Chapter 84
909 Words
Ethan rushed over without hesitation. He saw Sophia holding July, crying uncontrollably.
Sophia sobbed, "July was fine just now. I thought she was just unconscious, but her lips turned purple and her body temperature dropped rapidly. What's wrong with her?"
Ethan's face darkened. He never imagined Maud Moody would be so cruel as to poison a child.
Pushing aside his regrets, Ethan took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down.
He immediately checked July's pulse. Though faint, it was still there, and extremely irregular.
Then he borrowed a knife, made a small cut on July's wrist, and began sucking out the poisoned blood.
General Trump, sweating profusely, had a helicopter lower a rope ladder to transport July to the city hospital for emergency treatment.
After five hours of intensive care, the purple color faded from July's lips and her weak breathing stabilized. However, she showed no signs of waking up.
The doctor regretfully informed Ethan they had no better options - they could only wait for July to wake up naturally.
But the chances were extremely low.
Sophia shook Ethan, crying, "Ethan, what do we do now?"
Ethan checked July's pulse again. After a long moment, he said bitterly, "July's been poisoned. To save her, we need an incredibly rare medicinal herb, Angel's Blood."
"What's Angel's Blood?" Sophia asked, confused.
"It's a beautiful red flower. Both its petals and stems can counteract poison," Ethan explained.
"Then let's go find it! I'll pay any price!" Sophia said urgently.
Ethan shook his head. "Angel's Blood is extremely rare. It'll take careful searching to find."
"Ethan, if anything happens to July, I'll hate you forever!" Sophia cried, before fainting.
Ethan quickly caught her.
Suddenly, General Trump spoke up, "Master, I know where to find Angel's Blood!"
Ethan's head snapped up. "Where?!"
General Trump swallowed hard. "I once heard that old shamans Elder Shaw in California has a plant of Angel's Blood!"
Ethan's face lit up with joy.
Unlike regular doctors, shamans were skilled with herbs and familiar with various mystical practices. They might really have Angel's Blood.
Ethan stood up abruptly. "While I'm gone, take care of Sophia and make sure July's condition doesn't worsen at all. General Trump, help me track down Elder Shaw, the famous shaman's whereabouts."
Ethan clenched his fists. "July, hang in there. Dad will do whatever it takes to wake you up, no matter the cost!"
***
Two days later, the peace of a small village nestled at the edge of a forest in California was shattered.
The deafening roar of heavy machinery echoed through the air as bulldozers and excavators lined up at the village entrance, facing off against a group of villagers armed with farming tools.
The bald man in the black suit glared at the villagers, his voice booming through the megaphone. "Listen up, Murphys Villagers! You've got one hour to clear out! After that, I, Hunter, am going to level this place! Don't think I won't let these bulldozers roll right over your homes!"
Anger rippled through the crowd.
"This land has belonged to our families for generations!" one man shouted. "We won't let you destroy it!"
"Damn right! We won't let some greedy crook push us around!" another yelled.
"We won't stand for this! You lied to us! We won't allow you to build here!"
With that, Hunter's eyes narrowed. He hopped down from the excavator.
A nervous worker in a blue hard hat approached him. "Sir, what we do? These people won't back down."
Hunter took a long drag from his cigarette. "Didn't you hear me? They have one hour!" he growled. "After that, I don't care if it's a house or a person under my wheels, we're pushing through!"
The worker gulped. "But... what if someone gets hurt?"
Hunter chuckled coldly. "Hurt? No, it'll be a construction accident. A little compensation will take care of that. Now, start the clock. When the time's up, we move in!"
Meanwhile, in a modest clinic not far from the commotion, Elder Shaw was performing surgery on a patient with a tumor on their neck.
Several other patients, all suffering from tumors of varying sizes, waited patiently.
"Mr. Shaw, you're a lifesaver," the elderly woman said, her voice thick with gratitude. "Our village has been plagued by this illness for some time now, with no clear beginning. Those city hospitals wanted a fortune to treat these tumors. We'd be done for without you."
Elder smiled kindly. "Don't mention it. Just doing my job. I've removed the tumor. Now, you need to rest. Come back every day at noon to have your bandages changed, and you'll be fine."
The grateful woman left the clinic.
"Grandpa, five patients straight?" Emily Shaw, his granddaughter, handed him a towel, concern etched on her pretty face. "Time for a break, don't you think?"
Elder shook his head. "The villagers have been drinking contaminated water, which is causing these tumors. The sooner I treat them, the less they'll suffer. I can rest later. Send in the next patient."
As the next patient lay down and Elder prepared for the surgery, a deafening roar shook the clinic.
The scalpel in his hand trembled, narrowly avoiding a disastrous slip.
He frowned and brow furrowed with concern. "What's all that noise outside?"
At that moment, Ethan, who had been sitting quietly in the clinic, stood up.
He bowed respectfully to Elder. "Dr. Shaw, please allow me to investigate the commotion outside."
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