the decision made by the previous team captains, it was probable that they would depart for the city early the next morning.
"Recover your strength as soon as possible. Tomorrow on the road, we will need your help protecting these refugees."
The scale of over four hundred refugees was simply too large. Two off-road vehicles were clearly not enough; they could only walk with the refugees.
And how fast could these refugees move? The longer the journey, the more likely they were to encounter unknown dangers. Their small joint squad of merely thirteen people was clearly stretched thin. Having a few experienced scouts spread out among the team for protection was an excellent idea.
A slight sense of responsibility awakened courage within the few scouts. After a quietly subdued silence, they responded hesitantly.
"Yes."
"Yes, sir."
"Szzzzz~"
Tiger's voice came through the earpiece, "We're almost there, where are you?"
"The core area is a big cave. I've lit some flare sticks, you should see me as soon as you come in."
"Okay."
Indeed, it was a piece of tranquility.
As Tiger stepped into the suddenly spacious cave, his vision, aided by night vision goggles, slowly swept from the immediate surroundings to the distance—
The refugees, now settled down, huddled in the dark whispering to each other, while a few figures, who had recovered more quickly or were more enthusiastic, moved among the crowd asking questions.
It looked exactly like the underground cave they had seen while under the demon's influence, only without that terrifying figure akin to a Demon God.
Just like Bai E said, the figure with the two flare sticks stuck behind him in the corner stood out in the dark.
"No problem, Bai E really drove the demon away."
They reported back through the voice communication, of course... avoiding Bai E's channel.
"Put down your stuff," Tiger whispered.
The group, laden with large and small bags, gently unloaded the supplies they carried.
"Hiss~"
Tiger took the lead in lighting two flare sticks and sticking them behind him. The other soldiers did the same.
Each person ignited a flare stick and placed it behind them; soldiers bathed in glowing light formed two lines with agile steps.
They passed through the darkness, through the curious gazes of the refugees.
Eventually, they crossed most of the cave to reach the figure of Bai E slumped on the ground.
Team Leader 2 gave the order, "Salute!"
The Radiant Salute.
A gesture of acknowledgment by the Radiant Legion, to which Blackwater City was nominally subject for the top soldiers within the legion.
Though the empire's thirteen legions were largely nominal by now, the cities under each legion still held great reverence for the honors passed down from those ancient troops.
Team Leader 2, with a crisp drop of his right hand and his body standing erect, loudly reported in a manner akin to debriefing: "The joint squad has arrived at the target location! Twelve were supposed to come, eight have arrived, four remain with the vehicles guarding the supplies. Please instruct us on the next actions, sir Bai!"
"..."
Bai E's expression faltered for a moment but then he noticed Tiger, trailing behind, squinting and gesturing at him with an expression.
With a helpless smile, Bai E, controlling his frail voice to sound as firm as possible, commanded, "Distribute the supplies you've brought to them. Let everyone eat and rest well... we set out early tomorrow morning."
"Yes, sir!"
Attracted by the noise of the new soldiers, the refugees who had been following the situation turned their attention toward the exchange of dialogue. Hearing the conversation, some refugees whispered in the dark to each other, "Wow, he really is an officer..."
"I said it, how could an ordinary soldier have that kind of strength and nerve."
"This Blackwater City seems very impressive."
After selectively sharing the information they had just received from Bai E with their companions, the elder, along with two young children, also leaned to one side to rest a bit.
Their strength wasn't the best after being trapped under the domain of fear, and after dealing with negotiations with Bai E and managing group affairs as the first order of business, they had reached their physical limits.
At that moment, they merely looked on with reverence at the figure sitting on the ground.
"The adult is amazing..." the boy murmured softly, then turned to the girl beside him, "Kiro Lan, was it true that you wanted to join the military?"
"Mmm..." the girl's expression was calm as still water, quietly gazing in that direction, "I want to become a person like the adult as well."
"Then I'll go with you too..."
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"...do whatever you want."
The elder didn't speak, only their gaze swept over the refugees hidden in the darkness before returning to the adult leaning alone in the corner.
Their eyes briefly flickered.
Hu and the others had nearly brought down all the supplies from the vehicle, which were originally prepared for these refugees.
Considering that these refugees had been living outdoors for a long time, their nutrition was definitely lacking, and the journey back to the city was long. To prevent them from lacking the strength to walk on the way, they had specially packed the trunk of the convoy's vehicle with high-calorie, low-volume rations before setting out.
