Chapter Fifty-Six: Ashen as Death

"Doctor! Doctor! Please save her, hurry!" Lan Tian, covered in blood, burst into the hospital with Wang Ling in his arms; her lips had already turned a faint purple, terrifying him so much that he kicked open the emergency room door and shouted frantically.

Normally, unless it was a major hospital, the emergency room would have only one doctor on duty, the rest being nurses. That doctor had been treating another patient, but upon seeing Lan Tian rush in looking like a man drenched in blood, he was startled out of his wits.

"Who are you? What's going on? Is this a gunshot wound? Have you called the police?" the doctor asked.

"Cut the crap! Save her! Now! Hurry!" Lan Tian was truly desperate. In such a critical moment, this man was still asking questions. If Wang Ling weren’t on the brink of death, Lan Tian would have slapped him on the spot.

While the doctor was still prattling on, Lan Tian, controlling his strength, slammed his fist into the emergency room wall, leaving a deep dent. The doctor, terrified, dared not utter another word and immediately examined Wang Ling’s wounds with the greatest speed, initiating emergency measures while instructing a nurse to call for help. Faced with a gunshot wound, he truly couldn’t handle this alone.

Of course, while sending the nurse to get help, the doctor also quietly told her to call the police right away.

A gunshot wound must be reported.

Outside the operating room, Lan Tian paced restlessly, his body still stained with blood. Chen Xiaoxuan and Fan Ming hurried over, still catching their breath.

"Mr. Lan..." Fan Ming approached, glancing at Lan Tian with a mix of fear and respect. "As soon as it happened, the security team in the surveillance room called the police. The officers took away Zou Tao’s body and... also seized the surveillance footage."

"Rest assured, I’ve already reached out to some people. The police won’t be coming for now. The time we’ve bought can be used to handle this as self-defense. As for the footage, we need to be very careful. If it ever gets out, the consequences could be unimaginable..." Mentioning the footage, Fan Ming gave Lan Tian a strange look, as if he saw a deity or a superhuman.

It wasn’t cowardice; the sight in the underground garage had terrified him to his core. There was a gaping hole in the wall, Zou Tao’s body was unrecognizable—a bloodied, mangled mass—and the ground was pitted and strewn with shattered concrete, like a scene out of a horror film.

He’d rushed back to the surveillance room, ordered the stunned security staff to replay the footage, and what he saw was a new world entirely—a man of mythic might, shattering every understanding Fan Ming had ever held.

“Are there truly superhumans in this world...” Fan Ming murmured, echoing the sentiment once voiced by Zou Linsen.

Outside the operating room, Lan Tian nodded silently. He had no mind for police matters now; his every thought was consumed by Wang Ling’s safety. Even if the police did come, what did it matter? Was he supposed to be afraid of them?

At worst, he could have Bai reveal his control over the Earth; he’d like to see who would dare lay a finger on him then.

Yet these thoughts only flashed by. Right now, his mind was flooded with images of Wang Ling—rescuing her late that night, their chance encounter the next day, being chased out of the Jinning Restaurant together, her company as he won over shareholders of Forest Realty one by one in the dead of night, dining together, strolling through the city, watching movies, her laughter, her playful eye rolls, her admiring gaze. All these fragments flickered through his memory like a film, ending on the image of her collapsing as she took a bullet for him, filling his heart with a profound dread.

He thought of her during cultivation, during his battle with the lion beast, even at the table—and sometimes, he even dreamt of her rolling her eyes at him with that mischievous charm.

He suddenly realized that, without knowing when, his heart no longer held any trace of Li Mei; it was now entirely filled with Wang Ling’s radiant, smiling face.

She had thrown herself in front of that bullet for him—she saw the gun aimed at him and, without hesitation, dove into the line of fire.

For a gentle young woman, how much courage had that taken?

Lan Tian had never felt so powerless. He was truly terrified that he might never see her again, that he’d never have the chance to confess his feelings.

"Why are you so foolish..."

"It's all my fault. If only I had told you sooner..."

"Why did I keep it from you? I should have told you everything..."

"I'm not afraid of bullets... so why? Why were you so foolish? Why did you take that shot for me?"

Lan Tian crouched down, clutching his head, sobbing uncontrollably and muttering to himself.

He was filled with regret. Wang Ling had warned him about Zou Tao long ago, but he’d been too arrogant, too overconfident, barely sparing Zou Tao a thought, nearly forgetting his existence altogether.

If only he’d been more alert, if only he’d reacted a moment sooner, Wang Ling wouldn’t have been hurt...

If anything happened to Wang Ling, he knew he’d never forgive himself for the rest of his life.

"Life on Earth has been far too peaceful," Bai’s voice suddenly echoed in Lan Tian’s mind. "In the face of a sudden crisis, even with overwhelming power, if you lack awareness of danger, you can still stumble and fall. Consider this a lesson."

Lan Tian shuddered at these words. That’s right—Bai!

Bai was still there!

Bai was a super-intelligent lifeform from the universe. He must have a way to save Wang Ling!

"Bai, how is Wang Ling? Can’t you scan her? Please, scan her now—save her! I’m begging you, save her!" Lan Tian suddenly shouted, startling Chen Xiaoxuan and Fan Ming, who glanced at each other in confusion.

"My databank contains countless ways to save a person on the brink of death," Bai replied calmly. "There are rare medicines, advanced medical devices—all capable of restoring her instantly."

Lan Tian’s face lit up with hope, but Bai’s next words drained all color from his cheeks.

"But whether rare medicines or medical devices, none of these exist on Earth..."

Lan Tian’s face turned ashen, his heart sinking ever deeper. Was even Bai powerless to help?