Section 17 - Lacking the Gold Element

"My chest hurts!"

Chen Fei clutched at his chest, his face turning pale, clearly looking like he was at death's door.

The silver he had traded his life for!

He was deficient in the metallic element, severely so!

Now, to make matters worse, not only did he owe the credit company 5 million Star Yuan, but he had also racked up an additional debt of 2 million Star Yuan to the labor corporation, totaling a staggering debt of 7 million Star Yuan. The debt wasn't shrinking but growing, and the more he thought about it, the more distressed he became.

An angel in white with wings, a young lady from the Feathered Tribe of the Cangqiong Realm, arrived in the ward as if flying, holding a delicate magic artifact and proficiently chanting incantations. Soft points of light appeared out of thin air, converging into a fist-sized orb of light that soon fell upon the bed, and in the blink of an eye, entered Chen Fei's body.

No need for injections, no need for medication, no need for electric shocks; the magical effect of the Second Rank Human Order Light Healing Spell "Light of Redemption" was immediately apparent.

Chekhov's eyes shone brightly as data waterfalls once again started scrolling through his pupils. It was his first time seeing this Feathered Tribe young lady from the Cangqiong Realm, an Alien Race Mage, and a practitioner of Light Series magic at that—quite a rare sight.

Little did he know that the old money in Europe were chasing after the Feathered Tribe young ladies, luring many from the Cangqiong Realm into the entertainment industry to act cute.

While she was still here, Chekhov made sure to get a good look—her delicate face, her arms, her waist, her legs, and those wings—oh my, he was nearly drooling with desire, Uncle Chekhov felt like he was set for the year.

After the Healing Spell took effect, Chen Fei's complexion quickly improved a lot, but his spirits remained utterly dejected.

Anyone who had gone through such an emotional rollercoaster would hardly be in good spirits.

Gathering another orb of light and infusing it into Chen Fei, the Feathered Tribe young lady then put away her magic artifact. Wiping off a thin layer of sweat from her forehead, she revealed a gentle smile and said, "This is the patient's first awakening, his body is still very weak and requires rest. Please try not to disturb him too much."

Using magic was also very draining on one's vitality and spirit, especially in the Blue Star Realm, where magic was suppressed by the heavenly and earthly rules, requiring more Elemental Mana and spiritual power to achieve the same effects as in the Cangqiong Realm.

With a slight bow, her wings flapped once and she gracefully took off, quickly leaving the ward, coming swiftly and departing just as quickly, like a fleeting glimpse, leaving only a faint scent slowly dissipating.

Chekhov and the female inspector immediately understood the Feathered Tribe young lady's intentions.

"Chen Fei, you rest well here. All costs of your stay on the medical ship will be covered by the company," said Hanna Gagar. Having placed a stack of documents on the bedside table, she left the ward with her entourage of sunglass-clad men in black suits. Chekhov glanced at Chen Fei on the bed, relieved to see him still breathing, and hurriedly followed the others out.

In the face of massive financial loss and mounting debts, Chen Fei still felt life was not worth living, looking utterly forlorn.

"Uh, Miss Hanna, what about my bonus?"

Even a rookie like Chen Fei was entitled to substantial bonus. This made Chekhov very excited and hopeful as he eagerly rubbed his hands together.

The female inspector seemed to let out a cold laugh, her voice emotionless as she said, "Chekhov Leonidovich Ivanov, for cooperating with Chen Fei in defeating the Metallic Dragons, the company was going to reward you with 5 million Star Yuan in cash and a promotion by one rank in your job salary. However, for dragging non-combat personnel into battle without authorization, you are fined 5 million Star Yuan and demoted by one rank in job salary. Thus, your merits and demerits cancel each other out; no reward, no punishment, no promotion, no demotion."

"What?"

Chekhov stood stunned, as if struck, the Feathered Tribe young lady suddenly losing her allure.

By the time he snapped back to reality, the Ministry of Internal Affairs staff had long been gone. He banged his head against the wall in a fit of despair, his cries echoing in the corridors, repeatedly and unceasingly.

Thump, thump, thump—the Slavic pile driver began working, and the corridor reverberated with the sound of terrifying impacts.

The cleaning lady operating the cleaner scolded irritably, "Hey, stop that, Big Bear! If you damage the wall, you have to pay for it!"

Keep banging, and I'll turn you from a Big Bear into a little dog yelping with every hit.

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A week later, the final check-up before discharge.

The First Earth Order magic potion "Life Resuscitation" from the Cangqiong Realm was wholly trustworthy. Added to that were two doses of the Second Rank Human Order Light Healing Spells "Light of Redemption," and now there was not even a scar to be found on Chen Fei, not even the faint marks from childhood mischief remained.

"What is this?"

The doctor examining Chen Fei's treatment outcome held up a finger.

