Chapter 108: The Two Who Awoke and the Changes That Followed

There were six E-500 tablets remaining. One would be given to Jiang Wan, and one would be used to save Zhang Lan. That would leave only one in reserve for the future.

He stared silently at the water stains on the floor. Beside where he stood, there were two lines of text he had written earlier:

"The drinker may encounter the opportunity to recover lost memories."
"The drinker can write a set of code capable of verifying the authenticity of any content posted on the internet."

He fell silent. His desires leaned toward the first option, yet his reason kept reprimanding him. If he could not even bear a single fragment of memory, and if he could not make the coffee machine produce a brew with minimal negative side effects, could the wish to indirectly obtain memories truly be fulfilled? Without the caveat that it must be within his tolerance, would he even dare to drink the coffee it produced?

He stared at the information before him, unable to do anything but remain silent. But such an opportunity was far too rare—so rare that he wanted to gamble just once. As he looked at the words on the floor, his eyes grew bloodshot. He fixed his gaze on those lines, forgetting even to blink. He rubbed his eyes, and in that moment, he wiped away the water stains at his feet.

He took the items from his pocket and fed them into the coffee machine. He could not think; he could not deliberate any further. He slapped his own face, his desire raging like a wildfire, threatening to consume the reason hidden within his heart. He could barely hold on; the sea of desire burned fiercely, and he knew that with every passing second, his craving would only grow. If he waited any longer, he feared he would find himself hesitating between using the final three E-500 tablets to make a wish and using them to save Jiang Wan. Humans are always like this—take one step back for the sake of desire, and you will eventually retreat step after step.

He took a deep breath, dropped the currency in, and opened his mouth to speak: "The drinker can, within their own tolerance, obtain code capable of verifying whether the statements made by any speaker on a specific website are true or false."

As soon as he finished speaking, the coffee machine roared to life. The engine did not stop quickly; he watched the red light blink steadily for a moment before a greenish glow emanated from the indicator.

"It worked!"

A surge of joy filled his heart as he placed a paper cup under the dispenser. He pressed the button, and the sound of trickling liquid filled the air. This cup of coffee smelled sweeter than the last one—at least, that was his conclusion after sniffing it carefully.

Holding the cup, his lingering gaze remained fixed on the words on the floor. He walked toward the door, his steps feeling as though they spanned hundreds of meters. It was not until he left the back room, until the world before his eyes warped and a white light engulfed his entire field of vision, only to gradually return to the appearance of Zhang Lan’s bedroom, that he finally shifted his gaze back to the present.

This time, he finally had the chance to perceive the information regarding the panacea in his hand.

"E-500, Panacea."
"After consumption, restores the life form to its healthiest state; no side effects, no drug resistance."
"Containment procedures: Store away from light; the medicine should not be exposed to direct sunlight."

He looked at the chocolate in his hand, unable to reconcile it with the idea of a medicinal tablet. Shaking his head, Chen Qing finally let go of these chaotic thoughts. He took the remaining part of Zhang Lan’s body from his embrace and, under Bu Zhaozhao’s instruction, placed it back where it belonged. He looked at the two women lying in the room, his brow furrowing.