The white-clothed woman had departed, but the matter was far from over.
Poison gas bombs remained lodged within thousands of birds. If not removed promptly, their frantic movements would lead to countless casualties.
Extracting these bombs from thousands of birds was an arduous and time-consuming task.
Shen Lang was busy for a full eight hours.
By the time Shen Lang finished stitching the wound of the last bird, applying antiseptic powder, and releasing it, it was already six in the evening.
"Little brother, you've worked hard."
Seeing Shen Lang's sweat-drenched brow, Gu Qinghan produced a clean, damp cloth and gently wiped his sweat, saying, "Sister, these are minor matters, not worth mentioning."
Shen Lang replied with a smile, then removed his bulletproof helmet and vest. He handed his black Han sword to Qin Long, saying, "Brother Qin, please store these gear properly and return them to the armory."
"Alright—"
Qin Long took the equipment and said to Shen Lang, "I'll put these back first. Brother Shen, if you truly need to go to Shuzhong, come to the Military Guard Department and find me. I guarantee you can pick any weapon or equipment you need."
The Military Guard Department had extremely strict controls over equipment and weapons. Usage required sufficient justification and timely return according to regulations. However, Qin Long, as the person in charge of the armory, could make an exception for Shen Lang.
This was solely because Shen Lang had made an immense contribution to the Military Guard Department.
Without Shen Lang, the notorious Jin Tong Yu Nü case in Nanling would not have been solved so quickly.
Without Shen Lang, Nalan Wushuang, a bandit hiding for decades, would not have been apprehended.
Without Shen Lang, they might not only have failed to execute Nalan Wushuang today but might have all perished here.
Compared to Shen Lang's contributions and merits, this minor privilege was insignificant.
"Okay, thank you very much, Brother Qin."
Shen Lang cupped his fists and said with a smile.
Half an hour later, Shen Lang, Gu Qinghan, and their party returned to the Military Guard Department.
After disembarking from the Military Guard Department's bus, Shen Lang looked at Gu Qinghan and said, "Sister, I'll be going now. We'll stay in touch."
Gu Qinghan didn't want Shen Lang to leave, but as the head of this operation, she had to report to Old Song, so she could only reluctantly utter a single word: "Alright—"
Soon, Shen Lang got into his car and drove away from the Military Guard Department.
He had left home at eight in the morning and it was now half past six in the evening. More than ten hours had passed. He wondered how Shi Qingxuan was doing at home?
She was an adult, she should be able to take care of herself, right?
Shen Lang thought to himself.
Half an hour later, Shen Lang drove back to the villa, changed into slippers at the entrance, and opened the door to enter the living room.
The outdoor temperature was thirty-two degrees Celsius, unbearably hot.
Yet, the villa's living room was like a thousand-year-old ice cave, with waves of cold air gushing out.
Even Shen Lang, a martial artist of the Earth Realm, couldn't withstand it. He felt a chilling cold to his bones, moving stealthily.
"Little sister, what temperature did you set the living room air conditioning to?"
Shen Lang, in a state of shock, shouted at Shi Qingxuan.
However, after Shen Lang shouted, Shi Qingxuan did not respond.
"Shi Qingxuan, what are you doing?"
Seeing that the living room TV was on but Shi Qingxuan didn't reply, Shen Lang realized something was wrong and shouted again.
But again, there was no response.
At this moment, Shen Lang acutely sensed that all the cold air in the living room was flowing down from upstairs.
Realizing something was amiss, Shen Lang rushed directly to the third floor.
The closer he got to Shi Qingxuan's room, the colder it became.
The cold permeated Shen Lang's bones and blood, causing him unbearable pain.
"Bang—"
As Shen Lang pushed open the door, the scene that greeted him made him freeze in place.
Shi Qingxuan lay on the bed, curled up, covered in a thick layer of frost. Her lips trembled, and her expression was one of extreme agony.
"This..."
Shen Lang's face changed drastically. Although he didn't know what had happened to Shi Qingxuan, he quickly went to her bedside.
"Shen Lang... you... you're back?"
Seeing Shen Lang appear, Shi Qingxuan, no, it was Wang Yuyan, cried out in extreme pain.
"Yes, I'm back."
Shen Lang looked at Wang Yuyan, his face filled with shock, and said, "Why is this happening?"
"I... I don't know... I was watching TV in the living room and suddenly felt very cold. I thought I caught a cold from being in the air conditioning for too long. I thought I'd go to my room and warm up under the blankets, but it didn't help. I kept getting colder."
"Ah..."
As Wang Yuyan spoke, she suddenly let out a cry of pain: "Shen Lang... I... I'm so cold... I... I feel like my blood is freezing. I'm going to die."
In a daze, Wang Yuyan reached out and tightly grabbed Shen Lang's collar, roaring, "Shen Lang, you bastard, why don't you believe Wang Yuyan is me?"
"Ah..."
Before Shen Lang could react to Wang Yuyan's words, another scream followed, and she directly fainted.
"What?"
"Shi Qingxuan is Wang Yuyan?"
Two seconds later, Shen Lang reacted, his face full of disbelief.
No, it's impossible. How could this be?
Shi Qingxuan had already confessed to him that she was Wang Yuyan's cousin and was coerced by Wang Yunchuan to marry him in place of Wang Yuyan.
But if this wasn't true, then what did Shi Qingxuan's words just now mean?
Wolong was his junior brother, meticulous and exceptionally intelligent. The investigation he personally conducted down the mountain last week would not have been wrong.
Moreover, Wolong had grown up with him, like a brother, and would never deceive him.
However, Wang Yunchuan had vehemently denied it, claiming Wang Yuyan was by no means an oddity. Now Shi Qingxuan claimed to be Wang Yuyan.
For a moment, Shen Lang's head spun. He couldn't distinguish between truth and lies.
However, Shi Qingxuan's body was frozen, her body temperature was rapidly dropping, and her life was in danger. Shen Lang's immediate priority was to save her. Everything else could be sorted out later.
"Blood pressure normal—"
"Heart rate normal—"
"Pulse normal—"
"Bodily functions normal—"
Shen Lang examined Shi Qingxuan and found that everything was normal. There was no outward sign of any problem.
Therefore, Shen Lang couldn't understand why Shi Qingxuan's body had suddenly frozen.
After failing to find any issues with the naked eye, Shen Lang resorted to using his "Dual Pupils" technique to examine Shi Qingxuan's internal body.
However, the moment he looked, Shen Lang's face turned deathly pale.
Within Shi Qingxuan's spleen, there was a white worm the size of a baby's little finger, emitting waves of white cold air.
"Ice Silkworm?"
As he uttered these words, Shen Lang's voice trembled with rage: "Damn it, what kind of unforgivable scum would use a young girl like Shi Qingxuan as a container for gu cultivation?"