“Wuwuwu… Bai Zhen, Bai Zhen, you bastard! Bai Zhen!”

It wasn’t so much that Hua Mu was panicked or heartbroken; rather, her mind had gone completely blank. In her eyes, Bai Zhen was the strongest Sentinel and the most reliable guard. As long as Bai Zhen was around, she knew she was safe.

“Bai Zhen, Bai Zhen!”

Hua Mu stumbled in the sea, crying until her eyes were red and swollen, her vision blurred. She was a wretched sight.

After swimming to shore with great difficulty, this was the scene that greeted Bai Zhen.

“Miss, are you all right?”

She desperately needed a Little White Pill, but Hua Mu’s safety came first.

Hua Mu, thinking she was hallucinating, covered her face and wailed, “I’m not all right! Bai Zhen is dead, and I don’t want to live anymore!”

“I’m not dead, Miss. You must live on.”

How could a hallucination answer her?

Hua Mu abruptly lifted her head and, through her blurred vision, saw the Sentinel’s pale face and weak smile.

“Bai Zhen!” Hua Mu cried out in disbelief, her heart suddenly filled with the joy of recovering what she thought she had lost. “You’re okay!”

Of course, Bai Zhen was not okay. Her body was trembling, her barrier was on the verge of collapse, and she couldn’t focus her mind.

She needed Guide-hormone—even the artificial kind would do. She needed a Little White Pill.

“I’m fine…”

Bai Zhen’s already injured body looked even more terrifying now. Bruises and scrapes covered her, and a shocking wound nearly ten centimeters long on her right shoulder gushed blood.

Hua Mu’s eyes welled up, and her tears flowed even more fiercely—her beautiful muscles were hurt!

“Bai Zhen, you bastard!” the Young Lady cursed viciously as she scrambled to her feet to help the Sentinel. “Why don’t you just go… go eat shit! What are you doing back here!”

The Young Lady had wanted to say “go die,” but the psychological trauma was too great, and she couldn’t bring herself to say it. Still, the vulgar word “shit” was enough to express her anger; after all, it had made her abandon over a decade of refined upbringing.

This was Bai Zhen at her weakest. She couldn’t spare any thought to be considerate of Hua Mu and could only lean on her, staggering onto the shore.

There was a considerable difference in their height and build. Hua Mu wrapped an arm around Bai Zhen’s waist and barely managed to stay upright as she helped her onto the sand.

The two of them collapsed onto the sand, and Bai Zhen let out a rare groan.

“A-are you okay?”

Bai Zhen closed her eyes and shook her head. “I’m fine, Miss. I just need a Little White Pill.”

She knew Hua Mu disliked Sentinels relying on Little White Pills, so she never mentioned it in front of her. But now, she had no other choice—her fingers were no longer obeying her.

In truth, Bai Zhen hadn’t expected to hold on for so long after her sensory overload. The duration was nearly as long as her personal best from training.

“Could you get it for me? It’s in a hidden pocket on the right side of my trousers.”

Hua Mu had never seen Bai Zhen so weak. Her eyes, already swollen like walnuts, reddened again. Biting her lip, she hastily fumbled for the box of Little White Pills.

She had taken it for granted that Bai Zhen had enough Little White Pills and had never given it a second thought. But one look was all it took to shock her. They had been on the island for just over twenty days, and Bai Zhen had already taken four pills—and was about to take a fifth!

Nearly a third of the sixteen pills were gone. The rate of consumption was far greater than she had anticipated.

But she couldn’t dwell on it now. She hurriedly placed the white tablet in the Sentinel’s mouth.

Compared to the natural hormone released by Guides, the disadvantage of artificial Guide-hormone wasn’t its effectiveness, but its side effects.

The Little White Pills caused dependency in Sentinels. Of course, since unbonded Sentinels already had to rely on them, this effect was negligible. The more profound impact was that Sentinels would develop a resistance to the pills. The more they used them, the less effective they became, and the required dosage would gradually increase. When their supply couldn’t be replenished, a Sentinel would be more susceptible to sensory overload, or even fall directly into Eternal Night.

That was why after every mission, Sentinels had to return to the Tower and have a public Guide soothe their spirit animal. The purpose was to eliminate the artificial Guide-hormone that had accumulated in their system.

After a moment of meditation, Bai Zhen quickly regained full consciousness, and color visibly returned to her face.

It wasn’t the first time Hua Mu had witnessed the effect of Guide-hormone on a Sentinel, but she still couldn’t help but be amazed.

So Sentinels really did need Guides this much.

“Miss, are you all right?”

Seeing that the first thing Bai Zhen did upon recovering was to ask about her, Hua Mu couldn’t help but snap, “What could possibly be wrong with me? Aren’t you the one who’s hurt?”

As she spoke, she glanced at the wound on Bai Zhen’s shoulder and felt a sharp pang of heartache.

Such beautiful skin and muscles, now covered in wounds!

And those were hers!

“You just said you didn’t want to live anymore, Miss. Even if something were to happen to me, you must—huh? Miss?”

Bai Zhen’s words suddenly reminded Hua Mu of the nonsense she had spouted in her frantic state. Shame, panic, and regret flooded her mind all at once, and she turned to flee.

Bai Zhen, not knowing why she was being ignored, quickly got to her feet and followed.

“Miss, Miss, what’s wrong?”

