After a frantic scramble to process the coconut crab, the only edible parts left were a few legs and claws. As for the crab roe—the very essence of the crab—it had turned into a pool of water of unidentifiable sludge sitting in the kitchen waste bin.
It was too late to cook a proper meal, leading to an eerie sight in the villa: a group of legendary warriors huddled together, slurping different flavors of instant noodles.
"Unbelievable. A whole group of people can't even manage a single meal. Would you all just starve to death without Lin?" Mobius leaned against one end of the sofa, legs crossed, looking with utter disdain at this group of "human heroes" who lacked basic self-care skills.
She had clearly forgotten that she usually relied on Lin prepared meals as well.
Mobius remark reminded some that Lin was still in the consciousness world. Eden asked, "Have neither of them come out yet?"
"No matter how simple the game, clearing it takes time." Vil-V propped up her chin with one hand while holding a cup of "Hot and Spicy Chicken Noodles," gesturing into the air with a fork. "I expect it'll take about another day."
"Speaking of which, we're here playing while Lin and Sakura are off doing experiments in the consciousness world... is that really okay?" The "good girl" Hua felt restless. She felt things were getting a bit too lax. Although a Major Eruption had just passed, this vacation felt a bit excessive.
"The primary purpose of this trip was the consciousness experiment; the vacation was just a bonus. If Elysia hadn't suggested it, only I, Su, Kevin, and Mobius would be here," Mei said, picking up a strand of egg noodles with an easy, relaxed air. "So, you can consider this an important mission."
Is sitting together eating instant noodles an "important mission"?
Hua's lip twitched. However, Pardo, sitting beside her, had no such reservations. Being able to eat, drink, and sunbathe was already the pinnacle of bliss for her.
"What are we doing after dinner? Playing games again? It feels less fun without Lin."
"Have you forgotten how Lin disciplined you on the ship?" Su, who had been a collateral victim in the King's Game, teased the playful Elysia.
"Is it... possible to see... what Lin is doing... in the consciousness world?"
Suddenly, an ethereal, rarely heard voice drew everyone's attention. Aponia sat in the corner of the sofa with her eyes closed; she was the one who had spoken.
"Actually, that's a great idea!" Vil-V eyes lit up. "Let's just watch what the two of them are doing in there."
As long as they used the device Mei created, they could observe the state of the consciousness world. Rather than playing games that offered no challenge, it was better to check on Lin—and monitor the experiment's progress while they were at it.
Mei had no objection, and the others, including Kevin, were curious about what was happening in that world.
"Give me a moment. I'll make a converter and hook it up to the TV."
Vil-V rushed to the second-floor workshop. Half an hour later, she emerged trailing a long cable, connected it to the TV, and spent a few moments debugging.
"Aha, there we go! I really am a genius," Vil-V said with a smile, pressing the channel button on the remote.
Then, her smile froze.
Not just her, but everyone in the hall stopped in their tracks the moment the image appeared. Their expressions hardened, turning them into motionless statues.
Lin, with his pants partially down, stood before Sakura. And Sakura was half-kneeling on the ground, her hand reaching toward a certain... mysterious area...
...
"Wait a moment."
Lin stood still, looking down at his lower half. After half a second, he reached down, grabbed something on his trouser leg, and lifted it.
It was a brown venomous snake. It must have latched onto his leg when they passed through the low shrubs earlier.
He threw it on the ground and crushed its head with his heel, then frowned at the bite wound near his upper thigh. One of the downsides of lacking a sense of pain was the inability to detect such dangers immediately.
"A venomous snake?" Sakura deduced the situation from Lin gaze. She immediately crouched before him and tore his trouser leg to inspect the wound. "Don't move."
After being bitten by a snake, one must stay calm and minimize movement to prevent the blood circulation from accelerating the venom's spread. This was easy for Lin.
"The wound is swelling." Sakura tied a strip of torn cloth above the wound to restrict flow toward the heart. This appeared to be a potent toxin; within seconds of the bite, the area had swollen and discolored. Without timely access to antivenom, things would get difficult.
But there was no such condition here. Where would they find antivenom?
Lin wasn't sure what would happen if one died in this consciousness world. However, Mei and the others surely had safety measures in place; they wouldn't let Lin or Sakura suffer a real accident. The most likely outcome of "death" was simply being ejected back to reality.
However, Lin decided to see the experiment through. Since this was Mei's experiment, it was necessary to collect as much data as possible.
"Should I try to suck it out?" Sakura asked seriously.
"No." Lin shook his head. Sucking out venom was a misleading bit of "common knowledge." The protective qualities of the oral mucosa and the skin differ; venom is easily absorbed through the membranes or through tiny cuts in the gums.
Lin thought for a few seconds, then made a cutting motion to Sakura.
Slicing the wound was also a risky move. Since fangs enter tissue at different depths, it's hard for a rescuer to judge how deep to cut, risking secondary damage or infection.
However, for Sakura, this wasn't an issue. With a single glance, she drew her silver blade and cleanly made a cross-cut over Lin wound. Blood pressure began to push blood and venom out of his body.
Sakura hesitated for a moment as she prepared to squeeze the area, glancing at Lin face. But his expression remained unchanged as he calmly watched the wound. Feeling ashamed of her hesitation, she immediately used her hands to help drain the toxin.
"Is it out yet?"
"Not yet."
Sakura judged based on the color of the blood and the wound. Fortunately, both possessed extraordinary awareness in this field. The venom hadn't been in the body long. While it couldn't be drained completely, they could endure for a while.
After a moment, the blood color finally returned to normal. Sakura let out a sigh of relief and smiled at Lin. "It's all out."
"...That's quite a lot." Lin face was slightly pale; the blood loss was significant.
"Yes. Rest for a bit. Let's wash it first." Lin wound needed to be cleaned with fresh water. Since wild water sources weren't necessarily clean, she needed to treat it first. Her own hands were also covered in blood and needed washing.
The villa was deathly silent.
"Should I try to suck it out?"
"Is it out yet?"
"It's all out."
"That's quite a lot."
"Let's wash it."
Mobius silently put down her instant noodles, took a deep breath, and wore an expression of absolute, bottomless contempt. "Total... scum."