"That's the index finger," Chen Fei answered honestly.

The doctor nodded, tapping on the computer keyboard, and continued to ask, "Alright! Do you feel dizzy? What about pain anywhere else?"

Answer "1" would have been 100 percent correct; "index finger" is 120 percent. If you could have described the fingerprint, that would be a solid 150 percent since the check was on vision, not logical deduction, so the answers aren't rigid.

"No dizziness, just... heartache," Chen Fei pointed to his chest, still not having recovered from the recent events.

He was unaware that Apocalypse Defense hadn't deposited his bonus but directly used it to offset the cost of the magic potions. Otherwise, he would have faced a personal income tax that wasn't less than 50%. After tax deductions, the remaining bonus would then offset the cost of the magic potions, increasing his new debt not to 2 million but at least 7 million, for a total debt exceeding 12 million Star Yuan—more than enough to keep any hardworking tool-person down forever.

Freeing his hands from the keyboard, the doctor motioned and asked, "Any other abnormal feelings? For example, hearing strange noises, ringing in the ears, eyes sensitive to light, seeing floaters, numb limbs, loss of taste or smell?"

"Uh, no..."

Chen Fei was about to say there was nothing, when he suddenly said, "Doctor, the three-dimensional holographic projection equipment in the room seems to be malfunctioning."

The doctor was taken aback and asked in confusion, "Three-dimensional holographic projection? What three-dimensional holographic projection?"

"You know, it's a character jumping, an 'A' in front, followed by a colon, a left slash, and a greater than sign, it looks like a command line prompt."

Chen Fei stretched out his hand, pointing to the "A:\>" he saw, with an underscore "_" blinking.

Then, as a matter of course, he grasped at thin air.

A naked-eye three-dimensional holographic projection is just an illusion, not a real scene; the projected objects look real, but in fact, there's nothing there.

The doctor tilted his head to look at the air Chen Fei was pointing to, where indeed there was nothing, and then his gaze swept around the room before he said with utter certainty, "I don't have any three-dimensional holographic projection here."

"No?"

Chen Fei withdrew his hand hesitantly.

"No!"

The doctor's tone was even more confident as he started to type rapidly on the keyboard, definitely not typing anything pleasant.

Chen Fei inwardly grumbled, the "A:\>" and the blinking underscore "_" still in his field of vision. When he shifted his gaze... the moon moved, and so did he.

Huh? Could this naked-eye three-dimensional holographic projection actually track his pupils, was it some black tech?

Chen Fei, puzzled, touched his eyes, he didn't even have glasses on him, there was no such thing as black tech.

"Hmm, you can be discharged, if you're not at ease, go for a brain MRI and have another eye examination."

The doctor pressed a few keys, and the printer on the side quickly spat out several A4 papers, finding the last page, he signed it and handed it over.

Slap! A bright red official seal was stamped, and that was that!

The discharge standard for the International Medical Ship is the absence of any life-threatening conditions; follow-up treatment and recuperation can completely continue outside.

"Oh, thank you, doctor."

Chen Fei took the final examination report, thanked the doctor, and got up to leave.

He saw the content on the examination report, which included "phantosmia."

His fatal injuries almost sent him to play Go with Lord Yama; if not for an expensive magic potion yanking his life back, leaving some sequelae was more than normal.

Having survived against such odds was no small feat, and one couldn't hope to completely recover to their original state.

Because he was concerned, he first went to the neurology department and booked an appointment, then entered the MRI room and headed to the ophthalmology department. After meticulous examinations, Chen Fei came out, rubbing his eyes.

At this time, Chekhov had also completed his discharge examination.

"Rookie, are you being discharged?"

Big Bear was still wearing a sling for his arm, but the "blue sanitary napkin" on his head had shrunk.

He was not as lucky as Chen Fei, without magic potions and light healing spells, his severe injuries healed the fastest, and now he looked as if nothing had happened, not even a scar.

He had been able to get out of bed and move around since the morning, even had the energy to flirt with girls, while Chekhov's arm would need at least a month to recover fully, and the new scars on his body would likely remain for a lifetime.

"It seems I still have a bit of phantosmia."

Just having had eye drops for pupil dilation, Chen Fei's vision was somewhat blurry.

As for the frustration, it was all because of money, not something to be discussed with outsiders.

Chekhov curiously asked, "Phantosmia, what can you see, ghosts?"

If a crosshair appeared in his phantosmia, that would be really impressive.

"An 'A', a colon, a left slash, a greater than sign, and then a blinking underscore! Do you understand?"

Chen Fei could tell, Big Bear clearly didn't have a clue, his face full of bewilderment.

"..."

Comrade Chekhov, who had wandered the Jianghu for more than forty years, indeed looked utterly bewildered (￣︶￣).

Who could tell Uncle Chekhov, what on earth is this aaaah!

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