Miss, Miss, so annoying!

Hua Mu stopped in her tracks, her face redder than a cooked coconut crab, and yelled, “Stop following me!”

“But…”

Hua Mu said, flustered and exasperated, “D-don’t get the wrong idea! It’s not like I wanted to die for you if you died. It’s because if you died, I wouldn’t be able to survive, understand? It’s an objective factor, not a subjective one!”

Bai Zhen stared blankly at Hua Mu.

She had never said anything about dying for love.

After she finished speaking, Hua Mu was also a bit stunned, wishing she could bite her own tongue off.

“A-anyway, you’re not allowed to get any funny ideas.”

Of course, Bai Zhen didn’t dare let her imagination run wild, nor did she have any idea what she was supposed to be imagining.

“I understand, Miss. You’re worried about me.”

“I am not worried about you!”

Bai Zhen smiled reassuringly, her expression clearly saying, “I understand.”

Hua Mu felt she was only digging herself into a deeper hole. She was so angry she could grind her teeth, and the more she looked at that beautiful face, the more she wanted to punch it.

She stomped over and raised a small fist, about to hit Bai Zhen, but then she saw her wound-covered body, and her heart ached too much to follow through.

Her beautiful muscles!

“What are you standing there for? Hurry up and put some medicine on those wounds! Do you have a death wish?”

Hua Mu turned and walked away. Out of sight, out of mind!

“Yes…”

The Sentinel was thoroughly battered today. Though no bones were broken, her flesh was torn and bruised.

The sight alone was painful for Hua Mu, but Bai Zhen acted as if she felt nothing, pressing the mountain patchouli onto her wounds.

Seeing her rough and clumsy movements, Hua Mu couldn’t bear to watch any longer.

“Can’t you be gentler?”

The wound on Bai Zhen’s left shoulder was the most severe; it hadn’t stopped bleeding, and the surrounding skin had turned pale. After failing to apply the herbs several times, Bai Zhen couldn’t help but press down harder.

“Miss, I’m not afraid of pain.”

But she was!

Hua Mu was afraid of pain herself, and she couldn’t stand to see Bai Zhen… to see anyone else in pain!

“Give me the dagger.”

Bai Zhen didn’t know what she intended to do, but she obediently handed over the dagger.

Hua Mu took the dagger and sliced two strips from the hem of her dress.

“Miss…”

Hua Mu’s dress, already shortened to above her knees from when she’d cut out the lining, was now missing another piece from the side.

The fabric was soaked with seawater, so Hua Mu rinsed it with fresh water before handing it to Bai Zhen.

“Use this to bandage your wound.”

“This…” Bai Zhen stared at her, hesitating to take the cloth.

“Oh, forget it. I’ll do it.” Hua Mu couldn’t be bothered with her thoughts. “Lift your arm a little.”

Bai Zhen was both flattered and startled. Seeing Hua Mu’s stern expression, she didn’t dare say another word and obediently raised her arm.

As Hua Mu looked at the defined muscles of Bai Zhen’s upper arm, she subconsciously swallowed. How much training did that take?

“M-Miss?”

Bai Zhen had thought Hua Mu was going to bandage her wound, but she soon realized the other woman was just stroking her arm. After enduring it for a while, she couldn’t help it—it was starting to tickle—and had to speak up.

Hua Mu cleared her throat in embarrassment and began wrapping the cloth around Bai Zhen’s shoulder, changing the subject as she worked.

“Why did you go head-to-head with that shark? Do you have a death wish?”

Her words were harsh, but her movements were gentle as she carefully secured the herbs over the wound.

“Don’t worry, I was confident I could handle it.”

Who’s worried!

“Hmph. If you were so confident, you wouldn’t have gotten hurt. Scars look so ugly on a girl.”

Bai Zhen touched the bandage Hua Mu had tied, a warmth spreading through her chest.

She remembered the Young Lady saying the same thing to her a long time ago, when she was just a child.

“It’s fine. Getting injured is common for Sentinels. A senior of mine once said that scars are medals of honor.”

“Nonsense. What’s truly impressive is completing a mission without getting hurt. I bet that senior of yours is terrible and just told you that because they get injured all the time.”

Bai Zhen thought about it and realized the Young Lady had a point. But she wasn’t one to speak ill of others, so she could only offer an awkward smile.

Hua Mu could tell from her expression that she’d guessed correctly, and she felt a surge of pride. Bai Zhen hadn’t had many scars before this. As expected of the Sentinel who graduated top of her class. As expected of her Sentinel!

“You’d better take good care of that wound. I don’t like scars.”

They don’t feel nice to touch.

Knowing Hua Mu’s love for all things beautiful, Bai Zhen quickly nodded in agreement, making a mental note to look for some scar-removing herbs later.

“And another thing, don’t be so reckless next time. Why pick a fight with a fish? If you can get away, you should.”

Hua Mu genuinely thought Bai Zhen was being foolish. Who fights a fish in its own element?

“But we have to pass through that area, and the shark was a liability. Bull sharks are solitary hunters, so there shouldn’t be another one in these waters. We’ll finish the raft today, and once the smell of blood has dissipated by tomorrow, we can cross the sea.”

“You always have an answer for everything!”

Hua Mu had just managed to calm down, only to get worked up all over again.

It was like talking to a brick wall. They were on completely different wavelengths… It was infuriating!