Bai E had tried one on the road, grape-flavored, and it tasted quite good...
Even these artificially synthesized foods each had their flavor, and the city did quite a good job in this regard.
Never before savored "delicacies" served as a more direct stimulus than any other thing. Many refugees eating the ration bars they had received cast their eyes toward that bright corner in the darkness.
Everything... was brought by that man.
["Lucky Strike" charge +23.]
"emmmm..."
A pleasant surprise.
Bai E, sitting and resting, received an unexpected notification, suddenly remembered his previous speculation about the "Lucky Strike" charging mechanism.
The charge limit for the same emotion within a "short time" was only 50 points, but it seemed that different kinds of emotions could break this limit.
At the moment... being saved from the demons and the "gifting of food" were clearly considered two different things.
Could he make even more effort to farm some more points?
It was not easy to come by such an opportunity with a good favorability foundation; he had to seize it well.
Thinking of this, Bai E started running "Overlimit Drive" to accelerate the recovery of his physical strength. The No.3 ration bar he had eaten earlier was slow to restore, but it was continuously working.
Before long, he got up and walked over to the elders who had consciously moved away, squatting in front of them, Bai E softly asked, "Living out here, you must have a good number of patients troubled by injuries and pain, right?"
The elder looked up at Bai E with some confusion, "Sir...?"
Of course, there were injured. Among the many worries he originally had, this was one. But now...
Bai E smiled gently, "Gather them up, and I'll take a look."
Bai E didn't mention any other factors; helping had to be straightforward to stir genuine emotional responses from these people.
emmmm... collecting power through emotional fluctuations?
A very familiar setup...
Bai E silently shook his head and scoffed to himself, how could it be.
...
"Captain..." After hearing about the developments inside the cave from the headset, one of the soldiers staying by the vehicle who was a warrior looked toward their own captain, "What should we do?"
The warrior who had previously been doubtful still echoed in his mind with the voices of the No.2 captain and Hu and others cheering for that guy, internally gritting his teeth.
'Why boost his momentum like that!'
Now, hearing his teammate's question, he immediately retorted firmly, "Bai said to rest, didn't you hear?"
"...heard… heard?"
...
There were about forty or fifty injured. Long-term living outdoors, having major or minor physical ailments was only too normal, plus the prolonged enslavement by demons, these refugees were weakened both physically and mentally.
After all, the lord of fear wouldn't care about these humans' health problems. These refugees were living day by day; physical suffering was actually more conducive to the breeding of fear emotions.
If one were to be serious about it, among the more than four hundred refugees, everyone had some ailment. But under the current rudimentary conditions, only those truly affecting the ability to move were selected and gathered by the elders.
Looking at the hopeful eyes before him, Bai E didn't speak, just picked up the first-aid kit brought by Hu and others and got down to work.
[You are attempting first aid...]
[You have completed first aid; the patient's injuries are stabilized and are recovering slowly.]
"Thank you! Thank you!" Looking at the white bandage on her previously pus-filled wound on her shin and feeling the slightly stinging warmth underneath, the dirt-covered woman's tears fell in gratitude, repeatedly thanking him.
["Lucky Strike" charge +1.]
"It's okay, it's not serious, but you should rest in the vehicle tomorrow," Bai E smiled at her and then moved on to the next one.
[You are attempting first aid...]
[You have completed first aid...]
"Thank… thank you."
["Lucky Strike" charge +1.]
"It may itch a bit, hold back and don't touch it…"
Bai E spoke softly and tenderly, a master of healing hands.
Kiro Lan, watching from a distance, had stars in her eyes, for the first time feeling that there could be such a shining figure in the world.
"This is the great Sir..."
So she ran up and asked clearly, "Sir, can I learn these skills from you?"
Bai E glanced at her and replied with a smile, "Of course, no problem… but there are a lot of people, I can't explain to you one by one."
They were to set off early the next morning, and to ensure the mobility of these refugees, Bai E certainly wanted to complete the treatment of every injured patient as soon as possible.
While treating, he was also checking everyone.
The two off-road vehicles that would head back were empty, perfectly able to pick those refugees who were unable to move on their own to rest in the vehicles.
Bai E was not too comfortable with leaving the decision to the refugees or their teammates; it could easily cause controversy, so he wanted to make the call himself.
"It's okay, it's okay," Kiro Lan waved her hands repeatedly, "I'd be thankful to just observe."
After all, ever since she was young, she learned things quickly...
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