Bubbles rising from the soles of his feet passed through the transparent fluid, ascending and bursting above his head, reflected in the repair pod's light.
The ventilator continuously supplied oxygen. Lin watched the shimmering emerald green in his reflection on the pod's inner wall flicker and gradually disappear. The lost sense of pain slowly returned to his body, a combined result of the high-precision nerve repair surgery and the efforts of the repair pod.
Many wounded soldiers lay in the nearby repair pods, but a circle of medical personnel had gathered in front of Lin's pod, pointing and gesticulating at him.
"When he was first brought in, if the ECG machine hadn't shown a line, I'd have suspected they were bringing back today's ingredients to make minced meat and eggplant." The doctor in charge of Lin's surgery sounded triumphant. "From the inside out, there wasn't a single good spot. Over half the bones were broken, all internal organs had damage of various sizes, half the skin was burned off—and that's not even mentioning the other injuries, let alone the two inexplicable toxins still damaging his nerves."
If the Moth of the Flame could publicly announce its existence, Lin's injuries would be recorded in human history as the most severe case ever to survive.
And the doctor who cured him, having handled this case, would undoubtedly receive the highest recognition for his abilities. This was why the doctor was so proud, recounting his glorious achievement 24/7 in the medical department, detailing Lin's injuries as if they were prized possessions, wishing he could broadcast it throughout the Moth of the Flame.
However, thanks to his superb medical skills and the advanced technology of the Moth of the Flame, all of Lin's injuries could be completely healed without leaving any sequelae. Had this happened outside the Moth of the Flame, an ambulance called for Lin's injuries wouldn't even need to stop; he'd be taken straight to the crematorium.
But this process was extremely lengthy. Just the skin regeneration alone took several days. Conservatively estimating, all these large and small combat injuries would require Lin to sleep in the repair pod for at least a month before coming out, followed by self-healing, recuperation, and rehabilitation, meaning his return to combat might take several months.
This was no big deal for Lin. However, compared to other soldiers who enjoyed a full sleep where a few days passed in a blink of an eye, his toxin-modified brain could no longer be sedated with sleeping medication. Apart from natural sleep, his consciousness was abnormally clear, which made him a little bored.
Fortunately, some people had considered this point, so Lin would often open his eyes to find people standing in front of the pod.
The first to arrive was Elysia. She came with a fruit basket filled with her favorite fruits.
Yes, her favorite.
"Oh dear, I didn't expect you to be stuck in a repair pod, Lin. Munch, munch... How pitiful, you can only receive nutrient fluid, munch, munch... So I specially brought you some fruit. Don't worry, if you can't eat it, I'll help you finish it. Munch, munch..."
Elysia stood in front of him, taking out and eating one fruit after another while Lin's eyes nearly froze over.
Her clean white teeth bit a neat little curve into an apple. The pink-haired girl licked the juice from the corner of her mouth with a pink tongue, tilted her head slightly, and gave Lin a cute smile.
Lin merely closed his eyes without saying anything about her nearly coquettish behavior.
"Oh, by the way, Lin, why are you still wrapping your face in bandages even inside this pod?" Halfway through her eating, Elysia revealed her true intention. She called out to a nearby doctor, "The patient says he can't breathe and needs the bandages removed. Is that okay?"
"But he was the one who requested it."
"But he's not covering the lower half of his body, so why cover his face?"
Elysia dissatisfiedly knocked on a spot on the pod's wall, feeling that this behavior was very indecent.
Lin's injuries were too severe, necessitating real-time monitoring of his physical condition. Coincidentally, his face had miraculously sustained less damage than other parts and was the first to heal.
Seeing the doctor look awkward, Lin spoke through the intercom: "Elysia, how's the situation with the Third Honkai Eruption?"
Whether due to weakness or other reasons, Lin's tone towards Elysia was considerably softer, but his voice had been maintained at a frigid negative twenty-five degrees for years, so to an outsider, there might not have been much difference.
However, Elysia was incredibly smart and sensitive. The moment Lin spoke, she noticed the change in his attitude. Her eyebrows curved into a beautiful crescent moon, and she teased with a slightly awkward expression: "Oh? Our little robot gentleman actually speaks to a girl with such a gentle tone? Did you finally pass the Turing test?"
"..."
Lin simply closed his eyes.
"Hey, hey, wait! It was just a joke, don't be so petty!"
Lin always felt that Elysia would slowly chip away at a person's psychological defenses, frustrating and baffling them every time.
She fully embodied the principle that the gentleman who wants to open a window must first propose smashing a hole in the roof.
"My previous question stands: how's the situation with the Third Honkai Eruption?" Lin felt he was being too lenient with her, so he reverted his tone to his usual cold state.
Elysia recalled what happened before she made time to visit Lin: "Hmm... Let me think. This Eruption has a much wider scope of harm compared to the previous two, so the usual excuse of a gas explosion might not work so well this time, but everything is still within the Moth of the Flame's control."
If the existence of the Honkai were known to the general public, the resulting social unrest would be uncontrollable, possibly causing more damage than the Honkai itself. Therefore, the Moth of the Flame's primary task during every Eruption was not to clear the affected area but to find a way to cover up the truth.
"After the Third Herrscher died, combat personnel from the branches were deployed to clean up Changkong City and several other deeply affected cities. Without communication interference, the cleanup process has been relatively smooth."
"But there were still some unexpected issues. For example, the companion Honkai Beast of the Third Herrscher you defeated still had a core. When the combat personnel found it, it had already recovered halfway, but your captain and that cute girl in your squad completely killed it."
Lin exhaled slightly in relief upon hearing the death of the Serpent-type Honkai Beast he cared about.
"But it hasn't completely ended yet. The beast's corpse mysteriously disappeared after its death, so maybe it has the ability to resurrect—it is a serpent, after all. Based on its Honkai energy reading, which far exceeded the Emperor-class Honkai Beasts, the Moth of the Flame gave it a new designation: 'Judgment-Class'."
"Judgment-Class." Lin murmured the three words.
"Ah, isn't that Elysia? Why do you have time to visit this half-dead little guinea pig?"
Suddenly, a cynical female voice came from behind Elysia.