CHAPTER 74

Ye Chengxing's sleep lasted excessively long, but despite being asleep, the feeling of exhaustion in her body didn't dissipate as expected. Instead, it became even stronger.

It was like being forcefully pushed underwater and then being pulled out in the moment of near suffocation, with a hazy and heavy consciousness.

She didn't know how much time had passed exactly. She floated in the invisible water, until she heard Li Jia seemingly calling her by her side, reluctantly pulling herself out of this state.

Ye Chengxing opened her eyes, feeling not only dizziness in front of her but also a pricking pain all over her body.

"Sister, get up and take some medicine."

Li Jia placed the prepared medicine on the bedside table and reached out to feel Ye Chengxing's forehead.

It didn't seem as hot as before.

Was it because she caught a chill while squeezing the little rabbit in the backyard yesterday? Could this be what they call a severe illness for someone who rarely gets sick?

The faint golden chain had been removed by her ever since she noticed Ye Chengxing's fever.

Li Jia took a smart thermometer and measured Ye Chengxing's temperature.

The smart thermometer made a "beep" sound, and she glanced at the number displayed on it--36.4 degrees Celsius.

That's good, the temperature has come down.

Ye Chengxing could sense that Li Jia was saying something to her, but her consciousness was scattered. Even if she tried hard to concentrate, she couldn't make out what Omega was saying at this moment.

And after failing to concentrate for a while, the feeling of exhaustion in her body became even more apparent. Just when she managed to regain some clarity, her mind began to feel drowsy again.

Li Jia obviously realized that Ye Chengxing probably couldn't hear what she was saying in her current state.

The Omega simply half-embraced her, letting her lean against her chest, then took the medicine from the side and fed it to her, lips touching lips as she did so.

After feeding her the medicine like that, Li Jia wiped away the spilled liquid that she couldn't swallow in time with a tissue.

The fever subsided, but Ye Chengxing's face remained pale.

Because of just taking the medicine, her lip color appeared excessively vibrant.

However, this touch of color didn't make her complexion look better. On the contrary, it made her face even paler, fragile to the point of almost having a translucent quality.

After looking at Ye Chengxing like this for a while, Li Jia suddenly realized something. She uncertainly pinched Alpha's waist, then touched her all over from top to bottom. She confirmed the feeling—Ye Chengxing had indeed become much thinner, and her bones were almost palpable.

This degree of weight loss couldn't have happened in just one or two days, nor could it be solely due to this one instance of fever and illness.

...When did this start?

In fact, she rarely saw Ye Chengxing in such a fragile state, to the point that one could say she had never seen her like this before.

Her sister always seemed mature and accommodating, always facing her with a positive demeanor. She would gently stroke her hair and take care of her with great thoughtfulness. When she was sick, her sister would stay by her bedside all night, arranging everything meticulously for her.

Li Jia reached out and touched Ye Chengxing's forehead again.

Indeed, the fever had subsided.

But she felt an inexplicable sense of anxiety.

Li Jia carefully helped Ye Chengxing lie back on the bed and covered her with the blanket. After staring at the Alpha for a couple of seconds, she decided to go to the kitchen first.

Plain rice porridge, although bland, might not provide enough energy for the body, so she made vegetable porridge that was suitable for consumption during illness and could provide more energy.

After cooking the porridge, she also made honey lemon water, thinking that Ye Chengxing could drink it when she woke up.

Once everything was prepared, Li Jia placed them in the intelligent storage room.

She returned to the room, and Ye Chengxing's position on the bed seemed unchanged compared to when she had gone downstairs. Although she knew the Alpha was just sleeping and her spirits wouldn't be too good after the fever, Li Jia couldn't help but feel extremely anxious.

The medicine had been given, and she wanted to call Ye Chengxing to eat something. However, seeing her like this, she thought it would be better to let her rest first and then wake her up to eat.

Li Jia sat at the edge of the bed, her gaze falling on Ye Chengxing's face.

She lay there quietly, so serene that her breathing was almost imperceptible.

As Li Jia continued to watch, she noticed that Ye Chengxing looked very tired. It might be because Ye Chengxing was always smiling when facing her, always bright and sunny. Whenever their eyes met, her own mood would be uplifted. Ye Chengxing often talked, and there was never an awkward moment when they were together. Even the bedtime stories she told Ye Chengxing every night were never repeated.

But when she closed her eyes, those signs of fatigue that had always been concealed beneath her became evident, completely exposed.

She also realized that Ye Chengxing had lost a significant amount of weight, something she had only noticed today.

She suddenly remembered that she had never seen Ye Chengxing fully undressed when they were intimate, and she rarely took off her clothes completely. Usually, it would only happen when she was in a state of unclear consciousness and Ye Chengxing would carry her to clean her up. But by the time she regained some clarity, she would already be dressed again.

Initially, she thought Ye Chengxing was reluctant to be too intimate with her, which was why she didn't even take off her clothes.

But it turned out that Ye Chengxing was afraid she would see how much weight she had lost...

Once the uncontrollable recollection began, more and more details that she hadn't paid much attention to before surfaced. She also remembered the time when she couldn't stand steady and almost fell, and Ye Chengxing caught her and held her in her arms for a long time without saying a word. Ye Chengxing said it was a joke, and she only told her not to make such jokes in the future.

Was it really just a joke?

Why did she believe those words instead of taking her directly to the hospital for a check-up?

How did Ye Chengxing manage during this time?

If that's the case, then the reason she hasn't fully marked her is...

"Why are you crying?"

At that moment, Li Jia suddenly heard a soft and gentle female voice by her ear.

She lifted her eyes and met Ye Chengxing's gaze directly.

Ye Chengxing coughed twice and propped herself up on the bed, preparing to sit up. Li Jia quickly reached out her hand.

Assisted by her, Ye Chengxing paused for a moment before smiling and speaking, "Actually, it hasn't reached that point yet, but from the look on your face, it seems like I'm already dead..."

Noticing Li Jia's eyes turning even redder in an instant, Ye Chengxing stopped talking, coughed softly again, and reached out to rub Li Jia's hair. "It's alright, don't cry, be good."

After saying that, she even joked, "You look just like the little rabbit I squeezed for you yesterday."

As she opened her eyes, a smile emerged in her gaze, and the playful expression on her face dispersed some of the paleness caused by her illness.

Listening to her words, Li Jia raised her hand and touched the cool liquid on her face, realizing that she had been crying.

She hugged Ye Chengxing, and from the moment she became aware of her thinness, she felt that she had become dangerously thin.

"It's okay, sister, I'll take you to the hospital..."

She let go of her and seemed to be getting up to fetch something.

"What are you saying?" Ye Chengxing held her back, raising her hand to caress Li Jia's cheek, her tone somewhat helpless. "This is the price to be paid for completing a mission and remaining in the mission world. Going to the hospital won't help."

Li Jia caught a certain phrase in her words, and her body trembled. "W-What?"

"The price to be paid for completing a mission and remaining in the mission world?" She turned her gaze, speaking each word slowly, her eyes reddening to the point of almost shedding tears.

Ye Chengxing's voice halted.

Seeing Li Jia in this state, she suddenly realized something, her tone sounding a bit bewildered. "Didn't Xiaoli know? It's the fact that after completing a mission and lingering in this world, the body of the mission participant will become weaker and weaker."

Li Jia looked at her intently, her voice almost instantly becoming hoarse.

"I didn't know..."

She really didn't know that leaving her behind would come at such a cost.

If she had known earlier... If she had known earlier, she would never have forced her to stay.

She would rather she had left.

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